Many gamers, including myself, look to the newest video games for the latest in great music and no one puts more effort into their game soundtracks than EA. I’m always looking at EA Sports’ latest games for music to use on The Lowdown radio show. However, this year marks a change in philosophy for EA’s music crew. This year, they’re mixing some great new music with some older classics. They’re also mixing songs from bigger acts with songs from some less known acts on all of their soundtracks. So, want to know what you expect to hear when you get in the game? Find the soundtracks to Madden 10, NHL 10, NBA Live 10, and FIFA 10 after the jump.

Madden NFL 10 Soundtrack
2Pac – Can’t C Me
Airbourne – Heads Are Gonna Roll
Alice In Chains – Them Bones
B.o.B – Created A Monster
Bang Camaro – Revolution
Beastie Boys – Sabotage
Black Sabbath – Paranoid
Cypress Hill – Get ‘Em Up
Helmet – Unsung
Iron Maiden – Aces High
Judas Priest – Painkiller
Kid Rock – I Am The Bullgod
Killswitch Engage – Reckoning
Korn – Blind
Mastodon – Divinations
Nas feat. Puff Daddy – Hate Me Now
Nirvana – Breed
Pantera – Walk
Public Enemy – Shut Em Down
Rage Against The Machine – Guerrilla Radio
Set Your Goals – Gaia Bleeds (Make Way for Man)
Slipknot – Duality
System Of A Down – Sugar
The Vanity Plan – Before I Die
Young Dre The Truth – Cheah Beah

Steve’s (Not So Expert) Analysis: Madden soundtracks have always been a mix of rock and hip-hop music, though I’m sure that John himself wouldn’t listen to much of this. Anyway, I’ve always found Madden soundtracks to be a bit inconsistent year to year. One year, it’ll be amazing. The next, you’re hoping for those two or three decent songs to come up. This year, I’m liking a lot of the older selection. Any soundtrack with Pantera, Nirvana, and Black Sabbath earns immediate passing grades from me even if the newer stuff and the hip-hop stuff isn’t that good. Based on the artists here, though, I’m liking what EA Sports has put together for Madden. It’s good that the soundtrack is likely to stand up to the quality of the gameplay.

NHL 10 Soundtrack
Alexisonfire – Young Cardinals
Cancer Bats – Deathsmarch
CKY – Hellions On Parade
Disco Ensemble – Golden Years
Drangonforce – Heroes Of Our Time
Eagles Of Death Metal – Anything ‘Cept The Truth
Earl Greyhound – Oye Vaya
Green Day – Know Your Enemy
Megadeth – Peace Sells
Metalkpretty – Wake Up! Wake Up!
Ministry & Co-Conspirators – Keys To The City
MxPx – Kids In America
Nickelback – Burn It To The Ground
Papa Roach – Into The Light
Priestess – Raccoon Eyes
Rancid – The Bravest Kids
Scorpions – Rock You Like A Hurricane
Thousand Foot Krutch – Fire It Up

Steve’s (Not So Expert) Analysis: The one thing that I’ve always liked about the NHL series is the indie rock soundtrack. Using lesser known artists is almost a metaphor for the NHL being a lesser known sport in America. And that’s a shame because the NHL series is likely the most critically acclaimed series that EA Sports has going for it. Anyway, I’ve thought the NHL series hit a high note with the 2007 soundtrack and it’s been slowly going downhill since. This year’s looks even worse. The less known artists are going to be good, I’m positive. The mainstream artists worry me. I don’t want to hear the clichéd “Rock You Like A Hurricane” as appropriate as it would be in Carolina. And I really don’t want to hear Green Day or Nickelback. A good effort to make the NHL series’ soundtrack more like the other games but I just don’t think it’ll fit.

NBA Live 10 Soundtrack
88 Keys feat. Colin Munroe – Wake Up Call
Afrika Bambaataa feat. Why G, Mickey Factz &The Fort Knox Five – Zulu! (We Don’t Stop Yawl)
B.o.B. – Champion
Beastie Boys – Pop Your Balloon
David Banner & GQ – S.P.I.T.
De La Soul – La La La
Dead Prez – Still Bigga Than
Embassy Music Board – Overtime
Grand Puba – Get It
Laza – Crank It Up
Matt & Kim feat. De La Soul – Daylight (Troublemaker Remix)
Matt & Kim – Daylight
Mick Boogie feat. Kidz In The Hall, Donnis & Daytona – Class Of Our Own
Mickey Factz & B.o.B. – Mind Got Blown
Mos Def feat. Talib Kweli – History
Murs feat. Kurupt & Jay Rock – We Ballin’
Pete Rock – When I Need It
Reflection Eternal – Get Lite
Rye Rye feat. Busy Signal – Get Like This
Snoop Dogg – Lodi Dodi (LIVE 10)
Wale feat. Jazmine Sullivan – World Tour
Wyclef Jean feat. Haitian Fresh – Ballin’
Xzibit feat. BJ The Chicago Kid & Poo Bear – Fanatic
Young Dre The Truth & 2Pac feat. BJ The Chicago Kid – All Eyez On Me (The Truth)
Zion I – Go Hard

Steve’s (Not So Expert) Analysis: I don’t know much about hip-hop except that Snoop rules and that Young Dre is his nephew or something like that. Haven’t the faintest idea about this soundtrack. If you’re a fan of hip hop and looking for new songs, I’d start here though.

FIFA 10 Soundtrack
Adiam Dymott – Miss You
Afrobots – Favela Rock
Alex Metric – Head Straight
Auletta – Meine Stadt
Balkan Beat Box feat. Tomer Yosef and Saz – Ramallah-Tel Aviv
BLK JKS – Lakeside
Bomba Estéreo – Fuego
The BPA feat. Ashley Beedle – Should I Stay Or Should I Blow
Buraka Som Sistema feat. Pongolove – Kalemba (Wegue – Wegue)
CasioKids – Fot I Hose
Children Collide – Skeleton Dance
Crookers feat. The Very Best, Two Fingers & Marina Gasolina – Birthday Bash
Cut Off Your Hands – Happy As Can Be
Dananananaykroyd – Black Wax
Datarock – Give It Up
Fabri Fibra – Donna Famosa
Fidel Nadal – International Love
Los Fabulosos Cadillacs – La Luz Del Ritmo
Macaco – Hacen Falta Dos
Major Lazer – Hold The Line
Marcio Local – Soul Do Samba
Matt & Kim – Daylight (Troublemaker Remix feat. De La Soul)
Metric – Gold Guns Girls
Mexican Institute Of Sound – Alocatel
Nneka – Kangpe
Passion Pit – Moth’s Wings
Peter Bjorn And John – Nothing To Worry About
Pint Shot Riot – Not Thinking Straight
Playing For Change – War / No More Trouble
Rocky Dawuni – Download The Revolution
Röyksopp – It’s What I Want
Soshy – Dorothy
The Answering Machine – It’s Over! It’s Over! It’s Over!
The Enemy UK – Be Somebody
The Temper Trap – Science of Fear
Tommy Sparks – She’s Got Me Dancing
The Whitest Boy Alive – 1517
Wyclef Jean – MVP Kompa
Zap Mama – Vibrations

Steve’s (Not So Expert) Analysis: Given the number of international acts in this game, I may want to differ to Jackie for proper analysis. I haven’t heard of many of these artists. However, with 25 different countries represented, EA has done a good job of representing the fact that soccer is the world’s game. Hopefully this game brings exposure to all these international artists in other regions of the world. Lord knows that Ghana’s Rocky Dawuni is likely to be easier on the ears than Nickelback. Did I mention that I’m not fond of Nickelback?