Hello everyone and welcome to the second installment of my burgeoning editorial series “Zelda Artist Expositions”. These posts feature great artists who mostly create Legend of Zelda artwork or at least have numerous Zelda works, whether it be drawings (digital or traditional), paintings, cosplay, crafts, et cetera. This series is meant to display and/or expose talented artists that have caught my eye with the very diverse and immense deviantART being my go-to place for Zelda art. Some articles, which are my personal favorites to write, will be over fairly obscure artists, but some will also cover bigger names in the future such as TiuanaRui or GENZOMAN. And as always, feel free to give recommendations of artists I should report on next. But enough of the technicalities and other artists, today’s artistic spotlight shines on the lovely Zellie668.

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Hi fellow Zelda Dungeon fanatics and welcome, once again, to another Timeshift Thursday feature! This week I’m looking forward to sharing and discussing a climatic battle scene with you from Link’s latest adventure, Skyward Sword, in which I’ve found the combat before the corresponding final battle to be a richer, more difficult experience. Because Skyward Sword doesn’t include the most amount of highlights for a Zelda game, in my opinion, I haven’t leaned toward writing a feature revolving around the title. Yet, because we are discussing famous Zelda battles now, I do want to write about, possibly, my favourite part of Skyward Sword.

Today, we’ll take a look at the extensive Horde Battle brought about by one of Link’s main antagonists in Skyward Sword, Ghirahim. This section of end-game battle sequence truly tests Link’s reasons as to to why he is blessed with the Triforce of Courage. It is an outstanding test of courage and we shall see that further along the article!

If you want to read more about Link’s excruciating battle with Ghirahim’s minions then click the jump below and take the full descent toward the Sealed Grounds!

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Skyward Sword and Twilight Princess as most Zelda players would know are on a very different scale when it comes to graphics and art style. With Skyward Sword looking like a water color painting whereas Twilight Princess is very dark to fit its “Twilight” atmosphere. A very passionate Zelda fan has recently come up with a mod pack which gives Twilight Princess the graphics and bright color of Skyward Sword. This has created a very interesting mix of the games, read more after the jump!

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Hello Zelda fans. Minish Pants here, with the first of hopefully many articles discussing our favorite parts of particular Zelda games. I’ve decided to start with Skyward Sword, as it is the freshest in my mind. I will eventually get around to all of them, in no particular order (unless a commenter asks nicely!) as I replay each game. The goal with these articles is to focus on the positive, and discuss amongst each other the best of each game. Even if you completely hate the game discussed, try to think of things about it that you liked. For instance, I’m not a particularly big fan of Phantom Hourglass, but when I get to writing about it, I will focus on the game’s strengths rather than weaknesses; what it did right, not what it did wrong. It’s fun to debate the flaws of Zelda and which games are better than others, but let’s remind ourselves why we love these games so much. Hit the jump to see what I felt were the best moments of Skyward Sword!

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Zelda games could use some RPG elements. Some might argue that Zelda games already have RPG elements; Skyward Sword showcased an increased focus on character customization, and Zelda games have traditionally been confused for RPGs. However, in Zelda games, the focus has always been on adventure. Proper implementation of RPG elements would supplement the adventure elements and wouldn’t undermine them. Since the developers of Zelda games have traditionally been good at incorporating new elements, this change can be significant or conservative, but I have no doubt it could work. Given recent trends in gaming at large, the time may be right.

It’s probably best to define what an RPG is before delving into this topic. Opinions on what is and isn’t an RPG differ, but for the sake of this article, I’ll define it as:

a system of gameplay based on character stats.

This is incredibly vague, but that’s good; it’s vague enough to encompass everything that can be reasonably considered an RPG without including strictly adventure games. It can also explain RPG systems incorporated in non-RPG games, like Metroidvanias.

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There are many covers out there of songs from throughout the Zelda series and each cover brings something quite spectacular that makes the song sound even more amazing. Covering songs allow all Zelda fans to show off their talent and creativity with the world. Today I present to you an amazing cover of the staff roll or credits from Skyward Sword. This song is a memorable one because it contains a multiple songs from throughout the game into one track and the two people playing this on the pianos do an amazing job with it. They do not only play on two pianos they actually play on three, constantly jumping back and forth between the three which is truly astounding.

There isn’t much more I can say about it so hit the jump to see the video.

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The Legend of Zelda has spawned probably one of the most engrossing fandoms of all video games because not only does every game tell a story, the mythology of the series sparks great interest into what is and isn’t known about the Zelda universe. This, in turn, is often manifested through art. And this art is one of my favorite things about the Zelda community. In the realm of Zelda fan artwork, the variations of art styles and incarnation preferences are endless. Zelda fan art is endless, which also means there is endless talent to discover so you never know what great artist you will stumble onto next while browsing deviantART or the internet in general. I believe there a many amazing artists out there that deserve editorials written about them, but today I would like to draw your attention to my personal favorite artist of Zelda artwork, the deviantARist Anokazue.

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Good news Zelda Dungeoners! You can finally own your very own Figma Link  figure without completely damaging your wallet or going through the of hassle hunting one down on eBay or importing one from Japan as many of them are priced at over $100.

Toy retailer Big Bad Toy Store originally intended to release the the Link figure along with a Samus Aran figure last year, and even made pre-orders available but were unable to fulfill them due to conflicting licensing issues.

However just recently, the licensing issue was resolved, allowing a second production run for the US release set to be in the 4th quarter of this year. Big Bad Toy Store is now accepting pre-orders for $50 USD. Jump in for more details!

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This week we have a double feature of Corpse Run‘s fantastic comics. First, an examination of the combination of two items from Skyward Sword. Fi, annoying as always, unfortunately cannot explain to Link why the rules of video games and real life don’t always meet. And second, something all guys can relate to to some extent, even if it doesn’t involve a flying beetle.

Hit the jump to read the comics!

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Today’s Zelda Fanart Spotlight is on deviantART artist PhantomMarbles Skyward Sword fanart “Behind the Waterfall“. In this fanart it shows Link and Fi standing outside of the Ancient Cistern. Fi looks as if she is explaining something to Link and Link is listening intently to her. The sun is shining down upon the cistern, illuminating the beautiful scene perfectly.

The outside of the Ancient Cistern is just as elaborate and beautiful as the inside of it. Link will realize this for himself once he ventures into the ancient dungeon.

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Well Zelda Dungeoners, we’re now down to the last few features in the Overworld Themes series. Last week marked the end of the Exploration Overworlds section of this series, so today we’ll be starting on the next set: Transportation Overworlds.

In the Zelda series, there are four games with transportation overworlds. These are Wind Waker, Phantom Hourglass, Spirit Tracks, and Skyward Sword. As I see it, those can be further broken into another two groups; the “free sailors” that let you control your transport as you go, and the “fixed tracks” that keep you on a set course with more restricted movement. Today, we’re focusing on the former of those groups; jump in to see!

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Nintendo and their love for mini-games, especially in the Zelda series. There have been mini-games in the franchise since the original Legend of Zelda, if you can call gamboling with a moblin in a cave a mini-game. But as the series has progressed, these small games have become more interesting and in some ways more difficult. But they all seem to share a theme of being absolutely ridiculous. Hit the jump to read this week’s comic from Corpse Run Comics!

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As Zelda fans, we have undoubtedly been subject to the greatest variety in art style and graphics in a single video game series. We’ve seen 2D, cel-shaded, 3D, 2D cel-shaded, realistic, impressionistic, and variations of those listed. People always have very different opinions on which one is the best and why. So that’s what I’m here to discuss. I shall explain each art style or graphics implemented by each game, and then you can simply pick which one is your favorite. Don’t let your opinion go unheard!

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Zelda Dungeon has featured the works of artisan baker Cakecrumbs a few times before, most recently as a part of the deviantART collaboration project Link’s Blacklist, where she contributed a very impressive and accurate replica of the Furnix enemy from Skyward Sword, made entirely from cake. Food enthusiasts will be pleased to hear that Cakecrumbs has returned to Zelda to make another incredible edible creation; this time the focus being a Beamos from Skyward Sword. Hit the jump to find out more!

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Nudity, whether it be partial or brief, is not uncommon in the Zelda series. When nudity is depicted in a Zelda game, it is never overly explicit, thus, the ratings on any one game are not higher than they are. Though it is definitely present in the series, and it is not a new aspect, beginning as early as Link’s Awakening. This can be a somewhat controversial topic, as people all have very different ideas on what nudity adds or takes from the Zelda series, whether or not it is necessary, and if it should be continued in future games or not. Various aspects and depictions of nudity will be utilised as I further discuss the positives and negatives of nudity in the Zelda franchise.

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