Summary
Some video game sound effects and music are almost as iconic as the video games they’re from. Your ears would surely perk up if you randomly heard theSuper Mario Bros.coin sound orDark Souls' ‘You Died’ sound effect in public. Similarly, soundtracks like Ezio’s Family fromAssassin’s Creed 2and theStreet Fighter 2theme are also immediately recognizable to gamers.
However, there are some sound recordings that are so culturally significant that the government gets involved. The US Library of Congress has a dedicated section for these types of sound recordings, and keeps adding to them every year. While it’s mostly filled with songs, historic speeches, and even sports commentary, this year features a video game soundtrack.
The Minecraft Theme Enters The US Library Of Congress' List Of Nationally Significant Recordings
Along with the likes of Celine Dion’s My Heart Will Go On and My Life by Mary J. Blige,Minecraft: Volume Alpha has made it onto the 2025 list. “Since its official release in 2011, Minecraft has grown into a cultural phenomenon, building its legacy as one of history’s most successful video games one voxel at a time,” says the entry on theLibrary of Congress' website.
“Key to the game’s early success is the ambient-style soundtrack, created by German producer Daniel Rosenfeld under his alias, C418. The gentle electronic score lends itself perfectly to the game’s open-ended design and sandbox environment, which invites players to interact, explore and build, free from any specific narrative constraints.”
Along with the Minecraft theme is the Microsoft Windows Reboot Chime, better known as the Windows 95 start-up theme. Younger audiences may not know what it sounds like, but for us old folks, it ushered in the age of computers and the early days of the internet.
The Minecraft theme is only the second video game related recording to make it onto the list, with the first one being the Super Mario Bros. theme by Koji Kondo, added in 2000.
