Summary
Toby Fox is many things: an artist, a writer, a game developer, and even a comedian, but there’s one thing which he particularly excels at, and that’s making music. After all, he composed most of the music for his two famous video games,UndertaleandDeltarune, which have what are considered some ofthe best soundtracks in the entire gaming industry(although it’s also important to point out that he received help from a few guest composers for the latter).
With the recent release ofDeltaruneChapters 3 and 4, players have been enjoying the game’s diverse, catchy, and beautiful soundtrack, which features a collection of really well-made tracks that have already made a huge impact on the fanbase, ranging from slow and atmospheric non-combat songs to fast-paced and chaotic boss themes. Needless to say, all fourDeltarunechapters are filled to the brim with excellent music, but the following eight songs are the absolute best ones in the entire game.
8"A DARK ZONE"
The Perfect Halloween Chiptune
Within the dark depths of Chapter 4’s Dark Sanctuary, players get to face a new Darkner mini-boss named Jackenstein.The fight itself is weird, funny, challenging, and inventive, but its biggest highlight is the introduction of “A DARK ZONE,” the song that plays in the background.
This 8-bit chiptune is incredibly catchy and perfectly fits the playful Halloween/Haunted House theme of the encounter, not to mention that it contains elements of some of Toby Fox’s previous works, like Napstablook’s theme fromUndertale. However, the most impressive thing about “A DARK ZONE” is that it gets constantly interrupted by the jack-o-lantern’s iconic “IT’S TAKING TOO LONG!” catchphrase, and yet it never feels like the music gets any less fun or exciting because of it. They’re seamlessly combined.
7"THE WORLD REVOLVING"
Jevil’s Chaotic (But Beautiful) Boss Theme
Back in 2018, the inclusion of a super-hard secret boss fight was one ofthe most exciting parts ofDeltarune’s very first chapter, and fortunately, Jevil himself ended up being an extremely challenging, charming, and mysterious enemy. Something that definitely contributed to his growing popularity was the song that played during his encounter, titled “THE WORLD REVOLVING.”
As his name implies, Jevil is a powerful court jester, so it makes a lot of sense that his theme song is a chaotic and funny circus-like tune that even sounds surprisingly beautiful at times, and (similarly to “A DARK ZONE”), it’s even elevated by the boss’ strange 16-bit voice lines. In a way, “THE WORLD REVOLVING” feels like the ideal unofficial hymn for all fictional clown/jester characters.
6"Black Knife"
The Roaring Knight’s Theme Song Makes Them Feel Even More Threatening
At the very end of Chapter 3, players finally get to face the game’s main antagonist, the infamous Roaring Knight, and they immediately defeat Kris, Susie, and Ralsei without any issue. Thismade the villain come off as extremely powerful and dangerous, a sentiment that was enhanced by their ominous theme song, “Black Knife.”
Of course, the initial encounter was extremely brief but, fortunately for players, they can listen to this song a second time in the full optional boss fight against the Roaring Knight. Since this encounter is extremely challenging, and the villain overwhelms the player with a multitude of projectiles that are almost impossible to avoid, Black Knife feels like a threat in song form, as if the Roaring Knight is telling the player that they’re never going to win. This is a very impressive composition with many parts to it. Fortunately, it will most likely play again in future chapters.
5"It’s TV Time!"
Tenna’s Boss Theme Feels Like It Came From An Old-School 16-Bit Game
One of Toby Fox’s biggest strengths as a musician is that he can make beautiful compositions with many different sound fonts, and in Chapter 3 ofDeltarune, he showcased his talent at making 16-bit music, similar to what one could hear in an old-school Super Nintendo or Sega Genesis video game. This was especially evident during the climactic boss fight againstthe main character of the chapter, Mr. Ant Tenna, where his theme song, “It’s TV Time!,” plays in the background.
Since Tenna is a living television set who also plays the role of game show host, his boss theme is absolutely perfect, because it sounds both like the theme song of a conventional TV game show while also feeling like a fast-paced and exciting RPG battle theme. Needless to say, “It’s TV Time!” is a catchy and lighthearted song that makes what was already a creative and funny fight feel even more exciting.
4"THE HOLY"
One Of The Most Beautiful Songs Toby Fox Has Ever Made
The evolution betweenUndertaleandDeltaruneis often compared to the jump from an 8-bit RPG to a 16-bit RPG, a curious sentiment that is perfectly reflected by the song that plays when Kris and Susie are in front of a Dark Fountain: “THE HOLY.”
The haunting background score and the beautiful female choir, combined with the Dark Fountain’s bright light, ends up creating an incredible, bone-chilling atmosphere that makes Kris and Susie’s journey through the Dark World seem all the more important. “THE HOLY” feels and sounds likesomething from a classic Super Nintendo RPG - likeFinal Fantasy 6orSecret of Mana-and it’s definitely one of the most beautiful songs in Toby Fox’s entire musical repertoire.
3"Vs. Susie"
An Intense Rock Song That Perfectly Reflects Susie’s Character
One of the best and most brilliant tropes in the world of video game music is the implementation of a character’s casual theme song in their own boss theme, and this is something that Toby Fox has done multiple times in bothUndertaleandDeltarune.Back in Chapter 1, Susie was introduced alongside her own theme song, simply called “Susie,” a brief but intense rock-and-roll tune with an excellent electric guitar riff that said everything about her as a character: She’s a lonely and violent bully.
However, Susie evolved a lot throughout Chapter 1’s story, so when she faced Lancer during the third act, her regular theme song evolved into her boss theme: “Vs. Susie,” which is fascinating because she’s actually the playable character of this encounter, not the boss. This song is even more intense, complex, and longer, not to mention that the electric guitar is utilized a lot more because Susie is furious with Lancer this time around. Nevertheless, “Vs. Susie” still feels like a somewhat tragic and melancholic tune. This is because Susie was also absolutely heartbroken by her new friend’s betrayal. Fortunately, she later found out that Lancer was just trying to protect the “Fun Gang” from his father, and they were able to make amends.
2"BIG SHOT"
Spamton Deserved A Complex And Catchy Boss Theme Like No Other
From the moment he was introduced, it was immediately apparent that Spamton was one of the goofiest, funniest, and most interestingDeltarunecharacters. Of course, his initial overworld theme song (simply named “Spamton”) and his first boss theme (“NOW’S YOUR CHANCE TO BE A…") were catchy, weird, and unique tunes, but none of them can even compare to “BIG SHOT,” the song that plays during the secret boss fight against his Spamton NEO form.
Like “Vs. Susie,” “BIG SHOT” combines his previous two character themes in order to create a chaotic, exciting, and incredibly catchy boss fight theme that further cements Spamton NEO as a real threat to the player, and not just a random joke character. On top of that, it also contains elements from other Toby Fox compositions (like “Dummy!” fromUndertale) and, like “THE WORLD REVOLVING,” is elevated by the inclusion of Spamton himself sporadically spamming his iconic catchphrase: “Now’s your chance to be a BIG SHOT!”
1"Rude Buster”
The Most Energetic And Addictive RPG Battle Theme Ever Created
While Toby Fox’s music has gotten better and better with the release of every newDeltarunechapter, the most impressive and delightful composition in the entire game was introduced back in the very first one, and he brilliantly went on to reuse it on more than one occasion. “Rude Buster” is the song that plays during most regular enemy encounters in Chapters 1 and 2, which means that it should get old and repetitive very fast, and yet, it never does.
This is a tune that can be listened to for countless hours, but it will never get tiring or annoying because it’s just incredibly energetic, catchy, fun, and it perfectly encapsulates that, despite all the dark and tragic elements of its narrative, the world ofDeltaruneis as colorful and goofy as its predecessor’s. This song even has some significance within the story, seeing as “Rude Buster” is also the name of Susie’s main in-game attack. Toby Fox even reused “Rude Buster” for some of the new battle themes of Chapters 3 and 4, meaning that this is not only an excellent song, but it also lends itself very easily toremixes that can fit different atmospheres, like the aptly-named Ruder Buster.
