Metroid
The Story of Metroid - Gaming Historian
Documentary covering the history of Metroid including the music’s role in the game’s atmosphere.
Metroid NES - Full OST
Complete original NES soundtrack including Brinstar, Kraid’s Lair, Norfair, and item fanfares.
Metroid NES - Longplay
Complete playthrough showing all areas and music in context of exploration.
Metroid - Kraid’s Lair Theme
The most minimal Metroid theme - heavy, oppressive atmosphere built from near-silence.
Tetris Game Boy
Tetris GB - Type A (Korobeiniki)
The arrangement of the 19th-century Russian folk song that conquered the world via Game Boy hardware.
Tetris GB - Type B
Tanaka’s original composition with French folk dance character - the counterpart to Type A’s Russian energy.
Tetris GB - History & Cultural Impact
How a Game Boy puzzle game and a 19th-century Russian folk song became globally ubiquitous.
Mother & EarthBound
Mother / EarthBound Beginnings - Full OST
Complete Famicom soundtrack - psychedelia, waltz rhythms, and surf rock under Shigesato Itoi’s direction.
EarthBound Retrospective
Covering Tanaka and Keiichi Suzuki’s SNES collaboration on one of the greatest RPG soundtracks.
Dr. Mario, Kid Icarus, and More
Dr. Mario - Fever & Chill
Two of the most immediately recognisable puzzle game themes. NES and Game Boy versions simultaneously released 1990.
Kid Icarus NES - Full OST
Complete soundtrack for Tanaka’s FDS/NES platformer co-developed with Metroid by Nintendo R&D1.
Nintendo R&D1 and the 8-bit Era
NES Sound Chip - Technical Breakdown
How the Ricoh 2A03 APU works - the hardware Tanaka used for Metroid, Mother, and Dr. Mario.
Game Boy Audio Hardware Explained
The 4-channel DMG-01 audio system that Tanaka scored Tetris and Super Mario Land on in 1989.
Famicom Disk System - Hardware & History
The FDS platform and its additional wavetable channel - the audio hardware Tanaka used for Metroid and Kid Icarus in 1986.