General Zelda Is Zelda Too Childish to Continue to Flourish?

[Jamie]

I was playing ALBW on my 3DS this morning when a friend of mine walked in and commented on how Zelda is "for kids". While I agree that Zelda's target demographic, especially in North America, is certainly not adults, I wonder... Is this a bad thing?

With the new "hardcore gaming" consoles, the PS4 and the XBox One completely dominating the market, one has to wonder how long Nintendo can keep this up. Obviously the WiiU is far from a commercial success, and it's not just a lack of advertising, it's also an issue of content. No one wants to buy a WiiU if they have to hold some funky controller to play their Call of Duty. The childish games seemed to at least partially work in the past, but let it be noted that both the GameCube and the N64 sold poorly in the past, most likely due to the more serious games that Sony provided. The Wii is certainly an outlier because it is a family console. But the WiiU failed at hitting the family market and come off as a console for kids.

The 3DS is actually selling quite well, despite all of what I've just said. Perhaps people are more inclined to get their kids a handheld than a home console, or perhaps games like Pokemon attract kids to the 3DS more than home console games. So I guess the topic at hand here is really about home console Zelda, as we can imagine anything on the 3DS to sell at least up to par with other companies.

Skyward Sword did not sell very well and it's highly unlikely anything on the WiiU will sell well, so do you think Nintendo needs to "amp up" one of their most beloved franchises? Perhaps it's too late for Zelda? After all, many people already equate Zelda to childishness. What do you think?

 

[Sheik]

Honestly, media today is too much judged by its "childishness". This is a load of crap.

In our society, edginess is glorified way too much. This is a problem with... children. Being one of the more, uh, youthful members here, I know what children these day are like, and I know what they want out of games. All my classmates ever do is cuss and make sex jokes and talk about Halo and Call of Duty or whatever. Can't stand them sometimes.

Mario and Pokemon are "uncool", since they aren't as "mature" as Call of Duty and Halo and all the other big M-rated franchises. So what Nintendo could do is spice up the edginess in Zelda, but that's not what they should do. Edginess, especially forced edginess, probably won't make the games any better. Yeah, I guess it'll increase sales, but it won't increase the quality of the game, will it? (Unless it's that type of game where darker would make it more believable/fitting, which I suppose is the exception...)

If they want to increase sales, then they should make the Zelda games darker and more adult-oriented. But that still won't please many people who see every game, no matter what rating or genre, as art.

Oh, and tell your friend... That label in the bottom left corner of the box? That's E for Everyone, not C for Children.

 

[43ForceGems]

I think lately Zelda games have tended to look more childish and have a more childish feel. I don't mean that like it's not ok for people not kids to play them, I mean I'm not really a child anymore, but I played the crap out of ALBW. But I think Nintendo used to be a lot darker. Just look at Majora's Mask. And a lot of Ocarina of Time. Cough, Shadow Temple, cough cough. I mean personally I think Majora's Mask is one of the most sheerly dark and depressing games of impending doom ever made. I think Nintendo is capable of making dark games, as they have expressed, but for some reason they're trying to stay more towards kids and the "family" setup. I would LOVE to see a dark Zelda game again though. A super serious one that kids wouldn't understand anything past "I got the bow!" I think they have the potential, but they're choosing not to

 

[VikzeLink]

Skyward Sword did not sell very well and it's highly unlikely anything on the WiiU will sell well

Ummm…. people will be buying Wii U just to play the new Super Smash… trust me

 

[Hylianhero91]

No... Zelda is a fantasy game, that does not make it kiddy. Imo Zelda games are usually too advanced for kids. They cant understand any of the puzzles. Since when did Skyward sword sell bad?

 

[DarkestLink]

Well...with its childish visuals and difficulty, yes it is rather childish. Not really an issue overall, except that it's trying to appeal to an audience too young to read and ergo doesn't really satisfy anyone.

 

[Burnbull423]

Instead of going on a rant about 5 year olds on COD, And gears of war, I'll just shorten it to this,
Yes, LoZ does need to "amp up"

 

[onebizarrekai]

Ah ha ha ha ha! That's a funny question.

No.

 

[Heroine of Winds]

Not really. Zelda isn't 100% childish, you know. Despite the games looking childish, they do have some dark moments in them. Same excuse for other game series like Kirby.

 

[DuelMark]

I have a response for your friend, but it's not exactly appropriate for the forums.

 

[Salem]

No, it isn't too "childish" to flourish. it just needs the right "push", that's all.

 

[Skunk]

I find that people seem to decide that if your game is not realistic looking, does not contain over-sexualization, tends to not contain profanity or profanity, or contains some combination of the three, then the game must be childish and therefore only made for children. The Legend of Zelda series has never contained any of those things because it didn't need them. I don't think that the series is too childish to last, because I don't think that the series is childish.

 

[Force of Power]

Wait... Zelda is considered childish..? That doesn't make any sense whatsoever. I mean, isn't this supposed to be one of the most epic game franchises ever created and changes video gaming as we know it? With a dark plot, larger-than-life characters, and action and evil at every turn? Dude, no offense, but your friend might not know what he's talking about.

And what's all this about Skyward Sword not selling well? Skyward Sword was reported as the fastest-selling Zelda title created, no?

 

[Jamie]

Ummm…. people will be buying Wii U just to play the new Super Smash… trust me

Right. Just like they bought it for Mario 3D World.

Wait... Zelda is considered childish..? That doesn't make any sense whatsoever. I mean, isn't this supposed to be one of the most epic game franchises ever created and changes video gaming as we know it? With a dark plot, larger-than-life characters, and action and evil at every turn? Dude, no offense, but your friend might not know what he's talking about.

And what's all this about Skyward Sword not selling well? Skyward Sword was reported as the fastest-selling Zelda title created, no?

It's just the perception by many modern gamers. Whether or not they are right is kind of irrelevant to how their view may be affecting sales. Also fastest means nothing. Skyward Sword sold less than 4m copies on Nintendos biggest home console ever. TWW sales were better and it was on the GameCube.

 

[Force of Power]

Right. Just like they bought it for Mario 3D World.

Smash Bros. is different, though. People waiting for a new Metroid or Zelda or anything other than Mario and DK to buy a Wii U would surely get Smash Bros. just for Wii U. I know some people who only like Nintendo just for Smash Bros. and will get a Wii U just for it.

It's just the perception by many modern gamers. Whether or not they are right is kind of irrelevant to how their view may be affecting sales. Also fastest means nothing. Skyward Sword sold less than 4m copies on Nintendos biggest home console ever. TWW sales were better and it was on the GameCube.

Good point. What Nintendo needs to do is advertise a bit more to up the "epicness" level to give people the real idea. Either way, the facts are there. Right in front of my glowing eyes.