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Music can make some games more enjoyable or immersive, but it has not been shown to make players better at games in general. The effect depends on the game and the goal: a soundtrack that fits the action may deepen the experience, while music can compete with useful cues or attention. Beat synchronization is a promising exception in rhythm-based play, not a general performance boost.
Does music make you better at video games?
There is no reliable general answer of “yes.” The studies available here examine different games and outcomes, and they do not establish that background music improves scores, accuracy, reactions, or competitive skill across genres. A result in one game should not be treated as a rule for another.
For example, a 2004 experiment using segments of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers found statistically significant differences on some, but not all, of 21 verbal experience scales when a musical score was present. The study measured players’ experience, not a universal skill advantage. Lipscomb and Zehnder, 2004
What music may improve: enjoyment and immersion
Music may help a game feel more involving when it suits the game’s content. In two studies, Jia and Sherrick found that music perceived as congruent with game content, compared with no music or incongruent music, increased character identification and transportation into the game; those responses contributed to greater enjoyment in the first study. The second study partially replicated the findings in a more interactively demanding game, with congruent music increasing transportation, enjoyment, and appreciation. Study 1 included 105 people and Study 2 included 73. These findings suggest that fit matters; they do not show that any playlist will improve every game. Jia and Sherrick, 2025
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When synchronization may affect performance
A 2026 study of 90 Geometry Dash players compared sections in which the soundtrack beat and required movements were synchronized with sections in which they were desynchronized. Synchronized sections had higher cohesion, flow, positive affect, heart rate, and breathing rate; performance also increased significantly after practice in the synchronized condition. This is a specific result about a rhythm-based platform game, where timing is central to play. It does not establish that adding unrelated music helps aim, reaction time, or scores in shooters, strategy games, or other genres. Entertainment Computing, 2026
How music can distract or change the way you play
Music may also affect decisions rather than simply make play better or worse. In a mixed-design study of 60 people playing a custom platform game, Rogers and colleagues found less risk-taking when music was present during the first playthrough. The effect did not persist after players learned the difficulty progression. Music attributes also affected some measures of immersion and mastery. The result illustrates why familiarity with a game and the specific outcome being measured matter. Rogers et al., CHI PLAY 2019
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A 2010 role-playing-game study abstract describes 20 participants playing The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for 45 minutes on each of five consecutive days under different audio conditions. It reports the highest scores with unrelated music and the weakest performance without sound. Because the available details are abstract-level and concern one game and protocol, this is a narrow, inconsistent signal—not sound advice to turn music on for better scores. International Journal of Gaming and Computer-Mediated Simulations, 2010
Should you play with music on or off?
Choose based on what you want from the session and whether the music gets in the way of information the game asks you to hear or notice. There is no evidence here for one best genre, tempo, or listening setup. Music and sound effects are also different: if footsteps, alerts, dialogue, or other game sounds matter, preserve those cues when testing background music.
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- For atmosphere or enjoyment: try music that fits the game’s mood and content, then compare how engaging the session feels.
- For rhythm-based play: pay attention to whether the music’s beat aligns with the actions you need to perform; the evidence is specific to synchronized play and practice.
- For a score or precision goal: compare your results with music on and off in the same game, using similar conditions. Do not infer a performance gain from feeling more immersed.
- For a first playthrough: notice whether music changes your willingness to take risks or distracts you from learning the game’s cues and patterns.
Keep the comparison simple: use the same game, mode, difficulty, and approximate session length, and change only whether background music is playing. Track the outcome you care about—such as score, accuracy, or enjoyment—rather than relying on a general impression that music must help.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the evidence does—and does not—establish
The studies cover small groups and specific games or short play sessions: 105 and 73 participants in the two enjoyment studies, 90 in the Geometry Dash study, 60 in the platform-game study, and 20 in the abstract-level role-playing-game report. Those are study samples, not estimates of how music affects all players. The sources do not provide a pooled estimate of music’s effect on gaming performance or identify a universally beneficial soundtrack.
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The clearest distinction is between experience and performance. Music can support enjoyment or immersion when it fits the game, while evidence for broad skill gains remains limited and mixed. Rhythm-based synchronization is a specialized case because the soundtrack can directly align with the actions being practiced.
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