Gaming Zelda Fans Come Hither...

Got my copy- hopefully can play it later tonight (even if briefly) after I finish TP. Will definitely listen to the CD later, though.

Was also very happy that the gold Wiimote is the same size and design as the standard Wiimote, so the rechargeable batteries for my Rabbids charge station still work (though I did have to swap out the gold battery cover for the red one (since red armor is more pwoerful than blue armor... ) to work with the station). Put the rubber slipcase on another Wiimote (I'll never send a wiimote flying but I don't trust everyone who plays to be as reliable as myself in that regards ).

However, I also got the collector's players guide (from the same hardcover, gold-edged series as previous ones). Why in the HELL is that thing literally HALF as thick as TP's?! Even Spirit Tracks' guide was thicker than SS's (though thinner than TP's; can't speak for PH's since i missed picking that one up).

 

Finished Twilight Princess! With a little over an hour to spare before my self-imposed deadline!

(sure, it's taken me almost 5 years to the day from when it was released, but given I had to start over my save early this/last year, it's not quite so bad- certainly not as bad as the TWW 3 year save I had ).

Now the only question is- can I take any more Zelda in one day? I might have to wait till tomorrow to recharge my batteries (figuratively and literally- my gold wiimote needs a recharge! ).

Sky Temple was fine (the dragon battle was appropriately epic), the Twilight Palace was interesting (the hands of Nant were a nice twist on the Wallmaster concept).

I ultimately skipped completing the Cave of Ordeals (I actually wouldn't have even really known to look for it Omega hadn't mentioned it). I DID take a stab at it, and it was a very satisfying challenge (easily the hardest challenge in the game), and I made it all the way to the last room on that first try, but the trio of Darknuts were ultimately too much for what I had left (partially my fault, as I filled 2 of my 3 bottles (I never found the the 4th) with red potion instead of blue potion- those extra few hearts probably would have made a difference (the third was the great fairy tears)).

It was neat to see that cave as the mechanism for introducing fairies into the game (even though you REALLY don't need them except for in the cave itself!), I had wondered why they were so rare in the game.

(SPOILERS for final battles)


Nant... geez, he was a dissapointment. His projections were cool, and I'm fine with going through all the boss fights again (and by having him inhabit each boss's pattern, it's a more unique spin on the concept versus, say, ALTTP's actual rematch of the 3 light world bosses in the Tower of Hera), but, they sure made Nant a freaking spaz, didn't they? He was cool as a big baddie until then, but, yeah, Spaz'ola.

The Ganon battle was more interesting...eventually. Having him puppet Zelda was a nice thematic twist on things, but can we PLEASE have Ganon retire the Agahnim attack pattern? The beast mode assault was more interesting- it's also a neat little spin on the original LOZ Ganon battle to a degree as well (complete with red and blue energy spikes). The horseback battle was ok, but the final sword battle was awesome. That was rather satisfying (at least as satisfying as a no-death final boss match can be).


As far as the story overall goes, I really liked Nant and Midna's story- but they waited far too late in the game to really develop it. They shouldn't have tried to keep it a secret/mystery to reveal at the end (we all know Midna is the Twilight Princess long before it's revealed), but rather introduce it mid-game (like around the time Nant attacks Midna in the Spirit Cave) so it could develop more.

Ganon should have been sidelined to allow Nant to be developed as a Big Baddie as well (they could have kept Ganon's cameo in there/exposure to the Twilight Realm as the cause for Nant's power/corruption but not physically included him). Let Nant be the one who turns into a giant beast (he dresses like a fish already, afterall), etc.

The ending with the mirror was great though. Midna's true form design is excellent- shame she's gone now. I'm surprised they didn't do more with the allies attacking the castle as well as everyone returning home to Ordon- we see brief glimspes from a distance, but I'd figure the kids coming home (well, minus the enterprising Malo) would be a big deal, as well as Link and Ilia, would be a bigger deal.


So, overall, it's a great game, but it was harmed by repetitive elements (it feels almost like a hybrid remake of OOT, ALTTP & LOZ at times) yet still managed to introduce some great new stuff and convey a great feel and scale to the series that it hasn't had in over 20 years. The battles are on an epic scale the series has never seen before, but that's offset by the lack of difficulty in the game- this is the easiest Zelda game you'll ever play (at least on a console). Go in expecting the main challenge

 

Skyward Sword is 50-100 hours long with Hero Mode.

So, it seems doing a medium amount of sidequests nets you around 50 hours of playtime to finish Skyward, and as low as the mid-30's if you poke around a lot less.

However, finishing the game unlocks Hero Mode, which starts the game over while increases the difficulty (fewer hearts, etc) and rumor has it includes additional dialogue (but I suspect that might be the result of the (albeit limited) dialogue trees from item crafying and various sidequests/sequence breaking). Which brings the total playtime into the 50-100 hour range.

Hmm. Sounds like I'd have liked to have had that mode as an option from the beginning.


Ok, so my initial impressions after playing up until the acquisition of the green tunic:

I like some of the control improvements a lot- in particular the 1st person POV controls that let you move around (it also avoids the problem with TP with the fairy cursor moving the camera). Having to actually throw a jar/vase to smash them for goodies will take some getting used to, though.

Having to dash + nunchuk to roll is more complicated than I would have liked- but maybe that's just because I'm so used to abusing that action from TWW & TP as a common means of motion (probably why they did the dash instead).

I love the stamina meter- that's an excellent addition (even when carrying stuff- which is funny because towards the end of TP, I was wondering why Link never gets tired carrying these heavy objects around direction above his head).

I don't like having hardpoint save stations, though- would rather that have stayed as an any-time menu option. I do like the iOS-esque menu screen rotate interface.

Flight controls aren't too bad at first glance- but it'll take some more practice with it before I can really determine how good they are or if they'll be as hard to control as horseback field combat in TP.

Sword controls I like and they work pretty well so far. Even the Keese take two hits now (at least with the initial sword).

That wall run dash feature is going to take some serious getting used to, though. Sure, places like Prince of Persia and Ninja Gaiden have been doing it for a long time, but within a Zelda context, it's just not something you think about in terms of "can i reach that?" twitch reactions. But that's not a bad thing- between that and the stamina meter, it puts a great twist on the gameplay as far as character control goes.

A minor complaint, but I don't like the font size at all- it's rather hard to read on an SDTV at a Wiimote distance (at least with my eyes), much like trying to read menu text from a blu-ray on an SDTV. I wonder why they shrank it.

A show if hands: who else tried to throw the pet over the edge as soon as they picked it up? (for those that didn't- it doesn't let you, it's just an amusing initial reaction what with the throwing arc guidelines).

As far as the story goes... is it me, or does Zelda's father's eyebrows suggest he's connected to the Owl?

Also, what's with the colored gas emissions trailing their birds during the ceremony? "Carebirds: Fart!"

It's interesting that the iconography omits the Triforce as well- clearly the implication so far is that the full Triforce crest is a combination of the Triforce and the Skyloft (Knights?) winged insignia.

While SS is clearly earliest in the timeline, I wonder where the backstory events with the demons on the ground and the (singular) Goddess fits in relation to the events with those banished to the Twilight Realm and the backstory battle related to the Four Sword/Minish storyline.


Lastly, in regards to the Symphony CD, does anyone have a list of what tracks were used in the Medley? I can only ID some of them and guess at others, while the first min or so I don't recognize (though around the minute mark it starts to sound like Wind Waker). You obviously have the main theme around the 4:00 mark and the Darkworld Ov

 

Aha, found a breakdown of the major components:

-ALTTP: Triforce Chamber
-ST: Overworld Theme
-TWW: Dragon Roost Island
-Main Theme
-ALTTP: Darkworld Overworld Theme
-Main Theme

That's a nice mix there (definitely didn't expect Triforce Chamber). though, let's be honest, they could have easily done a second or third medley (Marin's lullaby, Darkworld Mountain, ALTTP Prologue, Z2 Title Screen, Z2 Palace, Z2 Final battle & LOZ Dungeon come to mind).


EDIT- Ah, seems there kinda is: there are tracks not on the CD performed at the live show:

Selected Shorts

Boss Medley

Hyrule Field

Ganondorf's Theme

And apparently others:

-Hyrule Castle
-Princess Zelda's Theme
-Ocarina Song Medley
-Grandma's Theme

 

There's the Wii Motion Plus, which is an add-on for existing wiimotes:

[image=http://wiimedia.ign.com/wii/image/article/893/893192/interview-with-wii-motion-creators-20080723034231934.jpg]

and also the Wii Remote Plus, which integrates the tech into a normal-sized wii-mote:

[image=http://flingsmash.nintendo.com/_ui/img/misc/wii-remote-price.png]

(the logo at the bottom distinguishes it)

It increases/enhances the non-pointer functionality of a wiimote- it's what allows Skyward Sword to have the more complex sword combat simulation abilities people are talking about in reviews.


As mentioned above, Skyward Sword requires you to have one of them (the game even has a boot screen to remind you of this), and the Collector's Edition comes with a wiimote+ (a gold colored one at that) in the box, along with the Symphony CD.

 

Mine finally arrived in the mail! I was delightfully surprised to find it came with the 25th anniversary CD, which I had thought only came with the collector's edition, but whatever. Also picked up a wii remote+ so I'm all set and probably won't sleep tonight since I'll be glued to my tv with this.

 

Skyward is fastest-selling Zelda of all time

Nintendo has revealed that The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is the fastest-selling Zelda game of all time. Since launch, 535,000 copies of the game have been sold in the United States alone.

The numbers were boosted by strong sales over the holiday weekend, with 500,000 Wii systems sold on Black Friday.

 

I definitely agree about the re-description of things like rupees. That was definitely the most annoying thing about TP (I think TWW did it also). Once per game (not save load) is sufficient. Being reminded of their values really isn't all that important to the player (especially in TP where rupees were so plentiful and there were only 1 or 2 money-crunch situations).