Beat Saber is undoubtedly one of the biggest games on any VR platform at the moment and it consistently receives new music packs themed around a certain artist. But what’s next?
As Beat Games started on a path to being acquired by Facebook, we’ve seen Beat Saber feature DLC music packs with artists that are a bit more prominent and mainstream, such as Panic! at the Disco, Green Day and Timbaland.
The last few DLC releases for Beat Saber each explored a genre of music that’s new to Beat Saber, while still featuring fairly mainstream and popular artists. You’ve all probably got your own opinions and niche picks for a list like this, but we’ve tried to follow the same trend of picking big artists with a distinct style or genre of music that would be fairly new to the Beat Saber catalog.
So, here’s our list of 10 artists that we’d love to see appear as DLC music packs in Beat Saber, plus some recommendations of specific tracks that we think would fit well.
Billie Eilish
Billie Eilish is one of the biggest names in pop music at the moment, but not for producing pop music in conventional terms. While she’s become a large mainstream artist, a lot of her music features unconventional sounds, themes and structures. She draws influence from a wide range of music styles and while some of her tracks might be a bit slow for Beat Saber, there’s definitely a few playful hits that could work well.
Eilish also has a very distinct dark visual style, and is known for having clear direction on how each of her music videos should look. This could work well with the maps’ visuals, producing some dark and spooky environments to match the music.
Potential tracks: Bad Guy, All The Good Girls Go To Hell, Bury A Friend
Queen
There’s been calls for some classic rock or pre-2000s music to make its way into Beat Saber for so long, and what better band would there be to lead the charge than Queen? So many other popular rhythm games have featured the iconic band in some capacity, so it feels only fitting that they get the Beat Saber treatment as well. Queen is a timeless band, adored across generations, making them a perfect and accessible pick for a DLC music pack.
Potential tracks: Don’t Stop Me Now, Under Pressure, Bohemian Rhapsody
ABBA
Who doesn’t like a bit of ABBA? If we’re not going to get Queen, then the next best pick would surely be some of the Swedish pop group’s danceable tracks. If you need proof that ABBA in Beat Saber would work, just check out some of the custom tracks that exist online already.
There’s huge potential for unique, more danceable beat maps in such a DLC pack. No one can resist bopping along to Dancing Queen, but give us a Beat Saber version as well!
Potential Tracks: Dancing Queen, Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight), Mamma Mia
Lizzo
One of the biggest breakout artists of 2019, Lizzo’s tracks feature danceable beats and lots of positive vibes. Her music would probably scale particularly well across difficulties as well, with equal potential for simple Easy maps and extravagant Expert+ maps.
It wouldn’t be the first time Lizzo has made a VR rhythm game appearance either — her track ‘Juice’ is available as DLC for Audica already!
Potential tracks: Juice, Truth Hurts, Boys
Bruno Mars
Bruno Mars is an artist that a lot of people feel very average about, but there’s no denying his tracks gain widespread playtime around the world. You may not love every Bruno Mars single, but you probably know most of them. He manages to produce music that’s simultaneously modern while also dripping in nostalgia, and there’s already some super fun Bruno custom tracks online — let’s make it official!
Potential tracks: 24K Magic, Finesse, Uptown Funk
The Killers
The Killers are not the most famous rock band on the planet, and they’re mostly known for their early career hits. However, tracks like Mr Brightside are undeniably huge and would probably draw interest from the Beat Saber crowd. The Green Day song pack proved that Beat Saber maps can be adapted to work with rock music quite well, and we’d like to see something similar happen here.
Potential Tracks: Mr Brightside, When You Were Young, Somebody Told Me
David Bowie
Admittedly, this is the biggest curveball on the list and seems quite unlikely, but we can dream! It might seem like an odd fit at first, a lot of Bowie’s songs could produce really interesting and different beat maps. That being said, despite Bowie’s legendary status, if Facebook is going to go with a pre-2000s artist, they’ll probably be more inclined to go with a safer pick, such as Queen or ABBA. Still, it would be awesome to play some Bowie
Potential tracks: Rebel Rebel, Heroes, Ziggy Stardust
Kanye West
It’s true, Kanye has not been in the most top form lately, both musically and otherwise, but some of his earlier work could make for some sublime Beat Saber tracks, especially given we’ve yet to receive a rap-focused Beat Saber song pack.
Perhaps the biggest barrier to this song pack becoming a reality is Kanye himself — his songs aren’t all that family friendly, and given recent events, he might not be a public figure Facebook would be inclined to associate with. But some of his music could make for some incredibly fun and dynamic Beat Saber beat maps, and his popularity is undeniable.
Potential tracks: Stronger, Power, Heartless
Daft Punk
This one feels like a real no-brainer. The French electronic music duo would be an amazing fit, and there’s already loads of custom Beat Saber tracks online featuring their music. Daft Punk are almost universally acclaimed and could attract a huge audience. While Beat Saber does already have a large selection of electronic music, Daft Punk tracks would carry a certain prestige that some of the existing EDM tracks in the game do not.
Potential tracks: One More Time, Get Lucky, Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger
Taylor Swift
While her music is not for everyone, Taylor Swift has an astounding audience of young fans across a range of different ages. A music pack of her tracks might not appeal to everyone, but it also has potential to attract a different crowd to Beat Saber than usual. Her music is family friendly and features heaps of pop tracks that would translate excellently across to Beat Saber — it might be a slightly unconventional pick, but it could be a good one.
Potential tracks: Shake It Off, Style, We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together
So, there’s our list but what’s yours? Let us know who you’d like to see in a Beat Saber DLC music pack in the comments below.
Featured image: Billie Eilish at 2019 Pukkelpop Festival by Lars Crommelinck Photography
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