OST of the Day #43: Super Mario Galaxy 2 - Bowser's Galaxy Generator 🌘
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If you're unfamiliar with this series, basically I share a soundtrack and my thoughts about it, and I highly recommend listening to the song while reading! 😊
So the last time I wrote about a song from Galaxy 2 was just a mere 2 months ago, but since one of my favourite Let's Players (Chuggaaconroy) completed his LP of Galaxy 2 just before the New Year, it made me want to write another one! There are just so many good songs in that game, and since it's been a while since we did an orchestral song I thought it'd be a good fit to bring Galaxy 2 back again.
Source: pixels.com
So just to recap, Super Mario Galaxy 2 is a 3D platformer developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii and was released worldwide in 2010. It was first announced at E3 2009 and is the sequel to 2007's Super Mario Galaxy. The story follows Mario as he pursues the Koopa King, Bowser, into outer space, where he has imprisoned Princess Peach and taken control of the universe using Power Stars and Grand Stars. Mario must travel across various galaxies to recover the Power Stars in order to travel to the center of the universe and rescue Princess Peach.
Upon release, Super Mario Galaxy 2 was met with widespread critical acclaim, and is regarded by many to be one of the greatest video games of all time, and is one of the best-selling games on the Wii with over seven million copies sold worldwide.
Source: giantbomb.com
I loved playing Galaxy 2 so much; and watching Chuggaaconroy play it on Youtube just reminded me of how much I adored this game. In fact I think it actually made me like it even more! He's so informative and teaches viewers new tricks and stuff in a game that is practically 10 years old now. I remember Galaxy 1 was the first game I ever watched him play back in 2010, and the first game I watched on Youtube, period. His Let's Play of Galaxy 1 was what introduced me to the whole concept of Let's Plays and gaming videos on Youtube, and it felt strangely nostalgic and bittersweet to watch him play through the second game 9 years later, closing out the decade at the same time.
Anyway, today's song is quite an epic one, fitting for this amazing soundtrack and game. Have a listen:
I'm not really one for boss music, since most of them are pretty loud, but this is definitely one of my favourites. [Warning: spoilers ahead!]
This song can only be heard in the final bowser stage in World 6, called Bowser's Galaxy Generator, and man, look at how epic this galaxy looks! Just on the World Map itself you can already see you're in for an epic fight. Bowser may be evil but dang, his architecture/designer skills are on point - dude made the galaxy look like his face and its soooo much bigger than Starship Mario; you know, to assert his dominance. And his castle is the galaxy's crown! With the black hole as the World 6 background, man how awesome is that!
So this song actually plays during the stage itself, while you're navigating through the "castle" section on your way to see Bowser, not during the actual fight itself. It does a fantastic job of hyping you up for the fight though.
Source: tokkoro.com
You can already hear that amazing buildup by the strings, brass and percussion in the first 15 seconds of the song! Then it goes into this smooth, and perhaps a little sombre melody, but the cellos and brass keep it a little upbeat, along with the snare drums. Then the brass takes over with a softer melody and the plucking of double bass to back it up, before the climax at 0:57, where the brass and timpanis really shine, before transitioning back to the strings yet again.
I'd say the whole song overall feels like it's Mario/Luigi (and the player) psyching himself up for the fight. Especially the first time you enter the stage; you don't know what to expect, and you know Bowser's gonna lay numerous traps and obstacles in your way. The "quieter" part of the song just before the climax is like Mario doubting himself on whether he can make it, even though he's beaten Bowser so many times before. Then the climax represents his determination to do this and save his Princess.
Oh man, I'd love to see this performed live. I always get the urge to conduct while listening to this - ex-orchestra member tendencies I guess.
The composer for this song (as well as many others in Galaxy 2) was Mahito Yokota, who collaborated with Koji Kondo and Ryo Nagamatsu for the soundtrack. As with Galaxy 1, they used a symphony orchestra and tI actually read that the composers were initially hesitant to use an orchestra again because of recording difficulties, but Miyamoto insisted, since he thought players would be expecting it. I'd say that was a good call; everyone who's played this (which by now is millions of people) knows how fantastic the soundtrack is. And I hope by reading this, you do too! Definitely check out the album on Youtube if you're interested. It is absolutely brilliant.
Source: dualshockers.com
Thanks for reading!
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Posted from my blog with SteemPress : http://tacocat.steemblogs.club/2020/01/10/ost-of-the-day-43-super-mario-galaxy-2-bowsers-galaxy-generator-%f0%9f%8c%98/
