Daily Debate: Are You a Heart Container Completionist?
Posted on June 24 2022 by Andrew Millard
There are myriad ways to complete a game. From just plain getting to the end credits, all the way to taking zero damage while blindfolded. Me, I’m somewhere between those points on the spectrum. Zelda games usually captivate me to the point that I need to uncover every secret and break every pot. But not always. However, even among the Zelda titles where I don’t shoot for 100% completion, there’s one side quest I will always finish: Filling out two full rows of Heart Containers.
Heart Containers and their toddler form, Pieces of Heart are always a treat to hunt down. As the traditional reward for defeating a boss and the top prize in most mini-games respectively, tracking them down will have you completing a major chunk of a Zelda game’s side quests by default. And, if I’m being honest, there’s some compulsion involved. See, I don’t like the look of an incomplete row of hearts. I crave that symmetry, those even numbers. I can’t even leave my volume dial on a half number. And if I have one full row of hearts, well. . .
In fact, this need is evident in my submenu as well. If the Pieces of Heart tracker is one quarter full, then I simply have to find the other three! And because Zelda games are so lovingly designed, this long-running staple of the series has never gotten boring.
What about you? Do you feel the need to complete rows of hearts in Zelda games? Perhaps you’re the opposite and challenge yourself to complete games with only the minimum number of Heart Containers? If not, are there other types of side quests you make sure to complete? Tell us down in the comments!
Andrew is a writing teacher in the American Upper Midwest. He has been playing Zelda games since 1990.
