The Deal Breaker

[vengenz]

As I was browsing some of the threads today, many talk about the next Zelda game(s) and what they want from it.
The best/worst temples. Hardest bosses. Expansion of Hyrule. Gerudo people back.
The past couple of games do have their disappointments to some people.
We all want different things and I have specially read how it is that Skyward Sword is not everyone's favorite (latest release).

I want to know, what would be your deal breaker?
As in, what does the next game(s) need to have that would make you definitely NOT want to purchase it?
or if you'd like to share your extremes: What will make you NOT a fan of Zelda series anymore?
Is there anything that would be too disappointing?

What do you guys NOT want to see form Zelda?

**I'll post my reply to this in a couple minutes to contribute.

 

[Cfrock]

I wouldn't it to change genre entirley. Like, if the next installment was a football game then I'd pass. Or if it was Project Hyrule Racing I'd steer clear. Or if it was Hyrule Hero, complete with plastic Ocarina then I'd give it a miss.

I've never really been disappointed by any game in the series (although I dislike Adventure of Link I was born after it's release and so knew what it would be like before playing, therefore, no disappointment) and so as long as it didn't change too extremely then I think I'd always be able to like it. I do feel the series needs to change and incorporate new ideas but I want it to do this in a way which feels natural to the series, not a sudden change into something completely different.

 

[Akiranon]

If the next game is going to have motion controls again, then I'm going to be very disappointed.

Don't get me wrong, I really did like the controls in Skyward Sword, but there's something about the controls now that feels gimmicky. I've been using a regular controller all my life and that's worked just fine. I'd rather see the next game use the Wii U gamepad's screen to its full potential. For example, use the screen as a map/inventory screen. That way we don't have to pause the game anymore to switch our items.

I'd like to see the new Zelda stick back to its roots. I'd really want it to back to the way it was in Ocarina of Time and the games before it: a bit of a dark, epic adventure. I'm not saying that Skyward Sword wasn't just that, but I'm sort of tired of the innovation. Either that, or I'm just getting too old for this. So, as an extreme, I'd rather not see it turn into a My Little Pony-esque game with motion controls only.

 

[Ventus]

Well, in general I just don't want Nintendo to continue on their casual-pleasing brigade that they've been on for the past couple years. With the Wii u releasing, it appears that the big N is finally going to return to the core player again, but Zelda definitely hasn't been in that light. So, I guess the following will make me definitely NOT buy the next Zelda:
- Level-like world instead of a world
The past three Zelda games have largely felt like a set of levels rather than a world that I could explore all on my own. PH had tedious boat travel that constantly reminded me that I'm playing a game, not off in my own world momentarily disconnected from reality. ST had the train, which chugs on for oh so long. SS had hallway-like areas despite labeling them volcanoes, forests, woods et cetera. What I'm saying is, they've all reminded me that I was playing a game instead of visiting another world. This doesn't do the Zelda series justice, and I'll whip out a quote from Miyamoto himself.

What if everything you see is more than what you see--the person next to you is a warrior and the space that appears empty is a secret door to another world? What if something appears that shouldn't? You either dismiss it, or you accept that there is much more to the world than you think. Perhaps it is really a doorway, and if you choose to go inside, you'll find many unexpected things.

I am not getting that out of Zelda. I'm getting expected, telegraphed things. If I find something with a predictable ending, it's one dimensional for me. I'd much rather go through many hoops than go through the same ol' stuff I've been doing for 25 years and on. Give me confusing overworlds and that infinite wonder the original release in '86 gave us, or I won't shell out money for the next Zelda.

- Extreme linearity
Linearity has been a problem with me because, like the level problem, it feels like I'm playing through a game. I want to be able to make choices, from completing dungeons in different orders to exploring the full length of the overworld without being impeded by some mischeviously placed rocks. Please, Nintendo, give us a world at least on par with OoT's if you can't give us LoZ.

- Primarily Sword-based enemies like SS'
I didn't like the forced "HIT ME HERE" gameplay of SS. It didn't take much skill for me and it didn't take much skill for others. If Nintendo does this again, know that I skipped that entry altogether.

- Motion Controls being the focal point
Motion control is gimmicky. Motion control isn't 100% accurate. Motion control takes longer than buttons to develop for. Need I say more? This doesn't mean motion control is bad, just that I'd much rather play with buttons.

- Easy bosses and especially final boss
When I think of the term boss, I think of a heavily-armored foe who cannot be easily beaten. Past Zeldas do not have that image for me, and in fact they are all so completely obvious to beat, I'd rather not waste the time to deal with them. Even if it's because I'm skilled at the game, I don't feel any kind of intensity while dispatching recent Zelda bosses, and this simply shouldn't be the case. Even in a game that I detest such as Kingdom Hearts 3D, I'm frequently driven on edge by bosses even when I'm ridiculously overleveled (like, LV25 in Traverse Town :brow: ). The worst thing in recent Zeldas is that the final boss is far too easy. The final boss shouldn't be a tutorial. The final boss of the game should be a test of your mettle, a trial to see how hot your fiery spirit can burn. If bosses in this next Zelda are easy, I'm not purchasing the game.

- Easy time in general
The overworld should be daunting, the dungeons should be even moreso, and field enemies while easy should still be able to give me a run for my money when in groups. If I don't get that, I'm skipping out on the next Zelda.
----------
This next thing isn't something that will keep me from buying the next Zelda, but it definitely will be something that disappoints me.

THE LACK OF A MAGIC METER
I miss magic in Zelda. It was a great thing to have, even if it wasn't always used to its maximum capabilities. It, well, gave the world a magical feel, which I really appreciate. I will be severely disappointed once again if the next Zelda doesn't have a green meter.

 

[DarkestLink]

I'll buy it no matter what, but there's a few things that could make me unexcited for the game:

Non-linearity: Thankfully Nintendo has been smart on this part and this isn't much of an issue, but I cringe whenever I play the older non-linear Zelda titles. The puzzles are limited as hell, the challenge feels off, and the story is extremely weak.

Magic Meter: I absolutely hated this. All it did was limit the fun we could have with certain items. I'm fine with other limitations like the stamina meter, but the magic meter severally hurt the games for me. Hopefully Nintendo keeps up their exclusion of this.

Overworld you can't walk in: I want to be able to walk, run, and ride in my overworld. Basically something like OoT/MM/TP rather than tWW/SS

Side Quest> Main Quest Focus: Sidequests have always been one of Zelda's weakest points. I'd rather they focus on the main quest, which they excel at.

 

[JuicieJ]

I don't really think there's anything that would STOP me from buying a Zelda game except a game that is clearly the entire antithesis of the series. Even then, I might buy it just to see how it played out. There are things that I would get pissed at were they to become factors in future games, however. Specifically the upcoming titles on the 3DS and Wii U.

The most significant ones would be:

• Having a hallway-ridden overworld

• Not having multiple control schemes for Zelda Wii U (Wii MotionPlus & Nunchuk, GamePad, Pro Controller)

• A lack of the refined dungeon/overworld transition found in Skyward Sword

• Enemies no longer taking advantage of directional swinging (3D games prior to SS could have easily benefited from some enemies taking advantage of horizontal and vertical slashes, and so can Zelda 3DS)

• No heavy focus on RPG mechanics and resource management

• A regression to The Wind Waker and Twilight Princess's ease in everything

I would also be sad to not see voice acting, but I wouldn't be overly upset, or anything.

 

[LinkIRL]

Navi...I don't want to see or hear Navi ever again. I've played OoT so many times...*shudders*

But in all seriousness, I can't really think of anything that would prevent me from purchasing a Zelda game. I guess I trust Nintendo enough to know that they won't butcher the series.

 

[Sir Quaffler]

One that might be a deal breaker for me is if they tried to implement the "realism" that so many other games these days use, I am just so sick of that look. Or if they try to make it like other games period, there's this sick desire among so many gamers for grit, blood, sex, ultra-violence, etc. that I find extremely repulsive.

I wouldn't pick up the next game if I found out Link was gay. If they gave us the option to choose which way Link swung would be one thing, Mass Effect does this exact same thing and I'm fine with it. But if he was forced to be gay with no ability for me to change it that would be a deal-breaker. But Nintendo seems to be very much against outright sexuality in the Zelda games, so I don't think I'm gonna hafta worry about this one.

I wouldn't pick up the next game if it turned out to be the spiritual successor for Adventure of Link. That game sucks and I hope Nintendo forgets about it forever.

 

[Spirit]

To be honest, if its more of the same then i won't buy it. I'm sick of Zelda catering to the hardware instead of the gamer now. The only reason PH/ST and SS seem to have been made was to show off what the console can do (ironically for SS, at the end of the Wii's life). I know at least one Zelda game for every console is a given but the games are designed around what the hardware can do now and it isn't pushing the series forward in the aspects i want like the story and or the world it is held in. SS was a motion control game for me, not a Zelda game, same with Ph and ST ebing stylus controlled games and not Zelda. If WiiU is a gamepad game instead of a Zelda then i'm not buying it.

 

[bunny]

To be honest, I'm not really a picky person when it comes to... pretty much anything; however, there are still a few things that'd be the "deal breaker" for me.

If the next Zelda game was rated M for something like nudity or sexual themes, then I definitely wouldn't buy it. Same goes for if Link were a homosexual or even bisexual. I don't believe in that sorta stuff, and it'd make me really upset if Nintendo added something like that to the Zelda series. If it were rated M for blood or violence, psh, I'd buy it anyways. I really don't think either of those would ever happen, though.

If Nintendo added voice-acting that sucked. Now, if the voice actors actually did a good job, then yeah, I'd probably learn to live with it, but I'd still be a bit sad. I think Nintendo has other things they need to fix in the Zelda series before they go adding something else.

That's about it. Like I said, I'm not really picky. I'm fairly certain I'll be buying the new Zelda game, though; I trust Nintendo to not ruin Zelda.

 

[Scoby]

No motion controls, i hated them in SS

 

[DarkestLink]

Navi...I don't want to see or hear Navi ever again. I've played OoT so many times...*shudders*

Nintendo: OK...

Ciela: Hey! Listen! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Listen!

Nintendo: *trollface*

 

[Heroine of Time]

I really love the Zelda series, and I can't imagine a game that I'd hate so much that I wouldn't buy it. Like JuicieJ said, even if it was the complete opposite of the series or something horribly awful, I'd still get it, just to see how it turned out.

There's not even a specific point I can think of at the moment that would make me unhappy. Maybe terrible, unresponsive controls or something. Or poor characters. And if the isn't the emotion and storytelling capability that SS held, I'll be disappointed. I really don't want to see Skyward Sword's graphics again, though – they're so beautiful, and I liked them way more than Twilight Princess's, but I still want to see something similar to the tech demo for the next Zelda game, or semi-realistic.

Celia:

Ciela: No one spells my name right...

XD

 

[Shadsie]

My Deal Breakers:

Making it an "M for Money" type game. Strange response from someone who writes some "R" rated fanfiction, but I really don't want to see a canon Zelda title that sacrifices story for an abundance of sexytimes and flying guts. I like that the games appeal to all or most ages, even though I am a grown-up. I don't need ultimately immature "faux-adulting."

For that matter, I don't want to see a game that destroys the magic for the sake of "realism" too much. I actually like some of the "grit" of some Zelda titles like Twilight Princess that forces you to work with just weapons, not spells. Even making a Zelda title where "magic is mostly gone from the land but Link plays a role in bringing it back" would be cool (my best known fanfic is like that). What I'm talking about in the way of "de-magicking" the series would be like... someone deciding to Ragnorok the gods and spiritual forces of Hyrule to shoehorn in some kind of "rationalist" aesop that doesn't *fit* the series, or someone forcing all the magic to be "technology" for the same "rationalizing" of everything. In other words, I like the magical land I go to whenever I play around in Hyrule. I *don't* want Link to jump off a building with a chicken in his hands and plummet to broken bones! I want the silly physics of the hookshot/clawshot! I want the "chosen Hero" stuff! This story is a "legend" and should remain so.

Making LoZ a First Person game/ First Person shooter type. This is the reason why I've never made much progress in Metroid Prime (so far) despite really, really wanting to: I SUCK AT FPS! There's something about that viewpoint that doesn't work for me. I just *don't like it.* I read somewhere that Ocarina of Time was almost a First Person view game, until Link's character designers got annoyed that players would not get to see their wonderful Link figure. Nintendo was *very wise* to keep the game third-person with the first-person viewfinder optional/temporary. I probably would have never played OoT if it was a First Person.

 

[Awesome]

Or if it was Hyrule Hero, complete with plastic Ocarina then I'd give it a miss.

Instead of Hyrule Hero just make it Ocarina Hero...I'd buy that...lolz

Honestly there's not much that would make it a dealbreaker for me....I mean if the gameplay was complete **** and the controls were broken then yeah...I'd pass. But even it's a mediocre Zelda game (Skyward Sword for example [in my opinion]) then I'd still buy it and enjoy it. But yeah what most people said...if it changes genres then I'd be skeptical and probably wait for a review.