Lookout Landing serves as a home base for Link in Tears of the Kingdom – a role that went largely unfulfilled in its predecessor. To me, the most comparable place in Breath of the Wild was Kakariko Village, where Link could consult with Impa to get a sense of direction. While the Sheikah settlement was tucked away in a mountain range, Lookout Landing is much more easily accessible. It’s built upon the sacred ground ruins, which are smack dab in the middle of Hyrule Field. This new settlement in a region that used to be practically uninhabitable makes the world feel even more alive. The people of Hyrule, led by Purah, are no longer standing by and watching as the world is threatened, and they have instead built a fortress to make Hyrule Field a much safer place for travelers. Just as Lookout Landing’s presence makes Hyrule less lonely, its theme music brings a sense of comfort and hominess.
The track welcomes you in with a bright flute solo that feels like the sun rising (despite not being the iconic Sun’s Song). The motif is from Tears of the Kingdom‘s main theme, and it leads into a very sparse piece where there are rarely more than three instruments playing at the same time. A simple drum rhythm carries the momentum in the long spaces between melodic phrases, and some woodwinds reinforce the harmony every couple measures, but most of the song is led by the piano. It’s almost as if the people of Lookout Landing are playing the tune themselves – a small group of passionate Hylians breathing new life into the world. Purah even carries around a recorder, she has to have played it before! While the song may not be technically impressive, it really stands out to me in a way that only a handful of soundtracks are able to do: It feels like a place that I, not just Link, am connected to. That makes it even more unsettling when disaster looms once again, causing the tune to become a lot less cheerful.
One of the biggest reasons that this version feels so ominous is the lack of a drum part early on. Before, the drum would keep tapping along when the melodic phrases ended, but this time it’s nowhere to be found. The piano chords are not only darker, but they’re also held longer to fill up this space. Another noticeable difference is the existence of a string section, whose lush chords ominously swell in the background. The chords themselves are full of dramatic extensions that increase the emotional stakes tremendously, and the way they build up and swell at 00:35 leaves me breathless every time. Soon afterwards, a piano motif from Breath of the Wild‘s Hyrule Castle theme reminds us of all the gloom in the atmosphere. The melody stays exactly the same as before throughout the entire track, but the underlying chords put it in an entirely new light.
Lookout Landing’s music is a lot like Clock Town‘s from Majora’s Mask (my personal favorite of all the Zelda soundtracks), proving that a joyful melody can evoke a wide range of emotions in different contexts. The biggest difference between the two towns’ themes is that Clock Town cycles through its themes due to its time loop shenanigans, but you never get to hear the earlier versions of Lookout Landing again once you complete enough of the main quests. Players who rush to progress the plot may lose the opportunity to truly appreciate these magnificent pieces of music until their second playthrough (or until they listen to the entire soundtrack on YouTube, because there’s no way I’m the only one who does that). This is especially true regarding the dramatic version, as it only exists during a very short-lived scenario. In fact, the four main quest towns in Tears of the Kingdom all have new variations that emphasize their disasters, and I’m a sucker for dynamic soundtracks like this. The ability to restore peace not only to the world but to the world’s music really makes me feel more connected to it.
