The long-awaited opening ceremony for the Tokyo Olympics has taken place this afternoon – and featured music from classic video games.
The ceremony began with a countdown, before showing a montage of athletes training in isolation and a moment of reflection on the eight years since Tokyo was awarded the games, including the time that has passed since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.
There was a moment of silence to commemorate the victims of Covid-19 across the world.
The ceremony also contained an array of dance troupe displays and a sole runner on a treadmill in the middle of the stadium.
Then, athletes from the over 200 countries competing in the Olympics, as well as the Olympic Refugee Team, entered the stadium and did the traditional lap of honour.
The National Stadium in Tokyo has been rebuilt as a brand-new stadium for the Games, having been used for the Tokyo Olympics back in 1964.
One of the more interesting aspects to the ceremony was the use of classic video game music throughout.
All music is featured in prominent Japanese video games, spanning a variety of different genres and time periods.
It featured music from the Sonic the Hedgehog and Final Fantasy series, with one of the remixed songs featuring in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games.
There was even the song that featured as the eFootball walk-on theme in the latest edition of the Winning Eleven (Pro Evolution Soccer) series.
Here are some of the songs that were played during the opening ceremony:
- Dragon Quest – “Introduction: Lotto Theme”
- Final Fantasy – “Victory Fanfare”
- Kingdom Hearts – “Olympus Coliseum”
- Sonic the Hedgehog – “Star Light Zone”
- Winning Eleven (Pro Evolution Soccer) – “eFootball walk-on theme”
- Final Fantasy – “MAIN THEME”
- Kingdom Hearts – “Hero’s Fanfare”
- NieR – “Initiator”
- SoulCalibur – “The Brave New Stage of History”
The full list of songs played can be found via the Japanese website nikkansports.com.
Featured Image Credit: Getty