Customer Reviews
Worst Game Ever
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker is such a terrible game because of the following:
The controls are horrid, I have never seen such bad controls in my life. I told it to go left and it went straight and then turned left 15 seconds later;The graphics are horrible too, I could see every little pixel that outlined Link; It also looks two dementional.
I would not rent, buy, or recommend this to anybody because this game is so horrible.
not to be compared with ocarina
This game should never be compared to the ocarina of time.The ocarina of time itself is a classic.before this was realised i saw screen shots and was extremly dissapointed.I was expecting an evolution in graphic design.I wanted it to mature but that wasnt what i saw.It wasnt until i got the game i realised just how good it was here are some key aspects of the game.
CEL SHADED GRAPHICS:not bad i liked the cartoony feel of it.It made the game seem more light hearted and fun.The scenery is beautiful and although link looks like a girl his facial expressions help to make the game that little bit more enjoyable.
GAME PLAY:The gameplay is great definatly an exolution.It allows you to pick up the weapons of fallen enemys and testing them on them allowing you to throw them at them if you wish.
THE "GREAT" SEA:one thing that stops the game being so fun.there is hardly enough land witch is disapointing still the land thats there is almost good enough.It kinda takes some of the fun out of the game witch is why it missed off five stars.
SEA GULLS:can be controlled is good fun but not integral
LONGETIVITY:there is quite alot to do after youve finished the game and the game its self is a reasonable length but i was expecting more.
The best of the Zelda franchise
I am not the world's most hardcore Zelda fan. Nor am I exactly the most skilled at playing the Zelda games. But I have played Zelda games on every system--from the originals on NES, the updates and new entries for GBC and GBA, to the introduction of 3D on N64. Most Zelda fans will say that the best of the franchise is Ocarina of Time; an opinion with which I respectfully disagree.
My first introduction to this game came through a demo that was on the Zelda promotion disc released for GCN. Within a few minutes of playing, I knew that I was one day going to own it, no matter how long it took me to acquire the funds for purchasing; I had to own it. The graphics and the gameplay were Just. That. Good.
In general, I'm not one to get excited or negative about good or bad graphics in a game, but in one like WW, it's hard not to be excited. Do not let the cel-shading turn you off--this entire game is an incredible universe of well thought-out, 360 degree exploration that is greatly complemented by the very meticulous and oftentimes truly extraordinary graphics.
The gaming world itself is absolutely enormous. With the entire world covered in water, the game confines itself to a 7x7 map of squares--but that itself takes half a lifetime to explore. And it is more than worth it. While the game starts out fairly linear, it's of a need, as it guides you through the prologue of the game, the eventual introduction and control of your boat, the Wind Waker, and then centers around exploration of the half a dozen most central islands to the story. And from there, it branches out significantly--reaching a point in which, should you choose, you can spend hours upon hours traveling from island to island and mapping out the entire ocean within the given realm. Traveling does take time, and can become monotonous for some--but fortunately, not long into the game, you can learn how to warp and significantly cut down on travel time.
Gameplay is my favorite it's been for any Zelda game I've played. While I became somewhat board with the manner of combat in Ocarina of Time--hit the monster, wait a few seconds till it attacks, hit it again and repeat ad nauseum--combat in this game is wild, fast and furious, by comparison. At the start, on the island where Link starts out, you learn sword fighting from an older man, which includes some very, very cool techniques that can be used in different combinations of your A and B buttons with the control stick. And the puzzles--both in and out of the dungeons--are far from dumbed down, but never were frustrating enough to make me want to stop.
The game includes most of the familiar tools from previous Zelda games (boomerang, hookshot, etc) as well as the Deku Leaf--which allows you to fly using magic and ties nicely into the requisite of controlling the wind--and the grappling hook--which, among other things, allows you to steal items like feathers and hearts off your enemies when targeted.
The dungeons play out in a less obvious manner than other Zeldas, though it does follow some of the commons. However, there are only two that are officially referred to as "Temples" while they come up with more creative ways of dealing with all the others. And the story surprised me in how it ties in with the commonality of the Zelda franchise--so much so that when I realized how it did all tie together, my jaw dropped, I fell more in love, and was officially hooked upon this game.
The gamemakers opened themselves up to the potential of enormous possibilities with this game, and it never, ever lets you down. There is so much to do, so much to explore, so many things to find...once the games reaches it's most non-linear, the possibilities will seem endless. I have played so many games stuck on their linearity, the world felt more like filler--whereas in games like this, one is more than frequently rewarded for test and exploration. And many games that try to add side-items to be found through exploration and side-quest usually disappoint. In this game, for example, you can perform a side-question in which you will ultimately be given a mask that, when worn in battle, will show a life gage for that particular foe. Certainly not a requisite for winning the game, but undeniably a useful tool.
As I've already said, the gaming world is HUGE. Every single square on the map has an island or fortress of some kind--and the ones not particularly relevant to the game usually have a mini-game or subquest of some kind that almost always leads to valuable rewards. You find treasure maps scattered literally across the entire world, in which you can travel to the given island and use the grappling hook to dig up rupees, or a heart piece. There are platforms, and fortresses. And what's better (certainly an improvement from other Zeldas) there are maps that can be found that show (though don't detail) which of the squares have platforms, fairies, submarines, etc.
Music is probably not my favorite, but it's far from being my least favorite, either. Some themes are better than others--though are undeniably fitting for the given area or scenario--and I do absolutely love the music for Dragon Roost Island. It really doesn't get much better than that.
The game does have it's flaws, but what game doesn't. For example, swimming in water can be really hard, and really frustrating. I would climb (or be knocked) out of my boat and swim in circles while trying to get back to the proper position in which I could get Link back into the boat--made all the more frustrating by the fact that you can only be in deep water for a limited amount of time before you drown and lose a heart. Also, while the targeting system is ultimately a brilliant way for dealing with combat in a 3-dimensional plane, I became frustrated when I encountered more than one enemy and, in trying to un-target one enemy, would automatically be transferred to the target of the other enemy. Oftentimes, a particular task to or with that enemy would need to be performed while not targeting anything, and the only way in which I find to solve this problem was to back as far away from all the enemies as possible until they too far away for the targeting to stay on. If there is another simpler, smarter way of dealing with this, I have yet to discover it.
Hardcore Zelda fans have long since purchased this game and passed judgment, so anyone reading this is either not too familiar with the Zelda franchise, or, like me, somewhat of a newbie. To either and anyone I would recommend this game. It's one of my favorite console games I've played, and certainly the best I've come across for GCN. Honestly, I love it so much, I can't way to play it again.
