This article is written from the Real Life point of view |
The subject of this article is not named in-game.
The current title is from the game's internal data.
Boss Queen[1], also known as Boss Battle 7[2], is a threatening battle theme in Metroid: Samus Returns. It was composed by Daisuke Matsuoka.
Description[]
As the name states, this theme is heard during the battle with the Queen Metroid in her nest in Area 8. It was also briefly heard in a pre-release tweet by Nintendo of America that showed the Queen Metroid in the remake for the first time.[3]
Boss Queen heavily consists of percussive beats, vocal chants, an organ, and other electronic instruments. These blend together to form a chaotic cacophony of sound, highlighting the terrifying and alien nature of the most powerful Metroid on SR388. It can be heard here: [1]
The Queen Metroid had a different theme for her original appearance in Metroid II: Return of Samus, which was composed by Ryoji Yoshitomi. However, Daisuke Matsuoka's version seems to be heavily inspired by the original theme and is very likely intended as an arrangement. In particular, the vocal chants heard halfway through the new song sound nearly identical to the original theme's opening; the section of the melody where an organ plays rapidly descending and ascending notes resembles part of the original theme's melody; and the dissonant organ chords are reminiscent of the very ending of the original theme's loop.
Additionally, the instrumentation of Boss Queen resembles other final boss themes in the series. The vocal chants are very reminiscent of those from Emperor Ing Chrysalis from Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, and the dissonant organ chords bear strong similarities to the Mother Brain theme in Super Metroid. However, this theme bears very little semblance to the cloned Queen Metroid's orchestrated theme from Metroid: Other M, composed by Kuniaki Haishima.
References[]
- ^ As named internally in Metroid: Samus Returns
- ^ Metroid: Samus Returns Sound Test
- ^ Nintendo of America on Twitter: "The mother of Metroids is a formidable foe in #Metroid: Samus Returns. Samus will need to think fast to defeat the ferocious Queen Metroid!" (September 2, 2017). Retrieved on June 26, 2018.