Iwata Asks: The Music of Super Mario Galaxy 2

The original Super Mario Galaxy set the bar high for orchestral sound quality, and the sound team recently got together to discuss the sequel.

The original plan for the second Super Mario Galaxy, Galaxy 1.5 as it was known internally, was to recycle many elements from the first into what looked like an expansion pack. With many new decisions and ideas coming about in Super Mario Galaxy 2, the team had to work on a practically all-new soundtrack to fit, including composing music for the adorable Yoshi.

Mahito Yokota returned to lead the pack, with long-running Nintendo composer Koji Konda supervising development. Miyamoto was also drafted in to make key decisions. He was considering whether or not to include orchestrated pieces in the new game, with it being fairly difficult the first time round but fortunately the team managed to convince him that otherwise. He felt it would be a waste, and we would certainly agree, to ditch the original masterpieces from Galaxy 1, so the new game is made up of new tunes, re-arranged Super Mario Galaxy pieces and selected Mario arrangements.

Kondo did step in to create some of the tricker songs, including the Yoshi Star, Starship Mario and Bowser Jr. themes. He and Yokata also felt that the world map sound should be kept simple, a loop, to let players relax after earning a star or two. For Yoshi's theme the pair felt that he needed a more primeval, cheeky feel to suit the green dinosaur's character.

The orchestra for Super Mario Galaxy 2 was made up of around 60 members, about 10 from the 50 who worked on the original game.

Thanks to Andriasang for translating.