Tabs and video tutorials only go so far; sometimes you just need to get a hold of that video game’s sheet music. We’ve gone out and found six of the best video game sheet music sites that should give you all the bars, crotchets and quavers you need to play your favourite gaming soundtrack.
1. NinSheetMusic
Price: Free!
Nin(tendo)SheetMusic is the sheet music repository for anything from Pokemon to Super Mario Bros to Banjo-Kazooie. Even better, it’s still an active site, the last update (as of writing) having come out at the end of July 2017.
To be honest, I’m surprised this site is still online, considering how protective Nintendo tends to be of their intellectual property. But don’t look a gift horse in the mouth: NinSheetMusic is the place to go if you need some Nintendo beats to play.
Strengths
- Free
- Good quality sheet music
- Lots of choice
Weaknesses
- Piano-only
- Nintendo-only
2. Music Notes
Price: A few dollars per song
Music Notes isn’t solely dedicated to video game sheet music like some of the other entries, but it does have a well-populated specialised section with a wide range of different songs from a variety of games. Most of them are for piano, but you can also find vocals, woodwind, brass and even some string compositions.
Unfortunately, the good quality of this sheet music does come at a cost—literally. You can expect to pay a few dollars for each set of sheet music you purchase. You can preview them online for free, but if you want to print the whole lot, you’ll need to cough up.
Strengths
- Wide range of games and instruments
- Excellent quality sheet music
- Printer-friendly.
Weakness
- Costs $$$
- Mostly favours piano music.
3. Ultimate Guitar Tab Pro
Price: ~$45USD
Ah, Ultimate-Guitar.com. Is there any better example of the generosity of the music community? Any song you could ever imagine probably has a tab, or even a full set of sheet music, right here. That includes your favourite video game soundtracks too.
Most of the stuff you’ll find are tabs, rather than actual sheet music. But if you get Tab Pro, you can access the premium stuff, which includes sheet music. It can be a little pricey, but if you want access to a lot of stuff (rather than just the single sheet music on Music Notes), this can be a good way to get it.
Strengths
- Lots of choice
- Good quality sheet music
- Get access to a lot of sheet music
Weakness
- Costs $$$
- Heavily guitar and bass-oriented.
4. Video Game Sheet Music and Other Junk
Price: Free!
Most of the time, Tumblr blogs are full of rants or porn or rants about porn. But shadoninja has put together a seriously useful blog that has an incredible amount of really good quality video game sheet music. And better yet, it’s all free.
This blogger has put a lot of effort into providing something awesome; they even include a music player in each blog post so you can listen to the song before you download it. He or she has also covered a significant number of games titles, so you’re likely to find something you like at the very least.
Direct link to video game sheet music archive
Strengths
- Free
- Lots of choice
- Music previews
Weaknesses
- Limited in number compared to larger sites
- Mostly piano stuff
5. Final Fantasy Music
Price: Free!
When writing for the web, you’ve got to find your niche. And that’s exactly what Final Fantasy Music has done. If you want sheet music from the never-ending series that ironically has ‘Final’ in every single game, this site will have it.
As a bonus, you can also find song lyrics and MIDI tunes as well.
Strengths
- Free
- Specific
- Covers most Final Fantasy games
Weaknesses
- Some sheet music isn’t very good quality
- Very niche
6. Ichigo’s Sheet Music
Price: Free!
With over 3,000 pieces of sheet music and an additional dozen or more submitted each month, Ichigo’s Sheet Music is the granddaddy of video game sheet music sites. It’s got a lot of piano sheet music, but also strings, woodwind, brass and even some group compositions.
Most of the music is from Japanese games, but you’ll still find a few Western choices here and there. There’s also a good amount of anime sheet music too.
Strengths
- Lots of choice
- Totally free
- Wide variety of instruments
- Still very active
Weaknesses
- Mostly Japanese games and anime
- Layout is a little lacklustre
Hope all you video game musicians out there found this useful! Did I miss an important site? Let me know in the comments below!
Rad or Shite Gaming 