It's long been said that music can soothe the savage beast. Presumably, the intended meaning of that saying is that beautiful music can soothe a troubled soul and stop them from committing wicked deeds.
There's some truth to that, but you know what can often work just as well? Smacking that troubled soul in the face with a guitar. Whether through conjuring magical melodies or the simple act of aforementioned smacking, some game characters have found ways to get a little more creative with their musical instruments than perhaps intended.
10 Eddie Riggs - Brutal Legend
In the ancient period of pre-history when metal made the world go 'round, a humble guitar becomes a conduit of powerful elemental magic. When master roadie Eddie Riggs finds himself in this magical land, he swiftly realizes that his humble guitar, Clementine, can summon lightning, produce explosions, and shake the very earth with its power chords. That's not even mentioning the strongest abilities Eddie has, his solos, which can literally melt enemies' faces off with their sheer rock awesome-ness.
9 I-No - Guilty Gear Series
As a self-styled witch, you'd expect I-No to make use of a broomstick or perhaps some manner of magic wand, but I-No isn't exactly a traditional witch. I-No's weapon of choice is Marlene, a vintage Duesenberg Starplayer II guitar. When strummed, Marlene produces caustic packets of magical energy that explode in an opponent's face, as well as gigantic blades of sonic force. Of course, even if you dodge past all the magical projectiles, there's nothing stopping I-No from using Marlene to smack you upside the head (which she will, and gleefully at that).
8 Demyx - Kingdom Hearts Series
Out of all the members of either incarnation of Organization XIII, Demyx is definitely the most hands-off. He doesn't like working, and he definitely doesn't like fighting, even though he's actually a fairly competent combatant. This is why his preferred approach is to strum his gigantic sitar, Arpeggio, to summon up duplicates of himself made of water.
While these duplicates aren't individually very strong, the sheer number of them Demyx can conjure up in short order makes getting overwhelmed by them a very real concern, and that's assuming he doesn't club you over the head with his sitar while you're busy with them.
7 Ricardo Gomez - Shadow Hearts: From The New World
A passionate man who transforms his various muses into soulful flamenco tunes, Ricardo wows the streets and clubs of Chicago as a mariachi day and night, mostly night. His music is so moving, it actually has the power to heal wounds and invigorate the mind. Of course, when your main squeeze is Al Capone's sister, you have to know how to defend yourself. That's why all of Ricardo's guitars are loaded with deadly gimmicks, including guns, flamethrowers, and rocket launchers. Even when the neck of his guitar pops open to reveal a shotgun, though, he can go right on playing.
6 Bunk Bed Junction - No Straight Roads
In a city powered and dominated by EDM, the underground rock duo of Mayday and Zuke, collectively known as Bunk Bed Junction, stands for the power of alternative forms of musical energy, especially their favorite classic rock. May wields a tricked-out electric guitar, while Zuke pounds the air with a pair of special NSR-brand drum sticks.
These sturdy instruments can be used to pummel enemies senseless, though the potent rock they produce can also be used to influence the world, transforming innocuous objects like stage lights and crates into weaponry and defensive walls.
5 Big Band - Skullgirls
Ben Birdland used to be a beat cop on the streets of New Meridian, busting punks and keeping the peace. Unfortunately, no one told him his entire squad had gone crooked, which is how he would up on the business end of a violent betrayal. Ben was recovered by the Anti-Skullgirl Labs and grafted with an arsenal of pneumatic weaponry, all of which just so happen to resemble the instruments you'd see in a jazz club band. This was how the cybernetic defender Big Band was born, taking up arms against the armies of the Skullgirl and prosecuting crooks to the fullest extent... of the jazz.
4 Marin - Hyrule Warriors
In her original appearance in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, Marin isn't a combatant. She's just a villager from Koholint who loves music, teaching Link the Ballad of the Wind Fish to summon forth the eponymous creature. In Hyrule Warriors, though, she leaps from the realm of dreams onto the battlefield, armed with one of the Instruments of the Sirens, the Sea Lily's Bell. Forcefully ringing this large bell produces concussive shock waves of sound and water, and if Marin rings it loudly enough, the Wind Fish itself will appear to lend her its aid.
3 The Kongs - Donkey Kong 64
Donkey Kong is known to slap a mean pair of bongos in his downtime, but when it comes to adventuring, he doesn't really have much reason to bust them out. The exception to this came in Donkey Kong 64, as Candy Kong offers special instruments not just to DK, but the rest of the Kong family to aid in their crusade against the Kremlings. Donkey Kong gets his usual bongos, Diddy gets an electric guitar, Lanky gets a trombone, Tiny gets a saxophone, and Chunky, bless his heart, gets a triangle. When played, these instruments produce a massive shock wave that can instantly defeat all minor enemies nearby.
2 Sona - League Of Legends
Sona has never been much for words, but that never stopped her from bonding with those she cherishes through music. With a practiced hand and a touch of magic, Sona strums out melodies on her stringed etwahl. Sona's playing is well-known throughout Demacia and beyond, both for just generally sounding amazing and for the empowering effects it bestows upon her allies. When she's in peak form, Sona's melody is so irresistible that even those who seek to harm her can't help but drop everything they're doing to dance along.
1 U-1 - Gitaroo Man
On the alien world of Gitaroo, the people pray for an appearance by their ancestral hero, Gitaroo Man, whose bloodline somehow wound up on Earth in the form of a whiny pre-teen named U-1. U-1 is kind of useless on his own, but when he lays hands on the legendary Gitaroo, a guitar-like device that launches mighty bolts of lightning, he transforms into Gitaroo Man. Agents of the Gravilian Empire with their own Gitaroos appear to attack U-1 and take his Gitaroo, as legend has it that whoever assembles the Gitaroos will receive ultimate power, but U-1 ends up taking all of their Gitaroos instead thanks to his surprisingly proficient playing.