Here are listed and archived the many articles written by Phantompig, the staff article writer. Here Phatonpig will impart his trademark insight as he investigates and examines many various topics concerning the Zelda series and games.

If you would like to contact Phantompig concerning any of his articles, or perhaps give him topics for future articles, you may email him at his staff address. Enjoy!

[Jump Around] Hyrulean Headphones | Twilight Princesses, Comparing the Two

Hyrulean Headphones

Music, the icing on the Hyrulean cake. Is it me or has The Legend of Zelda shown us some of the most beautiful riffs to honor our ears? Is it their ability to capture the moment or their uncanny skill of matching the mood to any scene? From Lake Hylia, to the wide expanses of Hyrule Field, to the inner workings of Goron City, music has captured the essence of them all. Whether it be out on the open seas or the darkness of a well, Legend of Zelda has given birth to some of the most memorable melodies ever. They’ve affected the Zelda community in ways that, well, totally rock, and they play in our heads like a broken record in an insane asylum—but in a good way.

Their tribute to music is unforgettable and people know that. There are countless websites that surround themselves in the music and create communities of Zelda music fanatics. The late Zeldamusic.org was one of the greatest sites of all time. Their goal was to re-orchestrate the tunes from every Legend of Zelda game, through the insanely vague Legend of Zelda to the miniature world of the Minish Cap. While they may have failed, their attempts haven’t been forgotten. Their music is still accessible at Hyrule the Land of Zelda. Legend of Zelda has been the basis of Remixing communities, a not so explored genre of fan works. Fans from around the internet enjoy themselves by creating renditions of these memorable tunes, not exclusively but including the LoZ franchise. VGmix.com and OCremix.net are popular sites that house these fans, one of which happens to be me.

Some gamers say that game play is what makes or breaks a game; some say that graphics are the defining factor but the truth is that beneath all of these rules and foundations that create a good game, music is the one that keeps you playing. How many times have you had the sounds of the Song of Storms in your head or the memorable Hyrule Field melody running through your mind? This isn’t just the boredom of your parents’ lectures talking, it’s the way that music makes you feel great. Signs of a great game shouldn’t be decided solely by the way the game looks or the way that a game challenges you but as a unison of them all, including music, a Triforce of sorts. Yes, I can see my nerdiness is showing.

What would Legend of Zelda be without the sounds and melodies that have been orchestrated? Nothing! You wouldn’t here the steal drums of Zora’s Domain, the soft sounds of the Ocarina, and the yells of Link as he’s hit by an Octorok, or my favorite the maniacal laugh of Ganondorf.

Legend of Zelda wouldn’t be anything without music. How many games have starred a musical instrument? Lets see: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. There’s Adventure of Link, Link to the Past, Link?s Awakening, Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, Oracle of Seasons, Oracle of Ages, and The Wind Waker. Each one of them stars one or more musical instruments that all play major roles in the story line (save Adventure of Link and Link to the Past) and if you look closely at the incoming Twilight Princess, you’ll see that Link plays a reed that he pulls from the ground. Music is an obvious key to the popularity of the Legend of Zelda franchise. Whether you believe me or not, it’s the truth.

Now, let us not forget the point of this little article, how vague it may be. The music that strums our hearts and echoes through the games of today aren’t meant to be slapped on just for the sake of it, but they are meant to match the tone of a character, couple the scene of an epic battle, and embody the emotion in a game. The Legend of Zelda franchise has achieved these levels of entertainment and forever will be known as one of the games that captured our hearts not through the actions that a hero makes but the music that plays behind them. Zelda music has affected us in more than one way and this article’s a tribute to that statement.

This article is dedicated to the late Zeldamusic.org. Let there music ring throughout the eternal space of the internet and their beautiful orchestrations be immortalized in the jukeboxes of our hearts. *bows head and tips hat*

Twilight Princesses, Comparing the Two

Mr. Miyamoto has blessed us with the Zelda franchise and with his kindness he brings on one of his greatest endeavors. “Twilight Princess,” has captured our beating hearts and has dazzled us without even being released. Rumors have spread, theories have sprung up from the depths of the Zelda community, and everyone is in uproar as to the creeping release of “Twilight Princess.”

Perhaps the most mysterious aspect of any Zelda game is its story, and while “Twilight Princess,” has graciously given us a chest full of information, we still lie in utter curiosity. One of the most revealing pieces of the story is that it is “Twilight Princess,” has been said to be influenced by the movie “Lady Hawke,” but that was denied by Eiji Aonuma, though, I find that hard to swallow Mr. Aonuma. Heh,heh…

“Lady Hawke,” as some of you might know, stars two characters, cursed to become animals as the sun rises and falls. Now, I haven’t seen the movie, per say, but I have read the script or at least the important parts. Now, Link turns into a wolf as he travels into the Twilight realm while Navarre, the lead character in the movie, transforms into a wolf as night falls. This is just an example as to the similarities and between both works.

Now, to further my analysis, you have to think that Zelda will become a playable character. In addition to Navarre’s curse, Isabeau, a Zelda like character, transforms into a hawk. If we take a close look at the footage shown at E3, we can see that Link calls upon a hawk in order to aid him in tasks using what some call a “hawk weed,” but that’s not the point. This would support the idea that Zelda is, in fact, playable in the game and that she can also transform as Isabeau, her counter part, does in “Lady Hawke.”

Now, in the official trailer of “Twilight Princess,” we see that Zelda is clad in funeral robes, staring out side a castle in, what I can only assume the twilight realm, or night time, your choice. This is a wild guess, but perhaps Zelda is unable to go into the normal world because of a curse, this wouldn’t be the only time as “Adventure’s of Link also starred a cursed Zelda. By being cursed to stay human in the twilight realm, it supports the idea that she turns into a hawk in the day. Now, as most of this article is pure speculation, don’t take this stuff as fact. I don’t want to see my name being spammed on the web for false info, ya hear.

O.K, now that we have that out of the way, lets take a look at the first images of the Zelda trailer, as you might remember, Link was running through the sewers and he saw a whole bunch of these ghosts like zombies as a wolf. Again, if you’ve seen “Lady Hawke,” you’ll remember that Navarre happened to be a dungeon where he was forced to partner up with some kid, “The mouse,” who happens to play a similar role to that of Midna in order to escape the prison, through the sewers! Doesn’t this sort of remind you a bit of Link in the sewers with Midna as a wolf!? I believe that Mr. Aonuma declined to have seen the movie “Lady Hawke,” because of the off chances that certain people, like me, to find certain aspects of the game that shouldn’t be exposed, like this…or I could be completely and utterly wrong and will regret writing this article because of my stupidity. No worries.

Now, for those who have no patience for reading, here are some pictures that might show you that our beloved Mr. Aonuma is a lying Japanese Zelda hogger and perhaps show you that “Twilight Princess,” and “Lady Hawke” are very similar.

Princess Zelda and Lady Hawke, coincidence?