Zelda: Why We Love It (and Why You Hate It)

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Sark

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Zeithri said:
DustyDrB said:
So this is my question, why is it that you (or why is it that you don't ) enjoy the series so much despite it's obvious flaws?

For me, the biggest thrill comes from the puzzle aspect. I feel that any given Zelda game is really just a puzzle game disguised as an adventure. You want to progress in the story? Figure out what you need to do or find. Want to beat a temple? Navigate through the traps and many objects blocking your path. Have to defeat a boss? Find his weakness, figure out how to exploit it, and follow the patterns to allow you to do so. You have to be aware of the smallest detail in a given room and also aware of everything in your repertoire to beat the game. I've always loved this.
I don't hate them reusing the same concepts. I mean, they do the same in my favorite, the Metroid series. I just hate the puzzles in Zelda. I remember spending 5 hours in one temple just because I had no idea you were suppose to create a block, pick it up, toss it over, then fire a magic beam at some crystal and blow a bomb to get across some lake (hypothetical example only).

So for me, it's just the puzzles. And I'm not a huge fan of the newer Zelda's as well. I'm more a fan of Zelda II, III and IV. Ocarina of Time is massively impressive but blergh, puzzles.

It would be nice if Nintendo would do a Rule63 on Link though in an official game :3
So it's a boy this time?
 

snowman6251

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I think a lot of the magic in the Zelda games lies in the music. Its amazing.

Majoras Mask in particular had my favorite soundtrack.
 

Brotherofwill

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DustyDrB said:
Anticitizen_Two said:
I fail to see any "obvious flaws" in the franchise.
Just the rehashed plot, lack of voice acting, etc. These aren't things that bother me, but I can't hardly blame anyone who feels differently.

I tried to introduce a friend to Zelda last week, and only then did I realize how dated the dialogue system is. I'm so used to it that I didn't even think about it until I saw it through a newcomers eyes. However, you know there would be fan blowback if they gave Link a true voice actor.
I see the lack of voice acting as a plus, especially in a game like Zelda. I'd like for more games to have less voice acting as it ultimately helps to mystify the characters and let's you imagine the voices yourself. Imagine if Link had a staple voice that he shared in each installment, nbow that would be terrible.

I fell in love with Zelda because of the Gameboy title. Yeah the SNES version rocked and the N64 version was probably the biggest game I've ever experienced (hype, word on the street and technical achievement wise) but the Gameboy version stuck with me somehow. I don't know why. The puzzles were clever, the game was simple and the replay value was endless. Because the whole game make-up was so simple it seemed to be much grander of an adventure than the others. It also dug into a stranger lore than the other with you being stranded on an island and going after a huge whale. I loved it. I still think it's more complex and deep than probably any handheld game I've played, especially the new Zelda DS titles which were laughably mediocre in my opinion.

I don't know why it's such a great series. In a way it's the epitome of adventure video-games and everyone probably has a few good memories with it.
 

DustyDrB

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Jan 19, 2010
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I've got to agree with everyone who is mentioning nostalgia and the music (how foolish was it of me to not mention that at the start?).

Zeithri said:
DustyDrB said:
So this is my question, why is it that you (or why is it that you don't ) enjoy the series so much despite it's obvious flaws?

For me, the biggest thrill comes from the puzzle aspect. I feel that any given Zelda game is really just a puzzle game disguised as an adventure. You want to progress in the story? Figure out what you need to do or find. Want to beat a temple? Navigate through the traps and many objects blocking your path. Have to defeat a boss? Find his weakness, figure out how to exploit it, and follow the patterns to allow you to do so. You have to be aware of the smallest detail in a given room and also aware of everything in your repertoire to beat the game. I've always loved this.
I don't hate them reusing the same concepts. I mean, they do the same in my favorite, the Metroid series. I just hate the puzzles in Zelda. I remember spending 5 hours in one temple just because I had no idea you were suppose to create a block, pick it up, toss it over, then fire a magic beam at some crystal and blow a bomb to get across some lake (hypothetical example only).

So for me, it's just the puzzles. And I'm not a huge fan of the newer Zelda's as well. I'm more a fan of Zelda II, III and IV. Ocarina of Time is massively impressive but blergh, puzzles.

It would be nice if Nintendo would do a Rule63 on Link though in an official game :3
That's a great thing about it. At some point in almost every Zelda game, I will be stuck. I will backtrack, go through many failed trial-and-errors and put the game down for a while because I don't know what I'm supposed to do. Then one day I'll try again and look around and see something in a part of the room that I just happened to overlook, or just think of using an item in the inventory that I didn't think of using earlier and it works. The games really do not hold your hand (mostly). You've got to be always thinking of every option and fully aware of your surroundings.

I mentioned this in another thread. In Ocarina of Time, there's a part where you must navigate through the Lost Woods. Though I think the Owl (can't remember his name and I may be wrong on this) gives you a hint, I must have skipped the dialogue or not read carefully. So I didn't know that you
must follow the sound of the music
and it took me nearly a month to figure out what to do.
 

chozo_hybrid

What is a man? A miserable little pile of secrets.
Jul 15, 2009
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I like em, however I'm not really that excited for the new one yet.

I think they need to mix things up a little, make a few changes or something, I don't know.

But they are also good the way they are too.
 

RowdyRodimus

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I don't know why but I can't really enjoy the 3D games but love the sprite based ones. I mean, I know they are good games and I did have a bit of fun with Twilight Princess, but I think that the move to 3D took a bit of the magic away from it. They seem smaller and not as epic as they did, but I'm pretty sure that's just nostolgia. I guess I'm saying that while I don't hate the series, it wouldn't bother me a bit if they never made another one.
 

Penguinness

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I got excited about the sound of this new zelda and I thought "crap, why does it have to be on the wii =/" but then I remembered that I actually have a wii! It's just at the back of my cupboard or something =D
 

Veldt Falsetto

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DustyDrB said:
Anticitizen_Two said:
I fail to see any "obvious flaws" in the franchise.
Just the rehashed plot, lack of voice acting, etc. These aren't things that bother me, but I can't hardly blame anyone who feels differently.

I tried to introduce a friend to Zelda last week, and only then did I realize how dated the dialogue system is. I'm so used to it that I didn't even think about it until I saw it through a newcomers eyes. However, you know there would be fan blowback if they gave Link a true voice actor.
They don't need to give link any dialogue, other people would be fine though as long as they got the voices right. Though I can see some voices getting annoying, there is really no need for voice acting in Zelda, it'd just be a wasted effort cause we wouldn't listen to them properly anyway. Maybe in BIG cutscenes with the main characters like Ganon and Zelda etc.

The thing about Zelda and any other big Nintendo property is that they have that something special, the characters we all know and love, the level design, the puzzles, it just has a certain magic, it's like watching your favourite disney film as a kid when you're older, it'll always hold that certain charm and magic that makes you feel good inside.
 

Splitfire3

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Macgyvercas said:
I enjoy the series because it's just so fun to play. And for the record, OoT and was the closest a game have ever come to perfection (missed a perect because of Navi).

I hope the new Zelda has an option for the classic controller (seeing as the Classic Controller Pro is out and I'm betting people would want to use it), but even if it doesn't, I'll still play it and love it.
I know! OoT is one of the best games evarr and nothing will ever change that. Think that has something to do with me being not so big at that time, and my emotions and perceptions were immense and all over the place or whatnot:p

but i dont like water temple. Shame on you, water temple.
 

DustyDrB

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Jan 19, 2010
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Splitfire3 said:
Macgyvercas said:
I enjoy the series because it's just so fun to play. And for the record, OoT and was the closest a game have ever come to perfection (missed a perect because of Navi).

I hope the new Zelda has an option for the classic controller (seeing as the Classic Controller Pro is out and I'm betting people would want to use it), but even if it doesn't, I'll still play it and love it.
I know! OoT is one of the best games evarr and nothing will ever change that. Think that has something to do with me being not so big at that time, and my emotions and perceptions were immense and all over the place or whatnot:p

but i dont like water temple. Shame on you, water temple.
I actually thought the water temple in Majora's Mask was more annoying. It was still good, but whenever I accidentally got caught up in a current and wound up in the wrong room, I raged.
 

Zombus

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Apr 29, 2009
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Loz's puzzles have always been the highpoint of the series for me, and the tutorials at the beginning has always been the low point. I stick with the series because it is bloody fun when it isn't old-school annoying.
 

Splitfire3

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Dec 20, 2008
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DustyDrB said:
Splitfire3 said:
Macgyvercas said:
I enjoy the series because it's just so fun to play. And for the record, OoT and was the closest a game have ever come to perfection (missed a perect because of Navi).

I hope the new Zelda has an option for the classic controller (seeing as the Classic Controller Pro is out and I'm betting people would want to use it), but even if it doesn't, I'll still play it and love it.
I know! OoT is one of the best games evarr and nothing will ever change that. Think that has something to do with me being not so big at that time, and my emotions and perceptions were immense and all over the place or whatnot:p

but i dont like water temple. Shame on you, water temple.
I actually thought the water temple in Majora's Mask was more annoying. It was still good, but whenever I accidentally got caught up in a current and wound up in the wrong room, I raged.
i've heard just that before, actually. yet, i never played majoras mask, and i regret that to this very date^^
But back to the OoT water temple: It's so damn annoying, and it is so for no specific reason. I mean, if it just was plain Hard, with tough enemies and so, i would have worshiped it for a fair challenge. But no, the annoying part is in the water level changing and forgetting obvious stuff in a completely different level and so on! and dang, i got tired of that lullaby after water temple:D
But then again, you're twice as glad when you squish that wierd amoeba thing;D
 

darkfall594

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May 31, 2010
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I love all of the games except for the newer ones. I tried playing Twilight Princess on several occasions and I just can't get into the gameplay. Also, I don't plan on buying a ds just to play Spirit Tracks or Phantom Hourglass. I doubt that they are that good anyway.
 

TheDoctor455

Friendly Neighborhood Time Lord
Apr 1, 2009
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I've pretty much hated the series ever since the original Zelda on the original NES.
For you fetuses that don't know, the ability to save your progress was an alien and unknown concept for the NES days, so this meant that every fucking time anything went wrong with the console, anytime I turned it off, anytime I died, I had to start the whole fucking game all fucking over again.
And the game was supposed to go on and on...

After a certain point every child instinctively knows exactly what to say when faced with this level of frustration: fuck it.

To be fair though, I did try out Ocarina of Time on a friend's N64, but I still hated it. I just have something against the series I guess.