It’s easy to see the similarities between The Legend of Zelda games and many FromSoftware games. My own memories of Elden Ring and Breath of the Wild run together in the best of ways, each experience in perfect harmony in my mind. It came as a pleasant surprise, however, when I learned the extent to which Zelda music played a role in the life of frequent FromSoftware composer Yuka Kitamura, who has composed for Elden Ring (including its recent DLC), Dark Souls 1, 2, and 3, Bloodborne, and Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice.

In a recent email interview done through translation as part of Polygon FM, our theme week devoted to video games and music, Kitamura told us about her composition influences and her lifelong love of Zelda.

Polygon: Was there a game soundtrack or song that inspired you to pursue creating game music? Can you set the scene of what that felt like for you, and why the music was so effective?

Yuka Kitamura: Having spent my childhood and growing up with video games in the 1990s and 2000s, there are many masterpieces that have influenced me. The desire to play the main theme of my favorite video game title of all time, The Legend of Zelda, on the piano motivated me to learn piano during my childhood. Especially Majora’s Mask was a title I played for a long time, and I loved the world view that was deeply connected to the instrument.

I was also very influenced by the music of [the] Harvest Moon series, the Golden Sun [series], and [the] Pokémon series.

I felt that game music, sometimes very expressive music using a very small number of notes and bars, grabbed my heart straight away, and this is what made me dream of becoming a composer of such music.

Can you break down one of your own songs and its influences? Was it inspired by game soundtracks, other music, or something else?

The main theme of Dark Souls 3 was inspired by the Bulgarian Chorus chord progression.

I really liked it because I felt it expressed a different kind of beauty, a bit shady, as opposed to straight beauty.

Is there anything else we should know about your approach to composing video game music?

Many people have an impression of my music from my work at FromSoftware. I also love music with a colorful worldview that I was exposed to in my childhood. I would like to actively write such music in the future. I hope you will look forward to it.