Comments on: Can’t You Just Be Fun For Once!

By: Steven O'Dell

Steven O'Dell — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 16:53:10 +0000

Agreed. Even taking out the cultural comparisons, I believe the Twilight Princess is prime example of why Nintendo need to reinvent the franchise. It was good, great even, but just showed that it has been done too many times and wasn’t as satisfying as it arguably should have been for those who would have appreciated it most. It will be interesting to see how Nintendo approach the next one, especially since it can’t be too far away from announcement now – we know it’s being made so it’s only a matter of time.

As for Okami, I agree that it would be interesting to play them alongside one another and compare, though I feel it’d be quite hard to articulate due to both games providing two similar yet different experiences across two consoles. You would almost have to play the ‘original’ versions and then play them again on Wii, to see whether controls affected the overall experience (and quality) of both. I can’t comment on it too well as I have only played the ‘last-gen’ versions of each.

By: Daniel

Daniel — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 06:55:23 +0000

Actually, now that you mention Okami, Steve, I think the two games would make a fantastic comparison. I have Okami on my shelf, waiting to be played, so once I finish Zelda TP I will start on that. Should be interesting.

The core problem with Zelda TP seems to be that the formula has aged, while other -most notably western games- have developed, in terms of assisting the player on their journey. Going back to Zelda is like being hit the face with this difference.

By: Steven O'Dell

Steven O'Dell — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 17:17:22 +0000

I also had issues with figuring out how to unfreeze Zora’s Domain and agree completely that it isn’t obvious at all. I also consulted a guide and felt bad for it afterwards as I prefer figuring things out for myself. It was just one of the many areas that I got stuck in throughout the game and while I did eventually finish it and enjoy it, I think these hurdles definitely influenced my overall thoughts on the game. I definitely did not enjoy it as much as I have previous installments in the franchise, which I find disappointing being a long-time fan of the series. I’m okay with it though as the game was still good enough to justify completion, it just wasn’t as well designed nor compelling as the other games have been.

Perhaps I’ve (we’ve?) been spoiled by the previous installments or even other games like Okami?

By: QuizzicalDemon

QuizzicalDemon — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 08:52:38 +0000

To be honest I can’t recall having problems with “Twilight Princess”. That’s not to say they don’t exist, it’s more a reflection of my poor memory and the perpetual wearing of my rose tinted spectacles. I do however relate with what you’re saying, it drives me mad when there are illogical puzzles with little to no information provided on how to solve them. There’s really no need to make a player wander around aimlessly for hours on end hoping to stumble upon the answer.

By: Daniel

Daniel — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 11:17:30 +0000

I find that your last point really resonates with me. If I’m not playing this game on a regular basis, I lose track of my progress, and it’s difficult to conquer that when I want to jump back in. I think that part of what I touched on in the article relates to the Zelda formula wearing down from old age. The series needs a reboot.

On the otherhand, Twilight Princess takes a lot of good assets from the previous installments and does them very well. The relationship with animals and the environment as I wrote up previously is a good example, I want to write a few more articles about those relationships once I’ve played enough to substantiate it into a single post.

By: Korey

Korey — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 14:02:03 +0000

I kept getting stuck and sidetracked on Twilight Princess. Of course, part of the problem was I played the Japanese version, which I barely understood at the best of times. Keep chugging along on that one. Although it’s not revolutionary, there are some fun bosses/sections later in the game. It’s just so long that I found it hard to keep playing through it. Plus I needed to set aside a decent amount of time to feel like I was making any progress with it.