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.
Pros:
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 graphics maintain the same cartoony environment of previous Zelda entries, although Twilight Princess definitely has a more vivid and somber feel to it. The juxtaposition of the gloomy atmosphere of the Twilight Realm and the warm allure of Hyrule leads to some splendid visuals. As for the music, it uses most of the typical audio we expect from Zelda games. Every track suits the place and progress in the game perfectly, although the sound quality is a bit dated and could have benefited from more modern improvements.
Finally, Link turns into a feral wolf every time he crosses into the Twilight Realm. What more could players possibly ask for?
Cons:
There’s not much to say about the negative aspects of Twilight Princess except for the strange rut the series seems to have fallen in. The game is awesome overall, but you get a feeling that it’s similar to previous Zelda entries and hasn’t really contributed anything new. The audio and graphics are solid, but they don’t take advantage of the maximum capabilities of the Wii console. The storyline still uses plain text to convey the plot instead of voice actors, and Twilight Princess is a little too retro for its own good. It’s fun to be nostalgic, but everything needs to be upgraded eventually. With the Wii’s The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, it’s as if you’re playing a much older game.
Wrap Up:
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is a single player action-adventure game for the Wii console. Players can use the standard Wii remote, and the Wii Nunchuk can also be utilized if preferred. Motion sensing is quite accurate. The Wii remote speaker is also heavily used in the game, such as signaling the player when he can release an arrow during a battle.
If you only have a limited number of games you can buy, make sure The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess Wii game is one of them. Everything is simply superb, and the entire adventure is incredibly lengthy. The limited modern changes in this release puts a damper on the game, but Twilight Princess is still in a league of its own. ‘Nuff said.