The stories behind game music
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The Stories Behind Game Music — Daily trivia Wednesday, September 30, 2026: questions and answers
All 10 questions with answers and explanations. Play this daily
Q 01Which game's famous theme is an old Russian folk song?
- APac-Man
- BSpace Invaders
- CTetris
- DSuper Mario Bros.
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Tetris
Tetris. The tune, Korobeiniki, is a 19th-century Russian song about a peddler haggling with a girl, a metaphor for seduction.
Q 02Michael Jackson reportedly wrote uncredited music for a game starring which Sega hero?
- AAlex Kidd
- BEcco the Dolphin
- CNiGHTS
- DSonic the Hedgehog
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Sonic the Hedgehog
Sonic the Hedgehog. Jackson's musical director Brad Buxer said the star went uncredited on Sonic 3, unhappy with how the Genesis played his music, though senior Sega staff said any deal was made without their knowledge.
Q 03To make Halo's theme feel ancient and mysterious, its composer opened with which kind of singing?
- AGregorian chant
- BThroat singing
- CYodeling
- DGospel choir
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Gregorian chant
Gregorian chant, first heard when Steve Jobs unveiled Halo at a Mac show in 1999. A year later Microsoft bought the studio and made Halo an Xbox game.
Q 04At which Olympics did athletes march into the stadium to theme songs from video games?
- ALondon 2012
- BBeijing 2008
- CTokyo 2020
- DParis 2024
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Tokyo 2020
Tokyo 2020, held a year late. With COVID-19 keeping fans away, the athletes marched to Japanese game themes in a nearly empty stadium.
Q 05Civilization IV's theme song, 'Baba Yetu', is which famous prayer sung in Swahili?
- AThe Hail Mary
- BThe Serenity Prayer
- CThe Prayer of Saint Francis
- DThe Lord's Prayer
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The Lord's Prayer
The Lord's Prayer. Christopher Tin re-recorded it for his album Calling All Dawns, and in 2011 it became the first video game music to win a Grammy.
Q 06Which Beatle wrote music for the video game Destiny?
- AJohn Lennon
- BPaul McCartney
- CGeorge Harrison
- DRingo Starr
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Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney. His co-composer Marty O'Donnell was fired months before launch, and was later held in contempt of court for posting music from the game online.
Q 07Katy Perry re-recorded 'Hot n Cold' for which game series?
- AGrand Theft Auto
- BThe Sims
- CAnimal Crossing
- DMinecraft
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The Sims
The Sims. Perry sang 'Hot n Cold' in Simlish, the games' made-up language, for The Sims 2: Apartment Life, and later got her own Sims 3 pack, Katy Perry's Sweet Treats.
Q 08The Legend of Zelda nearly opened to which classical piece, until Nintendo found it was still under copyright?
- ABoléro
- BFür Elise
- CThe Four Seasons
- DCanon in D
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Boléro
Boléro. Composer Koji Kondo had matched it to the opening crawl, then pulled an all-nighter to write a new theme.
Q 09Trent Reznor scored Quake, so its makers put his band's logo on the ammo for which weapon?
- AThe nailgun
- BThe shotgun
- CThe grenade launcher
- DThe rocket launcher
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The nailgun
The nailgun. Its wooden ammo crates carry the Nine Inch Nails logo, a nod to the band behind the game's sinister soundtrack.
Q 10Recording as Doctor Spin, which musical-theatre giant turned the Tetris theme into a UK top-10 dance hit?
- ATim Rice
- BLin-Manuel Miranda
- CStephen Sondheim
- DAndrew Lloyd Webber
Show answer
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber, with producer Nigel Wright. Their Eurodance 'Tetris' charted in 1992, the same year he was knighted.
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