#is going to be going through and finalizing my designs for every link and zelda

[margindoodles2407]

GUYS GUYS DID YOU KNOW.

THE LEGEND OF ZELDA

[xbuster]

Nobody can actually be this stupid, right?

[taffywabbit]

oops i accidentally wrote a review for zelda II: the adventure of link

(originally posted to Cohost on Feb 22, 2024. you can ignore this if you want, i just wanted it archived somewhere before that site disappears)

Finally beat Zelda II for the first time last night (I forced myself to finish it before starting Splatoon 3's Side Order DLC, because I knew if I didn't push through to the end of the Great Palace THIS time then it'd be years before I tried beating it again. This is probably my 4th or 5th attempt at this point). Not that this is a particularly hot take by most people's standards, but I don't think it's all that good, at least from a gameplay standpoint.

I don't regret playing it though, because I think I'm finally able to put my finger on the stuff I actually disliked about it vs the stuff that was honestly fine, or even (very rarely) actually good? I'm kinda fascinated by it, honestly. Sequels where they immediately screw around with the first game's formula (to mixed results) are neat! FE Gaiden is another example that comes to mind (hey they should give Zelda II the Shadows of Valentia treatment, that could be really cool actually).

Obviously Zelda II has a reputation for being kind of a rough experience. It's an NES game, and NES games are often susceptible to being frustrating, buggy, hard to control, or overly punishing. Sometimes, all of the above! And for what it's worth, the original Legend of Zelda was a tough and sometimes very cryptic experience as well. But I feel like the two games are challenging in drastically different ways, and I think TLoZ ended up being the formula that was retained in the long term primarily because its method of challenging the player overall did a better job of inspiring curiosity and exploration. Despite narratively being a direct sequel (with a really badass story premise that is unfortunately not really conveyed at all in-game) Zelda II took a different approach to nearly every element of the original's gameplay, which is a pretty bold move I suppose. Whether or not it succeeds at anything is fairly subjective, but it's undeniably had a lasting impact on the series, as well as the people who grew up with it (and then they went on to make some really excellent mid-2000's flash games inspired by it that I frankly enjoyed a lot more than this... and also a weirdly solid licensed Adventure Time game on the 3DS? I should go back and play that sometime, it's really fun).

Where to start with this...? Uhhh, the EXP-based leveling system where you choose what stats to put your points into is interesting! It creates a risk-and-reward system for fighting enemies instead of avoiding them, whereas in most other Zelda games besides BotW/TotK, the only reward for killing monsters is "they are no longer bothering you while you solve puzzles, and also sometimes they drop rupees/hearts/ammo". It also introduces a bit more player choice in what areas you'd like to get stronger in first, which is cool! I just wish it actually mattered in a way that let you feel powerful for even a moment. Instead, leveling Life (which is functionally just defense) is never enough to actually make you feel like you can afford to take a hit - the expectation seems to be that leveling Attack, Life, and Magic is something you do purely to keep up with how badly every single thing in this game wants to stomp you into the ground and soak up a million hits and waste all your magic. You CAN skip out on leveling one stat to prioritize another, or even try to evade tough combat situations entirely, but if you aren't leveled enough and in the exact things the game expects you to be WHEN it expects you to be, you'll immediately bump into some new asshole who jumps out of nowhere and can cut you down in 2-3 hits. Leveling doesn't make you tangibly stronger, it merely keeps the game barely playable.

This actually ends up being the core problem I have with Zelda II's design, far more than just the combat being clunky and overly punishing or the levels being visually samey and super hard to navigate. In most Zelda games (and also in a lot of other RPGs!), you get a better sword or a new power or item, and it opens up exciting new options for both exploration and combat. In Zelda II, you level up or earn a new item/spell, it's useful for maybe 20-30 minutes, and then it's immediately nullified. Wow, you got the Fire spell! Now you can finally deal with Tektites and Basilisks (which are immune to all other attacks) on the way to the next area! Well, I hope you had fun with that, because Fire doesn't work on most things you run into afterwards.

Easily the biggest game-changer is when you unlock the Downward Thrust sword technique, and finally have another option for combat besides just crouch-hopping and poking monsters with a dull butter knife. It's satisfying to use, it looks cool (by this game's standards), and it even has some utility for crossing hazards or defending yourself against swooping enemies! Cool! Unfortunately, they don't let you play around with that for long either, before nearly every enemy you see starts rolling up with helmets or shells that make them immune to attacks from above, and you never really get anything like that again (the Upward Thrust exists later, but it's far more situational and frankly not very fun or intuitive to use). Rather than feeling like you're being given tools to overcome challenges and stay above the difficulty curve, it feels like you're constantly just slightly underequipped for everything (even if you grind to earn extra stat levels) and any edge you're given is swiftly taken away from you. (Except the Reflect spell, which is ALWAYS a banger after you get it because it makes your shield Actually Do Its Damn Job after nearly every enemy starts shooting projectiles you can't block. Good work, Reflect spell.)

I feel like I grew up hearing plenty of people talk about the overall difficulty of Zelda II, though most of the complaints about its puzzles were surface-level jabs about the short cryptic NPC text, and none of that prepared me for just how ridiculously obtuse its mandatory puzzles/secrets can be. I genuinely have no idea how anyone would EVER find the Life spell - pretty much your ONLY source of healing outside of towns, since there are no hearts to pick up in this game - without some kind of guide. I was FURIOUS when I finally looked up where to find that lady's mirror and discovered that you have to walk into one of the houses, go over to the table that looks EXACTLY like every other table in every other house in the entirety of Hyrule, crouch, and press B, and you'll just pull the mirror out of nowhere. This type of interaction does not exist ANYWHERE else in the game and there's no in-game hint to indicate that you should try this. Absolutely maddening.

This and its predecessor are both games that seemingly expect you to have the physical manual on hand to help you find secrets, but at least in the first game, the way the game was designed was consistent enough that you COULD feasibly find your way to the end of it without a guide. Bombable walls in dungeons always being located in the center, things like that. It had rules and it could generally be trusted to follow them. Zelda II, in comparison, has a final level (the Great Palace) in which there are numerous rooms that look IDENTICAL and if you make one wrong turn you can go through the entire [very difficult and dangerous] dungeon on a path parallel to the one you need to be on, only to hit a dead end and be able to see the spot you're supposed to be reaching on the other side of a wall. Except you would also never KNOW you need to get there, because it looks like another dead end full of monsters but there's actually a completely invisible hole somewhere in the floor over there that drops you into the hallway leading towards the final boss. Also there is no map. TLoZ had a map. I don't know why this game doesn't have a map. Possibly because if you try to look up maps online, most of the dungeons feature non-Euclidean spaces? Idk, even a Super Metroid-style grid map would've done wonders here.

The combat is... fine? I truly don't understand how anyone thinks it's GREAT though. Zelda II is kind of like a version of Castlevania where you don't have a whip and instead have to stab everything at extremely short range, and also sometimes enemies have shields so you have to crouch sometimes to stop them from blocking you. It feels tense and high-stakes but only because, as I mentioned earlier, you really cannot afford to take stray hits in this game. Most enemies chew through your health at an alarming rate, even with the Shield spell active, and there's almost no way to replenish it unless you use a Life spell (which costs a huge chunk of your magic, possibly softlocking you if you end up in a place that requires other spells to progress). I got better at the combat over the course of my playthrough, but I never felt like I got good at it - most of my victories against strong enemies felt like pure luck and there were rarely consistent strategies for success. All of this combined with the fact that Zelda II has limited lives (and I mean LIMITED - there are only six 1-UPs in the entire game, which can each only be collected once) and getting a Game Over anywhere outside of the final palace will send you all the way back to the starting area, and it makes for an incredibly stressful experience. Even making use of savestates to lighten the fear of death can only do so much to improve it.

Overall, I think that Zelda II is a game that has a lot of really promising ideas, but then just absolutely flops when it comes to the execution. I didn't have a better way of organizing these but here are a few examples of elements I DID particularly like, even if they didn't always stick the landing:

I like the idea of the RPG leveling system in theory, but wish it was more empowering in practice and actually let the player make meaningful choices instead of just being required to survive. Choosing to hold off on a Life upgrade and instead save up just a little longer to boost your Attack feels awesome, until you time one of your inputs wrong and get destroyed. In a game with better-tuned difficulty and combat, this system would be great!

I REALLY like that Zelda II introduced a magic system to the series! I think it's cool as hell to have Link learning and casting spells to protect himself, solve puzzles, and exploit enemy weaknesses, instead of relying purely on items. (It's honestly weird to think that a system I associate so strongly with classic Zelda gameplay has only actually showed up in 4 of the games?? I guess you could consider the runes/hand abilities in BotW/TotK to be kind of like modern spells, or the slowly-refilling energy gauge in ALBW to be the most recent iteration of a Magic Meter, but both are highly debatable. Anyways I just think they should let Link shapeshift into a fairy again, that was cool.) But most of the spells in this are fairly situational and your access to magic refills is so limited that you rarely have the freedom to experiment with the spells' secondary functions (hey did you know the Spell spell turns most enemy types into slimes? that's wild. I wish I'd known that sooner).

The overworld functioning like a traditional JRPG, with top-down exploration broken up by semi-random enemy encounters, was something I honestly didn't hate. It's a little weird for Zelda, sure, but I could see it working well to support other systems in a more polished game. Overworld encounters that switch you into a type of gameplay other than turn-based JRPG combat are something I've always been fascinated by!

Anyways, weird game! I'm glad I finally got closure so I could figure out how I personally feel about it, independent of whatever the random youtubers I watched as a teenager thought. And now I never have to play it again :)

[expanding-hyrule]

A Link to the Stars by @coffebits (Art & Story) & @abbyz-elda (Writing) ⭐

Scifi AU | Teen | AO3 & Tumblr | Ongoing

Synopsis: The planet of Hyrule has known peace for decades. Princess Zelda, heir to the throne, has gotten to watch her best friend and general of the Hylian army, Link, explore neighboring planets, lead diplomatic missions, and defend their planet against possible attacks for years. But when a strange moon appears in the Hylian skies, shining with hostile light, Zelda is the first to volunteer to investigate. Link and his right hand man, Ganondorf, enlist their services alongside her. As the team begins to study the strange moon, they soon discover that it is filled not only with fearsome monsters, but an ancient evil that seems to call to the spirits of each one of them. Will they be able to neutralize the threat to protect Hyrule, or will the presence of the moon unleash a curse that has lain in wait for generations?

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The collaboration everyone should be paying attention to! Coffebits and abbygrace77 work together to weave the tale of a Hyrule far into the future, where the threats once posed to Hyrule are lost legends and ancient history. The art and character designs are beautiful, and the story is thrilling from the start! I'm anxiously awaiting every update! - pelicanpig

A Link to the Stars is a LoZ Science-Fiction-story. Link, Zelda, and Gandorf live on the planet Hyrule—Zelda as the Princess, Link as the General of the army, and Ganondorf as his second in command. Their lives are turned upside down when a strange moon appears over Hyrule. The more they investigate the more it seems like something dangerous is going on that threatens the whole planet. While the events send Zelda and Link on a journey to explore the heritage of an ancient Hero, Ganondorf is suddenly confronted with his Gerudo heritage when he becomes a candidate to compete for the crown of the Gerudo over night. Link and Zelda grow closer (again) on the trip but they disconnect with Ganondorf, who struggles to navigate his new life. That his inner monologue suddenly has a very different ring to it, just like someone is whispering into his ear, doesn't help the situation. The story is based on art coffeebits creates for this AU and Abby and coffeebits work closely together to ensure the fic is as accurate as it can get. The plot around the strange moon and the events its appearance set in motion is the driving force of the story and the characters develop alongside the plot. It's interesting to see how they react so differently to the stress they're put under and how their feelings for each other influence their actions. While I'm enjoying the slow burn between Link and Zelda, I think an equally interesting part of the story is how Ganondorf tries to resist the pull of the power that is calling him. Abby does a good job of giving all three characters their own journey and a spot in the limelight. - ZeldaElmo

Original sci-Fi retelling of the Legend of Zelda? Count me in! If you are a fan of Starship Troopers, Star Wars, Star Trek, and Legend of Zelda you will enjoy this fun exploration to the final frontier. By the books, General Link, headstrong Princess Zelda, and my favorite, sympathetic, conflicted Ganondorf. It has a little something for everyone - intrigue, adventure, romance, comedy. Put on your spacesuit, buckle up and get ready for launch. - Mistress Lrigtar

An action-packed adventure through the stars! Foreign finds familiar for this quest formula, all of the classic Zelda charm in a new and unique package. Coffe's worldbuilding and Abby's writing are incredible. If you're looking for a space adventure with the Zelda flavor, this will not disappoint. - amelias-hart

Not only is the setting for this refreshing (it's in space!), it still manages to stay very true to Hyrule. There are a ton of sci-fi details that make it really fun but never feel as if there's any info dumping happening at all. All the world building is seamless and really, really good! The characters, the main trio especially, are a delight. They have their most important dominant traits but they're definitely their own unique interpretations, and the relationship between Link and Zelda is super interesting to read and see evolve. Ganondorf, for his part, is one of the most intriguing aspects of the story, and I'm not quite caught up yet but so far, it's very hard to tell what's next for him. And to top it off, the story is packed full of gorgeous art because it's a collab between an artist and a writer! Don't deny yourself the pleasure of discovering this one. - Karama9

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You can find @coffebits at Instagram and @abbyz-elda at AO3 and Instagram.

[skyloftian-nutcase]

Whumptober Day 8 - Sleep Deprivation/Forced to Stay Awake

Y'all know with a prompt like this I had to write my baby Sky. I decided to have fun with Skyward Sword and the Imprisoned's design/encounter. :3

X

To say Link was exhausted was an understatement. However, he was far from stopping now. He had failed to rescue Zelda when she’d been captured, and he’d refused to fall behind since then. While he’d successfully defended her and Impa from Ghirahim at the Temple of Time, it had felt like a hollow victory – he’d finally caught up to Zelda just to lose her again.

But he’d been given a mission: he could reunite with her if he opened the Gate of Time. And opened it he had.

In the end, it had been for nothing. One quest after another, one task after another, one test after another. And the end result was to watch Zelda encase herself in an amber prison for thousands of years, with her only hope of escape through his success.

He couldn’t make her wait a second longer. How many millennia had she been in there? Could she hear him? Could she tell anything was happening? Or did all her focus go to maintain in the seal, heart heavy with sorrow and guilt over a truth Link could hardly fathom?

He just wanted his friend back.

He hadn’t stopped since the Earth Temple. At best, he’d paused after Zelda’s imprisonment – a time where he literally couldn’t move forward, not for a few hours at least, as his body finally took advantage of his weakened resolved and made him violently ill for the rest of the day. But the next morning, he was up before Groose or the old lady, and he was off to strengthen himself and prepare himself further so he could eliminate the demon king once and for all and save Zelda.

As time had passed, his resolve had remained, but his patience had thinned. His best option was usually to stay quiet, but sometimes snappish remarks came out unbidden, nearly downright callous in his fatigue. The amount of people he almost hadn’t helped was… somewhat alarming, in the back of his mind. Link could be a troublemaker sometimes, but he’d never been cruel or apathetic, and some days he felt nearly both as his journey progressed.

He’d take it out on the demon king. He’d take it out on Demise, on his imprisoned form, that cursed abomination that changed shape every new time it tried to break through the seal Zelda was suffering to maintain.

Link stood at the edge of Skyloft, staring off into the clouds with nearly no thoughts in his head. He’d been called an airhead, even lazy, plenty of times – perhaps that was the case. Perhaps this was more laziness from him, more wasted time he couldn’t afford to have, but the way his mind was so blank, the way it took all his energy just to stand almost made him wonder if he should… no.

No. He would not take a break. He couldn’t afford to. In his more desperate moment, while he was ill, he’d told himself that Zelda was simply asleep, that he had all the time in the world now. But then the anxieties quickly returned, the thoughts that kept him awake at night questioning is she actually still awake in there? Has she been suffering and waiting painstakingly for me for ten thousand years? And then he couldn’t sleep, he had to get up and move, he had to make his way back to Skyloft and figure out how in the world he was supposed to find the Triforce and finally end this.

He’d found Levias quickly. He’d fought off the parasite quickly. And then he’d been tasked with yet another quest, another hurdle preventing him from completing his mission.

He wanted to scream. Instead, he restocked his supplies at the bazaar, and now he found himself just… staring.

Move, he tried to urge himself, but his feet wouldn’t listen. His loftwing circled below him, waiting for him to jump, gliding along the winds and calling to him, urging him. Yet he felt like he could pass for a sword spirit himself, made entirely of metal, weighed down with an immeasurable weight.

He was so tired.

He couldn’t remember the last time he’d gotten a full night’s sleep. Or even naps during the day to compensate, at least not more than the few minutes he’d nod off at any moment’s notice before getting back on track.

How did Hylia think he was worthy of this task? He didn’t know. But he didn’t care – this wasn’t about Hylia, this was about his friend.

But aren’t they one in the same? He didn’t know. He didn’t know. It didn’t matter. He would save Zelda. But he had to move.

Move. Move, dammit!

His mind was blank, but it screamed at the same time. He belittled himself but couldn’t motivate himself to just jump. The daunting magnitude of his task sat heavier and heavier on his shoulders the longer he stood there.

He had a headache. His stomach rolled with emptiness, an illness born from lack of appetite. His body trembled, and he swore he could see lights in the sky that weren’t the portals.

Fi chimed. She was saying something, but whatever it was, it sounded so distant over the wind. He hardly heard it.

“Master.”

He wasn’t sure he’d ever heard her voice so loudly. Either way, it made him finally snap out of his daze, head turning sharply to see her hovering just to his right. Despite being expressionless, something in the way she carried herself looked different to Link, a strange tension in her usually limber and fluid body.

“Master Link. Now that I have your attention, I must again emphasize that there is a 78% chance furthering your journey in your current state could lead to serious damage. You must return to your place of residence to acquire proper rest and nutrition in order to continue,” she explained.

Link blinked. “What?”

Fi was silent a moment, and then repeated, “There is an 81% chance that furthering your journey in this state—”

“You changed the percentage,” Link grumbled, waving his hand. “I don’t care about the probability. I’m 100% going now.”

“Master Link—”

Spite and anger fueled him all of a sudden, finally giving him the impetus he needed to jump, and Fi quickly returned to the sword, though he swore he could hear a heavy sigh. Had she ever sighed?

Usually, the crashing winds of skydiving would bring Link into focus more than nearly anything. Today it felt like slaps to the face, anger flushing his cheeks red hot as he let himself nearly fall into the cloud barrier before calling his loftwing, who came immediately.

His exhaustion seemed to be nearly left behind on Skyloft, and he leapt off his loftwing when they hovered over Faron’s region. He wasn’t really looking forward to explaining anything to Groose, so he hoped he could bypass the Sealed Temple altogether and just find the dragons to get this over with.

Maybe Fi is right, his mind whispered, a nagging, irritating, desperately plea. Maybe I should rest when I get down there.

And listen to Groose bully him about not being a man? Or get harassed by the old lady for not doing his duty? Or make Zelda wait a second longer than she had to?

What if she doesn’t actually feel or hear anything? What if you can actually take the time you need?

He… he couldn’t dare to hope, could he? He was so tired. Just… just maybe one full night’s sleep, when the sun set. Maybe just one. Just one.

“A report, Master,” Fi chimed in his mind, catching him off guard. “An unusual phenomenon is taking place in Faron Woods, making it impossible to descend directly into them at the moment.”

Of freaking course it is, he thought irritably. What new obstacle was in his—

Oh wow.

What should have been green as far as the eye could see was now heavily overcome with brilliant blue, reminding him of the old Lanayru Sea. Where had all that water come from??

Link directed his body where Fi indicated to land by the Sealed Grounds, and he pulled out his sailcloth at the last moment, nearly missing that he was about to slam into the ground. He sighed heavily, rubbing his face. Maybe he wouldn’t even be able to access Faron at the moment, and he could get some sl—

Groose rushed for him, eyes wide and face pale, and Link immediately knew sleep was not going to be an option.

“Link, bad news!” he called, waving his arms before screeching to a halt in front of him. The ground shook, dark energy wafting in the air like fog that danced in sadistic delight, and Link’s insides grew cold. “That beast looks like it’s about to break free again!”

Not again! We just did this!!

The Seal was weakening even more, despite hie best efforts, despite Zelda’s efforts.

What if—what if—

“Gotta get into position!” Groose said, fear dissipating as determination carved his face into stone. He truly did look like a knight of Skylfot in that moment. “Hang tight!”

For a brief moment, Link felt his heart stop at the thought of what might have happened if he’d heeded Fi’s advice and stayed up in Skyloft to rest. But now wasn’t the time to ponder it. His body and mind snapped into coordinated clarity as adrenaline surged his system, pushing the exhaustion to the periphery. He followed Groose, body tense and aching, head still pounding. Dark slivers of malice moved higher and higher, polluting the air and making his head hurt even more – he wasn’t sure how Groose wasn’t able to feel so sick as they nearly choked on the demon’s dark energy… was he just growing weak from lack of rest?

It doesn’t matter. I can’t stop!

The earth shook again, nearly knocking Link down to a lower level as he lost his footing. Groose just managed to reach the Groosenator, clinging to it for stability as he yelped, “Whoa! Feels like that seal is going to give way any second!”

The seal, the seal—oh Zelda, what’s happening?! Why is the seal faltering so much? Are you hurting, are you weakening, why is it breaking so much now what if I can’t stop it what if I’m too late—

“Uh… but no need to panic!” Groose continued, and for a second Link thought his own fears were showing on his face, but it seemed his bully-turned-friend was trying to reassure himself as he held onto his device with a white knuckled grip. “You know what the Groosenator can do! As long as I’m at the controls of this bombshell beauty, I don’t even know the meaning of the word defeat!”

The earth quaked again, and Groose braced himself, standing tall and powerful as the sky darkened. Link unsheathed his blade, hearing Fi sing and warm in anticipation, a faint blue glow illuminating the darkening space around them.

Groose nodded to himself, looking Link firmly in the eye. “Flinging bombs on this monster’s face, defending this land… it’s my purpose, I think. It’s why I’m here.”

He seemed so certain all of a sudden, like a hero of legend himself. For the first time, Link wondered if perhaps Hylia should have chosen Groose instead. Nothing seems to have deterred him. Link tried to lean on that certainty as well, and as he glanced back at the Sealed Temple, his own fire rekindled within him. He straightened his back, growing tense as the world shook again, a distant roar echoing in his mind.

“Anyway, Link, I’ve got work to do,” Groose announced, waving a hand and smirking. “Try not to get in the way of my shots, okay?”

Link nodded, moving off the platform and looking down at the seal itself. It was glowing blood red, a vibrant reflection of the darker hue the sky had taken. Crimson and purple in hues darker than timeshift crystals rose like smoke from a fire, sparks emanating from them and freezing the space around them. Link felt himself shiver, but he gritted his teeth, ignoring the way the icy dark magic tried to stab through his skin like hundreds of tiny needles.

He wasn’t going to wait for that monster to tear through the ground. He would face it head on. Maybe if he caught it early enough, he could banish it once more before it could even start climbing.

He felt a little more confident now that Groose was well practiced on the matter. His classmate’s confidence seeped into him, warming his already steely resolve like pumpkin soup on a chilly day.

Link leapt off the cliff, making his way to the bottom. The closer he got, the colder it got, an ominous, otherworldly feeling making every hair on his body stand up, his instincts screaming for him to turn away. It left him a little unsettled – fear had been his companion on each confrontation, but it had never felt so visceral, as if every fiber of his being was repulsed by the beast within.

He didn’t have much time to ponder the matter any further as the seal shone brightly before being completely drowned in dark energy. It pulsed all around Link, seeming to try and steal the breath from his lungs, paralyzing his body, and he took a hasty step back to ready himself, shivering horribly.

Massive arms tore from the earth, throwing Link even farther back and slamming him into the gorge’s wall. He remembered that the last time, the strangely egg shaped, black scaled monstrosity had grown more limbs, long muscular arms with claws sharper than Crimson’s talons, body more stretched to be more proportional, and a tail starting to peek out from behind. It crawled like the little creatures Link had seen in the desert, looking almost like a lizalfos crawling on all fours as it tried to climb its way to the Sealed Temple.

It was far worse now.

The Imprisoned was massive. Its body was far more elongated now, tail evident and whipping around to beat Link into a pulp as dark flames burned endlessly from its spine. Its black scales snaked around its entire body except for its underbelly, which looked like it was carved of pure stone instead of the thick skin that it had to be. Alongside its multiple rows of razor sharp teeth, it now had massive lower incisors sprouting out of its mouth and above its head, like horns that it would use to skewer him. It moved faster than ever, immediately making its way up the cliffside.

“Link! Let’s do this!” Groose shouted loudly from the top. “Our game plan is the same as last time! You know what to do!”

Link frantically ran towards the nearest air geyser just as Groose launched a bomb towards the beast, and as it made contact with the monster’s head, Link brought his blade down on its feet to slow it down like before. The Master Sword glowed blue, its magic making it burn through the beast’s scales on its feet and drawing black blood. The Imprisoned roared and whipped its tail to take him out. Weeks, maybe even months of fighting lizalfos helped him to dodge in time, slamming his body to the ground before he could get completely pummeled. He rose quickly as Groose hurled another bomb their way, but this time he was too slow.

The shock of the blast sent both him and the Imprisoned stumbling. He heard Groose cry out, but he could hardly register it. Fi chimed seemingly frantically to get his attention as the Imprisoned began to climb shakily. He managed to reach its other foot before it could lift off the ground, dodging around the dark energy emanating from the being as it tried to sap him of his strength. A spin attack assisted him in crippling the beast, making it stumble back before falling to the ground with such an earth shattering force that Link fell off the cliffside to the bottom once more. He quickly recovered, using the geyser to return to the Imprisoned and strike at its sealing spike.

He could do this, he could do this. It was going well so far, and��

The Imprisoned roared, freezing Link, and a dark halo suddenly appeared around its head like a sacrilegious crown, and then the beast started floating upward.

“WHOA!” Groose bellowed. “Since when did it learn how to fly?!”

Link stared in horror, trying to rush for the Imprisoned’s tail to latch on, but its dark magic repelled him, making the world spin dizzyingly as he got knocked flat on his back, heart racing.

“It’s headed straight for the temple!” Groose yelled. “But there’s no way I’m letting it get there! Big ugly’s going down burning!”

Link blinked blearily, trying to reorient himself, Fi’s earlier warning screaming in his addled mind, there is a 78% chance furthering your journey in your current state could lead to serious damage.

The only damage he cared about was to Zelda, he could handle—could handle…

The world faded for a terrifying moment, and Link jolted awake a second later, heart racing faster than any monster could evoke. The sound of a bomb exploding and the deep, throaty, ear splitting roar of the Imprisoned tore through his mind next, nearly blowing out his hearing.

The beast fell from the sky, flopping on its side, tail halfway covering the trail down to the bottom, feet still bleeding, halo missing. Link gritted his teeth, leaping off and disregarding the sailcloth entirely, landing on the beast and feeling his feet burn as he slid to the ground near its throat. He reached the spike in seconds, ignoring how he limped, and beat the thing back into the monster’s skull once more. His arm shivered from the exertion, feeling every bit of the strikes against pure, mystical stone, and the Imprisoned roared in protest, writhing in agony and making Link run for the nearest corner to avoid getting hit.

As he watched the beast fight against the sealing spike once more, precious item out of his reach, he heard Groose yell in panic.

“Not good! The road crumbled, and I can’t get to the rest of my bomb stash!” he heard Groose shout, and Link felt his blood freeze. What were they going to—“Link! Come up to the temple, and make your way over here! Hustle up!!”

Link shook his head, shoulder screaming in protest, and rushed to the nearest geyser as the Imprisoned quickly recovered its strength. He nearly lost his grip a couple times on his sailcloth, but he made it up top quickly enough to feel his heart stop as the Imprisoned was nearly at eye level with him. Without a second thought, he leapt into the cannon, about to order Groose to fire him when his friend already spoke the words he was thinking.

Nodding in resolve, he let Groose guide the machine and then his world lurched as he was tossed. He tensed with the movement, pushing off the catapult to give himself even more momentum, sword at the ready as he landed on the beast’s skull.

Immediately, its dark energy started to slink around him, black flames lapping at his clothes, paradoxically freezing, tensing every muscle in his body. He pushed through, slamming his blade down on the sealing spike, and he threw enough momentum into it that the stone sank all the way into its skull.

The Imprisoned roared, and the ground beneath Link vanished as it plummeted to the pit faster than him. He fumbled with his sailcloth, pulling it out with enough time to not get himself killed, but not sparing him the hard impact of such a rushed landing. He groaned as his legs gave out, one feeling it had nearly snapped, and aimed his sword skyward as he propped himself up from the ground with one arm.

Fi sang, glowing with holy energy, and Link made the sealing motions.

And just like that, it was over.

Relief flooded Link so utterly that he collapsed, body screaming, incapable of catching his breath.

He wasn’t sure what happened after that, honestly. All he knew was that suddenly he was in the Sealed Temple.

Blinking in confusion, he tried to sit himself up and hissed as his right shoulder gave on, slamming his head on a pillow.

A pillow?

“Link!” Groose rushed into his sight, looking worried. “Buddy, drink this!”

Drink wha—

Link coughed as a bottle was shoved into his face and he nearly choked on the red liquid that poured into his mouth. He swallowed most of it, some dribbling out of his mouth while his lungs violently shoved the rest out. He felt Groose sit him up with a hasty apology.

Immediately, warm relief flooded him, easing the ache in his shoulder, the screaming in his leg, the headache pounding behind his eyes. Every ounce of his strength, however, was still gone.

Groose huffed, shifting from worried to his usual boisterous self. “You had me worried! What happened out there? Was it the Groosenator? It’s not like we haven’t shot ourselves in the air like that, did that big ugly monster poison you or something?”

“He’s clearly exhausted,” the old woman noted from somewhere in the distance. “Let him rest, Groose.”

Groose paused, his concern becoming gentler, and he quietly eased Link back onto the makeshift bed.

Honestly, the smaller Skyloftian couldn’t protest. His mind was too blank, soul heavy and completely overcome by his body’s feeble state.

How long had he gone without sleep? And how long had he gone without getting more than a couple hours at a time?

It didn’t matter! At this rate, the Imprisoned would come back so often he wouldn’t even be able to leave the Sealed Grounds!

“Link.”

Link turned his head to look over at the old woman as she approached. Although he couldn’t really see her eyes, the gentleness in her tone mixed with her more-shriveled-than-usual posture painted a… strangely solemn picture.

“Let yourself rest, boy,” she encouraged quietly. “You will not be able to help Zelda if you collapse.”

You were late.

She’s waiting for you.

The demon king is getting stronger.

Link tried to protest. He couldn’t make a sound.

Master, Fi said softly in his head, filling the fog with her song. There is a 97% probability that you will be unable to make it to the entrance of the Sealed Temple, let alone any farther than that. I highly recommend following their advice and recovering your strength.

97% meant there was still a 3% chance he could do it. But he… knew it was pointless to try.

Link hated himself for needing this. Hated himself for being so weak, so feeble, so mortal when what Hylia clearly expected was a god. How else was he supposed to fight a god of destruction?

He squeezed his eyes shut, frustrated, ignoring the tears that tried to escape. He didn’t care if he was just a student from Skyloft. He would save Zelda. Nothing would stop him.

But… he would resume in the morning. He could spare no further time for himself than that. Not at the rate the seal was deteriorating.

Zelda’s sacrifice would not be in vain.

He heard Groose speaking quietly to the old woman, something about gathering supplies for Link. He felt his heart warm a little at the notion of it, at the thought that he wasn’t alone in this. He was suddenly very thankful for Groose, no matter the history they had.

Link closed his eyes, and he finally let himself rest. But when his anxieties woke him that evening, he refused the demands Groose made that he continued to sleep. Instead, he was briefed on the situation happening in Faron Woods, and his friend reluctantly agreed to help him get inside the newly flooded region.

As Link flew through the air, preparing to hit the crystal clear waters, he let the wind whip his face and awaken him once more. He would sleep when Zelda was safe. He’d gone through the Silent Realms. He had Din’s strength to help him, Farore’s courage to maintain his resolve, Nayru’s wisdom to guide him.

He was ready. It was time to finish this.

[loz-furbies]

Breath of the Wild / Age of Calamity / Tears of the Kingdom Zelda, part 1/2

The final Zelda (so far) of this character review series is the most developed of them all, and probably has more character content to her in just one game than any of the others, and she has three to boot! With full voice acting (I'm JP voice only), a huge and personal role in the story, diary entries, notable relationships to multiple characters and being discussed by many NPCs there is a lot to talk about, but I'm mostly going off of memory and rewatching the cutscenes since it would be too much work to research every mention of her in all three games.

Design

(Ancient dress Zelda model from here)

Not going to copypaste my thoughts on her BotW look since this is long enough already.

It is a pity that Zelda didn't get a full redesign for TotK, but I'll take what I can get. The bob is really cute! And unusual among the Zeldas too, and I guess a nice way to represent that she has moved to the commoner lifestyle.

As for the ancient dress, it looks perfectly fine on its own, but since I value it when the designs have their own unique identity, I wish it wasn't so similar to her white dress from BotW. Maybe there is some connection, like Sonia used to be a priest so maybe the dress design survived through millennia as a prayer dress or whatever, but since that's not actually in the game, I'm not giving credit for that.

The bulkier and sort of unrefined jewelry does a good job making the outfit look ancient, but it's still fancy enough that I can believe it to belong to the royal family. That decorative accessory on the front of the dress is really cool looking and a nice and consistent detail among all the ancient clothes, but man is it a pain to draw. Finally I really like the big earrings and the tear makeup is a great little detail.

When I first saw the Light dragon in the final Zelda memory I thought it looked kind of doofy, with its bright colours, clumpy eyelashes, bulging eyes and borzoi nose, but it has since grown on me. I once read that some Pokemon designer said in an interview or such that if a Pokemon design looks too cool, they add something uncool to it to make it more memorable, and I think it's a pretty good design philosophy. There have been several LoZ designs that have shocked me at first, but eventually I get used to them and they will look just right. They could have given the dragons a more cool or elegant look, but that would have also risked making them more generic. Also the eyes give a good impression about Zelda's state that nobody is home there.

Character

This iteration of Zelda is easily the most fleshed out of them all, since we get to see so much of her relationships, character development, emotional reactions to plot events, and also stuff she does outside the immediate plot.

BotW Zelda's dread over the impending doom and the self esteem issues that rise from it are a large part of the story. There are other Zeldas who also worry about the Plot, but in BotW Zelda's case it's incredibly personal since her failure to do her crucial job in preventing the disaster is at the core of the story. According to Rhoam's diary, she had already internalised her duty at the age of six (and this caused her to not show any weakness even at her mother's funeral), and from there she spent her life trying and failing to awaken her powers. This lifelong crushing sense of responsibility and guilt and the failure to live up to her demanding father's expectations give BotW Zelda a very melancholic vibe that constantly pops up through the game. Though I must say that in the memory where the champions perform their little ceremony and Zelda gives a long speech to Link, her voice acting gets really awkward when it sounds like she's about to start crying with every word.

Once she finds her inner strength, Zelda gets her badass moments as well. I especially like the grand finale of BotW where she, glowing with power, calmly stands before Calamity Ganon's pig form and doesn't even flinch when he charges at her. And in the TotK flashback cutscenes she can apparently be taken to a battle against Ganondorf as a part of Rauru's sage posse.

I called out Skyward Sword Zelda for being a bit too much of an ideal girlfriend, so I'm really glad that the memory where BotW Zelda lashes out at Link exists. It works to prevent her from being just a pure maiden who is victimised by unfair outside circumstances. Or I mean that does happen to her, but letting her display some negative traits (like frustration and jealousy) that she's personally responsible for as well makes her feel more like an actual person and not just a perfect victim.

Even if BotW Zelda's heavy burden is a huge part of her character, luckily that's not all there is to her. And not just because being multifaceted of course makes her more interesting, but also I find it a lot more realistic that not every moment of her life had been constant suffering.

One of her most charming and notable traits is her nerdy scientist side. It certainly sets her apart from the other Zeldas, and also gives her something else to do than just worry about the plot and be a princess. The memory where she geeks over a frog and goes on such a ramble over its scientific properties that she forgets basic social norms is such a great piece of characterisation, and it's cute how her enthusiasm returns in TotK where she's excited over Zonai discoveries, and is also into Mineru's constructs. According to AoC, studying was also apparently something she did with her late mother as a child.

Her research notes also detail how together with Purah and Robbie they discovered various things about the ancient Sheikah tech, but I do think it's a little disappointing how we don't get much anything concrete about Zelda's contributions specifically. There's a lot about her being interested in the Sheikah technology and how she apparently was a part of research group, but all actual discoveries are attributed to different characters or left vague, so as a result she comes across more like an enthusiastic hobbyist who in the end doesn't actually get anywhere. I would have liked it if for example Purah's diary had a line of how Zelda's efforts helped them understand the Guardians better or something like that, but now you have to imagine her contributions yourself. The closest we get is how in AoC she gives one Sheikah artefact to Rhoam, which ends up saving his life, but it's not quite what I'm looking for since Zelda didn't know what the item would do, so it feels more like luck. But even if the execution didn't quite land, I'm glad that AoC took the time to give some kind of resolution to the Rhoam-forbids-Zelda-from-Studying aspect and has to admit that he was wrong. And regardless the Sheikah tech works well to give Zelda her unique identity, and it's also nice how two of her weapons in AoC are based on it.

BotW Zelda also has a playful side, like for example she runs up to play with a dog she just saw, or jokes with Urbosa about how they both had to act all formal in front of an audience despite being long time friends. She is also a very proactive character; thanks to the "find the memories" gameplay, we see her travel all across Hyrule instead of just sitting at her castle, she's the one to handle all business with the Divine Beast pilots (and since they're all high ranking individuals among their people, this makes Zelda pretty politically active as well), and BotW ends with her wanting to work on rebuilding Hyrule.

Zelda being active continues in TotK, where there's a lot of little snippets how she has founded a school, installed memorial monuments, managed survey teams, worked on gardens, and so on. And of course she also immediately volunteered for investigating the Gloom situation at the start of TotK as well, and from the stone tablets we can read how she also got into fiddling with Constructs and fashion in the ancient Hyrule. Obviously it would have been nice to actually see all of this instead of just reading or hearing it second hand, but I understand that not everything can get a fancy cutscene, so it's at least nice that this was included in the game at least in some fashion.

I touched on it in the part about her nerdy side, but let's also bring specific attention to the fact that BotW Zelda also has a delightfully weird and chaotic side to her. She tries to feed a frog to Link, and the TotK stone tablets tell about how she would ride Mineru's construct despite the protests of the chamberlain. And while the recipe she cooks in AoC is a legit BotW recipe, the way the scene is depicted clearly makes her come across as eccentric in her cooking.

AoC also casts her in a leadership role once her powers finally awaken and she becomes more confident. Honestly I prefer the insecure nerd Zelda over the charismatic leader because I don't think she quite has enough credibility to pull off rousing speeches to masses at this point of the story, but I guess it does make sense for the kind of story they're telling

Her powers are pretty inconsistent between games, BotW is obviously all about awakening her sacred sealing power, and the game ends with her saying that she used all that up. And then TotK reveals she had two different powers all along; Sonia's time power comes out of nowhere and Rauru's light power overlaps with her BotW ability a lot. But I can live with a discrepancy like this since I like the story of TotK.

Since I brought up how it's nice that Skyward Sword is implied to have a knitting hobby, I suppose it should be mentioned that BotW Zelda made the Champion's blue clothes and accessories. Though here it feels a lot less important and even a bit tacked on, since BotW Zelda already has so much going on that is more important and meaningful to her character. But I guess crafting clothes is princessy enough of a subject that Rhoam approves of spending time on it instead of prayer practice and even brags about it. A different little detail that I like more than this clothing thing is that we get to learn Zelda's favourite food (fruitcake).

In Japanese Zelda uses polite language, but no honorifics. I'm no Japanese expert, but to me this comes across as keeping a polite distance from everyone, while also implying status ("I'm a princess so I don't need to use a honorific for you"). Also in the beginning of AoC, Link (who at this point is just a random knight to Zelda) kneels in front of her and she doesn't even acknowledge him, so it appears she's pretty used to her standing. The stone tablets in TotK also describe her having an undeniable air of nobility.

[a-bit-too-much-of-a-zelda-fan]

Why Tears of the Kingdom's Story Doesn't Work

While I will defend the lack of nuance in the text of Tears of the Kingdom, what I will criticize is how the story was executed. TL;DR: The writers tried to tell a story like Skyward Sword, but were limited by Breath of the Wild's nonlinear gameplay formula. Read on below the cut. Spoilers, obviously.

Let's start with Skyward Sword's story and how it was executed so well. There are three arcs: Find Zelda, find the sacred flames to purify the Goddess Sword, and seek out the dragons to find the Triforce. The first arc is notable here, because it's a suspenseful mystery. Link is constantly a step behind Zelda. He's chasing after her with no goal other than to just reunite with her.

The story is able to move from arc to arc and tell a story that evolves over the course of the game because of how rigidly structured the progression is. You will go from point A to point B, whether you want to or not. That way, the writers could drop the right story beats at the right time. It's traditional storytelling, because no other medium has the same level of interactivity as a video game, and it works. Regardless of how it feels to play, you can't deny that the story was executed very, very well.

Breath of the Wild, by contrast, is nonlinear to a fault. You can go anywhere, anytime. The writers were cognizant of this, so they wrote a one-arc story that was compartmentalized into four entirely separate plot lines. Link has one goal that never changes across the game: free the divine beasts to defeat Calamity Ganon. You go to one region, free that divine beast, then go to another at your pace and discretion.

Nothing carries over between plot lines. Nothing you did for the Rito has any impact on what is happening to the Gorons, because every plot line had be to designed so it could the first or last one you tackle. This approach deprived the story of depth or any sense of momentum. They aimed to make up for this with the memories: cutscenes that tell a linear story with more depth, but can be discovered in any order then rewatched in the proper order for the "complete" picture. Critically, though, the memories only provide context to the current events. Knowing what happened in the past has no bearing on the present.

Now we come to Tears of the Kingdom. They went the same gameplay approach as BotW: complete non-linearity. But they tried to tell a mystery story. This fundamentally fails because, like BotW, nothing carries over between the regional plot lines, and they should be impacted by the dragon tears (TotK's memories) but aren't. There are so many ways this falls apart. I'll talk about it through the order I played the game in: Zora, Rito, Gerudo, Goron.

Once Link returns to the Surface, witnesses Zelda appear and disappear at Hyrule Castle, and tells Purah what happened, she instructs him to investigate the odd regional phenomena. So he goes to Zora's Domain and starts working with Sidon. Zelda appears to them, and at this point, Link--and the player--has no idea what's going on. After that, Link goes to Rito Village, finds Tulin near the huge blizzard, and they see Zelda. Alright, something isn't adding up. By the time Link gets to the Gerudo Desert and sees Zelda there, he must know something is wrong. That is not Zelda, and it's pretty obvious at this point. But he still acts as if he knows nothing.

Finally, when he and Yunobo are chasing after her on Death Mountain, there is no fucking way he doesn't know it's not her. Yunobo is all like "oh no, we have to find Zelda! We have to go after her! Is she okay after going into the ceiling like that?" At this point I am screaming in my head, "Link! Tell Yunobo it's not her! You know it's not her!" Because Link is clever. He can put two and two together, so why the hell isn't he? Well, it's because he's doomed by the format of the narrative.

This is made doubly nonfunctional once you find all the dragon tears. Once Links knows that Zelda is the Light dragon, there is no way on God's green earth that he is fooled by the Zelda that he sees with any sage afterward. But he acts like he is. Brother, Link talks so much in this game. He's constantly explaining shit to people. They really got their mileage out of his "moving hands as if explaining something" animation. But when it matters most, he is fucking silent. It's disrespectful to the player's intelligence and Link's character.

Look. When you're trying to tell a mystery, as your audience's knowledge of the situation increases, your main character's knowledge needs to as well. If the character witnesses a major clue, they can't just forget that clue so they can discover it again but in a different place. It just doesn't work like that. There need to be bread crumbs. There needs to be momentum. There needs to consequence, cause and effect. Mysteries are linear stories. But when you try to tell this kind of story in the nonlinear way that this gameplay formula demanded, it does not work.

What kills me is that each of the four plot lines in TotK are well-written and fun (quick ranking: Rito, Gerudo, Zora, Goron). But through no fault of their own, they decline in coherence and satisfaction as you progress through the game. I can imagine that someone who played the order opposite I did was as mystified as Yunobo, but screaming at Link to just tell Sidon that's not Zelda.

The nail in the coffin of this story's nonfunctionality is that the longest side quest has Link going around Hyrule's stables, trying to find clues to Zelda's whereabouts. He works with Penn to investigate and set these stories straight. But once Link discovers that Zelda is the Light Dragon (or at least, that the Zelda who keeps appearing isn't really her), he should be able to tell Penn the truth. But he doesn't, because he can't for the side quest to function.

I managed to put aside how frustrating all of that is by rationalizing "well it has to be this way for the gameplay to work the way it does", and that's fine, but they didn't have to write the story they did. BotW's story worked because they wrote it in a way that it can be thoroughly enjoyed in any order. TotK's doesn't because they tried to have their cake and eat it too: tell a story with depth, but tell it in any order. They could have written a story that worked with the gameplay, but they didn't.

TotK did a lot of things right. On their own, I think the regional plot lines are more compelling than BotW's (especially the Rito one, and maybe except the Goron one). Having the soon-to-be-sages follow Link through the dungeons was a good choice. The search for a fifth sage provided a feeling of momentum that BotW was sorely lacking. And from the moment the search for the fifth sage starts, the story works just fine because it becomes linear. I had a fantastic time playing this game. I wouldn't have played it for over a hundred hours if I wasn't enjoying myself. It's just a shame it didn't turn out better.

[izunias-meme-hole]

My Top 10 Ganon Incarnations (Remake)

Number 1. Breath of The Wild/Tears of The Kingdom - It's honestly surprising how this duology managed to crank out one of the greatest incarnations of Ganon in the series. In the first game, we see Ganon's power in the form of a demonic beast known as Calamity Ganon, and while this thing was basically an animal, it is the primary reason why the world of BoTW is as barren as it is, and this monster does have both a large presence, and decent amount of activity though the Guardians, Blights, Divine Beasts, and blood moons, creating a fear factor for a good chunk of the game. That is until said fear vanishes when you see that this things final form is just a flaming pig. However, in ToTK we meet the source of Calamity Ganon, the original Demon King Ganondorf from the era of Hyrule's founding and man does he deliver. He stays underground for a majority of the game after shattering the Master Sword and almost killing Link, but he never stops feeling like an active threat because of his Phantom Ganon's, Puppet Zelda, and the most dangerous thing in his arsenal, gloom. Not only that, but ToTK goes out of it's way to still present Ganondorf as a darwinistic asshole who worships power and actually thinks that his actions are justified due to his earned position as the Gerudo's divinely appointed king, though unlike his other incarnations he has a terminal case of insanity from the get-go, which rears its head at every chance. These games made Ganon into a legitimate demon on all fronts, first introducing his pure demonic power without his dangerous mind and then introducing the true mad Demon King himself later on.

Number 2. Ocarina of Time/Twilight Princess - This was the best Ganondorf incarnation of a LONG time. He’s a timeless classic with simple, yet effective characterization who does so much with such little screentime. He starts out as a king of thieves with a large ambition who is willing to kill anyone who gets in the way of his prize, and said prize was the triforce, and he actually gets it, well a piece of it. Then in the future, he goes from that to a true King of Evil, and judging by the impact his reign has had on the land, and the fact that he nearly genocided the Zora and Gorons, is honestly enough to inform the player that he's somehow crueler than before. Also HE PLAYS HIS OWN THEME ON AN ORGAN IN REAL TIME AS YOU TRAVEL HIS CASTLE! And how could we forget about that horrific beast form. Also let’s not forget about his return in Twilight Princess, picking up where he left off after getting snitched on by Link. He's active through Zant for a lot of the game, and when we hear about him, he's basically built up as a ruthless ass bastard with a god complex, and he himself is such a god damn great final boss. OOT/TP Ganondorf was and IS the blueprint for any future incarnations of the character, and he was the best for a long time, and that quality remained when he returned in Twilight Princess as the final boss. But now he finally has an equal.

Number 3. Hyrule Warriors - To sum up this incarnation of Ganondorf, he's a magnificent bastard, and arguably the best representation of Ganon outside of the main series. He thrives on the battlefield, has learned from previous defeats, has his arrogance and ambitions on check, operates in the shadows if he has too, and most importantly HE GOT THE FULL TRIFORCE. He also has a dank design. Were it not for the fact that he's in a warriors game, this Ganondorf would've been worshiped by everyone.

Number 4. Super Smash Bros - He was a last minute inclusion in Melee, a bad character to play as in Brawl, a joke in smash 4 gameplay-wise. So why is he Number 3? He was a good "Orcus on His Throne" villain in Subspace, he got a HUGE upgrade in Ultimate, and the aura around him and the energy he has in ALL the games is 100% Ganondorf, from his taunts to the heaviness of his attacks. One of his taunts is literally him taking out a sword and putting it away, implying that he could use it, but only needs his overwhelming power to beat his enemies, and it's the type of arrogance I expect from Ganon when he's at the height of his power. He ain't the best character in the games and is in need of buffs, but I do believe he's a good representation of Ganon outside the main series. Also when do you ever see Ganon interacting with Bowser, Sephiroth, Ridley, AND King Dedede in offical media?

Number 5. A Link To The Past - I don’t feel like we give this man enough credit. He mainly pranced around as Agahnim in A Link To The Past, so he doesn’t have enough time to truly be himself, but even then he was still a great villain and a great final boss for his time. He’s aged like fine wine as a villain lore-wise and in some story elements, especially since Agahnim would not only be the inspiration for Zant, but the Phantom Ganons, literal extensions of Ganon himself. Sure he’s still a big blue boar, but he’s actually conniving, he’s got his mind intact, an entire realm that he has full control over, he actually took over Hyrule Castle via posing as a hero during his time as Agahnim, AND HE HAS THE FULL TRIFORCE. Sure he ain’t beating OoT Ganondorf, but he's the best Classic Ganon due to lore, feats, and the fact he walked so the other Ganons could run. Also this is the game that revealed snippets of Ganon’s origin, which we got to see in full in OoT.

Number 6. Wind Waker - After reassessing this take on Ganon, I realized that his biggest problem isn’t a lack of presence, because he does have that in spades still. His problem is a lack of general activity, aside from princess kidnapping which does end up hurting him a lot. But at the end of the day, Wind Waker’s Ganondorf carried by a great final battle, a good design, and genuine depth as a character. The best way to sum him up is "The Lord of A Dead Empire," and everytime he's appears, that becomes clearer and clearer. Despite this characterization of the big bad king being sadder than usual, this guy is still downright evil to the bone, so don't be caught off guard. Sure, he's lower on the list, but he's still pretty amazing, and he's also 50% of the fandom's favorite incarnation of him, which is honestly an achievement.

Number 7. Yuganon - Ganon was feral and mindless before this, but after basically fusing with the narcissistic artist Yuga, Yuganon here basically became more destructive and ambitious than both Yuga and Ganon. Yuga was already a good villain and creative villain, but combining him with a mindless and feral Ganon just established that “yep… he’s Lorule’s Ganondorf.”

Number 8. Four Swords Adventure - I’m honestly split on this guy. While he’s honestly not astounding, Ganon was decent here. He’s a reincarnation of Ganon that was active as Ganondorf, but only appears at the end as Ganon. However I do feel like he could’ve made just ONE appearance as Ganondorf the man at some point rather than just final boss pig beast Ganon. Aside from that, he’s just decent altogether. Nothing infuriating, but nothing good either.

Number 9. Oracle Games - He's basically a prototype Calamity Ganon, but he never got a full time in the limelight because Twinrova revived him at the end. However, he is here because, well... this is ironically a fitting fate for Classic Ganon at this point in the timeline. Being reduced to a mere mindless beast that only cares about destruction and nothing else.

Number 10. Zelda 1 - Nothing special, but he’s the first Ganon, so he’s kinda an honorary member here.

[tokiro07]

Finally finished Echoes of Wisdom, and I have to say for as much as I liked the concepts and presentation, ultimately the mechanics ended up leaving me wanting

For example, even right up until the end of the game, the Bind mechanic, which I think could have carried an entire game in and of itself, was shockingly forgettable

I excused it when I forgot to use it in early puzzles because I just wasn't used to it yet, but the fact that I made it to the final boss without realizing that I actually had a way to directly interact with it???

To make matters worse, there was a point where I finally did remember I could use that mechanic, but apparently that realization came too late, because it wasn't useful during that particular phase! So I just figured it was never useful and continued to just avoid damage while Link and my Lynel just continued to whale on the boss

Frankly, I shouldn't have been able to skirt by like that. I shouldn't have been able to rely on two computer players to do all the work while I twiddled my thumbs. I didn't even want to do nothing! I wanted to fight! But I just kept thinking "now that I don't have Link-mode, how the hell am I supposed to fight???"

The Echoes are the primary mechanic, so it's perfectly reasonable to assume that the answer to any given problem is "use an Echo." But that makes the Bind mechanic an afterthought, so even though it comes up just often enough to not feel tacked on, every time that I remembered it, it felt like a massive revelation rather than an intuitive solution

I should not have been able to beat the final boss wrong. Using Bind should not just "make it go by faster," it should be the way you're meant to win. Not just because it's a mechanic that's present, but because it's the only direct form of interaction available!

I feel like an idiot for forgetting a major mechanic, but the game did absolutely nothing to imply that I wasn't playing right other than the fact that I was getting bored. It provided no feedback that this wasn't what I was supposed to be doing, and while slow, it actually provided positive feedback, so I had to just shrug and say "I guess that's the right solution..."

There's an adage in User Experience (UX) Design that "there's no such thing as user error," that any mistake a user can possibly make could be accounted for with proper communication from the designer through the design. I had a boring experience with the finale of what was otherwise a very fun and engaging game because the design told me that the boring solution I found was acceptable and never insisted that I use the more engaging and efficient solution that it constantly went out of its own way to deemphasize

This is why I can't stand Aonuma's stance that "open-ended games are better~", because it divorces designers from the responsibility of communicating an intended solution, and instead asks the player to jam square pegs into round holes under the guise of making them feel clever, even though player psychology results in them tending to find a small handful of reliable solutions that work in enough situations that they stop experimenting and just turn that small handful into the primary mechanic

I'm glad I played Echoes of Wisdom, and I'm glad I played BotW and TotK, but I don't want the entire franchise to be these games! This is not the Zelda that I want or love! I want more games like Link Between Worlds with one, central mechanic that other, smaller mechanics can synergize with, not a giant toybox where every single toy starts to blend together and gets lost in the shuffle as I continuously fall back on my favorite

[galahadenough]

I keep thinking about Sidon, and how totk handled him. I really can't help but wonder if one of the higher ups at Nintendo stumbled onto a fic for which he was very much not the intended audience. Because while no individual thing feels like it's horrendously bad, when it all comes together something does seem a little... fishy.

First and most obviously, there's Yona. At the most basic level, that is a classic reaction to having too much shipping. Throw a fiancee into the mix. And her design is interesting. It ended up working for a lot of people, it seems, but the head shape is almost edging into a cartoony look in comparison to the other Zora, and there are no other Zora with that vivid of a color. And for me personally, the english verbal aspects (yes, yes; sure) was somewhat grating. Sidon is also a distinct color, though, and it could be an indication of royalty. But it is still such a vivid green. But she is also lovely, helpful, supportive of both Link and Sidon, and really stands on her own as a character. All of these things ended up working really well for her, but it makes me wonder about the intentions behind the design.

So, we have tick one in the fishy column. By itself it wouldn't really stand out to me, but it keeps going.

With every other sage, you find the sage and proceed to work together. It is such a feeling of companionship, and support, especially in a franchise such as Zelda that is built on solitary questing for the most part. With Sidon, he sends you off on your own for nearly every step of the way.

He sends you off to talk to Jiahto at Toto Lake.

He sends you off to find the king.

He sends you off to figure out Floating Scale Island.

Oh! Finally! He goes with you to check out the beam of light... but he stays behind when you go through the whirlpool to the Ancient Zora Waterworks. Nevermind.

He goes with you to Wellspring Island, but immediately suggests splitting up until you reach the Water Temple.

So this is fishy point number two for me. It doesn't really fit his personality and actions in the last game, and it feels very distinct from the other sages. By itself, not too weird, but we're doing math here.

The water temple feels kind of off to me too. With Tulin, you have the Stormwind Arc, a Rito myth and children's tale come to life with a thrilling ascent into the sky. With Yunobo you have the Fire Temple, a gorgeous monument to the history of the gorons, rooted in the very depths of Death Mountain itself, buried among the rocks and lava of the earth, feeling so symbolic of the earth the gorons come from. Even with Riju, with the game not quite committing to the contentious history that the Gerudo have due to their association with Ganon, you have this epic and ancient temple rising from the sand, a monument to the Gerudo's past, a part of their history consumed by the very desert they call home.

The water temple is... pretty enough. I might have been a bit more impressed if it were my first sage. But it's not that big and it doesn't feel very connected to the Zora. It's in the sky. They are fish. It uses the low gravity mechanism. Which is fun. But why?? Why here, why for the Zora who are built for water more so than running and jumping? There isn't even that much water involved outside of the vases you fill to dump on the muck. No rivers. Nothing very deep, nothing with currents, nothing involving large or natural sources of water. Just. Water facets. And weird Zonai (Zonai, not Zora) water bubble machines.

That makes fishy point number three, and in my opinion the worse point against it (tying with my next point, perhaps). A lot of this post is based on opinions, and things that could be explained away. But it feels wrong that this temple is so disconnected from the Zora.

Fishy point number four. The Mucktorok. It... I have no real issues with it existing in a Zelda game. It wasn't my favorite, and I can see how people could enjoy it. I've enjoyed hearing other's perspectives on it. It's goofy and silly. It's interesting, in a way. But it's placement in the game is what makes it feel like a deliberate snub at Sidon and the Zoras. It is the only boss that isn't cinematic. It isn't dramatic or epic, and it doesn't give a sense of danger as much as a sense of comedy. We've had enemies like that before, but they are mini-bosses. On top of that, from what I've heard, you don't even get a cool fuse weapon when you defeat one in the depths. That, to me, feels a bit deliberate.

My last point doubles as an idea for improvement, and is somewhat connected to my issues with the Water Temple. And that is Sidon's sage power. Outside of the temples I get the most use out of Tulin's ability. Then Yunobo. I don't really use Riju's ability often, but I can really see the use. But Sidon's ability really doesn't seem that useful. The shield feels like a worse version of Daruk's Protection due to the fact that you have to activate it by tracking down Sidon's shade (and I think it expires if you don't use it quickly enough?), and while not useless, I don't think a lot of people plan to be hit. And the water projectile probably isn't useless, but it seems like more trouble than it's worth when you can use an arrow, or just throw something.

Inside the Water Temple it feels even worse since that is where the ability is supposed to be showcased. I had so many splash fruit, and that was so much easier than remembering to talk to Sidon and waiting for his ability to reset. I think I only used his ability for the water spout wheels. Maybe a couple of times in the boss fight, but that felt more difficult than using the splash fruit, too.

My idea for improvement is a bit of a rework of the temple and a different ability. Sidon is shown to be able to manipulate water and currents, so his ability could be the ability to do just that. He could create a current that runs up or down a river (or through still water), the current could be a stream of water that rises up above the water, straight up or at an angle. That could be a method of travel in the temple. Instead of using those odd Zonai bubbles to travel it would be a Zora ability in the Zora temple. That would also give more of a reason to have more or larger bodies of water. You know. Having water in the Water Temple. And this is all without even considering adding some mechanic for going underwater, like is so common in Zelda games. But that is another option that would have fit so well.

I could see this temple being either in the sky or on/under ground. And this ability would be so useful outside of the temple. You could travel more easily in the water. You could use it to travel up into the air above water to get a boost up, and that could fill a little bit of the gap from the lack of Revali's Gale. It would be interesting, it would fit the character, it would be useful.

So that's five fishy points. That.. kind of got away from me, but it's been cycling through my head for a while now. And like I said at the beginning, all of these points feel fairly innocuous by themselves. It's just so many things that add up to the feeling that someone in the creators really didn't like Sidon. And that bothers me because I really like Sidon.

Despite this (not) small rant, I truly love the game and so many things about it. And the funny thing is, I don't think I would have gotten so worked up about it if I hadn't gotten the thought of some horrified high up Nintendo executive reading shark-dick porn stuck in my head. I still find that thought hilarious.

And with that, I'm off!

[birdyoh]

Preybirds Far Away

Chapter I - Enter, Bearing Armor

In scorning of curse and blessing, Link presents himself before the Goddess.

Misgiven courage bleeds the bones of his knuckles, and the ache of a blade he feels still, ripping through the delicates of his eye with the vigor of eternity, forever promised. He does not covet forgiveness, only an end, a return to dust that would stir not even a sound. To a finale for his tainted choice, no matter the cost, Link opens his weighted arms and accepts.

The Goddess swirls her feathered head, glows him alive with her shimmer. His hatred pearls as clearly as the cry of a damned, the sword at his hip the upholding of an oath incarnate. Far away, his soul swirls unbound. The Goddess snaps shut her beak, and thinks him unfinished yet.

Or, a Link of my own creation comes to life in an alternate universe, where he is met with nine reflections of himself, and plenty outlet for rage.

Under the Cut: No warnings for this chapter but warnings for the next! Ten Link’s is a lot to keep track of…

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Welcome readers, readettes, and specifically everybody whose favorite Linked Universe character is Time! I am a writer who is, in fact, not immune to propaganda, and because that is a fact I have no shame admitting, I have created this mess of a fic.

Like many things in my life, this work is entirely and completely without context. This is a Linked Universe AU that includes a tenth hero and my pride and joy; a Link of my own design, of my own threaded needlework. However… I haven’t written his story out yet. Oops! I would say ‘Warning: Spoilers for (Insert LOZ AU Title), but, wouldn’t that be redundant!

Instead, with all my grace, I have left my ‘The Legend of Zelda’ drawing board, and have instead chosen instant gratification, which is me forcing my Link to share a campsite with the LU boys. I have a stupid amount of fun picturing them together, so, that’s why this exists, and will exist until I write an ending for it which, like with many of my unwritten stories that remain forever swirling in my brain, already has one planned. Enjoy!

I promise, one day the context will be pre-existing. I just have to return to the workshop… Also, yes, my Link will always go as ‘Link’ throughout this whole story.

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Neath a grove in croons of mourning, Link dreams in the deep. Fixtures of candelabras and soft animal skins line the edge of him, binding in tight and fitting him together in youth, in small of age. Within a shroud of stone walls, he roams with gelid feet, fingers grazing against the other, eyes thick with wanton. The halls stretch in gloom, and Link weaves through them, free of a rite, of a scabbard, of a blade. His hair curls in wisps around his ears, softer than silk and scented with milk, and the candlestick in his hand trembles under the weight.

In the mute of an echo, isolated in quiet, Link is lost to home. His eyes heave as they tire, and his legs ache. He needs help returning to bed, covets his forming tears to be swept away and hushed with a cradle. He calls, and none come, and the tears thicken and spill.

Where had he been trying to go? What keeps him in wake and clinging?

Outside of the blur, he can make out the west wings cobbled halls, feel the loom of the spiring vaults of the castle ceiling high above. Father’s chamber nears, and Link carries on, jousting the candles this way and that in hobbling, and their light threatens to lose, casting away into unfolding darkness.

Every step moves him closer, but the distance remains unclosed, and the frustration grits in his teeth, until Link can make it out no longer. He stumbles, and reaching hands appear at his cheeks, warm and encapsulating his small sniffling face. The light goes, and Link cannot see Father, dark as he is in the hall, but the callous of him tells his name. The hands hold him still, healing the wet that escapes his lashes, and Link hiccups, because he does so fear the dark. Palms cradle his head, forgiving his weakness, his ineptitude, and Link bends into them, his fearing eyes slipping to a close. He leans forever and ever back, and the hands cushion his fall for as long as they can, promising to never let go, to hold him forever, to hold him within themselves for eternity.

Yet Father still slips away.

Knuckles are blown open, skin freeing from muscle and muscle freeing from bone. A wind breaks them apart, and Link plunges into the bark behind his head, his eye slipping open to release the fear it had held trapped. His campfire flickers back at him, and Link jolts, but it comes too late. Into a darkness now waking, he plummets, his breath releasing in a short jerk as the forest he’d spent so long trailing disappears from sight. It’s akin to the freezing metal of a blade flattening against the neck, or a dip into Lake Hylia in early spring. He flounders for purchase to anything, anywhere, but the fall is empty, and Link swirls as the pit drains him clear and dry.

His stomach flies to his mouth, and as a curse spills free, blazing light thrusts into his vision. He only has the moment to recognize the orange shade of sunset, before the visor of his helmet shuts on his face, and branches are crashing into and whipping his limbs apart, body in a flail as he tumbles the rest of the way down. The ground meets his back in quick succession, and the air explodes from his lungs in a seething groan, his vision erupting in swirling static as his every attempt at an inhale falls short. Pain ebbs in, and Link ebbs out, his consciousness filtering into shimmers, until the faded colors of late day turn to grey, then black, then nothing, and Link returns to the deep.

✦•┈⋅⋯𓅃⋯⋅┈•✦

There’s an eruption of squawks and floundering feathers, and Traveler swings his head to follow, his dark eyes darting through the wood. The dark outlines of passerine flit into the sky, their cries growing into a faint din as they away, and he tilts his head in watching, in stern.

“Hey,” he begins offhandedly, binding tight the roots of burdock he’d already been knotting in his hands, and unstrapping the flap of his pouch open to pack them away, “did you see that?”

“Hm?” A hum returns, and Traveler turns his head. Sky remains crouched beside the troop he’d been picking at, grappling yet and pocketing the puffy bodies of mushrooms into his own foraging pouch.

“A murder just blew out from the treeline .” Traveler furthers, and Sky looks up at that, his eyebrows deep in tilting. “A murder?”

“A bunch of crows.” Traveler mouths simply, alighting his gaze back toward the fading commotion. The crows are mere dots now, their deeper coloration blending with the slowly darkening sky. Trudging footsteps alight beside him, and Sky tilts his head in trailing. “I didn’t know that’s what they were called.” The taller Hylian admits, and Traveler squints in hopes to make out their heading.

“I thought you’d know everything about birds.” It’s a purposed nick, and Sky gives in to his humor with a curling lip.

“Yeah, well, loftwings aren’t ordinary birds.”

“Fair enough.”

The heroes look out towards the twisting forest. Beneath them, the ground inclines closer to the sun than the rest of the land, allowing their eyes the clarity of overlooking the vastness of the woodland below. In gold, the ocean of leaves reflect back unto them, and their thoughts voice and escape in quick succession.

“A bear?”

“Could be, or just another predator big enough to deserve a crows warning.”

“I really didn’t know they were called a murder. It’s a bit ominous, isn’t it?”

“I think it stems from poetry.”

There’s a pause, and Traveler shoots down Sky’s humored gaze with a wrinkle of his nose. “I didn’t fall asleep during teachings.” Sky accepts the words with a good-natured hum, and Traveler raises a hand to quell the rippling of his fringe from the wind.

“It was probably just a bear.”

It’s a bit ladened, as if it had caught on the Hylian’s teeth while in speaking, and the wind spills from the horizon. Sky breathes, and only shrugs, moving in adjust of his packed pouch. He inclines his chin to give in to the Traveler's unspoken word, his shoulder saddling the fungi aside. “It’s not exactly in passing, but it wouldn’t be a terrible idea to swing by on the way back to camp.” The words don’t twinge in their wariness, but Traveler understands in nodding, and he’s grateful.

With ode to the advent of night, their footfalls lead them down the rise and into entangled strains of heavily armed trunks. With boughs high-stretching and thick in bushels of clover green, the canopy shadows in its swallow of their forms, and the heroes navigate over the knobs of the rooted ground, their boots heeling over the patterns of the sows. The quiet is in norm, the trees solemn in their knowing and far from untoward, and the pair exchange a glance.

“Have we escaped a fight yet?” Sky mimics a lament, angling a glance to the branches overhead, and Traveler trails the leaf-lined undergrowth, a twinge furrowing between his brows. He turns his freckled nose to the side, and in catching, something pales among the leaves. It isn’t colored with the palette of a forest, but instead, sharpens into the shade of a blacksmith's fine work. Traveler follows the shape of it, his eyes trailing up from scabbard to pommel, and raises a hand.

The signal is enough, and curiosity flits to caution. As the pair nears, their ears harden, their hands in drift at their sides as they keen their eyes this and there, and to the protrusion of a blade, leant amongst a littering of fallen branches. The sheath of it is a muted color, between black and muddy red, as if to be deceiving of the much brighter pattern of the hilt, which harbors a blocky, almost checkering wrap of a brighter, royal red, and an overbearing, emanating purple.

The sight of it rushes up the hair at the back of Traveler’s nape, and with the stiffness of Sky at his side, he figures they match in their impression. The sword lays still, unmoving, but it trains them in its sights, almost as if to warn and say, ‘I lie in waiting, what will you do of it?’ Traveler glances along at the fractures of splintered branches that lay on all sides, his eyes shifting to find movement, but none is found. Only a body, unmoving, a few feet away.

Stilled in its splay, a knight lies flat beneath the base of an elm. His head points skyward, his limbs bent and arched, but not so in breaks. The helmet that sits over his head hides his features, molded into a point almost akin to a muzzle, and frames over a mailed adventail that peeks out from beneath. More mail hides beneath the covers of a tunic shaded between crimson and viridian, though the colors are deeply faded, and scratched with dirt and grime. Over his arms are leather wrappings, old and worn and strapped over fingerless gloves, and below his belt is a pair of plated legs, the armor scuffed and without luster, and anteceding a pair of worn boots.

The heroes have their hands at their sword handles, their stances a step from wide. The knight doesn’t move, aside from the shortest of breaths that twinge beneath the weight of his armor, though it has grown quite dark, and the trepidation hangs heavy. Traveler and Sky are frozen, uncertain, the silence pervading into their thoughts, until Traveler rips his hand down from his blade.

“He looks injured.”

Is the reasoning that leaves his lips, both an attempt to iron his nerves and to solidify his actions. Sky isn’t even a step behind, his sword now drawn as Traveler lowers to a kneel beside the body.

“He could be dangerous.” The Chosen Hero provides, though it chips with uncertainty, and Traveler reaches his hands to pull at the metal of the helmet, taking it in stride. “He could be dying.”

The helmet doesn’t give way with ease, and Traveler huffs, twisting the helm aside at the mail its edges leech to, until it pulls free, and reveals the face beneath. Dirty blonde hair shakes itself free from its confinements as best as it can, in strands long enough to meet the shoulder and caught through the links of the mail that comes up to his cheeks, and Traveler stares. The knight is unconscious, a given from all of Traveler’s tugging at his head, and his eyes are closed, though one seems more permanently shut than the other. The almost vertical scar that rushes over the knight's right eye is ridged, angled, and darkened in the very same way as the Old Man’s. Traveler barely manages to scruff up the mail and cloth at his neck to check for a beating pulse, his eyes glued to the face of the man unconscious before him.

“… still beating.” Traveler looks up at Sky, who’s adjusting the grip of his sword handle, as if it had begun to slip from his fingers. The look they share is a weave of palpability and calm, of knowing and confusion. Of a shared understanding that this man, this knight, whatever his story, shares their name.

With a sliver of parted lips and a calm to his brow, another Link breathes alive beneath them.

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Okay- you caught me- I like to write knee-deep in intricacy because it makes my readers think, but that is not a crime! No, no, in all honesty, I try to pride myself as much as I can with everything I write, or else I would post more.

It’s being overly critical that deserves me the cuffs, officer. But oh, I hope you all found taste in this! I’ll always do the best I can… and hopefully turn out this Link’s story before I get too much into a groove with this one.

Also shoutout to my beta reader, you know who you are. This is all your doing, so, you better Zelle me my comeuppance soon.

Next…………………..

Banner Art Credit: pothosrays

[6ad6ro]

so after much procrastination and many breaks, i finally beat zelda tears of the kingdom. so let's talk about it (there WILL be spoilers).

totk improved on botw in almost every area. but i still think botw is one of the worst mainline zeldas, so totk remains flawed in some areas. the story is pretty great. but the way the story was executed was just so damn bad... like for example, i came across zelda and the master sword very early, just through natural exploration. and so through most of the game, link is around all these characters freaking out wondering what happened and searching for zelda, asking link directly, and link doesn't say a goddamn word. just goes along like nothing happened. this story deserved to be told in a linear way, not in this stupid scattered out of order open world way.

then there's the dungeons, like a huge improvement (again) over botw because this actually HAS dungeons. except they were really small. once again, they should have taken away 75% of the dumb ass shrines and given us REAL dungeons. oh and speaking of shrines, they were mostly shitty physics and building puzzles. idk who designed these "puzzles", but i just hate the way that person thinks. shrines are the worst thing to happen to zelda since skyward sword.

ftr, i loved the physics and building when it was optional, and how they fixed the idiotic weapon durability issue by making it fun to modify said weapons. but any quest that had strict bullshit attatched? like the dude holding up the sign? were offensively bad. and the enemy difficulty balancing was horrendous until you upgraded your gear a bunch, which required so much shitty busywork? that i'd say a guide was REQUIRED just to get through that part as fast as possible. then, once you got up to like 40 or so defense, the combat became very enjoyable. all i can think is that, much like the heavy minecraft influence? the devs were "inspired by dark souls" and decided to make the game worse on purpose to appeal to that dumbass fanbase. idc why they did it, but never again. but listen... there WERE many great parts too. like fighting the sky monster and the tornado pirateships. blindly finding zelda and the master sword and realizing "oh my god". finding my first giant hole in the ground way before the story took me there, and feeling my way around in the dark until i found the first light root. only to realize HOLY SHIT this game is massive! the ganon fight was rad. as was naturally finding the shadow temple stuff by sheer exploration, along with the mech reward. speaking of the companions, they're one of the coolest mechanics i've ever seen in any zelda. and i like how they opened up world traversal by offering a bunch of high and low points to help you speed things along. credit where it's due.

all in all, it's a... a good but flawed game. if i were to rank all the mainline zeldas, it's prob: oot, lttp, mm, la, tp, ww, TOTK, z1, aol, and then the rest far behind. totk makes botw obsolete. i can't see myself going back to botw when totk exists, which is a good thing. but i'm also sick of massively open world zelda. any more past this and i'll have to let the series go.

[loregoddess]

Whoo, finished Echoes of Wisdom today! still plan to run around and try to finish things I skipped over or missed, but overall it was such a fun game, even if it was a bit shorter (it's also entirely possible I went a bit crazy and played through faster than usual). Definitely gonna be a top-5 LoZ game for me, it was so delightful...

some extra spoiler-y thoughts under the cut

Really enjoyed the final dungeon and final boss, bio-castles are one of my all-time favorite environments for fantasy worlds, and the "primordial cosmic horror" feel that Null had as a character is something else I love a lot. Also the way the mechanics were set up to have Zelda and Link fight side-by-side worked out surprisingly well, and the dungeon was fun to navigate with Link as an active partner. I'd love to see a future game expand those mechanics even further honestly, they were a delight, and it's a shame they were limited to one dungeon.

It was cool that the golden goddesses were like, actual characters w/ speaking parts too, I don't think that's ever happened in a game before. Actually, the game overall had a lot of little things I'd wanted to see in a LoZ game in general like, how the King and soldiers actually do mobilize to help Zelda and the citizens of Hyrule (they're unusually passive in most games), or just how natural a lot of the writing felt for characterization in general.

Really liked the King in this game a lot, it's funny since the last Major Hylian King (Rhoam) was Not very popular with fans bc he was a bit of an asshole, and then EoW's King is like, "This is my daughter Zelda, who is amazing and wonderful and I love her so much and will support her in whatever she does" like, very doting father character that doesn't come off as overbearing, which is refreshing (Rhoam was interesting in his own right, but he was also like, dead, so it was interesting more in a "chasing ghosts" sort of way and less in a "this is a character who can actively and presently affect what is going on").

Actually seeing Zelda get to interact with other characters and really shine as her own character was really nice too. Like, all the people in castle town really seem to know her more casually, and seeing her interact w/ other rulers was super fun too. (Not that Zelda isn't a character in other games, but she doesn't always get to be as present as EoW Zelda).

Overall I loved the game a lot, from beginning to end. The gameplay and mechanics were super fun to play around with, the music was very notably present and felt unique to every area, the art style was so pretty and cute, and the story and characters were solid from start to finish. I know I'm a bit biased, having grown up with older LoZ games, but EoW really does play and feel like a classic Zelda game, from the top-down gameplay to the dungeon design to the quirky one-off characters to the bittersweet story ending.

I don't follow the business side of the game industry that closely, but just based off the lack of a line to wait in for preordering the game on release day, I'm worried that EoW won't do as well and therefore Nintendo will be like "well, that game was a flop, so we won't do something like it again" (bc it kinda feels like they set it up to fail, I mean it even released on a Thursday instead of Friday like most games do), but damn do I hope the game actually does really well and pulls off a Metroid Dread, bc I would love to see more LoZ games like this one. Playable Zelda was great, and the entire game design was so fun, I would love to have another game like this but a bit larger/longer.

Anyhow, now off to unblock the tags for EoW and finally take peeks at guides and fanstuffs (I was only missing two echoes at the end of the game and I have NO idea what they are even if I know where they're supposed to be, thanks to the clear-game giving the player access to the number of things they're missing).

Absolutely delightful game, will probably replay it lots and lots.

[heinousactszx]

Skyward sword was the first game in my little chronological playthrough and it was the first time i played it, so i thought i'd do a little review

first, the good. the dungeons in this game are fantastic. easily some of the best in the series. they really force you to think ahead and think about the dungeon as an actual space and plan your way through it. there were more than a few times where i was stumped and had to use every tool available to me to figure my way through, which for me is a big plus.

I also think the sword combat was very well implemented (when it worked). by tying success in combat to precise movement instead of random slashing or just waiting to use an item, they can create truly challenging fights that i can't say most other zelda games have. ghirahim is the standout here, all 3 of his fights were fantastic

The story was overall fine, I liked it enough. Groose's arc was predictable but enjoyable. Ghirahim is an amazing villain, one of the best in a series that doesn't have too many standouts. Link and zelda's relationship was okay, they did try and flesh it out, although it wasn't nearly as involved as people led me to believe. They also damseled her again which I guess I should expect but still, not a fan. I thought fi's ending was pretty good for a character that's really just annoying up to that point. I like that she's ultimately been the companion of many successive links

Unfortunately that's kind of where the good times end. As good as the dungeons are, the overworld is very much not. There's only 3 real areas in this game, and while they are fairly large, the fact that you have to revist each multiple times really cuts down on the excitement of exploration. Not that you can explore much anyway, these areas are mostly hallways that funnel you towards your objective without a lot of choice. I don't mind linearity in games, but the railroading in this game is frustrating and the constant backtracking does not help

And this is made worse by the handholding, which really is as bad people said. so many times fi will just spoil a puzzle before you can even look at it. so many times she'll explain something to you that is very obvious, or was already explained to you. so many little things you have to do, dragged out, before you can get to big things. the game becomes a slog both because you have to constantly stop to get helped, and then doing what you need to do stops being fun and just becomes a chore.

finally, as much as i like the sword stuff, the rest of the motion controls are just painful. Flying sucks, skydiving sucks, swimming sucks, those tightropes are a nightmare, just using bombs is an ordeal, and that's before you get into the constant communication errors. for the last third of the game i ended up bringing in a kitchen chair and sitting 3 feet from the tv just so i'd stop getting errors, and it still happened!

ultimately, unless you're doing what i'm doing and playing them all, i can't recommend skyward sword to anyone. the genuinely good bits of game design are surrounded by frustration that affects the whole experience beginning to end. I'm aware that the remastered version fixes some of these issues, but quality of life updates can't truly change a game with flaws this fundamental. is it a "bad" game? no. is it worth 40 hours of your life? absolutely not

but enough about all that. we're done with skyward sword and we never have to go back. up next is the zelda game i love more dearly than any other: minish cap! easily my favorite of the series, it'll be a great followup for many reasons. I can't want to actually gush about a game instead of complaining, i'll start playing later today

[squidos-goodies]

SO I WAS THINKING ABOUT LINK’S AWAKENING— *record screech* WOW that got a lot longer than i thought it would so it’s under the cut now

tl;dr what if link’s awakening is actually the wind fish’s attempts to bring legend back from the brink of death and marin is, one way or another, a personification of the healing that he does on koholint so remembering her also becomes remembering that he can survive anything and even heal from it enough to move forward.

okay so idk what most people’s headcanons for why the wind fish yoinked legend are but i always assumed it was because legend had just been STRUCK BY LIGHTNING and was either dying from that or actively drowning. and then i started thinking about how you start with three hearts in link’s awakening and, like every other zelda game, get more hearts, better armor so you take less damage, and just generally grow stronger. while that is basic game design, i also like the narrative idea of the fact that legend is on the brink of death and this world that the wind fish built is half reminder of everything he still wants to do/has to live for (more adventures and falling in love, hopefully) and half metaphysical allegory for his recovery to help his barely-conscious brain keep track of what’s going on. right now i’m thinking that the nightmares are also a legitimate threat to the wind fish, being a creature of dreams and all, so it really does turn out to be a mutually beneficial relationship where they save each other’s lives. under this interpretation, as legend helps save the wind fish and protect mabe village, he’s also strengthening his spirit like those silent realms in skyward sword (his is less murdery because he’s half-dead okay give the kid a break) so by the time he’s gathered all the instruments of the sirens, he’s actually grown and healed and is now ready to wake the wind fish and face the real world.

anyway, this whole lens of looking at LA through made me think of marin as either like the manifestation of legend’s love/sense of adventure/optimism/anything he’s at risk of losing if he gets too jaded or as some persona the wind fish has kicking around (a character it made up? someone else whose life it tried to save but couldn’t so it did the next best thing and let them live on in its dreams? who knows) whose sole purpose at this point is to help heal any strays the wind fish happens to pick up. either way, marin becomes a manifestation/personification of the healing legend needs to do to survive this and her request to remember him is in part also a request to remember that he survived this so he can survive anything. marin becomes a symbol of hope and courage and someone he can think back to in his darkest hour to inspire him to move forward and i liked that interpretation a lot!! (total shocker, i know) and then these drawings were born!!! their goodbye becomes incredibly bittersweet (but more sweet than bitter) as marin fulfills her purpose and legend is now finally strong enough to wake up and return to the real world again. if we go under the first interpretation of what marin is, legend is also waking up with the knowledge that marin will always be with him as long as he never loses that spark of joy (though option two has her living on in his memories and that’s how she exists in the wind fish anyway so she’s still kind of always with him).

anyway that was my needlessly long ramble about link’s awakening headcanons to help explain this art i made. have a lovely whatever-time-it-is-for-you, friends!

[slaughterverse]

Okayyyy.. TotK Review.

Cons:

- Not enough shrines.

- Constant framerate drops

- No Revali’s Gale :(((((((

- The Sages are so annoying to use in combat if you have all five of them activated. I straight up never used more than three at a time because it was too hectic.

- Not as much new armor as I was hoping for.

- The sky region is sooo barren, almost nothing interesting outside of one or two cool shrines and the initial island.

- Matthew Mercer, my parasocial rival and enemy, was doing the typical Matthew Mercer voice for Ganon. SAD.

- Boring and uninteresting ending. Mad about it.

- No enemy is quite as fun to fight as the Guardians :( I miss them.

- VERY few acknowledgment of the Calamity. The fuck is up with that it literally just ended a few years ago in game….

Pros:

- DRAGONS!!!!!!!!

- Furries had fun designs I liked them so so much.

- TRAGEDY!!!! Yay I love suffering and heartbreak and and and (points off this one for the ending not being tragic at all)

- FREAKY HANDS!! SCARY UNDERGROUND!! YESS!! SCARE THE SHIT OUT OF ME RANDOMLY AND WITH NO BUILDUP I LOVE YOU!!!

- The DEPTHS!!! I LOVE THE DEPTHS!! I could’ve spent the whole game down there if I wasn’t busy with shrines. I only with there were even more quests down there.

- THE BOSSES!!! They go so fucking hard. Especially Colgera :)

- Lich Ganon :)))))) The rare and illusive good-Matt-non-CR voice acting. His ickyness :) He’s decaying and dead but still alive through hate and power. Awesome. (Points off for rehydrating him)

- DRAGONS!!! DRAGONS!!!! YOU CAN RIDE ON THE DRAGONS!!!!!! THERE ARE MORE DRAGONS!!! THE DRAGONS ARE PLOT RELEVANT.

- Riju!!!! More Riju my favorite girl daughter ever :D She’s grown up so much :’)

- YOU CAN BUY ALCOHOLLLLLLL!!!! Link is finally old enough to drink :) welcome to young adulthood little buddy.

- This:

- The dragon inspired armor!!! So fucking dope!!

- The final boss fight HOLYYYYY FUUUUUUCK. I LOVE Ganon’s moveset. I’m so fucking glad it’s actually somewhat challenging because fuuuck was Calamity Ganon disappointing.

- DRAGONS. FIVE OF THEM. GANON’S FINAL FORM WAS A FUCKING DRAGON. MOTHER FUCKING DRAGONSSSS.

- FUCKING LOOK AT THIS SHIT:

- YOU FOUGHT DRAGON GANON WHILE RIDING DRAGON ZELDA. NOTHING GOES HARDER THAN THIS. NOTHING.

- CECE!!!!! MY QUEEN!!!! I’M MADLY IN LOVE WITH HER! I LOVE HER SILLY MUSHROOM FASHION!! I LOVE THE SILLY HAT SHE GIVES LINK. IN LOVE IN LOVE.

- Getting to straight up join the Yiga clan. Like you do everything by the books. You even get a promotion and everyone loves you. God I fucking love this game.

- All of the callback weapons!!! Sooo so good :)

- Link’s house. It’s awful. No matter how you build it it’s awful. No interior walls. No windows. It’s beautiful. It’s perfect.

- Vehicular homicide :)

- SKYDIVING!! Very fast! You can go anywhere and incredibly high speeds.

- FINAL DRAGON HOORAH!!!! IT’S GOT DOPE DRAGON SHIT GOING ON.

Rating: 30/10

Four additional points for every big dragon in the game. Two points for the dragon-like monsters. The remaining eight points are for being an overall pretty fun game! Lots of fun new things and mechanics!