General Zelda Are You Opposed To Classic Returning Themes?

[Sheik]

Musical themes.

So in just about every game we hear Zelda's Lullaby, or in many we hear the Overworld Theme from the original Legend of Zelda.

Should we really be hearing classic themes like these reused? I know that some times they are used as simple cameos or throwbacks, but other times it just seems a bit lazy to me.

I'm mostly pointing fingers toward several of the 2D games (ALttP, LA, TMC, et cetera). In these games, the main overworld theme is a remake of the original Legend of Zelda overworld theme. I really wish that they were something different, something other than the musical piece we all have completed embedded in our minds.

Your opinion?

 

[PalaeoJoe]

I think that we should see a few more older themes r̶e̶u̶s̶e̶d̶ remixed and used again. That would be better than just reusing a familiar song.

 

[Salem]

I would say they're sometimes not enough returning themes, meaning they reuse certain themes too much, but there's a lot of old themes that were either not used again or only rarely used again.

 

[Snow Queen]

I'm not opposed to it, but I really like hearing new themes instead of.old'n ones. Keeps things fresh, ya know? Imagine if every game was Song of Storms, right?

 

[r2d93]

I agree with the over world theme in those games being basically the same, it makes the main theme lose some of its magic when you hear it all the time...

But I'm all for reusing old themes if they are incorporated into a new variation in a cool way. For example, Fairy Fountain I want to always stay basically the same but I love how each game has its own cool different variation of it. Also I want them to reuse themes in another theme. Take Sacred Grove from TP that used Saria's theme as the base

 

[Farore's Chosen]

Continue to do what Zelda and most other games have always done, bring back the old to delight older fans and introduce the new to delight every fan. What I would like is for Zelda to start creating tunes and to quit pumping out crap that sounds like the musician got drunk, banged away on the synthesizer for fifteen minutes, declared it "Music" and put it on the game.

Crap that sounds like drunken, dischordant, keyboard banging that tortures your ears and gets stuck in your brain:
Lakebed Temple
Temple of Time TP
Forest Temple OoT
Lanayru Mining Facility
Snowpeak Manor
Skyview Temple
several of Oracles and LA's dungeons

Zelda Greats That are Actually Music and Not Future Torture Devices:
Legend of Zelda Title Screen
Great Palace
Palace Music
Stone Tower Temple
Temple of Droplets
Gerudo Valley
Nayru's Song
Tarn Ruins
Song of Storms
Midna's Lament
Sacred Grove

 

[mαrkαsscoρ]

i thought minish cap was gonna be the last to use the overworld theme,then link b/w worlds came out...

but yeah,they really should stop reusing these tracks over and over

 

[Ver-go-a-go-go]

I'm absolutely all for the return of some classic themes. This does come with a major caveat for me though - they must be used properly, and in the right place. Let me explain what I mean by that:

I really don't think when a re-used theme is in the forefront constantly. If the classic Hyrule Field theme were to return once more, albeit remixed a bit differently, I wouldn't really be a fan of that. It's something that I'll hear constantly given the nature of Hyrule Field, and I would feel like the game is relying too heavily on nostalgia of past games to get itself by. It's a new game, and for those areas I would either want a mind-blowing remix that differentiated itself from its predecessors radically, or just a new re-imaged theme in the first place. A good example is TP creating a brand-new theme for Kakariko village with a distinct flare that was hardly like the original in ALttP and OoT. I would have been opposed to the classic Kakariko theme reappearing, because it would have lost its charm and become dull after the first few visits (I visited Kakariko many, many times during my multiple playthroughs of TP).

The flip side of that is remixed themes that are very sparingly used and situational - TP is another fantastic example of this. The Serenade of Water, one of my favorite themes from OoT, was used to superb effect in that game. You only hear it when interacting with Ralis, or the ghost of his dead mother, which is completely appropriate; The Serenade of Water is deeply tied to the Zoras, and since it's rather heavily implied and kind of obvious that Ralis and his mother are decedents of Ruto, it makes perfect sense to bring back that theme and re-use it. Of course, it's also been re-imagined in a downright beautiful way. One thing I'll never, ever forget in the Zelda series is following Ralis' mother to her grave while that beautiful rendition played. It was the perfect time and the perfect place to bring the theme back,, and it isn't over-used in the slightest. It really makes me treasure that part of the game, and the inherent nostalgia I have for OoT just tops it off even more.

Another okay-ish example is hearing the Song of Healing once more, but as a wolf in one of the howling stones. Man, that was beautiful as well, hearing Link howl it along with the spirit of the Hero of Time. Makes me want a MM HD remake even more....

 

[snakeoiltanker]

I in no way agree. the music is what makes the series. should it be the songs be the same style every game.... No, in that case we would be playing a brand new zelda with 8-bit music. However im all about remixed version, or just the same song using different instruments, kinda how ALBW did.

I would really like to see a lot more of the 8-bit and 16-bit music come back with new renditions. Especially the AoL Palace theme, id love to hear that again. I Love the Zelda Music, a new song in some dungeons would be okay, kinda like WW did! but i love the throw back music in every game!

 

[kingofhyrule]

No way, returning music themes are what make the series.

 

[ihateghirahim]

A series thrives on nostalgia and familiarity. That's what distinguishes those games that pop up and leave from those series that endure as classics. I'm all for returning themes, songs, enemies, etc. It allows us fans to connect with the series and fall in love with it as one vast collection of awesome, as opposed to just liking one game or another. Zelda has a lot of potential for this, and I would love to see fans like us rewarded for years of loyalty and love to franchise with greater homage to older games in the future.

 

[Iridescence]

Some classic themes should be included, so long as its remixed to make sense with the game it is included in. But overall, each game should have its own ambiance.

 

[NoRush]

I love when the old beautiful songs make there way back in! I however play on the emotional ties of what it could mean in the series...perhaps this is the same Link, or perhaps the Flute Boy in ALttP had taught the song to his father before going off to look for the Golden Power himself and THAT'S how it got handed on...haha who knows? But the point is - when something as important as music is reused, it makes me go *gasp!* in real life and think about the awesome opportunities it may mean for the Zelda timeline.

If it's not really that deep, then every now and then a song would be nice, but new ones should be created. The Sun's Song for instance, I think, should actually be used more given that it was on the Royal Family's Tomb. Shouldn't it be wayyyy more popular throughout the games?

Seriously. Why isn't the Sun Song used more?

 

[youpster900]

Well , this is a mix bag for me , I love these themes to death but they are used too much , the wise choice would be too remix other themes with their own little twist ( like the sacred grove from TP ).