Clay Fighter may be a parody but its soundtrack doesn't miss
Beat.Trip.Game
with Lyndsey Beatty
with Lyndsey Beatty
I have a certain fondness for the original ClayFighter. It came at a time when every fighting game in the market was trying to capitalize on the success of Mortal Kombat and make a name for themselves. However, ClayFighter differentiated itself with weird stop-motion graphics, a lot of humor and a banger of a soundtrack. These are my favorite tracks from the fighter that didn't take itself seriously.
1. Fort Frosty (Bad Mr. Frosty's stage): My favorite character, Bad Mr. Frosty is the analogy closest to Mortal Kombat as an obvious Sub-Zero rip-off. His stage is cool, too (see what I did there?). It sounds like a winter wonderland and looks like one, too. The flute here does all the work and makes it the standout track of all of the characters easily. And I promise you, I heard it a lot because I played with and beat the game a lot with Bad Mr. Frosty.
2. Circus Tent (Character Select): The character select screen theme is a banger. Bouncy and fun, it invokes going to the fair and the circus as it should. It's playful and light, which doesn't at all go with the foreboding sense of doom that you get from the intro showing a clay-filled meteor striking an amusement park.
3. Opera House (Helga's stage): The Valkyrie combatant is a fun character who reminds of Dictator of Street Fighter fame, and Sonya Blade and Sindel of Mortal Kombat. Her stage, a play imitating Valkyrie, is appropriately epic and cool. The drums make this a ride like no other.
4. Haunted House (The Blob & Ickybod Clay's stages): The Haunted House theme, which is shared by two locations, is spooky and fun. Campy horror is perfect for both characters, and the bass line here is killer.
5. Arena (Tiny's stage): The resident strongman is a rough and tumble fighter who is analogous to Zangief of Street Fighter. The coliseum is a nicely animated stage with a cool guitar effect and synths thrown in for good measure. Whoever rocked out on that guitar in the studio must have had a good time that day because it shows in the riffs.
6. Big Hunk O' Burning Clay (Blue Suede Goo's stage): The Elvis impersonator clay figure is in the building. This rockabilly homage is unique and a good representation of the genre, especially for a SNES game. The horns make the track standout. This stage and character were always a highlight for the late GI Mama and the track was particularly one of her favorites.
Lyndsey Beatty is editor-in-chief of Gaming Insurrection. She can be reached by email at lyndseyb@gaminginsurrection.com
1. Fort Frosty (Bad Mr. Frosty's stage): My favorite character, Bad Mr. Frosty is the analogy closest to Mortal Kombat as an obvious Sub-Zero rip-off. His stage is cool, too (see what I did there?). It sounds like a winter wonderland and looks like one, too. The flute here does all the work and makes it the standout track of all of the characters easily. And I promise you, I heard it a lot because I played with and beat the game a lot with Bad Mr. Frosty.
2. Circus Tent (Character Select): The character select screen theme is a banger. Bouncy and fun, it invokes going to the fair and the circus as it should. It's playful and light, which doesn't at all go with the foreboding sense of doom that you get from the intro showing a clay-filled meteor striking an amusement park.
3. Opera House (Helga's stage): The Valkyrie combatant is a fun character who reminds of Dictator of Street Fighter fame, and Sonya Blade and Sindel of Mortal Kombat. Her stage, a play imitating Valkyrie, is appropriately epic and cool. The drums make this a ride like no other.
4. Haunted House (The Blob & Ickybod Clay's stages): The Haunted House theme, which is shared by two locations, is spooky and fun. Campy horror is perfect for both characters, and the bass line here is killer.
5. Arena (Tiny's stage): The resident strongman is a rough and tumble fighter who is analogous to Zangief of Street Fighter. The coliseum is a nicely animated stage with a cool guitar effect and synths thrown in for good measure. Whoever rocked out on that guitar in the studio must have had a good time that day because it shows in the riffs.
6. Big Hunk O' Burning Clay (Blue Suede Goo's stage): The Elvis impersonator clay figure is in the building. This rockabilly homage is unique and a good representation of the genre, especially for a SNES game. The horns make the track standout. This stage and character were always a highlight for the late GI Mama and the track was particularly one of her favorites.
Lyndsey Beatty is editor-in-chief of Gaming Insurrection. She can be reached by email at lyndseyb@gaminginsurrection.com
