Music in Pikmin 4: Difference between revisions

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The music for a title screen has the important role of establishing what the musical style of a game will be, as a listener's first impressions of a soundtrack are likely to be made here; the title screen of ''Pikmin 4'' immediately demonstrates its brand new emphasis on ambience and subtlety, which are two regularly occurring themes throughout rest of the game. This piece is almost entirely solo piano, with an occasional strike of a large {{w|standing bowl}} for bass; the piano is also notably cinematic in style and very high-fidelity. A high-pitched fanfare played by this piano briefly introduces the title of the game, and then begins the main looping section of the piece in a 6/8 time signature. While the chords are mostly consonant, occasional out-of-key notes add an uneasy feel to the piece. A minute into the loop, a delicate performance of the ''Pikmin 2'' motif can be heard.

Heard when the first [[Red Pikmin]] is plucked. In ''Pikmin 4'', each new type of Pikmin that is discovered will introduce itself with its own variation of the ''Pikmin 2'' motif. Each of these variants is identical in structure, with various acoustic instruments like clarinet, violins, and a shaker making up the accompaniment (a glockenspiel also helps invoke the Pikmin as a whole). The motif, however, will be played on an instrument that is characteristic of the Pikmin it is associated with. Red Pikmin, for example, use a synthesizer for their theme.  

Heard when the first [[Glow Pikmin]] is discovered during a [[night expedition]]. This variant of the Pikmin discovery theme takes an uneasy turn due to the unique circumstances it takes place in, though a glockenspiel is kept in this version since the Glow Pikmin are still a very helpful type of Pikmin. A theremin is also present, playing upon their ghost-like appearance.

|name = New Pikmin type discovered

Heard right after any of the Pikmin discovery themes. A simple, quirky waltz on pizzicato violins loops during the Rescue Corps members' discussion on the newly discovered Pikmin, with some more brief references to the ''Pikmin 2'' motif played on an alto recorder.

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|name = Enter cave

Heard when a cave is entered. A new rendition of [[Music in Pikmin 2#Enter cave|the equivalent theme in ''Pikmin 2'']], it is a new arrangement of the Hocotate motif, also setting an adventurous mood for exploration.

 

The music of the [[Serene Shores]] uses lots of space and is more textural rather than melodic; pedal steel guitar swells make up one of these textures. It plays in a moderate 12/8 time, with a shekere accenting the second beat of every measure.  

|link = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1N12cPx6eM

This theme can be heard when battling the [[Groovy Long Legs]] at the last sublevel of [[Below-Grade Discotheque]]. It is played by techno noises and an air-horn. It also plays a "boss defeated" cue when the enemy is defeated. Uniquely, it is the only boss theme that plays when engaging a boss in the [[Piklopedia]], supplementing the idea that the Groovy Long Legs ''itself'' is producing the music.

|link = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1IAyioAzCs (At 00:06)

|link = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j1IAyioAzCs (At 00:40)

|name = Serene Shores (Olimar)

The theme for [[Serene Shores]] during [[Olimar's Shipwreck Tale]] is reminiscent to [[The Distant Spring]]'s main theme from [[Pikmin (game)]], using similar instruments to play similar parts from [[The Distant Spring]] in combination with the [[Serene Shores]] theme, as if both songs are being mixed together.

|name = Hero's Hideaway (Olimar)

|link = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVphsGNDMmM

This area theme reuses many sounds from the its main story mode counterpart; it even uses a melody similar to the one heard during the game's initial tutorial with [[Captain Olimar]].

Whenever the player is near an enemy in the main story or in [[Olimar's Shipwreck Tale]], that enemy will add a new layer of instruments to the music. However, there is not one single enemy mix per song; rather, there is a unique enemy mix tied to every single type of enemy in the game. The instruments that are added are often characteristic of the creature they are associated with, and some enemies few may also have several different enemy mixes, depending on the enemy's current state.

*When the player is walking with Pikmin alone or while riding on [[Oatchi]], they may sing a short song. These songs include the brief passages from the [[Awakening Wood]], the [[Garden of Hope]], the [[Waterwraith]]'s chase theme, the [[Dandori Battle]] theme, the same humming from ''Pikmin 2'', or a new unique song.