Breakout indie hit Wizard of Legend got a stellar soundtrack from composer Dale North. After the digital-only soundtrack was published in 2018, Scarlet Moon Records decided to beef up the soundtrack with some new arrangements and a limited-edition physical release. That’s right: an OST and piano collection CD box set arrived at my doorstep in 2020, alongside a fantastic book of sheet music for said piano collection.
Now, it’s 2025. And it is to my great shame that it’s taken me so long to get back to this great set of music. I’ll blame COVID for the initial delay, and beyond that, forgetfulness on my part. I want to take some time to highlight exactly what makes this OST so enjoyable, as well as what I love in AYAKI’s piano arrangements. Let’s go!
Disc One: Wizard of Legend The Complete Soundtrack
The Wizard of Legend soundtrack was first published as Wizard of Legend Original Soundtrack (SMRC-1024). This solid, 14-track OST was already worth celebrating, but it got an upgrade in 2020 as The Complete Soundtrack (SMRC-1047), which tacked on three new tracks written for the game’s DLC, making a new total of 17 tracks. Then, for the physical release of The Complete Soundtrack, we got a final bonus with track 18, an unused track called “Smoldering Ember.”
For my part, I can’t go without the upgraded Complete Soundtrack for exactly one track. I’m talking about “Blinded by Night (Lightning).” Before digging into the rest of this OST, I’d like to start by focusing on this piece.
High-octane, synth symphonic goodness. And a melody that is memorable, even sing-along-able? That’s a recipe for greatness. Some comparisons come to mind for me: Falcom (specifically Ys Origin), indie shmup Jamestown by Francisco Cerda, and even a bit of ACE+ (Xenoblade). If you like that kind of music, you’re going to dig this track—and that admiration is likely to extend to the rest of the OST.
From the top, “Wizard of Legend (Title)” is a killer title theme that I only wish were a tad longer. North uses a motif on this track that reminds me of the Sailor Moon “Outer Senshi” theme song, though I suppose the motif hearkens back, rhythmically (but not harmonically), to Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. I start bouncing along, nodding my head whenever I hear this bit of the title theme, and it gets me pumped up for what I know is coming next.
After some calmer tracks (“Museum” and “Plaza”) set the stage for field combat, we’re ready to go. First on the scene is the ice area music, “Freiya’s Cage.” I love the jump-scare synth noise that pops up at the end of its fun, syncopated, melodic ascensions. Again, there’s something very Falcom-esque with the way North mixes clearly artificial synthesizers with realistic symphonic samples.
Jumping from ice to earth, we have “Atlas’s Terrace,” which adds a hefty dose of choir to the action-packed symphonic stylings. The melody here, even more than in “Freiya’s Cage,” will surprise you with its sharp and unexpected syncopation. With enough repetition, this melody also becomes sing-along-able, a mark of a good earworm. But yes, it will take repetition, because that syncopation is tricky to master!
“Zeal’s Forge,” our fire theme, brings out something a little different, something I had originally expected this soundtrack to be when I first heard it. Wizard of Legend is a fast-paced, combat-heavy action RPG. Thus, I’d expected a certain kind of intensity would knock me to the ground. While I love all of the elementally-themed area themes, I found what I was expecting in “Zeal’s Forge” more than anywhere else (except, perhaps, in the aforementioned “Blinded by Night” from the Thundering Keep DLC). The brass is booming. The percussion doesn’t let up. This is full beast mode.
In sharp contrast, “Shuu’s Spire (Air)” is a soaring rhythmic adventure featuring some crystalline synth and lots of choir. It’s still at that sweet spot for the tempo, and the syncopation (especially in the song’s B section) is on par with the rest of the OST. I love a good, energetic track that can actually pull back a bit before landing on something solid: something like flying up in the sky before landing on a rocky, mountainous crag. That’s what we get here.
“Duel (Boss)” and “Duel of Legend (Final Boss)” each have their strengths. They are, appropriately, a tad shorter than the area themes. I don’t sense a fleshed-out theme with these two tracks in the way I do with the area themes either. But I can’t deny that they are super catchy. I would have loved if North went full-on Falcom with the final boss music with a wailing electric guitar part. But I respect the consistency of the soundscape.
The soundtrack’s remainder includes bright ending theme “Magical Merrymaking,” brief and surprisingly beautiful credits theme “Legendary Deeds,” and a bunch of music for trailer cuts. All solid, with plenty of small moments to admire. But the bulk of the soundtrack, again, is in those killer area themes.
Disc Two: Piano Collections Wizard of Legend
A perk of working as a composer under the Scarlet Moon umbrella is that you have easy access to some great arrangers, namely the GENTLE LOVE duo Norihiko Hibino and AYAKI. They’ve published arrangements for Celeste, Undertale, ActRaiser, and so much more. And here, they also provide arrangements for Wizard of Legend. Huzzah!
While Scarlet Moon did separately publish a Prescription for Sleep: Wizard of Legend album (SMRC-1037) for those who want the piano+sax duo, AYAKI went ahead and recorded a separate piano solo album. I actually haven’t listened to the Prescription for Sleep album yet, so I don’t even know how much overlap there is in arrangement style. What I do know is that AYAKI went all out here on Piano Collections Wizard of Legend (SMRC-1036).
For starters, there’s the opening title theme, “Wizard of Legend.” As I mentioned above, my only frustration with it in its OST form is that it’s too short. AYAKI’s arrangement, in contrast, runs over four minutes, with fleshed-out melody and improvisation that sparks the imagination. I am loving all of that, especially since AYAKI never loses sight of those key moments in the song—including that trademark motif. Some other stand-out moments for me? The introduction to “Freiya’s Cage (Ice)” has a killer 16th note lead before breaking into the song’s heavily syncopated back-and-forth between left and right hands.
Then, “Zeal’s Forge (Fire)” has what might be my favorite part of the whole album. Just past the four-minute mark (on a total six-minute track!), AYAKI builds an improvised solo to a glorious peak and holds that tension at the top for as long as possible with trills that can just barely keep up with the tempo as the left hand keeps the harmonic and rhythmic structure intact. “Shuu’s Spire (Air)” is intentionally arranged to be soft and slow, with the rhythm suggesting a faster pace for only the middle minute of this five-minute arrangement.
Finally, we have the original composition from AYAKI, “Realizing One’s Potential.” What I love most about this piece is how well it fits with the rest of this album. This song isn’t composed by Dale North, and it isn’t found in Wizard of Legend proper. But you could be forgiven if you thought otherwise. This original piece uses the conceptual building blocks of North’s OST to build the perfect capstone for a Piano Collections album.
Final Thoughts
Have you played Wizard of Legend? Then you likely remember how strong this soundtrack was. Over the years, I keep turning back to it as one of my favorite indie soundtracks. Never played the game? Never heard this soundtrack? If I’m describing you, I urge you to take a listen. This may just be the kind of music you didn’t know you wanted, but after listening, you realize how a part of you longed for it. And while the OST and Piano Collections are available separately for digital purchase, I do absolutely recommend trying to hunt down this limited edition physical printing of Wizard of Legend The Complete Soundtrack and Piano Collections.
