The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker

Speedrunners, more than most people, don't like walls. They stand between a runner and their single-minded goal of making it to the end zone. As a result, the speedrunning community will stop at nothing to find a way to glitch through a barrier, especially one that if overcome would allow you to skip half of a game.

Nintendo cancelled a home console Zelda: Wind Waker sequel

The missing Link.

Nintendo once had plans for a full console sequel to The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker - and it would have been set more firmly on dry land.

This follow-up would have allowed Link to ride a horse - a feature missing in the GameCube's seafaring entry.

But the idea was canned - for a number of reasons - and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess entered production instead.

The Wind Waker inspired me to build a boat

And other stories of taking games too seriously.

Playing The Wind Waker inspired me to build a boat. There, I've said it. It still sounds a little silly - to me at least - and I'll get to that. But can we at least acknowledge that the game made a convincing case for the joys of sailing?

Zelda's browser-based fan remake shut down by Nintendo

Devs will re-release it without Nintendo assets.

Earlier this week a couple of hardcore Zelda fans put up a browser-based remake of the original The Legend of Zelda made with voxels to commemorate the series' 30th anniversary. Now that fan tribute has been removed due to Nintendo issuing a copyright strike.

Zelda: Wind Waker HD, New Super Mario Bros. U join Nintendo Selects budget range

Plus Lego City, Donkey Kong, more.

Half a dozen Wii U games have been added to the Nintendo Selects budget range of releases.

VideoWatch: Picture perfect - how we use photography in games

ISO enjoy a good photograph.

When hearing the worlds 'video game camera' it's hard not to imagine the free-floating, functional thing dutifully framing your character's butt as they traverse the game world. Some games, however, do things a bit differently - putting a camera into the hands of the characters themselves.

VideoVideo: Introducing Low Batteries, a series about mental health and gaming

New episodes every few weeks or so.

I love video games. I also suffer from depression and anxiety. Written down like that, there doesn't seem seem to be much linking those two statements; however, as is this case for a lot of people worldwide, video games play a fairly significant part in how I perceive and process my own mental health difficulties.

Digital FoundryIn Theory: Nintendo GameCube remasters on Wii U

Digital Foundry on The Wind Waker's HD treatment, and which other GameCube classics could follow suit.

HD remasters have continued to fill release schedules over the past couple of years, leaving many console owners feeling a bit of a remaster fatigue. Despite that, we still believe in them. While the likes of Saints Row 4: Re-Elected and Sleeping Dogs: Definitive Edition are obvious cash grabs, we feel that a high-quality remaster can serve not only to preserve classic games but also open them up to a new audience altogether. If there's one publisher that still has a lot of untapped potential in this field it has to be Nintendo. Going all the way back to Super Mario All-Stars on SNES, Nintendo's work on remastering projects has always been first-rate.

And yet, during the packed 2013 Autumn release schedule, exactly one such release slipped entirely under our radar - The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD. It's an interesting conversion of the original GameCube release that goes a bit further than your average remaster project; Nintendo EAD enhanced both the visuals and gameplay to refresh the game for a new audience while preserving what made it great to begin with. It was an exercise no doubt designed to familiarise the team with HD development in its preparation of a brand new Wii U Zelda title, but it highlights the potential in tackling more of its back catalogue. But just how good is Wind Waker HD as an example of what could be done, and what other projects would benefit from similar treatment?

Wind Waker HD isn't the first time Nintendo has returned to a classic Zelda game on a new platform; Ocarina of Time 3D was released more than two years prior with entirely revamped visuals in tow. However, with Wind Waker HD, EAD chose to stick with the original 3D meshes, instead using other means to improve the visuals. It starts with a crisp 1920x1080 output, something of a rarity on Wii U, combined with a post-process edge filter that does a reasonable job of keeping aliasing at bay.

A live-action Zelda series is in development for Netflix - report

UPDATE: Iwata pours cold water over rumour.

UPDATE 23/03/2015 5.47pm: Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata has cast doubt on the Wall Street Journal report about a live-action Zelda series coming to Netflix.

Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses 2015 concert tour dates announced

Headed to Wembley Arena on 17th April.

The official Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses concert tour returns in 2015 for a new round of performances.

Now subtitled Symphony of the Goddesses: Master Quest, 2015's updated set list includes new compositions and old favourites.

Among the new additions are musical and visual excerpts from 3DS adventure The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds and the upcoming Majora's Mask 3D remake.

Officially-licensed Legend of Zelda Monopoly revealed

Now that's a trading sequence.

There's an official The Legend of Zelda version of Monopoly due out next month.

Someone's built Zelda's Temple of Time in Unreal Engine 4

Will Zelda Wii U look this good?

How good would N64 classic The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time look if it was made using Unreal Engine 4?

Nintendo - A Sad Story part two Triforces Link to open chests forever

Sleep, young prince.

PeterMolydeux is at it again, this time with Nintendo - A Sad Story part two.

See how classic Nintendo games look with the Oculus Rift

Wind Waker, Metroid Prime, Ocarina of Time and Mario Kart!

Ever wondered how classic Nintendo games would look in first-person with a VR headset? Well wonder no more as YouTuber Chadtronic has made videos detailing his experience combining the Oculus Rift with modded version of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, Metroid Prime, Ocarina of Time, and Mario Kart: Double Dash.

Another Legend of Zelda concert announced for London

London Symphony Orchestra prepping their ocarinas for next July.

Another musical celebration of Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda series will be held next year in London.

The Symphonic Legends London concert will take place at the Barbican on 13th July 2014 and feature both the London Symphony Orchestra and London Symphony Chorus.

The event is a separate venture from Nintendo's own Zelda concert tour - which began in London in 2011 and returned to the capital earlier this year.

Zelda: The Wind Waker HD was made in six months

Aonuma: “Development was still difficult."

Zelda series producer Eiji Aonuma said that the Wind Waker HD remake was developed in six months.

Zelda: The Wind Waker HD is �50 on eShop this week

A tenner more expensive than Pikmin 3, Wonderful 101.

GameCube re-release The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker is �49.99 / €59.99 on the Wii U eShop this Friday.

EssentialThe Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD review

New wave.

It is said that the hero of the Legend of Zelda games is called Link because he represents a link between worlds and eras, a link to tradition, a link to all the other various Links who have donned his green garb and picked up his sword and shield. Most importantly, he's a link to you, the player: an empty vessel through which to experience your own high adventure. That's why he has no dialogue, an opaque backstory - he's always an orphan - and few character traits beyond indomitable courage.

Updating the lively sprite of the early games for the 1998 classic Ocarina of Time, Shigeru Miyamoto imagined Link as a stoic enigma and used a time-travel plot to show the boy hero grow into a rangy young man. He had a touch of the western gunslinger about him: the boy with no name, an outsider riding into town on horseback to save the day, then riding off into the sunset.

Taking the director's reins from his mentor for 2003's The Wind Waker,

Witness a comparison between The Wind Waker HD and the original GameCube version

Sea the difference?

The upcoming Wii U HD remake of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker hosts a whole lot of new bells and whistles, but how's it look next to the original GameCube version?

Nintendo announces line-up for Eurogamer Expo

Super Mario 3D World, Bayonetta 2, DKC, Wind Waker HD and many more.

Nintendo is the latest platform holder to announce its line-up for this year's Eurogamer Expo, promising visitors the opportunity to go hands-on with the likes of Super Mario 3D World and Bayonetta 2 on Wii U, Zelda: A Link Between Worlds on 3DS and a host of indie titles for both consoles.

Our sister site Nintendo Life is also collaborating with Nintendo to run a StreetPass Zone where attendees can top up their StreetPass hits - good news for Mr Mendel and his bloody garden - and take part in 3DS tournament challenges for Star Fox 64 3D, New Super Mario Bros. 2, Mario Kart 7 and Monster Hunter 3: Ultimate.

Visitors to Nintendo's stand at the Expo can also pose for photos with Mario, Luigi, Sonic, Link and Pikachu, who are taking time off from their congressional obligations to press the flesh with their constituents.

Wii U price cut announced

UPDATE: Zelda Wii U bundle details announced for Europe.

UPDATE: Nintendo has announced UK details for its Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD Wii U bundle.

The game and console will launch together on 4th October. GAME is listing the bundle for �249.99. You'll also be able to buy Zelda separately with a limited edition Ganondorf figurine too from that date.

Another new bundle will be available with Lego City Undercover, again priced �249.99 at GAME.

Wind Waker HD's extra hard Hero Mode detailed

It's a cruel, heartless world.

If you're anything like me you probably love The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker to bits, but had one niggling issue with what's probably the best-looking Zelda game to date: It was too darn easy. Well rest assured that won't be a problem in its HD remake if you select its optional Hero Mode.

Nintendo names Zelda: The Wind Waker HD release date

UPDATE: Releasing the same day in North America.

UPDATE: The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD has been confirmed for a North American release also on 4th October, so we can all celebrate together. (Thanks, GoNintendo.)

Original Story: GameCube remake The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD will be released in Europe on 4th October, Nintendo has announced in a just-finished presentation.

The company also announced a free Animal Crossing Plaza app for Wii U. It's a New Leaf-themed version of the console's home plaza where players can chat to its anthropomorphic characters and share Miiverse posts. The download is available now.

Breaking the link to the past: Zelda's Eiji Aonuma

The veteran producer on revising Wind Waker, escaping tradition and finding Nintendo's future.

Eiji Aonuma is The Legend of Zelda. His first game as director, Marvelous on the Super Famicom, was unashamedly influenced by Shigeru Miyamoto's early classics. Under Miyamoto's wing, he was a lead designer on Ocarina of Time, co-directed Majora's Mask, and directed The Wind Waker and Twilight Princess. He's been the series' leading light since Miyamoto handed him the producer baton in the late 2000s - although it wasn't the first time the great Nintendo designer had tried to pass overall control of the series to his prot�g�.

The Wind Waker's missing dungeons were reused in other Zelda games

Eiji Aonuma owns up.

The mystery of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker's missing dungeons can now be solved - almost. It's been known for years that more than one dungeon was cut from the GameCube game, giving its latter half some rather awkward pacing. With the HD Wii U version due for release in October this year, it's natural to wonder: will they be reinstated?

Nintendo retreats into its shell at E3

The games are fun, of course - but you can't answer crisis with paralysis.

Nintendo's retreat from the very public PR war of the E3 press conferences turned out to be a more literal one than we might have thought. This morning in Los Angeles, the company replaced its traditional stage show first with its Nintendo Direct live stream and then by inviting press to its stand before the show floor opened to play six key Wii U titles and meet their creators.

Wii U Zelda: Wind Waker out in October, fancy new bits detailed

Send messages in bottles to beaches in other people's games.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD will be released on Wii U in October and has some fancy new additions.

Nintendo ditches E3 press conference in favour of behind-closed-doors events

With no new hardware to announce and Nintendo Direct established.

Large-scale press conferences broadcast live on the internet mark the bombastic beginning of each E3 show. Every year Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony executives appear on-stage at some gargantuan Los Angeles venue to announce new games and, sometimes, new consoles.

Nintendo's Wii U sales struggle

Exclusives are coming, but is it already too late? Eurogamer investigates.

This week Nintendo will release its crucial third-quarter sales results and reveal how Wii U fared during its initial two months on sale. The company had promised to ship 5.5 million Wii U consoles by the end of March and end the financial year back in the black, thus avoiding a repeat of last year's damaging loss - the first in the company's history.

The loss was described as a blip that occurred as Nintendo price-dropped the 3DS and wrapped up costly research and design on the Wii U. It was a cost the company would not repeat, Nintendo boss Satoru Iwata told investors. But profits for this year have already been revised down. In October, Nintendo forecasted a new, slimmer earnings margin for the year, with the Wii U's early success playing a critical part. It's this early performance that we can now try to evaluate, with the console launched and already past its first holiday sales season.

Nintendo UK has remained silent about Wii U sales, but MCV reported first-weekend results of 40,000 consoles. It's a modest sum compared to other launches constrained by the level of stock allocated to the UK, although what did filter through to shop shelves didn't entirely sell out.

Nintendo announces Zelda: Wind Waker HD re-make for Wii U, out this year

All-new Wii U Zelda game also in the works "but may take some time".

Nintendo has just announced an HD re-make of much-loved GameCube classic The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker in a packed Nintendo Direct conference.

The re-make will launch this autumn, Nintendo chief Satoru Iwata said, while another all-new Wii U Zelda game is also in the works. That one, however, "may take some time".

Wind Waker on Wii U comes with overhauled graphics, Miiverse integration and GamePad play.