Are These Welcome Ideas?

[Ventus]

So with the advent of technology and the newest Zelda game, Skyward Sword, we have had great Zelda games time and time again. But, Skyward Sword disappointed me in many aspects, and in the aspects where it made me happy...I still wanted more. So I was thinking, in Zelda games to come, there could be certain ideas that could be implemented, because believe it or not Zelda games coudl use a good change. Said ideas:

• Multiple Endings – I bring up multiple endings as a point because Skyward Sword and...well, actually almost all Zelda games featured dialog choices for Link. Depending upon those choices, and maybe even some small/large scale sidequests could be involved, we could get differing endings. Those endings could be ranging from great results to even the death of the hero. Different, I know, but plausible and realistic.
• Less Focus On Main Quest – what I mean here is that Zelda games need to have equal balance between the main quest and sidequests. If anyone played Majora's Mask, they will surely agree that the game has a complete harmony between sidequest and mainquest. That's hypothesized, especially by ZD's Sarianae, to be because the two are so close together that doing one makes you feel like doing the other (her full comment: Here)
• Out of Dungeon Boss Fights – The point of this is the fact that it was initially stated that Skyward Sword would feature out of dungeon boss fights but sadly only two bosses are fought in that manner. Out of dungeon boss fights could easily be a boon tot he Zelda series, and knowing Nintendo it would likely be pulled off very well.
• Return of Magic/Less Mechanized World – More me crying about older titles than any, but there has been a distinct lack of magical items featured in the Zelda series as of late. The entirety of Skyward Sword's items (minus equipment) was mechanized, where's all the magic?

So what are your thoughts? Any other ideas you'd like to bring into Zelda? Do you agree with my requests? If so, or even if not...why?

 

[Maikeru]

I would love these ideas to be used. While I was replying to Zelda, I was hoping that it may affect the ending I would get. I thought it would have been interesting if my relationship with Zelda would have been changed based on how I replied to her. Maybe one where in the ending Link and Zelda officially are "together". Maybe one where we turned out to be just friends and she maybe got together with Groose. There's more things that could happen with it, but I think it would be a nice way to go with it.

I don't mind having the main quest so much. It would be nice if I could play a Zelda game that was a little less predictable though. That's a big reason I still like Majora's Mask more than Skyward Sword. Having said that, it's probably obvious that I would like some more focus on some sidequests. Skyward Sword wasn't too bad on that. It didn't give the same feel of wanting to complete all the sidequests as Majora's Mask did though.

Out of dungeon boss fights would be great. Technically speaking, The Imprisoned, Ghirahim and Levias/Bicolyte all were out of dungeon bosses at least once. So, I'd say it was more than two. I would enjoy seeing more things like that though. Or maybe even a final dungeon similar to Kingdom Hearts 2, were you have to go through the area and overcome the challenges made by several members of an organization. Either way, out of dungeon boss battles would be great.

I definitely would enjoy seeing more magic items as well. As much as I love like, the Spinner, and enjoyed other things like the Beetle, I would like to have some magic back. Not necessarily taking out all of the mechanic items, but yeah, have magic too.

I can't say I dislike how the series is, but I'd love to see some changes like in a Zelda game one day.

 

[blackice_cc]

Definitely some good ideas here.

Multiple endings:
Personally, I'm not too big on things like this when it comes to Zelda. I don't really see that it would hurt (except for the inevitable "which ending is canon?" arguments), and it might very well give you some incentive to go through the game again; however, I don't see it as necessary, and I wouldn't enjoy any of the games much more if they had alternate endings.

Less focus on main quest:
Hey, I love side quests. It's always nice to have something to do other than progress with the main part of the game, especially in MM, where the side quests are almost like another, albeit optional, main quest. I don't think Nintendo is having problems with this one though; I'm not terribly far in SS, but it does seem like there are quite a number of side quests that have opened up, or that are going to soon. It definitely doesn't have nearly as much of a focus on optional quests as MM, but if it's a choice between a long main quest (which MM did not really have) and a ton of side quests, I'd go with the former. Of course, having an OoT sized main quest with as many side quests as MM would be awesome, but it seems Nintendo hasn't been able to do that yet.

Out of dungeon boss fights:
I haven't run into any of the SS out of dungeon boss fights yet, but I've got to say, the idea seems pretty cool. I can imagine it would excite things a little bit if, when you were just running around the woods on your way to another dungeon, you suddenly ran into some big monster you had to fight off. I would love to see boss fights that took place in big, outdoor areas, as opposed to the enclosed boss rooms with limited maneuvering space. Past Zelda games have had boss fights outside of dungeons (big Moblin guy in a cave in LA, boar chase/jousting in TP, and I know there was another one I was just thinking of...), but for the most part they've been far between and haven't felt a whole lot different from boss fights in the dungeons.

Magic instead of technology:
Great idea. I'd love some more magic, even though technological stuff can be pretty cool too. It's been too long since we've had magic rods, spells, and other things like that.

 

[JuicieJ]

• Multiple endings: No. That's not what Zelda is about. Despite the fact that Zelda's timeline is completely jacked up (at the moment), it still has one, which Aonuma and the rest of the Zelda team will put together eventually. Multiple endings would take that away and create way too much confusion among the community. The endings need to stay the same as they are.
  
  
• Less Focus on Main Quest: You mean what Skyward Sword did? Haha, yes, I think this is a great road for Zelda to take. It keeps the game fresh and allows it to feel like a true adventure.
  
  
• Out of Dungeon Boss Fights: Same thing as the previous. It creates diversity and allows the game to feel more like a real adventure, so, yes. I'm all for it.
  
  
• Return of Magic/Less Mechanized World: I definitely want to see magic return as soon as possible. It would have been nice to have it back in Skyward Sword, but it would have clashed with the mechanized world. That's where the second part of this comes in. While I enjoyed the dungeon-styled overworld, I wouldn't mind it being toned down a bit to allow magic to fit in. Magic allows for different types of puzzles, as does a mechanized world, but magic brings a different kind of life to the puzzles and doesn't focus only on them. Magic can be used anywhere at any time in Zelda, allowing it to be used in different and creative ways for things such as defeating foes, something simple mechanics can't do. So, yes, if it brings magic back, tone down the mechanisms of the world a bit. Just not too much. A balance between the two would create the ultimate Zelda experience.

All in all, I really like these ideas, and I've been thinking them myself. (Except for the multiple endings, of course.) Even though two of them have already been started, they could be expanded on a bit more, which I hope Zelda WiiU does.

And let's make sure we spam Nintendo's inbox with demands for magic, OK? :xd:

 

[Gizmo]

• Multiple Endings I'm pretty sure I wouldn't want to have "a good, a bad and a neutral" ending for the main quest BUT there should be such endings for side quests. In Zelda: The Minish Cap you could let that Grandpa-Minish-Person die or you could help him if you did it fast enough. Also there are different possible endings at the Kafei-quest in Zelda: Majora's Mask. I like things like that, I also like it when it isn't clear while playing, that there actually are different endings.
  
  
• Less Focus On Main Quest YES! Absolutely yes! I loved how much the final aim in Majora's Mask was most of the time only part of the background. Every temple had its very own reason why it needs to be visited by Link. The Deku King said that you should save his doughter and the apes said the poisoned water comes from that temple, the fisherman at the coast said that there are no more fishes since the water temple was cursed, the Gorons had a problem because spring didn't come and King Igos du Ikana wanted his men to be redeemed. I really loved this. It made the story and the whole game very varied. I also loved all the stuff that happened arround the temples in Majora's Mask. For example the Gerudo Pirates' fortress, that music-box-house-guy in Ikana, etc. It's too much to mention everything. This surrounding stuff is what I missed very much in Zelda: The Wind Waker and Twilight Princess. If you ask me this is it what makes a good Zelda game.
  
  
• Out of Dungeon Boss Fights I didn't think about this so far but I'm sure it is not a bad idea. It would actually work well together with your wish for more side quests I guess.
  
• Return of Magic/Less Mechanized World I liked the steampunk style of Majora's Mask very much (which is my favourit Zelda game as you probably already noticed) but it also had at least some magic in it. Twilight Princess had no steampunk AND not much magic which made me pretty sad. As of yet I don't know much about Skyward Sword but a good mix of both would be the best. None of it should dominate.

 

[Ronin]

Multiple Endings – I'm more for the simple conclusions to each adventure. Each of them have been wrapped up as to leave room for more possibilities for more games to follow. Aonuma said that he's trying to tie all the games together, after all, so this concept of multiple (or alternate, as I see it) endings would confound his attempts, in addition to anyone who's trying to finalize the timelines.

Less Focus On Main Quest – Yes. This aspect is fresh still and was implemented superbly in Skyward Sword. I'll admit to having a bit more infatuation for it over the regular explorative feature, which practically ceased in Twilight Princess.

Out of Dungeon Boss Fights – Once again SS has blown me away with this. Although taking place in a confined space the battle with The Imprisoned (which I saw via video) seems to have set this off by itself. I'm thinking Nintendo will probably place more Boss fights outside the Dungeons. It would be awesome if we were defending a castle under siege and a Boss was headed for it, and we had to defeat it before it reached the ramparts.

Return of Magic/Less Mechanized World – I'm fairly certain all the technological advancements are run by magical means. But magic--along with its Meter--does merit a return. I miss all the possibilities that derived from it and hope it is included with more mystical items.

 

[Links Brother]

MULTIPLE ENDING: No, I just wouldn't work. It might have worked for a game like Bioshock and Starwars force unleashed but Zelda is not a game that would show link turning evil or dying. I do love Multiple Endings but it just won't work for a game like this.
LESS FOCUS ON THE MAIN QUEST: I totally agree with you here. Side quests are a great part of any Zelda games. Skyward Sword might have been even better if it had more of them.
OUT OF DUNGEON BOSS FIGHTS: Are you talking about things like the Imprisoned? Ya, that would be nice. Having a few here and there.
RETURN OF MAGIC/LESS MECHANIZED WORLD: I do have to agree with you there. Skyward Sword felt very future like. It had talking robots, lasers, and no magic. It didn't effect me that much but it would be better if the next Zelda had more magic.

 

[MikauIncarnate]

Multiple Endings – Ehh, I don't think I'm a fan of this idea for Zelda as a whole. However, I do really like it if it were implemented for sidequests. One thing that would be really cool is depending on the way you accomplish a side-quest, you might get a reward of an item or something, and there might be a boss... more on that later.

Less Focus On Main Quest – Absolutely. I love sidequests, and I wish there were more of them and that they had actual rewards. I would love to see a sidequest where at the end of it you recieve and item that's not necessary to beat the game, but makes it easier and allows you to get pieces of heart, collection things. I also think it would be really cool if we had multiple trading quests, each culminating in some sort of actually good reward.

Out of Dungeon Boss Fights Yes, this would be really cool. I haven't gotten to any in SS yet, but I think this idea is just genius. I think it would be neat to have some bosses in sidequests, or even just running into one when you're out in the overworld. Like, in a town you hear rumors of "oh, there's this monster hanging out in the forest, it's carried off two children," or something, and then you find it and defeat it and get a reward.

Return of Magic/Less Mechanized World – I'm all for more magic, but less so for diminishing the mechanized world. I absolutely love all of the mechanical stuff in SS, but I don't think it would be great for other games. Instead, I propose a steampunk world, alongside magic. I think these two could coexist great, and I definitely want more magic in Zelda. I wish they would implement some sort of spell system, that could open locks or locate something or something else. Also, I wish there were some NPC's that could use magic, like a magician's guild or something, or just magicians wandering around. Even if Link didn't wield the magic, it needs to return in some form.