As Nintendo was in charge of its actual game design, they dictated the aircraft and characters that would be present in the game. The six playable pilots in "Pilotwings 64" are all named after various birds. The character Lark is modeled after Nester, a mascot for the North American "Nintendo Power" magazine. The female character Robin is called "Hooter" in the Japanese version. The soundtrack for "Pilotwings 64" was composed and arranged by Dan Hess. The tracks were produced to complement each level, such as a "soothing" jazz-inspired musical piece played during the exploratory Birdman mode. A now out-of-print CD soundtrack was released by Pony Canyon in Japan on December 16, 1996.