Origin: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
Plays In: Hyrule (Light World)
Status: Arrangement
Arranged By: Koji Kondo
Zelda.
For two months, Zelda has graced us with its glorious presence. Breath of the Wild made the gaming public fall in love with the series all over again, with an avalanche of perfect scores (including my own!) from the media and players still being overwhelmed by its massive world. I am no exception to the latter: even now, nearly two weeks later and having already beaten the final boss, I still feel like I haven't so much as scratched the game's surface.
Of course, Breath of the Wild is not without its criticisms: be it the oversights found in the "Blood Moon" mechanic, the difficulties in rain patterns, or people's woes with weapon durability, it just goes to show no game is perfect. Personally, I find the "drop and switch" nature of the weapon durability to be the most interesting gameplay Zelda's utilized in over a decade, and I find most of the voice acting complaints to be rather overblown; really, I've found the game to be a near-perfect experience.
One particular complaint that's rather common revolves around its usage of music, as some say there's not much in the realm of memorable tunes. Actually, this was something I found myself agreeing with in my Hey Poor Player review...to an extent, anyway. There's certainly a good number of well-composed tracks that captivated me, be it the enigmatic shrine theme or the castanet-heavy battle theme, but I did find myself agreeing the best songs often lied in familiar arrangements, be it Rito Village's beautiful take on Dragon Roost Island or how the stables weave in Epona's Theme.
Do I see this as a flaw? Well...not particularly. Do remember not only was that review was only done after five days of playtime, but it's been over two months since. Since then, I've encountered several other fascinating original works, namely the diminutive march of Korok Forest and the foreboding Lost Woods that precedes it. It might not be my favorite Zelda in regards to music, but there's certainly many pieces I enjoy. (Any Hateno Village fans?)
Breath of the Wild is a game designed to destroy Zelda traditions while maintaining its identity as the most ambitious game in the series; in that respect, it's only natural Nintendo, a development team that's only just exploring open-world gaming, is going to make missteps, let alone please everyone. For every success they've had in the game's physics or dynamic combat, surely those who praise those aspects take issue with dungeon design or the minimalist approach to story and music (and do remember that those who called for change aren't necessarily the same people disappointed with said change; instances of hiveminding like this are what lead to false preconceptions such as the infamous "Zelda Cycle").
I could list several suggestions for improvement if I wanted to, but they're hardly enough to dethrone what I and many others consider the current top contender for Game of the Year. As far as the music goes, it's not the best, but I hardly find it as forgettable as Twilight Princess or Skyward Sword, and that alone renders it a success for me.
...so which Zelda game does have the best soundtrack? Well, why do you think I selected a song from A Link to the Past? Chalk it up to nostalgia all you like, but I consider everything about the Super Nintendo to be timeless, from the graphics to gameplay to music. A Link To the Past is one of the very few games I could consider to be perfect, and its score is one of the many, many reasons why. Songs like the Dark World, Time of the Falling Rain, Lost Woods and the Light World Sanctuary still chill me all in different ways, and this happens to be my favorite version of the classic Zelda overworld theme! That buildup is just delicious.
Could a future Zelda game overtake it? Who knows, but I have a strong feeling we'll be moving on from minimalist in the next entry...whenever that may be!
Final Thoughts: Actually, to avoid burnout, I've been taking a bit of a break from Breath of the Wild...but I'm hearing the cooking music calling me back.
By the way, does anyone else think the Smash Bros. for Wii U rip for this feels...off?
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