As the new year rolls around, many Nintendo fans are looking forward to hopefully getting their hands on The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2. It has been nearly five years since the first Breath of the Wild came out as a Switch launch title and changed what most people believed a Zelda game could be; altering the course of open-world game developement industry-wide in the process. That being said, not everything Breath of the Wild changed was positively received, and one big criticism early on was its music.
Much of Breath of the Wild involves Link riding across a vast, empty Hyrule, discovering landmarks and settlements after the Calamity wiped everything out 100 years prior. It's designed to be a somber, yet peaceful experience, and light instrumental motifs play throughout. While it's disingenuous to say Breath of the Wild has no music, it is fair to criticize the game for downplaying something that has often been a highlight in the rest of the series. Breath of the Wild 2 can address this by adding more unique music, and enemy encounters are one key area worth expanding.
The Legend of Zelda is a Musical Series
Music has played a key part in The Legend of Zelda franchise since its inception, arguably becoming its most recurring theme. The original NES Zelda game from 1986 has Link collect a flute as one key item on his quest to defeat Ganon, opening access to the seventh dungeon alongside other uses such as warping to locations (seemingly referenced by Super Mario Bros. 3's Warp Whistle that has a similar design). A Link to the Past and Link's Awakening also utilize an ocarina that is clearly a predecessor to the Ocarina of Time.
In The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, music fittingly becomes a core aspect of the narrative and gameplay. Link's ocarina from Princess Zelda allows him to affect objects and once again warp across Hyrule - often with songs taught to him by Zelda when she's disguised as Sheik. Majora's Mask carried this forward with each core mask transformation giving Link new instruments, ones that often play into the plot as he performs the Goron Lullaby to sooth the Elder's Son or takes the place of Mikau in The Indigo-Go's band.
Though these are the most blatant uses of instruments as core aspects of Zelda narratives, almost every title to follow includes music in some way. The Wind Waker has Link act as a sort of conductor, guiding the wind itself; Twilight Princess has Link howl alongside his ancestor, the Hero of Time, while in the body of a wolf; Skyward Sword sees him using the Goddess' Harp associated with Zelda and Hylia; and so on. Many songs played on instruments like the Ocarina of Time have become iconic, and so have the tracks that play in each iteration of Hyrule Field, Kakariko Village, and various dungeons throughout the franchise.
Breath of the Wild's Enemy Encounters Carry the Musical Torch
There is plenty of music to be found in Breath of the Wild, including each settlement having its own soundscape; such as the stand-out Tarrey Town theme that evolves as players complete each stage of its construction. However, more often than not players will be traversing Hyrule's open fields with the same soft, ambiant music accompanying them, broken up by fights with Bokoblins, Moblins, and other common enemies using the same combat theme. Each Divine Beast having similar aesthetics and music doesn't help what many felt was a weak showing.
Still, plenty of strong tracks appear infrequently, like Mipha's melancholy theme that receives a great action-oriented remix in Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity. More powerful enemy encounters scattered across Hyrule probably offer the best examples of songs that stick with players: the chillingly high piano melody that trickles in when a Guardian spots Link; the escalating string stinger that accompanies a Stone Talus rising from the earth; and the droning yet bumbling sound of brass as a towering Hinox waddles into place. However, not every strong enemy gets this treatment, as Lynels and Yiga Clan footsoldiers share the same battle music.
How Breath of the Wild 2 can Expand its Musical Repertoire
The landscape of antagonists for Link to face in Breath of the Wild 2 is bound to change dramatically. Divine Beasts should play a diminished role, opening up a void that more traditional dungeons and Zelda bosses can potentially fill. A trailer debuting at E3 2021 also shows Link dealing with new threats, such as a slug-like creature emerging from a cave ceiling, Stone Talus wearing Bokoblin camps on their backs, and more.
Breath of the Wild 2 should go out of its way to not only give more threats their own musical accompaniment as memorable as something like a Guardian encounter, but also shake up what's already there. For example, the aforementioned Stone Talus with a Bokoblin camp shouldn't use one theme or the other from Breath of the Wild; it should mix them in some way that reflects the blended enemy encounter at hand.
This upcoming Legend of Zelda game also appears to have a much darker tone that fans have associated with Majora's Mask, and the game's music could become more sinister as a result. Perhaps some Hinox remain the same bumbling giants as in Breath of the Wild, but more aggressive strains enhanced by whatever dark magic is lifting chunks of Hyrule into the sky utilize equally aggressive variants of the original theme. For a franchise so acclaimed in-part because of its music, Nintendo should go out of its way to make sure Breath of the Wild 2 isn't criticized because of music like its predecessor, and enemies are a great place to start.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 releases in 2022 for Nintendo Switch.