Not only has it remained in gamers’ hearts for the last 12 years, but the music is still one of the most popular video game scores ever released. Koji Kondo has composed some of the most recognizable video game music, including every game in the Legend of Zelda series as well as every Super Mario game released to date. The game is notable as being one of the first games to incorporate music as a main function without being a rhythm or beat game.

One of the key aspects of Ocarina of Time that makes it such an innately musical game was the inclusion of an ocarina as one of the key items in our hero’s inventory. Link must play songs on his ocarina to complete goals, either by altering elements such as time and weather, or by summoning the powers of the sages. The in-game ocarina has five finger holes and requires the player to press buttons on the controller to play different notes. Koji Kondo stated that his main focus on writing music for the game was to base it all on the limited five-note scale of the in-game ocarina. Something that players will notice throughout the game is that almost all of the music you hear will at one point be learned on the ocarina as an integral part of gameplay. As challenging as it may have been, it gave the gaming community a soundtrack to cherish through the years.

One unintended side effect of including an ocarina in the game was an unprecedented increase in ocarina sales. This has led to wind instrument makers releasing ocarinas styled after the iconic blue instrument in the game, and some even include a small Triforce near the mouthpiece.

Another reason why the music has stayed in the limelight is the popularity of the songs to be covered on YouTube. Searching the term “ocarina” on the popular video site brings countless covers of the short songs that Link must play to change the in-game world on ocarinas and many other instruments including piano, electric guitar, and theremin.

One of the other great aspects of the game is its use of themes. Unlike most video game music with definite themes, the music does not announce the entrance of a character; rather, it is to set the feeling of a distinct area. The style has been coined “reversed leitmotif,” where “leitmotif” is the concept that themes are attached to characters; it’s most notable in films such as Star Wars and Jaws, two of John Williams’ most memorable soundtracks. The style was originally brought into popularity by 19th century composer Richard Wagner and his opera Lohengrin. One of the most recognized themes in the game is “Hyrule Field”, which is essentially the new overworld theme, which is generally more popular than any of the music from Ocarina of Time, with a notable cover by alternative metal group System of a Down gaining ironic popularity.

Although the soundtrack has lasted as one of the most recognizable of all time, when it was first released, it did receive some criticism for its lack of reference to the music in earlier Legend of Zelda titles, most notably the original overworld theme, which was present in all the previous releases. Even with this criticism, the music shines through on this wonderful game as something gamers and musicians alike can appreciate. Not only is the music great for a video game soundtrack, the music is just simply great.

Box Art from the SNES game "Chrono Trigger"

Since “Chrono Trigger” was released in 1995, it has been widely regarded as having one of the best soundtracks on a video game. It helped spur the scene of video game music remixes and has had many iterations over the years. The soundtrack by Yasunori Mitsuda, originally in just 16-bit audio, still contends with full orchestral music heard in today’s games and has a large cult following in the video game scene.

One of the most notable renditions on the soundtrack is the acid jazz album Chrono Trigger Arranged Version: The Brink of Time. The album was released just over three months after the game and features ten remade tracks. Initially, the album had very mixed reviews with critics claiming to either love it or hate it. Personally, I enjoyed this acid jazz arrangement of the soundtrack quite a bit. It has all the workings of an enjoyable acid jazz album mixed with memorable songs that incite great memories. The choice of acid jazz seems like an obvious one simply because the sounds used, if not emulate, at least do justice to the original 16-bit sounds.

Yasunori Mitsuda arr. DJ Ali Haeri – “Kingdom Trial” remixed with “1, 2 Step” by Ciara feat. Missy Elliott from Chrono Trigger Mixtape, Vol. 1
Download audio file (2-05-1-2-Step-Ciara-feat.-Missy-Elliott.mp3)

Yasunori Mitsuda arr. DJ Ali Haeri – “Underground Sewer” from Chrono Trigger Mixtape, Vol. 1
Download audio file (3-08-Underground-Sewer.mp3)

Yasunori Mitsuda arr. Daniel Floyd – “Morning Sunlight” from Chrono Symphonic (2005)
Download audio file (02-Morning-Sunlight.mp3)

Another of the great renditions is The Chrono Trigger Mixtape, Vol. 1. The mixtape originated as a joke amongst DJ Ali Haeri and his friends about creating a stereotypical hip-hop mixtape. The album contains 10 “clubbed” up versions of “Chrono Trigger” songs mixed with a capella vocals from popular hip-hop artists such as 50 Cent, Young Jeezy, Ciara, and Kanye West. The mixtape, released in 2005, has three versions, the first being the most stereotypical and satirical of the three. It features the mixed-up tracks, DJ’d by the fictional DJ Epoch. The inclusion of DJ Epoch is the only element that sets versions one and two apart, but it really makes a difference. DJ Epoch was introduced to give it that authentic “annoying DJ” feel. These mixes even include obnoxious introductions to the songs, complete with an over abundance of delay and echo. The third version of the mixtape is an instrumental mix, and is personally, the most enjoyable. The 16-bit sounds are directly translated into bass thumping hip-hop.

When “Chrono Trigger” was released for the Nintendo DS in 2008, we heard several beautiful orchestral arrangements and even a few unreleased tracks. If you are looking for a great compilation of all the 16 bit tracks directly from the game with a few extras, this is the album for you. The Nintendo DS release soundtrack spans 3 discs and includes 78 songs, totaling nearly 3 hours of pure “Chrono Trigger” goodness.

Last but certainly not least are the wonderful symphonic renditions that can be found on the unofficial, download only album, Chrono Symphonic. This album was released on the website OverClocked ReMix in 2006 and features 25 of our favorite “Chrono Trigger” tracks. The songs contain intricate full symphonic scores and a lot of dynamic variance. Not only does this track shine as a remix of the tracks, but as a symphonic album as a whole.

Chrono Trigger will have it’s 15th birthday in just a few weeks — March 11 to be exact — and even after so long, it is still sitting pretty as being one of the most loved and heavily remixed video game sound tracks of all time. So in honor of Chrono Trigger’s upcoming birthday, this one goes out to Yasunori Mitsuda. Without him, we would be devoid of so much of our favorite music that has come from video games in the last 15 years.

If you want to download either Chrono Symphonic or any of the versions of Chrono Trigger Mixtape, Vol. 1, just click the links below.

Chrono Symphonic
Chrono Trigger Mixtape, Vol. 1
Chrono Trigger Mixtape, Vol. 1 (No DJ)
Chrono Trigger Mixtape, Vol. 1 (Instrumental)