Many heard about cyclic automatons and processes. And if you haven't, that's not a problem at all. Nintendo is here to explain what this means, using its software products. What I am trying to say is that every couple of years, Nintendo seems to deliver titles that become an instant success. The majority of them are getting classic statuses no matter the country, decade or platform. Tetris, Super Mario Bros, Super Mario 64, Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time are just a few examples. What's their secret and what's the value of the new Zelda? Is it good enough to keep up with 'next gen' titles on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 and maybe come up front (helped by the Nintendo Wii's revolutionary controls scheme), or the modest graphics capabilities of the console will say its word? Read the full review to find out and have a look at the videos and images sections to get a taste of what it is all about.
To start with the beginning, let's talk about the new stuff Twilight Princess brings. Well, the most important new feature that undoubtedly could be tagged as 'next gen' consists in the new controls that the Wii console packs in. Forget the old analog controls (at least partially, because there is also a GameCube version of the game and the Wii's nunchuk still retains an analog stick, used for movement throughout the game) and get ready for probably the most fluent and realistic gameplay console games ever had. Although this new Zelda game brings new elements of gameplay (item handling, actions...) the controls are much more intuitive than the GCN version. You now just have to swing the Wii remote and reproduce with basic fidelity actions that you want, (like casting your lure). I don't know about you, but in my opinion that's much more fun and easier than before.
It can be said that the script has taken some inspiration sources from past Zelda titles. Some characters are still present, towns, lands have pretty familiar names. As for the plot, the resemblance with past Zelda titles starts to fade. Now there is a much more sinister and darker plot tacking place on the lands of Hyrule. It is more like a Twili race conflict. Zant, Midna, Ganondorf are all fighting for something. Ganondorf and his underdog, Zant, want to unite the Twilight realm with one of Hyrulean land. While the strange little creature, Midna, wants the Twilight realm to remain unspoiled by Ganondorf. Now a young man, Link, the hyrulean farm boy sets off for a series of quests that have as a main objective the salvaging of his native lands and the rescue of imprisoned princess Zelda.
The neutral Midna, cursed to an impish looking form by Zant, will prove an invaluable help when Link transits the Twilight realm. Every piece of information is needed when you are trapped in a wolf form and can only communicate with animals and spirits in this realm. Midna will be your tutor in getting all the things right when you are stuck in situations that doesn't seem to have a way out. Anyway don't expect her to put the solution in you controllers. She will just give you hints.
This new wolf mode makes the contrast between the two parallel worlds even more obvious. The "way of the wolf" has to be mastered by Link and this is done with Midna's guidance also. Link has to learn to trace smells, speak to spirits and animals, attack, dig to find hidden routes and entrances. Not less important are the hidden skills. They are only acquirable when you find the howling stones and pass the test you're subjected to. Mainly this consists in your accurate reproduction of the golden wolf howling. If successful, the golden wolf transforms into a legendary warrior that will put you to various tests (mainly on his invulnerable ghostly body)....in other words you have to learn the new skills on him. There a total of seven hidden skills (attacks/defensive maneuvers), the first one is compulsory to be learned.
It's nice to see the plot has evolved a lot since the early Zelda's. The classic story of saving princess Zelda has now been enriched substantially with elements that show nothing too flamboyant, but just a well written scenario. Although the epic story and scenery are very good and with NPC's being well adapted to Link's role in the game, there's still that oddly option from developers to keep the voice acting in its written form rather than improve on it like the other parts of the game had. I think the keeping of this not even nostalgic option is a fault. With all this technology and sense stimulators surrounding us, they prefer to still limit the gameplay experience pretty substantially. Now that's weird. The only good thing about this issue is that you have the time to read all the stuff and not miss some important story elements.
Link's native village, Ordon, feels very real and not just populated by a bunch of polygonal programmer's products. The interaction with them and the way all binds together is truly remarkable. I really liked the beginning of the game, where in order to get started with the much more intense and difficult quests, Link has to solve some Ordon town based problems to get the needed wooden sword. You'll see what I mean when you get your hands on a copy of the game.
Even though many places resemble those from Ocarina of Time, new puzzles, fresh enemies, script, characters and weapons don't put us in a situation when we will have to delimit one title of another. They are clearly distinct.
To face the hazards, the player has at disposal almost every possible non-modern weapon he can think off: boomerang, slingshot, hero bow, sword, bombs, grappling hook are just a few items. This plentiful arsenal combined with lots of RPG elements may be short of a truly PC RPG title as a whole, but it surely among the best titles on consoles.
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Graphics: 88
The graphic style in Twilight Princess is truly amazing and has environment diversity above everything I've seen yet. Much more different than in Wind Walker (although it has at the origin the same graphic engine, but heavily modified) this version of Zelda fully justifies the delays and the four years it took for developing. Let's not forget that this initially was a Nintendo GameCube project, so it has some excuses for some low res objects and character faces. Other than this the visual effects and lighting are as impressive as the Wii's graphic hardware can produce.
What impressed me a lot was the bloomy art style of the Twilight realm. The portals and the teleport movie sequences are eye dazzling. Even though this is the most complex Zelda of all times, the game runs at a constant 30 fps no matter the conditions.
As much as the game puts accent on recreational activities (fishing), the platform (water) for these activities has to be well made; and this is the case here. The hue, the distortions and the mechanic that apply to it (floating and movable objects) can't be improved much more than this.
Gameplay: 90
The new control mechanics are perfect for learning the Wii updated gameplay elements. It is fairly easy to learn how to fish, sumo wrestle, ride horses, fight/defend, surf...and much more. Some finesse issues with the control of the sword still exist though. I wish it had been a little more precise so you don't just shake the remote in order to slash your way through.
For its surprisingly long duration the game compensates with a pretty low damage taken from monsters/bosses/hazards. In fact I can't remember to have used Ooccoo or Midna to warp to a safer location and buy life or something. That doesn't mean it hasn't brain teasing puzzles or difficult jump platform phases.
The game has an enormous length (with very few redundant parts), plus some side quests and activities that have nothing to do with the plot; fishing is a pretty good example. You could literally spend hour after hour relaxing this way, when killing monsters and bosses isn't so appealing. Getting various reward items related to your fishing performance or by completing minigames is nice but not necessarily useful.
The very varied gameplay translates into boss battles too. Each boss has a weakness that you need to find out and use it against him, in order to pass to the next level. An example of boss battle: the mid-boss fight at Goron mines. Here you have to equip the iron boots to avoid a lava fall and to be able to keep up with the boss attacks. When he is in roll-up form you have to grab it and throw him in the lava surrounding the half sphere battle-ring, which by the way banks under the weight of both you and the boss.
Sound: 84
The sound theme has a nostalgic note. Many of the series classical melodies make their appearance throughout the game, with MIDI tracks being used for most of the parts in the game; just a few orchestral fractions remind us it's a 21 century product. Don't get me wrong this doesn't come at a cost when we speak of experience spoiler factors.
The extra mega large content has to be praised by gamers though. It's known that the sound (voice, tracks, SFX) part of the game impacts on how long a game can be. Using MIDI sounds, and the lack of voice acting probably saved some pretty much space and led to this enormous 70+ hours of gameplay.
Some sounds, like: sword actions, treasures chimes, laughing Midna (btw the only voice acting in the game) are reproduced through console's remote speaker. In principle this is a good thing because it feels dynamic when you swing the magic stick around your head and hear all sorts of sounds fading in and out. This is in theory, in practice it's another story, the quality of the tiny speaker says it all.
Multiplayer: N/A
Zelda doesn't have any multiplayer modes unfortunately...