6 Atmospheric Games That Have No Music

Highlights

• Some gaming soundtracks have approached icon status, but minimalism in presentation and music is becoming more prominent in indie games.
• Games like Devil Daggers and SimAirport embrace simplicity and lack of music to enhance realism and atmosphere for players in immersive experiences.
• Titles like Slender: The Eight Pages and Inside use eerie ambient tones and silence to create intense moments and gripping narratives for players.

Video games are often synonymous with deep, catchy, and memorable melodies. This has become more true as they’ve evolved in complexity and theatrical elements. Some gaming soundtracks have even approached icon status in their own right, not unlike Star Wars or Jaws, with tunes that help define the experience. Who can forget the infectious themes of Super Mario Bros. 3, or the epic compositions of Final Fantasy 7?

Still, some studios have begun experimenting more with minimalism, especially regarding presentation and music. Coming full circle to gaming’s early days in a sense, many indies, in particular, have found that less can truly be more and that stripping back the soundtrack can add to its realism or enhance its atmosphere. And while rare, there are even a few examples of games with virtually no music to speak of — and are largely more immersive and atmospheric because of it.

6 Devil Daggers

The Scary Sound Of Silence

Sorath’s Devil Daggers can be vaguely described as an even more twisted, abstract take on Doom — with its crude visuals, hellish vibe, and undiluted FPS action. The game boils things down to a simple-yet-grueling goal; ward off devilish foes and survive. The sense of vulnerability is palpable in this (literally) dark, desolate thriller, as players cease to exist just by touching one of these beings.

Players work with little at their disposal aside from finger-borne dagger projectiles and their own wits. Like most chaotic survival romps, Devil Daggers keeps players on their toes, upping the ante with more potent enemy threats and action. This raw arcade style is further driven home by a leaderboard system that display the (typically brief) survival times a monster-slayer has logged.

The minimalism and crudeness — polygonal jittering and unfiltered textures — are complemented by an uneasy silence throughout. Ironically, the lack of music or theatrics enhances the experience, engulfing players into the ominous nightmare scene and adding to the intense, spooky vibe.

5 SimAirport

Lacking In Melodies But Not In Management

This tycoon simulation emphasizes gameplay and management detail above all else. Indeed, both graphics and sound design take a backseat in this airport-building sim, as LVGameDev LLC opts for flat, simple visuals and no music to speak of. While it may seem bare-bones, it’s perhaps preferable to the rather stock tunes played ad nauseam at a real airport.

While rough around the edges — even after its Steam Early Access departure — SimAirport delivers ample rewarding gameplay the genre is known for. Players can craft vast, multi-floored airports, runways, and hangars from the ground up — as well as maintain staff members, and even tinker with flight schedules. Like most fun management or God sims, the goal is efficiency, profits, and happy customers as well as staff members.

While perhaps relatively lacking in atmosphere, it makes up for this with depth and the authenticity of airport logistics. The result is some alluring, engaging gameplay in its own right. SimAirport‘s basic sound design is more distinct than some in its approach; helping players stay focused in this chaotic airport scene rather than serve as an artistic trait. But it works, nonetheless.

4 Slender: The Eight Pages

Heart-Pounding Scares Through Silence

The legend of the tall, deadly woodland lurker called Slender Man would seem to make a great foundation for a scary survival-horror. Yet the games bearing the creeper’s name are few and far between — with a notable example being this this stripped-down horror game. On one level, The Eight Pages is about as passive and bare-bones as it gets: players must roam an unsettlingly dark, desolate forest seeking out sketched pages plastered about.

The catch? The unnamed protagonist is being stalked by the quiet-but-lethal Slender Man. Using merely their stealth and a weak flashlight, players will invite intense jump scares and eerie moments as they scour the woods and unlit indoor locales for the pages. Outside of chilling ambient noises and a heart-pounding drum beat that represents escalating danger, the game features no music. But of course, this spooky silence makes the frights and nail-biting moments all the more effective.

3 Inside

Sci-Fi, Seclusion, And A Sense Of Urgency

While indie studio Playdead emphatically hit the scene with the renowned Limbo, this similar puzzle-platformer is just as effective in gripping players with its thick atmosphere and more twisted premise. Residing in a shadowy dystopian world rife with corporate-controlled mindless humans, Inside brings many memorable, visually-driven narrative bits that guide the player from “A” to “B”.

This short-but-affecting thrill ride follows the humble, pursued protagonist on a scramble through vast industrial areas, grassy plains, and underwater depths. The game feels more akin to an experimental indie film, conveying almost nothing in the way of dialogue, interface, or music.

Immersion and fear reign in this sinister sci-fi, as players tinker with different mechanisms, traverse obstacles, and evade rabid dogs as well as employees in relative quiet. The unsettling vibe is largely maintained by eerie ambient tones and industrial sounds — which serve as the only real soundtrack.

2 DayZ

Enhancing Survival Instincts With Limited Noise

Taking after similar survival shooters like Counter-Strike, this game — whose origins lie in a mod for Arma 2 — is full of intensity, flexibility, and a more realistic presentation. Much of this vast, simulated experience takes the form of a highly minimal musical soundtrack.

This raw style makes it all the more unsettling as players fight to live another day in the hostile, post-Soviet Republic of Chemarus, which is crawling with “infected” zombies. Of course, these bouts of silence also prove helpful, as players must remain alert and aware of auditory cues from nature and pursuing foes. After all, inhabitants will need to have their wits about them as they scour and fight for food, weapons, and supplies.

1 Limbo

The Sounds Of Nature And Danger

The sounds of nature can be quite enticing and relaxing — though they could also be unsettling, as Playdead illustrates with this ambitious puzzler. An early-comer in the indie explosion, Limbo remains among the most iconic low-budget games well over a decade later. Limbo ditches color, detail, and depth with its visuals — instead emphasizing silhouetted figures and a potent sense of atmosphere with its grainy, shadowy 2D locales.

Players must deal with different obstacles and critters laced with dynamic physics as they take the role of a lone boy seeking out his missing sister. The experience rings organic despite its artistic style, letting sounds of nature and ambient noise (as well as clanks and patters) take center stage rather than music. This brings a more natural feel which enhances the chilling sense of solitude and urgency.