VGM Arrangement Review: Legend of Zelda 25th Anniversary CD

 

A few posts ago I mentioned that the Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword would come with a 25th Anniversary orchestral CD.  Upon first hearing of the news, I was hopeful, yet skeptical, that the CD would be legitimately good.  As I had said, Nintendo would not have needed to try hard to make the arrangements on the album good because members of the Zelda fanbase would eat orchestral versions of their favorite tunes up regardless of how much original material the arranger adds.  Plus, I’ll admit that the London Phil’s half-hearted attempt at making a VGM CD made me less excited about listening to this album.

That being said, the record is awesome, and I highly recommend it to any lovers of both Zelda and VGM in general.  The eight tracks on this record span a total of 45:13 and move in and out of a good number of Zelda releases.  There are four medley-type tunes (“The Legend of Zelda 25th Anniversary Medley,” one for Wind Waker, one for Twilight Princess, and a “Main Theme Medley”), three single-song tracks (“Gerudo Valley” from Ocarina of Time, “Great Fairy Fountain’s Theme” from A Link to the Past, “Ballad of the Goddess” from Skyward Sword), and one track that’s the combination of two versions of itself from two different games (“Kakariko Village – Twilight Princess Theme,” which stems originally from A Link to the Past).

Skyward Sword Limited Edition to include orchestral CD

I just checked out IGN and they had a bunch of photos of the opening of their limited edition copy of Skyward Sword.  Not sure what was to be included, I look on the page and this caught my eye:

Upon squinting after being able to read “Orchestra CD,” it turns out that the disk is a 25th Anniversary album.  IGN couldn’t reveal the track list, but I’m hopeful in both that it will have great tracks and great arrangements.  But who knows?  I don’t think that Nintendo has to work very hard on making sure that they have interesting arrangements–most of the Zelda fanbase will eat this up regardless.  That being said, I might just go pre-order myself a copy despite my skepticism (it has a nifty golden Wiimote included, too!).

“Skyward Sword” to feature a harp

News:  According to a press release revealed on the blog UndergrounDuelists, Link will have a harp to play in the upcoming Skyward Sword.  The harp will use the functions of the Wii Remote Plus.

Opinion:  My first impression is to be excited about this feature, though I don’t know if I should be.  The last time I played a musical instrument in Zelda was in Ocarina of Time, and the function of the music in the game and the tunes themselves really sold me on everything.  I remember playing the game at my friend Kyle’s house (again, I had a PSX and not an N64) and rushing home to learn the tunes on my house piano.  Every time I played the game afterwards, I just wanted to bust out the song of storms everywhere.

That being said, I’m not sure if the other games have had musical elements and, if they did, whether or not they were any good. If the harp in Skyward Sword has a similar function to the ocarina, I’ll be psyched and will definitely review the songs here.

Source (also includes spoiler-ish information about dungeons and game progression, so be wary): “PR: Link’s Adventure heats up in the Eldin Volcano; music and game play converge in Skyward Sword“