# Legend of Zelda WiiU (no title yet) revealed



## HeHasTheJazzHands

Looks like they're going for a hybrid between Windwaker and Skyward Sword with the artstyle. It's also going to be open-world, not linear like previous games. 

Other links 
Zelda for Wii U - Nintendo @ E3 (no info yet)
Nintendo: That Amazing Zelda Footage Was In-Engine

And now cue the bitching about how Link looks too feminine and how the artstyle is too cartoony. 
EDIT: GIFs


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## StevenC

I'm hoping it's a direct squeal to Skyward Sword, looks brilliant!


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## Alberto7

I have literally zero idea what people are complaining about. That looks absolutely BEAUTIFUL. I see myself taking screenshots every other second and using them as desktop wallpapers. They finally managed to do what they didn't entirely accomplish with _Skyward Sword_, which was to make objects' colors fade into each other as Link got farther away from them and make them resemble a watercolor painting. It looks astonishing.

Also, I love Link's new design. Some say too girly, but I just find it perfectly sleek.

So many cool games announced for Wii U. I have no excuse not to buy one now.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands

I don't either. I guess they want gritty like OoT, MM, and Twilight Princess. 

I also like his design. He's probably older than Young OoT/MM link, but younger than Adult OoT/SS/TP Link.

And of course he's going to look different. In most of the Zelda games, except for sequels, there's going to be different incarnations of Link. Each game doesn't feature the same one.


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## MoshJosh

Love to new art direction, kinda reminds me of a more realistic wind waker (which I loved!)


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## Alberto7

Yeah, thanks for the pics, too! I hadn't seen such high resolution ones yet. And those gifs!  Loving my new avatar.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands

Miyamoto is also supposed to be showing off a new Star Fox game (....ING FINALLY ) today. It's supposedly one of his "small" projects, but I don't give two ....s, I want a SF game.


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## Alberto7

Haha hopefully so! It's about time that we get to do some more barrel rolls Peppy style.

I loved Nintendo's Digital Event thingie. So many awesome things announced. However, the lack of a new Metroid title REALLY disappointed me. I'm still hopeful that we will get to see something about it today.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands

There's supposed to be an unannounced 3DS game today. Everyone I see is hoping it's a MM remake or a new Metroid game. Mostly hoping for the latter.


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## asher

Pretty! I really liked the Twilight Princess visuals, which I feel stand apart from OoT/MM and not just because the graphics were better developed. But these feel a little "purer" to Zelda, I think.


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## Don Vito

HeHasTheJazzHands said:


>


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## ferret

Too bad it won't be on PC. I just can't convince myself to buy a Wii U. Or any console for that matter.

Literally the only reason I would buy a Wii U is for Nintendo first party exclusives. It's like. Nintendo makes great games... on a system I can't tolerate for numerous reasons.


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## Choop

I'm super stoked! Wii-U will be in my future at least by the end of the year, fo sho.


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## InfinityCollision

ferret said:


> Too bad it won't be on PC. I just can't convince myself to buy a Wii U. Or any console for that matter.
> 
> Literally the only reason I would buy a Wii U is for Nintendo first party exclusives. It's like. Nintendo makes great games... on a system I can't tolerate for numerous reasons.



Between this, Smash U, MK8, X, and MH3U/MH4 I just might cave and buy a Wii U at some point 

Open world is interesting. Hopefully they took note of the various complaints with Skyward Sword and are addressing them. The art looks pretty good... I adore TP's art style and would love to see them do a more adult LoZ again at some point, but this is good in its own way.


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## Alberto7

Shigeru Miyamoto is currently being interviewed at the Nintendo Treehouse at E3, for those interested. Let's see what he announces!


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## RobertStyx

HeHasTheJazzHands said:


>



I think we need to stop for a minute, and start discussing the real important matters. Let's get right to the heart of the issue. Can we cut all that grass?


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## Alberto7

I surely do hope that Hyrule's favorite gardener is allowed to trim and pull all the evil weeds of his world, and keep all the riches while he's at it. *ka-ching $$$*

EDIT: Hyrule Warriors gameplay streaming now at Nintendo Treehouse.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands

Alberto7 said:


> EDIT: Hyrule Warriors gameplay streaming now at Nintendo Treehouse.



Watching it now. 
Day motherf_uck_ing one.


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## Alberto7

That thing with the Great Fairy was almost as brutal as Godzilla's 'fatality' scene.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands

Alberto7 said:


> That thing with the Great Fairy was almost as brutal as Godzilla's 'fatality' scene.



The moon will haunt me more than the MM one.


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## Alberto7

HeHasTheJazzHands said:


> The moon will haunt me more than the MM one.



Just as much as Luigi's hate stare, which, I have to say, was very, very neatly addressed during the Nintendo Digital video.  They do follow their fans and take note of what they say, after all.


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## rectifryer

That looks fantastic. I have to admit, it was hard for me to stomach the cell shading of the wii and gamecube era, but this is way different.


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## ferret

InfinityCollision said:


> Between this, Smash U, MK8, X, and MH3U/MH4 I just might cave and buy a Wii U at some point
> 
> Open world is interesting. Hopefully they took note of the various complaints with Skyward Sword and are addressing them. The art looks pretty good... I adore TP's art style and would love to see them do a more adult LoZ again at some point, but this is good in its own way.



Yeah, we'll see if my willpower holds out. I got issues with the tablet controller thingie. But Zelda... god I love Zelda. And this looks amazing.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands

GenGAME Eiji Aonuma: &#8216;No One Said That Was Link&#8217; in the Zelda Wii U Reveal Trailer


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## Alberto7

.... I don't know what to say for now, but my insides are screaming.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands

Image is dead for me, what is it?


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## Alberto7

HeHasTheJazzHands said:


> Image is dead for me, what is it?



Changed it. It was Michael Scott screaming "GOD NO" but this new one seemed more appropriate somehow. 

EDIT: also, lol @ at the original article. The speculations and "theories" they presented were almost akin to me theorizing that the next big console Zelda installment would be a FPS.


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## StevenC

HeHasTheJazzHands said:


> GenGAME Eiji Aonuma: No One Said That Was Link in the Zelda Wii U Reveal Trailer



None of those are good reasons for it not to be Link. Examples, a few Links have started unequipped, and Wind Waker Link wears blue at the start and throughout the second play through. To me, this looked pretty early in the story.

However, if it's not Link, my money is on a relative (son possibly) of a Link we've already played as. My money would be on Skyward Sword, if that's the case. We can rule out OoT and MM Young Link, because of his appearance in TP. I would doubt either Four Swords' Link. Wind Waker has had a sequel already and Link to the Past era is well fleshed out.

I would guess OoT adult Link, TP, LoZ 1 and 2, or Skyward Sword. None of the others would make sense to be the father of this character.


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## Alberto7

StevenC said:


> None of those are good reasons for it not to be Link. Examples, a few Links have started unequipped, and Wind Waker Link wears blue at the start and throughout the second play through. To me, this looked pretty early in the story.
> 
> However, if it's not Link, my money is on a relative (son possibly) of a Link we've already played as. My money would be on Skyward Sword, if that's the case. We can rule out OoT and MM Young Link, because of his appearance in TP. I would doubt either Four Swords' Link. Wind Waker has had a sequel already and Link to the Past era is well fleshed out.
> 
> I would guess OoT adult Link, TP, LoZ 1 and 2, or Skyward Sword. None of the others would make sense to be the father of this character.



Funnily enough, the original article does mention that "son of X" theory.

I also just noticed that Link (or whoever that is) has brown hair here. Or it may just be dirty blonde (which he has been known to sport in previous games). My brain can't quite decide which it is, based on the trailer.

EDIT: by original article I mean the one that the article posted here got their info from.


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## InfinityCollision

Awwwwwwwwww sheeeit.

I'm gonna guess it's Link's (and possibly Zelda's) child if it's not actually Link.



ferret said:


> Yeah, we'll see if my willpower holds out. I got issues with the tablet controller thingie. But Zelda... god I love Zelda. And this looks amazing.



Nintendo pushes too many of the right buttons for me to hold off forever. I can play a lot of games on PC, enough that I don't really want to shell out for a PS4 or (even less likely) an XBone, but Nintendo brings a few things I just can't get anywhere else and the console isn't that expensive. Hell, I might've shelled out just for Smash and MK8 alone. I've put so many hours into the Smash Bros series over the years it's not even funny.

Dunno if I'll ever get a 3DS at this point though.


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## StevenC

Alberto7 said:


> Funnily enough, the original article does mention that "son of X" theory.
> 
> I also just noticed that Link (or whoever that is) has brown hair here. Or it may just be dirty blonde (which he has been known to sport in previous games). My brain can't quite decide which it is, based on the trailer.
> 
> EDIT: by original article I mean the one that the article posted here got their info from.



Yeah, I was half way through writing when I clicked to the original article. As for hair colour, I'm all for a brown haired 3D Link. Haven't had one of those yet.

Of course, I'm not ruling out that "No one said it was Link" is just to throw people off, a joke taken out of context, or in some way not serious. In fact, I don't see why this wouldn't be Link. I mean, he's pretty well known for his archery.


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## Bloody_Inferno

Between this and X will be the reasons I'll cave in to buy a Wii U. 

And Hyrule Warriors... it's everything a Zelda game is not, but... yeah, why not.


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## Alberto7

I'm about 60/40 leaning towards "he's just messing with the world," although, in talking with a friend, he did point out that if those are actually his early-game clothes, then he's way too well-equipped to be at the beginning of the game. Like I pointed out to my friend, though, most of those things depend on the story itself, which we obviously know nothing about at this point.

I'm all for that shade of hair color, too, I'm just saying that *maybe* that is an indication that he/she is, indeed, not Link.

EDIT: man, _Hyrule Warriors_ looked so badass.  Like you said, it's everything a Zelda game isn't, while being a totally obvious love letter to the Zelda franchise. Their character designs for Impa and Zelda looked great, too.


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## StevenC

I think that could make it a Skyward Sword sequel with that Link. I figure, that's his every day, scavenging around attire; then when there's a threat to the civilisation they've been building, he dons his hero clothes again.

I don't know, I like theorising.


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## InfinityCollision

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Between this and X will be the reasons I'll cave in to buy a Wii U.
> 
> And Hyrule Warriors... it's everything a Zelda game is not, but... yeah, why not.



Xenoblade Chronicles X looked f_u_cking fantastic in the stream. Seems like they're addressing almost all of my complaints with the original (interface, AI, etc). If they slow down exp gain so you don't overlevel so easily from questing and smooth out the level correction a bit so that you can actually get a challenge throughout the entire game if you want, I'll be a very happy camper.

Hyrule Warriors just looks like semi-mindless fun to me. I'm not super stoked for it, more of an "eh, why the hell not?" sort of mild enthusiasm.


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## Alberto7

You like Theorizing, and I like your theory.


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## Bloody_Inferno

InfinityCollision said:


> Xenoblade Chronicles X looked f_u_cking fantastic in the stream. Seems like they're addressing almost all of my complaints with the original (interface, AI, etc). If they slow down exp gain so you don't overlevel so easily from questing and smooth out the level correction a bit so that you can actually get a challenge throughout the entire game if you want, I'll be a very happy camper.
> 
> Hyrule Warriors just looks like semi-mindless fun to me. I'm not super stoked for it, more of an "eh, why the hell not?" sort of mild enthusiasm.


 
Agreed with X. I'm just happy I'm playing another Takahashi game. 

The Koei Musou games are a guilty pleasure for me. I used to rag on them years ago before my sister got me into them. Now I play all the variations of Dynasty/Samurai/Gundam for mindless face-pad-wiping fun. So I guess Hyrule won't be any different.

As for the actual Zelda game... I really need to get back into Zelda games in general. I never got to finish Skyward Sword after my sister moved out and took the Wii.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands

Bloody_Inferno said:


> As for the actual Zelda game... I really need to get back into Zelda games in general. I never got to finish Skyward Sword after my sister moved out and took the Wii.



Shit, me too. I honestly loved it at first, but got bored of it and quit playing right before I got the song of the hero, I believe.


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## Alberto7

Skyward was great, I thought. The rooms for improvement were quite clear at points, but they were not a hindrance. I did find it really long though. Not in absolute time length, but rather by the end I felt as though it was beginning to drag a little too long. It didn't stop me from beating that Hero Mode right after the first playthrough though. 

Oh and, since you guys are talking about it, a HUGE shoutout to XCX again. The Nintendo Treehouse gameplay footage floored me. It's such a huge game. The sound was great. Music-wise I'm sure it won't disappoint; everything I've heard composed by Hiroyuki Sawano has been great. I never got to play Chronicles for the Wii, so I hope this one will be a good introduction to the series.


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## InfinityCollision

Skyward Sword leaned a little too heavily on the whole "fetch three" thing for me and I had issues with the motion control implementation. I don't know who's idea it was to automatically reset the motion positioning every time you selected a secondary item (arrows etc), but the resulting offsets between where you were pointing and where the game thought you were pointing was really jarring for me. I beat it, but I couldn't bring myself to do a second playthrough.

Aside from that, it was okay. Fun to play, mediocre story (_zero_ sense of urgency in saving the proverbial princess). I like the trend of a more humanized Zelda that started in the Gamecube era, they did a good job with that here.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands

Apparently he's re-canting his earlier statements about it not being Link. Says it was a joke taken out of context.

http://mmgn.com/wiiu/news--that-was-link-in-zelda-wii-u-trailer-aonuma



> Zelda series producer Eiji Aonuma told MMGN the comment leading to rumours the character we saw might not be Link was taken out of context, and was intended as a joke.
> 
> "It's a rumour," Aonuma said with a chuckle when I asked him about the speculation buzzing around online.
> 
> "Actually that comment I made jokingly," he said. "It's not that I said that it wasn't Link. It's that I never said that it was Link. It's not really the same thing, but I can understand how it could be taken that way.
> 
> "It seems like it has kind of taken off where people are saying 'oh it's a female character' and it just kind of grew. But my intent in saying that was humour. You know, you have to show Link when you create a trailer for a Zelda announcement."


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## StevenC

Called it!

Also, started playing Wind Waker HD. Great game.


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## Alberto7

Knew it  my 60/40 intuition was right. It's somehow a relief, too.

Wind Waker is the only console Zelda game I have not owned and beat. That will change once I get the Wii U.


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## danpluso

It looks cool and I always love a good Zelda game. I just wish it wasn't so futuristic. I'm going to be starting Majora's Mask for the first time pretty soon. Right after I finish Skyward sword. The 3DS Zelda was a little short but surprisingly good. Good trip down memory lane for those who grew up with the overhead zeldas.


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## thedonal

I've already nearly bought a WII-U for Wind Waker HD (but it was too pricey for my budget at £250 for the bundle).

This might just reignite my interest. I LOVE Zelda games! 

They're clear proof that when Nintendo get it right, they REALLY show the rest of the games world how games can be.


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## timbucktu123

its times like this i love having a wii u


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## Alberto7

Alright, so I'm bumping this because, well, this happened:



The world looks friggin' humongous. And so so so so so pretty! And Star Fox Wii U drops even before Zelda U! D: So many exciting news!


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## yingmin

God DAMN that looks good. I probably won't buy a Wii U because I just don't play video games enough to warrant such a purchase, but if I did, I'd snag this post haste. Hell, I bought Skyward Sword maybe a year or two ago, and still haven't even opened it.


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## StevenC

Nintendo might just be able to keep my video game money away from Microsoft for another year, with this and Star Fox next year! I like to play Zelda games all summer, but I doubt this will be out that soon.

Yingmin, you should definitely play SS, it's in my top 3 Zeldas.


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## InfinityCollision

I'd consider SS among the, if not the outright, worst in the series  Certainly the worst of the 3D console games (OoT/MM/WW/TP/SS) imo. It's one of the only Zelda games that I haven't finished at least twice.

Large open world is a good start. Hopefully it'll be more populated when the game is finished.


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## StevenC

InfinityCollision said:


> I'd consider SS among the, if not the outright, worst in the series  Certainly the worst of the 3D console games (OoT/MM/WW/TP/SS) imo. It's one of the only Zelda games that I haven't finished at least twice.



You certainly have a point, and it's not without it's many glaring failures, but I've rarely had so much fun playing a game.


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## troyguitar

I'm way way behind the times in consoles and just starting to explore games for the Wii (original) - should I try Twilight Princess before Skyward Sword or just skip straight to SS since it was actually written for the Wii?


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## Alberto7

In terms of gameplay, I found Skyward Sword to be a lot more fun. I actually found the sword swinging mechanics and motion tracking to be very well done, and the tactics involved as a result kept your attention in the game at all times. Story wise, within the whole franchise, it is quite a bit of a novelty, since it presents a pretty cool introduction to the whole series (even if the official timeline is, admittedly, pretty mangled).

However, Twilight Princess felt like much more of an epic. It just felt like a bigger game, partially because of the big, almost-open world, and the graphics. It's also a lot darker and much more moody (SS is quite a happy-go-lucky Zelda game by comparison). Also, the Hidden Skills in TP are honestly some of the coolest, most realest moves Link has ever performed, and they're just outright badass to pull off on enemies (that, and pressing A to put your sword away like a baws right after defeating an enemy. Makes one feel so empowered ).

Also, just as a side note, I enjoyed Twilight Princess a lot more on the Gamecube (I'm also biased, since that was the first version of the game I played, and the one that I own).


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## InfinityCollision

StevenC said:


> You certainly have a point, and it's not without it's many glaring failures, but I've rarely had so much fun playing a game.



I'll give you that. The motion controls are overall nicely engaging. The biggest issue I had with them iirc is that it automatically re-centers whenever you go to pull out an item. In theory it's a good idea, but you get a ton of pointer drift if you're not aware of it and immediately move to select your item.

Story and environment design though, meh  Points for making Zelda more than just a distant princess to rescue at least, that's been a nice trend in some of the more recent Zelda games.



troyguitar said:


> I'm way way behind the times in consoles and just starting to explore games for the Wii (original) - should I try Twilight Princess before Skyward Sword or just skip straight to SS since it was actually written for the Wii?



Either way's good, though I'd probably play TP first. I actually prefer it on the Wii - the motion controls are rough but still fun, and you get three item slots to the GC version's two. Yay convenience buff! I'm biased much like Alberto though, I played the Wii version first.


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## ferret

So. Turns out I'm getting a WiiU after all. I mean, my kids are getting one. winkwink.


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## asher

I haven't played SS, but TP on Wii was mechanically *the best* Zelda I've played, hands down. On top of that I really liked the art style and the darker mood (and Midna ), I found the Wiimote aiming for arrows and such incredibly intuitive and really easy to use. I've not been as good a bow shot in any other Zelda game.


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## VBCheeseGrater

Looks great to me. Looks like a Nintendo game should, it just has a certain quality to it that lets you know immense time and care was taken in creating the game.


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## StevenC

Game will include amiibo functionality.


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## Alberto7

Yeah, I got really excited when they showed those 10 seconds of footage. Then I waited 45 minutes for more, and the best thing I got was Pokken Tournament. And the Fire Emblem Fates trilogy (though I shouldn't even be excited, given that I've never played any FE games  but they always look so nice).

And this, of course:


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## Ralyks

I'm really surprised they aren't just holding the new Zelda off for the NX or whatever the new Nintendo system ends up being called.


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## StevenC

They've been planning for this as a Wii U title for a long time. Wind Waker HD was an exercise to learn the Wii U to make this game. And it'd make this the first Nintendo console without at least one main series Zelda title.

It's already the only console not to have a proper single player Mario game. The Wii U is a commercial flop, but it is by no means a bad system, and clearly an innovative system leading to some interesting ways to play; not a poorly executed prototye like the Virtual Boy.

If we didn't release games if there was a new console coming out soon, then we'd just have huge launch lineups and dismal trickles inbetween.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands

Given Nintendo released the WiiU exactly one year after Skyward Sword was released, I wouln't be surprised if Zelda WiiU was the console's swan song like Skyward Sword was the Wii's.


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## StevenC

HeHasTheJazzHands said:


> Given Nintendo released the WiiU exactly one year after Skyward Sword was released, I wouln't be surprised if Zelda WiiU was the console's swan song like Skyward Sword was the Wii's.



Me neither. It makes a lot of sense at this stage, though they were planning to release it a long time ago, so I don't think it was planned that way.


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## Alberto7

Nintendo being Nintendo, their excuse (or reason) for that may be that they want said swan song to be a grand finale, much like they did with the Wii. (Although I think the Wii had many more competitive titles than the Wii U at the time Skyward Sword was released. *cough* Metroid Prime *cough*) They actually did something similar with the GameCube by releasing Twilight Princess the same day they released the Wii and a couple of weeks later for the GameCube... though it makes me wonder if it was a grand finale for the GameCube, or a grand opening for the Wii.


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## InfinityCollision

Ralyks said:


> I'm really surprised they aren't just holding the new Zelda off for the NX or whatever the new Nintendo system ends up being called.



I will be absolutely shocked if it doesn't get a dual platform release a la Twilight Princess.

There's a very good chance that the delay to 2016 was at least partially a result of that same decision. If I'm right, the Wii U will also be the only Nintendo console ever to lack an (initially) exclusive Zelda title.

I'm betting on a new Metroid game early in the NX's lifespan as well, possibly as a launch title.


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## StevenC

"A delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is forever bad."

-Shigeru Miyamoto


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## StevenC




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## Ralyks

InfinityCollision said:


> I will be absolutely shocked if it doesn't get a dual platform release a la Twilight Princess.



Yup, confirmed to be getting a dual Wii U/NX release. Which means I'll get both and keep the Wii U version aside for when it goes up in price like the GameCube Twilight Princess did.


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## Alberto7

My body is tingling (hurrdurr) in all kinds of inconspicuous places waiting for some new Zelda gameplay this Tuesday. Can't wait!

I was also hoping for some major updates on Metroid for this E3, but seeing how Fedef*ckity F*ck still hasn't come out and how they're going all out with Zelda and Pokemon Sun/Moon, I think I should probably drop those hopes...


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## Alberto7

Ralyks said:


> Yup, confirmed to be getting a dual Wii U/NX release. Which means I'll get both and keep the Wii U version aside for when it goes up in price like the GameCube Twilight Princess did.



It's true that the Wii U does have a bit of a cult-ish fanbase, but I don't think it'll maintain nearly the same reputation the GameCube did. That alone may affect the price of a Wii U copy of the Zelda double-release in the future. Then again, given the (un)popularity of the Wii U, I doubt they'll produce very many copies for it, which may keep that version's price up as a collector's item. It also makes me wonder how Nintendo will handle marketing of the new NX and its price point.


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## Ralyks

Shame about the Wii U, not a lot of good games, but the ones that are good are like 5 atar classics. And I wish they would get on with the NX so I can determine if I'm waiting for that if it has backwards compatibility or waiting for Wii U to get cheap so I can go nuts with Mario Maker.


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## StevenC

The Wii U, in my opinion, had plenty of good games, and all but ZombiiU and Rayman were exclusive. It's had way more good games than PS4 and Xbox One, frankly, and I play my Wii U way more than those.

I'd edit you're comment to:
Shame about the Wii U, not a lot of games, but the ones that are good are like 5 star classics.


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## StevenC




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## Alberto7

I am getting so hyped for Tuesday, and the new art is gorgeous and very intriguing, that last picture in particular.


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## StevenC

Nintendo posted a better picture


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## MFB

Coming soon:

...Link's Creed


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## Alberto7

I feel like that picture reveals so much, yet so little. I love it.


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## StevenC

Well, that was worth the wait.


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## Alberto7

I AM SO HAPPY IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL


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## Alberto7

Ok, over-excitement aside (sorta). Seems we're getting voice acting now?! That's so cool. As long as Link doesn't speak, I am all for voice acting.

The world looks huge and absolutely gorgeous. What little we got to see of the game mechanics looks great. I absolutely love the art direction. I friggin' loved the music as well, it was really sweet.

Also, the name is perfect.

Waiting for Pokemon Sun/Moon gameplay to be over so we can see more Breath of the Wild gameplay.


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## StevenC

Yeah, I like Pokemon, but early game stuff is boring as hell to watch. Back to Zelda!


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## Alberto7

Seems technology vs fantasy and Sheika involvement theories were correct. That's awesome.


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## leftyguitarjoe

Heres to hoping for a good emulator so I can defy Nintendo's selfishness and play this game.


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## StevenC




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## Don Vito

This actually looks really fun, but I doubt I'll get a Nintendo console for it.


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## Alberto7

I'm pretty sure I'm gonna end up getting an NX just for this.  I must have watched the trailer about a gazillion times by now, and have been watching gameplay videos all day. It just looks so goddamn pretty, and so much fun.

Kinda crazy to think that what we've been shown at E3 so far is only about 1-2% of the whole thing, apparently.


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## Ralyks

Sweet jebus I want this game.


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## HeHasTheJazzHands

BOTW won IGN's Game of E3 Award.


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## StevenC

It seems to be getting quite a few of the awards. Maybe a delayed game is eventually good.


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## Alberto7

^If I end up with an incredible game, I'm all for making it wait so it can be polished and perfected. I hope that's the case here.


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## StevenC

It's only going to run at 720p on the Wii U, by the way. Presumably the NX version will run at 1080p. As long as they fix the frame rate problems it should be great.


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## Alberto7

^ That I didn't know. Is that what the people at E3 are saying? I did suspect it though, since I found it strange that the trailer or any of the gameplay footage was uploaded in 720p. It also kinda makes sense, given how ginormous the game is supposed to be and how good it looks, and the Wii U's not-so-mighty processing power.

I don't mind too much though. The difference between 720p and 1080p in gaming was never that stark to me. I'm also happy as long the frame rate doesn't drop below 30-40 fps. Knowing Nintendo though, I don't think they would release a ZELDA game that wasn't as polished as a brand new British luxury car, especially when such an installment could potentially shape how Nintendo fares as one of the top gaming supergiants of the industry.

With that said, I am still getting it for NX once it launches.


----------



## Don Vito

I don't know how to embed non-Youtube videos, but this makes me moist.
https://gfycat.com/IckyPinkAustraliancurlew


----------



## Alberto7

Aaahhh the hitbox video in all its glory, yes. Also present in this little eyecandy of an article by Kotaku:

All The Ways In Which Zelda: Breath Of The Wild Looks Incredible | Kotaku Australia

I hadn't seen that combat video. Like, f*ck. They were not sh*tting around when they showed us that first teaser!


----------



## Alberto7




----------



## thedonal

Oh Gods I want this in my life!

I may be on a Wii-U trip in the new year for the Wind Waker HD too. Presuming Ocarina can be obtained via their network?

I have serious love for Zelda games.. For me, a console purchase is enough for all the titles I can get. How was Twilight Princess, by the way? I never read much about it..


----------



## Alberto7

^ I'm fairly certain you can get OoT from their e-shop, same as Majora's Mask.

Twilight Princess was absolutely great. It was a bit darker than most other games (save for Majora's Mask, which is low-key messed up) and the story felt a lot larger in scope. If you ever play it, make sure you don't play the Wii version with the clunky-ass motion controls, but the Gamecube version with the regular controls. Unlike Skyward Sword, the motion controls in TP are atrocious. Or, better yet, play Twilight Princess HD, which I hear is quite a bit better than the original.

Also, Midna is hands down the best companion Link has ever had, and one of my favorite characters in the whole franchise. That beautiful little imp.


----------



## StevenC

The Wii U version is the best version by far. Gives the game a new lease. Still not WW/MM level, but takes it out of the argument for worst 3D Zelda.


----------



## Alberto7

Just gonna leave these here for whoever missed the Switch presentation last night:

English version:

Japanese version:

The game looks ridiculous. I've never been so hyped for a new Zelda game. I really hope it's as good as it looks.

I also hope that they give us a language selection feature for the new voice acting, as I liked the Japanese voices just a tad better than the English ones.


----------



## StevenC




----------



## Alberto7

^ F*ck it, that's it. I'm buying it. I don't care if I'm out $500 and eating dirt... stupid CAD.


----------



## MFB

Alberto7 said:


> I don't care if I'm out $500 and eating dirt...


----------



## Alberto7

I'll keep that in mind for when the symptoms begin, assuming I'm not too busy playing the game to notice them


----------



## Ralyks

So the reviews for the Switch itself are very iffy, but Breath of the Wild is getting perfect 10s across the board.


----------



## Alberto7

Ralyks said:


> So the reviews for the Switch itself are very iffy, but Breath of the Wild is getting perfect 10s across the board.



Yeah, everybody's commenting that the Switch itself is a really cool concept with a ton of potential, but a hardware issue (sync issues with left Joycon) and the lack of a clear plan for online gaming (plus no Virtual Console atm) are kind of a bummer.

Still getting it just for Zelda though. I'm honestly quite surprised at how ridiculously good all of the reviews for the game have been so far. Future games also look pretty promising, so I doubt I'll regret getting the console in the long run.


----------



## TheDivineWing22

The joycon issue is fixed with an update. I've also seen quite a few good reviews for the switch. Excited to pick it up along with LOZ.


----------



## TedEH

I haven't had a Nintendo console in quite a while... but this game makes it preeeeeeeeeeeeetty tempting.


----------



## Jonathan20022

Alberto7 said:


> Yeah, everybody's commenting that the Switch itself is a really cool concept with a ton of potential, but a hardware issue (sync issues with left Joycon) and the lack of a clear plan for online gaming (plus no Virtual Console atm) are kind of a bummer.
> 
> Still getting it just for Zelda though. I'm honestly quite surprised at how ridiculously good all of the reviews for the game have been so far. Future games also look pretty promising, so I doubt I'll regret getting the console in the long run.



I'm not bummed about Virtual Console at all tbh, I still carry my 3DS in my backpack and I have countless VC titles on there. So I have my fix for portable retro gaming, it looks infinitely better on the smaller screen resolution as well rather than stretched across the Switch monitor.

I'll play the hell out of Zelda but I do hope there are more games sooner than later, I never got around to playing Mario Kart 8 so I can just get that and Splatoon until Mario Odyssey.


----------



## StevenC

It's been a fun morning.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Lucky! Hope you're enjoying the crap out of it.  No spoilers though! I've unfollowed all Zelda-related social media pages I was following until I beat the game. I'm still not putting my order down, unfortunately. Gotta figure some things out financially if I want to make this work.


----------



## StevenC

Got 4 hours in and now I think it's time for bed. This game is really good.


----------



## Jonathan20022

#4 Best ranked game of all time on Metacritic, I wasn't expecting that to be completely honest.


----------



## Alberto7

Nice, just when I manage to sort out things financially, the damn thing sells out on Amazon and just about everywhere else. Gonna have to make a little trip to Walmart, BestBuy, EB Games, etc., to see if any of them have, by any miracle, any stock left at their stores.


----------



## Ralyks

Apparently the differences in quality between the Wii U and Switch versions is very minor. Debating on trying to get this with a (hopefully cheap and used) Wii U or just wait to see if I get it if I decide to get a Switch around Mario Odyssey time.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I've been looking into that. Even after making triple sure I could pay for it without having to go hungry, I'm still finding it hard to part with that much money for a new system and a game.

I looked into used Wii U's on eBay for a little while, and the cheapest option I came up with was a used Wii U + gamepad, and it was only about $100 cheaper than buying a brand new Switch, and for a console that is essentially already dead, even if it does have a few titles that are really good. It makes more sense in my head investing the extra money on a console that actually has a future, I think. I thought the WiiU would go for cheaper now that the new console has been released.


----------



## Jonathan20022

The Deluxe Wii U is only 200 Refurbished on Nintendo's official site. It would only cost you 260 to get a setup running to play Zelda if that's all you're after.

https://store.nintendo.com/ng3/browse/category.jsp?categoryId=cat10002


----------



## bpprox22

Ralyks said:


> Apparently the differences in quality between the Wii U and Switch versions is very minor. Debating on trying to get this with a (hopefully cheap and used) Wii U or just wait to see if I get it if I decide to get a Switch around Mario Odyssey time.



I'm not sure if it was mentioned already but for the Wii U, you need to use the game pad or Wii U Pro controller -- no standard remote + joystick combo.


----------



## StevenC

bpprox22 said:


> I'm not sure if it was mentioned already but for the Wii U, you need to use the game pad or Wii U Pro controller -- no standard remote + joystick combo.



You say that like Gamepad and Pro controller aren't the standard controllers for Wii U games...


----------



## bostjan

I don't know, guys...

I tried the game, and I didn't like it at all. It was really bitter. Like chemically-bitter tasting. I highly recommend trying a different game- maybe one that tastes like strawberries or citrus, instead.


----------



## TedEH

How does one taste a steam game...?


----------



## Jonathan20022

bpprox22 said:


> I'm not sure if it was mentioned already but for the Wii U, you need to use the game pad or Wii U Pro controller -- no standard remote + joystick combo.



Those are the only controllers that come standard with the Wii U tho 

If you wanted to use your GC remote, then I'm not sure if any other games outside of Smash even let you use it.



TedEH said:


> How does one taste a steam game...?



You should load up the game, turn off your computer. Remove the CPU and lick the thermal paste, it transfers the taste everytime you play a new game so you can get an accurate sense of what each one tastes like


----------



## bostjan

TedEH said:


> How does one taste a steam game...?



You need the flavour app.


----------



## bpprox22

StevenC said:


> You say that like Gamepad and Pro controller aren't the standard controllers for Wii U games...





> Those are the only controllers that come standard with the Wii U tho
> 
> If you wanted to use your GC remote, then I'm not sure if any other games outside of Smash even let you use it.



You are both right -- However, I was noting it because I found this out last night. I actually play Skyward Sword on Wii U using the standard remote + joystick combo. I like the way it plays but I guess that is not a popular playing style


----------



## StevenC

There's also not enough buttons on either the Wii remote and Nunchuk or the Gamecube controller.

Skyward Sword's controls were built around the Wii's, and similarly Breath of the Wild's are based around the Gamepad.

On a different note, I'm about 40 hours into the game and it only gets better. The world is so engrossing that you go on tangents on tangents on tangents.


----------



## thedonal

Maaaan. I'm getting serious lust for this game. All reviews indicate it has beaten Ocarina of Time (my- and many peoples' Best game ever, ever!!)

But- having already resisted getting a Les Paul with my work bonus (and I've wanted a US Gibby Les Paul for about 2 decades), I'm gonna pass on this for the time being and keep saving for that car!!

That said- I'd like to see how prices go down for the Switch first and see how the platform developes. I'm not always confident things will go well for a new Nintendo machine and- seeing as I only really want it for Zelda games and maybe Mario- it's a lot of hardly earned cash to part with at the moment..

But it looks UTTERLY gorgeous and engrossing. I've kind of missed Zelda. I'm really gonna have to plug my N64 in and have a big nostalgia trip, I think.


----------



## TedEH

bostjan said:


> You need the flavour app.



I think I'll just go back to the cashews thread. Further testing to make sure that the taste of cashews has not changed will distract me from wanting to buy more videos games that everyone keeps talking about.


----------



## leftyguitarjoe

CEMU devs are currently working on a BOTW rom. They can already get it to boot and you can mess with the menus. We should be able to play the game on PC in a few weeks!


----------



## StevenC

http://zelda.com/breath-of-the-wild/news/expansion-pass-dlc-pack-1-detailed/

I wasn't expecting to be so excited for this DLC, more the second one with new dungeon and story, but this is all pretty cool.


----------



## Pav

leftyguitarjoe said:


> CEMU devs are currently working on a BOTW rom. They can already get it to boot and you can mess with the menus. We should be able to play the game on PC in a few weeks!



Is it fully working and available yet? I wouldn't mind hiving this game a shot if I could do so without supporting Nintendo.


----------



## TedEH

Pav said:


> without supporting Nintendo.



I'm not gonna go all "piracy is bad m'kay", but why would you intentionally want to NOT support the company that makes the things you want? I understand wanting to play games without paying for it. Maybe I'm biased 'cause I make a living from making the kind of stuff that people pirate (including video games and music), but it seems to me like if you get that much enjoyment out of their products, you should be supporting them instead of stickin' it to em.


----------



## Pav

TedEH said:


> I'm not gonna go all "piracy is bad m'kay", but why would you intentionally want to NOT support the company that makes the things you want? I understand wanting to play games without paying for it. Maybe I'm biased 'cause I make a living from making the kind of stuff that people pirate (including video games and music), but it seems to me like if you get that much enjoyment out of their products, you should be supporting them instead of stickin' it to em.



Normally I would fully agree with you, but Nintendo is a unique case for me. I could go on for quite a while about why I dislike them. But to summarize, 20+ years of putting out products that I really don't like makes me beyond hesitant to spend $200+ just to play one game that may be good.


----------



## TedEH

Pav said:


> 20+ years of putting out products that I really don't like makes me beyond hesitant to spend $200+ just to play one game that may be good.



Seems to me the solution to that is.... don't play the game? How does making games you don't like entitle you to the one game you might like for free?

If you're an adult or have a job, "I might not like the game" is not an excuse for piracy anymore. The company has not done you some kind of disservice for making products you don't like.


----------



## bhakan

TedEH said:


> Seems to me the solution to that is.... don't play the game? How does making games you don't like entitle you to the one game you might like for free?
> 
> If you're an adult or have a job, "I might not like the game" is not an excuse for piracy anymore. The company has not done you some kind of disservice for making products you don't like.


I understand the sentiment. At least in my opinion, Nintendo's recent consoles have been gimmicky and underpowered. I think a lot people ignore the flaws of the consoles because Nintendo makes great games exclusively for those consoles, but the problem there is as long as you contine buying their consoles it only encourages them to continue to make subpar consoles. I can understand not feeling like a company deserves $300 for a ....ty console because one amazing game is available only on it. I see it as "voting with your wallet" in a sense.


----------



## StevenC

bhakan said:


> I understand the sentiment. At least in my opinion, Nintendo's recent consoles have been gimmicky and underpowered. I think a lot people ignore the flaws of the consoles because Nintendo makes great games exclusively for those consoles, but the problem there is as long as you contine buying their consoles it only encourages them to continue to make subpar consoles. I can understand not feeling like a company deserves $300 for a ....ty console because one amazing game is available only on it. I see it as "voting with your wallet" in a sense.



The quality of a console has nothing to do with the power of it. Nobody bought the GameCube despite its power. Everybody bought the Wii and DS because they were innovative.

The only good reason to buy a console is because it's got good games on it. Nintendo is the only console that guarantees that, because they have the best video game developer of all time in themselves.


----------



## Jonathan20022

^^ This. The console is only as good as the content you can use on it.

I've honestly learned that when people talk about underpowered and are still talking about consoles, they generally don't understand what that power is. Yes the PS4 and X1 are powerful, but the games in the 2nd half of their lifespans and onwards don't run perfectly either. If you really care about the power and ability to play a game at a perfect consistent experience, then PC is the way to go about it. Gimmicks or not, Nintendo still makes the games fantastic even if you don't like the quirks sold in their marketing. 

Good on them for trying, you don't know what will be a hit until you actually attempt it. And I'm a guy who is all for innovation and pushing things ahead by a few extra steps if possible. I'm not in it for the next adequately powerful PS or Xbox, but if the content is awesome and only available there. I'll buy one.

My Switch is extremely fun to game on, and I love having it around at the office or when I'm traveling and want to unwind a bit.

Now here's some spoilers, because I'm going to talk about Zelda and it's ending. In a non-spoiler nutshell, the experience was fantastic and I had issues with the way certain things were handled. And unless the big content drop in DLC pack 2 is enough to substantiate it, the game will sit at a hard 8/10 for me.

Here comes the blocks of green spoilers!



Spoiler



Ganon was a complete afterthought.

His Calamity form has the initial shock factor, and the entrance is cool. But that is exactly where it ends. The only bit of character development we get about him is that he abandoned his reincarnation and cycle of being brought back through generations to take his fully "enraged" form. That's it.

As far as I'm concerned, Calamity Ganon is just another Shiekah Creation that got inhabited by Ganon's being and assumed his hair. It's just another big bad "Blight" form. I don't even want to spend much time talking about his 2nd form, it was a gigantic joke and hand holding experience that somehow manages to not tell you how to even finish the ....er off.

The divine beast mechanic was interesting and made for a great cinematic but it destroyed the ending for me. There was absolutely no difficulty in fighting C.
Ganon. If you take the time to complete the Divine Beasts, you're already far more than powerful to take down Ganon easily. Him being at half health (That's what happens when you get all the Divine Beasts, each consumes 1/8 of Ganon's health with a blast). I had all this armor, weaponry, and food that I absolutely did not need to use at all. The fight was easier than just about anything else in the game, unless you don't know how to parry lasers.

IMO: The Divine Beasts should not have reduced his health, but I would have made it so they stun him at a critical moment letting you deliver the final blow. And as for Ganon's final form, it shouldn't have been some absolutely big harmless pig creature. We needed dialogue and something to give us a look into Ganon's mind and what led to that moment, characters died in a war against this person. And he just dies in the most anticlimactic final boss fight ever?

So Ganon's fight sucked, the first Zelda to feature voice acting somehow left Ganon with the least developed and interesting backstory of the cast. And unless the DLC story pack is about him, it'll remain that way. Ganon was literally just another mob in the world that needed to be taken down. Nevermind that a Lynel has a more strategic method of being taken down.[/spoilers]

The game as a whole was absolutely fantastic, my main gripes happen in the last 30-50 minutes of the experience. And after 90+ hours of it, I still absolutely loved the entire game, nothing will change that.



My other gripes with it are the following.


Spoiler



1. Zelda's NA voice actor is completely the wrong type of voice for the role.
Everytime she spoke I felt like she didn't belong with the rest of the characters.

2. Mipha and Link's relationship development died as fast Mipha did when she fought Waterblight in the past. What was the point of letting us know they were into each other if there was absolutely no follow up? It might as well have not been included because as soon as we find out about this, and some gear we receive. It's a forgotten story point and never talked about again.

3. I wish the Master Sword was handled differently, it's always been a very big moment in any Zelda when you get the blade. Making the requirement to get it to simply complete 40 shrines and get get 10 additional life containers made it lose some of that magic you experience getting it in any other Zelda game.
In my opinion, it should have been attainable after a memory cap. IE: You get memories 1-9, then you're allowed to pull the blade out and memory 10 is shown to you. After you watch the 10th, you now have the Master Sword and there are 8 more memories to experience outside of the first 10. That's how I would have done, but everyone I spoke to so far about it really didn't like the grindy aspect of the shrines. Especially given that you more than likely will find the Master Sword and then realize you still need 10+ more shrines to get it.
The memory wall/requirement would have given the moment a bit more importance and at least give the players the opportunity to feel compelled to find the memories too and hear the story and what happened.

4. The secret ending is complete trash, if you don't know what I'm talking about. It's an extra 1 minute long cinematic that plays after the credits.
You get it by freeing every champion and divine beast, getting every memory,
and getting the master sword. Then taking out Ganon. The cinematic goes as follows, forced opening dialogue to give Link and Zelda some purpose other than just standing out in the field alone for no ....ing reason. The only important bit is said after, Zelda says that her power has waned and she can no longer hear the voice within the sword. 2nd mention of this besides the secret final memory where she hears the sword and understands what it's saying as take Link to the shrine of resurrection. Then you get a shot of her smiling and laughing and it cuts to the title screen. This is so bad, you put in the extra time and effort to get a single line of lore and information and some fan service.
I just can't believe they felt inclined to include it at all instead of making it a part of the normal ending if you don't go through all of the extra hoops.

Save yourself the trouble, beat the game and just watch the "secret ending"
on youtube or something.





Spoiler



I know that's a lot of negativity back to back  but I'm super passionate about this game and wanted it to be absolutely flawless. So I think it's worth critiquing to this level, the content and gameplay is fantastic. The quests,
landscapes, and characters you meet along the way are extremely likable and fun to see and quest on. The game is carried by this in my opinion, like the quest where you have to find the Molduga guts to help a Gerudo woman's ill husband, which leads you to the bones of a Leviathan if you explore a bit more and eventually you run into the 3 archaeologists who really want to see each of the 3 Leviathans scattered in corners of the world. I still have quite a few quests to complete, but so many of them are interesting and fun to go out and complete that it made the entire experience so much fun. Tarry Town was another fantastic quest, helping develop your own little town for people you've met along your journey was rewarding in and of itself. The shrines are cool too,
they can get a bit old quick, but there are so many that you might just get re-interested when you find a puzzle you don't fully grasp on the first try.

The secrets and references you find all over the world are incredible, spotting Farosh for the first time blew me away. Finding and interacting with him was even wilder for example. The game is rife with amazing experiences to be had,
if the ending was executed better I could overlook every other gripe I had,
but it made me go back and look at the game more critically. It's a fantastic game but not a perfect one by any means, I think anyone who's still on the fence should absolutely play it. But it's hard not to tell people that the ending will in fact disappoint many. This is assuming the DLC being released in a few months isn't going to go in depth about everything I think is missing. But then of course that means it's treading in my hate of paywalls for content that should have been there in the first place 



That's my rundown of what I didn't like, and what I loved about this game.
I can't wait for the next game in the series, hoping they take everything that they learned from this time and perfect it for the next release.


----------



## bhakan

StevenC said:


> The quality of a console has nothing to do with the power of it. Nobody bought the GameCube despite its power. Everybody bought the Wii and DS because they were innovative.
> 
> The only good reason to buy a console is because it's got good games on it. Nintendo is the only console that guarantees that, because they have the best video game developer of all time in themselves.


I do think the power of a console affects its quality though. Good games are the key to a good console, but the power affects its ability to have good games in some way.  The Switch guarantees you lots of great Nintendo games and it looks like a lot of jrpg's and not much else. If you want to play first person shooters, western RPG's (other than the 6 year old Skyrim) etc. you're .... out of luck. I get that this isn't Nintendo's target market and I respect that they're doing something different instead of just competing with XB1/PS4, but for a lot of people it's probably a deal breaker. 

Also, maybe I'm just spoiled by PC graphics, but the switch graphics looked pretty bad to me. Like the art design of BoTW is jaw dropping, but every shot of Switch graphics I've seen so far (none in person so maybe its just compression or something) has had this weird look like there's zero anti-aliasing or something. For me, anti-aliasing is kind of a must in 2017. 

I may still get a Switch at some point because my PC covers all the weak spots of the Switch and I want something I can actually sit in a room with friends and play, but for those who can only justify a single gaming system I can see the switch being underwhelming.


----------



## StevenC

bhakan said:


> I do think the power of a console affects its quality though. Good games are the key to a good console, but the power affects its ability to have good games in some way. The Switch guarantees you lots of great Nintendo games and it looks like a lot of jrpg's and not much else. If you want to play first person shooters, western RPG's (other than the 6 year old Skyrim) etc. you're .... out of luck. I get that this isn't Nintendo's target market and I respect that they're doing something different instead of just competing with XB1/PS4, but for a lot of people it's probably a deal breaker.
> 
> Also, maybe I'm just spoiled by PC graphics, but the switch graphics looked pretty bad to me. Like the art design of BoTW is jaw dropping, but every shot of Switch graphics I've seen so far (none in person so maybe its just compression or something) has had this weird look like there's zero anti-aliasing or something. For me, anti-aliasing is kind of a must in 2017.
> 
> I may still get a Switch at some point because my PC covers all the weak spots of the Switch and I want something I can actually sit in a room with friends and play, but for those who can only justify a single gaming system I can see the switch being underwhelming.



You've hit the nail on the head. If you want graphics, you don't buy a console. Console's live and die by their unique experiences, and as we've seen over the past few years if you want multiplats you want a PC.

Nintendo knows that the Xbox/PlayStation power/specs fight isn't something you win, it's something you lose second. Hence Microsoft are putting all their exclusives on Windows as well. Hence Nintendo doing something different the past 3 generations, because surprisingly making the most powerful console has only been the most successful twice: SNES and PS4.

Also, to your first point, I'd argue that in almost every console generation the best games haven't been on the most powerful console. The exception being the SNES and N64.


----------



## bhakan

StevenC said:


> You've hit the nail on the head. If you want graphics, you don't buy a console. Console's live and die by their unique experiences, and as we've seen over the past few years if you want multiplats you want a PC.
> 
> Nintendo knows that the Xbox/PlayStation power/specs fight isn't something you win, it's something you lose second. Hence Microsoft are putting all their exclusives on Windows as well. Hence Nintendo doing something different the past 3 generations, because surprisingly making the most powerful console has only been the most successful twice: SNES and PS4.
> 
> Also, to your first point, I'd argue that in almost every console generation the best games haven't been on the most powerful console. The exception being the SNES and N64.


I agree with what you're saying but I feel like we're talking about different things. The Switch trying to be the most powerful console would be a waste, but I think it should've tried to be in at least the same ballpark. It seems like its graphics are miles below the other current gen consoles. Graphics aren't everything and an amazing game like Zelda is amazing regardless of graphics, but I'd be more excited for it if it was a little more powerful (with a price increase of course, I'm not asking for a miracle).

Either way, this tangent is getting pretty far off course. I'm clearly not Nintendo's target demographic and I get that.


----------



## polish_sausage

bhakan said:


> I agree with what you're saying but I feel like we're talking about different things. The Switch trying to be the most powerful console would be a waste, but I think it should've tried to be in at least the same ballpark. It seems like its graphics are miles below the other current gen consoles. Graphics aren't everything and an amazing game like Zelda is amazing regardless of graphics, but I'd be more excited for it if it was a little more powerful (with a price increase of course, I'm not asking for a miracle).
> 
> Either way, this tangent is getting pretty far off course. I'm clearly not Nintendo's target demographic and I get that.



I always kind of looked at the switch as a sideways move to the wii u and a replacement to the 3ds. Unifying their mobile and home console gaming makes it so that Nintendo is going to be able to support the crap out of the switch. It becomes a lot more appealing if you look at it as a 3ds replacement rather than a wii u replacement. I also think it's the perfect indie game machine. I game mainly on pc but the switch is a perfect compliment to that for my needs. I'd like if it was more powerful as well but at the price point it's at now is already pushing the limits of it staying competitive in the market.


----------



## leftyguitarjoe

Finally got the game running relatively well on PC through the CEMU emulator. I'm also running a hack that disables weapon degradation because having all your favorite swords and stuff break all the time blows.

I am absolutely loving the game.


----------



## Ralyks

I traded in most of my physical PS4 library and managed to score a Switch with Zelda and Mario Kart. I love how open this game is and the sense of exploration and adventure, and respect the throwback to the first Zelda by dropping you in the world and saying "Welp, you're on your own". I think this game is going to be a very unique and wondrous experience... But I may have around an hour and a half playing time in and where's a damn sword?! Right now I'm using a skeleton arm for a sword. Managed to get a few bows at least.

Also, think I need to adjust to a durability system in a Zelda game....


----------



## StevenC

Played 115 hours. You get over the weapons breaking.


----------



## Alberto7

StevenC said:


> Played 115 hours. You get over the weapons breaking.



You totally do. I've played 85+ hours by now, and once you're able to locate some of your favorite weapons and pin them down on your map. Besides, you can expand the max amount of weapons you can carry.

I've been postponing finishing the game, honestly. I've been done with dungeons for a while, but now I'm just going around acquiring new gear and powering up before heading for the end. I absolutely love walking around and exploring new places I'd never set foot in before.

Also, I played for a while on my sister's Wii U. She had barely even finished the prologue, and she hands it to me and says "do with it whatever you want." Of course, I headed straight for Hyrule Castle.  It's freaking hilarious running around and having lasers fly by me almost in slo-mo Matrix-style. Funniest thing is, I actually made a lot of progress and acquired ridiculous gear even though all I have is 3 hearts and the clothes you begin with. 

I'm loving the sh*t out of this game, even though I do have my reservations about it.


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## Alberto7

leftyguitarjoe said:


> Finally got the game running relatively well on PC through the CEMU emulator. I'm also running a hack that disables weapon degradation because having all your favorite swords and stuff break all the time blows.
> 
> I am absolutely loving the game.



Interesitng. What kind of setup are you running it on? I'm just wondering, given that Dolphin really juices your computer when running Gamecube/Wii games.


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## leftyguitarjoe

Alberto7 said:


> Interesitng. What kind of setup are you running it on? I'm just wondering, given that Dolphin really juices your computer when running Gamecube/Wii games.



16gb ram, R9 390, i5-4430. Not an amazing system by any means. With a bunch of tweaking you get a highly variable 20-30fps. Optimization will come with time. Wind Waker HD runs super smooth 97% of the time.


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## InfinityCollision

Durability stops being an issue _very_ quickly, especially if you're going out of your way to explore instead of railroading story progression. It's very easy to procure more weapons (world spawns, Hinox and eventually Lynel, combat shrines, etc), and smart use of renewable resources (bombs, nearby magnetic objects, master sword) will leave you with a surplus of weaponry. I've thrown out many unused and partially-used weapons because I came across better ones. I've even contemplated self-imposing some restrictions on any future playthroughs to make durability _more_ of a factor.



Jonathan20022 said:


> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> Ganon was a complete afterthought.
> 
> 
> 1. Zelda's NA voice actor is completely the wrong type of voice for the role.
> Everytime she spoke I felt like she didn't belong with the rest of the characters.
> 
> 2. Mipha and Link's relationship development died as fast Mipha did when she fought Waterblight in the past. What was the point of letting us know they were into each other if there was absolutely no follow up? It might as well have not been included because as soon as we find out about this, and some gear we receive. It's a forgotten story point and never talked about again.
> 
> 3. I wish the Master Sword was handled differently, it's always been a very big moment in any Zelda when you get the blade. Making the requirement to get it to simply complete 40 shrines and get get 10 additional life containers made it lose some of that magic you experience getting it in any other Zelda game.
> In my opinion, it should have been attainable after a memory cap. IE: You get memories 1-9, then you're allowed to pull the blade out and memory 10 is shown to you. After you watch the 10th, you now have the Master Sword and there are 8 more memories to experience outside of the first 10. That's how I would have done, but everyone I spoke to so far about it really didn't like the grindy aspect of the shrines. Especially given that you more than likely will find the Master Sword and then realize you still need 10+ more shrines to get it.
> The memory wall/requirement would have given the moment a bit more importance and at least give the players the opportunity to feel compelled to find the memories too and hear the story and what happened.





Spoiler



Ganon: Agree that he's far too easy. I'm hoping the hard mode DLC beefs him up significantly.

Zelda: YES. I remember hearing a line from her in one of the trailers and thinking her voice just didn't fit. Playing the game confirmed that.

Mipha: There's also an oblique reference to this in one of the memories, but to an extent this is just an issue with storytelling style. Minimalism and reliance on a memory mechanic don't lend themselves to deeper storytelling very well. It's a subject they've boxed themselves into a corner on given series lore (and in-game lore, since we know Zelda also developed feelings towards Link), so developing that line further or confirming that Link reciprocated those feelings could have presented some issues. I mostly give this a pass since the story of the game centers more on Link rediscovering Hyrule and finding his place in a new era, but I get what you're saying.

Master Sword: Agree, and likewise for Epona. Relegating a series icon to an Amiibo unlock is a very disappointing decision on Nintendo's part.


Aside from that, lack of deeper/more complex dungeons is probably my only notable gripe with BotW. The exploration element is great, but I love me some dungeon crawling too. Maybe more opportunity for big/challenging fights that stretch the combat engine a bit more (ie taking on multiple relatively challenging enemies simultaneously), but some of the DLC sounds like it'll scratch that itch. In all other respects it's basically a retelling of Zelda II, and I think it does that pretty well.


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## StevenC

Spoiler



Except the Epona in this game isn't actually a horse that exists in this world otherwise. In the same way that the various green tunics shouldn't exist in this game, because at least some of those things never happened. It's just a canon breaking easter egg for people with the amiibo...


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## InfinityCollision

Spoiler



Writers' decision. They could have easily written something else for Epona, or dropped Epona into the quest for the white horse (descendant of the hero's horse Epona, rather than Zelda's). As it is it feels like a lame way to drive Amiibo sales (cash grab) moreso than a proper easter egg, in which case I'd honestly rather not have Epona present at all.


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## StevenC

Hahahahaha, fuel amiibo sales...


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## Alberto7

So I just finished the game, at 95-100 hours. No "secret" ending though, but I have since met all of the necessary requirements to activate it, so that's next on my list. I'll report back with my thoughts on it once I do it, probably in the coming days.

Just as Jonathan said in the previous page, this game is absolutely fantastic, and I can't get enough of it. Even after 110+ hours, my jaw still drops at just how gorgeous this game looks, at the complexity of its world, and at the gameplay in general. It's such a polished game, it makes my head hurt thinking of all the thought that went into the design, the testing, and the quality assurance. I think Nintendo did an absolutely impeccable job in those departments and it gets a 10/10 for that, without a shadow of a doubt.

... however, as you guys also said, I do have my reservations about the game, and they are all mostly in the story-telling/character development department. Even though the good far outshines the bad, imo, the bad is still worth talking about at length, because I was just as hyped (and sometimes I wonder maybe even more so ) as everyone else, and I wanted this game to be perfect. Alas, perfection does not exist, and I fully agree with what you guys have said in your posts, and it earns ~8/10 for me.

These are some of the things I remember right now to have disliked the most in the game, as well as some of my favorite things about it.



Spoiler



The bad:

Let's just begin with Ganon. Oh my f*cking God, how anticlimactic that was. It's an absolute shame, because I find Hyrule castle to be my favorite location in the game, simply because of the mood it sets, and because I find the level design to be fantastic. As an end stage I find it to be totally epic, but then... Ganon happens. From the moment I stepped on the staircase that leads to him, it felt wrong. Other than the ligthing of the stage changing (I also happened to get there on a Blood Moon, which looks black with the yellow lighting in the sky and the clouds swirling about; it was epic. I'll share the screenshot I took if I can, once I get the chance), there were no voices, no impending sense of doom, no real buildup other than the Hyrule Castle level music going on (which I'd been listening to for the previous 2 hours or so, while I searched for treasure/Koroks and destroyed Guardians). Once I saw Ganon's shape, I was borderline screaming, being surprised at the fact that they put such a horrifying and nightmarish-looking character in a Zelda game. Then the fight was kind of disappointing. I'd already beat the four Blights in the Divine Beasts, which made the fight way too easy. I was also way overpowered. I had the full Ancient Armor with three levels up, an Ancient Bow, 30-something Ancient Arrows, the Master Sword, and all these 50+ weapons and shields. I didn't even flinch. Parrying his lasers was cool, as I absolutely love doing it, but it just makes the whole thing way too easy. It causes him too much damage, and simplifies the fight. Then Beast Ganon... ugh. It was cool they mentioned he had given up on reincarnation, which gets me thinking about what'll happen next on that timeline. With that said, the fight was easier than any of the Divine Beast fights, and I certainly did not feel like "Mr. Hero" for defeating him. 

Another aspect I found weak about the game was a seeming lack of lore. Not that there isn't a lot of it, just not enough given how vast the world is. The world is chockfull of ruins and decayed buildings in odd places; I would have just liked to know what some of those buildings were and when they became ruined. A lot of them seemed to have been in ruins for a long time already during Zelda's time, too. Maybe I just to talk to more NPCs or complete more side-quests, though I feel that, by now, I've talked to the vast majority of NPCs, and I feel like I haven't gotten enough world-building out of side-quests, but I merely satisfied NPCs whims and quirks. (Which is a totally fun and satisfying thing to do, but
it doesn't help world building.)

The English voice acting... I don't even need to say it. It was quite cringe-worthy at many points. Zelda's voice just didn't fit, and it felt really off. The only memory in which I didn't mind her English voice was the one after the Calamity Ganon had killed everyone. It took me a while to realize that I could switch the voices out to Japanese. And that's what I did for the ending of the game and the last two memories. It was a lot better in Japanese, but still kinda awkward. I did like Urbosa's voice a lot though, and Daruk's, though Revali was as awkward as Zelda, but he had a whole lot less exposure. I'm glad they went with the voice acting, but there was a lot of room for improvement.

I think this is all tied to the fact that parts of the story seemed to have been, as has already been mentioned, an afterthought. Everything seems to have been invested in making the rest of the game as perfect as possible, and the story suffered because of it. Not that I think the story is terrible; I really don't. I find the framework of it really cool and with a lot of potential, but it was, for the most part, terribly underdeveloped. However, the parts it got right were stellar. *cough*Hyrule Field/Castle*cough*



That seems like a lot of criticism for the game, but it's well overshadowed by the good:



Spoiler



I could talk for days about the brilliant world design, sense of progression, exploration, discovery, etc., but we all know about that, so here's one of my favorite things in the game other than the aforementioned: Hyrule Castle. Entering Hyrule Castle is about the most frightening thing I've done in any game. (Maybe I just haven't played enough games though. ) After coming up face to face against a Guardian early on in the game, knowing that the Castle ruins were packed with them made it especially terrifying. Guardians are genuinely some of the most formidable and scary enemies I've ever faced in a videogame. It takes a looong time before you're even remotely able to so much as scratch them, let alone defeat them, so it really made me want to avoid them like the plague for a long time. Namely, until I discovered I could parry their beams with just about any shield, and still, parrying skills were kinda hard to master for me in the game (and I'm still not that good at it), so I never had a real incentive to go up against one. I love that you can enter the castle in pretty much any way you want, but it is a challenge regardless. Many areas are blocked off from one side, so you have to figure out how to get to the other, all the while having to get past some ridiculously tough enemies. The design of the place is fantastic, too. It is, really, just a giant repository of strong weapons and you don't really need to go through any of it to get to the end, but it is strongly recommended you explore it to acquire equipment before you go face Ganon.

From a storytelling perspective, I found Hyrule Field and Hyrule Castle to be brilliant. Despite what I mentioned about a lack of lore in the game, at least the buildings in Hyrule Field we can be relatively certain that they were destroyed during the Calamity. Despite the beauty of Hyrule Field (my favorite area in the game), it carries a very somber undertone, with the very weapons that decimated it still roaming about. Getting to Romani Ranch's ruins was one of the saddest things for me. I've always been fond of the ranches in the Zelda games for their somewhat cheerful and tranquil atmospheres, and seeing it in that state and with everybody dead was powerful. Then, seeing the Castle Town Ruins ahead is even worse. The fact that they have an actual map layout for it, and seeing how it's been turned to nothing but ashes... it gets to you. And then Hyrule Castle itself. I love how they made it feel like, at one point long ago, it was a alive and thriving, until a real tragedy fell upon it. All this is heightened very effectively by the two awesome themes that play while in the castle. I love how you have to go through Zelda's bedroom before getting to her Study, in front of which you can find quite a poignant memory. (I watched this one in Japanese, so it felt quite genuine; I don't know how I'd like it in English.) I thought that was a really neat placement for that memory.

And then retrieving the last memory, where Link falls and Zelda rescues him. Again, a really poignant way of presenting a memory. Surprisingly, it didn't take me more than two minutes to correctly guess where it was, so I managed to find it in no time. I had been through that same area before, scavenging the remains of the Guardians... to think I had visited the very Guardian that got so close to killing me in the past. That was awesome.

I still have to finish helping build Tarrey Town, but I like the quest so far. Really cool and satisfying side-story.



Anyway, I'm not so sure that this is my favorite Zelda game of all time, but it sure sits among the best 3 for me. I still have a majorly soft spot for Majora's Mask, because of its story.

I think that's all I can write for now on the matter. It's been a while since I posted anything this long  but I felt compelled to.

I'm barely at 26.88% completion. So many Korok seeds, Jesus.


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## Alberto7

Couldn't resist and went to beat Ganon again for the "secret" ending. Yeah, save yourself the trouble and go watch it on YouTube.  It's certainly a bit more satisfactory than "cool, you killed Ganon, now gtfo" but it isn't much better than that. You'll want to find all the memories and beat all Divine Beasts anyway, just for story content, but we're not given anything special for that, other than the actual of the memories you might be missing.


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## StevenC

Spoiler



Tarrey Town was my favourite part of the game.


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