.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Valve announces in-game editor for Portal 2
According to Valve, early 2012 will see an update for Portal 2 that will allow players to create their own test chambers and challenges. This applies to both single-player and co-op chambers. Players can then vote on and share their creations online. This news comes from GameTrailers, who has stated that little else is currently known about the update. There has yet to be confirmation if this new feature will apply solely to the PC version, or if it will include the console versions as well.
Saturday, October 22, 2011
XBLA review: Street Fighter III: Third Strike Online Edition
As a genre, fighting games are relatively foreign territory to me. I played a ton of Super Smash Bros. when it first hit the N64, and the same story carried through to Melee and Brawl. The thing I appreciated most about those fighting games was the fact that they were so accessible. True, it would take anyone time and patience to master each and every character, but newcomers could still compete decent enough in a throw-down of Nintendo’s best. Besides that, I only had a few cracks at the arcade version of Mortal Kombat at a local roller skating rink during elementary school field trips. In my early years of gaming (as well as today) my forte was in adventure and platforming games. I was all-too aware of the fact that arcade-style fighting games were largely dependent on players memorizing a list of moves and combos, which differed from one character to the next. That factor probably played the largest influence over my lack of interest in the genre for years to come.
However, in recent years I have rediscovered the genre as something of a beacon for old-school gamers amidst the onslaught of mainstreamed and over-hyped titles (the majority of which happen to be first-person-shooters). These arcade fighters stick with a classic formula, and – while they may provide tutorials of sorts – are not going to hold your hand the entire time. They will dish out one beating after another, and it is up to each individual player to find his or her own unique style of play to combat this. And that is one of the aspects of this genre that I truly admire – the flexibility players are granted through the variety of characters.
Street Fighter III: Third Strike Online Edition is a game from the golden era of fighting games. The characters are varied but still very well-balanced, a result of years of trial-and-error on the part of Capcom and other companies. There is a myriad of different subgroupings to each fighting style. While Elena and Ibuki both focus on fighting from a range, the former does so with kicks and acrobatics, while the latter relies on swift kicks and throwing Kunai. Though Ryu and Akuma might seem like polar opposites skinned over the same move set, it is apparent that Akuma’s energy blasts are not as potent as Ryu’s, while his kicks and supercombos trump those of the series’ posterboy. Despite the fact that there are some striking similarities that can be drawn between some of the characters, it is impossible to find any two that are direct copies of each other.
The arcade mode lasts through nine standard fights, with two minigames thrown in the mix, and a boss fight at the conclusion of all this. Before each fight, players are presented with two opponents to choose from. While these are characters that will have difficulty playing both offense and defense to the player-controlled character, the last couple of choices narrow down to a “lesser of two evils” scenario. Beating the ‘final boss’ Gill as each individual character will prompt a cutscene that explores their story in more specific context.
The combat itself is very fluid. Combos and supercombos are a bit easier to chain than in the likes of Marvel vs. Capcom 3, primarily due to the fact that Third Strike is a past-gen game ported over to a current-gen console with a very different controller than that of the Dreamcast. Players can tweak the difficulty setting at the main menu as they see fit, as well as access training modes to hone their skills both offensively and defensively. The CPU does an impressive job responding to players. Only on rare occasions will it feel a bit cheap. For example, opponents that use blast attacks (most notably Ryu, Akuma, and Urien) do have a tendency to spam these when low on health. Also, players should be aware of how much space they have to work with on any given level, as some of the more physical combat-oriented characters (Yun, Yang, Dudley) may corner them and proceed to mercilessly launch-kick and punch them until their health meter is depleted.
The graphics maintain the traditional look and feel of the side-view and character sprites, but the level of detail presented in each character model and level backdrop is simply gorgeous. This makes a perfect marriage to the soundtrack, which is a combination of hip-hop, techno, and ethnic music. Players can earn points by completing various challenges in game – defeating opponents with 20 supercombo finishes, beating Yang as Yun (and vice versa), etc. – as well as completing the arcade mode each time through. They can then spend these points however they see fit on soundtrack pieces, concept art, and short videos to revisit whenever they wish. There is also an option to upload fights to YouTube, though this seems more of an afterthought with the video quality of these replays set at a 240p default. It would have been a better idea to let players save a handful of their favorite fights to their system's hard drive, retaining the HD quality playback.
Street Fighter III: Third Strike is a great fighting game all around. The final fight against Gill is brutal, and frankly the most uneven aspect of the experience. But the fact that players can jump in and play online is a great addition, and the unlockables are nice for nostalgia’s sake. Players can adjust the difficulty setting as they see fit within a pretty specific skill range, accommodating for both veterans and newcomers to the franchise. The faces may not all be familiar to those who played the previous titles, but every playable character in Third Strike: Online Edition is balanced to perfection.
My rating: 9.25 (out of 10)
Monday, October 17, 2011
Pokemon Gold Version dream team
I was recently talking with my brother about Pokemon Gold version and our most frequently-used Pokemon therein. I collected plenty of the cards in elementary school, and played Red, Blue, and Yellow versions through copies my friends owned. But I never got into the Gameboy games until the second generation games rolled around. My brother and I opted for Gold version due to the fact that most everyone else we knew had Silver, and simply put, we wanted to be different.
Our team started out simple, as is the case with pretty much any starter party in Pokemon. Cyndaquil was the clear choice for us as our first Pokemon. We caught ourselves a Pidgey, a Sentret, gradually working our way up to slightly larger catches like Ampharos, Miltank, and Butterfree. Cyndaquil levelled up and evolved into Quilava; Sentret followed suit into Furret. We managed to get our hands on an Evee, which we deliberately directed towards Espeon (again, to break the mold of eveyone else opting for Umbreon). Espeon quickly became my favorite, with Furret and Quilava not trailing far behind. Butterfree proved useful on a number of ocassions, while Ampharos was ultimately traded out for a Raichu that was received through a game-link trade.
Ho-oh was the most difficult catch. He followed shortly after our catching of Sudowoodo (the latter of whom turned out to carry a much different skill set than expected and was quickly shipped off to Bill's Pokemon storage). Despite a few failures, we managed to stagger Ho-oh's health enough to capture him, due in no small part to Espeon and our now-Typhlosion.
There were a number of alterations the party lineup during the years my brother and I played Gold version. Pidgeotto was a prominent member until the addittion of Ho-oh nullified his usefulness. Seel saw a brief inclusion, as did Golduck and Snorlax. Muk and Gyrados made the cut the first few times we took on the Elite Four. But the team pictured above is the lineup we used most often, and identified as our favorites.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Transformers: Fall of Cybertron character speculation
I'm a big fan of the Transformers. As a kid, I watched the original series, and revisited it when my younger brother first got into Robots in Disguise and Armada. I watched all of Michael Bay's explosion-fest theatrical takes on the franchise, and thoroughly enjoyed the War for Cybertron game. After the announcement that Grimlock would be joining the cast in Fall of Cybertron, I did a bit of deeper digging and discovered that Wheeljack and Sunstreaker would also be joining the Autobot's fight against the Decepticons. While Optimus receiving a bit of a makeover for the sequel was mildly amusing, I was more interested in who else might be climbing aboard for the sequel.
What follows is entirely speculation - they are my own thoughts/wishes on who might be in the new game, and have not yet been confirmed by High Moon Studios.
- Trypticon: I don't think we've seen the last of Mr. giant robo-dinosaur. He survived a fall from space to Cyberton. I'm pretty sure he could just as easily survive a fall into the lower levels of the planet.
- Constructicons: With Grimlock on the Autobot side, it only seems logical that High Moon Studios would balance this with something similar and classic for the Decepticons. I don't know that we will necessarily see any other Dinobots, but the Constructicons seem plausible. Assuming this sequel is longer than its predecessor, a few more boss fights would add to the epic scale and fan-oriented nature of the game. And I can think of no better giant green-and-purple robot to face down than Devastator.
- Shockwave: His appearance as a DLC multiplayer character in the first game led me to believe that me might have been intended as a cast member, but ultimately left on the cutting room floor. I don't know how they could go about the sequel without incorporating Shockwave in some way or another, considering how much of a tribute the games are to the old cartoons.
- Arcee: Another multiplayer character from War for Cybertron, Arcee could add some variety to the scout-class characters. Whereas Bumblebee was the excited young trooper and Sideswipe was sort of the cool kid on the block in Jazz's absence, Arcee could act as a more careful and reasoning balance to the boys. Adding Chromia and Elita-1 in as her squadmates for a mission or two could lead to some interesting and creative tactics with the scout-class abilities and weapons.
- Jazz: He was a DLC character. He was a scout. Same stuff that I said before, just as they apply to Jazz.
- Ironhide: He made a brief appearance in the first game, portrayed as an war-hardened bot. It was a cool balance between G1 Ironhide and his live-action movie counterpart, and I think High Moon can more greatly explore the history he and Optimus share.
There's a taste of what I think could end up being in the final product. As for the rest of the cast from War for Cybertron, I think most of them will be returning, though there may be a few exceptions with some of the less-prominent characters (like Warpath and Barricade). As new information is revealed, I may revisit this list to make additions.
What follows is entirely speculation - they are my own thoughts/wishes on who might be in the new game, and have not yet been confirmed by High Moon Studios.
- Trypticon: I don't think we've seen the last of Mr. giant robo-dinosaur. He survived a fall from space to Cyberton. I'm pretty sure he could just as easily survive a fall into the lower levels of the planet.
- Constructicons: With Grimlock on the Autobot side, it only seems logical that High Moon Studios would balance this with something similar and classic for the Decepticons. I don't know that we will necessarily see any other Dinobots, but the Constructicons seem plausible. Assuming this sequel is longer than its predecessor, a few more boss fights would add to the epic scale and fan-oriented nature of the game. And I can think of no better giant green-and-purple robot to face down than Devastator.
- Shockwave: His appearance as a DLC multiplayer character in the first game led me to believe that me might have been intended as a cast member, but ultimately left on the cutting room floor. I don't know how they could go about the sequel without incorporating Shockwave in some way or another, considering how much of a tribute the games are to the old cartoons.
- Arcee: Another multiplayer character from War for Cybertron, Arcee could add some variety to the scout-class characters. Whereas Bumblebee was the excited young trooper and Sideswipe was sort of the cool kid on the block in Jazz's absence, Arcee could act as a more careful and reasoning balance to the boys. Adding Chromia and Elita-1 in as her squadmates for a mission or two could lead to some interesting and creative tactics with the scout-class abilities and weapons.
- Jazz: He was a DLC character. He was a scout. Same stuff that I said before, just as they apply to Jazz.
- Ironhide: He made a brief appearance in the first game, portrayed as an war-hardened bot. It was a cool balance between G1 Ironhide and his live-action movie counterpart, and I think High Moon can more greatly explore the history he and Optimus share.
There's a taste of what I think could end up being in the final product. As for the rest of the cast from War for Cybertron, I think most of them will be returning, though there may be a few exceptions with some of the less-prominent characters (like Warpath and Barricade). As new information is revealed, I may revisit this list to make additions.
Final Fantasy XIII-2 'Change the Future' trailer
A new trailer for Final Fantasy XIII-2 has been released, and provides more insight into what the story will entail. It seems the events at the conclusion of Final Fantasy XIII opened a rift to another world, which is where Lightning ends up. The rest of the cast will travel back and forth between their world and this new one, it seems. I'm really digging some of the new character designs. And Caius looks like a cool antagonist - from this trailer alone, I'm sold on this sequel.
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Transformers: War for Cybertron sequel named
The sequel to Transformers: War for Cybertron finally has an official title - Transformers: Fall of Cybertron. Grimlock has been confirmed to join the cast of classic Autobots and Decepticons. The game is scheduled for a Fall 2012 release.
I can only assume the sequel will pick up shortly after War for Cybertron's conclusion. With the Ark nearing completion and Megatron still at large, it's quite possible that the Transformers will make their way to planet Earth before Fall of Cybertron comes to a conclusion.
Monday, September 19, 2011
"This is but one of the legends of which the people speak..." - Twenty-five years of The Legend of Zelda
In the same vein as my Metroid retrospective, I thought it appropriate to chronicle my journey with another game series that also turns twenty-five years old this year. I realize I'm rather late to the party, as a lot of people have already expressed their own congratulations to Nintendo and the Legend of Zelda, but as it is one of my all-time favorite video game series, I felt it was almost a crime not to pay my respects to a series that not only got me hooked on a franchise, but a number of genres as well. Similar to my experience with Metroid, I did not first experience The Legend of Zelda via its original NES incarnation. Also, there are some games in the franchise I have yet to play, and as such Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, Link's Awakening, Minish Cap, Phantom Hourglass, and Spirit Tracks will not be covered in this retrospective. I do have every intention of tackling the aforementioned games in the future, though.
I was first introduced to The Legend of Zelda through two friends of mine, both of whom owned Nintendo 64 consoles before I did. At this point, Ocarina of Time was brand-spanking-new, and despite constantly begging my parents to get me an N64 for my birthday, I had no means to play such games at my own house. I was eight years old when I first played Ocarina of Time, and while I didn't exactly understand what happened where in the story (from only having caught chunks of the narrative here and there as my friends progressed through the game), the graphical style and the array of items were aspects I found very appealing. When my parents eventually bought me an N64 of my very own, I played a lot of Diddy Kong Racing and Super Mario 64, but video games were expensive, and my compulsive nine-year old self was more interested in purchasing a pack of Pokémon cards or Star Wars action figures than saving up for another cartridge. Thus, most of my new games came in the form of birthday and Christmas presents.
There was, however, a Blockbuster not far from my house that had a pretty sizeable video game section. Amidst titles like Snowboard Kids, Mario Party 2, Star Fox 64, and Chameleon Twist I rented Ocarina of Time as often as possible - which wasn't as often as I would have liked, since Blockbuster was almost always out of rental copies. It seems I wasn't the only one who wanted to play this game as much as possible. In hindsight, I probably rented that game enough times that I could have purchased it twice. Still, I eventually managed to beat it.
One of the friends mentioned earlier was really into Zelda at the time, and bought Majora's Mask not long after it came out. In the same fashion as with Ocarina of Time, we spent hours at his house exploring Termina and collecting masks. I was hesitant to buy myself a copy of this new Zelda as well, but for different reasons. Frankly, there were a lot of characters and enemies that creeped me out - not as much as my first encounter with the Re-Deads, mind you, as I'd had a whole two years to grow out of some of my little kid fears. But the game as a whole struck me as eerily dark in comparison to Ocarina of Time. The other reason was the difficulty factor. To this day, I still hold Majora's Mask to be the single most challenging title in the entire series, and my friend (who was a far more seasoned gamer than I at the time) expressed how much difficulty he was having with it.
The first Zelda titles I actually owned were the Oracle games for the Gameboy Color. They were also the first games I ever purchased a guide for, since I knew full well that the interconnectivity between the two would open a myriad of bonus sidequests. To this day, I consider the Oracle games some of the best handheld games of all time. But if I had to pick one over the other, I'd have to say that Ages was superior to Seasons, if only marginally. True, Seasons arguably had better boss fights, and I'm not going to deny how clever the Rod of Seasons mechanics were in affecting the surrounding environment. But Ages was certainly the more challenging of the two, with regards to both the temple layouts and the boss fights. Either way, having played so much of Ocarina of Time, I was drawn in by the return of familiar faces, but stayed for the brilliant story and gameplay.
I know I wasn't the only one who had a less-than-ecstatic reaction when I saw the first trailer for the Wind Waker. In fact, I was so displeased with the graphical choice that I avoided it like the plague, despite the positive reactions directed at me by many my friends who had played the game. I'm not entirely sure what brought about my change of heart, but I eventually set aside my qualms about the artistic direction and gave it a try. It wasn't long before I was completely blown away by the Gamecube title. True, it was aimed at a younger audience (probably as a balance for the dark and moody Majora's Mask), but the game was presented on such an epic scale that I couldn't resist exploring each and every spot on the sea chart. I spent hours exploring before I even dove into the bulk of the story. But when I did, I was hooked. While there were some elements that intentionally tied the story back to the hero from Ocarina of Time, Wind Waker wasn't afraid to be different. Perhaps not as revolutionary as either the N64 or Gameboy Color titles, it was still one of the most polished and enjoyable games for that entire generation of consoles, with hours of playability and some of the coolest boss fights in quite some time.
Though I had warmed up to the Wind Waker's unique art style, I was very interested in the forthcoming Twilight Princess. The art style was a polar opposite to that of the Wind Waker, opting for darker palettes and a more realistic Hyrule. Still, it looked like a very visually appealing title in its own right, with some of the early enemies highlighted in the teaser trailer really grabbing my attention. Unfortunately, it would be almost two whole years between the time I witnessed the first trailer and actually played Twilight Princess. My interest would be piqued here and there as new trailers and screenshots emerged, but I felt it was high time I completed the task I should have years beforehand - I went out and purchased my very own copies of both Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask, and played each of them through again.
I honestly don't think it hit me years ago just how brilliant of a game Ocarina of Time really is. I know many people hold it as one of (if not the single) greatest video games ever created. And while I don't know if there is such a thing as a flawless game, Ocarina of Time is certainly as close as it gets, which is why it sits at the top of my own list of favorite video games. Majora's Mask, on the other hand, is a largely overlooked title in the series. Even when I was replaying it, I didn't set as high a priority on completing it as I had with Ocarina of Time. Eventually, though, I set aside the time to power through the game. I for one love a good challenge in a video game, but what Majora's Mask dealt me was something very much unexpected. I was aware of the time limit, but the boss fights and the temple puzzles are some of the most challenging in the series, which makes for an interesting marriage with the story. Yes, Majora's Mask is incredibly dark and - in many regards - bizarre. But it's also one of the best adventure games I've ever had the pleasure of experiencing. Don't get me wrong, I love the staples of the series in the Link-Ganon-Zelda trifecta just as much as any other Zelda fan, but I feel that it is because Majora's Mask isn't limited to the same story that's been told so many times before that leads its storytelling to be so superb.
Finally, Twilight Princess was released and I got my first taste of this new Hyrule. Some had compared it to Majora's Mask, citing its rather dark narrative, while others heralded it as the Ocarina of Time for a new generation. To me, Twilight Princess was neither. It is a Zelda title, and being within that series ascribes the game to a tier few other adventure titles can even dream of coming close to. But as a whole, the game felt too familiar. I did appreciate the new layout and different regions of Hyrule, but the game's direction seemed a bit confused. The graphical style rang back to Ocarina of Time, while the story seemed to bounce back and forth between the darker adult themes (inspired by Majora's Mask) and the more light-hearted nature of characters (ala Wind Waker). Aside from that, the temples were too straightforward for my tastes - save for the Arbiter's Grounds - and the boss fights didn't present much of a challenge across the board. There were some items that saw tweaks to accommodate for the Wii's controls that I very much welcomed, and the fact that Link could swing his sword around while running or on horseback was a nice update, but as a whole it didn't feel as original a game as with each of the previous installments I had played through. I feel a large part of this is due to how much Twilight Princess tried to resonate with Ocarina of Time - even the title segment with Link riding Epona across Hyrule field is an updated take on the title animation from the N64 classic. Because of that, I think it lost much of a seperate, individual identity.
Feeling a bit let down by Twilight Princess, I decided to trek backwards, to the earlier days of Zelda. I dabbled in the original NES Zelda for a bit, but the game I was most curious about was A Link to the Past. I knew more than a few souls who swore by it as being the best in the series before Ocarina of Time rolled around. Having blazed a trail through both of the Oracle games multiple times over, and spending more than a few hours competing with friends in the multiplayer-driven Four Swords Adventures, the top-down view of A Link to the Past felt natural the moment I downloaded it to the Virtual Console. I felt the first two temples were a bit on the easy side, which initially turned me off a bit. But that third temple kicked my butt a few times before I completed it, and was happy to know that the series could still dish out a challenge to me some thirteen years after I had started. I did chuckle, though, when I first battled Agahnim, noting that his attack pattern was almost identical to that of Ganondorf on the N64 - something I had previously assumed was fresh to Ocarina of Time before it was carried on with the likes of Phantom Ganon in Wind Waker. The Dark World evoked memories of the Twilight Realm, though I felt the two were still dissimilar enough - probably due to the capabilities of the respective consoles, but I wasn't complaining.
There are two constants that I felt have always been able to immerse me in Zelda games more successfully than any other gaming series to date - the storytelling and the soundtracks. Metal Gear Solid certainly comes close with the former, but the latter I feel is unmatched. This is due in no small part to the wide variety of musical styles the series presents - not just from game to game, but within each individual title. The guitar strums heard in the Gerudo Desert are a stark contrast to the echoing howls of the Forest Temple, which in turn is vastly different from the tribal drums of the Fire Temple. And that is without taking into account the non-dungeon themes from Ocarina of Time - from the folksy air about Lon Lon Ranch to my personal favorite, the music box tune that is the Song of Storms. Though Majora's Mask does stick with a dark tone for its soundtrack as a whole, the eccentric march heard in the Deku Palace is a sort of polar opposite to the ominous theme of the Stone Tower Temple. Even the oddball tunes, like the Fortune Teller's theme in A Link to the Past and Zant's battle theme from Twilight Princess manage to go above and beyond what most other game soundtracks can. It is because of this, as well as the variation of art styles experimented with over the years, that I see The Legend of Zelda as being not only one of the best video game series in existence, but also one of the most artistically-driven.
Even though I stated that Twilight Princess was not among my favorite Zelda titles, I would still encourage fans of the series to give it a try. It may not be as revolutionary as past entries, but it's still a solid title in its own right, and might very well be the reason any newcomers to the series decide to seek out further Zelda experiences. On top of that, it's one of the best games available in this generation of consoles.
I understand that many people share this sentiment, and it's difficult for me to state the following without it sounding cliché, but as far as I'm concerned, Ocarina of Time is the best in the series. That said, the Oracle titles, Wind Waker, and Majora's Mask are all packed very tightly together behind it, as each is as perfect as can be in their own right. The Legend of Zelda is a series that has stood the test of time and constantly sets the standards for adventure games, and even some RPGs. And in that, I consider it to be the most important video game series I've played. The upcoming release of Skyward Sword has brought me to a level of anticipation and excitement I have not experienced with a video game in years. But it's pretty obvious why - The combination of new adventures with familiar experiences in each new entry presents the most perfect gaming experience I could ever ask for.
Some of my favorite boss fights from the series include:
- Ganondorf and Ganon in Ocarina of Time
- Manhandla in Oracle of Seasons
- Ramrock in Oracle of Ages
- Molgera in Wind Waker
- Ganondorf final boss fight in Wind Waker
- Stallord in Twilight Princess
Some of my favorite songs from the various soundtracks include:
- Title theme from A Link to the Past
- Fortune Teller's theme from A Link to the Past
- Dark World theme from A Link to the Past
- Temple of Time from Ocarina of Time
- Song of Storms from Ocarina of Time
- Deku Palace from Majora's Mask
- Stone Tower Temple from Majora's Mask
- Nayru's Song from Oracle of Ages
- Tarm Ruins and Lost Woods from Oracle of Seasons
- Dragon Roost Island from Wind Waker
- Ganondorf Battle theme from Wind Waker
- Credits theme from Wind Waker
- Midna's Lament from Twilight Princess
Some of my favorite characters include:
- Guru-guru (Ocarina of Time)
- Ganondorf (Ocarina of Time)
- Tingle (Majora's Mask)
- Skull Kid (Majora's Mask)
- Pirate Captain (Oracle of Ages)
- Salvatore (Wind Waker)
- Makar (Wind Waker)
- Midna (Twilight Princess)
- Zant (Twilight Princess)
My favorite dungeons include:
- Forest Temple (Ocarina of Time)
- Water Temple (Ocarina of Time)
- Stone Tower Temple (Majora's Mask)
- Skull Dungeon (Oracle of Ages)
- The Forbidden Woods (Wind Waker)
- Arbiter's Grounds (Twilight Princess)
Character I use second-most-often in Super Smash Bros. Melee and Brawl:
- Princess Zelda/Sheik
I was first introduced to The Legend of Zelda through two friends of mine, both of whom owned Nintendo 64 consoles before I did. At this point, Ocarina of Time was brand-spanking-new, and despite constantly begging my parents to get me an N64 for my birthday, I had no means to play such games at my own house. I was eight years old when I first played Ocarina of Time, and while I didn't exactly understand what happened where in the story (from only having caught chunks of the narrative here and there as my friends progressed through the game), the graphical style and the array of items were aspects I found very appealing. When my parents eventually bought me an N64 of my very own, I played a lot of Diddy Kong Racing and Super Mario 64, but video games were expensive, and my compulsive nine-year old self was more interested in purchasing a pack of Pokémon cards or Star Wars action figures than saving up for another cartridge. Thus, most of my new games came in the form of birthday and Christmas presents.
There was, however, a Blockbuster not far from my house that had a pretty sizeable video game section. Amidst titles like Snowboard Kids, Mario Party 2, Star Fox 64, and Chameleon Twist I rented Ocarina of Time as often as possible - which wasn't as often as I would have liked, since Blockbuster was almost always out of rental copies. It seems I wasn't the only one who wanted to play this game as much as possible. In hindsight, I probably rented that game enough times that I could have purchased it twice. Still, I eventually managed to beat it.
One of the friends mentioned earlier was really into Zelda at the time, and bought Majora's Mask not long after it came out. In the same fashion as with Ocarina of Time, we spent hours at his house exploring Termina and collecting masks. I was hesitant to buy myself a copy of this new Zelda as well, but for different reasons. Frankly, there were a lot of characters and enemies that creeped me out - not as much as my first encounter with the Re-Deads, mind you, as I'd had a whole two years to grow out of some of my little kid fears. But the game as a whole struck me as eerily dark in comparison to Ocarina of Time. The other reason was the difficulty factor. To this day, I still hold Majora's Mask to be the single most challenging title in the entire series, and my friend (who was a far more seasoned gamer than I at the time) expressed how much difficulty he was having with it.
The first Zelda titles I actually owned were the Oracle games for the Gameboy Color. They were also the first games I ever purchased a guide for, since I knew full well that the interconnectivity between the two would open a myriad of bonus sidequests. To this day, I consider the Oracle games some of the best handheld games of all time. But if I had to pick one over the other, I'd have to say that Ages was superior to Seasons, if only marginally. True, Seasons arguably had better boss fights, and I'm not going to deny how clever the Rod of Seasons mechanics were in affecting the surrounding environment. But Ages was certainly the more challenging of the two, with regards to both the temple layouts and the boss fights. Either way, having played so much of Ocarina of Time, I was drawn in by the return of familiar faces, but stayed for the brilliant story and gameplay.
I know I wasn't the only one who had a less-than-ecstatic reaction when I saw the first trailer for the Wind Waker. In fact, I was so displeased with the graphical choice that I avoided it like the plague, despite the positive reactions directed at me by many my friends who had played the game. I'm not entirely sure what brought about my change of heart, but I eventually set aside my qualms about the artistic direction and gave it a try. It wasn't long before I was completely blown away by the Gamecube title. True, it was aimed at a younger audience (probably as a balance for the dark and moody Majora's Mask), but the game was presented on such an epic scale that I couldn't resist exploring each and every spot on the sea chart. I spent hours exploring before I even dove into the bulk of the story. But when I did, I was hooked. While there were some elements that intentionally tied the story back to the hero from Ocarina of Time, Wind Waker wasn't afraid to be different. Perhaps not as revolutionary as either the N64 or Gameboy Color titles, it was still one of the most polished and enjoyable games for that entire generation of consoles, with hours of playability and some of the coolest boss fights in quite some time.
Though I had warmed up to the Wind Waker's unique art style, I was very interested in the forthcoming Twilight Princess. The art style was a polar opposite to that of the Wind Waker, opting for darker palettes and a more realistic Hyrule. Still, it looked like a very visually appealing title in its own right, with some of the early enemies highlighted in the teaser trailer really grabbing my attention. Unfortunately, it would be almost two whole years between the time I witnessed the first trailer and actually played Twilight Princess. My interest would be piqued here and there as new trailers and screenshots emerged, but I felt it was high time I completed the task I should have years beforehand - I went out and purchased my very own copies of both Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask, and played each of them through again.
I honestly don't think it hit me years ago just how brilliant of a game Ocarina of Time really is. I know many people hold it as one of (if not the single) greatest video games ever created. And while I don't know if there is such a thing as a flawless game, Ocarina of Time is certainly as close as it gets, which is why it sits at the top of my own list of favorite video games. Majora's Mask, on the other hand, is a largely overlooked title in the series. Even when I was replaying it, I didn't set as high a priority on completing it as I had with Ocarina of Time. Eventually, though, I set aside the time to power through the game. I for one love a good challenge in a video game, but what Majora's Mask dealt me was something very much unexpected. I was aware of the time limit, but the boss fights and the temple puzzles are some of the most challenging in the series, which makes for an interesting marriage with the story. Yes, Majora's Mask is incredibly dark and - in many regards - bizarre. But it's also one of the best adventure games I've ever had the pleasure of experiencing. Don't get me wrong, I love the staples of the series in the Link-Ganon-Zelda trifecta just as much as any other Zelda fan, but I feel that it is because Majora's Mask isn't limited to the same story that's been told so many times before that leads its storytelling to be so superb.
Finally, Twilight Princess was released and I got my first taste of this new Hyrule. Some had compared it to Majora's Mask, citing its rather dark narrative, while others heralded it as the Ocarina of Time for a new generation. To me, Twilight Princess was neither. It is a Zelda title, and being within that series ascribes the game to a tier few other adventure titles can even dream of coming close to. But as a whole, the game felt too familiar. I did appreciate the new layout and different regions of Hyrule, but the game's direction seemed a bit confused. The graphical style rang back to Ocarina of Time, while the story seemed to bounce back and forth between the darker adult themes (inspired by Majora's Mask) and the more light-hearted nature of characters (ala Wind Waker). Aside from that, the temples were too straightforward for my tastes - save for the Arbiter's Grounds - and the boss fights didn't present much of a challenge across the board. There were some items that saw tweaks to accommodate for the Wii's controls that I very much welcomed, and the fact that Link could swing his sword around while running or on horseback was a nice update, but as a whole it didn't feel as original a game as with each of the previous installments I had played through. I feel a large part of this is due to how much Twilight Princess tried to resonate with Ocarina of Time - even the title segment with Link riding Epona across Hyrule field is an updated take on the title animation from the N64 classic. Because of that, I think it lost much of a seperate, individual identity.
Feeling a bit let down by Twilight Princess, I decided to trek backwards, to the earlier days of Zelda. I dabbled in the original NES Zelda for a bit, but the game I was most curious about was A Link to the Past. I knew more than a few souls who swore by it as being the best in the series before Ocarina of Time rolled around. Having blazed a trail through both of the Oracle games multiple times over, and spending more than a few hours competing with friends in the multiplayer-driven Four Swords Adventures, the top-down view of A Link to the Past felt natural the moment I downloaded it to the Virtual Console. I felt the first two temples were a bit on the easy side, which initially turned me off a bit. But that third temple kicked my butt a few times before I completed it, and was happy to know that the series could still dish out a challenge to me some thirteen years after I had started. I did chuckle, though, when I first battled Agahnim, noting that his attack pattern was almost identical to that of Ganondorf on the N64 - something I had previously assumed was fresh to Ocarina of Time before it was carried on with the likes of Phantom Ganon in Wind Waker. The Dark World evoked memories of the Twilight Realm, though I felt the two were still dissimilar enough - probably due to the capabilities of the respective consoles, but I wasn't complaining.
There are two constants that I felt have always been able to immerse me in Zelda games more successfully than any other gaming series to date - the storytelling and the soundtracks. Metal Gear Solid certainly comes close with the former, but the latter I feel is unmatched. This is due in no small part to the wide variety of musical styles the series presents - not just from game to game, but within each individual title. The guitar strums heard in the Gerudo Desert are a stark contrast to the echoing howls of the Forest Temple, which in turn is vastly different from the tribal drums of the Fire Temple. And that is without taking into account the non-dungeon themes from Ocarina of Time - from the folksy air about Lon Lon Ranch to my personal favorite, the music box tune that is the Song of Storms. Though Majora's Mask does stick with a dark tone for its soundtrack as a whole, the eccentric march heard in the Deku Palace is a sort of polar opposite to the ominous theme of the Stone Tower Temple. Even the oddball tunes, like the Fortune Teller's theme in A Link to the Past and Zant's battle theme from Twilight Princess manage to go above and beyond what most other game soundtracks can. It is because of this, as well as the variation of art styles experimented with over the years, that I see The Legend of Zelda as being not only one of the best video game series in existence, but also one of the most artistically-driven.
Even though I stated that Twilight Princess was not among my favorite Zelda titles, I would still encourage fans of the series to give it a try. It may not be as revolutionary as past entries, but it's still a solid title in its own right, and might very well be the reason any newcomers to the series decide to seek out further Zelda experiences. On top of that, it's one of the best games available in this generation of consoles.
I understand that many people share this sentiment, and it's difficult for me to state the following without it sounding cliché, but as far as I'm concerned, Ocarina of Time is the best in the series. That said, the Oracle titles, Wind Waker, and Majora's Mask are all packed very tightly together behind it, as each is as perfect as can be in their own right. The Legend of Zelda is a series that has stood the test of time and constantly sets the standards for adventure games, and even some RPGs. And in that, I consider it to be the most important video game series I've played. The upcoming release of Skyward Sword has brought me to a level of anticipation and excitement I have not experienced with a video game in years. But it's pretty obvious why - The combination of new adventures with familiar experiences in each new entry presents the most perfect gaming experience I could ever ask for.
Some of my favorite boss fights from the series include:
- Ganondorf and Ganon in Ocarina of Time
- Manhandla in Oracle of Seasons
- Ramrock in Oracle of Ages
- Molgera in Wind Waker
- Ganondorf final boss fight in Wind Waker
- Stallord in Twilight Princess
Some of my favorite songs from the various soundtracks include:
- Title theme from A Link to the Past
- Fortune Teller's theme from A Link to the Past
- Dark World theme from A Link to the Past
- Temple of Time from Ocarina of Time
- Song of Storms from Ocarina of Time
- Deku Palace from Majora's Mask
- Stone Tower Temple from Majora's Mask
- Nayru's Song from Oracle of Ages
- Tarm Ruins and Lost Woods from Oracle of Seasons
- Dragon Roost Island from Wind Waker
- Ganondorf Battle theme from Wind Waker
- Credits theme from Wind Waker
- Midna's Lament from Twilight Princess
Some of my favorite characters include:
- Guru-guru (Ocarina of Time)
- Ganondorf (Ocarina of Time)
- Tingle (Majora's Mask)
- Skull Kid (Majora's Mask)
- Pirate Captain (Oracle of Ages)
- Salvatore (Wind Waker)
- Makar (Wind Waker)
- Midna (Twilight Princess)
- Zant (Twilight Princess)
My favorite dungeons include:
- Forest Temple (Ocarina of Time)
- Water Temple (Ocarina of Time)
- Stone Tower Temple (Majora's Mask)
- Skull Dungeon (Oracle of Ages)
- The Forbidden Woods (Wind Waker)
- Arbiter's Grounds (Twilight Princess)
Character I use second-most-often in Super Smash Bros. Melee and Brawl:
- Princess Zelda/Sheik
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