Legally distinct (DEFINITELY not plagiarised!) music in video games

[X y b e r - S k u ll]

Post your favourite video game songs clearly ripping off other peoples music. I know there's some really obvious ones, so I'll start with a bit of a deep cut;

Curiously; when Muv Luv got an (Official) release outside of Japan, this song was missing... I wonder why...

 

[csanjuro]

Super Robot Wars K

 

[Evoluder]

oh boy not Super Robot Wars K catching another stray

Anyway, Infinity Mjnion's theme from Mega Man X6 sounding like The Final Countdown comes to mind


also E2M1 sounding like ACDC's Big Gun, for an example

Post automatically merged: Oct 26, 2025

also like


every single DBZ Budokai 1/2/3 track lmao

 

[χKai]

 

[Ferik]

My personal favorite from this is just E2M1 being a really fast version of Big Gun.

But also Doom 3 to keep on the Doom train:

Sounds a heck of a lot like Lateralus once they both get going

 

[RBDragonite]

Yuzo Koshiro really likes Black Box...

 

[jon2]

 

[TruxtonTatsujin TruxtonTatsujin]

 

[Sfjeov]

I think it was at 9:56 in which you could hear Rolling Stone's Paint It Black

 

[X y b e r - S k u ll]

Yuzo Koshiro really likes Black Box...

The mans got good taste tbf to him.

Hearing the story about why Rance's theme is basically just Eastern Germany's national anthem makes hearing these even funnier.

I know Kenji Yamamoto is infamous for this sort of thing, but it's still baffling every time you hear his music how he genuinely thought he could get away with it.

 

[shelbyntime]

Metal Squad from Thunder Force IV (song composed by Toshiharu Yamanishi) is very similar to Soldier of Fortune by Loudness.

Infamously, the main theme of Metal Gear Solid stopped being used after people discovered the similarity between it and a song from Russian composer Georgy Sviridov called The Winter Road.

 

[NotReallyHere]

The only correct answer

There's been plenty of comparison videos over the years, but even back in the day, I almost immediately equated E1M1 with DRI. It's not exact, but close enough that I still find myself screaming "HOOKED!!" at the appropriate moments whenever I replay that level...

 

[SpcDaicon]

It's curious to see how City Pop influenced many of Nintendo's music

Also, my favorite. Sorta not gaming related tho

 

[Pinballbuzzbro]

they didnt even try hidin it with the name lmao

 

[Heidegger22]

 

[Lee__Kanker]