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The Legend of Zelda Thread: Wind Waker HD (Fall 2013) and New Zelda!
Rehab
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4t9hpnstRg(Jump to 2:40 for announcements regarding The Legend of Zelda)
PA Presents - The Legend of Zelda Skyward Sword
Most recent Zelda threads:
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So, thoughts on the ending.
And since Hylia was reincarnated as Zelda, I totally called Demise as the origin of Ganondorf. That should make it much less convoluted to bring him back in future games. Damn, he looked great and imposing, with just enough resemblance to Ganondorf without restraining his design from going interesting new places. I liked the fight... well, after I finally went to gamefaqs after five deaths and realized you're supposed to steal the lightning from him. Am I dumb or did others of you struggled with that?
And while it was a waggle-fest that wasn't a challenge in the least, I really dug cutting through hordes of Bobokins. That was some unexpected fun.
Because its goddamn gorgeous.
I wish I could post that as one photo.
3DS FC: 5343-7720-0490
Miyamoto's early drug use finally taking its toll?
He was disappointed that recent Zelda games had less freedom so he's glad that Skyward Sword has more. (It really doesn't).
His last three-paragraph responds is completely incoherent to me. It has to do with what a director wants ... which also has to do with photorealism ... and expanding the attraction of the franchise. What is he trying to say? If he just said "Zelda dialogue is too goofy for voice-acting and we like not having Link talk," that would be one thing...
Yes, same problem here.
Ooohhh man, that would be an amazing collaboration to see! Retro Studios redesigning classic Zelda enemies and creating new enemy types and bosses; working with the current Zelda team on the overworld and dungeon layouts. The end result of that would have to be nothing short of one of the best products to ever come from Nintendo.
I have to say that as a whole, those questions from that Wired article are kind of offhandedly nervy though. They all seem to be insinuating "why don't you make games more like Western RPGs?" and "what about more of this Western element and/or influence?" Its like he is another one of those people that is currently playing a lot of Skyrim and doesn't fully grasp that this is not what The Legend of Zelda is trying to be. I really like how this series has always done its own thing. Also the way it takes on RPG elements currently, just wading in them and only extracting little bits, is pretty much perfect. Link doesn't need to have a Fallout scale inventory system where about half of the items are useless or simply different varieties of other items.
A Metrelda, if you will.
Miyamoto was referencing other recent Zeldas, which I assume Twilight Princess is a prime example of; not Skyward Sword, indicated by the past tense 'were'.
You're right in the progressing sort of sense, but in terms of exploration, it offers more freedom than for example the train in Phantom Hourglass. You can fly anywhere in the overworld right from the start. There might not be much to discover, but it's still considered freedom. In Twilight Princess, you're essentially going from point A to B to C, into a dungeon and never returning again. It's restrictive. In Skyward Sword, you go back to places to find new areas and secrets. That is what I think he means with freedom.
Basically, what is the director's vision when conceptualizing? If (IF) the director wants photorealism, he or she can't get too involved in the many facets that encapsulates a game's production, since the development team and manhours that entails with photorealism would be massive. If he's directing the game, he and his team ask themselves: "What is important? Would this and this cause the franchise to go forward?" In the case of voice acting in Zelda, his answer is no.
That would be especially interesting given this recent statement from Aonuma:
Eiji Aonuma Says No More Button Pressing for Zelda
Could always be a 3DS game though.
Personally, a few things are holding it back for me - mainly, it's the linearity of the game (yes, this has been touched in the last thread, and I'm aware it's the case with every Zelda ever). This time around, I find it really noticeable how I'm being railroaded through a lot of the game's areas, when I'd much rather be freely exploring, which is sadly not really possible (because of the corridor level design, and the areas are just too small). Other, minor points include the way that Skyloft feels disconnected from the rest of the game world (WW solved this better, imo), and my continuing struggles with the controls. But then again, I'm still only at the 5th dungeon.
Oh, and my favorite thing in this game? Helping all the people in Skyloft with their daily problems, MM-style. Yeah
I think someone mentioned the Fable games in the last thread, and that's an apt comparison. The game (through the means of level design) strictly tells you where to go and where not to. For the most part, you're guided through the areas along the one and only path, there are preciously few places that open up a bit, and what might be perceived as a wide open area (the forest, the desert) really is just another series of corridors (not necessarily enclosed by physical walls). Again, this is the case with every Zelda game ever, but I think it's finally the time to change the formula.
I don't have the game yet myself so I don't know firsthand, but it sounded like that was the case from what was said in the Iwata Asks interviews.
It'd be different in SS if there were hidden paths to get between the surface areas without going to the sky; if I could walk through the forest and find a path somewhere else, even if I couldn't use it (something like the path to Goron City through the Lost Woods: you could find it and half-way use it, but without bombs, you couldn't actually go through all the way, so the path just taunted you), it would be better than the game not really letting me explore the world below me.
Honestly, a lot of the game's world-design problems stem from the fact that it's impossible to get around WITHOUT using the Sky. At least I could get between the desert and the lake by using that river in OoT; I didn't HAVE to use the overworld, and it made the gameworld feel more real. All of SS's areas feel too disconnected, like they are simply separate maps, and not pieces of a whole world. Linking the ground areas would have fixed this AND streamlined late-game travel.
So, it's not that the gameworld is a series of corridors, or even that it's too small (although the Sky definitely is too small, by an order of magnitude), but rather that the separate nature of the world spaces and the way the game locks you out of preliminary exploration makes the world feel not like a world, but like a bunch of levels... well, in a game.
Not really the vast majority of them are just a small bit of land with a single chest
XBL, Steam & Tribes: elmartino333
hm, think WW and it's small random treasure islands, but even tinier and, most of the time, not nearly as interesting
Skyloft is kind of ... odd, honestly. I think they could have done a lot more with it. Imo, it's a bit of a wasted opportunity.
Does flying ever become not annoying? Maybe I'm missing a little trick that would make it easier, but pointing the Wiimote up and down, up and down, gets tiring fast and I feel like it's difficult to maintain a consistent height.
Tips please. :^:
I guess that is default state of mind for Chen.
You're right, you do figure out how to open those chests, but it's not quite what you're thinking.
EDIT: For the gaining altitude in The Sky, the chopping motion does make your loftwing flap. Generally I just flap to the top of the world, then dive wherever I need to go.
Tilting it down is uncomfortable though. I feel like I have to bend my wrist downwards as much as I possibly can to get it to start diving... which is gonna set off my de quervains tendonitis something fierce if I have to continue doing this throughout the entire game.
I think I'll try upping the sensitivity and see if that helps.
Alternatively, maracas.
Try this. When flying, hold the remote between your thumb and middle finger, with the ring and little finger supporting the remote underneath. Use the index finger to press A. To gain altitude, grip it with the index finger and shake up and down.
Thanks man. I'll give it a go.
"Corridor," on the other hand, brings to mind cramped passageways of a Metroid game.
Personally, I don't prefer one style over the other necessarily. I also think SS has a lot of exploration on a smaller scale. Individual areas, like rooms in dungeons and sections of the overworld, are much larger than in other Zelda games. Scouting these big areas with the beetle, your little Predator drone, introduces a new sense of freedom that sort of makes up for the lack of big-picture exploration in the game.
I think I'm gonna go through a Zelda phase. Probably gonna do Link's Awakening, MM and finally Spirit Tracks.
To gain altitude, I always pretend that I'm holding the reigns so I end up shaking both the remote and nunchuk, which is unnecessary but more fun.
Haha! I think I'll start doing this too! :rotate:
I actually don't think I've seen *anyone* say it's the best Zelda game. There doens't seem to be much consensus about it on here period, actually. Plus everyone seems to enjoy Zelda games in general for very different reasons.
It's my second favorite after OoT, but I friggin' love the motion controls. I think a lot hinges on the controls (my primary reason for enjoying Zelda games is the "feel" of being Link). I enjoyed the game's learning curve, of not being an expert at it as soon as I picked it up—swordfighting a Stalfos in SS for the first time felt almost as fresh and thrilling as it did in OoT. Some people really don't like the controls, though.
I think the game makes other important advances: running and stamina are awesome, the shield system is a great addition that makes Link feel more vulnerable. I love flying on the birdie though I wish it was more connected to the rest of the game. I also like the subtle shifts in level design—dungeons have fewer rooms but the rooms are much bigger now.
The music is amazing, just friggin' amazing. I'm surprised more people don't gush about it. Not just that it's orchestrated—the way it's used, the way it changes based on where you are, how deep you are in a dungeon, how many hearts you have left. Obviously Zelda games have been doing this since OoT, but SS just nails it. It's probably my favorite music in any videogame.
The dungeons are, I think, pretty good, probably some of the best in the series, though there's only 7 of them and I thought OoT had better and more creative dungeons overall. I'm pissed that there's two fire dungeons and neither of them are very interesting. However, the bosses are by far the most fun in the series (combat in general is the most fun in any game I've played, though this is coming from someone who loves the controls).
I am less sold on "density." Sometimes I think it works very well. More than anything, the overworld structure, and how you have to return to areas after they've changed, reminds me of Link to the Past. But I really didn't like the volcano area very much, which sucks because it's like a third of the game. And because of the Wii's graphical limitations, the overworld areas often lack the rich atmosphere you find inside dungeons and so feel more like bare scaffolding that holds up gameplay ideas, rather than actual places. That kind of design works better in a Mario game, but an immersive sense of place is important to Zelda.
By far the worst thing about the game, in my opinion—and this is something where there probably is consensus—is the heavyhanded way it presents information, essentially doubling down both on Navi's obnoxious "Look at that gate! Do you think there's a switch that opens it?" hand-holding in OoT and on the infuriating "You've found a red rupee! It's worth 20 rupees" shit from Twilight Princess. I am dreading playing the game through again in Hero Mode for this reason.
I think I agree with the reviewer from Joystick who said something like "Somewhere, buried in Skyward Sword, is the best videogame ever." But it has a lot of infuriating flaws that would be easy to fix but result in literally hours of annoyance for the player. It's a big step for Zelda games, the biggest since OoT, but in lots of ways it doesn't step far enough. On the other hand, it's gotten me excited for the future of videogames, something I can't really say about any other game I've played recently.
I mean... I naturally use the Wiimote in my right hand, so it's not a big deal, but I would switch if it were an option!
I wonder if it bugs Shiggy too?
Majority seem to very much enjoy the game. Most complaints are of minor detail, and are not generally agreed upon.
The overall opinion seems very high, but the complaints stick out to far to ignore.
Common complaints would be as follows.
-Bosses don't really appear intimidating, but kind of silly and unfitting.
-Motion controls aren't responding the way I want them to.
Pokemon Safari - Sneasel, Pawniard, ????
hm, up until now, I didn't notice anything particularly unusual about the bosses - well, no, there was one boss
The Imprisoned look awesome, until you see his full body.
5th dungeon boss was a fucking joke. Looked like it was pulled straight out of a Kirby game.
2nd dungeon didn't really do anything for me either. It was a giant rock with really weak/scrawny legs.
Pokemon Safari - Sneasel, Pawniard, ????