Classic Koji Kondo interview reveals Miyamoto's request for the flute noise in The Legend of Zelda, and the sound of Link's sword beam

A classic Koji Kondo interview has been translated by Shmuplations, and it provides all sorts of interesting tidbits about his work during the NES/Game Boy/SNES/N64 days. In one particular snippet, Kondo opens up about a very specific request Shigeru Miyamoto gave him for the sound of the flute in The Legend of Zelda.

I remember he had me make a lot of different sounds for when you use the flute (when you warp). He was very particular about that one sound. “It shouldn’t just be ‘pretty’. I want it to evoke something more mysterious”, he told me.

In another part of the interview about The Legend of Zelda, Kondo actually spells out the sound of Link's sword beam in The Legend of Zelda.

That “bzyuun!” laser sound your sword makes? That wasn’t possible on the Famicom’s sound chip. The sounds the monsters make when they appear was also done with FM. I tried to use impressive, showy sounds that no one had heard before.

Now when you're trying to describe the sound effect for Link's sword beam, you have the perfect word to say!