Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker had a lot of anticipation and hype behind it and it had great expectations to live up to. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, was a brilliant game, one of the very few games to receive triple perfect scores from Famitsu and a perfect score from Gamespot. But it wasn’t the first Zelda game in the long and legendary series to receive high praise and worship. Before Ocarina of Time there were numerous Zelda title’s, including Oracle of Seasons, A Link to the Past, Zelda II : The Adventure of Link, and of course the original for the NES, the Legend Of Zelda. All of these were basically flawless legends themselves and are some of the greatest games ever. So you can see the responsibility the Wind Waker has on becoming another monument in gaming history. Now does Wind Waker stack up to the rest of the Zelda series? ...And the answer is, Of Course Not! This recent Legend is just another justification that Nintendo knows how to surprise and astonish us in every way with their Zelda series.

Now, before I get into the game I'd first like to say "This is one of the best games I've ever played". The graphical presentation of Wind Waker is unbelievable. It will stun you the instant when you run Link through Outset Island, but it won’t stop there. It's so outstanding, every time you return to your saved file, it's still shocking, I couldn't get over it. It was like controlling an anime movie, an excellent one too. And everything else about Links latest adventure is nearly flawless, nearly that is...

All of Links favorite weapons are back, including his master sword, boomerang, and bow & arrow. Except now Link can hit multiple enemies at once with his boomerang, and it’s surprisingly easy too. There is also some new items added to the adventure, one of the more interesting additions is the Deku leaf. From which you receive from none other than the notorious Great Deku Tree. Link uses this Deku leaf to blow gusts of wind at wind-powered objects and to disable certain flying enemies. But that’s not all it does, if Link has enough magic he can use it to glide on the air, enabling him to reach far away islands and get to elevations he usually couldn’t.

The sound in Zelda is excellent, the music however is lacking the expected triumphant scores as past Zelda's have presented. The sound of monsters and environment ambience is done very well. Monsters all have cartoon-like noises, some are hilarious too and Link expresses himself through valiant cries, moans, and pleas. With such excellent sound though, it’s strange to find such mediocre music. The music in Zelda isn't that entirely great, nothing on the same latitude as Metroid Prime or Medal of Honor. Most of the music doesn’t stand out, it doesn’t really add to the experience nor does it take away. It would almost seem as an afterthought had there not been the few remixed versions of O.O.T. and the one or two new pieces worth getting stuck in your head.

The combat system in Zelda is outstanding. And it should be considering the game is based around combat. It's basically what was in Ocarina, just slightly improved with the addition of dodge attacks (pressing A just before an enemy attacks, Link does a special attack dodging the enemy simultaneously). It’s easy to learn and easy to master, and retains the skill to keep hardcore gamers interested. It also displays itself amazingly, the blasts from metal meeting metal cast shadows on Link and enemies and lighting effects light up the screen like a true anime film.
Wind Waker is also surprisingly humorous. There are many parts in Zelda that present not-needed but welcomed comic relief. Link smashing into walls, Link getting tossed from a catapult in a barrel while screaming like a little girl, and the face Link makes when he first sees the Great Deku tree are just a few of the many times in Zelda I remember laughing out loud. It’s a pleasant alleviation in gaming these days, as many other games don’t try to make you laugh like Wind Waker does.

The most obvious complaint I have with Zelda, is not so serious but it still needs to be addressed. Wind Waker is just too easy and short, especially compared to past Zelda installments. The game is massive; the dungeons Link explores are huge and vibrant, and the sea Link travels on is almost endless. But there are only 3 main dungeons in the entire game, compared to the 5 seen in Majora’s Mask and Ocarina, and traveling across that endless sea can get a bit tedious and irritating. Nevertheless the dungeons are very fun and enjoyable; it’s just that the puzzles go by too quickly. Thankfully, though many puzzles aren't hard, they’re clever. Not exactly making you feel like Einstein when completed, but more like Bond. An example: Link is faced with getting to a door that's way out of his reach vertically, and the ground is laden with molten lava, a fireball constantly erupting and a monster waiting to tackle you. You pick up a jug of water and toss it on the monster, temporarily knocking him out, then proceed to throw another jug of water on the fireball (the jug breaks, and the water creates a solid crust on the lava surface, you then jump on the crust and wait for it to get launched up to the level of the door. This was one of the many cleverly designed but easy puzzles.

The Legend of Zelda is an amazing experience, one of my fondest on the cube. And I think everyone should try it out. Anyone who owns a Gamecube has the responsibility of purchasing Wind Waker, and if you don't own a Nintendo Gamecube yet, now’s an excellent chance to grab it. It'll be the best investment you made since you purchased your first video game console.

- Richard Targett

Click here to view The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker video 1!

This breath-taking video shows off loads of gameplay footage, taken from all over the game.
Total time: 1:25 / Size: 4.56 MB