“We wanted to implement some of the feelings of the main characters, not only Snake but Eva,” Hibino tells me. Hibino also drew influence from his history as a jazz performer, which is evidence in the jazz-noir finish. D irector Hideo Kojima recommended that Hibino watch Bond films from the 1960s for inspiration - From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, and You Only Live Twice. But that all changed with the next entry in the series, a game that would cement Hibino’s legacy as a composer and earn him wider recognition overseas.Īs players boot up Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, they are greeted with an unusual James Bond-like opening that features a catchy theme song with music and lyrics by Hibino and vocals by soul singer Cynthia Harrell. The resulting score was a huge success with critics, but as he didn’t receive much credit, his own star didn’t rise with the game’s. Hibino contributed to many more tracks in MGS2, including most of the in-game music soundtrack such as the adaptive music for the alert themes. A melancholic jazz number drawing on Hibino’s experience with the saxophone, the song stands out from the game’s otherwise mostly-electronic score.

Following this, he graduated to become a member of the music team on the hotly anticipated Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, for which he contributed a number of tracks including the memorable theme for the railgun-toting Dead Cell member Fortune. I was like, ‘what should I do?’”ĭespite his anxiety, Hibino nailed it, getting his first credit for the score to the Game Boy Color Metal Gear Solid. “The first thing I was told by the chief was we’ve already talked with Harry Gregson Williams, the composer of famous films, and you will be collaborating with him. “I didn’t even know of Metal Gear Solid when I got hired,” Hibino admits to me. Despite having no prior knowledge of video games, he quickly found himself working for Konami Computer Entertainment Japan on the Metal Gear series, landing himself the job based on a tip from a friend and his experience with both computer production and acoustic composition. It all started back in 1999, when Hibino returned to Japan after having spent a year studying music production and composition at Berklee College of Music in Boston. Uneasy at this development and determined to apply his skills elsewhere, he decided instead to explore the therapeutic side of music, establishing the Hibino Sound Therapy Lab and contributing to a number of albums intended to relax and comfort listeners with his group GENTLE LOVE. Having composed music for popular titles such as Metal Gear Solid 3, Zone of the Enders, and Yakuza 2, he found himself sought after for more and more violent video game projects. In 2008, celebrated Japanese composer Norihiko Hibino found himself growing increasingly dissatisfied and disinterested in his work.

Snake eater song