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StarTopic The Legend of Zelda series |ST| Or: The Legend of Groose

merp

merp

Darknut
Pronouns
He/him
images


Details

First Began: February 21, 1986

Publisher: Nintendo

Developers: Nintendo EAD (1986–2013), Capcom (2002–2004), Grezzo (2011–2019), Nintendo EPD (2015–present)

Descriptors: Puzzles, open-world, adventure

1. A rundown of The Legend of Zelda as told by merp

98dtxsjorra11.jpg


The series started in the 1980s and was basically meant to be a sci-fi game with swords and shit (basically, the magic was just technology from the ancients). The Legend of Zelda did well enough to spawn a second game, Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (the "black sheep" of the series considering it's a 2D side-scroller but one I aim to play some day). The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (1991), a fan-favorite, introduced the "parallel worlds" concept (where there is the "original" overworld that you start out in and then another overworld that you can appear that resembles the first one a bit). The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening would come out in 1993 for the Game Boy although it wouldn't reach the same height of prestige as A Link to the Past did.

Up till now, we've recounted the games in the pre-3D graphics era. If you've never played a Zelda game before, you may know of the three main characters, Link, Zelda, and Ganon or Ganondorf. Maybe you'll know Impa or Sheik from the Smash series. The story is pretty straight-forward in that you're Link using a magic sword to eventually slay Ganon or Ganondorf (after progressing a few levels here and there) and save Zelda. It's pretty much King Arthur mixed with some chivalric "save the princess" trope.

Moving on. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time would come out in 1998. It's a game I grew up with, one of the first I played (the very first being Star Wars: Podracer). I gave up on it. It was too scary to me as a kid and I wouldn't complete it until 2006 or 2007 (when I literally rebought an N64 to play it because it stuck in my mind even till then). For a long time after its release, it was considered the quintessential Zelda title in the series with possibly A Link to the Past rivaling it in terms of its status among the fans. Shortly thereafter, The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask was rushed through development while the N64 life-cycle was ending. I saw it in commercials along with Wind Waker, strangely enough, and it's the one I often thought about throughout the 2000s.

I feel like this video captures my thoughts regarding Ocarina of Time well and what I thought back then, but it's, like, 2 hours long so maybe just listen to it in a separate tab while you do other things:

(Warning: Baldy humor from the 2000s as well except it's not from the 2000s)




Anyway, where was I? Ah yes. So Ocarina of Time introduced the human form of Ganon (Ganondorf), gave him a backstory, and introduced the backstory of the Triforce, among other things. Oh yeah, and the ambience was off the charts. Seriously, just listen to it. Click the link. And this too. Oh, and I guess this too.

(Listen to the links, Link. Listen!)

The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker (the first Zelda game I completed and the first game I completed, period; seriously, nobody around me completed a video game ever up until then) would come out for the GameCube in 2002. It was good. That's all I'll say about it, but at the time, I was defensive of it and hated Twilight Princess. I also hated Twilight Princess outside of the people that defended it because it felt too much like Ocarina of Time (without being, like, it's own thing, you know?). Later, I would appreciate Twilight Princess more, but that's not until now. But yes, Wind Waker came out, many didn't like it (though many certainly did), and many were hoping for another game as "realistic" as Ocarina of Time, which we got with Twilight Princess in 2006.

Oh yeah, and some shit about the Four Swords Adventures (2004). Anyway... Oh. Yeah. Also, there was The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons and The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages back in 2001. Hopefully those last two will be remade for the Switch or something. Maybe we'll even get a third game for it.

The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap (2004) was also a thing and I hated it. I remember throwing up after seeing the Gameboy Advance's screen. It was kinda... weird? Idk. Bad memories with that game. Also, someone deleted my save anyway.

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (2007) and The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (2009)... happened. I remember being really excited that we got a sequel to Wind Waker but Phantom Hourglass remains quite possibly my most hated Zelda game and I never completed it. Never played Spirit Tracks. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (2011) is what I wanted to play, but by that time, I had stopped caring about Nintendo and was upset with them (Wii U didn't help). Don't get me wrong: the issues that people brought up with it seemed a bit petty but otherwise I couldn't see myself playing another Zelda game at the time so I gave up. One thing I did like was that the official timeline came out and I loved it... even though Zelda YouTubers hated it.

Zelda YouTubers hate it so much that they've convinced themselves that there's a "unified timeline" or at least pretending that there is one (but we all know Nintendo doesn't give a shit what the Zelda theorists on YouTube think so we'll move on).

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds (2013)... was just a game. Just kidding. It was actually great, even though it's somewhat underrated. Well, I mean, it got its due in terms of praise, but I honestly liked it more than I should have. Choosing your weapons, choosing which dungeon to go to it... I like that. Oh yeah, and Ganon wasn't the main villain (more or less) this time around so that's neat. Oh, and let's not forget to mention The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes (2015). Now that we've mentioned it: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017) was the game that I watched hundreds of "Zelda theory" videos on YouTube in anticipation for and it exceeded my expectations! But also, I was disappointed. I wanted more lore and world-building. The plot itself is bare-bones. But certainly, I just wish there was a bit more to it than what we got. Hard to explain.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (2023) is coming out soon and, well, it's about time that Famiboards had an ST thread for the series in general. So yeah, here it is.

What games should I start with?

Which-Zelda-Game-to-Play-First.jpg


Frankly, Ocarina of Time would be your best bet and then I guess Majora's Mask. It's still a good starting point. If you want to play the next upcoming game (Tears of the Kingdom), then I suggest playing not only Breath of the Wild, but probably Skyward Sword since it'll involve some shit with the Master Sword. Maybe Twilight Princess since BOTW/TOTK likely take place in the Child Timeline? Perhaps. Oh, and there are three main timelines in the Zelda series (Child being the middle one), but whatever.

Honestly, definitely play the more up-to-date Zelda games, such as the 3DS version of Ocarina of Time, if you can. Same with Majora's Mask. Or not. You can also play these games on your Switch or something. I would argue that the original version of Majora's Mask is how it should be played. Skyward Sword HD makes more sense as well since it comes without the requirement of motion controls (unless you want that thing). I suppose you could wait until Twilight Princess HD comes to the Switch, but until then, emulation might be your best bet. It's a pity because some of these games just aren't available on the Switch and not everyone is going to have some GameCube from the 2000s lying around to play, say, Wind Waker. And not everyone got a Wii U for Wind Waker HD.

There's also the Hyrule Warriors spin-off series by Koei Tecmo. I'm not going to bother mentioning the other spin-off titles.

There's also Zelda games that never made it to America:



Oh yeah, and Zelda-likes

3919415-eastward.jpg


I probably should mention this, but the series has spawned its own genre known as "Zelda-likes."

Basically, games like Zelda that use puzzle-solving and items. Eastward is probably the best example of this, but then there are "Breath-likes" such as Genshin Impact.

See here.

And here:




You all can find some more, I'm sure.


In sum

Consider this a Legend of Zelda general discussion thread because that's what it's meant to be (one that I made in a period of under two hours).

Ciao!
 
Finally. Links Awakening was the first one I played (didn't have a NES until later) and played it a ton as a kid as it was one of the few games I had.
 
Is Eastward really like Zelda?
I had no idea. Maybe I should get on that.
 
This thread just reminded me that I have a save of another OoT replay. Still amazed how well it holds up to this day. Hopefully I can finish it before the end of the year.
 
Dardan Sandiego said:
This thread just reminded me that I have a save of another OoT replay. Still amazed how well it holds up to this day. Hopefully I can finish it before the end of the year.
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It's never a bad time to replay Ocarina. It's one of those games that I keep telling myself "this is probably dated and overrated by now" but every time I go back to it, nope, it still owns.
 
Amazing game series.

I want to know where Thee Faces of Evil (Koridai) (AKA Squaddalah, We Are Off) and Wand of Gamelon fit into the timeline!

It's Friday night...
 
Irene said:
Kicking off the thread with OoT gushing and essay linking, good stuff.

I implore people to watch this one as well. It takes video essaying and makes it art.

Click to expand...

Fine, I'll watch it.
 
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CTRL+F: "Tingle"
No matches found.
What sort of Zelda thread is this?​


merp said:
I liked it but it's kinda wrong. @Irene
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What about it in particular?

I'd posit the themes described can be seen in the game, though I'd never suggest they're buried particularly deeply. Nevertheless, it is left on the surface as being a rather simple adventure story, but with some clear thematic throughlines if one cares to look -- and perhaps this is part of why it's so enduring.

And on the issue of sorrow, Ocarina of Time does end [/ispoiler]with Link being sent back to regain his lost childhood years, but never truly being able to reclaim the lost childhood itself, forever fundamentally changed by his experiences.[/ispoiler]*

This is then brought to the forefront from the beginning of Majora's Mask, which then follows through with its own more overt sorrow, almost like a reflection of Link's inner turmoil. And perhaps this plays into why Majora's Mask works so well as a followup.

Which is then continued with the Hero's Shade, consumed of lingering regret.

*In a way, somewhat similar to the end of the Return of the King, book form specifically, wherein the Hobbits have gone on their adventure and fought to preserve the world, yes, but also specifically to preserve the Shire; when they finally return, they find it scarred and scoured, in need of saving but never to truly be the same -- The Scouring of the Shire -- and this is a very important part of the book and I'm still not over that they left it out of the movie.

But at least they left in Frodo's PTSD, where he is forever scarred inside.

... sorry. This is a Zelda thread.
 
I just wanna say here that I'm hoping for a Zelda game that can somehow deconstruct its own signature tropes, the same way BioWare regularly deconstructs its own "chosen one story" tropes in say Jade Empire or Mass Effect 2 or the Tales series takes apart the same shit with JRPGs (other JRPG series do it too, I know).

I know BotW does some legwork on this, but it is a bit hampered by the "force of nature" portrayal of Ganon. What if we had a game that examined the seemingly idyllic union of various cultures in Hyrule? I have an idea for a Skyward Sword "sequel" where Link has to explore the world and establish new settlements from the initial city-state of Hyrule, but runs into opposition from the staple races like Gorons or Zoras. It would play into the open world quite well too.
 
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Fun fact, my birthday is the same as Zelda's, but 10 years later. My first memories of life are playing Ocarina of Time, and Zelda is the reason my wife and I connected, and we had a master sword cake cutter at our wedding.

It's a series I love so much that I can't even really put into words everything that I enjoy about it. But I'd say I have some amount of love for every game I've played in the series, including a genuine love for the humor and music of the cdi games (made much easier to enjoy through the great PC versions by good ol' Dopply).

The only Zelda games I haven't played are the Tingle DS games and Zelda's Adventure. I'll try to rectify those eventually, though I'm not looking forward to Zelda's Adventure lol
 
Supreme Overlord said:
CTRL+F: "Tingle"
No matches found.
What sort of Zelda thread is this?​



What about it in particular?

I'd posit the themes described can be seen in the game, though I'd never suggest they're buried particularly deeply. Nevertheless, it is left on the surface as being a rather simple adventure story, but with some clear thematic throughlines if one cares to look -- and perhaps this is part of why it's so enduring.

And on the issue of sorrow, Ocarina of Time does end [/ispoiler]with Link being sent back to regain his lost childhood years, but never truly being able to reclaim the lost childhood itself, forever fundamentally changed by his experiences.[/ispoiler]*

This is then brought to the forefront from the beginning of Majora's Mask, which then follows through with its own more overt sorrow, almost like a reflection of Link's inner turmoil. And perhaps this plays into why Majora's Mask works so well as a followup.

Which is then continued with the Hero's Shade, consumed of lingering regret.

*In a way, somewhat similar to the end of the Return of the King, book form specifically, wherein the Hobbits have gone on their adventure and fought to preserve the world, yes, but also specifically to preserve the Shire; when they finally return, they find it scarred and scoured, in need of saving but never to truly be the same -- The Scouring of the Shire -- and this is a very important part of the book and I'm still not over that they left it out of the movie.

But at least they left in Frodo's PTSD, where he is forever scarred inside.

... sorry. This is a Zelda thread.
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But the Hero's Shade is not a Stalfos.
 
During Christmas break I intend to play through Ocarina of Time and Skyward Sword (would have loved to WW and TP, but alas), in a ploy to get in a strong Zelda mood before TotK. This will culminate in a slow playthrough of BotW probably in February. We are now in a Zelda era.
 
Charamiwa said:
During Christmas break I intend to play through Ocarina of Time and Skyward Sword (would have loved to WW and TP, but alas), in a ploy to get in a strong Zelda mood before TotK. This will culminate in a slow playthrough of BotW probably in February. We are now in a Zelda era.
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I love the lead-up to a Zelda game.
 
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My first Zelda game was A Link to the Past. My parents rented it for me when it first came out, and I became obsessed. It was the only thing I wanted for Christmas that year, and I got it. I played it so much that I used to act out the whole game's story with my sister when we were bored and not at home. I still play it about once a year at least, and it might just be my favorite video game ever.

I remember going to Disneyland when I was in first grade. At the time my family lived in a home that had a garage that was converted into an apartment, and my first grade teacher lived in it. She went with us, which to my six year old brain was unbelievably cool, the teacher playing hooky with me basically. We rode the People Mover, and that ride had a segment where you went through a tunnel with video screens all over the walls and ceiling, which just played a psychedelic garage of colors and shapes. My teacher was well aware of how much I loved Zelda, and she hyped up that part of the ride as "going inside Zelda". My mind was blown.

I realize that story isn't really relevant, but it's a memory that's tied up very tightly with the game for me. And it's a happy one so I like to think about it.
 
KilgoreWolfe said:
My first Zelda game was A Link to the Past. My parents rented it for me when it first came out, and I became obsessed. It was the only thing I wanted for Christmas that year, and I got it. I played it so much that I used to act out the whole game's story with my sister when we were bored and not at home. I still play it about once a year at least, and it might just be my favorite video game ever.

I remember going to Disneyland when I was in first grade. At the time my family lived in a home that had a garage that was converted into an apartment, and my first grade teacher lived in it. She went with us, which to my six year old brain was unbelievably cool, the teacher playing hooky with me basically. We rode the People Mover, and that ride had a segment where you went through a tunnel with video screens all over the walls and ceiling, which just played a psychedelic garage of colors and shapes. My teacher was well aware of how much I loved Zelda, and she hyped up that part of the ride as "going inside Zelda". My mind was blown.

I realize that story isn't really relevant, but it's a memory that's tied up very tightly with the game for me. And it's a happy one so I like to think about it.
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That’s awesome! Link to the Past was one of my first games that I ever owned, and my first Zelda. I remember slowly making progress over the span of literal months since I kept getting stuck (being in elementary school and also the internet not really being a thing). I remember being so stumped about how to access the dungeon in the swamp in the dark world that I just kept exploring the whole world over and over again until I eventually figured it out weeks later.

That kind of thing might only really be an option when you’re a little kid with tons of free time, but I do sort of miss that sense of discovery and “ah ha!” moment
 
SammyJ9 said:
That’s awesome! Link to the Past was one of my first games that I ever owned, and my first Zelda. I remember slowly making progress over the span of literal months since I kept getting stuck (being in elementary school and also the internet not really being a thing). I remember being so stumped about how to access the dungeon in the swamp in the dark world that I just kept exploring the whole world over and over again until I eventually figured it out weeks later.

That kind of thing might only really be an option when you’re a little kid with tons of free time, but I do sort of miss that sense of discovery and “ah ha!” moment
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I know exactly what you mean, I kinda miss that too. Tunic actually managed to recreate that feeling for me, but it's still not quite the same.

Actually that reminds me, I had the Nintendo Player's Guide for ALttP and that had utterly gorgeous art. I read it until it fell apart. I miss that guide so much.
 
KilgoreWolfe said:
I know exactly what you mean, I kinda miss that too. Tunic actually managed to recreate that feeling for me, but it's still not quite the same.

Actually that reminds me, I had the Nintendo Player's Guide for ALttP and that had utterly gorgeous art. I read it until it fell apart. I miss that guide so much.
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That’s part of why I loved Tunic! The problem is, these days, the urge to just look up a guide/hint/etc is way too strong; even if I got stuck somewhere for hours my willpower would eventually break. Back then, though, I didn’t know any better or have other options, so I just wandered around the world for days on end until I finally figured out how to get the damn bird travel, lol.
 
The Legend of Zelda has always been a game series I keep returning to, they pull me in and they manage to stay in my memories. It's a marriage of everything in gaming that just works for me.

Gameplay, music, atmosphere. All nailed.

I started with the NES game but it was later that a Link to the Past that clinged to me like a baby sloth who didn't have it's food yet. That world felt so huge at the time. Way too big as a kid actually. It folded out like a big storybook and my mind filled in all the gaps like a bedtime story that never finished properly. This was the moment I became a Zelda addict (and started playing Graal Online after) oh and Link's awakening , which also was a good game.
...
Then there was Ocarina of Time, holy shit. Enough said, growing up in the OoT timeline (guess I was like 9 or 10) is the reason that our generation truly is the last bastion of hope, what a treat. It blew everything I experienced back from a Link to the Past right out of the water. Words fall short to describe it. The game essentially made me realize books were way overrated.

Having experienced the peak of gaming quite early as a kid (both OoT and Banjo Kazooie) I was left insatiated, wishing for more. Then came Majora's Mask, which I never played as a kid because I HATED the time mechanic, it made me very anxious so I just emulated it down the road and cheated the time mechanic out of it and with that missed the best parts (which I later DID play)

The Paper Mario franchise carried me for a bit after until the most comfy game ever released, namely, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. I kept searching the web for information seeing people hating on the art style which I immediatly fell in love with. This game simply had the most comfy vibe ever. i never realized the game was incomplete, no game has ever managed to top the comfiness I felt in that game (Mystery Dungeon advance generation came close though)

Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword while both great games did not really leave an impact on me. I actually grew tired of Skyward Sword at one point, it dragged on.

...Enter Breath of the Wild, we're comfortably back at the top and soon... Breath of the Wild 2! (True title)

Being a Zelda gamer is a hell of a drug.
 
SammyJ9 said:
That’s awesome! Link to the Past was one of my first games that I ever owned, and my first Zelda. I remember slowly making progress over the span of literal months since I kept getting stuck (being in elementary school and also the internet not really being a thing). I remember being so stumped about how to access the dungeon in the swamp in the dark world that I just kept exploring the whole world over and over again until I eventually figured it out weeks later.

That kind of thing might only really be an option when you’re a little kid with tons of free time, but I do sort of miss that sense of discovery and “ah ha!” moment
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I understand that entirely. I had the same experience with both Zelda 1 and LTTP, where I was entirely reliant on my own notes and maps for the first one, and that set me up for LTTP, in that I was relentlessly taking notes on anything weird and NPC dialogue to return to later. I still do it now, albeit I’m more likely to jot stuff down in the notes app on my phone. I always felt that games like Zelda and Simons Quest assumed kids would be writing stuff down either in the back of the manual or on a bit of paper as the manuals often had some spare pages for notes at the back, although I don’t think I ever wrote in one!
 
PixelKnight said:
I understand that entirely. I had the same experience with both Zelda 1 and LTTP, where I was entirely reliant on my own notes and maps for the first one, and that set me up for LTTP, in that I was relentlessly taking notes on anything weird and NPC dialogue to return to later. I still do it now, albeit I’m more likely to jot stuff down in the notes app on my phone. I always felt that games like Zelda and Simons Quest assumed kids would be writing stuff down either in the back of the manual or on a bit of paper as the manuals often had some spare pages for notes at the back, although I don’t think I ever wrote in one!
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Wait..

You actually do note-taking while you game?!

I only ever do that while reading a book, but while you're gaming?!

...You're kinda blowing my mind right now.

groose.jpg
 
merp said:
Wait..

You actually do note-taking while you game?!

I only ever do that while reading a book, but while you're gaming?!

...You're kinda blowing my mind right now.

groose.jpg
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Totally, ever since I was a kid. Maps too- it made games much easier back when dungeons were way less easy to navigate, stuff like Wizardry, Phantasy Star. It was essential for all manner of adventure games in the 80s too.

Maps on grid paper, annotated. What’s really cool is you end up with your own hand drawn maps. That’s part of the appeal of Etrian Odyssey for me :)

It depends on the type of game. Metroidvanias, Zelda, JRPGs and dungeon crawls. Anything with sidequests that aren’t logged in-game. Anything where you might have to return to a place later on. If the game is likely to have a backtracking element, if I pass a cave, an altar for an item, a switch, a place that looks like a boss room or a weird statue, anything unique, I jot it down. Saves me so much time later on when I pick up the Rock of Macguffin and all it has is a vague hint of ‘looks like it’s part of something!’, if I have a list of interesting things I’ve seen that could work. For Metroidvanias, I’ll often jot down where that place is too, even if it’s just ‘upper left of upper left area’ to jog my memory. As those games have a habit of many rooms that look similar. If the game doesn’t log its sidequests I will, as I hate picking up something and not remembering exactly which forgettable NPC wanted it for something.
 
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PixelKnight said:
Totally, ever since I was a kid. Maps too- it made games much easier back when dungeons were way less easy to navigate, stuff like Wizardry, Phantasy Star. It was essential for all manner of adventure games in the 80s too.

Maps on grid paper, annotated. What’s really cool is you end up with your own hand drawn maps. That’s part of the appeal of Etrian Odyssey for me :)

It depends on the type of game. Metroidvanias, Zelda, JRPGs and dungeon crawls. Anything with sidequests that aren’t logged in-game. Anything where you might have to return to a place later on. If the game is likely to have a backtracking element, if I pass a cave, an altar for an item, a switch, a place that looks like a boss room or a weird statue, anything unique, I jot it down. Saves me so much time later on when I pick up the Rock of Macguffin and all it has is a vague hint of ‘looks like it’s part of something!’, if I have a list of interesting things I’ve seen that could work. For Metroidvanias, I’ll often jot down where that place is too, even if it’s just ‘upper left of upper left area’ to jog my memory. As those games have a habit of many rooms that look similar. If the game doesn’t log its sidequests I will, as I hate picking up something and not remembering exactly which forgettable NPC wanted it for something.
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OMG
 
merp said:
Wait..

You actually do note-taking while you game?!

I only ever do that while reading a book, but while you're gaming?!

...You're kinda blowing my mind right now.

groose.jpg
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I haven’t much in a while, but back in the days of the NES and especially early PC gaming, taking notes and drawing your own maps was practically required. I used to have grid paper maps of a ton of early computer games, and notes on things like how to craft spells in King’s Quest 3, etc.
 
merp said:
OMG
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In fact, if I remember correctly, didn’t some copies of Zelda 1 come with a big fold out map with some areas as blanks for the player to fill in themselves? That and the blank pages in the back of manuals always pretty much endorsed the idea that you should be taking notes and maps to me as a kid :D

Admittedly at the time I was at school everything was pen and paper and exercise books, it was the thing I always had lying around. As taking a notebook with me to school was like taking a little piece of the game I was currently playing too. I’d make little lists of things to try next, places to look to find that secret I was stumped on, that kind of thing. Back then games didn’t have the guides all over the internet so unpacking stuff through trial, error, notes and playground rumours were the tools we had!

Grid paper is still one of the best tools for unpacking geometric dungeons if there isn’t an in-game map. Being able to easily visualise which way is north, where you haven’t been, which places a secret door cant be and what is the quickest and safest route between two points is all useful info.
 
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I'm currently doing another playthrough of BotW. Played it and defeated the final boss on Wii U, started a Master Mode playthrough on Switch but burned out about 20 hours in.

Playing it in normal mode this time. Decided to start by leaving the Great Plateau in the opposite direction I had in my previous playthroughs, heading south instead. Within short order, I'd already found a shrine hidden behind a waterfall I'd never encountered before, and was going through areas of the map that I had no recollection of ever seeing.

Xenoblade X has the more out there and visually interesting open world, but gosh darn if BotW doesn't just keep knocking me to the floor with how well it's plateaus, valleys and mountains are designed to keep you finding stuff. I really hope Tears of the Kingdom is able to keep that going with its new map layout, as getting lost in a map like this is one of my favourite gaming experiences ever.
 
Muppet's Recommended Newcomer's Order and also my personal top 3:

1). Breath of the Wild as a total package with emphasis on exploration and mood.
2). Link Between Worlds for perfectly distilled Zelda gameplay and a perfect illustration of 2D Zelda's power.
3). Skyward Sword for the ultimate Zelda Dungeon Experience (tm).
 
manfromthedam said:
Muppet's Recommended Newcomer's Order and also my personal top 3:

1). Breath of the Wild as a total package with emphasis on exploration and mood.
2). Link Between Worlds for perfectly distilled Zelda gameplay and a perfect illustration of 2D Zelda's power.
3). Skyward Sword for the ultimate Zelda Dungeon Experience (tm).
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Honestly, nothing beats an intro like Ocarina of Time, no matter how cliche of a choice it is as a "starter" game.
 
merp said:
But the Hero's Shade is not a Stalfos.
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Perhaps, but it doesn't really detract from the overall points and might actually strengthen the element of sadness and regret and passage of time, that this happened through being consumed by that regret and not through your standard everyday Stalfosification.

merp said:
Wait..

You actually do note-taking while you game?!

I only ever do that while reading a book, but while you're gaming?!

...You're kinda blowing my mind right now.
Click to expand...
This was actually kind of common back in the day, with The Legend of Zelda being a clear highlight example you'll hear about, though the practice ocurred also with different games and sorts of games.

It's fallen somewhat to the wayside in these more modern times, with the walk-through and instant online answers, but titles such as Tunic seem to be bringing that back to an extent. I especially appreciate some elements that contibute to Tunic's facilitation of this, given the language element (I absolutely love languages; they are endlessly fascinating). Haven't played it yet, because I'm terribly slow at getting to and through this stuff anymore, but it definitely excites me.

PixelKnight said:
I always felt that games like Zelda and Simons Quest assumed kids would be writing stuff down either in the back of the manual or on a bit of paper as the manuals often had some spare pages for notes at the back, although I don’t think I ever wrote in one!
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Heh, that seems to be the intent, though I also never did write in those. It didn't feel quite right, and putting any notes together as something entirely their own just seems right.

PixelKnight said:
Maps on grid paper, annotated. What’s really cool is you end up with your own hand drawn maps. That’s part of the appeal of Etrian Odyssey for me
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The art of fine cartography is vastly underrated these days, save for within massive High Fantasy tomes.

In any case, PixelKnight posted elsewhere a description of his experiences with journaling adventures which I found rather poignant in its explanation of the practical use of this notetaking and its tactile, satisfactory, element:
PixelKnight said:
The element of LoZ that sits with me though is that I kept a notebook for it. I kept a notebook for a lot of games at the time due to the obscure hints in various games like Simon’s Quest on NES and Mystic Quest (FF Adventure) on GB, and also stuff like Zelda and Super Metroid. Long before I really got into ‘Metroidvania’ stuff, I was writing lists of ‘weird clues to problems I haven’t seen yet’ and ‘places to return to with new tools/items’ and ‘sidequests- NPC x wants y’, for games that didn’t log them for you.

My notebook for Zelda 1 was huge. I mapped out the overworld fairly accurately on a piece of A3 paper (as you could see the grid and where you hadn’t been), which meant I could annotate the caves and shops with who sold what, and where I needed to return to, and routes I hadn’t taken yet. It was folded up in the book, and bound shut with a shoelace. In my head it was like an adventurer’s journal from Indiana Jones or something!
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This is a beautiful look into your childhood, PixelKnight, and it encapsulates very well the satisfaction of creating something like this. The description of the physical journal itself really cements it.

If you get really into it, you can put together quite the journal as an end result. Maps, bestiary, bits of lore, cryptic sayings and happenings? Go wild!

afternoon delight said:
Wait, you all don’t keep hand written notes for adventure games and dungeons? Missing out!
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In short, yes, you very much are. Go ye forth headlong into adventure!
 
Supreme Overlord said:
Perhaps, but it doesn't really detract from the overall points and might actually strengthen the element of sadness and regret and passage of time, that this happened through being consumed by that regret and not through your standard everyday Stalfosification.


This was actually kind of common back in the day, with The Legend of Zelda being a clear highlight example you'll hear about, though the practice ocurred also with different games and sorts of games.

It's fallen somewhat to the wayside in these more modern times, with the walk-through and instant online answers, but titles such as Tunic seem to be bringing that back to an extent. I especially appreciate some elements that contibute to Tunic's facilitation of this, given the language element (I absolutely love languages; they are endlessly fascinating). Haven't played it yet, because I'm terribly slow at getting to and through this stuff anymore, but it definitely excites me.


Heh, that seems to be the intent, though I also never did write in those. It didn't feel quite right, and putting any notes together as something entirely their own just seems right.


The art of fine cartography is vastly underrated these days, save for within massive High Fantasy tomes.

In any case, PixelKnight posted elsewhere a description of his experiences with journaling adventures which I found rather poignant in its explanation of the practical use of this notetaking and its tactile, satisfactory, element:

This is a beautiful look into your childhood, PixelKnight, and it encapsulates very well the satisfaction of creating something like this. The description of the physical journal itself really cements it.

If you get really into it, you can put together quite the journal as an end result. Maps, bestiary, bits of lore, cryptic sayings and happenings? Go wild!


In short, yes, you very much are. Go ye forth headlong into adventure!
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It's not a Stalfos though.
 
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