Zero Punctuation: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D

[rutcommapat]

This review gets bonus points for calling out people who say Goldeneye holds up.

 

[pppppppppppppppppp]

Not sure if anyone's mentioned this, but the Water Temple is far easier in the 3DS version since you switching out boots is a lot more convenient. Most of the bad rep from that dungeon is: A) Because of boot-switching, or B) becasue of Dark Link, who's arguably the hardest boos if you don't know the tricks to beat him.

I guess I'm the only one who finds the 3D on the 3DS genuinely impressive. Then again, I'm also the only one who saw Avatar several times and never pissed and moaned about the derivative story.

 

[Amphoteric]

Ah yes, the weekly flood of people coming to the escapist and slowing it down to a snails pace.

I've never played a Zelda game though for some reason.

 

[LordXel]

I've played Ocarina of Time a dozen times on the Gamecube. I recently played the original N64 version on the Wii and it is soooooooooo slow. Yes even though Zelda is my favourite series I still love to critise it.

I never had nostalgia for Ocarina of Time, but my nostalgia for Wind Waker is still strong.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

I agree that the water temple level isn't that hard, for the exact same reason that Yahtzee mentioned. Pausing the game constantly for the iron boots was annoying, but really, that was it. Personally I found Level 7 in Oracle of Ages to be my least favorite water dungeon in the series, because of the painful swimming controls and some annoying backtracking.

No kidding. Every time some one complains about the Water Temple in OoT, I want to slap them and call them a pussy.

 

[Buccura]

I never thought I'd hear Yahtzee say that word. Kinda blew my mind. You'll know what I mean when you watch the video.

Anyway, yeah I won't lie part of my love for OOT is nostalgia related, but I still think it's just simply a fun game. But maybe I'm just a thick twat ;P

I will say, though, Majora's Mask was a more interesting game.

 

[daxterx2005]

Yahtzee was insulting people for being able to get thru the water temple with ease.
I thought I read somewhere they were revamping the water temple to make it easier or something...
Am I completely wrong?

 

[JokerOfSpades]

Incidentally, you shouldn't knock Skyward Sword yet. Nintendo has noted that Twilight Princess would be the last game to follow the typical (OoT) formula.

In Skyward Sword:
- Dungeons are larger
- Puzzles are harder (and have more solutions)
- Combat is more puzzle-esque
- Difference between a dungeon and field is blurred
- Zelda isn't a princess
- No Ganon
- An actual stamina meter (not that big)
- You don't always have to use the dungeon item to beat the boss (huge change)

Etc.

Because all of that most definitely sounds like "whole new game" instead of "improvements on long-established formula", eh? It's a bit more like "slight variations" than full on "different formula".

That's not to say that I thought OoT was bad. I recently played the first six hours or so on a Wii. Yes, the classic version, with a Gamecube controller and those blocky craptastic graphics and audio that sounds like it was played through a toilet bowl. So the fun that I did have was not seen through nostalgia goggles. OoT definitely shows its age, but I thought the bit of it I played actually stood up really, really well. It's also the first Zelda game, 2D or 3D, that I've played for any decent amount of time, so it's quite a good game. I agree with most of what Yatzhee said about it, too. I just wish that locking on had gone through some more work to make it better.

- You actually have to work at combat and think about your moves
- New location
- Because you're making the Master Sword, it isn't the age-old quest to find it and then fight Ganon
- New items will be at the beginning, instead of the end
- You can upgrade items
- You actually have to watch the stamina meter for dashing and pushing heavy objects
- You must use your shield wisely, because it will break
- The story is entirely different, with new roles (Link is actually training to be a knight from the start)
- Musical instrument takes a different role, and isn't so big that it's in the title (Ocarina, Wind Waker)
- Mostly orchestrated soundtrack
- Chest high walls won't stop you anymore (Link can actually climb over them)
- Again, lines between dungeons and fields are blurred
- Many ways to fight an enemy and solve puzzles (again, in every other Zelda game, you had to use the dungeon item to fight the boss)
- More sword-on-sword battles
- Ghirahim is a recurring boss that fights more seriously as he takes you more seriously
- Skyloft is lively, with a lot to do, much as in Clock Town (Majora's Mask)


What else do you want?

 

[thereverend7]

Graphics do not make a game, my friend.

and it's not "nostalgia" its a fact. I.e super mario brothers had tighter gameplay then some modern games. Sure I could play New Super Mario bros, but im not shallow enough to say that i can't enjoy a good game because it isn't pretty enough for my precious eyeballs.

fun is fun. i dont care how it looks. i get more enjoyment out of "the shitty polygons" in Super Mario 64 then I do half the games out there these days.

 

[altereggo]

Totally agree with the top 3 "best games ever" ranking.
Anyone who hasn't played them should check them out--the box art appears at 00:27

 

[GrimHeaper]

He should have played master quest.

 

[Babitz]

Its quite unfortunate, but most games don't age like wine. I found a lot of difficulty going back to Deus Ex, for example, simply because... well, lets face it. That game is outdated as bollocks, and for all it introduced, many video games have already taken that concept and ran away with it. There are much better experiences today offering the same thing, and much more.

Personally, I strongly disagree with your opinion on Deus Ex. Except for the graphics, I believe the game has aged quite well. It's gameplay and level of detail are greater than in any other game I've played and no, no other game has taken it's concept and ran with it as well, let alone better or offered more. Games nowadays are way too simplistic to be in the same tier with Deus Ex.

Also, I would much rather play System Shock 2 again than Bioshock. And I've played SS2 5 years ago for the first time so no, I'm not nostalgically blind.

There are games that age well and still hold up, unless you consider the graphics to be the core of a game.
Even Yahtzee said he believes Castlevania: SOTN still holds up and he played it a couple of months ago for the first time.

 

[Warforger]

Two points:

1) Even though I'm a massive Zelda fanboy, I have to say I was throuoghly amused by this review (though I know SOMEONE is going to get pissy about it).

I know, I'm going to guess there's going to be another mailbox showdown for this one. What I'm more confused though is why they had to wait for the 3DS to port these games. I mean I think the first title for the DS was a port of Super Mario 64, at the very least that was the game it came with. And I never had a N64 and I loved it, and I was wondering why it was one of the few 3D titles for the console for a while.

Personally I was thinking he was going to review another game, like Red Faction Armageddon and avoid these re-releases entirely.

 

[Jennacide]

If for nothing else this review is great to see I'm far from the only person with disdain for Ocarina of Time. I'm so very tired of hearing people clamor on about how it's the best game ever made, when it's not even as good as the previous title in the series. A Link To The Past aged better, and was more groundbreaking. Hell, LTTP has one of the best hidden easter eggs known to man, as it took people over 10 years to find Chris Hullahan's room.

Hell, I'd go so far as to say Minish Cap is a better Zelda game than Ocarina, and it's not even made by Nintendo. At least it had original ideas.

 

[DarkhoIlow]

I think only Zelda fans would buy this game only for a HD remake and nostalgia.

Others I think will pass it.

This video gave me a few chuckles,thus I approve of it.