SPOILERS!
For you few loyal Nintendo fans out there, you might have taken notice of the reviews here and there for the latest installment of the Zelda franchise. Some reviews like those by IGN declare the game to be the best to ever be released, while others like Gamespot were pretty merciless in their evaluation. I figured I might as well throw my opinion into the mix since I'm bored. Note, I have only made it past the fifth dungeon, so take my opinion with a grain of salt.
GAMEPLAY
This particular Zelda is unlike any other that you have ever played. Essentially everything in the way you interact in combat and items has been completely overhauled to make full use of the Wii system compared to the controller-based Zeldas. Actions like swinging you sword, using you shield, throwing bombs, etc, are all controlled in one way or another based on how you use the remote. This leads to a surprisingly pleasant level of immersion that forces you to become much more patient, controlled, and skilled in how you act in combat. That being said, if you are not precise enough, it results in endless frustration and swearing at the TV. There were times where I would swing right or left to do a horizontal slash, and the result was a vertical or diagonal one best my direction was not spot on. I highly recommend standing when you are playing, because sitting can become constricting very quickly if you're required to do any under handed movements.
The world of this Zelda is definitely different from any of the others played up until now. The days of large, expansive areas are over in this game. Instead on the surface world there are more like stretched out mini-dungeons that require navigation before reaching the actual dungeon, and you'll find yourself visiting some the same areas again and again. I'm still deciding if this it a good or a bad thing, as I personally greatly enjoyed the massive world of Twilight Princess with dungeons kept in their own little areas. The overworld feels like a page torn from Wind Waker. Now this would be okay if the Sky had a lot of territory to explore, but it's surprising empty overall. You can explore everything in the Sky within an hour while WW took hours upon hours at least.
STORY
So far, the story is surprisingly good in terms of the characters, particularly Link and Zelda. They have much more prominent personalities and charm to them this time around, and FINALLY you get the feeling they actually have a tangible connection. Link is an emotionless, mute robot along for the ride for a change. There are also unexpected moments of humor right in the middle of the main story, which I'm glad was something that carried over from Wind Waker. In fact, the very first time we meet Link, it starts with lighthearted moment between Zelda's bird and him (and his bed).
The characters are interesting in this installment, but aside from a few, the rest feel like ones we have seen before. The ones that stick out are Groose, Link, Zelda, Impa, and Ghirram.
One thing worth noting is the "side quests" involving people from around the game have made a return from Majora's Mask and Wind Waker where you can voluntarily help them, and something change things for the better.
MUSIC
This is the one aspect of the game that I think really shines. The music, especially in the early parts of the game during the "tutorial" phase before the first temple, is great and mood setting. It's worth noting that major pieces of the soundtrack are now fully orchestrated. Took them long enough!
GRPAHICS
This is a minefield that I wish I could endless praise, but I can't. The folks at Nintendo tried to blend the maturity of Twilight Princess with the lighthearted nature of Wind Waker, and for the most part, they succeed....but the graphics are not fine tuned at all. The designs whether it be environments or character models suffer from washed out colors and jagged edges. Now, before anyone says, "It's the Wii", yes, I know it's the Wii. But just take a look at games such as Smash Bros Brawl that have clean and crisp graphics from when the Wii was first released. The folks working on SBB did a better job than the people did on Skyward Sword, which is kinda sad when SBB went for a much more realistic look.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
Is it the best Zelda ever made or the worst? I would say neither. There are aspects like the controls (when calibrated properly), music, and parts of the storyline and characters that really prove the franchise is alive and well, but there are other parts like the graphics and bits and pieces like the world/dungeon design that have me feeling kinda "meh". I wouldn't say it is better than Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, or Twilight Princess, but it is definitely on par with Wind Waker. Signing off!
For you few loyal Nintendo fans out there, you might have taken notice of the reviews here and there for the latest installment of the Zelda franchise. Some reviews like those by IGN declare the game to be the best to ever be released, while others like Gamespot were pretty merciless in their evaluation. I figured I might as well throw my opinion into the mix since I'm bored. Note, I have only made it past the fifth dungeon, so take my opinion with a grain of salt.
GAMEPLAY
This particular Zelda is unlike any other that you have ever played. Essentially everything in the way you interact in combat and items has been completely overhauled to make full use of the Wii system compared to the controller-based Zeldas. Actions like swinging you sword, using you shield, throwing bombs, etc, are all controlled in one way or another based on how you use the remote. This leads to a surprisingly pleasant level of immersion that forces you to become much more patient, controlled, and skilled in how you act in combat. That being said, if you are not precise enough, it results in endless frustration and swearing at the TV. There were times where I would swing right or left to do a horizontal slash, and the result was a vertical or diagonal one best my direction was not spot on. I highly recommend standing when you are playing, because sitting can become constricting very quickly if you're required to do any under handed movements.
The world of this Zelda is definitely different from any of the others played up until now. The days of large, expansive areas are over in this game. Instead on the surface world there are more like stretched out mini-dungeons that require navigation before reaching the actual dungeon, and you'll find yourself visiting some the same areas again and again. I'm still deciding if this it a good or a bad thing, as I personally greatly enjoyed the massive world of Twilight Princess with dungeons kept in their own little areas. The overworld feels like a page torn from Wind Waker. Now this would be okay if the Sky had a lot of territory to explore, but it's surprising empty overall. You can explore everything in the Sky within an hour while WW took hours upon hours at least.
STORY
So far, the story is surprisingly good in terms of the characters, particularly Link and Zelda. They have much more prominent personalities and charm to them this time around, and FINALLY you get the feeling they actually have a tangible connection. Link is an emotionless, mute robot along for the ride for a change. There are also unexpected moments of humor right in the middle of the main story, which I'm glad was something that carried over from Wind Waker. In fact, the very first time we meet Link, it starts with lighthearted moment between Zelda's bird and him (and his bed).
The characters are interesting in this installment, but aside from a few, the rest feel like ones we have seen before. The ones that stick out are Groose, Link, Zelda, Impa, and Ghirram.
One thing worth noting is the "side quests" involving people from around the game have made a return from Majora's Mask and Wind Waker where you can voluntarily help them, and something change things for the better.
MUSIC
This is the one aspect of the game that I think really shines. The music, especially in the early parts of the game during the "tutorial" phase before the first temple, is great and mood setting. It's worth noting that major pieces of the soundtrack are now fully orchestrated. Took them long enough!
GRPAHICS
This is a minefield that I wish I could endless praise, but I can't. The folks at Nintendo tried to blend the maturity of Twilight Princess with the lighthearted nature of Wind Waker, and for the most part, they succeed....but the graphics are not fine tuned at all. The designs whether it be environments or character models suffer from washed out colors and jagged edges. Now, before anyone says, "It's the Wii", yes, I know it's the Wii. But just take a look at games such as Smash Bros Brawl that have clean and crisp graphics from when the Wii was first released. The folks working on SBB did a better job than the people did on Skyward Sword, which is kinda sad when SBB went for a much more realistic look.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
Is it the best Zelda ever made or the worst? I would say neither. There are aspects like the controls (when calibrated properly), music, and parts of the storyline and characters that really prove the franchise is alive and well, but there are other parts like the graphics and bits and pieces like the world/dungeon design that have me feeling kinda "meh". I wouldn't say it is better than Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, or Twilight Princess, but it is definitely on par with Wind Waker. Signing off!