First Impressions: Sorry Link, but our princess is in another cast... oops, wrong Nintendo franchise.
When last we met the intrepid pointy-eared adventurer Link, he was boating around a group of islands in all his cel-shaded glory. Yep, many fans balked at the odd choice of a toony Link design, but remember this guy started out as a pixilated sprite waving around a pixilated sword at pixilated enemies. He was—I’m going to say it—cute. So there. But origins are only the foundations for the future, and Nintendo planned on going all-out for Link’s next Gamecube adventure.
Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess debuted to a rousing welcome at last year’s E3. A fully-grown, fully-polygonal Link was shown riding a horse, facing a wide variety of enemies and obstacles, and interacting with townspeople. It looked amazing, and the industry buzz began. The hope was to have it released in time for the 2005 Christmas season. Then the delays began and complacency set in. When was this incredible game getting released? Who’s responsible for the delay? And why was my interest in the game waning with each passing month of non-game existence?
I should not have doubted Nintendo, as evidenced by the recent announcement from Shigeru Miyamoto himself that Twilight Princess is Revolution-compatible. In an interview in Europe, Miyamoto explained that “[…] because Revolution can run Gamecube software, when you play Twilight Princess on Revolution you can take advantage of the Revolution controller." Exactly how is not yet known, but this seemingly throw-away line from Nintendo’s venerable games master is just enough to get people talking, a whole lot of people talking.
What could this functionality mean to the gamers lucky enough to obtain a Revolution when Twilight Princess is finally released? Unfortunately, the news is so recent and unexpected (since previous announcements from Nintendo have denied the Revolution compatibility rumor) that we can only guess as to how the controller will be used. It could be anything from struggling with the pole in a fishing mini-game to drawing the string on Link’s bow when taking out nasties. I hope I’m not the only one growing excessively excited over this. Another Gamecube Zelda title is cause enough to celebrate and riot in the streets, but the added delight of Revolution compatibility has carried this title to one of late 2006’s must-have games.
Link’s main goal hasn’t changed much since the original game: save the world from an all-encompassing evil threatening to devour it. Sources and interviews with key creators of Twilight Princess (including head honcho Zelda director Eiji Aonuma) have elaborated on the basic storyline. In this game, Link resides in Taoru Village and makes his living—wait for it, wait for it—as a cowboy. Before you break out your best Brokeback Mountain jokes, keep in mind that Twilight Princess has been in production since before Ennis and Jack made it to the big screen. Besides, as much as America has embraced the idea of gay cowboys, I don’t think we, as a nation, are ready for Link and Mr. Tingle to have that special bond which dare not speak its name. The struggle continues.
Epona, Link’s loyal steed, returns in the game, and we’re told that you can rename the horse however you want. I’m looking forward to crowning mine “OMGNintendoThankYouForThisNewZeldaGame.” In an early task, Link, on horseback, attempts to wrangle in goats using a series of shouted commands. Gee, just like in real life!
If one’s real life consists of goatherding on horseback, that is.
Twilight Princess, like previous Zelda games, involves a lot of travel between worlds. Here, we’re introduced to the Twilight Realm, the aforementioned evil seeping across the land of Hyrule. In this realm, Link somehow turns into a wolf and must learn how to use his newly discovered abilities (tracking, running, communicating with other animals, other wolfy things) in order to save the world. It’s hard out there for an elf, apparently.
Visually, the backgrounds and character designs are stunning and take full advantage of the Gamecube’s power. As eye-catching as Wind Waker was, one couldn’t help but be a little disappointed that the lands weren’t rendered photo-realistically and imagine how things might have been. Twilight Princess’ landscapes are lush and imaginative, giving gamers a chance to see the entire world of Hyrule in details never attempted before in a Zelda game. The only other time I’ve seen environments this detailed was in the PS2 game Shadow of the Colossus, and even then they had to crank the contrast and brightness into overdrive.
