5. Batman: Arkham Knight – Wayne Manor Piano
This piano is part of a nice little easter egg. During one of the optional missions in Wayne Manor, if Batman interacts with the piano, a hidden wall is revealed. This wall contains hints of the Batman: Arkham VR game. The clues on the wall actually outline the plot of Arkham VR. At the time of the discovery, Arkham VR was not even announced, so this was a great mystery to behold. This mission is not available in the base game, it is DLC which also includes a mission in the Batcave. The piano might also be a reference to Batman Begins wherein the Batcave was accessible by playing certain notes on the piano.
4. Splinter Cell: Conviction – Kobin Mansion Piano
Nobody on this list plays a rendition of KA-DUNK quite like Sam Fisher. Splinter Cell: Conviction uses an interrogation system where the player can interact with objects in the environment to *ahem* persuade someone to give information. One of these objects is a piano. Smashing someone’s head on the keys is an experimental play-style if I have ever seen one.
3. Resident Evil – Spencer Mansion Piano
From the first Resident Evil game in the Spencer Mansion, Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield can both encounter this piano. Jill can play it, but to Chris, the sheet music looks like moon-speak, so he cannot play it. When he returns with Rebecca, she can play it, revealing the Gold Emblem in a secret room. This piano has a legacy in the series as it returns in the 2002 remake and in the Resident Evil 5 DLC Lost in Nightmares.
2. Max Payne – All the Pianos
In all three Max Payne games, Max has opportunities to play the games’ theme. In Max Payne 3, there are four different pianos to be played. Each time, Max gets a little better until the fourth time where he plays the song without messing up. I could have made three different Max Payne entries here, but the legacy of Max’s piano playing is bundled into one.
1. Super Mario 64 – Mad Piano
This damn piano. This was one of the scariest moments of my childhood gaming experience, up there with the Redeads in Ocarina of Time. In Boo’s Mansion, there is a room with a piano lit by the moon. At first, you think “Yay! A unique piece of geometry to jump on!”, but no. As soon as you get close, this piano starts chomping and shambling towards Mario with a jarring and intrusive noise. The pseudo-fixed camera angle adds to the creepiness of the encounter in a classic Resident Evil sort of way.
Honourable Mention: Grand Theft Auto IV – Piano Mod
I’m making my way downtown, walking fast, faces pass and I’m home bound. You all know this piano. While it is not part of the official game, this mod gave the internet a great meme. The only reason you should not know about this is if you are not from this planet. That being said, if you are not from this planet, welcome and allow me to explain this video. A GTA IV mod allows the player to “drive” a piano as if it was a car. The original video is by the YouTube user taltigolt and the music is added by Matthew Jackson. The song is A Thousand Miles by Vanessa Carlton and in its music video, she plays the piano as it seemingly drives down the road, just like in Jackson and taltigolt’s video.
Well, that concludes COGconnected’s Top 10 Pianos in Gaming. I hope you’ve learned a bit about pianos and a bit about yourself. If there is a piano that you think should be on this list, definitely do not hesitate to bomb the comments with your corrections and tell me how stupid I am. If you want to see more lists like this, also bomb the comments.
Thanks to Aaron, Andrea, Dan, and Monika for bringing some of these to my attention!