The Box Art...

[EternalNocturne]

Yeah, you guys are right. It's too far-fetched. But when I saw the circle in the back I immediately thought "Clock from Majora's Mask".. not sure why though. =\

Haha, that's what I thought too when I first saw it. Anything circular and has designs on it makes me think of that clock. :p But after looking at it for a little bit, there doesn't seem much of a resemblance.

Anyway, is this basically all the main things we've pointed out so far? (Excuse my lame editing skills. XD)

Spoiler

 

[Vibed]

That's about it.

But should we leave the theories as to what this means for another time, or should we press on?!

 

[CheapOne]

You forgot Din's Pearl, though it is largely just assumed to be there behind Phi's head.

 

[EternalNocturne]

You forgot Din's Pearl, though it is largely just assumed to be there behind Phi's head.

Well, yeah, but I was thinking that if I circled Phi's head and labeled it "Din's Pearl," that would look a little weird... XD

That's about it.

But should we leave the theories as to what this means for another time, or should we press on?!

PRESS ON. Because that's what we do. XD Although, I'd have to continue this tomorrow since I have to leave... -_-;

 

[Caelus]

So those weird Nazca-like symbols on the sides of the art... I think they represent the sages. Remember the shiekah symbol on the stone? I think that represents one of the sages, and that there are other sages of different races in this game that will help forge the Master Sword.

 

[EternalNocturne]

That means there would be 12 Sages... Along with 12 dungeons? But wait, there's always been six (seven including Zelda) Sages, so maybe not all of the dungeons have a Sage, sorta like in Ocarina of Time.

Also, wow, good job guys! I actually had no idea that that was Hylian text, but now that I look back, why wouldn't it be? Anyway, good job with the translation, knowing that the symbols mean really makes this boxart seem more epic... It's the best box art I've ever seen, to be honest.

Hehe... We should feel accomplished now. XD Thanks.

 

[Caelus]

Maybe every other dungeon has a sage? 12 is a multiple of 6, I can see it working out.

 

[EternalNocturne]

All this from the boxart. You theorists surprise me some times. 12 dungeons does seem a bit much though, I think I recall Nintendo saying Skyward Sword won't be a long game but dense?

Oh, true... I forgot about that. Hmm... Now I'm not sure. XD Although... ALttP had 12 dungeons. Would you call that a dense game? It wasn't packed with sidequests or anything, but... I felt like it had a lot of material.

Maybe every other dungeon has a sage? 12 is a multiple of 6, I can see it working out.

That's a nice idea; never thought about that!

 

[zeldahuman]

Well, the symbols are all different from what I've seen, so maybe, like in Ocarina of Time, each symbol is the "Temple/dungron symbol" in a sense. So, 12 dungeons. But doesn't 12 dungeons seem like... too much?

 

[Vibed]

I think I recall Nintendo saying Skyward Sword won't be a long game but dense?

They said it won't be as big, it will be denser, which could be interpreted a number of ways.

I think what they meant was the Overworld will be more compact with more things to do, unlike TP (no offense to it, but it has it's flaws.) There will be less filler content, more action.

I think the game will still be very long, considering this is the first console Zelda to not have anything cut. I mean they HAVE said they haven't even had the chance to look through all the content! Twelve does seem like a bit much, but hey, this will be the most grand adventure yet!

 

[Aero_Dynamic]

The box art looks great! I wish I could have it as a wallpaper for my desktop or a poster. It would look wicked awesome.

 

[Caelus]

They said it won't be as big, it will be denser, which could be interpreted a number of ways.

Source for them not saying it's big? Bill Trinen and Eiji Aonuma said it was the biggest Zelda yet.

 

[Sarianae]

Source for them not saying it's big? Bill Trinen and Eiji Aonuma said it was the biggest Zelda yet.

Both statements about density and size are basically correct, actually. What Vibed mentioned about density was something stated quite a ways back, however, while what Caelus is referring to is a much newer statement.

Statements on Density:

Aonuma: There was a sense that we had made The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess too big. We felt like we weren't able to fully leverage its scale and not quite package it into one solid piece. So we wanted to make sure we first built a strong foundation for the game and then create a compact, yet solid playing experience.

Iwata: I see. You're not saying there was too much to enjoy, but rather you might have been able to increase the density of game elements while packaging so many stages and other ideas in its vast world.

Miyamoto: Yeah, it's really more...it's not about game density, but about the density of play.

....

Iwata: Miyamoto-san your EAD team’s approach in making games could defined as a team that focuses on new ways to play rather than creating a new world. Even so, when a world gets as big as The Legend of Zelda I think the need to build out the world, the settings, and creating the scenarios including all of the details become very important. But Miyamoto-san, you said that for this new Zelda game you had been placing significant priority on specifically on how the game will be played since it started development.

Miyamoto: Yeah, that’s right. As we’re making Zelda I continue to discuss with Aonuma-san and the team as to why and what makes Zelda so much fun. We talk a lot about what is that flavor of Zelda. I think there’s a sense of realism in being in the land of Hyrule. But I think that realism comes from the characters and the details of the scenes. You need a sense that you are actually doing these actions, that you are in that world.

....

Aonuma: Hmm. Well I’ve been talking about this with Miyamoto-san and we’ve been throwing around the phrase “back to basics” as we were asking each other what core elements made The Legend of Zelda games fun.

Iwata: By pursuing why Zelda games are fun, you boil it down and make it denser. That’s what this new game is about, right?

Aonuma: Yes, that’s right. And that’s why we need all the things like story and world design and as we pull these things together we add more and more to make sure people can fully enjoy the game. I feel the process is working, I feel it firsthand that things are coming together nicely. As you start playing and start enjoying the game, all of these elements will gradually fill up your experience, and I think that’s what it’s going to feel like when you play. And that’s what I want people to enjoy when they’re playing the game.

[Source]
[Backup Source]
[Backup Source]
[Full Iwata Asks Transcript]

The following statements are MUCH newer however, and probably to be taken as more accurate to the final product at this point. Honestly though, they don't seem all that much different from the earlier statements mentioned above.
Statements on Length:

"I heard a rumor that this may be the longest and deepest Zelda game ever made."

Aonuma: "It's certainly no rumor what-so-ever. It is definitely a tremendous game- there is so much content that Mr. Miyamoto and I haven't been able to thoroughly play it all. We're obviously in the process of doing the refinement, but the fact that we're still chewing through the content as we go is a testament to the fact that it is a game backed by a tremendous volume of game play and content. When I say volume, its not necessarily just that there's a big world out there to explore. You come to understand the structures of things in your world, and you'll see a broadening of a kind of game play that goes on in these structures as you're playing through. So, that's one way the game has tremendous volume."

[Source Link]
[Backup Source Link]
[Related Statements]
[Older Related Statements]

I would say you can expect Skyward Sword to be a combination of everything, between density, length, and expansiveness. In general, just expect a whole lot of material to be coming at you...definitely an experience to be looking forward to.

Aside from that, there seem to be new pictures up for the golden wiimote.



[Images here]
Mmmm....it's looking great. Can't wait to get this along with the game! ^^

 

[EternalNocturne]

Oh, what a nice post. ^_^ Thanks for the refreshment on the info.

So, in that case, would 12 dungeons still be a possibility?

 

[Kybyrian]

Rather than discussing the possibility of 12 dungeons in this thread, it would be better to create a separate thread for it. This is for discussion about the box art, and this seems to be a topic that could be expanded on.