Yoko Shimomura

Japanese composer and pianist (born 1967)

Yoko Shimomura

下村 陽子

Shimomura in 2007

Background information
Born|  (1967-10-19) October 19, 1967 (age 54)
Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan
Genres|

* Video game
* electronic
* symphonic

Occupation(s)|

* Composer
* pianist

Instrument(s)| Piano
Years active| 1988–present
Labels|

* Midiplex
* Brave Wave Productions

Website| midiplex.com

Musical artist

Yoko Shimomura (下村 陽子, Shimomura Yōko, born October 19, 1967) is a Japanese composer and pianist primarily known for her work in video games. She graduated from the Osaka College of Music in 1988 and began working in the video game industry by joining Capcom the same year. She wrote music for several games there, including Final Fight, Street Fighter II, and The King of Dragons.

Shimomura left Capcom and joined Square (now Square Enix) in 1993, with her first project there being Live A Live. She would later become better known for writing the music for Kingdom Hearts, which was her last game at Square before leaving to become a freelancer in 2002. She founded a music production company, Midiplex, the following year. Despite leaving Square Enix, she has continued to compose for the Kingdom Hearts series and other games such as The 3rd Birthday and Final Fantasy XV.

Other well-known games Shimomura has worked on include Super Mario RPG, the Mario & Luigi series, Parasite Eve, Legend of Mana, and Xenoblade Chronicles. Her works have gained a great deal of popularity and have been performed in multiple video game music concerts. Music from several of her games have been published as arranged albums and piano scores. She is also a member of the music label Brave Wave Productions.

## Contents

* 1 Early life
* 2 Career
* 3 Legacy
* 4 Musical style and influences
* 5 Works
* 5.1 Video games
* 5.1.1 Composition
* 5.1.2 Arrangements
* 5.2 Other works
* 6 References
* 7 External links

## Early life[edit]

Shimomura was born on October 19, 1967, in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan.[1][2] She developed an interest for music at a young age, and started taking piano lessons "at the age of four or five".[3] She began composing her own music by playing the piano randomly and pretending to compose, eventually coming up with her own pieces, the first of which she says she still remembers how to play.[3] Shimomura attended Osaka College of Music, and graduated as a piano major in 1988.

Upon graduation, Shimomura intended to become a piano instructor and was extended a job offer to become a piano teacher at a music store, but as she had been an avid gamer for many years she decided to send some samples of her work to various video game companies that were recruiting at the university.[4] Capcom invited her in for an audition and interview, and she was offered a job there. Her family and instructors were dismayed with her change in focus, as video game music was not well respected, and "they had paid [her] tuition for an expensive music school and couldn't understand why [she] would accept such a job", but Shimomura accepted the job at Capcom anyway.[3][4]

## Career[edit]

While working for Capcom, Shimomura contributed to the soundtracks of over 16 games, including the successful Street Fighter II, which she composed all but three pieces for. The first soundtrack she worked on at the company was for Samurai Sword in 1988. Final Fight, in 1989, was her first work to receive a separate soundtrack album release, on an album of music from several Capcom games.[5] The first soundtrack album to exclusively feature her work came a year later for the soundtrack to Street Fighter II.[6] While she began her tenure at Capcom working on games for video game consoles, by 1990 she had moved to the arcade game division.[1][4] She was a member of the company's in-house band Alph Lyla, which played various Capcom game music, including pieces written by Shimomura. She performed live with the group on a few occasions, including playing piano during Alph Lyla's appearance at the 1992 Game Music Festival.

In 1993, Shimomura left Capcom to join another game company, Square. She stated that the move was done because she was interested in writing "classical-style" music for fantasy role-playing games. While working for Capcom, she was in the arcade department and was unable to transfer to the console department to work on their role-playing video game series Breath of Fire, although she did contribute one track to the first game in the series.[4] Her first project at Square was the score for the role-playing video game Live A Live in 1994. While she was working on the score to Super Mario RPG the following year, she was asked to join Noriko Matsueda on the music to the futuristic role-playing game Front Mission. Although she was overworked doing both scores and it was not the genre that she was interested in, she found herself unable to refuse after her first attempt to do so unexpectedly happened in the presence of the president of Square, Tetsuo Mizuno.[4] These games were followed by Tobal No. 1, the last score she worked on with another composer for a decade.[1]

Over the next few years, she composed the soundtrack to several games, including Parasite Eve and Legend of Mana. Of all her compositions, Shimomura considers the soundtrack to Legend of Mana the one that best expresses herself and the soundtrack remains Shimomura's personal favourite.[7][3] Parasite Eve on the PlayStation had the first soundtrack by Shimomura that included a vocal song, as it was the first game she had written for running on a console system that had the sound capability for one.[4] In 2002 she wrote the score for Kingdom Hearts, which she has said is the most "special" soundtrack to her, as well as a turning point in her career; she named the soundtracks to Street Fighter II and Super Mario RPG as the other two significant points in her life as a composer.[8]

Kingdom Hearts was wildly successful, shipping more than four million copies worldwide;[9] Shimomura's music was frequently cited as one of the highlights of the game, and the title track has been ranked as the fourth-best role-playing game title track of all time.[10][11] The soundtrack has led to two albums of piano arrangements.[8] Kingdom Hearts was the last soundtrack that she worked on at Square. After the release of Kingdom Hearts in 2002, Shimomura left Square for maternity leave, and began work as a freelancer in 2003.[12] She has built on the work she did while at Square; since leaving she has composed or is composing music for eleven Kingdom Hearts games and Nintendo's Mario & Luigi series. She has also worked on many other projects, such as Heroes of Mana and various arranged albums.[1] In February 2014, Shimomura played piano at a retrospective 25th anniversary concert at Tokyo FM Hall.[13] She performed songs from games such as Kingdom Hearts, Live a Live, and Street Fighter II. During the Beware the Forest's Mushrooms performance from Super Mario RPG, Shimomura was joined onstage by fellow composer Yasunori Mitsuda, who played the Irish bouzouki.[13] She most recently composed and produced the majority of the score for Final Fantasy XV, which she began writing for in 2006, a decade before the game was released.[14] She is also a member of the music label Brave Wave Productions.[15]

## Legacy[edit]

Shimomura has been cited as one of the most well-known video game music composers.[7][8] Shimomura's best works compilation album, titled Drammatica: The Very Best of Yoko Shimomura, was released in March 2008. The album contains compositions from Kingdom Hearts and many other games she worked on in full orchestration, with Shimomura stating that she chose music that was popular among fans and well-suited for orchestration, but had never been performed by an orchestra before.[16] In a 2008 interview with Music4Games regarding the project, Shimomura commented that with the sheet music generated for the project, she would be interested in pursuing a live performance of Drammatica for fans if the opportunity arose.[16] In March 2009, that wish was realized when it was announced that Arnie Roth would conduct the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra at the concert Sinfonia Drammatica in the Stockholm Concert Hall, which would combine music from the album with performances of Chris Hülsbeck's Symphonic Shades concert. The concert took place in August 2009.[17] In March 2007, Shimomura released her first non-video game album, Murmur, an album of vocal songs sung by Chata.[8]

Shimomura's music for Kingdom Hearts made up one fourth of the music of the Symphonic Fantasies concerts in September 2009, which were produced by the creators of the Symphonic Game Music Concert series and conducted by Arnie Roth.[18] Legend of Mana's title theme was also performed by the Australian Eminence Symphony Orchestra for its classical gaming music concert A Night in Fantasia 2007.[19]

Music from the original soundtrack of Legend of Mana was arranged for the piano and published by DOREMI Music Publishing. Two compilation books of music from the series have also been published as Seiken Densetsu Best Collection Piano Solo Sheet Music first and second editions, with the second including Shimomura's tracks from Legend of Mana. All songs in each book have been rewritten by Asako Niwa as beginning to intermediate level piano solos, though they are meant to sound as much like the originals as possible.[20] Additionally, piano sheet music from Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II has been published as music books by Yamaha Music Media.[21]

Shimomura's first dedicated concert performance outside Japan was held at the Salle Cortot in Paris in November 2015.[22] Later that same month, she performed at the El Plaza Condesa in Mexico City.[23] In September 2016, some of her music for Final Fantasy XV was performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra at Abbey Road Studios in London, as well as in Boston, with Shimomura herself performing on piano.[24][14]

Shimomura composed for the concert work Merregnon: Land of Silence.[25] Her work was performed by the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra and filmed at the Stockholm Concert Hall in 2021.[26] Worldwide performances are planned starting in 2022.[27]

## Musical style and influences[edit]

Shimomura lists Ludwig van Beethoven, Frédéric Chopin, and Maurice Ravel as some of her influences on her personal website.[1] She has also stated that she has enjoyed "lounge-style jazz" for a long time.[4] Despite these influences and her classical training, the diverse musical styles that she has used throughout her career and sometimes in the same soundtrack include "rock, electronica, oriental, ambient, industrial, pop, symphonic, operatic, chiptune, and more".[7][3] She draws inspiration for her songs from things in her life that move her emotionally, which she describes as "a beautiful picture, scenery, tasting something delicious, scents that bring back memories, happy and sad things... Anything that moves my emotion gives me inspiration".[3] Shimomura has also stated that she comes up with most of her songs when she is doing something that is "not part of [her] daily routine, like traveling."[3] Although her influences are mostly classical, she has said that in her opinion her "style has changed dramatically over the years, though the passion for music stays the same."[4] Shimomura has said that she believes that an important part of "the creative process behind music" is to "convey a subtle message, something that comes from your imagination and sticks with the listener, without being overly specific about what it means", rather than only writing simple themes with obvious messages.[4] She stated her favorite composition was "Dearly Beloved" from Kingdom Hearts.[8]

## Works[edit]

### Video games[edit]

#### Composition[edit]

Video game compositions Year  | Title  | Notes  | Ref.

|
|
|

1988  | Samurai Sword |  | [3]
1989  | Final Fight | Composed "Round 5: Bay Area 2 & 3"  | [3]
1990  | Code Name: Viper | All tracks except Stage 1 by Junko Tamiya (uncredited)  | [28]
Gargoyle's Quest | with Harumi Fujita (uncredited)  | [3]
Adventures in the Magic Kingdom |  | [3]
Mizushima Shinji no Daikoushien |  | [29]
Nemo |  | [3]
Mahjong School: The Super O Version | with Masaki Izutani (uncredited)  | [29]
1991  | Street Fighter II | with Isao Abe  | [4]
The King of Dragons |  | [3]
Block Block | with Masaki Izutani  | [29]
1992  | Varth: Operation Thunderstorm | [3]
1993  | Breath of Fire | composed "Trade City"  | [4]
The Punisher | with Isao Abe  | [3]
1994  | Live A Live |  | [3]
1995  | Front Mission | with Noriko Matsueda | [3]
1996  | Super Mario RPG |  | [3]
Tobal No. 1 | with several others  | [1]
1998  | Parasite Eve |  | [3]
1999  | Legend of Mana |  | [30]
2000  | Hataraku Chocobo |  | [3]
2002  | Kingdom Hearts |  | [3]
2003  | Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga |  | [8]
2004  | Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories |  | [3]
2005  | Pop'n Music 13 Carnival | composed "Majestic Fire"  | [31]
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time |  | [8]
Kingdom Hearts II |  | [8]
2006  | Monster Kingdom: Jewel Summoner | with several others  | [3]
2007  | Heroes of Mana |  | [1]
Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories |  | [8]
2008  | Luminous Arc 2 | with Akari Kaida, Yoshino Aoki, and Shunsuke Nakamura  | [32]
2009  | Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story |  | [8]
Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days |  | [8]
Pop'n Music 17 The Movie | composed "Twin Hero - Oath to Tomorrow"  | [31]
2010  | Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep | with Tsuyoshi Sekito and Takeharu Ishimoto | [8]
Kingdom Hearts coded |  | [33]
Xenoblade Chronicles | with Manami Kiyota and ACE+[a] | [34]
Last Ranker |  | [8]
Kingdom Hearts Re:coded |  | [33]
Radiant Historia |  | [35]
The 3rd Birthday | with Tsuyoshi Sekito and Mitsuto Suzuki  | [8]
2011  | Half-Minute Hero: The Second Coming | with several others  |
2012  | Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance | with Tsuyoshi Sekito and Takeharu Ishimoto  | [36]
Demons' Score | composed "Azazel del cielo ardiente"  | [37]
2013  | Mario & Luigi: Dream Team |  | [38]
Kingdom Hearts χ |  | [39]
Exstetra | composed "Main Theme"  | [40]
2014  | Rise of Mana | composed "Where the Heart Beats Free"  |
Terra Battle | two tracks  | [41]
V.D. -Vanishment Day- |  | [42]
2015  | Chronos Ring | with Kenji Ito and Evan Call | [43]
Chunithm: Seelisch Tact | composed "Tango Rouge"  | [44]
Kakuriyo no Mon | composed "異邦の守護者"  | [45]
Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam |  | [46]
2016  | The Alchemist Code | with Shinya Tanaka and Shigeki Hayashi  | [47]
Black Knight and White Devil | with Shota Kageyama  | [48]
Final Fantasy XV | with Tetsuya Shibata, Yoshino Aoki, and Yoshitaka Suzuki  | [14]
2017  | Kingdom Hearts 0.2: Birth by Sleep – A Fragmentary Passage |  | [49]
Magicians Dead Next Blazing | with Masato Kouda and Makoto Iida  | [50]
Egglia: Legend of the Red Cap | with Yoshitaka Hirota | [51][52]
Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology |  | [53]
Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga + Bowser's Minions |  | [54]
Million Arthur: Arcana Blood | music producer[55] |
2018  | Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey |  | [56]
2019  | Kingdom Hearts III | with Tsuyoshi Sekito and Takeharu Ishimoto  | [57]
Rakugaki Kingdom | composed "夢と幻想の円舞曲"  | [58]
Renshin no Astral | with several others  | [59]
2020  | Streets of Rage 4 | composed "Shiva"  | [60]
2021  | Gran Saga |  | [61]
Xuan-Yuan Sword VII | composed "Mohism"  | [62]
2022  | Sin Chronicle | with several others  | [63]
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope | with Grant Kirkhope and Gareth Coker | [64]

#### Arrangements[edit]

Video game arrangements Year  | Title  | Notes

|
|

1989  | F-1 Dream | original music by Manami Matsumae[3]
1991  | Buster Bros. | original music by Tamayo Kawamoto[65]
2008  | Super Smash Bros. Brawl | "Tetris: Type A", "Gritzy Desert", and "King Dedede's Theme"[66]
2009  | Little King's Story | Maurice Ravel's Boléro[67]
2013  | Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 Remix | orchestration[68]
2014  | Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U | "Magicant / Eight Melodies", "Try, Try Again", "Route 10", and "Ryu Stage"[69]
Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 Remix | arrangement and orchestrations
2018  | Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | "Kass' Theme", "Vega Stage", "Treasure Trove Cove", "Pasta", "Dance of the Blocks", "Cosmo Canyon", "Moonsiders 1st",[70] and "Hand in Hand"[71]
2020  | The Wonderful 101: Remastered | with several others[72]
2022  | Live A Live HD-2D Remake | orchestration[73]

### Other works[edit]

Other works Year  | Title  | Notes  | Ref.

|
|
|

1989  | G.S.M. 1500 series ~ Sweet Home | arranged two tracks  |
1992  | Captain Commando -G.S.M. Capcom 5  | with Alph Lyla |
Game Music Festival ~Super Live '92~ |
1993  | Street Fighter II Collector's Box |
1998  | Parasite Eve Remixes | with several others  |
2004  | Dan Doh!! | anime  | [3]
Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II Premium Arrange | with several others  | [74]
Dark Chronicle Premium Arrange | [75]
2005  | Best Student Council | anime  | [3]
2006  | Rogue Galaxy Premium Arrange | with several others  | [3]
2007  | Murmur | original album, with lyrics and vocals by Chata | [8]
2008  | Drammatica: The Very Best of Yoko Shimomura |  | [16]
2009  | Mushihimesama Double Arrange Album | with several others  | [76]
2010  | GeOnDan Rare Tracks Ver. 2.0 |
2011  | GeOnDan Super Rare Trax: The LAND of RISING SUN |
2012  | GO! GO! Buriki Daioh!! |  |
2013  | X'mas Collections II | with several others  | [77]
2014  | memória! ~ The Very Best of Yoko Shimomura |  | [78]
Game Music Prayer II | with several others  | [79]
2017  | Napping Princess | anime  | [80]
2018  | High Score Girl | [80]
2019  | Ladderless | original album by Oldcodex, composed "Deeply Mind"  | [81]
Nocturne | tribute song to deceased rapper XXXTentacion | [82]
2020  | Yucho Pay Original Image Song #TOKIWOMEKURUYUBI |  | [83]
2021  | Merregnon: Land of Silence | concert  | [84]
2022  | Legend of Mana: The Teardrop Crystal | anime  | [85]

## References[edit]

1. ^ Tomori Kudo, Hiroyo "CHiCO" Yamanaka, Kenji Hiramatsu

1. ^ a b c d e f g Shimomura, Yoko. "Profile" (in Japanese). Yoko Shimomura. Retrieved October 9, 2009.
2. ^ "Yôko Shimomura". Wayô Records (in French). Retrieved October 17, 2020.
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa Shimomura, Yoko. "RocketBaby's interview with Yoko Shimomura". RocketBaby.com. Archived from the original on December 5, 2002. Retrieved October 9, 2009.
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Jeriaska (August 31, 2009). "Interview: Magical Planet – The Music of Hiroki Kikuta & Yoko Shimomura". Gamasutra. Retrieved October 9, 2009.
5. ^ Final Fight -G.S.M. CAPCOM 3-. Pony Canyon (May 21, 1990). PCCB-00030.
6. ^ Street Fighter II Image Album -G.S.M. CAPCOM-. Pony Canyon (November 21, 1991). PCCB-00075.
7. ^ a b c Chris Greening. "Yoko Shimomura Profile". Game Music Online. Retrieved September 21, 2014.
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Shimomura, Yoko (October 1, 2009). "Interview with Yoko Shimomura: From Stockholm and Cologne". Game Music Online, GameMusic.net. Retrieved October 9, 2009.
9. ^ "Kingdom Hearts tips scales at 4 million". GameSpot. March 17, 2004. Retrieved May 18, 2007.
10. ^ Smith, David (September 16, 2002). "IGN Kingdom Hearts Review". IGN. Retrieved August 14, 2007.
11. ^ Sullivan, Meghan (August 8, 2006). "Top Ten RPG Title Tracks". IGN. Archived from the original on June 30, 2007. Retrieved August 7, 2007.
12. ^ "ゲームミュージック＆アニメ専門店 ga-core – ジーエー・コア –". May 30, 2009. Archived from the original on May 30, 2009.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
13. ^ a b "『ストII』や『キングダム ハーツ』など下村陽子さん作曲活動25年間が凝縮された記念ライブが開催 - ファミ通.com".
14. ^ a b c Summers, Nick. "The 'Final Fantasy XV' soundtrack was a decade in the making". Engadget. Retrieved January 18, 2017.
15. ^ "Artists". Brave Wave. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
16. ^ a b c "Yoko Shimomura drammatica Interview with Music4Games". Music4Games. Archived from the original on August 2, 2008. Retrieved May 28, 2008.
17. ^ "Sinfonia Drammatica". Square Enix Music Online. August 13, 2009. Archived from the original on September 8, 2015. Retrieved October 9, 2009.
18. ^ "Concert program for download". Symphonic Fantasies. September 1, 2009. Archived from the original on October 5, 2009. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
19. ^ Shea, Cam (March 3, 2007). "A Night in Fantasia 2007 – The Track List". IGN. Retrieved August 11, 2009.
20. ^ "Mana Series :: Sheet Music Books". Square Enix Music Online. Archived from the original on July 22, 2015. Retrieved August 11, 2009.
21. ^ ヤマハミュージックメディア − 楽譜／雑誌／音楽ソフト − (in Japanese). Yamaha Music Media. Retrieved September 14, 2008.
22. ^ Huynh, Christopher. "Wayô Records to collaborate with Yoko Shimomura for concert". Game Music Online. Retrieved March 30, 2015.
23. ^ "VCON 2015 Features Yoko Shimomura, The OneUps, Metroid Metal, and Royal Corneria Airforce". Gamasutra. Retrieved December 10, 2015.
24. ^ Robinson, Martin (September 7, 2016). "Square Enix has taken over Abbey Road for a Final Fantasy concert tonight". Eurogamer. Retrieved September 11, 2016.
25. ^ Ombler, Mat. "Video Games Inspire a Generation of Classical Music Fans". Wired. ISSN 1059-1028. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
26. ^ "Merregnon: Land of Silence". www.konserthuset.se. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
27. ^ "Merregnon: Land of Silence". www.merregnon.com. Retrieved May 1, 2022.
28. ^ Tamiya, Junko (May 19, 2014). "Junko Tamiya Interview: Creating Capcom's Incredible NES Scores". Game Music Online. Retrieved May 20, 2014.
29. ^ a b c "Yoko Shimomura's Works". Yoko Shimomura’s Website. January 1, 2008. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
30. ^ Goldner, Sam (September 6, 2019). "The Composer of Kingdom Hearts Has Never Stopped Reinventing Herself". Vice. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
31. ^ a b Greening, Chris (September 30, 2009). "Yoko Shimomura Interview: From Stockholm and Cologne". Video Game Music Online. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
32. ^ Tong, Sophia (October 28, 2008). "Luminous Arc 2 Hands-On". GameSpot. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
33. ^ a b Hernandez, Pedro (January 26, 2011). "Kingdom Hearts Re:Coded". Nintendo World Report. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
34. ^ Sahdev, Ishaan (May 11, 2011). "Why Yasunori Mitsuda And Yoko Shimomura Were Chosen For Xenoblade Chronicles". Siliconera. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
35. ^ Kevin Gifford (July 28, 2010). "Atlus Announces Radiant Historia". 1UP.com. Archived from the original on January 16, 2013. Retrieved August 1, 2010.
36. ^ Drake, Audrey (July 17, 2012). "Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance Review". IGN. Archived from the original on July 22, 2013. Retrieved July 19, 2012.
37. ^ Kubba, Sinan (September 19, 2012). "Demons' Score, Square Enix's new rhythm game, now available on iOS". Engadget. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
38. ^ "マリオ＆ルイージRPG4: 音楽室". Retrieved June 13, 2013.
39. ^ Musgrave, Shaun (April 15, 2016). "'Kingdom Hearts: Unchained Chi' Review – Neither Simple Nor Clean". Touch Arcade. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
40. ^ kevingifford (May 29, 2013). "Exstetra to hit 3DS and Vita in Japan this fall". Polygon. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
41. ^ Priestman, Chris (February 13, 2015). "SaGa Composer Kenji Ito Adds Music To Terra Battle". Siliconera. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
42. ^ Kotowski, Don (April 20, 2016). "V.D. -Vanishment Day- Soundtrack". Video Game Music Online. Retrieved June 24, 2018.
43. ^ Greening, Chris (September 27, 2014). "Hamauzu, Shimomura, Ito, and Sakimoto attached to new RPG projects". Game Music Online. Retrieved September 30, 2014.
44. ^ Greening, Chris (July 22, 2016). "CHUNITHM Original Soundtrack -Seelisch Tact-". Video Game Music Online. Retrieved June 24, 2018.
45. ^ "かくりよの門 Original Soundtrack" (in Japanese). iTunes. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
46. ^ "Miiverse hosts a Miiting with the developers of Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam". Nintendo. January 1, 2015. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
47. ^ Couture, Joel. "Japanese SRPG For Whom The Alchemist Exists To Bring Its Tactical Battles Worldwide". Siliconera. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
48. ^ Greening, Chris (June 26, 2016). "Kageyama, Shimomura record orchestral soundtrack for smartphone RPG". Video Game Music Online. Retrieved June 29, 2016.
49. ^ Wallace, Kimberley (June 12, 2017). "Kingdom Hearts Composer Talks Orchestra World Tour, Kingdom Hearts III". Game Informer. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
50. ^ Yoko Shimomura [@midiplex] (July 14, 2017). "私が3曲参加している『マジシャンズデッド NEXT ブレイジング』のサントラが、が7/21(金)に発売決定です〜。ゲームも大型アップデートされましたー！サントラでも、熱いバトル曲を是非是非聴いて頂けると嬉しいです〜！" (Tweet) (in Japanese) - via Twitter.
51. ^ Yoko Shimomura [@midiplex] (April 13, 2017). "というわけで、本日、私と弘田佳孝氏（@kulko_yh）で音楽を担当している『エグリア』リリースされました！是非是非遊んで頂けると嬉しいです〜(*´◡`*)" (Tweet) (in Japanese) - via Twitter.
52. ^ Romano, Sal (July 13, 2017). "Egglia: Legend of the Redcap coming west in August". Gematsu. Retrieved July 13, 2017.
53. ^ ラジアントヒストリア パーフェクトクロノロジー オリジナルサウンドトラック発売決定！ (in Japanese). Atlus. May 20, 2017. Archived from the original on July 5, 2017. Retrieved July 6, 2017.
54. ^ Kemps, Heidi (May 1, 2018). "Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga + Bowser's Minions Review". GameSpot. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
55. ^ Heaney, Duncan. "Million Arthur: Arcana Blood out now on Steam!". square-enix-games.com. Retrieved June 24, 2019.
56. ^ Moehnke, Mike (February 5, 2019). "Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey Review". RPGamer. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
57. ^ Wallace, Kimberley (January 24, 2019). "Kingdom Hearts III Review". Game Informer. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
58. ^ "SOUND". rakugaki-kingdom.com (in Japanese). Retrieved May 19, 2020.
59. ^ "落ち物デッキバトル『錬神のアストラル』配信記念インタビュー作曲家編。光田康典氏、下村陽子氏ら豪華メンバー6人が集う". automaton-media.com (in Japanese). December 26, 2019. Retrieved March 6, 2020.
60. ^ Hussain, Tamoor (July 17, 2019). "Streets Of Rage 4's Soundtrack Has Four Legendary Artists Including Yuzo Koshiro". GameSpot. Retrieved July 17, 2019.
61. ^ Hashimoto, Kazuma. "Kingdom Hearts Composer Yoko Shimomura to Create Gran Saga Score". Siliconera. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
62. ^ Romano, Sal (December 17, 2020). "Xuan-Yuan Sword VII for PS4 launches in February 2021 in the west; major update adds new boss and difficulty on December 18". Gematsu. Retrieved October 10, 2021.
63. ^ Romano, Sal (October 1, 2021). "Sega announces 'choose your own ending RPG' Sin Chronicle for iOS, Android". Gematsu. Retrieved October 3, 2021.
64. ^ "Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope - 'Game Introduction' and 'Team' trailers; composers announced". Gematsu. June 29, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
65. ^ "Yoko Shimomura's Works". Yoko Shimomura’s Website. January 1, 2008. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
66. ^ Kohler, Chris (May 22, 2007). "Smash Bros. To Boast All-Star Lineup of Musicians". Wired. Wired Magazine. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
67. ^ Sorlie, Audun. "Interview with Little King's Story composer Yutaka Minobe". Original Sound Version. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
68. ^ "Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 Remix Original Soundtrack". Video Game Music Online. April 26, 2015. Retrieved November 19, 2020.
69. ^ Sahdev, Ishaan (August 22, 2014). "These Famous Composers Are Working On Super Smash Bros. For Nintendo 3DS". Siliconera. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
70. ^ Farrell, Reilly (June 20, 2018). "Smash Bros. Ultimate website features music previews, details". Video Game Music Online. Retrieved June 24, 2018.,
71. ^ Beckwith, Michael (October 7, 2021). "Super Smash Bros. Ultimate: Every Song Coming with the Sora DLC". GameRant. Retrieved October 13, 2021.
72. ^ "The Wonderful 101 will get remixed tracks from Yuzo Koshiro (Etrian Odyssey), Keiichi Okabe (Nier Automata), and Yoko Shimomura (Kingdom Hearts, Street Fighter, Mario & Luigi) (!!!) #AllFor101pic.twitter.com/7lUQvgc82Z". @CartridgeGames. Twitter. March 6, 2020. Retrieved March 26, 2020.
73. ^ Agossah, Iyane (February 11, 2022). "Yoko Shimomura Comments on Rearranged Music in Live A Live HD-2D". DualShockers. Retrieved March 20, 2022.
74. ^ "Phantasy Star Online Premium Arrange :: Review by Dave and Harry". Square Enix Music. Retrieved March 21, 2022.
75. ^ Gann, Patrick (January 1, 2020). "Dark Chronicle Premium Arrange". RPGamer. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
76. ^ "Mushihimesama Double Arrange Album". Square Enix Music. January 1, 2010. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
77. ^ "X'mas Collections II music from Square Enix" (in Japanese). Square Enix. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved October 28, 2013.
78. ^ Khan, Jahanzeb (March 12, 2014). "Upcoming Yoko Shimomura Album Will Feature Music From Final Fantasy XV". Hard Core Gamer. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
79. ^ 大路政志 (April 15, 2014). "東日本大震災義援金チャリティCD「Game Music Prayer 2」がM3などで限定リリース。49組のゲーム音楽作曲家が参加した2枚組みコンピアルバム". 4Gamer. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
80. ^ a b "Hi Score Girl Anime's Teaser Video Subtitled in English". Anime News Network. March 23, 2018. Retrieved June 1, 2018.
81. ^ "LADDERLESS". OLDCODEX Official Website. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
82. ^ "Yoko Shimomura dedicates the track "Nocturne" in memory of late musician Jahseh Onfroy (XXXTentacion), a long-time Kingdom Hearts fan". KH13 · for Kingdom Hearts. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
83. ^ "ゆうちょPayオリジナルイメージソング #時をめくる指" (in Japanese). Universal Music Japan. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
84. ^ "Yoko Shimomura composes for Merregnon: Land of Silence". gameconcerts.com. April 20, 2020. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
85. ^ "Legend of Mana: The Teardrop Crystal Anime Reveals Promo Video, Visual, Cast, Staff". Anime News Network. April 26, 2022. Retrieved April 26, 2022.

## External links[edit]

Wikiquote has quotations related to Yoko Shimomura.

* Official website (in Japanese)
* Yoko Shimomura discography at Discogs
* Yoko Shimomura at IMDb

* v
* t
* e

Capcom

Employees|

| Current|

* Hideaki Itsuno
* Shinkiro
* Jun Takeuchi
* Shu Takumi

|

Former|

* Tokuro Fujiwara
* Noritaka Funamizu
* Atsushi Inaba
* Keiji Inafune
* Akari Kaida
* George Kamitani
* Hideki Kamiya
* Akira Kitamura
* Hiroyuki Kobayashi
* Shinji Mikami
* Kinu Nishimura
* Akira Nishitani
* Takashi Nishiyama
* Yoshiki Okamoto
* Yoshinori Ono
* Yoko Shimomura
* Noboru Sugimura
* Sawaki Takeyasu
* Akira Yasuda

Franchises|

* 1942
* Ace Attorney
* Bionic Commando
* Breath of Fire
* Buster Bros.
* Darkstalkers
* Dead Rising
* Devil May Cry
* Dino Crisis
* Dragon's Dogma
* Final Fight
* Gaist Crusher
* Ghosts 'n Goblins
* Lost Planet
* Marvel vs. Capcom
* Mega Man
* Monster Hunter
* Ōkami
* Onimusha
* Power Stone
* Resident Evil
* Rival Schools
* Sengoku Basara
* Star Gladiator
* Steel Battalion
* Street Fighter
* Strider
* Viewtiful Joe

Technology|

* MT Framework
* Panta Rhei
* RE Engine

Related|

* Alph Lyla
* Capcom Cup
* Capcom Five
* Clover Studio
* Capcom Vancouver
* Capcom U.S.A. Inc. v. Data East Corp.
* DreamHack
* Evolution Championship Series
* Flagship
* Red Dead
* Suleputer

Category

* v
* t
* e

Square Enix

Video game development|

* Square Enix Europe
* Luminous Productions
* Taito
* Tokyo RPG Factory

Other industries|

* Gangan Comics
* PlayOnline
* Image Studio Division

Lists of video games|

* List of franchises
* Square Enix
* mobile
* Enix
* home computer
* Square
* Square Enix Europe
* Crystal Dynamics
* Eidos
* Taito

Key people|

* Jun Akiyama
* Kazuhiko Aoki
* Tomoya Asano
* Hiroyuki Ito
* Akitoshi Kawazu
* Yoshinori Kitase
* Hiroshi Minagawa
* Tetsuya Nomura
* Kazuko Shibuya
* Masayoshi Soken
* Takashi Tokita
* Motomu Toriyama
* Naoki Yoshida

| Former|

* Kenichiro Fukui
* Nasir Gebelli
* Shinji Hashimoto
* Yasuyuki Honne
* Koichi Ishii
* Masato Kato
* Yasumi Matsuno
* Yasunori Mitsuda
* Yuji Naka
* Kazushige Nojima
* Soraya Saga
* Hironobu Sakaguchi
* Yoko Shimomura
* Hajime Tabata
* Tetsuya Takahashi
* Hiromichi Tanaka
* Toshiro Tsuchida
* Nobuo Uematsu
* Yoichi Wada

|

Frequent contractors|

* Yoshitaka Amano
* Yuji Horii
* Koichi Nakamura
* Koichi Sugiyama
* Yoko Taro
* Akira Toriyama

Former assets|

| Defunct|

* Beautiful Game Studios
* DigiCube
* Eidos Hungary
* The Game Designers Studio
* Ion Storm
* Quest Corporation
* Square
* Enix

|

Sold|

* Crystal Dynamics
* Eidos-Montréal
* IO Interactive
* Square Enix Montreal

Related articles|

* Compilation albums
* Companion books
* DS:Style
* Localization of Square Enix video games
* Luminous Engine
* Crystal Tools
* NESiCAxLive
* NESYS
* Taito Type X
* Zuntata

Category

* v
* t
* e

Kingdom Hearts

* Square Enix
* The Walt Disney Company

Media|

| Video games|

* Kingdom Hearts
* Chain of Memories
* II
* Coded
* 358/2 Days
* Birth by Sleep
* Dream Drop Distance
* χ
* III
* Melody of Memory
* IV

|

Other|

* HD 1.5 Remix
* HD 2.5 Remix
* HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue
* Mobile

Music|

* "Hikari"
* "Passion"
* "Face My Fears"
* "Chikai"

Universe|

* Characters
* Sora
* Riku
* Xehanort
* Organization XIII
* Roxas
* Terra
* Ventus
* Aqua

People|

* Daisuke Watanabe
* Jun Akiyama
* Kazushige Nojima
* Shinji Hashimoto
* Tetsuya Nomura
* Hikaru Utada
* Yoko Shimomura
* Yoshinori Kitase

Related|

* Final Fantasy
* The World Ends with You
* Einhänder
* Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

* Category

Authority control

General|

* ISNI
* 1
* VIAF
* 1
* WorldCat

National libraries|

* France (data)
* Germany
* United States
* Japan

Other|

* MusicBrainz artist

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template