How many people remember music from the games they’ve played? From movies they’ve seen? Music plays an integral part in any form of digital entertainment, especially video games. There are certain tracks in particular that are very memorable, and that we should all keep close to our hearts because of their significance and how they made us feel. I will be bringing back tracks on a consistent basis, and I will also include a link to a remix of the track so you can further appreciate its magnificence. I will begin with a piece so great, its 8-bit limitations didn’t stop it from being something really memorable.
The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening is the first portable Zelda game ever made. It came out in 1993 in the U.S, and was met with critical acclaim. The music was composed by Kazumi Totaka. This is because of the incredible amount of polish put into this title. It was really innovative for its time, and put in place things that would be used in subsequent Zelda games, the main one being the use of a musical instrument. This is the main reason why this track is so memorable. In the game, you are tasked with finding eight musical instruments, all with the end goal of using them to wake up the Wind Fish.
The real innovative part here is that you can hear how the song progresses. As you acquire new instruments, you can go up to the Wind Fish’s egg and play them. Whatever instruments you have will be used in the song. You get a great feeling of accomplishment every time you acquire an instrument, since you now have something new to listen to. This excitement builds up throughout the adventure, until you finally have all eight, and can finally wake up the Wind Fish.
It’s an incredible piece that can really emote the sadness that you’ve felt throughout the game, since at this point you probably already came to the realization that things aren’t what they seemed at the beginning. It’s also an incredibly soothing piece, which kind of contrasts the whole “awakening” purpose, but still manages to tug at the heart-strings with its changing tempo, and good mix of instruments. I can play this song on loop all day, it always makes me feel a bit sad, yet satisfied. It’s the end, but it’s also the beginning, and right now, it is very symbolic to me. The Ballad of the Wind Fish, a song that you should all listen to if you haven’t already. If you haven’t heard it before, you need to go play Link’s Awakening, since it is one of the greatest adventure games of all time. Here is a remix of the song, in an orchestral style. Enjoy everyone, I will have more for you all soon!