Tri Force Heroes is a game that came and is admittedly forgotten by most. It was fun to play with friends, but when friends became scarce we had to rely on the internet to bring strangers of our skill level to our service, and sometimes it took a rather long time. Luckily, there was one secret that was quickly discovered to keep players entertained as they waited in the lobby for more heroes to appear: the Lucky Lobby Ball.
Ram into the wall for the big purple ball to drop and smack it around for a silly surprise! With each drop of the ball, a song would play. Keep the ball up, hitting it with the rhythm that it fell, and you could hear an entire song from a game in the Zelda lineup — that is until it becomes progressively faster and faster until you can hardly recognize it as a song anymore. Twenty-three tunes were available to be heard and many passed the time by trying them all because, boy oh boy, did it take a while for two extra players to show up. Admit it, this is the part of the game you remember most.
Of course, the classic “Overworld Theme” from the game that started it all is featured as well as “Zelda’s Lullaby” and the “Fairy Fountain Theme” featured in multiple Zelda titles. The other 20 are specifically from other titles that longtime Zelda fans are sure to recognize.
Link’s Awakening is represented with its most famous tune, “The Ballad of the Wind Fish.” Ocarina of Time, on the other hand, has quite the variety mixed in the bunch. The “Lon Lon Ranch Theme,” “Saria’s Song,” and “Song of Storms” are each brought into the mix for a trip down memory lane.
The “Clock Town Theme” is the only song hailing from Majora’s Mask and the “Title Theme” from Wind Waker is the only theme present. Interestingly enough, though, Phantom Hourglass gets one more song than its more successful predecessor with “Linebeck’s Theme” and “The World of the Ocean King.” Perhaps it’s to pay tribute to its DS cousin game? Or that we just needed something to remind us that Linebeck is the best and has an amazing theme song? Because he is and he does.
Both Twilight Princess and Spirit Tracks have their overworld themes included in the Lucky Lobby Ball roster, being “Hyrule Field Theme” and “Full Steam Ahead” respectively. Just like Ocarina of Time, Skyward Sword has three songs included, those selections being the “Ballad of the Goddess,” “Skyloft Theme,” and “Fi’s Theme.”
Out of all the games, the one that is represented most is actually A Link Between Worlds. This game has five songs selected from its soundtrack to be included in Tri Force Heroes’ mini waiting game. These songs are the “Lorule Overworld Theme,” “Lorule Castle,” “Yuga’s Theme,” “Princess Hilda’s Theme,” and “Mother Maimai’s Theme.” My suspicion is, again, that the game is giving due respect to its 3DS counterpart, reminding you that you could be playing that game instead.
In all seriousness, I do have a fondness for Tri Force Heroes, though it may not be the most well-received title in recent years. It even has some fun songs of its own to boast! The final two songs, the “Title Theme” and “Madame Couture’s Theme” are fun, bouncy tunes that you can literally bounce to with the Lobby Ball!
It’s always exciting to me to hear songs from past Zelda games when they reappear in newer titles, whether it be the Milk Bar in A Link Between Worlds or the Lucky Lobby Ball of Tri Force Heroes. The music of this series is so iconic and fun, little Easter eggs like this just bring that special something that makes Zelda so magical.
If you would like to hear all these songs to their fullest because you have terrible timing (or, you know, just because you want to), here’s a video including each and every one!
