Twilight Princess Hints

Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D Review for Nintendo 3DS

Just yesterday on Sunday, June 19, 2011, Nintendo launched the much anticipated Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D for the Nintendo 3DS.  Originally released in 1998 on the Nintendo 64, and still considered to this day one of the best video games of all time by many critics accounts, the game received a graphic overall and slight feature tweak when brought over to the handheld 3DS.

The graphics are not fully redone to look like the more modern Twilight Princess installment from Wii and Gamecube.  Instead, the character models and environments have been slightly updated with better textures, with just a few bumps smoothed out, along with a crazy new amount of detail.  There are signs on walls, brick markings, more flowers, and other little touches that make the environment feel both familiar and completely new.  It’s basically a new paint job, but its done to the point the world feels more alive than ever.

The other big graphic touch is the additional of full 3D without glasses.  The game looks wonderful in 3D and moves at a steady frame rate with or without the 3D on.  With the 3D on, you’ll feel like you have a window into the world of Zelda, like you’d be able to give Link a pad on back if you just reach for him.  Also, the game doesn’t do “in-your-face 3D” much.  The game is content to keep visual effects within the screen most times, so as not to freak out your eyes.  There are a few times when dramatic effect calls for 3D objects to come flying at you (or have an Evil Man glare you down), but these moments are few and far between, never annoying.

Instead of just straight porting the gameplay of the original, Nintendo took liberties with augmenting some gameplay in order to accommodate new hardware and fix old issues.  The touchscreen of the 3DS acts as your main HUD (Heads-up-display) and inventory system.  Your life meter, the hot-keys for equipment, map, and view button are laid out nicely on bottom screen, where a quick thumb tap can reach anything.  The top screen only displays the main action, a small sub-map, and the context-sensitive A-button action.

Since you’ll collect a myriad of items for Link to use in the quest, Nintendo saw fit to add two extra hot-keys over the original three.  A new constant hot-key is set up for the Ocarina, when you reach that point in the story.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess – In a League of Its Own ...

Since its inception in 1986, The Legend of Zelda series has constantly dominated the upper echelons of video gaming. Twenty years later, Nintendo releases The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess as another worthy heir to the Zelda name. A much anticipated video game, Twilight Princess contains the staple Zelda elements and is a fun and lengthy adventure in its own right.

In Twilight Princess, Link, the main protagonist of the Zelda series, is thrust into a mysterious battle against the forces of evil when he encounters an alternate dimension known as the Twilight Realm and its ruler Zant, a warped tyrant bent on conquering the land of Hyrule.

As expected of a Zelda game, the storyline is incredibly top notch. The mainstay characters Link and Zelda play key roles, and a variety of fleshed out individuals and bosses are present all throughout. In particular, a female shadow dweller named Midna accompanies you on your journey and gives you frequent hints to help you meet your objectives.

Twilight Princess uses the Wii remote to great effect. Motion sensing is decent and players can swing and whack away at enemies to their heart’s content. The game also balances the use of the standard directional pad and buttons perfectly.

Speaking of battles, there are plenty in Twilight Princess. Players can expect to take on foes from all shapes and sizes. The game is still primarily geared towards younger audiences, so there are no blood and guts. However, Twilight Princess definitely has a darker mood, and Link looks more like a young adult instead of a teenager. In addition to the sword attacks, Link can also fire arrows, throw boomerangs, and fend off enemies while riding horseback. Some quests, such as catching fish, give gamers a break from fighting. All this integrates smoothly with the motion sensors of the Wii remote, and players will have absolutely minimal problems with the controls.

The puzzles from the Zelda games are back with a vengeance. Players will spend hours working their way through each objective and solving the enigmatic clues. This can easily take a large bulk of time. Fortunately, the game offers hints just in case you get stuck. When you add the side quests, minigames, and various battles, you get a whopping, grand adventure that can last a few days to a good week. Casual players will have a whole month’s material to play with. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is simply sweeping in scope and lasts much longer than most adventure games nowadays.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Wii Version), Prima Authorized Game Guide

The Legend of Zelda, Twilight Princess

GameAxis Unwired

The Twilight Zone In the past, Link's received the ability to transform himself and in Twilight Princess, once more he'll be able to shape shift, ...

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Prima Official Game Guide

Game Sound Technology and Player Interaction, Concepts and Developments

... action and proprioception as it gives us hints about the meaning and properties of ... fishing rod in The Legend of Zelda – Twilight Princess ( Nintendo, ...