Why Zelda Wii will probably be the best game ever.

[Edjamakated]

Why Zelda Wii will probably be the best game ever.

Part I

 

I don't mean for this post to overly hype this game up. I am simply looking at the possibilities. But let there be no mistake, this could be the greatest game of all time.

 

While it may not be the consensus, I felt that Twilight Princess played a little dated. Which is strange because it had everything I could want; more items, more dungeons, more side-quests, more characters, more interaction; but for some reason, it felt like I already played it.

 

Now don't get me wrong, TP is a masterful game. I recently finished beating it for the fifth time. Still, I can't help but feel that if Nintendo doesn't up-end the table in terms of how to design the new Zelda game, it's going to feel old no matter what else they try to add and throw in.

 

I am confident that Nintendo can experiment away from the classic Zelda foundation and find something that is fresh and exciting, but is still Zelda at its core. Just look at Metriod Prime and most notably, Mario Galaxy. Games can be completely different but still contain what you really loved about their past iterations.

 

Now enough prefacing, let's get down to the nitty gritty.

 

Let's start by looking at the basics. Control. With the introduction of the Motion+, the Wii can finally translate so many potential actions accurately. But before I get into the possibilities, let me explain how it would work first.

 

Imagine the nunchuck controlling your "body" (both your movement and your view), and the wiimote controlling everything else. You would walk by using the analog stick and survey your area by tilting the nunchuck. Looking up would require you to tilt the nunchuck's nose up, similar to a plane. To rotate the camera to the left or right, you would rotate the nunchuck on its side. The sensitivity could be changed to allow for slower or faster turning, but regardless, very subtle movement of the nunchuck is all that is needed to move the camera. This might seem redundant because of Zelda's impeccable camera work, but it's still nice to have full control when you need it (no more FP view to settle the camera on the direction you'd like to face).

 

The reason for this setup is to completely separate the wiimote from any body or camera movements. This allows it freedom to control everything else you might need.

 

With motion+ in hand, Link can finally manipulate his items realistically, opening up a huge world of possibilities, including making the context-sensitive button, less sensitive to every context. Link is now able to pick up debris such as sticks, metal pipes, and planks and realistically use those items in the environment. For instance, the walls are closing in on you; to save yourself, you must pick up a metal pipe and literally shove it into an exposed gear. That's just a simple example, and shoving the gear in place doesn't have to be overly specific in terms of where you place it, but the level of interactivity is still leaps ahead of the usual "pick up item; run around pressing 'A' until the appropriate context pops up" standard.

 

There are literally thousands of item/context related situations that can finally put a very thorough slab of ingenuity and creative thinking back into the franchise; from ropes to sticks, to keys and pies (yup even pie). Just imagine all the ridiculous side-quests and games that could emerge due to Motion+.

 

Now when it comes to Link's actual items, he can have a whole range of new items that weren't feasible before. For instance, weapons such as axes, spears, and hammers can now make a more fleshed out appearance; the hammer especially. They can all have different attributes pertaining to the environment as well as enemies. Other items such as the Lens of Truth and the Mirror Shield, can make triumphant come backs. New items such as claws, lassos, hell even umbrellas can join the fray.

 

But even with all that, to really seem fresh and to really seem like the best game of all time, Zelda needs more than just immersion.

Part II coming soon....

[Kurtle Squad]

I don't think it will be, though I hope it will; Twilight Princess was kinda disappointing, it got lost within itself and tried to be OOT & MM.

 

If it tries to be it's own game it'll be fine; the only dislike I have for WW is for it's forced exploration at the end rather than of a Temple, instead of simply having a "persuaded" exploration throughout. (And the difficulty level)

[Gaijin von Snikbah]

I think there needs to be more innovation than just motion plus. The story department for instance, I felt Twilight Princess left a lot to be wanted.

[Rummy]

I've said it before and I'll say it again, TP was a good game, a very good one, but it was a terrible Zelda game. It didn't have the charm of OoT, MM or WW, because it was too linear and didn't have enough optional, unneccessary and pointless bits. That's what makes MM a great zelda, maybe even better than OoT, sure it only had 4 dungeons, but the number of sidequests! The random things in it too, the mini games, the town, the characters(often seeing returns/parallels from OoT), there was a disturbing lack of NPC interaction in TP for my liking, and the market town was crappy and uninspiring, not enough minigames and the like. I still think TP lacked the distinct Zelda charm, sure the world was massive, but what was really IN this huge world? Not alot really, and it just made it all seem less cos it was stretched out thin.

OoT was a balance between the two, which is probably why alot of people place it above MM, MM possibly went too far into those sorts of territories, at the cost of good old classic Zelda dungeon exploring. The kids of the forest, the heart pieces, the skulltulas, the mask quests, the fishing, the people of market town, kakariko when you're older, all of these little things helped make the game more...I dunno what, just more! The minigames too, and the random alcoves, the gossip stones, the mask of truth, the fine attention to detail is what makes the games great, I think, as long as it's not at the sacrifice of too much of the main game. I think they're good cos they break it up from the main game, you're not JUST dungeon to dungeon to dungeon, you get some space in between and do something different. It's why a game like Fable is such a brilliant game to play, cos there's SO much more outside and beyond the main track of getting and doing quests, and good enough I'd consider actually getting a 360 just for Fable 2, though this is moving beyond the point.

I don't think Zelda needs more physical gameplay immersion to be great, it needs more storyline/optional immersion. Of course, it'd be better with both(if the controls are done well) but I wouldn't take some crappy controls over the charm of Zelda. That's just my opinions anyhow, I look forward to the next part of your post!

[Girly hiyaz!~ Gamer]

uhhh....

 

 

no.

[Shorty]

I'm not sure your control ideas are for me, but I'm interested in reading part 2. Control is not where the last Zelda faltered, but simply I felt the world they created was not large, real or alive enough for me.

[Menkor]

TP was really good, but no game can stand up to the greatness of A link to the past

 

I feel that the next Zelda MUST have voice-acting, it could be kind of the same that Metroid Prime 3 used...

[thirtynine.]

tl;dr It will be either amazing or crap. I hope they go back to windwaker style.

[EEVILMURRAY]

I'm not sure why people are getting so excited about the motion+. The remote responded fine when I was slashing it around, I don't really need more sensitivity there. And as for your nunchuk camera system, it would be horrible. I don't like playing games which means I have to hold the controls straight with the accuracy of a spirit level all the time lest the camera goes somewhere unwanted. I got it enough with Rival Swords, don't bring back the nightmare once more.

[Menkor]

tl;dr It will be either amazing or crap. I hope they go back to windwaker style.

 

Yeah, Wind Waker was a good game AND the graphics were beautiful...Nothing wrong with cel-shaded, it was just that the ones who grew up with the overrated OoT never had imagined that Zelda had that style to it too...

 

I'm not sure why people are getting so excited about the motion+. The remote responded fine when I was slashing it around, I don't really need more sensitivity there. And as for your nunchuk camera system, it would be horrible. I don't like playing games which means I have to hold the controls straight with the accuracy of a spirit level all the time lest the camera goes somewhere unwanted. I got it enough with Rival Swords, don't bring back the nightmare once more.

 

I am not positive about motion+ either, it just feels like they are going to "force" us in getting it along with the other hundreds of accessories...Really, would anyone be surprised if Zelda Wii needed motion+ to be played?

[DCK]

I don't mean for this post to overly hype this game up.

There is no game, man

[DazzeL]

I'm just waiting for Hellfire to read this thread and offer his two (well, more like 200 :p) cents.

[Patch]

Great post Edjamakated. I agree with your sentiments entirely. I'm hoping the next Zelda will be different to anything we've seen before. I'm sure there is plenty of potential.

 

Now when it comes to Link's actual items, he can have a whole range of new items that weren't feasible before. For instance, weapons such as axes, spears, and hammers can now make a more fleshed out appearance; the hammer especially. They can all have different attributes pertaining to the environment as well as enemies. Other items such as the Lens of Truth and the Mirror Shield, can make triumphant come backs. New items such as claws, lassos, hell even umbrellas can join the fray.

 

Do you own Zack & Wiki by any chance?

[Retro_Link]

Shigsy recently had this to say about Zelda Wii...

 

http://www.cubed3.com/news/10687

 

Shigeru Miyamoto, creator of many of Nintendo’s top franchises, spoke of his positive outlook for the next chapter in the Zelda series. He feels that the untitled project will be special, unlike Twilight Princess, given it’s ground-up nature for the Wii. He’d previously revealed that the team aim to rejuvenate the stale formula with a different approach to control and gameplay.

[Edjamakated]

I'm not sure why people are getting so excited about the motion+. The remote responded fine when I was slashing it around, I don't really need more sensitivity there. And as for your nunchuk camera system, it would be horrible. I don't like playing games which means I have to hold the controls straight with the accuracy of a spirit level all the time lest the camera goes somewhere unwanted. I got it enough with Rival Swords, don't bring back the nightmare once more.

 

Ya. Maybe your right. It would probably be better suited for a FPS.....

 

 

Still, this is only PART 1 and I must ask you all to be patient. The reason I brought up motion+ wasn't because I'm trying to force it into the game. You mentioned being able to slash around with the wiimote already, and that's great except it didn't do anything a button couldn't do. It's when you focus on making the game around motion+ that things really start to pop.

 

For instance, now that you have more control over your sword, the game should challenge you accordingly. There should be situations that reward/punish you for swinging in the right direction. If enemies are presented more as a puzzle rather than something to continually swipe at, then it'll be more fun and more challenging to fight those enemies. But that's just a small part of the game. Zelda was never known for it's fighting, but rather, it's exploring.

 

So imagine the many scenarios that could only happen if you had full control over your sword. Whether it's cutting through vines, cutting out an object, or slicing rope; no other game in history will allow you the type of precision and control. It's not only about immersion, but the many puzzles that can only exist when you have that type of control.

 

Part II will deal with the actual structure of the game.

[EEVILMURRAY]

For instance, now that you have more control over your sword, the game should challenge you accordingly. There should be situations that reward/punish you for swinging in the right direction. If enemies are presented more as a puzzle rather than something to continually swipe at, then it'll be more fun and more challenging to fight those enemies. But that's just a small part of the game. Zelda was never known for it's fighting, but rather, it's exploring.

 

So imagine the many scenarios that could only happen if you had full control over your sword. Whether it's cutting through vines, cutting out an object, or slicing rope; no other game in history will allow you the type of precision and control. It's not only about immersion, but the many puzzles that can only exist when you have that type of control.

That's great except it doesn't do anything a button couldn't do.

[Edjamakated]

Umm....what?

 

Can you really not visualize what I"m saying?

[DCK]

That's great except it doesn't do anything a button couldn't do.

Even so, why is that a problem? Movement >> button.

[Edjamakated]

That's not it though.

 

Imagine an enemy that has several weak points but only one shows at a time. You'll have to first strike from left to right, then diagonally from top right to bottom left, then stab, then finally strike down from the top.

 

This makes the experience much much deeper. Now apply that thinking to the rest of the game and you'll see where I'm coming from.

[Rummy]

I must say, I WOULD like to see some nice puzzles and functionality added to the Wii Zelda if one is made, but not to the point of overdoing or simply for the sake of doing it. Phantom Hourglass was a brilliantly done game, really really stretched out alot of the DS's features and functionalities, I thought some of things implemented were pure genius, though the actual game felt a little too easy and short lived for my liking, the innovation was quite brilliant, and didn't feel to be put it at the sake of the game or its Zelda-ry aspects.

[Retro_Link]

I always had trouble picturing an Adult Link version of WW, that was until I watched the gametrailers video review of Tales of Vesperia. And whilst the cel-shaded style between WW and the Tales series are different, I now feel Nintendo could most definately make it work.

 

Should there be a WW style Adult Link game, it could maybe take place predominantly on land.

But I though it might be really cool if a hidden/hard to obtain side quest saw you returning to some of the islands of WW, maybe even after having completed the game.

You could set sail from one of the new ports and sail in the WW seas discovering old islands such as Outset and Windfall, or the deserted Zora island. Perhaps even finding that some of these islands now host new '2nd Quest' dungeons... so it would be a bit like a 2nd quest after having completing the game.

I havn't played pokemon gold/silver, but having completing those, didn't you get a chance to return to the land of Red/Blue? it would kinda be like that.

 

The WW islands could also have aged and grown over time.

Or perhaps some, such as Dragon Roost Island, are now deserted, as the occupants have since set up home in the new land, 'New Hyrule'.

 

These screens show the more Adult Link WW style I can now imagine for such a game...

 

New Hyrule: Temple of Time

 

 

New Hyrule: Overworld

 

 

Side Quest: Return to the Great Sea: Windfall

 

 

Side Quest: Return to the Great Sea: Deserted Pirate/Ghost ship, maybe even Tetra's Boat

 

[EEVILMURRAY]

That's not it though.

 

Imagine an enemy that has several weak points but only one shows at a time. You'll have to first strike from left to right, then diagonally from top right to bottom left, then stab, then finally strike down from the top.

 

This makes the experience much much deeper. Now apply that thinking to the rest of the game and you'll see where I'm coming from.

Technically Eternal Darkness has already done that.

[D_prOdigy]

This is just going to turn into a TP-hate thread.

[Edjamakated]

Technically Eternal Darkness has already done that.

 

You are absolutely right, and that game is awesome. But do you really think that SK wouldn't have used motion+ if they could have? It would have greatly streamlined the fighting engine.

[EEVILMURRAY]

I'm wondering if the current motion detection is as poor as you're suggesting it is.

 

Is it that bad?