A Hardcore Zelda Fans View of Skyward Sword

• Completed the game in 25 hrs 32mins first time through.
• On a third play through now, 12 hours in and just near the end of the game.
• Total time spent on game: Over 50 hours so far

PROS

Boss Battles
Skyward Sword had some of the best boss battles yet. The Ghirahim fight in Skyview Temple first gets you accustomed to the demands of mastering the motion controls for sword combat. Scaldera is a frantic battle where you’re constantly running back and forth, and who knew using mere bombs could provide that level of tension. The scorpion boss was only a let down because I had seen it already at E3 2010, and it’s honestly the weakest of the boss fights. The battle with Tentalus has an awesome build up – you have to escape the flooding decks below while avoiding barrels crashing down and tentacles trying to choke you. Koloktos wasn’t that great, and I wish the undead Bokoblins he summons would have been more menacing or something. The second battle with Ghirahim was pretty cool – taking what you saw in the first battle, and forcing you to refine your precision even further. There is also a miniboss battle with a robotic pirate that was a good challenge, too. I also really liked the final boss because it forces you to master the parry mechanic, and at first it actually was quite challenging. I actually liked the setup for that finale, too.

Boss Battle Music
Some of the best music in the game is during the boss encounters. I can’t say enough about how good that stuff was, and it only elevated the experience in each boss fight.

Most of the Soundtrack
With the exception of the dungeon music, the overall soundtrack is pretty darn good. Finally some fully orchestrated tracks. The ending credits music is absolutely phenomenal.

NPC Side Quests
This is exactly what I was looking for when I heard about the “changes” coming to Zelda. While this isn’t exactly a new concept, the way it’s executed – borrowing from more modern RPG quest systems – is what I wanted. Complete quests to earn rewards, take on multiple quests at a time, and actually have decisions you make in certain quests drastically alter the course of certain threads. It’s just too bad this was rendered an optional segment you could completely ignore and not made a more integral part of the main objectives.

Lanayru Mines
What a great dungeon. This is something I’ve wanted to see for awhile, a dungeon that makes use of time mechanics in a clever way. This was easily the best dungeon in the game, IMO. I loved the new Beamos enemies, which are so fun to kill (slash, slash, STAB!).

Sandship
This is Skyward Sword’s “Snowpeak Ruins”. A dungeon that’s not entirely expected and a different setting than we’re accustomed to. It doesn’t quite nail it like Snowpeak, but it has its moments.

The Combat
I was honestly the most skeptical of this aspect. You all know how vocal I was in my complaints with Twilight Princess. I will still say I will prefer traditional controls, but I was pleasantly surprised by the Motion Plus capabilities. There are instances where you do have to be patient and precise, but the one biggest flaw is that most of the time after you land that first hit, you can just spam waggle away. You saw how I did it in some of those videos I posted. To be fair, some enemies will not allow this, but most let you get by. However, it is the parry system that I loved the most. I absolutely want every single Zelda game from now on to have a parry system like this. Skill based that requires timing and good reflexes. The only thing I will say is please, dear lord, make it a button input going forward. My left arm will thank you.

Motion Controls With Items
With the exception of the bomb, I really liked how the controls worked in favor of many of the items. The quick draw for the bow, steering the beetle, and cracking the whip. I had no problem with any of these things, and in fact, found them enjoyable. In some cases, I preferred it over any other method of control.

Upgrade System
While there is no real incentive to actually have to upgrade anything, it’s a good option to have. Being able to improve your current gear through loot hoarding is a marked improvement over simply earning better versions in dungeons.

Item Durability (Shields)
This is something I welcome, and wish they would expand upon (just for items, please – see my stamina rant below). Having to take into account your shield can break if you just carelessly block is just another thing you have to factor into the struggle to survive combat and dungeons. It also rewards those who are skilled.

Checkpoints in Dungeons
Usually when you died in a dungeon in Zelda, you were sent to the start and had to backtrack your way to the point you left off, with the exception being maybe in a boss fight. Now, you can save at multiple spots, making it easier to reload to a checkpoint should you fall in battle.

CONS

The First Two Dungeons
Absolutely cookie cutter design, boring puzzles, and almost no personality. They’re also incredibly short – some of the shortest dungeons I’ve ever seen in a 3D Zelda game.

The Warp System
Every single 3D Zelda game has had a warp system. Once you got access to it, you could easily access pre-determined spots by either playing a song or by hitting a simple button and picking your destination. Skyward Sword needlessly complicates this. You unlock points you can “warp” to when you descend below the clouds, but should you want to travel anywhere else just within that zone and don’t feel like running to it, you have to find a bird statue outside, warp to the sky, pull a 180, fly back to the drop zone, and then warp. Seriously? Why can’t I just warp to the spot I already activated in fewer steps than that?

The Sky
The density of islands is even less than The Wind Waker. With the exception of a few islands, most of them are just spots to collect Goddess Cubes or are pointless rocks with enemies that try to cause trouble but never come close to pulling that off. As a result, the sense of exploration is diminished, which ties into…

The Overworld
Now that I’ve seen what Aonuma said recently, it all makes sense. Skyward Sword’s overworld was designed like a Mario game, but without everything that makes a Mario level great. Each zone of the three major regions is like a course in a 3D Mario game, but take away all the cool and fun objectives and the sense of being in a virtual play ground. If you’re going to curtail the overworld by killing the large, seamless nature that’s been enjoyed since Zelda 1 (and only eschewed in a few spin-offs), you need to give us more “density”. Most of these zones are barren and bland, with few real objectives other than the essential task at hand.

Backtracking to Skyview Temple When Trying to Advance to the Fourth Dungeon
What a terrible design choice and a poor excuse at padding. You go back to a dungeon you already completed, and yes it has no new enemies, but you just retread the same ground and have to revisit the same rooms again with almost nothing new added. Not even like remixed puzzles or anything. Just literally backtrack through the damn thing. If you neglected to open up the two shortcuts in that dungeon on your first pass, you’re going to have to cover even more ground and it’s just boring and pointless.

Backtracking in General
Most of you hated the Temple of the Ocean King. Revisiting the same dungeon, having to go through the same areas you already completed, only to get to the new stuff. Well, that’s what Skyward Sword’s overworld is. You go to these zones, complete your objectives, move on, only to come back later – at least two more times each. And most of the time, you have to cross the same areas again just to get to the new parts. You see, in previous Zelda games, you went to new zone, and you usually didn’t leave it until you had made your way through the entire thing. Sure, sometimes it meant going back somewhere to get an item before you go go ahead, but you weren’t going to new areas until you completed that zone. This ties into that density argument, too.

Faron, the Dragon
For the love of god, what is your f-ing problem you stupid dragon. I prove to you I’m a hero despite your deplorable powers of observation, but each time I come back to you, you still don’t believe I’m worthy. I f-ing crossed how many zones, fought how many bosses, and solved how many dungeons? Plus, after a certain cutscene that has major spoilers which I won’t mention here, Faron still refuses to acknowledge you. WORST EXCUSE FOR FETCH QUESTS EVER. I am so glad you are never seen again in the series.

The Silent Realm
Collecting the Tears of Light in Twilight Princess was a tedious task each time, but at least you weren’t forced to resort to stealth to get each one. It’s not completely bad, but it’s just not that fun. The AI of the monsters trying to get you is pretty stupid (they move incredibly slow and are rarely a threat if you have any skill whatsoever). Farore’s Silent Realm is in particularly frustrating because of the geographical layout with all the trees and hills obscuring your view of items, even when you can activate the ability to see beams of light coming from your targets.

The Swimming Controls
They handle the same as the flight controls, except you shake the nunchuk for a speed burst rather than press A. The flight controls worked so well, IMO, because you were in a wide open space where you rarely had to be that precise. You could afford to sway a bit and stray off course without any real consequence. Swimming in this game requires a bit more precision, and you’re almost always navigating tight spaces. Couple that with the fact you also have to hold the Wii Remo steady while SHAKING the nunchuk to perform a straight “boost” (something required often), and it’s just asking for trouble. I have absolutely no idea why I was forced to use tilt controls for swimming instead of the analog stick. It did not add anything, it didn’t even make sense. It just got in the way.

The Stamina Gauge
This is a joke. I have been able to enjoy rolling around, climbing walls, and doing whatever I want in terms of mobility in every single Zelda game, but now I am restricted by an arbitrary mechanic designed to artificially increase the challenge. It’s a limitation that I do not welcome and I find quite infuriating. Plus, we’re talking about somebody who tackles all of these dungeons and battles and such, but he can’t run 20 feet without having to catch his breath. How out of shape is this guy? I would have been more inclined to accept this crap if there was some sort of enhancement to it, like upgrading your stamina. You can get a potion to handle that, but it’s temporary and not adequate enough. Please, never ever bring this mechanic back. It sucks.

Dungeon Music
My ears, they bleed. Okay, Skyview Temple’s music wasn’t that bad, but it only gets worse from there. Most of the music is just too subtle and doesn’t stand out compared to previous games. And while I loved Lanayru Mines, it has the worst dungeon theme in the series. I think it was designed to be a part of the challenge because it torments you with its annoying tune that loops and loops and loops … driving you insane.

Item Variety
Remember Zelda 1? Remember how it had 8 usable, key items (some more useful than others). Skyward Sword reverts right back to those days – eight items, yay! Actually, no, bad! You see, people were bitching about how annoying it was that you got an item and used it in one dungeon and then never, ever used it again. Well, here you go, this is what it’s like on the flip side. Dungeons that require you to re-use the same items over and over again. To be fair, that’s not a bad thing, and actually something they could try to use again if improved, but the end result is that you see the same types of puzzles over and over and there’s little surprise in what to expect next. Not to mention, this also ties into my problem with some of the dungeons – they lack the great atmosphere and personality that came with catering the layout to a unique item. I’m not saying you absolutely have to have a unique item to have a unique dungeon, but Nintendo didn’t really tap into their imagination here, or come close to the ingenuity of many of the previous dungeons with the exception of Lanayru Mines and maybe the Sandship dungeon. I prefer dungeons like Twilight Princess’ Snowpeak Ruins, Ocarina of Time’s Spirit Temple, or Majora’s Mask’s Stone Tower Temple.

Lack of Memorable Characters
Except for Groose, I just didn’t give a damn about anyone in this game other than Link or Zelda. Groose easily is the most developed character who sees the most genuine shift in personality with actual actions that justify his metamorphosis. Everyone else is set in autopilot, never changing, always static, very dull and forgetful. The Wind Waker had great characters, and even Twilight Princess, with its low NPC count, had better characters and development. Which brings me to..

Ghirahim, the Villain
He is absolutely the worst villain to ever grace this series. Go ahead, get upset. His theatrics and flamboyant nature DOES NOT MEAN HE IS A GOOD VILLAIN. It comes off as incredibly stupid, and you never fear this guy. He has no development, either. All you have to go on is what he says, that he’s some Demon Lord. You never, ever see him do anything evil other than just try to fight Link. Villains who are evil just because the story says they are evil are some of the most shallow, worst villains imaginable. I discussed this with another reviewer, who saw people on several boards comparing Ghirahim with Kefka. They are not on the same level, not even close. We actually see Kefka do terrible things (poison the water, betray people, straight up murder comrades, etc), and we know he is insane and an evil bastard because of his actions. Ganon, after what we saw in The Wind Waker, was at least a flawed being we could sympathize with. He was fighting for something, even if he was misguided and twisted by hate. Ghirahim is nothing compared to these villains, even Vaati is a superior villain whom I had more respect for. If I don’t care about the main villain or have any real fear from him, all the tension goes out the window. Nintendo failed miserably with him.

You Don’t Lose Health if You Fall in a Hole
Since Zelda 2, this has always been the case. You lost at least a heart usually if you fell into a gap or hole. Not here. I admit it’s not a huge issue, but it means the game is more forgiving in this regard.

HO-HUM (Not great, not bad)

The Visuals
Hate to be cliche, but hit or miss. The game is designed to look good in certain instances, usually more scenic views. There are a lot of things up close that look terrible. We’re talking textures that would be common place in the N64 era here. It was an admirable attempt to do what they could with the aging hardware, but I just don’t think the style worked well enough in the end.

Lack of Geographic Diversity
Forest. Volcano. Desert. Better get used to those three types of zones. Sure, you have the sky, but as I said, it’s sparsely populated. There is also a Lake, but you barely do anything there other than revisit Faron in her chambers downstream or make your way to Ancient Cistern.

Difficulty
This game wasn’t that hard, but it also wasn’t a complete joke. Hero mode was a nice addition, but if you get the heart medal, it’s not that hard. No remixed dungeons or anything like Master Quest, just you take more damage. Better than nothing.