Noriyuki Asakura made a stealth game soundtrack that actually sounds like silence with intent. Tenchu 2 on PS1 blends traditional Japanese instrumentation with this restrained electronic undercurrent that keeps everything coiled and tense.
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Wriggle (Sneaky Footsteps) is literally what creeping across rooftops sounds like, sparse and deliberate. Then Rakshasa (Squirming Heat Haze) erupts when things go wrong, and the shift from patience to panic is so well composed.
Fate (Sad Ninja Way) carries this melancholy weight that hits different after a mission. The guy also scored Rurouni Kenshin, so the feudal Japan feel is completely in his bones. If you miss when stealth games trusted you with real quiet, put this on.