Daily Debate: Which Zelda Boasts the Best Winter Ambiance?

Posted on December 11 2023 by Kora Burton

As far as the calendar is concerned, the winter season won’t technically begin until later this month for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere; but that doesn’t stop the colder temperatures and grayer skies from making it feel like winter is here! Living in the U.S. south, snow is more of a dreamy ideal than a reality, but the aesthetic of winter is one I always look forward to embracing as we cycle through the seasons.

While cheery music is popular this time of year, this season with all its “just be happy” messaging, social gatherings, and commercialized glee can be a tough time for many people, for just as many reasons. That’s why I generally really appreciate winter music from the Zelda series, because it tends to leave behind the jingle bells in favor of embracing what the winter elements sound like. Winterized Zelda often captures the awe and wonder of a crunchily tangible ice environment, while also incorporating the loneliness and danger of the cold. Of course, these environments are built not just by the musical tracks that accompany them, but are made up of everything that contributes to the way you interact with the setting, including the gameplay, objectives, visuals, enemy designs, and more.

So I’d like to ask this: taking into account the music, setting, and overall mood, which Zelda contains the best winter ambiance?

For me, the answer to this question is incidental. When my sibling and I were playing through the Snowpeak section of Twilight Princess, we were stuck in our house because a recent ice storm had made all the nearby roads impassable. Our gameplay experience was genuinely reflecting what the world looked like outside: cold, empty of people, and vaguely ominous. While the music isn’t complex, I appreciate how you can hear the wind whispering over a feeling of vastness while a chiming melody reminiscent of “Hyrule Field” plays in the stillness. As far as other Zelda winter environments go, I also really like The Minish Cap’s Temple of Droplets, which uses the familiar seasonal sounds of chimes and bells to an atypically haunting effect, and the interaction of the music, swirling snow, and introduction of Tulin’s Power of Wind on the approach to Tears of the Kingdom‘s Wind Temple.

What about you? Which Zelda presents the best picture of winter? Alternatively, which winter environments in Zelda do you not enjoy? Let us know down below!