We have all been there. Faced with a seemingly insurmountable task and a fast-approaching deadline, we begin to panic as the pressure of the moment consumes our every waking thought. How can we possibly conquer this mountain? Do we have the resources necessary to finish the job? Will our constituents even appreciate the end result? What if we fail?
Upon exhausting our Rolodex of irrational thoughts, we buckle down and start to eat the elephant of our responsibility the only way we know how: one bite at a time. In the words of the late war general George S. Patton, “pressure makes diamonds,” and much like facing the uphill battle of our dire circumstance, determination soon replaces feelings of consternation. As the project slowly comes into focus and eventually crosses the finish line, the outcome often exceeds our own lofty standards. This is the story of an iconic composer who faced an impossible situation when creating a song for one of the most beloved Zelda games of all time: Majora’s Mask.
Meet Koji Kondo. Most Zelda fans would likely not recognize Kondo if they walked past him in the city; however, he is one of the most renowned composers in gaming history. He wrote the theme song to the original Super Mario Bros., the title screen track to Ocarina of Time, and so many more critically acclaimed melodies. Simply put, Koji Kondo is a musical legend. But in early 2000, Kondo faced the incredibly difficult task of revamping a song at the last minute.
Although Majora’s Mask has fewer dungeons and locations than Ocarina of Time, the game featured the most ambitious Zelda soundtrack with over 90 songs. The rationale for such a robust composition is the game’s focus on scenarios generated from the many sidequests. Each scenario that Link encounters is coupled with a musical arrangement that perfectly complements the tone and mood. Although each song is special for a variety of reasons, Kondo’s favorite track also happens to be the one that caused him the most angst: the “Mayor’s Meeting” theme.
Already facing a tumultuous development cycle of 12 short months, Koji Kondo was finished with the game’s ambitious soundtrack when the development staff asked for a last-minute change to the tone of the “Mayor’s Meeting” theme. According to an interview featured in Game Maestro Vol 3, not only was the game scheduled to go to print shortly, but the development staff had also consumed nearly every byte of memory. A day-one patch could have easily solved this problem; however, game development did not have the luxury of the internet back in 2001.
With little time and almost no development resources left, Kondo immediately got to work climbing the insurmountable mountain of last-minute development changes. He spent many sleepless nights grinding away in the office, and in Kondo’s own words, he simply “nailed it!” The time and resource crunch resulted in a diamond-of-a theme for the Never-Ending Meeting sidequest. Upon opening the door to the mayor’s office for the first time, I was stunned by how the music perfectly fits the serious tone of the scenario as the mayor and residents argue over how to handle the dire situation. It felt as though the player is truly witnessing a formal meeting of important characters.
While the pressure of facing overwhelming obstacles can be paralyzing, nothing compares to the satisfaction of conquering insurmountable odds. Even Kondo took a moment to bask in the glory of his work by secretly dancing to his masterpiece of a soundtrack. During an interview one year after the game’s release, Kondo was asked to reveal his favorite song in Majora’s Mask. Without hesitation, he chose the “Mayor’s Meeting” theme because of the incredible challenges that he overcame.
