Kenji Yamamoto (Nintendo musician)
Encyclopedia
is a Japan
ese video game musician working for Nintendo
. He was born on April 25, 1964. He is notable for composing music in many titles of the Metroid series, mainly Super Metroid
and the Prime trilogy. Yamamoto also plays a role as a music director at Nintendo, overseeing the audio for several Nintendo games. He often collaborates with Minako Hamano.
In development of Super Metroid
, Yamamoto came up with some of the games' themes by singing them while riding his motorcycle. He was asked to compose the music for Metroid Prime
to reinforce the series' continuity. Metroid Prime
s Dolby Pro Logic II
surround sound was mixed by a member of Dolby Digital. Developers from Retro Studios
noted how the process of fitting all the sound effects and music for Metroid Prime
in 6 MB
of space was crucial in producing a quality soundtrack, as each sound had to be of very high quality to be included. Yamamoto utilizes heavy drums, piano, voiced chants, clangs of pipes, and electric guitar. Metroid Prime 3
took advantage of the increase in the amount of RAM that took place when the series switched from the GameCube
to the Wii
; this allowed for higher quality audio samples to be used and thus a better overall audio quality. Yamamoto, who composed the music to Super Metroid
and the Prime trilogy, copied the musical design of the original Metroid in Metroid Prime 3, by keeping the music and themes dark and scary until the very end, when uplifting music is played during the credits.
The music from Metroid and other games has been played by ensembles including Jenova and Minibosses. An orchestral arrangement of his music is included in PLAY! A Video Game Symphony that toured the US and Europe
and made its Asian
debut at the 2007 Singapore Arts Festival.
In a interview with Music4Games
, Yamamoto detailed his experience working on the Metroid Prime
trilogy. He described his thoughts on the inclusion of themes from Super Metroid
as well as his composition process and sources of inspiration. He intends to continue working on the Metroid series into the future.
1988, Famicom Tantei Club: Kieta Kōkeisha
1989, Famicom Tantei Club Part II: Ushiro ni Tatsu Shōjo
1994, Super Metroid
(with Minako Hamano)
1995, Galactic Pinball
1999, Famicom Bunko: Hajimari no Mori
2001, Mario Kart: Super Circuit (sound support)
2002, Sakura Momoko no Ukiuki Carnival
(sound support)
2002, Metroid Fusion
(as sound designer)
2002, Metroid Prime
(with Kouichi Kyuuma)
2004, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
2004, Metroid: Zero Mission
(with Minako Hamano)
2005, Advance Wars: Dual Strike
(with Yoshito Hirano)
2005, Metroid Prime Pinball
(with Masaru Tajima)
2006, Excite Truck
(with Masaru Tajima)
2006, Metroid Prime Hunters
(as sound supervisor)
2007, Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
(with Minako Hamano and Masaru Tajima)
2010, Donkey Kong Country Returns
(with Minako Hamano, Masaru Tajima, Shinji Ushiroda, and Daisuke Matsuoka)
Kenji Yamamoto contributed with other video game composers for Super Smash Bros. Brawl
.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese video game musician working for Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
. He was born on April 25, 1964. He is notable for composing music in many titles of the Metroid series, mainly Super Metroid
Super Metroid
, also known as Metroid 3, is an action-adventure video game and the third game in the Metroid series. It was designed by Nintendo Research & Development 1, programmed by Intelligent Systems, and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System video game console...
and the Prime trilogy. Yamamoto also plays a role as a music director at Nintendo, overseeing the audio for several Nintendo games. He often collaborates with Minako Hamano.
In development of Super Metroid
Super Metroid
, also known as Metroid 3, is an action-adventure video game and the third game in the Metroid series. It was designed by Nintendo Research & Development 1, programmed by Intelligent Systems, and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System video game console...
, Yamamoto came up with some of the games' themes by singing them while riding his motorcycle. He was asked to compose the music for Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime is a video game developed by Retro Studios and Nintendo for the Nintendo GameCube, released in North America on November 17, 2002...
to reinforce the series' continuity. Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime is a video game developed by Retro Studios and Nintendo for the Nintendo GameCube, released in North America on November 17, 2002...
s Dolby Pro Logic II
Dolby Pro Logic
Dolby Pro Logic is a surround sound processing technology developed by Dolby Laboratories, designed to decode soundtracks encoded with Dolby Surround. Dolby Stereo was originally developed by Dolby in 1976 for analog cinema sound systems...
surround sound was mixed by a member of Dolby Digital. Developers from Retro Studios
Retro Studios
Retro Studios is an American video game developer based in Austin, Texas. The company was founded in October 1998 by the video game veteran Jeff Spangenberg after leaving Acclaim Entertainment, as an independent studio making games exclusively for Nintendo Company, Ltd.On May 2, 2002, Nintendo...
noted how the process of fitting all the sound effects and music for Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime is a video game developed by Retro Studios and Nintendo for the Nintendo GameCube, released in North America on November 17, 2002...
in 6 MB
Megabyte
The megabyte is a multiple of the unit byte for digital information storage or transmission with two different values depending on context: bytes generally for computer memory; and one million bytes generally for computer storage. The IEEE Standards Board has decided that "Mega will mean 1 000...
of space was crucial in producing a quality soundtrack, as each sound had to be of very high quality to be included. Yamamoto utilizes heavy drums, piano, voiced chants, clangs of pipes, and electric guitar. Metroid Prime 3
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption is a first-person action-adventure game developed by Retro Studios and published by Nintendo for the Wii video game console. It is the tenth game in the Metroid series, and the final entry in the Metroid Prime trilogy—excluding two spin-off titles. It was released in...
took advantage of the increase in the amount of RAM that took place when the series switched from the GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
to the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
; this allowed for higher quality audio samples to be used and thus a better overall audio quality. Yamamoto, who composed the music to Super Metroid
Super Metroid
, also known as Metroid 3, is an action-adventure video game and the third game in the Metroid series. It was designed by Nintendo Research & Development 1, programmed by Intelligent Systems, and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System video game console...
and the Prime trilogy, copied the musical design of the original Metroid in Metroid Prime 3, by keeping the music and themes dark and scary until the very end, when uplifting music is played during the credits.
The music from Metroid and other games has been played by ensembles including Jenova and Minibosses. An orchestral arrangement of his music is included in PLAY! A Video Game Symphony that toured the US and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and made its Asian
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
debut at the 2007 Singapore Arts Festival.
In a interview with Music4Games
Music4Games
Music4Games was a video game music information site originally launched in 1999. It focused on the video game soundtrack industry and claimed to target dedicated gamers, game music fans, audiophiles, students, composers, developers, publishers, producers, audio directors and music executives as a...
, Yamamoto detailed his experience working on the Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime is a video game developed by Retro Studios and Nintendo for the Nintendo GameCube, released in North America on November 17, 2002...
trilogy. He described his thoughts on the inclusion of themes from Super Metroid
Super Metroid
, also known as Metroid 3, is an action-adventure video game and the third game in the Metroid series. It was designed by Nintendo Research & Development 1, programmed by Intelligent Systems, and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System video game console...
as well as his composition process and sources of inspiration. He intends to continue working on the Metroid series into the future.
Discography
He is credited with creating the soundtracks of the following games:- 1987,
Famicom Tantei Club: Kieta Kōkeisha
is a text-based adventure game developed and published by Nintendo for the Family Computer Disk System on April 27, 1988 and June 14, 1988. The game was ported to the Game Boy Advance in the Famicom Mini series as a single cartridge in 2004, and became available on the Virtual Console in 2007 for...
Famicom Tantei Club Part II: Ushiro ni Tatsu Shōjo
is a text-based adventure game released by Nintendo in 1989 for the Family Computer Disk System. The original version was released in two discs in 1989, and the game was ported to the Super Famicom and the Game Boy Advance several years later...
Super Metroid
, also known as Metroid 3, is an action-adventure video game and the third game in the Metroid series. It was designed by Nintendo Research & Development 1, programmed by Intelligent Systems, and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System video game console...
(with Minako Hamano)
Galactic Pinball
Galactic Pinball is a video game for the Virtual Boy. It is pinball game featuring several different boards, including a cameo appearance by Samus Aran-Gameplay:...
Famicom Bunko: Hajimari no Mori
is a text-based adventure game developed by Pax Softnica and published by Nintendo released only in Japan for the Super Famicom. It was released only on the Nintendo Power cartridge rewriting service, which ended on February 28, 2007.-Background:...
Sakura Momoko no Ukiuki Carnival
is a video game developed by Indieszero and Nintendo Special Planning & Development and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance. The game was never released outside of Japan.-Development:...
(sound support)
Metroid Fusion
, also known as Metroid 4, is an action-adventure video game published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance. It was released in North America, Europe, and Australia in November 2002, and in Japan in February 2003. The game is the fourth main installment in the Metroid series...
(as sound designer)
Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime is a video game developed by Retro Studios and Nintendo for the Nintendo GameCube, released in North America on November 17, 2002...
(with Kouichi Kyuuma)
Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, known as in Japan, is a first-person, action-adventure video game developed by Retro Studios and published by Nintendo for the GameCube video game console. It is the seventh game in the Metroid series, a direct sequel to Metroid Prime, and the first game in the series with...
Metroid: Zero Mission
is an action-adventure video game developed by Nintendo R&D1 for the Game Boy Advance handheld console. It was published by Nintendo in North America in February 2004, in Australia in March 2004, in Europe in April 2004, and in Japan in May 2004. It is the sixth installment of the Metroid series,...
(with Minako Hamano)
Advance Wars: Dual Strike
Advance Wars: Dual Strike, known in Japan as , is a turn-based tactics video game developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS handheld game console...
(with Yoshito Hirano)
Metroid Prime Pinball
Metroid Prime Pinball is a pinball video game themed after the Metroid series. The game uses the graphical style and various story elements from Metroid Prime. It was developed by Fuse Games for the Nintendo DS handheld game console, and released by Nintendo in North America and Australia in 2005,...
(with Masaru Tajima)
Excite Truck
is a video game published by Nintendo and developed by Monster Games for the Wii video game system. It features malleable environments and tilt-based controls. The game was one of the Wii launch titles in North America. It is a spiritual successor to the Excitebike series...
(with Masaru Tajima)
Metroid Prime Hunters
Metroid Prime Hunters is a first-person shooter and adventure game for the Nintendo DS handheld video game console. It was developed by American video game developers Nintendo Software Technology, and was released by Nintendo in North America in March 2006, in Europe and Australia in May 2006, and...
(as sound supervisor)
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
Metroid Prime 3: Corruption is a first-person action-adventure game developed by Retro Studios and published by Nintendo for the Wii video game console. It is the tenth game in the Metroid series, and the final entry in the Metroid Prime trilogy—excluding two spin-off titles. It was released in...
(with Minako Hamano and Masaru Tajima)
Donkey Kong Country Returns
Donkey Kong Country Returns, known as in Japan, is a side-scrolling 2.5D platform game developed by Retro Studios and released by Nintendo for the Wii console on November 21, 2010, in North America, December 3, 2010, in Europe, and on December 9, 2010, in Japan...
(with Minako Hamano, Masaru Tajima, Shinji Ushiroda, and Daisuke Matsuoka)
Kenji Yamamoto contributed with other video game composers for Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Super Smash Bros. Brawl, known in Japan as , often abbreviated as SSBB or simply as Brawl, is the third installment in the Super Smash Bros. series of crossover fighting games, developed by an ad hoc development team consisting of Sora, Game Arts and staff from other developers, and published by...
.
External links
- Interview with Music4GamesMusic4GamesMusic4Games was a video game music information site originally launched in 1999. It focused on the video game soundtrack industry and claimed to target dedicated gamers, game music fans, audiophiles, students, composers, developers, publishers, producers, audio directors and music executives as a...
- Composer profile at OverClocked ReMixOverClocked ReMixOverClocked ReMix, also known as OC ReMix and OCR, is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and paying tribute to video game music through arranging and re-interpreting the songs with new technology and software, as well as by various traditional means...