Best of 2012! Top Ten: Zelda Tunes

Time to ignite the flame wars as Katharine counts down her top ten Zelda ditties.

By Katharine Byrne. Posted 12/22/2012 11:00 1 Comment     ShareThis

10. Midna’s Desperate Hour

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

I think we can all agree that Twilight Princess‘ rendition of Hyrule Field is a pretty great track, but stick it in a minor key with a few liberal injections of Midna’s Theme and its power suddenly increases tenfold. Bizarrely, I actually ended up listening to this before I got to the moment where it plays in-game, but I was instantly captivated by its haunting, melancholy tone, and it made me all the more eager to play through the game and hear it in its rightful context– and boy, it certainly didn’t disappoint!

Now I’m a sucker for all things piano, but when Link had to rush a pale, barely-breathing Midna all the way across Hyrule Field to Zelda’s aid, I don’t think there could have been a more apt instrument to express the sorrow and sheer desperation of her situation– especially since we’re so used to hearing the same tune being belted out by an entire brass and string section. It’s easily one of the most fraught moments in the game, and the way each track melds together– one representing the light of Hyrule, the other reflecting the gloom of the Twilight– fully encapsulates the uneasy tension that exists between each world. But even though Midna’s Desperate Hour is a kind of musical re-enactment of the moment when Zant forced Midna from one reality to another, the result is a surprisingly harmonious one, hinting that maybe, just maybe, there’s hope for our impish companion yet.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

One Response to “Best of 2012! Top Ten: Zelda Tunes”

  • 60 points
    Dustin Grissom says...

    Super daring to put Fi’s theme as #1! I totally agree though, that song is fantastic in more ways than one! On top of being a great tune, it’s very emotional and really connects you to Fi as a character…. makes me want to play Skyward Sword again!

    Also, the lack of Minish Cap songs in this list is criminal! ;)

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Log In 0 points Log in or register to grow your Ninja Score while interacting with our site.
Nintendojo's RSS Feeds

All Updates Podcast
News Comments
Like and follow usFacebookTwitter Friend Code Exchange + Game with Us Join the Team!