Editing Music

'''Music''' in the [[Pikmin series|''Pikmin'' series]] accompanies every part of each game, from ambient music during gameplay and [[menu]]s, to pre-rendered cutscene scores, to minor jingles for small events. The style is quite unique and extremely varied across the games, featuring many different instruments and textures that reflect the game environments on [[PNF-404]] and beyond. Most notably, much of the music is dynamic: gameplay events and parameters can add or subtract elements from the music. For example, entering [[combat]] will often bring a new intense percussion track into the mix, and the passage of [[Day#Sunset|sunset]] thins the music down to a quiet, peaceful rendition. [[Boss]]es in the games have their own themes, and [[Canon|non-canonical]] game modes (such as [[Challenge Mode (Pikmin)|Challenge Mode]] or [[Bingo Battle]]) have a different, less serious compositional style, to reflect the different structures and styles of gameplay. Overall, music gives the games more character and interest, and can even help direct the player's attention to important in-game elements.

The music that accompanies gameplay in the main games is dynamic, meaning that certain conditions of the game can add or subtract elements from the music. Most commonly, if an [[enemy]] is near or combating the leaders and Pikmin, the music will add an intense track of percussion and other instruments to its mix, further engaging the player in the combat. At [[Day#Sunset|sunset]], the music will subtract elements to become higher in register, thinner in texture, and calmer in mood, suggesting the approaching end of the day's events and complexity. As the games progress, this dynamism in the music becomes more and more a part of gameplay; after [[Pikmin (game)|''Pikmin'']], new mixes are added when Pikmin are carrying spoils (a high-register accompaniment suggesting success) and performing tasks like removing [[obstacles]]. While still an aesthetic addition, a beneficial consequence of this dynamic music is its ability to organize the psychology of gameplay. It can not only adjust the mood of a theme to reflect the efficiency and intensity of a day, but even direct the player's attention to something, and help categorize the many actions that Pikmin perform over the course of a day.

''[[Pikmin 3]]''{{'s}} soundtrack has a much more atmospheric and often experimental mood to it, though new melodic motifs and some from ''Pikmin 2'' give it contextual stability. The music's dynamism now occurs regardless if the trigger is on-screen, making the music more effective as a gameplay tool. Afternoon time and variations in weather also provide new parameters for changing the music. Compared to the previous games, ''Pikmin 3'' uses much more advanced sound technology, allowing new instruments to score the high-definition scenery; particularly, unique synthesizer sounds are very prominent in this soundtrack. Quite a few themes in this game are re-orchestrations of ''Pikmin 2'' themes, giving the game itself a more modernized mood while establishing its reference point in the series.

 

The additional music in ''[[Pikmin 3 Deluxe]]'' was composed by Soshi Abe and Babi.

''[[Pikmin 4]]''{{'s}} soundtrack is highly ambient, much more so than any other game in the series. Its main area themes in particular feature music that is very fragmented and sparse in melodic information, though the themes for cutscenes, [[bosses]], and side modes are more in spirit to what is heard in previous games. Possible in part by this new minimalistic approach, every single type of enemy will now also bring about a unique change in the music when a leader is nearby; each enemy adds a unique instrument or mix that is characteristic of the creature. Motifs established in ''Pikmin 2'' also reappear in some cutscenes, further tying in the many returning features from that game, such as the reintroduction of multi-floored [[caves]].

''[[Hey! Pikmin]]''{{'s}} soundtrack is very different to those of the other games in the series, reflecting how its gameplay is also very different. It features melodically-driven themes featuring a large variety of synthesized sounds, often featuring audio effects like reverb. [[Area]] themes each have 2 versions: a main version for the "front side" of the area, and a secondary version, always more ambient and atmospheric, for the "back side", though these themes don't share a  structure; in fact the soundtrack lacks any dynamic elements. Every [[menu]] and boss has a unique theme, giving the soundtrack a wide range of styles and tone colors, and while there are few consistent elements throughout the soundtrack, most themes do reflect the calm nature of the game.