Now for one of the more subjective parts of the rant!
MUSICFor this section, I'll be using Youtube links in an attempt to help show what I mean, so we have some examples. I'll also note that when it comes to Darksiders, I don't remember the music as well there, so you might want to take what I say about the game here with a grain of salt. But anyway, lets get cracking!
Naturally, Music is by nature driven by tastes, so this may have a lot of controversial opinions. However, the music in and of themselves isn't necessarily the only thing I'll be discussing, but also how certain songs are used, etc. There is one nice thing about all 3 games in that the N64 era is about the time where Music Quality stopped really making notable upgrades in instrumentation. By which I mean, the jump from SNES to N64 is greater than that of N64 to later gens. This means I can compare the three games easier on a fair basis, as well as OoT NOT having to use that "I'm old!" excuse. I'm also going to try and avoid saying which I prefer and such, but I can't make promises <_<
I DO promise to, however, not just play random favorites of mine from whatever game. In fact, I am going out of my way to NOT use my favorite song out of all 3 games in this bunch, on grounds that I will totally fanboy over it and won't be able to avoid bias and-....ahem...anyway...
(if you guys know me, it should be obvious which song I'm referring too. If you don't...well, keep it that way <_<)
How Music is used well can help make songs better or worse than the song is at its base. Look at Marvel vs. Capcom 2. That OST may actually be considered Good Jazz...I wouldn't know, I don't generally care for Jazz much, but...most would agree the music is AWFUL for a fighting game, especially like that. Its slow, casual jazz music being used for one of the fastest, most intense fighting games ever. Add in an exaggerated female singer in the background with lyrics you can barely make it, it really leads to a case where "Muting the game may be better."
There are plenty of games that do the music thing very right and have strong base songs; the Wild ARMs and Final Fantasy games are both good examples of games that not only have strong OSTs, but the usage of their songs is good too, so songs stand out more, so I'll just use them as a general example, rather than finding specific ones.
ANYWAY, in this section, I'll be swapping between the games on the fly, rather than doing it in a block format. I figure comparing counterparts works best, so lets get started! First off, lets compare one of the least memorable songs from all three games, mostly cause very few people actually HEAR THEM in game, due to when they're played:
TITLE THEMES!
Zelda:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tf7gu6hKkcOkami:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFbKdz60Tg8Darksiders:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jXYfawj-GNMWell, as far as setting the tone of OST the rest of the way...OoT, lets be honest, is, for better or worse, not really indicative of the rest of the music in the game. How? Its very subdued and relies entirely on that wind instrument effect, which I guess is fitting for OoT, but when you consider most of OoT's Music is loud, prominent, and upbeat, this song really gives you the wrong impression. Yeah, I understand its trying to fit the animation of Link Riding on a Horse, but that doesn't change the fact that its a different style! This isn't necessarily a bad thing, mind...
Okami and Darksiders, though? Both are pretty strong indicators of their musical style. Okami has that strong Classical Japanese feel to it, while Darksiders sounds all massive epic percussion, with a melodic, gothic chant in the background. Both games use songs that follow these styles, so by listening to these title themes, you get a sense of what the OST has to offer, at least in terms of style.
Now, why are these title themes so forgettable irregardless of being indicative or stand out to the tracks? Well, lets face it, most don't hear the song beyond the first 5 seconds, and in OoT's case, I believe the game even takes a little bit of a time for the music to kick in, such that you can just skip over it. This isn't really the music's faults, the game's faults, or anything...its more just one of those quirks of being a title theme that plays nowhere else in the game <_<
So I might as well start with that: Musical style.
If I had to choose a style for Ocarina of Time, it'd be "generic Zelda music." I don't mean this in a bad way so much as I have no clue what to call it; it doesn't really follow any sort of theme, mostly just puts music that sounds good for the time and what have you. The songs are distinguished enough that they're memorable, and you'll probably remember where each play...except for maybe Dungeon Themes cause they're generic as hell from my memory, and really just ambiance background noise...though to be honest, all 3 games don't really have memorably dungeon themes, for the most part, so this isn't really something I can hold against OoT; it may be a genre thing in that the only music fitting for these dungeons is generic, dull background noise.
Onto Okami...really, just check the setting section. I've been through this a lot; if there's anyway Okami is going to sell itself as "THIS IS FEUDAL JAPAN", it'll do it and then some; the music is no exception, and if anything, is possibly one of the more obvious examples of Okami doing that. Its a clear defined style and the game adheres too it the entire way. One thing I guess Okami has going for it is that its unique in this regard; sure, games have had singular songs that sound of the same style, but to have an entire OST based heavily off this style? Not so much. Closest I can think of offhand are some of the Onimusha games, and even then, their music just sounds like stock Asian rather than really aiming for the classical feel...but that may just be Okami being made the way it was where as Onimusha was just trying to be "Resident Evil...IN FEUDAL JAPAN!"
Generally, both Okami and OoT do have one thing in common with their music. They tend to default to a "playful" feel in a lot of their themes, possibly cause by nature, the games are geared towards a wide age of audiences, and it helps keep the mood lighter when the music sounds more "fun" than actually serious. This isn't to say neither have their strong serious themes in the mix, and not to say there's anything wrong with this "playful" aspect.
Darksiders...heavy percussion everywhere. Its basically the "EPIC GOD OF WAR" style, where no matter what's going on, there's heavy drums, organs, etc. Big battle? EPIC DRUMS. Plot scene? EPIC DRUMS! Climbing a wall with no real special aspects happening? EPIC DRUMS! I'll be blunt here; this style of music kind of grates me, at least as far as basing the entire OST around it. Why? Cause there's obviously a case where this style DOES NOT WORK. DO you want these hard percussion sounds really going when a mundane thing is going on? No, not really; it just sounds really silly and out of place, to the point where there being no music but the ambient background effects like wind rustling through trees would have been a far better effect. This is a clear case of a game going "THIS GAME IS EPIC! FEAR THE EPIC! DON'T SEE THEN EPIC? YOU FAIL AT BEING EPIC!" Yes, there are SOME songs that don't follow this, but generally, they're relegated to singular plot scenes and tend to be forgotten cause you're too focused on the plot scene. Ok, sure, there have been some songs that are really memorable, that only play once the entire game, but typically, these songs need to KICK ASS, help sell the scene, etc. to really stand out. A good example? "You're Not Alone" from Final Fantasy 9.
The Epic feel obviously makes the game seem more adult, so I can see what they were aiming at there, but there's more ways to do that than just BIG PERCUSSION. Devil May Cry, for example, just did typical Hard Rock style music, which generally works in a lot more areas while not trying to make itself out to be bigger than it is. That's the problem with the EPIC approach that some of these game's OST's have; they feel like they're trying to compensate for something. Its almost like "our gameplay and plot isn't good enough to seem TOTALLY AWESOME at a glance, so we'll make the music BIG AND AWESOME to try and give the illusion that its so!" Whether Darksiders has crappy plot and/or gameplay...that's a different discussion entirely, but generally, the EPIC approach is rarely good as a consistent factor in OSTs, I find, and should be relegated to specific songs.
With style out of the way, lets look at another specific example, this time a more prominent song that you hear a decent amount and thereby, can actually be remembered and be wagered for genuine in game use! That being PRIMARY OVER-WORLD THEMES!
Zelda:
Hyrule FieldsOkami:
Shinshu FieldsDarksiders:
Light CombatRight here, we can distinguish a factor of Zelda's OST that I failed to a acknowledge before: it likes simplicity. The songs don't have quite as much going on as in Okami's music, and lack touches like the vocals Darksiders have. Now make no mistake; being simple is NOT NECESSARILY A BAD THING. I'm just pointing out that OoT tends to use a simplistic style of music; it might be because of the N64 factor and I could just have been wrong on my points before, but either way, generally, OoT themes have a more simplistic nature than the other songs.
But enough of that, what kind of impression do these three themes give? Well, OoT certainly starts off strong, gets a bit more subdued a few times out, but generally stays strong. This is actually pretty effective as it gets that "You're on an adventure!" vibes flowing, and generally works well with the wide area being traversed. One thing about Hyrule Fields is that its a dynamic song, unlike the other two; it alters based on situation that Link's in, time of day, etc. I didn't even notice this when I played, but my brother pointed it out; I honestly use to think it was more based on area and such, but no, apparently, it goes into that "intense" mode whenever an enemy is near-bye, it becomes more calm and tranquil during the sun setting, etc. Its...a neat touch that you wouldn't honestly expect, for all that its easy to miss. So yeah, Hyrule Fields is certainly a good example of what an Overworld Theme should be in a game like this, and from there, how much you like it depends on tastes.
Though, I do have a minor little complaint; OoT does NOT have the traditional Zelda theme anywhere in the game. Hyrule Fields has parts that kind of TEASE the notion of being the traditional theme, but it goes off in a clearly different direction. Just to prove my point, go listen to the Zelda theme from either the original or ALttP, then listen to Hyrule Fields, then listen to Termina Field (from Majora's Mask); you'll notice two of those songs are very clearly the same melody, the other...not so much.
OK, PET PEEVE DISAPPOINTMENT ASIDE, onto the Okami equivalent, Shinshu Fields. Shinshu Fields starts off in a more typical intro style relative to Hyrule Fields that just starts off strong, but...it works in a different way, as the song overall is more tranquil. Given Okami wants you to take in the scenery a lot more, where as Zelda wants to focus more on the adventure, it tends to play well with the setting around it. It still has a sense of "Running through large open fields", but it has more of a "Cute animals playing in the wild with children" feel to it, rather than "ADVENTURE HO!!!" feel. Its a different approach than Zelda, and I'll be honest, the approach would have failed in most games cause most games just don't really set themselves well in that. Okami...is not most games though; given you're playing as a FREAKING DOG, and the general graphics don't even try for a sense of realism, suddenly this playful tranquil feel is a lot more fitting. Maybe I'm jumping the gun saynig the song wouldn't have worked in other games, but I feel OoT went with a more "safer" route for style of Over-world, getting you pumped for the adventure. Okami's route works nicely for the game, which is all that matters, and it somehow blends tranquility and adventure into one song.
Then Darksiders...I uhh...don't know what to say about it. You'll note the song is called "Light Combat" which should give you an indication how much they don't care about soft tranquility, or adventure or anything. Then again, Darksiders lacks a true world map and I had to resort to the big city theme that you tend to return too, but that's nitty gritty. We can plainly hear that Darksiders is just more like "YOu're walking around...walking...walking...more walking..." and you don't really get much else from the image. Well, I guess this song would work in a montage of boring scenes suggesting War was traversing large terrain, but it really doesn't add much. Darksiders does have combat directly on its over-world, kind of like Zelda, so I guess they were aiming for a "one size fits all" theme with a generic background noise but I'm honestly not really impressed with the feel.
I guess BATTLE THEMES are next on the list for this? Well, Darksiders aint getting one cause the game lacks a true battle theme, since everything happens side by side with the journey. OoT and Okami have actual battle themes of sorts, so we can at least examine those two!
Zelda:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tV4dEftSf3kOkami:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIF3Vxqn_oIDarksiders: N/A (Just listed for completion)
Ok, this is the first time I think OoT kind of drops the ball on music. The music here is just boring DANGER feel, and doesn't really get going until 30 seconds in...which is sometimes longer than many of the fights in the game, and I didn't even remember the horn effect. The Horn when it kicks in...does little to add to the song, other than say "Yes, this is a song." It doesn't really get you pumped or into the fight; the song feels more like "WARNING. THERE IS AN ENEMY NEAR BYE" Appropriate for when there's a small bat or something on your ass that can ninja you, but when you have a big skeleton in your face that's impossible to miss, it kind of loses its meaning.
In Okami's case...first off, ignore that intro; that's not really in the game from my recollection or if it is, it plays just once. The part that's actually in the game kicks in at about 7 seconds. There's not much to say about the song; its a battle theme, and fits Okami's fights. More subdued than what you're use to, but that's Okami's music style kicking in more so than anything else. I'll admit the song doesn't really work well out of context, but it serves its purpose well in context. If Okami were like OoT or Darksiders, the song would not really work though; the reason it works is cause Okami thinks its an RPG in this regard, and isolates battles from the dungeons, maps, etc. So having a song that completely interrupts and is totally different than where you are is appropriate here. OoT, they could not afford this kind of song, I suppose, as it'd be weird going from "Background dungeon theme...OH CRAP BIG BATTLE" just cause a monster appeared, but that doesn't excuse the dullness of the above song.
Darksiders...like I said before, it doesn't have a battle theme for individual generic enemies, just keeps whatever music is playing. That'd have worked better if...well...see what I said about the overworld really. So I guess the next song we'll discuss is DUNGEON THEMES!
...except I have no clue how to find Dungeon themes for Darksiders or Okami, cause I don't remember the names of those dungeons well, and honestly, none of the dungeon themes really stand out in these games, so we'll just say "background noise of ambiance" and move on...I think I covered this already earlier in fact...
So obviously, at the end of each dungeon, we have a boss, so I guess Boss Themes are good!
Zelda:
Volvagia's ThemeOkami:
Demon Lord NinetailsDarksiders:
Battle With GrieverOk, lets start off by saying that OoT is the oddball out here cause it has a stock boss theme for the most part, while the other two games have unique themes that play for each of their bosses. This isn't really a flaw of OoT so much as showing a shifting in standards. After all, RPGs tend to have one primary boss theme, and no one complains there. Granted, in RPGs, there's often a lot more bosses than these games, so its more fitting but I'm willing to submit that's just OoT being made when the idea of "Character Specific Boss Themes" across the board was not a conceived notion. To OoT's credit, it DOES have a mini-boss theme, and to pretend Volvagia is actually important, gives him his own theme! I chose Volvagia's theme, mind you, just so we have a more fair comparison since the other games are dealing with songs also trying to match one specific fight (though generally speaking, the style of music is the same so it shouldn't change too much.)
Tangent aside, onto actually assessing the songs!
Zelda hits you with an intense battle theme that...honestly, is still generic. Yeah, OoT to be honest didn't do its standard battle themes too well; if there's a weak point in its OST, it'd be that. I guess it works in context of the game, but the question is, does it really add much to the fight? One of my issues with the direction OoT music took in fights is that it feels too much like "THERE'S A BIG THREAT LOOMING!" for its music, a style of music I'm not fond of for battles. I'm much more in preference of the Upbeat, Fast Paced battle theme that more gives the sense of "A big fight is underway!" OoT fails to deliver here for these songs. Part of the problem with Zelda music is also it gives you too much of a "HURRY HURRY!" feeling, when often the fights are approached in a more "Wait for opening and strike" manner; its a rather clashing of musical style with the nature of the battle. Basically, what I'm getting at is OoT Boss Themes would have worked better as "ESCAPE NOW!" style themes rather than battle themes.
So what of Okami? Well, like I said, Okami does the whole setting thing really well, and part of selling a fight well is getting the music right, and the boss themes all fit the boss in question. I should note I wanted to use Yamato No Orochi here originally, but that felt a bit too thematic given the nature of the fight (as in, while fitting really well, kind of needs the context to understand why), so I went with Ninetails instead, whose theme feels more universally applicable in that sense. Now yes, this is a song used for only one fight, but I do feel it'd fit most boss fights in Okami, since it is fast paced, and captures the "Intense Fight against a large monster", while not sounding TOO menacing to the point of "THERE IS A BIG SCARY MONSTER, IT IS SCARY, BE SCARED!" Basically, it sets the boss up for sounding like a major opponent, but doesn't make the boss sound like its anything you can't handle. It could be better, but I feel the general style of Okami's music limits what can actually be done in this regard, and they very much wanted to stay within that style, so it does a decent enough job considering that.
Darksiders...well, first off, failure number is how apparently half the bosses in the game don't even HAVE any music. The song I found for the Griever is one of the generic "End Dungeon" bosses and the song doesn't fit him in any sort of special way, makes you wonder why they didn't just apply it to EVERY Boss in the game without it? Anyway, for once, the style of music actually kind of works here; the issue is, of course, that since all Darksiders music sounds the same, it kind of ruins the impact, and you tend to forget about the moments where the music DOES fit, since it all blends together. IN this instance the music actually sounds like you're fighting a big monster of sorts, and...you're fighting a big monster! Now, yes, I did state I am not a fan of that style of boss music, but Darksiders does something right that Zelda doesn't in this case, and that's the pacing used. Darksider's slower, more subdued pace helps build up some power in the theme, to actually fit the boss, so it doesn't give you this sense of "HURRY!", more just "There's a looming threat, FIGHT FOR YOUR LIFE!" type feel if that makes sense. Basically, I don't see the music being better used in other areas in the game, so it works here; OoT, as I noted, I felt those boss themes may be better served as HURRY style themes.
At this point...I'm not sure what angle to take with music. I...umm...CHARACTER THEMES!!!
Zelda:
Saria's SongOkami:
Issun's ThemeDarksiders:
Vulgrim Theme...I have not much to say here. The character themes generally fit the character. In these examples, Saria's theme is upbeat, cheerful, and has a youthful feel to it. Issun's theme is similar, only with more of a "little prankster" type connotation for lack of a better description, a factor fitting Issun. Vulgrim's theme just has a sense of buying something from a shady shop, and seeing as he's a demonic merchant who deals with souls, I'd say that fits.
And here, I have no clue what direct to take, so GENERAL DISCUSSION ABOUT EACH GAME WITH LINKS!!!
Generally speaking, OoT does a good job in keeping its music memorable throughout. It has a nice range of music for its "towns" ranging from the placid and playful
Kokiri Forest to that uniquely styled (I say that cause I don't want to call it the wrong style and get shot for it)
Gerudo Valley, the songs all stand out as memorable. Though, I did note that one problem here is the game's refusal to want to change music to fit the setting at that moment;
Goron City is a good example of that, as I illustrated earlier, but
Zora's Domain is no better in that regard. Both songs do well when the villages are in a relatively positive state, but when they're in their "screwed" state, they really should have had another song there; just cause its Zora's Domain doesn't mean we need that pleasant Underwater sounding theme if the entire place is frozen and the Zoras are nowhere to be found! Maintain the melody if you will, but make a darker version of it or something.
Other random things...well,
Temple of Time sounds like an actual temple. No, not the Temples OoT has with monsters and creatures and elemental shenanigans, but a place of an actual sacred area. The melodic choir (which I can't tell if its genuine chanting or a synthed effect...) adds to the fact that "yes, its a temple." I just wish they found ways to use the song more, especially considering the name of the game. I guess the last thing I'll note from OoT is all the teleportation songs, which are worth a nod cause they all have a unique style fitting of each area you go to, and apparently they grant Link the power to play multiple instruments using nothing but an Ocarina when he plays specific notes. I don't know what that has to do with music usage, but it sure is fun as hell to bring up!
So...onto Okami...
Well, Okami generally has a larger range of music, if staying to one style (where as OoT tended to spread out and hit multiple styles), so somehow, we can go from the mysterious, somewhat divinely sounding
Sakuya's Theme, givnig us the impression of a benevolent spirit who wants to help, but can't, to the simple playful sounds of
Cherry Blossom Storm, DESPITE being the same melody.
This is actually one thing OoT was lacking; variations of the same melody being used within the game. I mean, the game's theme is effectively
Zelda's Theme but we only get one real variation of the song until the very end, and its still the exact same style. Okami, that melody IS the game's theme as well, but as we see it has great diversity in its melody. To be honset, I've always felt that a game's main theme should have its melody used throughout in a variety of fashions. Look at FF7, for example, and how many times its "Main Theme" is used throughout, ranging from the slow paced Over-world version to the fast paced, action-y variation used in the Tiny Bronco. It allows the song to actually be used throughout in multiple fashions and fully represent the game. Okami's main melody does that, OoT's...is mostly just such a well known theme that gets shoved down your throat cause you play the song "Zelda's Lullaby" throughout but when you listen to it, does it really represent the game as a whole, or just the character in question?
OK, away from that totally subjective tangent that I'll probably get shot on, BACK TO OKAMI MUSIC. Branching away from that melody, Okami also manages to completely go away from its generally calm, light hearted self, and deal with some actual intense, fast paced music for sequences.
Giving Kushinada a Ride was the song that really stood out to me in this regard, cause while still keeping true to Okami's Classical Japanese Style, it just sounds so much different than everything else in the game, and just sells the "We must hurry!" sequences well; this shows the diversity of Okami's sound track well, when you place it alongside all the other light-hearted songs...well, ok, the Battle Themes aren't exactly light hearted but SHUT UP.
Then we have Darksiders which...umm...er...yeah, again, I struggle to come up with much from this game, cause of the usual "EVERYTHING SOUNDS THE SAME." The Griever's theme is just a happy accident cause it was bound to fit ONE area eventually! I guess one song that sounds different is
Uriel's Theme which sounds like stock "this is a soft sounding song" in a game with big epic drums, and tries to build up to drama...only doesn't really go anywhere. I guess
Flight over Ruined Eden is another song that actually realizes "yes, there are moments that you don't need to rely on MASSIVE PERCUSSION INSTRUMENTS", and...is actually kind of nice sounding all things considered. Other than that? I think here I'll just show a few songs to further establish that "yes, all Darksiders music does the same thing."
Prison BreakEmpoweredIn ProphecyYeah, you can see Darksiders likes either its melodic chanting, or massive percussion, if not both, in most of its songs. Even the "DOOR OPEN!" theme uses heavy organs (OoT using the classic Zelda "Door Open!" fanfare, and Okami just going with a generic Japanese sounding instrument that's forgettable <_<)
Ok, I'll give
Flight Path credit for trying the EPIC!!! feel in a different manner, going for more along the lines of just fast paced string instruments and all that, which...yeah, I'm just kind of doing this as I listen to the music again, but god damn is this a forgettable soundtrack and you can see why!
So...yeah, I think its time I wrap this up...
OoT does a generally good job with its music and its usage. IT has a lot of memorable and I guess iconic music from it for a reason...well, part of that reason is "Its OoT, THIS GAME MUST BE HYPED IN EVERY REGARD!" but I'm trying to ignore the idiotic fanboy perception of it. There are some futz ups, like refusal of using the same melody in multiple songs which leads to awkward scenarios like "NICE ZORA CITY...except its abandoned and covered in Ice...BUT THE MUSIC IS PRETTY DESPITE THIS!" Overall, it does its job well enough, and shows a decent range in styles.
Okami, as I said, has one real style and keeps to it rather religiously, regardless of the song, never selling out for "OMG WE MUST HAVE THIS KIND OF SONG!" Yet, despite this, it shows a decently large amount of range in how its music applied. Given Music can really help a setting, and Setting is one of the points no one would dare say Okami did poorly, its a pretty safe bet to say Okami got its music done rather well.
Darksiders...umm...THE PERCUSSION! WHY IS THERE SO MANY DRUMS!? WHY DO I FEEL LIKE I WANT TO BE EPIC BUT CAN'T BE!?!?
...I suppose its only fitting I end a Music evaluation post with links to the Ending Credits music of all 3 games, huh? Fine, be that way BUT DON'T EXPECT AN EVALUATION!!!
Ocarina of Time "End Credits":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCEYXAy897oOkami's "Reset":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zpuGNH75pUcDarksiders "End Credits":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AJCJmtGnlM
