This is the demo that may shrieks of delight, heart palpitations and flowing tears of joy from the Nintendo fan: The Legend of Zelda in brilliant high-definition with a sense of visual clarity and detail unlike anything the series has ever seen.
(Before those Nintendo fans set expectations to impossibly stratospheric, please note that Nintendo said this Zelda demo, sporting a Twilight Princess artistic sensibility, was only a demonstration. There were many "ifs" and "maybes" in this "Wouldn't it be cool if we did this?" presentation, but no promise of an actual game.)
The Zelda demo re-imagined the Temple of Time from Twilight Princess and Link's battle with Armogohma, a ghastly, colossal spider boss monster. Not playable, but interactive, I watched as Link stepped onto a polished marble floor, his reflection sharply visible as light from stained glass windows danced on its surface. The fairy Navi appeared as a softly glowing orb of light. We could see the stitching in Link's tunic, the leatherwork of his boots and sheath in detail. Smoke pouring from flaming braziers was lit with a soft orange glow.
I was handed the New Controller. On its screen were three buttons and a map of the Temple of Time. One of those buttons switched the lighting from daytime to nighttime, showing that the demo was dynamically lit. Another changed the demo's camera angle to offer dramatic new perspectives. A third swapped the displays of the television and the touchscreen controller. I could watch Link's battle play out on an HDTV or on the smaller, more intimate controller's display, switching back and forth with a tap of the screen.
