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[crazy monkey]

Yeah, the game was pretty fantastic.

It's a shame they feel the need to make Zelda games as long as they do, plenty of stuff could have been cut from this to make it more fun. And they need to learn not to take away control so often for Fi or item descriptions.

Outside of that, I found the majority of the game to be really enjoyable. Ancient Cistern is one of my favorite Zelda dungeons (with one of the cooler bosses), and even the most basic enemy encounters and item uses were joyful. I think I'd put it 3rd among the 3D Zeldas. Out of five of those, that's pretty great considering that all 5 are awesome.

that is the thing that i will never change.i want longer single player experience. SS i did not enjoy but i like bigger games. Twilight had so much more to explore and just pure adventure game. this felt more going to area to area.

 

[MoogleWizard]

Yep, huge improvement over TP and the best Zelda since Majora's Mask, it deserves all the 10s it got.

The game has a beautiful original artstyle and a great soundtrack.
Except for the swimming and the harp I absolutely loved the controls, the game is so much fun to play. I loved that they tried to ramp up the difficulty (although it was still too easy) and ditched the old puzzle types, like pushing blocks, that have been in every Zelda since OOT.

The game has some flaws (description windows pooping about every time you load the game, many of Fi's 'hints', Skyloft is too sparsely populated), but those are only minor nitpicks IMO for such a great and fun game.

 

[HalfBakedProphet]

Again, this is only a valid complaint when you look at the games in isolation, which is a pretty weird way of looking at things. Judged solely on its own merits, Twilight Princess may be the best Zelda game there is, but because it was an exact carbon copy of OoT with some less meaningful additions, I found most of the game to be pretty boring, where I had to really push myself to finish it.

so you base games almost solely on how fresh and new they feel compared to old entries in the series? You set yourself up for disappointment. That's a pretty weird way at looking at things

I play Zelda because I enjoy the dungeon design, puzzle solving and adventure aspects. Too much change and it becomes something different entirely. If youre always chasing than "new" feeling, youre always just chasing the proverbial carrot and never actually getting it. Looking to get that out of Zelda is pretty bizarre.

 

[spekkeh]

what? With practice you can EASILY get an accuracy of 95%+. You need to know not just where you swing, but how you and how frequent you should do so.

No you can't, even aside from being a bit enthusiastic in some of the fiddly enemy patterns where you have to quickly move your sword over to the other side only to have it register as a swing, the wiimote's gyroscope has a tendency to stick, after which you need to shake it around a bit or recalibrate.

 

[Amir0x]

I think this is not the case. Motion controls are incredibly responsive and add to the game where the implementation makes sense. The problem some times with motion controls is people. Is like complaining to the branch for not falling down when we do a lazy and inacurate attempt to cut it. Think this is due to how people have been conditioned by gaming all this years. When pressing a button (digital ones specially) the result is always the same, i.e. there are not multiple ways to press "X" to reload a wepon. Motion control is a different beast, there's a degree to some extent where the player needs to adapt to them.

So Amirox if you took the time to learn the proper gesture execution i believe the problems are quite minimal or substantially mitigated. Now if this is a good or bad trait of motion gaming is a different matter entirely.

I took plenty of time to 'learn proper gesture execution', but there was always what I would consider a fairly significant fail rate (to say nothing of how I had to relatively often go and re-calibrate the controller, which is another downside vs. traditional controls). My philosophy is simply I want the most efficient, accurate and reliable controls around, and the motion+ was a significant step back in at least a few of those categories vs. what we already have (and actually aiming < twilight princess pointer aiming, so it was even a step back from other motion control approaches in a way). Therefore, I did not enjoy that aspect.

Of course I had plenty of other issues with Skyward Sword and I wouldn't be so sour on the package if it was just yet more wiimote problems, as if that's anything new. But I won't deny I'll be glad to be back to traditional with Wii U.

Definitly, by now the "Zelda Cycle" bot like auto response borders in offensive, we should opt to not post something instead. XD

Seriously Zelda Cycle is just :/ at this point, ya know?

 

[spekkeh]

so you base games almost solely on how fresh and new they feel compared to old entries in the series? You set yourself up for disappointment. That's a pretty weird way at looking at things

There's really no other way (unless your autistic or something), media schemata have a context and a history.

I play Zelda because I enjoy the dungeon design, puzzle solving and adventure aspects. Too much change and it becomes something different entirely. If youre always chasing than "new" feeling, youre always just chasing the proverbial carrot and never actually getting it. Looking to get that out of Zelda is pretty bizarre.

I call it being cultured.

 

[ASIS]

No you can't, even aside from being a bit enthusiastic in some of the fiddly enemy patterns where you have to quickly move your sword over to the other side only to have it register as a swing, the wiimote's gyroscope has a tendency to stick, after which you need to shake it around a bit or recalibrate.

This is all sorts of wrong.

A) you don't need to position yourself to attack an enemey, say you want a double upward strike, you honestly think that you need to position the Wiimote down, strike up, and then you bring the Wiimote down again and swing up again? That's not how it works

B) in a natural position the Wiimote will be in front of the sensor bar, which in fact does all the calibrating for you. No shaking necessary.

 

[spekkeh]

Sorry for being intolerable there, but I think it's severely limiting to the medium to consider it some kind of hardware appliance where the new one has added bits and is therefore better.

 

[Barry Burton]

It certainly is amazing at times, there's just way too much filler content that just isn't very good. It could have been a near-perfect 25 hour game, but instead it's just a good 40 hour game that has some incredible high points and some really low points.

 

[FourMyle]

Hah, if you think that game is amazing I'd hate to see what you consider good.

 

[spekkeh]

This is all sorts of wrong.

A) you don't need to position yourself to attack an enemey, say you want a double upward strike, you honestly think that you need to position the Wiimote down, strike up, and then you bring the Wiimote down again and swing up again? That's not how it works

Wait, it isn't? You can strike from left to right even though your hand is on the right by just moving your wiimote to the right? That's... If that's possible then I played the whole game wrong without the game telling me. On the other hand, it completely destroys immersion too if that's the way to play it.

B) in a natural position the Wiimote will be in front of the sensor bar, which in fact does all the calibrating for you. No shaking necessary.

I'm pretty sure the problem with SS is that it doesn't on the fly, or there are too many instances where your wiimote is not pointing at the screen. In any case, the gyroscope still sticks.

 

[crazy monkey]

It certainly is amazing at times, there's just way too much filler content that just isn't very good. It could have been a near-perfect 25 hour game, but instead it's just a good 40 hour game that has some incredible high points and some really low points.

dark side collection of tears kills the game. One collection is fine but so many?

 

[braves01]

It certainly is amazing at times, there's just way too much filler content that just isn't very good. It could have been a near-perfect 25 hour game, but instead it's just a good 40 hour game that has some incredible high points and some really low points.

Pretty much my position as well, except even without the extra fat I still think it would only be a good game, not a near-perfect one. It's just got too many fundamental issues. The sky is feels emptier than TP's overworld which is quite a feat, the day/night cycle adds only tedium, dungeon design is hit and miss, and recycled bosses are still an issue even if tadtones and the like are removed.

 

[big black woman]

When this came out I played until after the first dungeon then quit because I could not stand the graphics. Now thanks to dolphin, I can run it at 3x native and it is stunning. I've up to the second dungeon now and loving it.

 

[victreeb3l]

best zelda game ever with the best zelda character ever.

i had such a fun time with this game and went through withdrawals when it ended. beautiful game. the motion controls were probably the biggest reason is was that good.

 

[Lord_Byron28]

Pretty much my position as well, except even without the extra fat I still think it would only be a good game, not a near-perfect one. It's just got too many fundamental issues. The sky is feels emptier than TP's overworld which is quite a feat, the day/night cycle adds only tedium, dungeon design is hit and miss, and recycled bosses are still an issue even if tadtones and the like are removed.

The sky definetly isnt as empty as tp but its annoying that outside of skyloft its bascally just emptiness. Dungeon design is phenomenal, not sure what was really miss about any of it. I also swear im the only one who had actual fun collecting the tadtones. The only sections I genuinely disliked was the escort mission and having to go through the first dungeon again.

 

[ASIS]

Wait, it isn't? You can strike from left to right even though your hand is on the right by just moving your wiimote to the right? That's... If that's possible then I played the whole game wrong without the game telling me. On the other hand, it completely destroys immersion too if that's the way to play it.


I'm pretty sure the problem with SS is that it doesn't on the fly, or there are too many instances where your wiimote is not pointing at the screen. In any case, the gyroscope still sticks.

A) Yes, exactly. It doesn't break the immersion at all actually, since you don't have to position yourself all the way back to the left hand side to do the proposed strike, just move the controller to the center side so that you are comfortable and do a left-right swing and voila!. It requires practice but its very fast and intiutive.

as for B) it actually does, on the fly, and consistently. If you block the IR sensor from the Wiimote and shake it like a mad man, you'll notice link's swings become completely random from your own. But take your finger off the sensor and you will the sword snap right back into position almost immediately, and your swings register appropriately. It doesn't have to be always pointing at the screen, but only a few seconds in say every five minutes, it happens without you even noticing it.

I suppose the reason for the confusion is because the controls almost never have an absolute center point. so when you are aiming or fighting. Repositioning the controller is absolutely unnecessary for 90% of the actions. Again, with practice I can honestly say some of my latest sessions with the game I had 100% accuracy. Not every session of course, but as I said, 95%+ is very achievable and doesn't require much effort.

 

[noobasuar]

The first time I cut a bat with my sword it was pretty damn magical. I seriously loved the motion controls and didn't have a problem with them. I hope that they keep them in for the wii u game cause it makes fighting enemies way more fun and it makes every enemy into a mini puzzle which I thought was cool.

 

[Joe Lee]

I liked it, but some of the implementations for motion controls felt really off. It worked really well in a lot of cases but not all of them. I also really didn't like the Silent Realm segments ("hey let's take the worst part of Phantom Hourglass and the worst part of Twilight Princess and put them together") and other bits just felt like they were there only to lengthen the game (like swimming around the forest to get those musical notes).

Still, I thought it was a good game. Not my favorite Zelda by any stretch of the imagination but I still liked it.

 

[HalfBakedProphet]

There's really no other way (unless your autistic or something), media schemata have a context and a history.

you have an interesting way of looking at people with perspectives that differ from your own. And by interesting I mean myopic and belittling

I call it being cultured.

lol, I bet

 

[Linkstrikesback]

A) Yes, exactly. It doesn't break the immersion at all actually, since you don't have to position yourself all the way back to the left hand side to do the proposed strike, just move the controller to the center side so that you are comfortable and do a left-right swing and voila!. It requires practice but its very fast and intiutive.

I disagree. It breaks the immersion completely. If I'm going to use Motion controls to control a sword, it had damn well better resemble, at least in a videogame sense, sword fighting. If The only way to get it to work decently is to do something that involves tricking the game, then immersion is dead.

That said, there was a reason most enemies in the game immediately opened up themselves to another quick swipe from the opposite direction once you got the first hit.

I'd be lying if I said I wanted motion controls in the next game.

 

[PRjumpman124]

There's a lot of mixed feelings about the game right now, but I bet that'll change with time much like with WW. I personally loved the game and only had problems with the controls when I tried to play the harp. That friggin instrument.

 

[petethepanda]

I've been into Zelda since forever, but the last two have bored me to tears. SS is frigging gorgeous in Dolphin, though.

 

[ASIS]

I disagree. It breaks the immersion completely. If I'm going to use Motion controls to control a sword, it had damn well better resemble, at least in a videogame sense, sword fighting. If The only way to get it to work decently is to do something that involves tricking the game, then immersion is dead.

That said, there was a reason most enemies in the game immediately opened up themselves to another quick swipe from the opposite direction once you got the first hit.

You don't have to do it. But you want fast movements then that's how it SHOULD be played. You are not cheating the game at all.

 

[braves01]

The sky definetly isnt as empty as tp but its annoying that outside of skyloft its bascally just emptiness. Dungeon design is phenomenal, not sure what was really miss about any of it. I also swear im the only one who had actual fun collecting the tadtones. The only sections I genuinely disliked was the escort mission and having to go through the first dungeon again.

It's been a year since I played it, but I remember dungeons 4 and 5 being quite good, but the first couple dungeons and the last one being bad. TP dungeon design is much better all-around imo.

 

[Killa Sasa]

Liked it except that the Sky was nowhere near as exciting as the Ocean in WW. Some more loftwing-back action would've been fun too, and I dig that the areas were extremely dense with things to do, but it still didn't really feel as expansive as other ones. To me, made it feel less like a huge adventure.

And the big fuzzy battles weren't fun. Game didn't really click for me until the the 2nd dungeon boss (dat music <3). Other boss fights were magnificent.

Still a top 3 Zelda for me.

 

[MYE]

Skyward Sword felt perfect to me.

-The story was great. Seriously, I wouldnt change a single thing.

-Gameplay with motion + was a blessing. I loved every single bit of it. Fighting enemies never felt so good.

-Skyloft was perfect as the rest spot/town to fool around and just chill.
The NPCs and their respective stories, sidequests and personalities were also very charming and very well made.

-All the key characters were very memorable and likable. Animations were perfect and just added flavour and intensity to the whole thing

-Full of gameplay variety to keep things fresh. I actually loved playing through what some considered padding.

-Dialogue was very well written and the custcenes were expertly handled
"So I'm going to ask you a favor, sleepyhead. Ever since we were kids, I'd always be the one to wake you up when you slept in. But this time, when all of this is over, will you come to wake me up?"
... T_T

-Some of the best temples/areas in the series. Lanayru was god tier. Ancient Cistern looked amazing.

-Some of the best boss fights in the series.

-The graphics were fucking fantastic and for the first time I felt like I was looking at certain LTTP design traits in full 3D when stuff like this showed up

-Overworld design has finally adopted the 2D style of puzzle/dungeon like overworld. I loved that.

-Final boss fight and scenario was like "holy shit". That final blow *cries*

-Music was just spot on
The Sky
Gate of Time
Fi's Farwell
Skyloft
Romance
etc...

Yes, the item alert, the boring fish race and some of Fi's contributions are annoying but they are scratches on a Ferrari. Its still a fucking Ferrari, and a beast of a game.

I look back and I STILL feel like I went through a long, epic, perfect adventure. That is a very rare thing.
And I didnt mind the segmented world one bit. I also happen to prefer Demon's Souls hub world + branching levels to Dark Souls interconnected areas so yeah (oh fuck, I brought the Souls games into a Zelda thread...ugghhhh)
I just like the act of taking a deep breath and plunging from a safe place to your next journey into the unknown.

 

[TwEE-N-Toast]

I got into Zelda because it was an amazing action rpg, fast paced combat and heavy on the exploration about a swordsman in a high fantasy world.


Now its a extremely niche looking and playing text/puzzle game mixed with a rube goldberg machine where Aonuma or whoever can come up with wacky game designs they know would never sell in their own game.

 

[MYE]

I got into Zelda because it was an amazing action rpg, fast paced combat and heavy on the exploration about a swordsman in a high fantasy world.


Now its a extremely niche looking and playing text/puzzle game mixed with a rube goldberg machine where Aonuma or whoever can come up with wacky game designs they know would never sell in their own game.

The top art has NOTHING to do with the actual games. Pretty to look at but yeah.
And what is OOT's map doing there? OOT clearly adopted the wacky designs you dont seem to like.

 

[ASIS]

I got into Zelda because it was an amazing action rpg, fast paced combat and heavy on the exploration about a swordsman in a high fantasy world.


Now its a extremely niche looking and playing text/puzzle game mixed with a rube goldberg machine where Aonuma or whoever can come up with wacky game designs they know would never sell in their own game.

This image makes no sense whatsoever.

 

[Dave Meltzer]

I do wish Zelda would have less wacky characters. I don't need it to be grimdark or some shit but Skyward Sword was this weird mix of pretty visuals, silly looking characters and attempts at drama.

 

[Blood Diamonds]

Really?

Like what?

Game is good, but probably the worst 3D Zelda by a good margin.

Well, There's the Goddess Cubes which you need to fly around and fly. There's the Gratitude Crystals, there's the Mini Game islands like the Bamboo one, and the Pumpkin Soup bar. It's just so much better than the TP overworld to me.

I got into Zelda because it was an amazing action rpg, fast paced combat and heavy on the exploration about a swordsman in a high fantasy world.


Now its a extremely niche looking and playing text/puzzle game mixed with a rube goldberg machine where Aonuma or whoever can come up with wacky game designs they know would never sell in their own game.

LOL
I prefer everything in the bottom over the top in this silly image.

 

[GayForMaster]

Every Zelda game is amazing. Except for the DS ones. Those are only good (compared to other games).

I couldn't believe it... that bad zelda games actually exist. Then the DS games came out. Although Phantom Hourglass was alright.


Also, skyward sword was an amazing game but it had way too much motion bullshit. They gotta cut down on the gimmicks for the next zelda.

 

[MYE]

I do wish Zelda would have less wacky characters. I don't need it to be grimdark or some shit but Skyward Sword was this weird mix of pretty visuals, silly looking characters and attempts at drama.

Fucking hell where is that "NO FUN ALLOWED" pic?

 

[Dark Octave]

I got into Zelda because it was an amazing action rpg, fast paced combat and heavy on the exploration about a swordsman in a high fantasy world.


Now its a extremely niche looking and playing text/puzzle game mixed with a rube goldberg machine where Aonuma or whoever can come up with wacky game designs they know would never sell in their own game.

I understand where you're coming from. I feel the same way about the direction that Final Fantasy has taken recently. Just like with FF, I hope that they can one day go back to the reasons you and I got into the series in the first place, every once in a while.

With that said though, I'm not as attached to the Zelda series so it doesn't offend me as much, but I do feel you.

I'm currently sitting here with a sealed copy of Skyward Sword and I just finished my previous backlog game the other night so SS is next on my list. I've been hearing negative things from press and podcasts when it released so it's good to hear people saying that they love it.

Time to open this bad boy up.

 

[Heart of Black]

I might get it back one day... but man it disappointed me.

The amount of times it would grab control away from me was super frustrating.

Just a lot of problems overall.

 

[The Boat]

Awesome post

I like you. Also, I liked the tadtones, the only reason I see for people hating on it is because they imediately think "I'm collecting things, therefore it's bad."

 

[MYE]

I'm currently sitting here with a sealed copy of Skyward Sword and I just finished my previous game the other night so SS is next on my list. I've been hearing negative things from press and podcasts when it released so it's good to hear people saying that they love it.

Time to open this bad boy up.

Unless you've been very selective with what you chose to hear, I dont remember this negative reception at all

 

[Dave Meltzer]

Fucking hell where is that "NO FUN ALLOWED" pic?

I don't know. Why don't you Google it and post it. That way you can make your point in the most epic way possible.

You seemed to have no problem getting gifs for your "this game is so great I'm going to prove it please pay attention to me" post so I'm sure you're capable of finding images.

 

[evilromero]

When I play a Zelda game I want to feel like a badass. Unfortunately SS with its awkward combat controls just made for a frustrating experience. The saving grace was the awesome main town and all the side quests related to that. If it had the TP controls it could have been the best Zelda.

 

[ASIS]

I like you. Also, I liked the tadtones, the only reason I see for people hating on it is because they imediately think "I'm collecting things, therefore it's bad."

I loved the tadtones. way before the actual hate began, but meh. Whatcha gonna do I guess? In all fairness it probably should have been a sidequest, but I still liked the change of pace when all is said and done.

 

[MYE]

Tadtones were cool.

I don't know. Why don't you Google it and post it. That way you can make your point in the most epic way possible.

You seemed to have no problem getting gifs for your "this game is so great I'm going to prove it please pay attention to me" post so I'm sure you're capable of finding images.

Thats what I was doing?
I feel insulted that you think I'm naive enough to believe that my post will change opinions on GAF.

 

[Snowden's Secret]

It's impossible for the controls to not work/be inaccurate but still have players who don't experience those problems, but it's perfectly plausible that the controls are fine but some players will run into isolated issues.

So unless we assume that all players who claim that the controls work are lying, logically the answer is that anyone who experienced issues either ran into user error or had non-optimal play environments. The number of inaccurate reviews would support the latter.

 

[TwEE-N-Toast]

The top art has NOTHING to do with the actual games. Pretty to look at but yeah.
And what is OOT's map doing there? OOT clearly adopted the wacky designs you dont seem to like.

Half of those pictures are high fantasy/mediaeval worlds with wide appeal, and the other half are wacky overly Japanese worlds with a more niche appeal. Maybe the sales reflect this too. I don't know.

I'm not saying it's not likeable for some but it just alienates a lot of people.

Here is a cute video for SS fans. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhBUTjcP9a8

I understand where you're coming from. I feel the same way about the direction that Final Fantasy has taken recently. Just like with FF, I hope that they can one day go back to the reasons you and I got into the series in the first place, every once in a while.

Yes I feel the same way I do towards Zelda now that I do towards FF.

 

[MYE]

It's impossible for the controls to not work/be inaccurate but still have players who don't experience those problems, but it's perfectly plausible that the controls are fine but some players will run into isolated issues.

So unless we assume that all players who claim that the controls work are lying, logically the answer is that anyone who experienced issues either ran into user error or had non-optimal play environments. The number of inaccurate reviews would support the latter.

I was in a Shattered Memories thread the other day explaining how to pull off the motion controls properly but my posts were farts in a hurricane.

"I waggle and it doesnt work"

"Dont waggle. Push both the Wiimote and nunchuck in the opposite direction they grab yo.."

"Fucking waggle. Play the PS2 version"

whatever

 

[Dark Octave]

Unless you've been very selective with what you chose to hear, I dont remember this negative reception at all

Gamers with Jobs (or Weekend Confirmed I can't remember) seemed pretty down on it. I think Giant Bomb was as well. 84-Play had negative things.

I think the main culprit was the constant explanations of things you've been doing the whole game, the lack of fast scroll in the text, the controls (especially the flying and beam balancing), and the lack of exploration. I remember one or two people saying that they stopped playing it all together.

I think most of them did praise the art style, the music and the dungeons.

Of course I'm mashing them all together (it's been a while) but the game wasn't "wow 100% amazing" from really anyone that I've listened to back then. Definitely none of them announced it as their top five games of the generation like people are doing here.

But like I said, I am about to play this game so I am excited that a lot of people here on Gaf hold it in such high esteem.

 

[MYE]

Gamers with Jobs (or Weekend Confirmed I can't remember) seemed pretty down on it. I think Giant Bomb was as well. 84-Play had negative things.

I think the main culprit was the constant explanations of things you've been doing the whole game, the lack of fast scroll in the text, the controls (especially the flying and beam balancing), and the lack of exploration. I remember one or two people saying that they stopped playing it all together.

I think most of them did praise the art style, the music and the dungeons.

Of course I'm mashing them all together (it's been a while) but the game wasn't "wow 100% amazing" from really anyone that I've listened to back then. Definitely none of them announced it as their top five games of the generation like people are doing here.

But like I said, I am about to play this game so I am excited that a lot of people here on Gaf hold it in such high esteem.

Game got a bunch of perfect scores actually. From Gaminformer, EDGE or Eurogamer or whatever. But dont hang on to any of these low or high scores. Go in neutral.
I want to give you one advice though. Dont call Fi everytime her help icon blinks. Unless you need it of course

 

[Papercuts]

Game got a bunch of perfect scores actually. From Gaminformer, EDGE or Eurogamer or whatever. But dont hang on to any of these low or high scores. Go in neutral.
I want to give you one advice though. Dont call Fi everytime her help icon blinks.

Fi ruined two puzzles for me despite not calling her. She also wanted to let me know about my low battery(which lasted around 10 hours) each startup, and if you don't call on her she is a constant intrusion on the HUD. They made her as annoying as possible.

 

[Gillian Seed]

It probably is a great game, but I despise any kind of motion/waggle controls.

 

[MYE]

Fi ruined two puzzles for me despite not calling her. She also wanted to let me know about my low battery(which lasted around 10 hours) each startup, and if you don't call on her she is a constant intrusion on the HUD. They made her as annoying as possible.

I dont remember her being as intrusive as some here suggest. I dont know if its a scripted thing or a system that increases or decreases hints depending on your performance, but I honestly didnt have major issues with here besides a handfull of pointless, forced hints.