Timeless Nintendo Music

Timeless Nintendo Music

When you talk about video games, you often talk about how they appear graphically. Or at least that’s what the crowd is looking at. Then you still have a group that likes graphics but looks more at what a game brings based on gameplay. Maybe the last group, is the group that I belong to the most. Both have a certain value, and Nintendo emphasizes on gameplay over graphics but there is one thing that is often overlooked and that is the Nintendo music.

Soundtrack to orchestra

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Nintendo has a tremendously rich music history. Everyone who hears the first two notes of the Super Mario Bros theme knows what I am talking about and that is just one example. Nintendo itself is blessed with a man like Koji Kondo.

Music from games from the Super Mario, Legend or Zelda, Donkey Kong series are all so instantly recognizable and loved by so many people.

In the past, Rare understood this, for example; with several of their releases you got a soundtrack (as long as the stock was up to it). I will never forget Killer Instinct on the SNES with Killer Cuts or the DKC soundtracks.

Nintendo music if done right … is timeless!

Sure sometimes you have Nintendo music in games that is good but which makes you think could it be done better? Let’s take a recent game as an example; The Legend of Zelda – Breath of the Wild.

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The game can be recognized by the minimal use of music when you are in the overworld, something totally opposite of what we are used to from Zelda games. But it fits. Could it have fitted a full blow orchestral interpretation here … sure that would have worked.

For those who are not so familiar with Nintendo music, for the Nintendo 64 games, The Legend or Zelda – Ocarina of Time and The Legend or Zelda – Majora’s Mask, Nintendo has released fully orchestrated music.

Nintendo music that I still find superb to this day but that is almost no longer obtainable for a ‘normal’ price . Let alone digitally via one of the music services that rule the yard nowadays.

But the music from Nintendo is also an inspiration to many, let’s stay in the Zelda trend and listen to Taylor Davis – Melodies of Hyrule: Music From The Legend of Zelda

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or Lindsey Stirling – Zelda Medley

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In short, such music would have fitted BOTW as well …  right?

But Nintendo has so many nice titles with really nice music that it is very unfortunate that the music is not well available. Fortunately, there are now and then alternatives … but no matter how cool they are (see for example The Marcus Hedges Trend Orchestra below) I would like the original.

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Preface

When I originally had the idea for this editorial, it was just in the news that a 5 disc Soundtrack for Breath of the Wild was coming shortly followed by a Super Mario Odyssey soundtrack … in Japan. I have therefore waited a while with this item but I think we then get to the most important point that I want to make with this editorial;

Availability Nintendo music

It is actually a great outrage that the soundtracks (OST) are virtually unavailable in both Europe and the United States. And yes I know that there are opportunities to import the necessary via websites like PlayAsia.

But we are living in a digital age and it would be so nice if Nintendo chose to make the OSTs of games like Super Mario Odyssey, Legend or Zelda – Breath of the Wild available. In addition, I think of services such as Apple Music and Spotify.

Ubisoft did that with Mario + Rabbids – Kingdom Battle and how strange that might sound to people, I’ve heard that soundtrack already 30+ times. Sure it being composed by Grant Kirkhope helps enormously because I am a fan of his work.

If you think about it, it’s actually not very smart of Nintendo to make their music so unavailable. Let me give an example why I am really convinced of that;

The animated Mario movie

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Yes you did not see that twist coming, but what is the whole reason that Nintendo is working with Illumination Entertainment? Well 1 they want a party that together with them gives a good representation of Mario. I absolutely trust the company behind the Minions and Despicable Me to deliver on that.

Why I suspect it will be a success? 1 we are talking about animation (which Illumination Entertainment really is good at) and we are talking about Nintendo. Nintendo will never ever want the fiasco of the Super Mario Bros. to happen again and thus will keep a very close eye.

But the reason why Nintendo is making a Mario movie with them is very simple; they want to make more people familiar with Super Mario and Nintendo as a brand.

Not crazy at all and they will certainly succeed because you can bet your life on it that the Mario animated movie is going te be marketed like there is no tomorrow.

Soundtracks in 2018

So back to Soundtracks … what works well next to movies in cinemas? Music through digital services … right! Nintendo would be very wise if it were to offer existing and future soundtracks on digital platforms such as Apple Music and Spotify. If the goal is ‘only’ to get known by a larger audience.

Soundtracks from Super Mario 64, Galaxy, Banjo, Kazooie, Donkey Kong, Yoshi nah I can continue for a while but that would be nice to have or not?

Should it be free?

Preferably from a Nintendo standpoint; maybe even yes! That way you reach the youth and everyone who has a warm heart for Nintendo music.

But if it were not to be free, it would still be much better than the situation that exists today. Where lovers have to do a lot of effort to get something that Nintendo wants to offer. In this way you reach much more than just the market that you know is there in Japan itself.

What are the soundtracks from Nintendo that you would purchase directly digitally provided it would at least be possible? I personally still have a list laying around …