The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

By Mathew Kumar Published 15 May, 2006

Twiilight Princess, for today.

No one sitting in the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles was particularly surprised when the lovable Reggie Fils-Aimes, in his traditionally charming style, told us Nintendo would release The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess on GameCube and Wii simultaneously, and on the Wii launch date. I guess, at best, we could say we were a bit surprised when he used the slightly technical term "separate SKUs" to describe the two different versions, but naturally that's only to establish that there are quite distinct differences between the two versions. For example, one's a giant badger.

A lie. And in many ways, I have to kind of thank Nintendo for deciding to place the Wii demo pods in a small, cramped, sweaty room that it took hours to get into, as unlike last year, where if you got a chance to play Twilight Princess after only waiting a queue for, oh, 4 or 5 hours you felt lucky, this year the new arrangement all but halved that time I spent waiting in the queue to get a go. Thanks!

But is the Wii version worth the wait? Well, this is by far the Wii demo that had me the most torn, offering a both a fishing section and a small, quite straightforward dungeon with which to explore the Twilight Princess by using the Wii's unique interface.

'The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess' Screenshot 1

The Twilight Princess features all of the standard series tropes that we've come to expect, with each one slightly modified by aspects of the Wii's controller. Link is able to do his usual fighting shtick simply by battering the A button, with his spin attack accessible by shaking the Wii's nunchuck. He draws arrows over his bow using the Wii controller as a pointer. Within a certain section of the screen (a middle circle), you can aim precisely, and outside that your pointer movement also moves the camera. Link's boomerang is handled much the same way, and, you guessed it, so is the grappling hook.

The problem here is that, particularly in the case of this demo, the aiming is incredibly twitchy. Almost unplayably so, with each use of the bow and arrows the most stupidly tense use of small hand movements since the last time you played Operation. Against an enraged Tyrannosaurus Rex. It seems so frankly tacked on that I really question the need for it at all, but perhaps with the pointer's sensitivity fixed it will turn out to be a more vital, and immersive part of the game.

The short level also features Link using his heavy metal boots to attach himself to a giant moving magnet, and later fighting a huge boss monster, who, were I looking for the perfect description of it, I would call it the Rancor monster from Return of the Jedi on fire. Dispatched by tripping him over by grabbing his leg chains and pulling while wearing the heavy metal boots before dashing around him to stab him in his head repeatedly, this, again, quite easily fits the form of, oh, every single Zelda game since Link to a Past.

'The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess' Screenshot 2

Indeed, playing this short demo I was amazed by just how disillusioned I've become. Having already played through and completed Zelda 64 and The Wind Waker, I can only hope the game offers at least something more than the tired mechanic of going to a dungeon, finding an item in the dungeon that is critical to beating that very dungeon, and then killing the boss with that item too. Repeatedly. Twilight Princess is really going to have to offer something more, and using the Wii controller in such a predictable way isn't going to cut it.

Which is what made the second demo such a revelation. Little more than a simple fishing game that could have been included in a Wii Sports title or something, you flick your line forward with, yes, a flick of your wrist holding the A button, and pull and tease the lure back to you by, yes again, pulling and teasing the Wii controller. If a fish bites, the Wii controller begins to vibrate terribly, softening when you hold your hand in a position that means that the fish isn't as resisting as much, until finally you manage to land one.

And that's all there really is to it. However, unlike the strict, regimented design of the short dungeon level, this was a second of the game you were allowed to just play without repercussion (Link wasn't even keeping the fish, instead choosing to throw them back regardless of their quality). Which featured truly lovely graphical effects (the water was just gorgeous) and fun, meaningless fishing action that feels just like the real thing; at one point I honestly swore to myself I could feel the line spinning away from the 'rod' in my hand, even. But is some utterly gorgeous and fun fishing really going to be enough to make the Wii version stand out as preferable to its GameCube bretheren?

Right now, with the general awfulness and tacked on feel of the Wii specific functions other than fishing, I have to say no, it really isn't. It’s a strange choice to release your launch title killer app on more than one platform simultaneously, with neither looking to be particularly better than the other, but I guess Nintendo must have some idea what they’re doing, right? I mean, they'll probably just intentionally cripple the GameCube version, or something.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess arrives on Nintendo Wii and GameCube on the Wii Launch date, which should be set as sometime in autumn, 2006.

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About Mathew Kumar

Read more articles from Mathew by visiting the Mathew Kumar archive page.

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Comments (88) Latest comment 6 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Horse #1 6 years ago

    The game I'm buying a Wii for.

  • Ignatius_Cheese #2 6 years ago

    From what everyone has been saying and the above suggests, I'll be sticking with the Cube version for now... unless I have the sudden urge to replay it later on the Wii

  • melw #3 6 years ago

    I don't care if the Wii version is close to Gamecube one if the game is just good. And judging by what has been said about this on various sources it's looking very promising.

  • Huntcjna #4 6 years ago

    What a shit article this was, here I am expecting genuine information and game implementation and all I get is a third party writer moaning that dungeon impementation is exactly the same as every other zelda.

    Im not normally so critical of editorials here (barring the occasional review) but this piece really was poor.

  • OnlyMe #5 6 years ago

    As I suspected. They postponed the game to make it a launch title on Wii. I hate Nintendo for doing things like that. This just screams out "We have no confidence in Wii, but we really don't care about the Gamecube either! Let's make the fans wait for a pointless upgrade to the only good thing left for the Gamecube!".

  • Darren #6 6 years ago

    So doesn't the Wii version look any better graphically than the GameCube version? Anti-aliasing? Better textures? Longer draw distance? Less pop up? No? :?

  • myrmican #7 6 years ago

    Asbestos suits needed in this thread, I fear... ;-)

    But hey - Eurogamer'll get rich with the ad revenue of all the people frothing. Well, excepting those of us who've adblocked 'em already that is. [slinks off]

  • rinoaMW #8 6 years ago

    so um.. will i be buying a Wii and a Gamecube version of this game now?

    /is confused

  • Kiigan #9 6 years ago

    Pretty much confirmed my own impressions of the footage shown so far. Still quietly optimistic that it will all get sorted for launch though.

  • SirScratchalot #10 6 years ago

    "Judging by the looks of those screen shots, Zedla wii looks less impressive than an average PS2 game."
    You sir, are a troll.

  • JetSetWilly #11 6 years ago

    A disappointing article. It's a bit lame to bash Zelda for being Zelda. The article seems more of a vehicle for expressing the author's own disenchantment with the series than actually telling us anything useful about the Wii version.

  • floW #12 6 years ago

    People criticised WW before it was out, so I'm not too worried.

  • Aysir #13 6 years ago

    Good article. It seems the only one so far brave enough to point out what could be seen from the demo videos - that the aiming looks very twitchy and innaccurate. Looking forward to the Cube version here, and I'm certainly glad they ditched the cutesy look of WindWaker.

  • Keimar #14 6 years ago

    The frame rate and blocky models are certainly inspired from the Shadow of the Colossus school of programming.

  • Teeth #15 6 years ago

    "Judging by the looks of those screen shots, Zedla wii looks less impressive than an average PS2 game."

    SirScratch: Who wrote that? I can't be bothered to log out

  • Pike #16 6 years ago

    Actually, SirScratchalot, I think he has a point. The two screnshots in this article do look rather rubbish. The trailer from last E3 looked far better. It's probably just these screenshots that are of poor quality, though.

  • Bezzy #17 6 years ago

    I'm glad to hear a critical assessment for once (well, actually eurogamer is pretty good about that on the whole - just a bit tired of everyone succumbing to hype, yet again).

    The whole "find an item which allows you to progress" is basically the same structure as the metroid games, too, except with metroid you can occasionally break sequence.

    Yeah. I'm not a huge fan of it either - it takes an open world and effectively makes progression through it linear. But the alternative is to overwhelm the shit out of people. It's a tricky balance to strike.
    Edited by 1 at 15/05/06 @ 12:02

  • ProfessorLesser #18 6 years ago

    Here let it be set in stone for anyone trying to develop for the Wii:

    Do NOT try and use the remote to control simple operations that are much easier to do using buttons

    In other words, make sure the game fits the Wii. Please?

    Gamecube version for me. I was a sureshot with the Fairy Bow in N64, I don't need someone with a desperate need to push a new controller telling me that suddenly the old method was difficult and imprecise.

    EDIT: People need to stop saying it'll be shit because they hate Zelda, though.
    Edited by 1 at 15/05/06 @ 12:06

  • JHuxley #19 6 years ago

    I was never expecting great things from this title on the Wii.

    As great as the Wii looks you can't take a game designed for a 'regular' console like the Gamecube and expect it to feel natutal with the Wii controller. I think some people need to be a little more realistic in their expectations of the Wii...

  • Psi #20 6 years ago

    twiilight princess :D

  • Blerk #21 6 years ago

    Can you play the Wii version with the standard controller? Or are you forced to use the wand?

    Wand functions sound awful, frankly.

  • Beano #22 6 years ago

    "So doesn't the Wii version look any better graphically than the GameCube version? Anti-aliasing? Better textures? Longer draw distance? Less pop up? No? :? "

    Wii version runs in widescreen mode while the GC version doesn't.

  • Psi #23 6 years ago

    wiidescreen?

  • ProfessorLesser #24 6 years ago

    I think the author of this article as been jaded somewhat by Wind Waker, as well, as it really is a prime culprit for misuse of items.

    A lot of them (especially towards the end) felt extremely tacked on, a couple only ever having one real use, to my memory - killing a boss. Then you never need it again. Not how a Zelda game should work...

  • Steroyd #25 6 years ago

    Wow this has just confirmed that i'll be getting the Gamecube version, and use the Backwards compatibility to the wii. :)

    I was skceptical of the 2 SKU's of Zelda TP, and especially cautious with the wiimote + Orginally intended for the Gamcube configurations.

    Guess my sckepticism was right.

  • ProfessorLesser #26 6 years ago

    Let's not drag the graphics argument out, it's so irrelevent it hurts.

    I think you'll also find that a significant proportion of people actually very much liked Wind Waker's style. I did - it was the best thing about it. Twas the gameplay I hated.

  • Talha #27 6 years ago

    My apologies, but if Wii games are going to look just like GC games, what's the point? In the review most of the controller's functions have been described as
    'tacked on', so I think that's hardly going to be a lure, also judging from you guys' reaction.

    Right now Ninty have managed to get people excited - but does this carry over to the launch is anyone's guess.

  • EuroTV #28 6 years ago

    They don't need to change the tired old dungeon implementation FFS. That's what makes it a zelda game, and it's the best part. They just need to make the fighting actually challenging, get rid of the huge pointless ocean (check) and have lots of other places to explore other than dungeons. Oh ye, and sort out the controls of the Wii remote.

    My dead Grandmother could have written a better article, so I'll get the shovel. Na, wasn't too bad.
    Edited by 1 at 15/05/06 @ 12:22

  • drumbaby #29 6 years ago

    Seems like they forgot about any kind of gameplay revolution and instead concentrated on wee controller tricks.

  • UncleLou #30 6 years ago

    Good article. Looks like a few Nintendo fans didn't read it at all, unfortunately.

  • Tonka #31 6 years ago

    What I liked about the 3D Zeldas was the way you didn't get a crosshair when using the bow or slingshot. It took me a while to get good at it but it was well worth it. I felt really proud when I managed to hit something far away, taking the distance and arch into account and so on. With the Wii it will be point and click which I fear will make it a bit too easy. The fishing with a wand sounds excellent though. 16:9 480p sounds great though.

  • ProfessorLesser #32 6 years ago

    It's still quite a while to launch, and they have said that this will unreservedly be the best Zelda game ever.

    Which is actually a very odd thing to say. I don't think we know everything there is to know about the game yet. I'm not talking secrets that can be released in press-conferences like the Wii compatability. I'm saying we won't know until its in our hands exactly why they think this is so good.

    Have some faith.

  • Pac-man-ate-my-wife #33 6 years ago

    The review wrote: "I can only hope the game offers at least something more than the tired mechanic of going to a dungeon, finding an item in the dungeon that is critical to beating that very dungeon, and then killing the boss with that item too."

    Wouldn't Halo be so much better if you didn't have that awful running around shooting aliens bit? And Tiger Woods would be so much better if they just stopped with the obsession with golf.

    You are criticising the whole thrust of the series. If you don't like it then that's fine, but then step aside and let an someone who can appreciate this style of game comment upon it.
    Edited by 1 at 15/05/06 @ 12:43

  • Bitkari #34 6 years ago

    I totally need to get some TP for my Wii.

    It's totally gonna clean up.

  • Sko #35 6 years ago

    Luckily, there seems to be plenty of E3 reports that contradict all Mathew's concerns. I'm happy to put this article down to individual skills and maybe that odd 'Zelda being Zelda' grievance of his.

  • djchump #36 6 years ago

    From the sounds of it, Mr. Kumar just doesn't like Zelda games :-/
    Which is an opinion he's perfectly entitled to... but I agree that complaining about the general game design of a Zelda game is like expecting Mario not to jump on stuff ;-)

    Aside from that, his only specific gripes about the Wii controller is that it felt too sensitive to him. I would have thought that when they release the game there will be some form of "sensitivity" option - in the same way that there is a sensitivity option for the analog sticks in most console FPSs and the mouse control in *all* PC FPSs - so that the player can atune it to their own preference.

    The article didn't seem particularly negative to me - he just seem a bit peeved off that it's just a tarted up GC game... but then, I'm glad they've done this so that there ARE some good games for the release date, rather than having to wait a year or two for the Wii Mario or Zelda.

  • miiiguel #37 6 years ago

    Just wait for a PS3 hands-on, for EG it'll sure be the master-piece of video-games... . It's amusing!

  • Darren #38 6 years ago

    @Beano - Thanks. Widescreen will do me just nicely although it's a shame no effort has been made to beef the game up slightly over the GameCube version. Isn't the Wii supposed to be 2-3 times more powerful than the GC. If so why didn't they make use of it?

    I can't wait to play the actual game, I know it'll be brilliant, but as a previous pre-orderer of the GameCube version it annoys me that the game had been put back and put back to be a launch game for the Wii when it's obviously been long since completed. Needless to say I cancelled my GC game pre-order and will get the Wii version but I'm a little disappointed that the only differences between the two games are different controls and widescreen support.

  • matrim83 #39 6 years ago

    I enjoyed the article.

    Ninty fans are almost as understanding of a different point of view as MS and Sony fans aren't they? Heh.

    Well except they can spell and use grammar. :)

  • Stormflood #40 6 years ago

    @Pac-man ate my wife

    Wind Waker wasn't a dungeon game.

    But I do agree that summing up a genre in simplistic terms in an attempt at criticism is lazy. Are the dungeons poorly designed, confusing, dull or repetative? Are the level bosses formulaic, too hard, too easy, to small? A little back-up to such a sweeping remark would be nice...

  • Talha #41 6 years ago

    Wow, all you guys are so level headed and reeeaaasonable.

  • Cappy #42 6 years ago

    Just to confirm, there are other hands on reports out there with exactly the same criticism of the Wii control implementation in Twilight Princess.

    Unless they totally mess the Gamecube version up thats the version I planned to buy anyway.

  • dbeamish #43 6 years ago

    maybe the code was early? Ninty have said (Myiamoto i think) that they redefined the pointer thing to not respond to small movements as much to make it easier to aim.

  • JetSetWilly #44 6 years ago

    Something so new and unfamiliar is bound to attract polemical opinion.

    I wouldn't dream of suggesting that Matthew shouldn't criticise the new control method, but the article glossed over so much (how does item selection etc function/feel with the Wiimote, how does the Nunchuck feel etc) and with one lazy comment laid itself wide-open to the charge "well you just don't like Zelda anyway".

    Personally I've always found the first-person bow aiming in previous Zeldas very clumsy and can't imagine it being worse than that. However, if it is I would gladly say so rather than pretend otherwise.
    Edited by 1 at 15/05/06 @ 13:29

  • Nikanoru #45 6 years ago

    Wait, what's this now? People didn't like the way Wind Waker looked?

    That's news to me.

    Unless, perhaps, you're of the age where your balls have just dropped, as well as all your friends. Then you might think that.



    Regardless, I also like the way this is looking. I don't care what they do to the graphics as long as they do it well. Zelda-IV-manual-illustrations style celshaded adult Link would have been pretty awesome, but this is fine as well.

    Also, the closer this Zelda is to traditional Zelda's in gameplay, the better. ONLY BIGGER WITH MORE AND LARGER DUNGEONS AND MORE STUFF PLEASE THANK YOU COME AGAIN.



    And I still don't see the logic in releasing two separate versions when releasing one with both Cube and Wii funtionality on a Cube disc would have been perfectly practical. Makes zero sense.


    Oh, the article fails.

  • jozz #46 6 years ago

    Surely the Wii controller will have a sensitivity slider to tone down the twitchyness built into games?
    I hope it will anyway.

  • sharpkiddie Verified Lead Developer, Eurogamer Network #47 6 years ago

    I think aiming without using the z-lock has always been very tricky in 3D Zeldas. It's not an FPS :)

    dbeamish: maybe the code was early?

    I got the impression from the nintendo conference that this was a special 'E3 level', but I could be wrong. That would explain the slightly underwhelming screenshots. Doesn't explain controller issues though.

  • kangarootoo #48 6 years ago

    @djchump (EDIT: and @jozz)

    "Aside from that, his only specific gripes about the Wii controller is that it felt too sensitive to him. I would have thought that when they release the game there will be some form of "sensitivity" option"

    Its not quite the same thing as stick control though. When you tweak the sensitivity of a stick input you are affecting the value of velocity that is assigned to any given degree of the stick's movement range (plus the acceleration assigned at each point in the range if the control system is worth its salt.

    With the wii controller, you are pointing the "laser" at the screen, it goes where you tell it to, so there is no scope for sensitivity adjustments in any real sense. Its why someone that plays a lot of shooting games is better than someone who doesn't, they simply have developed a steadier aim.

    Now I agree that any new player doesn't want to have to practice their aim just to open doors, flip menu pages or shoot the simplest of enemies, but improving the aiming system needs some thought specific to the controller at hand (no pun intended).

    I guess you could use a degree of auto-aim, though anything that moves the crosshair to anywhere other than where you point it sounds like an embryo of trouble to me.

    Perhaps just increasing the targets areas (by technical tweak, or in a more basic way such as making the enemies bigger or moving them closer) the player has to hit would be the simplest method to apply. I mean, thats what works in real life right? If you start archery and you are a bit crap at it, the best way to improve your score (if not your actual technique) is either to stand closer to the target or make it physically bigger.

    I think we should be wary of dismissing the controls (not aiming that comment specifically at you djchump BTW), just because the interface perhaps needs a bit of tweaking (it isn't finished don't forget).
    Edited by 2 at 15/05/06 @ 13:47

  • Santino #49 6 years ago

    I really hope the author of this article doesn't do the review when the time comes. Like most I won't be able to comment on the controls yet, although i will mention that an IGN hands on said it just took a minute of getting used to before they adjusted, maybe its down to this author not being able to? Anyway, i agree with most of the comments regarding the 'zelda' gameplay, change the formula and it would no longer be zelda, the dungeon structure is the very foundation of the game.

  • Psi #50 6 years ago

    personally i loved the gfx in zelda wind waker, cell shaded primary colours bright jolly what wasn't to like!?

    i liked doom 3 gfx too, each game to its style.

  • steoc4 #51 6 years ago

    Good article. A lot of other sites seem scared of actually giving honest criticism of the Wii, EG and Joystiq seem to be alone. Most other sites seem to be 'I found the controls difficult but that's just my inexperience', heaven forbid Nintendo actually got the controls wrong.

    Button presses are better than gesture recognition. Black & White showed that. Converting games designed for a joypad and putting in gesture recognition is not a revolution, its a step backwards.

    Thats not to say the Wii controller doesn't have enormous potential, I just see very few games using it at the moment. Monkey Ball is the only announced game that seems to really benefit from the controller(ok the Wii sports titles would be impossible without it, but they seem to be a case of 'look what we can do' and very little actual game around the central control mechanic), the new Mario will probably make good use of it but there's not enough details known right now.

    I certainly won't be throwing €100-300 at a Wii just so I can play gamecube games with more awkward controls.

  • kangarootoo #52 6 years ago

    "IGN hands on said it just took a minute of getting used to before they adjusted"

    I would say that IMO one gamer is no more qualified than another when it comes to feedback. I would assume that both writers play a fair number of games, so I would hope that either of them would take to the controls (especially given this is a high profile Ninty title, and they are usually bang on the money with that sort of thing) easily.

    Again, I'm not dismissing it and its not finished so even the writers can't be a definitive guide whatever they observed.

    One thing of note, it did strike me in the E3 movie I saw that one of the devs was having problems at one point aiming under pressure. Now I would be laying an egg if I had to demo something in front of that crowd and my aim would probably be screwed, but there did seem to be a degree of correction needed after each shot was initially lined up. Just an observation.

  • melw #53 6 years ago

    steoc4: "I certainly won't be throwing €100-300 at a Wii just so I can play gamecube games with more awkward controls."

    I'd be surprised if they didn't include possibility to play the game with a classic controller also in the Wii version.

  • mystic_mick #54 6 years ago

    Great article Mathew. I would like to add, Ninty fans are fooling themselves when they think old IPs with old gaming mechanics are the future. Using the Wiimote to slash. Haha.

  • Santino #55 6 years ago

    Am i the only person who thinks this game looks like the best looking game visually of the current gen? I'm really impressed i would take this games art direction and beauty over the latest shiny game.

  • kangarootoo #56 6 years ago

    @steoc4

    "Button presses are better than gesture recognition. Black & White showed that. Converting games designed for a joypad and putting in gesture recognition is not a revolution, its a step backwards."

    With my pedant hat on, I might pick an issue with you there. I would suggest that "Button presses are better than gesture recognition" is quite a general statement, and it could have simply been B&Ws implementation that was at fault in that particular case.

    And on your second point, I think it comes down to what we perceive the word "converting" to mean in that context. If a game is shifted from one interface system to another without enough thought (DeusEx2, I'm glancing your way) that problems are bound to occur (which is what I took your comment to mean in this case), but if proper thought and design is applied I think any game can be made fun on any platform (Grand Piano Simulator 2.0 not withstanding).

    Hope no-one thinks I am being an arse here, hopping on peoples design comments like a caffeine filled puppy. Its just my thing and I'm quite enjoying this thread :)
    Edited by 1 at 15/05/06 @ 13:57

  • JediMasterMalik #57 6 years ago

    The whole nintendo loving thing is going way too far lately. Like nintendo have never done anything wrong.

  • djchump #58 6 years ago

    @Kangarootoo
    "Its not quite the same thing as stick control though... With the wii controller, you are pointing the "laser" at the screen, it goes where you tell it to, so there is no scope for sensitivity adjustments in any real sense. Its why someone that plays a lot of shooting games is better than someone who doesn't, they simply have developed a steadier aim.""

    AFAIK it doesn't function the way lightguns do, it functions more as a "3D mouse" (with further axes for height, distance from screen and twisting), with relative movement information rather than feedback of a specific screen pixel that a lightgun is aimed at.

    As such, it should be entirely possible to have a "sensitivity" control in exactly the same way that a PC FPS has sensitivity controls for the mouse input.
    Edited by 1 at 15/05/06 @ 14:09

  • JetSetWilly #59 6 years ago

    The thing to remember is that people's response to hands-on time with Zelda at E3 is crucial to Nintendo (and others) getting the control scheme right. It's simply not possible to go out there and nail a new setup like this without getting valuable feedback both positive and negative.

    The trouble with the article for me is there's no balance to it. Was anything about the Wiimote better? Would the negatives have gone away if x,y,z was done? To be so dismissive lays you open to the charge that you don't actually want it to work well in the first place.

    I'd be more concerned by his comments if he were reviewing the final released version. But since he is not lets hope Nintendo can take on board feedback like this.


  • nightsparkle #60 6 years ago

    Great artticle! finally someone who enjoys authority opens discussion about this subject.

    comment about nintendo's wii controller:
    Do NOT try and use the remote to control simple operations that are much easier to do using buttons
    i totally agree. i wrote a forumthread about this but i got overcrowded by people getting upset i made a negative command about their precious nintendo. Check "disappointed" in the "wii" forum.

  • Kay #61 6 years ago

    Bit of a crap article, really. You can't really criticise Zelda for being Zelda - also, criticising the dungeon design would be a bit pointless, seeing that this is probably just an early dungeon/training section from the game. You can't judge the quality of the game until you've played the full version.

    As for the controls...they do seem a bit tacked on, but I can also imagine them working wonderfully. Of course, like many have said, there was absolutely no need to incorporate the controls - however, it was designed to showcase the Wii's abilities, and it's there for people to try. I would rather stick to the traditional control method though, although using the Wii controller for bow aiming, fishing and the like will be a nice novelty. I'm pretty sure that the Wii version of the game will allow the GC controller to be used, but that's only because it would be a terrible idea to limit control to just the Wii controller - not many people would be willing to give it a try. Apart from that, though, what other differences will there be in the two versions? Those were the sort of questions that needed to be asked.

    I'm not too concerned about the quality of the final game at this point, as I know it will be nothing less than brilliant. If it matches up to the quality of OoT, though, then it will be the greatest game of this generation.

    K
    Edited by 2 at 15/05/06 @ 14:38

  • kangarootoo #62 6 years ago

    @djchump

    Ahh, my bad. I heard there was some light gun type business built in too and I thought the onscreen cursor was reacting to that.

    In that case you are quite right, the normal type of sensitivity tweaks would apply. In that sense it is just like a stick control, except that the hinge is roughly at your hand instead of the base of the stick.

  • smelly #63 6 years ago

    I wish people would calm down. It's one persons opinion after playing it for a very short while.

    Not the be all and end all to life.

  • mystic_mick #64 6 years ago

    Am i the only person who thinks this game looks like the best looking game visually of the current gen? I'm really impressed i would take this games art direction and beauty over the latest shiny game. Good point.

    I thought the original Cube game-play video's were too good to be true, perhaps Ninty were fooling us with Wii graphics for Cube demo's?

  • Aegus #65 6 years ago

    So how was controlling Link as a Wolf then? Oh wait, you only played a tiny part of the game.

  • gaselite #66 6 years ago

    I'm pretty confident the Wii controller implementation will be tweaked and improved before launch. Here's hoping. I'd rather get the Wii version but if the control is meh, then I won't bother.

  • some1 #67 6 years ago

    The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess looks like a Zelda clone. Is it a good game? Have to wait for the reviews, I guess.

  • Santino #68 6 years ago

    I guess we better hope that the first GTA 4 preview doesnt involve any sort of automobiles then...i mean that just wouldnt be tinkering with the formula enough would it? because designing brand new dungeons and bosses, enemies, the land of hyrule, the wolf, the dark side, the story, the side quests, and everything else we still havent seen yet just isn't enough is it? Zelda can almost be considered its own genre, there certainly aren't many games similar to it, and certainly none can boast of being comparable. If they changed it, it simply wouldnt be zelda.
    Edited by 1 at 15/05/06 @ 15:58

  • kangarootoo #69 6 years ago

    @smelly

    Well said. Cheer up people ffs.

    It wasn't even called a preview, it was called First Impressions. I don't even know what a first impression is supposed to be other than the immediate thoughts of the writer, which is what we got, right?

  • kangarootoo #70 6 years ago

    "If they changed it, it simply wouldnt be zelda"

    yeah, just like Mario.... oh.

  • neonlok #71 6 years ago

    Great artticle! finally someone who enjoys authority opens discussion about this subject.

    comment about nintendo's wii controller:
    Do NOT try and use the remote to control simple operations that are much easier to do using buttons
    i totally agree. i wrote a forumthread about this but i got overcrowded by people getting upset i made a negative command about their precious nintendo. Check "disappointed" in the "wii" forum.



    If you look closely to that thread, he was judging on mere screenshots, videos and people's judgement and constantly changing his view. Despite that, I still gave him credit for what he said. The same I am going to say to everyone here. Everyones got their own taste at things, and first impression from someone who may or may not like Zelda may have affected the article. Hoping that Nintendo will take this view seriously (I am sure Japan has got a similar debate if its such a problem) will add modification to how sensitive a controller can be.

    In my opinion, I think releasing it on two machines is sensible, mainly because some already have the Cube, such ourselves and may not want to get a Wii. However many also don't so why get a GC just to play GC Zelda? They could get a Wii console, then get Zelda and the other games as well. Its part of marketing...

    Of course, it would be awesome for those of us (which I am guessing is a majority) that would want to have traditional control (i.e gamecube ) and have Wii controls as well. Which would be just balanced and all good.

    Noting one last comment on the Zelda Series, this one I think can be very different to all the other Zelda's we've all played. Stories may have twists which would have not suited the cel-shading look and the gameplay may have an affect on that (remember coming down Ganondorf's tower and Zelda screams? I cant imagine that to be celshading.)

    So thats my opinion and it will stick and won't change. ;) Afterall why do we judge games with other people's judgement? Always trust yourself, and only take into consideration of what people say so you could judge for yourself.

    Phew need a cuppa now. :p

    Edited by 1 at 15/05/06 @ 17:10

  • kangarootoo #72 6 years ago

    Good points.

    In particular "Hoping that Nintendo will take this view seriously". Nintendo want to sell games to everyone, not just die-hard Zelda fans. So if someone raises a critisism as a player, you can't just dismiss it because they "aren't a fan". Their cash is as good as anyones.

    The player is the customer, and the customer is never wrong.

  • koopa #73 6 years ago

    Those screenshots are from the Gamecube version, they're like a year old.

  • peterfll #74 6 years ago

    As a few have already pointed out, this is a game developed primarily for the Gamecube platform, so I don't consider it to be necessarily showing the best side of the Wii's capabilities.

    Also, if Nintendo release this with a broken control system it'll be the first time ever they've done that with Zelda title, so I'm not too worried.

  • captain-future #75 6 years ago

    I'll buy it probably for my GameCube that has already so much dust on it since Resident Evil 4 that I might not find it at once.

  • Scimarad #76 6 years ago

    Definitely going for the cube version, then.

  • dudefella #77 6 years ago

    I don't even WANT to play this on the Wii... I want to enjoy this zelda game like every other, with a good old fashioned controller. Only the fishing sounds like it would be truly awesome on the wii. But yeah, still looking forward to this incredibly. I actually disagree with the writer that this Zelda needs to do something more than the overworld-dungeon-boss pattern, it's what Zelda games do so incredibly well, and so long as they keep doing it well, whilst adding small innovations and such, I'm happy.

  • JediMasterMalik #78 6 years ago

    http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=14 0069

    HA TAKE THAT FANBOYS. EG HATERS

  • Galvanizer #79 6 years ago

    I'm getting the GameCube version.

    The graphics look better than Resident Evil 4!

    Can't wait for this one. :-)

  • Tomo #80 6 years ago

    Hmm, my initial thoughts were - yeah, fair point about every Zelda game being a clone of the previous one, pretty much, but I think people who but it realise this. Seemed like a bit needless as Huntjca pointed out so bluntly.

    As for the game itself, that seems rather worrying. I'll get it for the Wii anyway if you can use a normal remote and it IS actually poor afterall.

  • JetSetWilly #81 6 years ago

    http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=14 0069

    HA TAKE THAT FANBOYS. EG HATERS

    That article is a very good read. Much more balanced and informative than the EG one.

  • tom_macey #82 6 years ago

    is this gamecube shots or wii?

  • Schiraman #83 6 years ago

    Bashing the article for expressing an opinion on the Zelda series is foolish. It's quite possible to like Zelda and have enjoyed previous Zelda games and still think that the series needs to see some serious innovation in order to remain fresh.

    This logic should apply to *every* game franchise, no matter how well-loved, otherwise it will inevitably become rubbish that panders to an ever smaller core of rabid fans.

    For my money, Mario is an excellent example of how gameplay can be kept innovative and interesting, while keeping enough core elements to make the game recognisable - whereas both Metroid and Zelda are stuck in a rut gameplay-wise (not only that, it's the *same* rut), and would be better games if more people recognised this and persuaded Nintendo to move them forwards...

  • Triggerhappytel #84 6 years ago

    On a partially-related note, I really want someone to pick up the Adventures of Alundra licence and bring it to next-gen. I probably preferred it to every Zelda to date.

    EDIT - I just want to add that Alundra 2 was shit. But it wasn't developed by the same company.
    Edited by 1 at 16/05/06 @ 13:33

  • kangarootoo #85 6 years ago

    @Schiraman

    Good post.

  • Pac-man-ate-my-wife #86 6 years ago

    @ Schiraman

    My complaint is that to judge that the gameplay of a new iteration of a game as massive as Zelda from one small E3 demo is not just foolish but bad journalism. First impressions should about mechanics, the look, the "feel" not the overall gameplay as it's impossible to judge from such short exposure. Whether this Zelda is tired and staid or a pinnacle of the artform without and in-depth extensive playtest. You never know, perhaps the fishing is far more indicative of the style and tone of the game then the dungeon...

  • SeesThroughAll #87 6 years ago

    The graphics are good enough for current-gen hardware... Keep in mind that it was, until recently, undecided whether the next Zelda would be coming out for the GameCube OR the Revolution. So, the Wii version is a straight port, apart from the controls, which is the whole point of the Wii - different controls. Games like Sonic WildFire do look a bit better, since those were especifically designed for the Wii hardware.

    The article author clearly doesn't like Zelda, and I have the impression I wouldn't either, but I'm still interested in the Wii... :)
    Edited by 1 at 16/05/06 @ 23:43

  • MDL199 #88 6 years ago

    I think this is an indication that the wee wee controller is another silly gimmick just like the stylus for the DS.

    Nintendo have said they're aiming the console at non gamers who struggle with a traditional joypad and would only play in short bursts so expect lots of shallow, gimmicky games.

    The wee wee will probably bomb everywhere except possibly in Japan where they are weird enough to enjoy waving their arms around like loons.

    This isn't the first article I've read that says the wee wee controller is very imprecise and quite awkward.

    Still, the Ninty girls won't have none of it.

  • Schiraman #89 6 years ago

    @Pac-man ate my wife

    To be fair to the article I don't think there's an attempt here to judge the final gameplay: what he says is simply that while playing the demo he realised he'd become disillusioned with the standardised Zelda formula and he hopes that the final game will offer something more. That seems like a fair comment to make in a 'first impressions' article.

  • DenAcied #90 6 years ago

    To be honest this was a very unpleasant article to read.
    I do not mind a previewer to add some of his own thoughts into an article, but you clearly dislike the essence of Zelda games. I would be very disappointed if there weren't dungeons, with puzzles and bosses, in this Zelda game, just like in all the other games. It's what this game is about really.
    Why not let articles be written by neutral persons, or people that actually look forward to playing the game instead is beyond me...