Cave (theme)

This article is about the music in Artaria. For other uses, see Cave (Disambiguation).

Cave^[1] is an original theme in the game Metroid Dread. It was composed by Soshi Abe and/or Sayako Doi.

Description

The theme is heard throughout most of Artaria, except for the larger of its two E.M.M.I. Zones. Cave 001 was first heard as the opening track of the Announcement Trailer in E3 2021, making it the first song from Metroid Dread to be heard by the public. More of the theme could be heard during gameplay clips released after E3, in the Development History presentation and the Overview Trailer.

The Cave theme prominently features a recurring staccato melody with an "intrigue" vibe, heard in most of its variations. This melody is even incorporated into Emmy Defeated, which does play in the larger E.M.M.I. Zone, and Boss Scorpius, the theme for the area's boss. Cave includes a "whistle" heard in other tracks throughout Dread.

Cave 001, an ambient version that lacks the melody and focuses on the atmospheric instruments, is heard when first starting the game; this is replaced by the full melodic version, Cave 002, after encountering E.M.M.I.-02SM for the first time. In rooms with extreme heat or thermal facilities, Cave 003 takes on a darker, more tense tone with heavy emphasis on strings, and is reminiscent of the Sector 1 theme due to its percussive rhythms. When Artaria is frozen over by Experiment No. Z-57, the theme takes on another ambient variation, Cave Cooldown, which uses instruments to evoke the cold atmosphere, with the "intrigue" melody heard softly and quietly.

Cave 002 also appears in Tetris 99, on the limited time Dread-themed board. It begins to play when 50 players are left in a Maximus Cup event.

Cave 001 can be heard here, Cave 002 can be heard here, Cave 003 can be heard here, and Cave Cooldown can be heard here.

References