Hey Hive!
OSTs make up the majority of the music I listen to, and they're so underrated I just had to share them! Feel free to listen while reading. 😊
If you haven't caught the last few posts, I'm dedicating this month to island-themed songs! Since I've been religiously playing Animal Crossing New Horizons for more than 160 hours now (according to my Switch), I thought island songs would be fitting, especially since almost everyone else seems to be playing it too.
Source: The Verge
Anyway, today's the final day of what I like to call, Island month! It's been really fun reliving all the memories with these games. I'm sorry all the games I chose were from Nintendo btw; I grew up on Nintendo handhelds so it's only natural I guess. Today's game is no different. Although, it's actually one that I never played myself - Super Mario Sunshine!
Source: Mariowiki
As the picture suggests, Super Mario Sunshine is a 3D platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the GameCube in 2002. It was the second 3D platformer in the Super Mario series, following Super Mario 64 (1996).
The game takes place on the tropical Isle Delfino, where Mario, Toadsworth and Princess Peach were going to for a vacation. A villain resembling Mario, known as Shadow Mario, vandalizes the island with graffiti as Mario gets blamed for the mess. Mario is ordered to clean up Isle Delfino, using a device called the Flash Liquidizer Ultra Dousing Device (F.L.U.D.D.), while saving Princess Peach from Shadow Mario.
Source: Twitter
I never owned a GameCube, so I didn't get to play this game unfortunately. But I did watch at least 4 different playthroughs of this game on youtube, so I feel like I know this game pretty well (except the controls of course). Because I watched the playthroughs of it right when I first got into watching LPs way back in 2009 or so, I feel like Sunshine is nostalgic for me too, but in a different way.
Anyway, the song I chose for today is a pretty iconic one for Sunshine, and by extension, the whole Mario franchise. I feel like if you know Mario, you'd at least have heard this song before. Have a listen!
This song is called Bianco Hills, and is named after the world it can be found in. It is also the first world in Mario Sunshine, so if you've only played a little bit of this game, you'd still know this song.
I say this song is pretty iconic, not only because it's in the first world of the game, but it practically embodies the essence that is Super Mario Sunshine. It's cheerful and upbeat, and the coconut shell-sounding drums really hammer in that island-feel. Coupled with the consistent tambourine, it just sounds so happy-go-lucky. The clarinet with the melody and the bassoon with the harmony blend so well together, and the cello as the bass is such a good mix of strings and winds. There are also quite a few smaller instruments in the background that altogether, make for such an amazing song.
Source: medium
When you listen to this song, it's hard not to sway to the beat because of how catchy it is. The staccato notes really make you feel like you're skipping along, and with Mario's long jumps and spin jumps, you really can feel that way! It's definitely got that carefree island-feel; fitting for a first world for sure.
Personally, I really like the Yoshi version of this song, where Yoshi's classic bongo drums are played on top of the original song:
The bongos are little prominent, but man, it's so good though. You can just hear the drummer going ham on the bongos. And it adds a little more oomph to the song too.
As with classic Mario games, Koji Kondo was the composer of course, and he did a great job for a 2002 game. It's not as grand as that of Super Mario Galaxy sure, but it didn't have a whole orchestra behind it, so it's hardly a fair comparison. Nevertheless, for such a nostalgic game, it's still a really beloved soundtrack for many who grew up with it I'm sure.
Source: My Nintendo News
There have been rumours that Sunshine is going to be remade for the Switch, but personally I think it's fine on the GameCube. Some of the missions are pretty ridiculous, and I don't think people want to trigger that PTSD haha. I don't know if I would ever play it myself, but I think it's more fun watching other people suffer so maybe not. 😆
Thanks for reading!
To find out more about me, check out my intro post here!
