Music in Pikmin

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The music of Pikmin accompanies every aspect of the game, from the gameplay to the cutscenes and menus. Generally, the textural style of the music reflects the futuristic world of Hocotate, the organic environment of PNF-404, and/or the small scale and nature of the Pikmin themselves, by varying instrumentation, register, and rigidity of rhythm. During gameplay, the music sets the mood of the area and dynamically adapts its intensity according to what is happening on-screen, albeit to a lesser degree than the following games in the series. During cutscenes, the music is predetermined and functions more linearly and punctually. While all of the music in Pikmin is melodically driven, no established melodic gestures seem to become motifs; that is, none of the soundtrack's unique melodies (besides perhaps the main theme's melodic gesture) become more important to the game than the rest, unless the melody is heard over most of the 30 days.

The soundtrack to Pikmin is called "Pikmin Worlds". It was composed by Hajime Wakai. All of the compositions in the game are either synthesized sounds or samples attempting to mimic real instruments.

Menus

The menu themes of the game are generally shorter in length; whether or not the composition evolves complexly or remains a background piece depends on how often the menu will probably be visited during play.

Main menu

The main theme of Pikmin. This menu is not visited very often during a playthrough, so the percussion is soft-spoken and an instrument resembling a Native American bass flute is not extremely prominent. Eventually, the flute does play the five-note motif (D B♭ E♭ D B♭) that becomes the main theme, but this is only heard if the menu is left running. Without pressing start, the main theme will not finish before a demo cutscene begins.

Saved dame selection

Heard while selecting a save file. This theme is heavily synthesized, to enhance the theme of recording and storing saved games. Its simple melody is chosen from one diatonic scale and hidden under softened sound effects, such that it does not distract from the file select menu itself.

Area selection

Heard while selecting an area at the beginning of a new day. This highly recognizable theme does not develop its natural-sounding melody before an area would presumably be chosen, leaving the normal time spent in this menu to be split between a synthesized pad at the beginning and trills in a flute and celeste later on. The melody comes much later in the track, yet is one of the strongest melodies in the game.

Challenge Mode

Heard in the Challenge Mode menu. This theme contains a more agile melody than the file select music, and it shines throughout the piece, even in a call-and-response pattern. The beat is more pronounced and the instruments all have more clout, to give this mode's menu more excitement than the main game's.

Challenge Mode results

Heard after a Challenge Mode challenge. This theme matches the excitement of the original menu, if not surpassing it by adding a rock drum kit to the mix. The track is still local to Challenge Mode however: the main melody is played on the same synthesizer that played the other menu's theme.

Today's results

Heard after the day is complete and the S.S. Dolphin has taken off. This theme was carried over to other games. All the instruments are intended to sound synthesized; at this point the game's referential environment has switched from the natural ground to the S.S. Dolphin in low orbit. Also, the beep-like tone that arpeggiates throughout the theme is a sound unique to Pikmin, which can be heard in other tracks.

Final analysis

Heard after the good ending cinema when the final statistics appear. This theme represents success in its orchestral instrumentation, and its rhythm is rigidly defined by snare drum and timpani. This is the most harmonically driven theme in the game; no instrument's voice exists alone.

Cutscenes

Attraction mode

Prologue

Onion discovery

Pikmin discovery

Main Engine found

Ship part recovered

Dolphin upgrade

Dolphin complete

Sunset

Pikmin extinction

Neutral departure

Escape fails

Olimar as Pikmin

Happy departure

Epilogue

Enemy reel

Credits

Areas

The Impact Site

The Forest of Hope

The Forest Navel

The Distant Spring

The Final Trial

Bosses

Beady Long Legs

Emperor Bulblax

Minor jingles

New record

Ship part found

Trivia

• In the New Play Control! version of Pikmin, the saved game selection menu has a slight change in its music. The sound effect that plays in the beginning is slower than in the GameCube version. The slower sound effect can be heard briefly at the beginning of this video.

See also

• Music