#but no yeah twilight princess was my first zelda game and also the first video game I really like. played in earnest

[figofswords]

is midna the kitten named after midna from the legend of zelda

yeah and it turns out that was a mistake because she’s a mischievous little imp who big time lives up to her namesake

[marshallpupfan]

Marshall Merchandise Update!

Got some interesting new additions for my collection to show off today! Eventually, I need to show everything off again... as soon as I get things organized again. I still have items I bought from early last year that I still haven't found a spot for yet. I've been slacking! lol

First off, this lapel pin... being graciously held up by Wolf O'Donnell. There's probably a "can't let you do that" joke in here somewhere, but I can't think of any right off hand. 😅

This was actually sent to me by a friend, who recently paid a visit to Nickelodeon Universe (an indoor theme park). While she was there, she seen this and got it for me, hoping it was something I didn't have. Fortunately, it wasn't! A fine item for my collection, indeed! She'll likely see this post later, so if you're reading this, thank you again!

Actually, I believe she also went a year or two ago and managed to find the Meet & Greet Marshall wandering around. She even got a picture & video with him, too. I was quite envious! 😄

Next, this "magic towel" thing. It's also being held up by another wolf - this time, it's Wolf Link, from "The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess". Can you tell I'm a bit of a Nintendo gamer? lol

Anyhoo, I was just doing some shopping with my mother in a dollar store when I happened to stumble upon this. It was only $1.25, so... why not get it? The artwork isn't the best, but hey, I still like it.

Next, one of those "Good 2 Grow" snack containers! Actually, funny story about this one. I was at a gas station, not expecting to see anything pertaining to PAW Patrol, when I seen one of these that someone left at the front near the cashier. However...

It was actually one of Zuma, which surprised me, since they usually pass him up to focus on the main four. I meant to post about it on Twitter/X, but like usual, I forgot. In any case, I decided to track one down, and I soon found one of Marshall at Walmart. It was the last one, too! Unless I'm mistaken, they also had one of Liberty, so I guess they went beyond just the six original pups this time. Nice!

As you might recall, we've actually seen products like this before, about a year or two ago. Back then, it was just the pups in their regular outfits. This time, they went with a superhero theme, no doubt due to The Mighty Movie. I'm not sure why they went with Super Paws and not the Mighty Movie outfits, but maybe these were easier to mold. Who knows, but hey, I quite like it when older outfits get brought back, instead of them getting forgotten in the sands of time.

I just wish we could see THIS outfit again someday. It had a brief reappearance in that "Mighty Pups Save Adventure Bay" video game, but that's it so far. Sadly, at this point, I doubt we'll ever see it again.

Er... guess I got a little distracted here, sorry!

Last, and absolutely not least, is this brand new item! Something I knew about for many months and couldn't wait to get a hold of one for myself! It's "Storytime with Marshall" by Leap Frog!

(In hindsight, taking these pictures in front of my monitor may not have been the best idea. Hopefully they're not too hard to see. 😅)

This thing is legitimately super awesome! They really got his likeness down so well here! I mean, seriously, just look at it! It's so cute! It's easily one of the best pieces of merch I've got in my collection now!

According to the box, it can do quite a lot. It includes 40+ stories, which I assume are based on various episodes (I haven't listened to them yet, but I also assume they focus on different pups, going by the buttons on the front... yeah, it's a shame there's no Rocky or Zuma again, I know). It has a sleep timer, to help lull the little ones to sleep at night before shutting off and all that. Additionally, it teaches "core learning skills" or something, whatever that means. That's cool and all, but of course, for me, I just wanted it because I absolutely love how it looks. It'll look great on one of my shelves! lol

I'll admit, I'm glad this came out before the new animation style got applied. While I like Marshall's updated season 11 look so far (I might make a separate post about that later), his original design is still my #1 favorite. A part of me hopes to keep collecting more merchandise of THIS Marshall, but I know that, by next year, they'll probably retire this design and start using the new one, permanently. Guess I'll enjoy it while it lasts. 😅

And that's all for now! I currently have another item coming in the mail; Marshall's new Rescue Wheels big wheel vehicle + figurine. It's been delayed, but it's supposed to show up at some point next week. Hopefully, the remaining Rescue Wheels merchandise will show up in stores soon enough, and I'll be able to show them all off soon. I might also have to buy a Boomer figurine, too. lol

[echoesofwisdomcountdown]

89 Days Until Tears of the Kingdom Release. The Trailer Breakdown is here. Sorry Tumblr killed the image quality. This is Part One of Three.

Warning: This will be obscenely long. I have spent hours of my life on this and I even went around Hyrule in BOTW to double check things. I have also watched only one reaction/analysis video (Limcube) whose ideas I reference a few times but the rest is all me. Now, I know many of the oddities and differences could easily be explained by saying we time travel into the past but I’m going to approach this for the most part as if we are not time traveling because it's more fun this way. Also, the colors refer to the corresponding arrows/circles on the image above it.

First thoughts: Dang the sky is mad. Do not wear metal in this weather. Red: Malice spewing out of Death Mountain. Never not gonna be interested in that. Green: Green swirlies. I’m assuming this is something that lets you travel into the sky. Maybe lets you phase through the ground like one of the past trailers has shown us. Liquifies Link even. Orange: Weird funky rock. Meteorites?? Yeah I’m gonna point these out a lot.

Red: Malice pool right next to the green swirlies. Blue: Tiny glowing dots in the distance. Other green swirlies? If so they seem to dot the landscape like shrines in that you can see the glow far off. Unless they are more of those symbols/drawings inscribed on ground/grass that we see later.

First thoughts: Keese on steroids. My friend suggests calling them Geese. Second thoughts: Actually, they remind me of the flying enemies from Twilight Princess, Twilit Kargarok, only yellow. Hmm yellow and orange… I hope they are not electric or fire although there seems to be a lack of that in the trailer. Note: The area is clearly where the Sheikah Tower near the Korok Forest (Woodland Tower) should be, except well it’s obviously not there.

Blue: Glowing towers that are clearly not Shiekah Towers. I like the spotlights though. They look kinda prehistoric.  Orange: Big glowy symbols/drawing. I really want to know what these are for. Green: It’s kinda hard to see but I think it’s a big storm tornado thing in the sky. You can see it much better later in the trailer. Reminds me of the stormhead dome in Skyward Sword.

Blue: Glowing orange thing down there. Can’t tell what it is but maybe a chest? Idk why but I have this idea you might have to jump down from higher and angle yourself to land on it. You had to do this for platforms in Skyward Sword. Red: This island being at a lower altitude from the one taking up most of the shot pleases me. I like the idea of layered sky islands. Might be a nightmare for stamina and paragliders until we can get those vehicles.

General thoughts: Brand new underground area. I’ve never seen anything like this in BOTW. Green: Blue flame spirit things. These are so interesting. I wanna know what these are. They remind me of willow the wisps or maybe the Bluepee. I hope this means more spirit things in this game. I will be quite sad if they are only an environmental design choice. Red: Malice infused Lizalfos. Again I haven’t seen elemental enemies yet. Only malice ones. Huh it’d be pretty funny if they bled black but then that’d be infringing on the Linked Universe and enemies don’t bleed in Zelda games. Pink: Why are they mining? Seriously, Ganondorf, what are you having your minions mine for? You lose something? Do the bokoblins need money or ore for something? Hmm, a bokoblin run market would be interesting. Blue: This glowy snake tree thing kinda looks like a tunnel of some sort. Maybe it’s a way to travel from the surface to this. If so I’d treat it like a slide but then I’d break my knees cause you can bet fall damage is still a thing… hmm can’t wait to see people time how long it takes for Link to fall from the highest island to the ground and go splat

Note: The Bridge of Hylia is the same. Yes, I double checked. Words: “Rise, rise my servants.” I’m fairly sure this is Ganondorf.   Red: DRAGON. THREE HEADED FIRE DRAGON. Yeah so this is one of the few elemental enemies shown in the trailer. I want to fight this thing so bad. I’ve heard people say it's a Gleeok possibly (an enemy from the first Legend of Zelda game.) It reminds me of a much cooler version of the Hydra enemies from Skyward Sword. Blue: Vaguely green glow that probably denotes a green swirly thing. Pink: Malice holding up the castle looks sick. I like that you can see it glowing red from far away.

General Thoughts: It’s Hateno and it mostly looks the same but not quite Words: “Sweep over Hyrule.” Yeah, yeah Ganondorf we get you have a grudge. Green: Green swirly thing is new. It’s not quite in the same place as the shrine which is absent from this picture.  Blue: Purah’s furnace is gone and so are the blue flame lanterns along the road and the ancient furnace down in the village. Purah’s lab also isn’t glowing. Actually, this makes me wonder about teleportation since no Sheikah slate. Maybe we get so many new vehicles because no instant teleportation.

General thoughts: First time we see Link. Hello buddy. Also sequels and moons as enemies am I right? Words: “Eliminate this kingdom and her allies.” This Ganondorf doesn’t want to rule over people but wipe them out which makes me think about Demise’s anger and hatred. However, Ocarina of Time Ganondorf devastated the land pretty badly so maybe all of the Ganondorfs/Ganons like extreme destruction. Also, I’m pretty sure Hyrule’s allies are all the different races, Zora, Rito, Gerudo (talk about betraying your own people Ganondorf), Shiekah. I’m not holding out hope for other nations/kingdoms getting involved. Blue: You can see islands in the background. I wonder what the long trailing thing is. Pink: The shield is the same one we’ve seen in a past trailer but of course Link had a different outfit then. Also the bow is a brand new one that’s not in BOTW. The sword handle also makes me think it's a new weapon. I like the triforce triangles on the shield and the not-really-Sheikah-eye eye. It’s got eyelashes.

General thoughts: I wonder if we get a super strong blood moon in the beginning and then the cycle returns to normal like BOTW or will we get more frequent blood moons or maybe blood moons are every night but they don’t work quite the same like moon is just red everynight and enemies are stronger but every once and a while we get a super blood moon that respawns enemies. Words: “Leave no survivors.” This part really makes me think more Demise than Ganondorf. The way the VA growled this part also made me think of Pig Ganon or Ganondorf’s beast form. Blue: It's kinda hard to make out but that’s a lot of malice. It’s really consuming the castle there.

Green: Green swirly thing is already present when the Ganon moon starts raining meteors. Does this mean that this footage isn’t from the first cutscene the trailer is alluding to but a later blood moon cycle? Do the swirly things appear as soon as the green seal breaks on Ganon? Or do they appear before and that's why Link and Zelda were exploring underneath the castle? Also this one happens to be in the same spot as the Jee Noh Shrine. Pink: Great plateau walls appear to be fixed and this is the area that should be full of snow. The spot is on the south side of Mount Hylia. Trust me I double checked and Ganon was so helpful as to spawn a blood moon while I was checking out the walls so I accidentally recreated this part of the trailer. Why did the climate on the plateau change so drastically and did Link and Zelda repair the walls?

First thoughts: WTF IS THAT THING??!! Second thoughts: Either it's some form of Ganon or it's a mutated malice guardian enemy. It reminds me of the corrupted evil egg guardian from Age of Calamity. I can’t decide if I want to fight it or run from it. Black: On the third look, it has bone claws/hands. Uhhh weird bone growths line up with the other enemies but this thing is disturbing me the longer I look at it. Time to move on.

General thoughts: So besides the dragon this is the only other elemental enemy. At least I think it's an enemy. Seems like a really massive and powerful Igneo Talus. Unless it's a piece of Death mountain area rising into the sky to become a lava island but that seems like a stretch.

General thoughts: Just wanted to note that since pieces of the castle are breaking off, the layout of the castle is probably gonna be changed from BOTW. Idk how much but it makes sense that they would want to alter the interior map. Not like the Castle wasn’t already a bit of a pain to navigate.

General thoughts: The red lighting looks extremely intimidating. 10/10 Pink: Malice pools where the Magnesis Shrine should be. Did Ganon’s malice eat the shrines? Where is it even coming from? Is it bubbling From underground or from the blood moon? Considering it’s so close to that bit of water near the shrine, it makes me wonder if certain water sources will be infected with malice and what that will do to the Zora. Green: Glowy symbols again. I really really want to know more about those. Yellow: The plateau walls here are damaged unlike the more fortified ones in the previous plateau picture. I also double checked and as far as I can tell this is the same exact damage that exists in BOTW. Maybe Link and Zelda didn’t get around to fixing it yet? Also if I acknowledge the time travel possibility then this just tells me that the blood moons happen in both time periods.

General thoughts: So Ganon is spawning these guys in. What does this mean for the regular bokoblins? Were they all cleared out by Link, Zelda, and a recovering Hyrule so Ganon just spawned in evolved versions? Also I can’t quite tell where this is (unless this is on the plateau walls, the nice fixed up ones we saw earlier considering the trees in the background). Oh well.

Blue: First off this is a Redead. This is a hundred percent a Redead and I give Nintendo 15/10 for scary design. Redeads are always meant to be terrifying. That being said, I will ancient arrow these things (that is if ancient arrows still exist.) Of course this begs the question. Which unlucky dead person got resurrected and mutated to be a Redead? Did Ganon turn dead Yiga into Redeads or is he using the dead Hylians that he killed during the Calamity? I wonder what the lore on these things is gonna be. Green: Big guy. A very large dude. Reminds me of the Moblins from Skyward Sword. Yellow: Bone growth on the red Moblin reminds me of a Pachycephalosaurus (dinosaur.)

Orange: Big storm in the sky but much better shot. As I said before it reminds me of the storm dome thing from Skyward Sword. Blue: Again I really like the way the malice looks streaming up and out from under the castle. It looks sufficiently ominous enough for my taste. Like that’s an evil castle right there. Green: I hunted for this area since there aren’t exactly many paved/cobbled roads in BOTW. The best I can tell is that this is the road between the Sacred Ground Ruins and the Mabe Village Ruins. Yes, I zoomed around Hyrule Field on my motorbike dodging guardian blasts every five seconds. Yeah, I felt pretty cool right up until I failed to dodge but then I murdered those two guardian stalkers so all was well.

General Thoughts: Looks like the area where the golfing minigame is in BOTW, that same valley that leads to the Forgotten Temple. Blue: There is a Molduga in that avalanche. What the heck is that about?

Green: What is that arm holding? I know it's likely a mechanical part of some sort but I thought it was a brush at first lmao Red: Makes me think of Purah and/or Robbie but this area is definitely brand new. Maybe one or both remodeled. Or it’s neither of them but a secret third option. Still the blue glow also makes me think of teleportation so maybe it's not completely go

General thoughts: Poor Link getting accosted by Doctor Octopus arms. Blue: That’s the Shiekah eye so this is probably a Shiekah place. Still, why does this place give me Yiga vibes? Pink: Let me just appreciate actual chainmail under that Champion's tunic.  Green: Clawed ancient hand. I’m very fascinated by it so just noting that it’s not glowing here.

Blue: The strange rocks. They make me think of meteorites but also the big guardian pillars that surround the castle and the material that make up the shines. Did Ganon explode those pillars and pieces of them are now littered across Hyrule? Did they just emerge out of the ground? Or, if we’re thinking about time travel, are these the materials that the Shiehka later use to make the shrines and those pillars.? Green: Big dude has a large horn. The skulls on him remind me of the bokoblin skulls that you could collect from defeated bokoblins in Skyward Sword. Also does he have an ax on his head? Pink: I went to check all the areas I could with this type of tree (Taoba Grasslands, Oseira Plains, and the area right beneath the words Gerudo Canyon which by the way has fairies lurking around) but not a single one has greenish grass with flowers. Maybe the grass literally grew greener after Calamity was defeated for a bit. Hyrule restoring itself and all that jazz.

General thoughts: Hehe look at that Hinox with his dumb little hat. Also we are in a cave. We are totally getting underground sections. Pink: This green orb looks like the one you find on the Thundra plateau. It’s also making me think of the three orbs you have to collect in Wind Waker and place in those statues. Farore vibes. Red: What is this glow? Is it the orb or something else?

General thoughts: Yes, another one of the Hinox chase. I want you to appreciate Link’s running animation… jk. I’m just noting that I’ve never seen those plants in BOTW. You must be telling yourself OP how could you expect to know every little plant in BOTW but I’m telling you I’ve played the game for somewhere around 1000 hours and I’ve watched too many BOTW videos to count. Also there are plants growing on the cave walls in the back. (I kept an eye out while I was double checking other things for this breakdown and still couldn’t find these plants. Pls correct me if I’m wrong)

General thoughts: New paraglider, yay. I mean it doesn’t seem that different but I now know we can customize it with different fabrics. I hope there are in-game customizations as well as the amiibo ones. Also, no Ridgeland Tower. I really wonder where the heck all of them went. Red: I like that you can see all these islands in the sky from down here. Also what the heck is that cube island? Limcube said he thought it was related to the mazes but I don’t wanna think of dealing with a rubix cube maze that's vertical and horizontal. I’m gonna be lost for weeks.

General thoughts: Obviously, the symbols are driving me nuts. I wanna know what they are for so badly. I do think it's funny we can just ride a horse right through them. I just know someone is gonna try and set this grass on fire to see what happens. Red: What is this thing? It’s hard to make out but it looks like it has four limbs, a tail, and tusks maybe? Yeah it looks kinda like an elephant. I wonder if it's another new enemy. Blue: Just think it's funny that there’s a random rock here.

Blue: They are like the Twilight Princess Kargarok. I know I’m not the only one getting flashbacks to that one minigame where you had to hit those fruit balloons while the Kargarok was carrying Wolf Link similar to this. Green: New weapon that looks like a primitive hatchet. Yellow: So in BOTW this is the area that’s covered in darkness (Typhlo Ruins). I wonder why it isn’t covered in shadow here. Pink: Storm in the sky. I just like pointing this out. I wanna explore the storm tornado cause I just know something is interesting there. LET ME IN!

Pink: This guy has bull horns like a Longhorn (sorry it's hard to see here). I like this design. I didn’t get a picture of it but he slams his head into the ground so I’m assuming it's a new type of attack. So that means, even if the enemies look mostly the same, we should watch out for new attack patterns. Yellow: This is the Wooden shield so not new. Green: again looks like the Pachycephalosaurus (dinosaur).

General thoughts: They really just stacked stuff on top of the enemy skull camps. Blue: What is this stick weapon? Maybe, it's at an odd angle but it doesn’t look long enough to be a wooden spear and it’s definitely not a regular BOTW stick. It’s like a slightly heavier stick lol.

General thoughts: Whoa this is such a cube enemy, a block man. Square. Obviously, it reminds me of both Tetris and Minecraft. Also I really like that it’s so bright because the islands are closer to the sun. Red: Probably very much a glowing weakness. I hope we can break that specific block. It also glows the same shade as Link’s new arm so Zonai tech??  Blue: Pointing out the sky islands again. I really like the variety of shapes and altitudes. I can’t wait to explore these.

Next

[wrenhavenriver]

top 5 books for you too! also, top 5 video games and top 5 movies, if you would like :3c

heeell yeah! top 5 books:

Salvage The Bones by Jesmyn Ward - an incredibly lyrical and deeply sad story of a family in the days leading up to Hurricane Katrina. i read it for the first time at a very shitty time in my life and the sibling relationships especially punched me directly in the heart. a tough read on many fronts (definitely look up/mind the content warnings if you have any "hard no" topics in your books) but the power and beauty of jesmyn ward's writing is something else.

Catch-22 by Joseph Heller - one of those rare high school assigned books that actually made an incredibly lasting impression. i'm glad 17-year-old me got all those reality checks about *checks notes* the horrors of war, the hollow uselessness of nationalism and being convinced to die for it, the absurdly circular reasoning that props up systems of power and the incompetence of the people at the top of them, the ability of bureaucracy to drive you to sheer sobbing madness, financial systems being wildly arbitrary at best and a fucking scam at worst, *takes breath*,

The Long Walk by Stephen King - look, I find most of Stephen King's work deeply annoying, but this one fucking hits. A Hunger Games-esque premise that's about self-destructive urges and toxic masculinity as much as it as about the actual, you know, ritualized dystopian death march. also the camaraderie that forms between these teenagers even in the most hideous of circumstances is so charming and funny and sweet. also also it's just, like, really gay (peter mcvries you mad bisexual disaster).

The Secret History by Donna Tartt. Sorry.

Anything by Octavia Butler really, but Dawn has a special place in my heart. The detail Butler put into all the different ways an alien species would be, well, alien to us--biological, linguistic, the makeup of family units, understandings of gender and sex, etc--and her description of humans as intelligent but highly hierarchical, and how these conflicting qualities could very well lead to our destruction...the hugely messy power dynamics not only between aliens and humans but among humans themselves...there's just so much to sink your teeth into, and it's only the first fucking book in the trilogy!

much more briefly because i'm giving myself eye strain, top 5 video games:

this is another one of those things that seems to shift every time i'm asked it but there are two (2) that will very likely never be budged from the list and those would be: have i mentioned this game called dishonored 2012 dev. arkane studios maybe one or eighteen hundred times over the last ten years; and bloodborne babey!!!

feeling like i need a zelda entry on here rn but i can't decide between majora's mask or twilight princess

fire emblem: awakening set me on the terrible path of anime chess obsession and i'm much less mad about it than i should be

also need a sengoku jidai media entry on here but i can't decide (x2) between sengoku basara or nioh which is hilarious because they are WILDLY different in tone. the duality of man

oh shit that's at least five? ask me again in a week and i'll have at least three different substitutions lmao

favorite movies:

the handmaiden. adapting fingersmith to 1930s korea is galaxy brain levels of genius and hideko and sook-hee are peak romance

saw pan's labyrinth for the first time at like. age 14? and it chemically altered my brain and introduced me to guillermo del toro's work and made me feel a lot of horrifying things. 10/10

need a ghibli entry on here but can't decide (x3) between princess mononoke and howl's moving castle, vote now on your phones

lord of the rings: the two towers. saw it six times in theaters when it originally came out and it's still my favorite of the series. can pretty much watch it by just closing my eyes at this point.

favorite disney/pixar is tangled. "i see the light" is also peak romance. wait what if hideko and sook-hee sang i see the light to each other

[marvel-starwarsfangirl]

Looking Back: Spirit Tracks over 10 years later

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks was my very first official video game ever. I was first introduced to LoZ through my cousin. So, for Christmas, I was gifted with a DSI and Spirit Tracks plus Phantom Hourglass. Since the first time I popped that cartridge in, I knew Spirit Tracks was going to be something special. I was mesmerized by the world, the music, and the characters. As I played more and more Zelda games like Ocarina of Time, Spirit Tracks became that fun, little game I played as a child. However, that little game always had a special place in my heart. Playing it now, for the first time since I lost my original DS and copy of the game in 2019, it still remains my favorite.

The world: The world of Spirit Tracks to me is breathtaking. This world feels so real to me. There is so much to explore. Yeah, the train can be tedious, but aside from that the map is huge. Skyward Sword feels so limiting in what you can explore. And don't me wrong, I love Hyrule field, but even that feels small to me at times. Twilight Princess has the best Hyrule field of the older games. Spirit Tracks has so many places to explore. Although the villages aren't, I still appreciate the unique design of all of them.

The dungeons: While the dungeons or bosses in this game will never be as grand as the Ancient Cistern or spooky as Arbiter's Grounds, I still adore them. To me, they are what dungeons should be: challenging with fun puzzles. And that's the key word here: fun. These dungeons do a great job implementing the puzzles and items collected. I love how the Tower of Spirits continues to get challenge your puzzle-solving skills. The bosses also are just fun adventures for Link to take on. They don't need to be crazy or super grand because this game is meant to be a fun, little adventure.

The characters: We could argue which game has the best characters for hours (it's Skyward Sword stop arguing). That being said, I say Spirit Tracks has some really great characters. The Lokomos are all unique, Cole is a delightful little menace, and Byrne stole my heart. Thanks the the side quests, we do get some pretty fun interactions with the various npcs throughout the game. I love the teacher who has to disguise himself to get out of the castle. The rabbit man and his wife make for a cute romance story. And Ferrus is just a jolly man who loves trains. It's a great cast.

This game also has one of my favorite versions of Zelda. Just like with Skyward Sword, Spirit Tracks does a great job setting up her relationship with Link. Their relationship is so genuine and wholesome. They're friends who may pursue a romantic relationship when they're older. It's that good. They also gave Zelda a personality and stuff to do other than show up for the first and last few minutes to dump exposition. Y’all want playable Zelda? Well, here she is! She's adventurous, funny, caring, and feisty. There's so much life to her. She helps Link as much as she can and is a way better companion than Navi ever could be. Zelda is amazing. Her interactions with Link are stellar. I also love that the game shows just how much the two of them love and care for each other. Link and Zelda are perfect.

And yes, Byrne was my first fictional crush. It's his design I tell you. I love broody, tall men. It's that simple. But also, he does have a great arc. He becomes evil because he wanted power. Yet, he still had a soft spot for Anjean. After he's betrayed, he realizes the horrible truth and decides to help the heroes. Thanks to Anjean and Zelda's forgiving nature, they take Byrne in and help him. In turn, it is he who helps Zelda reclaim her body and gives his life. He's wonderful *sigh*.

The music: Spirit Tracks has some of the best Zelda music in my opinion and it's sad that it gets overlooked by like... every other game. I will be brutally honest, I genuinely don't remember any of the music from BotW or TotK. I'm sorry, that's the truth. But, I always remembered Spirit Tracks' music. From the upbeat title theme to Byrne's unique leitmotif, the music has always been fun. Cole's theme is one of my personal fave villain tracks. I love the music changes as you ascend the Tower of Spirits. I love the Lokomo songs even if the flute mechanic was a tad annoying at times. I love the Demon Train's intimidating theme. The Dark Train's leitmotif was the og anxiety bringer way before the guardians were even a thing.

The Story: I also adore the story of this game. When an ancient evil strikes, Link, Zelda, and co. must rally to save the day. I like that the train in this game actually has a meaning. It's not just a means of transportation; the tracks have magic in them that protect the world from demons. It's simple but effective. There are fun side quests that are optional but yield satisfying rewards and nothing feels too repetitive. In short, it's great. One thing I really appreciated was that Zelda couldn't just enter her body right away. She had to focus her power. It makes the game more interesting. And it’s one of the only Zelda games where she basically dies. This game has stakes!!!Byrne's death shows that there are consequences for one's actions and sacrifices that must be made. Saving the world isn't an easy path. Overall, I think it's a fun and effective story.

The Downsides: Obviously, it's not a perfect game. The flute mechanics are frustrating at times, especially when playing the Lokomo songs. I can't begin to tell you how annoying it is when you play everything right and the game still says retry. The train can also be a bit tedious. It does take time to get from place to place. At least the game isn't rushing you. Thankfully, the portals and force gems help make the journey more bearable. Finally, Malladus isn't that memorable of villain when compared to Demise or Ganondorf. Even Cole is more memorable and he's the secondary antagonist. The design of him sucks and isn't screaming "demon king" at all. That being said, Malladus' actions do standout. His murder of Byrne and using Cole as a vessel without the latter's consent are legit great moments. It does establish his cruelty and willingness to do whatever necessary to win. Also, Possessed Zelda is freaky.

If y'all made it to the end of this post, congrats. I know I'm in the minority when I say Spirit Tracks is my fave Zelda game, but I'll defend it nonetheless. It's a cute and wonderful game. I'm excited to replay it again in the near future. For now, I'll continue to listen to the music. I love this game so much guys.

[oh-cramity-its-amity]

One thing to know about you: What’s your favorite video game? :)

hey okay ahhh. it took me a bit to get back to this cause i genuinely had to think about it- jst because while yeah i DO play a lot of games, i have a habit of not finishing them??? its a whole thing BUT.

its down between two for me- and yeah its hunter-core of me to say this, but BUT BUT- TLoZ twilight princess really really has stuck with me.

as it being my first zelda game/introduction to the series i got it used on whim and literally have over 100 hours in a save file (look- you CAN clear it in shorter time but i just was really into it-) and its a game ive actually replayed two or three times in full??? its just such a good zelda game (people will talk shit about the wii version but gamecube prices/the hd port to wii u istg- i WILL settle for motion controls- actually they didnt bother me too???). i just like the entire gritty feeling of the world and how realistic it looks. its mature while also the standard linear progression to pre botw zelda. botw is good- but its one of those games i said earlier about not finishing haha. twilight princess is just THAT. like it hooked me. same with the entire soundtrack and just- mannnn i cant even explain it! skyward sword is good too- but i just hold tp closer from the zelda games ive played (which arent many but i really think theyre cool as someone who only had a knowledge of solely nintendo=mari> for years, branching out on their other ips was a cool experience).

and the other one would be the 2018 insomniac spider-man game. when i played it FAR after its release (like in 2022 lmao) i just couldnt put it down. like everything from the combat to how fluid the web-slinging feels- it all just flowed so naturally to where it engrossed me as a whole. i fully wasted an entire weekend to beat the entire mf game. THATS how into it i was 💀😭.

oh and the ending of the story literally made me almost cry. AUGH. im not gonna spoil it but damn </3. i really would like to get a ps5 eventually to play though the sequel. miles morals eventually too- ik that ones pretty short so it shouldnt be that long. uhhh- im not even like a superhero person either- like im not diehard into the marvel universe but i just really heard such things about it over the years and it delivered for me.

i could probably say honorable mentions with neo: the world ends with you or doom 3. its a whole thing. i mainly play anime games (not alllllll the time but a lot of my ps4 library consists of anime games.)

I KNOW im rambling but in conclusion, twilight princess and 2018 spider-man (NOT the remaster on ps5. the og ps4 version. its just better. trust me.)

[girl4music]

Okay,… you never asked for it but I’m going to go on a long rant anyway because I’m just that kind of person.

‘Twilight Princess’ isn’t just my favourite Legend Of Zelda game. It’s also my favourite video game of all-time. I’ve played it countless times over 100% both on the GameCube and the Wii (mostly on the GameCube because that mirror-switch was just unnecessary - LINK IS LEFT-HANDED!) and it’s timeless to me.

The main reason why is Midna and I really have to explain why she’s the main reason because if you knew me you would know just how important character is to me in art/entertainment. She’s my favourite Zelda character of all-time. Her character representation and development is handled superbly for a video game, and, like you, I loved that I finally had a companion in a Zelda game that felt like a REAL PERSON as opposed to an annoying shadow following me around everywhere I went, telling me what to do every single fucking second. Navi really is the reason ‘Ocarina Of Time’ was a once-only/never-again gameplay experience for me. I completed it once 100% and never looked back because Navi was just that annoying. Fi in ‘Skyward Sword’ I didn’t mind so much as she stayed in the sword for most of the game and only emerged when I actually needed her help. Not before prompting me to summon her every time though. Midna however was an absolute joy to engage with, to have as a companion and to learn of her plight in the Twilight realm and understand her story. Why she is the way she is when we first meet her. Why she’s so mistrusting, manipulative and selfish. And how she goes from that to someone that actually sacrifices her own well being to keep Link safe and to help him save Zelda and Hyrule by extension. She’s just the shining example of how characterisation should be written in a video game because she didn’t feel like a sidekick, only there to aid us along in our endeavours. She felt like a friend. Someone to confide and take comfort in. And since you spoiled the endgame for her, - that is still one of the greatest character transformations I’ve ever seen in any art/entertainment medium whatsoever. So yeah, she’s the main factor as to why I love ‘Twilight Princess’ so much. The creators of the game actually made me care about what I should have regarded as another “Navi” in another Zelda game where the gameplay is majorly the same as the last game was in that the mechanics were just the same.

But other reasons were the maturity of the darker visual appearance (because I was one of those “ridiculous” people that didn’t like the graphics art style of ‘Wind Waker’, discounting it completely as a playable, let alone enjoyable, Zelda game because I was an idiot like that back then), a thoroughly engaging open-world exploration gameplay experience I had never really had before, and finally, like you also mentioned, I cared about the NPC’s throughout the entire game - especially those of Link’s hometown - which made me feel personally close to the character I was playing as for once. I’ve never felt that way before about Link. I mean he was still silent and about as charismatic as a cardboard box - just as he always was - but the dynamics changed. I related to and resonated with him like never before all because I felt a personal attachment to HIS people. That made all the damn difference.

You talked about how ‘Twilight Princess’ is a game you could only play once, feel fully immersed in and then it would go stale for you. You’d find yourself rushing to get through it. That was and will never be the way it is for me. I could go back to that game right now - start a whole new playthrough and find myself just as immersed in that world, in that lore and in those characters. Yes, nostalgia would be a factor as to why, but I just know that I’d completely enjoy playing it just as much as I did the first time I played it if not more.

[science-lings]

wild, 26 and 2 for the character ask game if you please!

2. When I think I truly started to like them?

Listen, I got here for him, he's the reason I'm into Zelda at all, I tried to get into Skyward Sword and Twilight Princess and Hyrule Warriors years ago but my wii u made it so hard and I gave up, but botw is literally the first video game that's not like a party game that I've completed all the way through multiple times because I love it so much. I loved him the moment I saw his little face and use a stick to kick the shit out of the first monster I made him kill in cold blood. He is my blorbo, even if I don't always love how jojo portrays him in LU I will always love him and stand behind every single one of his actions.

26. When do you think they were being themselves the most?

You know that comic posted a million years ago where he uses the slate to launch him and warriors up above the monster camp to rain fire from above? yeah that. Perfect balance of stupid and smart, creative and destructive, brilliant and not well thought out at all, fun but also destined to injure him. He contains multitudes.

[echoesofdusk]

Time for the third entry for my 2023 media reviews!

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (GCN) (replay)

I didn't want to write too much but this ended up becoming a wall of text anyways LMFAO

Starting off with my history of this game. I actually first stumbled upon it in 2009 while browsing an online video game shop. I loved fantasy books at the time and Twilight Princess looked like something up my alley, and become one of the reasons I wanted to get a Wii, which never happened. However, I did finally get to play the game in 2012, but instead of the Wii version, I played the GameCube one, which I did eventually end up buying along with with the GameCube and some other games.

At the time, Twilight Princess became one of my favourite video games, although I distinctly remember not feeling it as much once I reached the second half and for all those years I wasn't sure why. I also wasn't too happy with the lack of control over the day cycle, but it was more of a minor nitpick.

My recent Skyward Sword playthrough gave me the itch to replay Twilight Princess, so I decided to pull out the GameCube, now with a dead CMOS battery, to replay it. And boy, that title screen is haunting. Definitely one of my fav video game title screens of all time. (Also, I only realized recently, after over a decade, that the beginning notes of the title theme are taken from the title theme of the original The Legend of Zelda on the NES, it's just a lower key.)

I dreaded going through the beginning of the game but it was nowhere nearly as bad as I had remembered, even though I didn't 100% remember how to clear everything at the beginning.

The twilight sections, albeit somewhat half baked along with wolf Link gameplay, are amazing for the atmosphere alone, but I also love the contrast against Hyrule. The dark pixel things floating up towards the sky and the more electronic music are just great as well as the entire Twilight motif and patterns.

Also I didn't realize how refined the human Link gameplay is in this game, it's really solid.

As soon as I unlocked the ability to transform into a wolf whenever I wanted I actually found the game more fun as it really opens up once you hit that point. I think the reason I didn't feel the second half so much when I first played the game was bc the Twilight sections by that point are gone, and you don't really get that same kind of atmosphere until Palace of Twilight near the end of the game, which is 100% one of my favourite dungeons in the game, and just the entire franchise. The atmosphere, the music, the tension in trying to avoid Zant's hand... it's so good.

And while I do think the wolf Link gameplay is a little bit half baked, I think it's implemented kinda well. I never found myself annoyed by some sections where I had to use the wolf form like in Arbiter's Grounds, Snowpeak, and the beginning of Temple of Time. In all those cases I think the wolf form usage was justified. However, I do think it's shoehorned in City in the Sky where you have to transform into a wolf... to cross gaps... on thin strings, which Link can only do as a wolf. Like come on.

Hyrule Field in this game is often panned for being too big but... I actually like it, although I do have to say, I don't like traversing the Eldin part of it. It has never spoken to me, although Eldin bridge is really cool and iconic, but yeah that specific part of Hyrule Field. Not a fan.

Temple of Time is hands down my favourite dungeon in this game, and absolutely one of my favourite dungeons in the franchise. I love the atmosphere, the music, the gimmick, and the interesting take on what is otherwise a very linear dungeon. I loved this dungeon back when I first played this game and I still love it to this date. The boss is a bit of a letdown however due to how easy it is, but it doesn't sour the overall experience for me too much. I don't mind the goofy bit of it.

I loved Midna on my first playthrough but I think I love her even more now, and on this replay I noticed so many subtleties in her character that went past me years ago. I absolutely adore this character.

By the way... I forgot how goofy this game is. It's dark and edgy, but when it isn't... jesus. This game is REALLY goofy when it wants to be. The first miniboss is a monkey with huge ass cheeks which... you spank. Truly a video game of all time.

Alright so is anything I dislike about this game? A few things actually. As I mentioned already, I find the wolf Link gameplay a little bit half baked. I also have other complaints but most of them are mainly nitpicks, though some are bigger than others. I think one of my biggest complaints for this game is that the developers went a little bit too far to make this game "realistic". Link's climbing speed for one, is egregiously slow. Why are you pursuing realism like this in a game where a guy who isn't mega ripped can very easily grab a running goat and flip it over like it's nothing? Who also transforms into a wolf when exposed to dark magic bc he's the chosen one of the gods and when he finally goes back to his human form for the first time after the wolf transformation he's suddenly wearing a green garb? That's not very realistic, is it?

Link's movement in both forms, while smooth, is a little bit weird at times. It's hard to explain but when you turn him to an opposite direction from where he's facing, he sometimes moves alongside an arc while turning, displacing him. This is particularly annoying if you're standing on a ledge or a small space, and especially so when you're wolf form as he takes up more vertical space than horizontal. The lack of control over the time of the day, and lack of any actual musical instrument for that matter, is also a little bit baffling to me. This game is so similar to Ocarina of Time already, just give Link an instrument!

Horseback combat in this game is... not good, but considering it was the series' first attempt, I can't be too hard on it, especially since I've heard it's significantly improved in Breath of the Wild.

Lakebed Temple isn't terrible but there's a slew of smaller things that contributed to my frustration with the overall dungeon, especially with Link automatically diving into an arc into the water when I just wanted to swim on the surface when wearing the Zora armor. I guess I could just put him in green tunic every time, but I don't want to relive that moment from OoT when I had to open the menu just to equip the iron boots. I also kept wandering back and forth, but that's more on me than anything else. I didn't realize until watching a video that the doors in the central room are color coded. I had no idea about this for over a decade.

Something really interesting I noticed was that this games throws rupees at you. A LOT. So much to the point that your wallet is guaranteed to be full at all times. And if you're playing the GameCube or Wii version of the game? If your wallet is full or nearly full, any rupee you get from a chest is returned to the chest, and it's still displayed on the map so if you have a goldfish memory like me, lol. I'm actually not surprised the game gives you not one, but two NPCs asking for donations, as well as the magic armor. The magic armor at least allows for fun things in the meta, especially when you go down into Cave of Ordeals. This also really contextualizes some game design elements in Skyward Sword, with it giving you material drops and the upgrade system.

As for the graphics? I think the game still looks okay, some scenes still look beautiful while others... aged like milk. It's especially evident in the Wii U version of the game, being higher resolution and whatnot, but I played the GameCube version on an actual GameCube, using analog AV cables (my GameCube is a launch model which also has digital AV out, which nowadays is used for third party upscalers), plugged into a 48 inch flatscreen. While I played the PAL version, I opted for the 60Hz display mode, which produces a little bit of flicker on edges, at least on flatscreens (I've never played this game on a CRT). The resulting blurriness hides a lot of some issues that would be glaring when the game is upscaled, whether it be on emulators or in the Wii U version. I've seen lots of people say that the game looks really ugly nowadays, I don't exactly agree with them as I think some things look amazing, especially considering how low poly some of the models are (no, really, look up model rips and view them in Blender, your mind will be blown) but some things do need a makeover. I'd actually love to see a version of Twilight Princess that uses actual PBR materials, even if it's just a mockup made in Unreal Engine or whatever. And no, not like one of those "I PUT MARIO INTO A REALISTIC FIELD", but a take that sticks to the original art direction but uses more modern lighting engines combined with PBR textures etc.

Overall, Twilight Princess is a game that still holds up all these years later despite a few aspects aging like milk. I actually think it's the most refined pre-BotW 3D Zelda. Skyward Sword, while a fun game which builds on some foundations of Twilight Princess, unfortunately has some really low lows that drag the whole experience down. Twilight Princess has some lows as well, but they're nowhere nearly as low as Skyward Sword's.

I really don't mind that this game is just another take on Ocarina of Time but grander. It's actually the reason I love it.

[writeroffanfics69]

Looking for rp partners part two

This will be my fandom list. If you looked at my rp kinks for part one then you may have found yourself here. Again this will be 18+ so looking for rpers who are comfortable rping such things. This will cover a wide range of fandoms and I may forget some so that is on me, otherwise if you look at this thinking tame or rather softcore, it might not work. A lot of times smut is often going to outweigh plot though not like it won't be there.

There might be titles in here you don't know and there might be some you aren't familiar with. My advice is don't force yourself to do something in that scenario. I may have failed to post it last time but I can rp; canon x canon, oc x canon, canon x oc, oc x oc. This will likely come in handy when I put up my overall canon list and pairings. My advice is always read part one before going to part two...it just makes more sense that way. If there are titles not on here that you can do and might want to recommend to me you can...just can't make any guarantees I will be familiar with it.

In the case of unfamiliarity I find it best to opt to AU or Modernized just to save face case I butcher a beloved canon character. Oh and while some of these fandoms seem like they are the squeaky clean...they won't be so much when we are done with it. Reach out to me in pm should you read this and want to rp from this list, pairing and canons I can rp will be up next also Discord handle is given out in pm only but as always read my rp kinks first.

Anime

Naruto, Pokemon, Digimon, FMA (brotherhood), attack on titan, edens zero, fairy tail, one piece, spy x family, citrus, sakutra trick, ouran high school host club, my hero academia, seven deadly sins, sailor moon, ect

Cartoon

kim possible, danny phantom, the owl house, the loud house, arcane, helluva boss, hazbin hotel, sonic (satam, underground, x, boom, prime), teen titans, young justice, marvel, dc, miraculous ladybug and cat noir, my little pony friendship is magic, the dragon prince, she-ra and the princesses of power, sofia the first, chip and dale rescue rangers, phineas and ferb, star trek lower decks, star wars the clone wars animated series, star wars rebels, rwby, disney, amphibia, tiny toon adventures, avatar the last airbender, the legend of korra, ect

video game

mass effect, dragon age, lollipop chainsaw, dynasty warriors, dead or alive, final fantasy, kingdom hearts, senran kagura, persona, super smash bros, super mario bros, the legend of zelda, star wars fallen order, cyberpunk 2077, life is strange, the last of us, honkai star rail, genshin impact, overwatch, the witcher, ect

film

high school musical, disney zombies, descendants, the lord of the rings, mcu, dcu, marvel animated, disney/pixar, dc animated, tangled, frozen, the incredibles, big hero 6, star wars, star trek, hunger games, harry potter, twilight, lemonade mouth, space jam, the longest ride, the lucky one, howl's moving castle, whisper of the heart, ect

television

orange is the new black, star trek (all of them), star wars (all of them), friends, big bang theory, victorious, hannah montana, wizards of waverly place, liv & Maddie, riverdale, wyonna earp, icarly, pretty little liars, ncis, ncis hawaii, ncis la, ncis new orleans, ncis sydney, how i met your mother, fuck there are so many it is literally hard to think of them...I will hop back here case I remember any of them, and no that is not the name of a series.

I may edit this at some point but yeah this list as it stands is now complete and with part three it will touch upon canons I can rp as and it will also be pairings so just go off the one before the x as the one I can rp as and the one after is one you can take up if you want.

If you are again reading this it will be for 18+ content so I advice the fuck out of this just so things don't get awkward when a title is innocent and out there but things don't go the squeaky clean route and characters are doing things they normally wouldn't.

[lemonlurkrr]

@aureateart​ ok. My favourite parts of twilight princess  (and some other random thoughts about TP sprinkled in there) taken from my monster TP word vomit google doc :

Link lmao

Ok but for real, I like this incarnation of Link :)

I love Ordon (it just seems like such a chill and cozy village)

ALSO love how easy it is to interpret Link as being a sort of older brother figure to the Ordon kiddos. It’s just,, super cute? AND GHHH nice nice good thanks nintendo for giving me characters to care about/characters that I can imagine Link caring about

He didn’t sign up for any of this (tbh, none of the Links really signed up for this jshdjsd). But I mean like, dude was just going to take a trip to castle town, drop a gift off for the royal family, and come back. But haHA oopsies he did get to castle town eventually but definitely not the way he expected hsjdhsd

He’s just a little dude?

AND FUCK. HE REALLY HAD NEVER BEEN OUTSIDE OF ORDON UNTIL ALL OF THAT

everything is new for the player AND Link

Midna

She’s cool :)

she really just

*teleports into your jail cell* hello whore.

I am no master at writing but AYYYY she do got a character arc!!!

She was actually pretty helpful sometimes, I ALWAYS checked in with her before turning to a game guide

Other NPCs

NICE

Love all of the TP character designs (ASHEI’S ARMOUR??? AOWOAOAOOAO)

Saving Zelda and all of Hyrule was important yea but thinking back maybe it was more like, the Ordonians and the kids were what was pushing Link to keep on going

I like the Resistance members :) Very video gamey of them to have one NPC assigned to each dungeon but hey!!! Kinda cool getting to see a little glimpse of each of em

Idk, it’s just fun to imagine Link popping into Telma’s bar after each dungeon and taking a little rest :) (or to celebrate? maybe just chat, idk, give this man some downtime!!)

Honestly it was just kind of nice that Link wasn’t entirely alone. I mean, I know Midna was there the whole time, but I am always for giving Link a big group of friends (see my love for hyrule warriors, age of calamity, and LU LMAO)

Hero’s shade, very very cool, kinda sad he died with regrets but HEY. He got to pass on his knowledge eventually

AND the connection to OoT?? AND assumed to be related by blood too????? GOOD SHIT

Ilia, I REALLY really wanted to like her (er, it’s not like I dislike her, she’s just,,, kinda there for me).

It definitely seems like Nintendo was pushing to make her the romantic interest, but GHHHHH they really threw that out of the window for me by having her lose her memories

I saw a text post a while ago that said it would have been interesting if Ilia was Link’s sister instead and YES!! That would have been cool too :0

Wish we got to know Zelda a little more

I feel like we barely know anything about her

Idk man, like I said earlier, I never really had any sort of drive to save Zelda during my playthroughs

She obviously knows Midna, so maybe if they gave us just a little bit more of that relationship I’d be more interested in her?

TP WORLD BUILDINGGGG

Botw has good world building too, but each race felt kinda,,, isolated? I absolutely love the different architecture and vibe each town has (and all the the weapons too) but ghhh yea everyone felt so separated. As far as I can remember, we don’t see tooo much of the races interacting with each other? Now that I’m typing that out maybe that’s to be expected because of the calamity but KLSJDKJFD ANYWAYS THIS IS ABOUT TP

The world feels nice and alive, love how populated everything is

Castle town I like castle town a lot, it feels dense and busy and I really like how you can’t talk to every NPC you see

Very cool very fun that we got to see the Gorons hanging out in multiple spots

kinda wish we got to see the Zoras a little more (I guess they are a bit limited since they need water but GHHHH the tp zoras are so prebby,,)

BUT HEY, I do remember seeing a zora or two hanging out in the hot springs around death mountain after beating the lakebed temple (I think, might have been a different dungeon) 

but aaaa would have been nice to see them in at least a couple of other places. I think it would have really added to the “congrats Link!! You’re restoring peace to Hyrule” feeling you get from seeing the Gorons hanging out in Kakariko and Castle Town

ORDON

Love how chill it is and how it’s kind of separate from Hyrule proper

They really do seem to be doing their own thing apart from the rest of Hyrule

Just kinda adds onto the “he’s just a regular dude minding his own business” kind of vibes I get from TP Link

Also I like Ordona :)

THE LIGHT SPIRITS,,

Love their design

And love how they’re not exactly like a pure white?

Different spirit representing each aspect of the triforce my beloved

But yes hi I think Ordona is very cool

Who are you, how did you get here, which goddess do you represent? Do you even represent one of the three golden goddesses? Do the Ordonians know about you? Have any of them ever SEEN you??? Do they worship you? Does anybody even know about the existence of the light spirits?? FUCK so many questions but ghhh I like how they broke the status quo a bit by throwing in a fourth spirit :)

I feel like this one is kinda weird but I like that voice sample they used in the light spirit music. It’s spooky and pretty at the same time :)  

cutscenes mmmmm

Ok ok, the spooky lanayru cutscene is very good

BUT THE “Link, Chosen Hero! Lend us the last of your power!” CUTSCENE MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM LOVE IT SO MUCH

IT just

Idk man

It just hit different

I like the music

And seeing the light spirits swimming around in the light juice water whatever it is

Summoning the light arrows?

AND HHHHH “Lend us the last of your power!” THIS IS IT. This is the final battle.

Seeing Zelda bow down, and then Link putting his hand out 👌👌👌

Link: ok bud, let’s do this together :)

Connection to OoT (did I already mention this? Maybe., Whatever)

Very cool nintendo :)

I love seeing connections between all the diff zelda games.

Because like, on one hand, they’re all separate from each other because of yknow, individual hero stuff. BUT ALSO, they’re all connected because of the reincarnation stuff

Grrrr walking through the sacred grove and going “The Hero of Time walked around here a long time ago” FUCK THATS SO COOL

Is the Hero’s Shade watching me? What does he think of me? DIsappointed? Proud? The Hero of Time went through HELL so this timeline didn’t have to deal with any of the shit Ganon was gonna pull with the triforce, better not fuck this UP Link!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Midlink is cute

Kinda hurts that she smashed the mirror but that was probably so Nintendo didn’t have to worry about people going “but what about the twili??????” for any of the other games LMAO

BUT ALSO LIKE SKJDKLJFJ There are some pretty massive plot holes in TP anyway so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ whatever it’s fine we’ll just use this for angst because GOD do y’all like angst

So is Shadlink

Honestly don’t know where this ship came from but it’s cute so whatever

THE MUSIC??

Love Midna’s theme and how they referenced the dark world theme from ALttP (I remember trying to learn the dark world theme on the piano and doing the Leonardo DiCaprio point meme at the little jingle I recognized from Midna’s theme)

Hyrule field theme SLAPS.

Apparently references a couple of the other over-world themes from the previous zelda games (I got this from 8-bit Music theory’s video on the over-world zelda themes, he talks about TP at around 11:40 but def recommend watching the whole video if you’re into music analysis stuff)

So there’s this bit of the Hyrule Field theme, I don’t know the official name for it but I remember seeing somewhere it being called the “at an advantage theme” since yeah, you hear it during the boss music whenever you expose their weak points. FUCKINGGG LOVE THAT. Didn’t notice it during my first playthrough, but hearing it during my second was like a little easter egg for my ears every time :)

Midna’s lament is very pretty (and fun to play on the piano)

COURAGE THEME.

I didn’t care for it too much when I started playing the game but hearing it in ZREO’s arrangement of the Hyrule Field theme literally makes me turn into a puddle of emotions. Also hearing it around and of the Ordon kids (I think it plays after Link saves Colin) AAAAAAAAAAAAA

Orchestra piece #1 and #2 HOLY SHIT???????????????? 

Literally, the first time I listened to those I just,,,, plugged in my headphones, volume 100, layed on the floor/against my desk and silently vibed. I don’t know what the hell it is, but those two just fit so well with TP?? I still avoid listening to them nowadays cause if I DO I definitely will get overwhelmed with the “god I love this game so FUCKING MUCH” kind of feels.

Wolf link sucks at singing

the first time I heard him howling Zelda’s Lullaby I lost my shit because LKSJLDKSGLKJFSKG god that was.,, Bad. Anyways, hearing him howl some of the songs from OoT was cute :)

TP STAFF ROLL??? 

VERY GOOD. IT’s like 10 minutes long and GOD do I love every single second of it. It doesn’t have the same energy as the skyward sword staff roll or the orchestra pieces but GOD does it hit good??

Nice and calm after that big exciting adventure. Maybe it would have been more fun or emotional to have a higher energy piece but it was really nice getting to sit back and watch the camera fly around Hyrule. Seeing like, the Gorons and the Zoras having a good time, the kids returning to Ordon? GOOD SHIT.

and AAAAA that end, when you hear the main Zelda theme and see Link riding off out of Faron woods on Epona… good shit. It gets you thinking, where the hell is he going? What is he doing? Off ot do more adventuring? Going to help out the resistance or something? Going to help Zelda? Or maybe he’s trying to figure out a way to restore the mirror of twilight? Whoooo knows.

hhHHHHhhh it’s just that final reminder that YES!!! YOU JUST PLAYED A ZELDA GAME. JUST ANOTHER STORY APART OF THE WHOLE EPIC OF THE ZELDA SERIES AS A WHOLE

I also want to acknowledge the instrument/samples they used for all the twili stuff.

They’re all just so unique and contrast SO well with the rest of the TP OST. LIKE FUCK!! Anytime I hear the screech from the Twilit Kargarok? Sends a shiver down my spine. I associate those sounds SO strongly with the twili realm. (Like, the same way you associate the BSHEWW VVWWMMM sounds with light sabers)

I love it so god damn much

literally any time there’s a certain sound or motif associated with something I lose my shit

Sacred grove sacred grove sacred gro-

lovely lovely lovely so much fun playing that on the piano. AND again, I did the Leonardo DiCaprio pointing meme when I heard the theme from the lost woods come in GHHHHHHHH

shoutout to TP Faron Woods for helping me study and get through all of my schoolwork

BLEGUUHHH can you tell that I really love music?

and also yea I guess TP is kinda cool too :\

IF YOU READ ALL OF THAT THANKS I GUESS

[guerilla935]

My Favorite Fishing in Video Games Where Fishing is Not Core Game Play

A really awesome surprise for me is always to boot up a game that is full of action and suspense to be introduced to a fishing side activity. I have toiled away at fishing in games for hundreds of hours at least. It has gotten so bad in some instances that my friends have asked me why I haven’t just taken the plunge into real fishing. It’s definitely because that is a lot of work and in real life I don’t catch a fish every 30 seconds. They have also wondered why I don’t just play a fishing simulator like Planet Fishing (Shout out to Planet Fishing that’s a great game). And that’s where I have to think for a while. Fishing while you have better things to do like save the world is very special. You aren’t fishing because it’s the objective of the game or because that’s why you are there, you are fishing because it’s fun and maybe you need a break to swing a fishing rod instead of a sword. And then you can stop, and get back to fighting or whatever the rest of the game entails. Below are games that have fishing in them for mostly no reason at all. I have shamelessly spent way to long with my bait in these waters and absolutely loved every second of it and I hope that you (the reader) can find a lot of relaxation in these waters as well.

Pokemon Series

Since the very first Pokemon game there has been fishing. You get the old rod from some guy and then you are free to fish up as many goldfishes that you want hoping that one of them will grow up to be a 21 foot tall dragon. Pokemon has combined their fishing with their main game play and makes you at least start a battle with the fish you drag onto shore. Now fishing in Pokemon is pretty subpar mainly because a single Pokemon game hasn’t really been known to have more than a handful of Pokemon that you can fish for. Also if you are looking for a strong water type Pokemon you could do a lot better than fishing for it. Typically a Pokemon player will fish about 5-10 times total. And although fishing for Pokemon isn’t all that great it has been in every game for over 20 years and that is pretty impressive. It’s a small detail that makes the world of Pokemon feel like a real world of wild creatures.

Sonic Adventure DX

In Sonic Adventure DX you are given the choice to play as a lot of different characters, one of which is named Big the Cat. Most of the characters are combat characters that rely on speed and attacks to get through levels, some even wielding rocket launchers and extremely oversized hammers. However when you start the story of Big the Cat you are thrown in a completely opposite direction. Big the Cat is a giant purple cat who lives in the jungle with his best friend Froggy. Froggy accidentally swallows one of the most powerful objects in the Sonic universe and Big the Cat must chase him all over the world trying to fish him out of where he is hiding so that he can eject the Chaos Emerald out of him and they can return to their life in the jungle. The fishing mechanics in this game actually are really good and this is probably because Sega had just put out a series of mildly successful Bass fishing games before releasing this game. Either way its absolutely hilarious that Big the Cat gets to defeat Chaos 6 right before Super Sonic has his showdown with Chaos Perfect.

Final Fantasy XV

In Final Fantasy XV you play as Noctis and his favorite hobby is fishing. When I first played this game I sped through it and never fished once and reached the end of the game never indulging Noctis in his hobby. When I replayed Final Fantasy XV I fished for 50 hours and then ejected the disc from my console. The fishing in Final Fantasy XV is surprisingly deep with a lot of the vendors supporting what you could call a fishing road trip. In the game it is extremely dangerous to be out at night so I would plan day trips to lakes to maximize the amount of fishing I would get to do. I would prepare days in advance to make sure I could afford the trip and that I had enough supplies to both protect myself at the lake and have enough supplies to last the whole day. Final Fantasy XV really is a game about getting really distracted and fishing is probably its best distraction. My days on the lake were the perfect balance of peaceful and rewarding, this game offers an awesome reward of well planned trips and a good haul of fish.

Final Fantasy XIV Online

Final Fantasy XIV is the only game I have ever played where the fishing played exactly like its combat. When you are fighting enemies in a dungeon in FFXIV you are constantly adding buffs, landing hits, using consumables, and managing resource bars. When you are fishing in FFXIV you are constantly adding buffs, landing hits, using consumables, and managing resource bars. Note you are doing so at a much more leisurely and less life threatening pace but you are still doing it. I never maxed out the fisher class but I got it into the expansion content which was a really long and relaxing experience. Yet another Final Fantasy title where the real meat of the game is in getting distracted. When you fish you also sell on a player market that fluctuates based on market price just like real fish. You get the relaxing fishing side of the game and also an aggressive economic number crunching side as well. I spent way too long with a real pen and paper deciding how much I should sell for on any particular day and bossing around my two cat girl employees.The MMO aspect of the game adds so much to what you would expect to be a very solitary experience.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

Have you ever gone fishing for hours to receive an empty bottle? That is exactly what kick started my addiction to fishing in Twilight Princess. An empty bottle in Twilight Princess means another way to heal yourself, another way to add oil to a lantern, another way to carry useless water around. The only way to get the 4th bottle in the game is to go to a dedicated fishing spot and fish until you pulled it out of the pond. The actual fishing is pretty weird, it involves motion controls which I still am not entirely sure what they do or how to properly use them but it is really fun to hold the pole in gyroscope and set the lure in the water waiting for fish to come get a nibble. Although the physics with the water make it difficult to see if you have actually gotten a bite or not it still is enjoyable the other 85% of the time it works.

Stardew Valley

So this one is at the top of every other “fishing in games” list and there is a big reason for that. It’s really good. I think in my first Stardew Valley farm I gave up farming entirely and fished all day every day and stopped to buy food to replenish my energy and go back at it. I really didn’t care about getting rich or making enough money to expand the farm or get to know everyone I actually spent about 50 hours just fishing. The fishing takes some skill and a pretty keen eye but the random jerks of the fish and the rhythm of the game play are so fun to try to master. It’s a part of Stardew Valley that I felt like I was continuously improving on as time went on and it was really fun. I mean I don’t recommend it because you’ll end up moderately poor but it was really fun.

Fantasy Life

Fantasy Life offers you 12 potential jobs, you could be a brilliant blacksmith or a devious potions maker, a lumberjack or a knight, a hunter or a seamstress. However your inner dad is calling and you decide you want to play through a fantasy RPG as a fisherman, hell yeah. the story is relatively short so you can quickly unlock a lot of locales to fish at and there is a manageable economy system that lets you deal in fish in advantageous ways. You can even pick up cooking on the side and make fancy dinners and sell the fish for higher you can do that as well. Fantasy Life is like a clever mix between Animal Crossing and Final Fantasy XIV and it kind of succeeds and falls short of it. The fishing also takes a good amount of skill and rhythmic approach to master so it doesn’t get boring almost at all until you have cleared the game.

Maple Story 2

Maple Story 2 is one of the most expressive and cutest games that I have ever played. And the fishing is no different, its all about style. The fishing in Maple Story 2 is monotonous and can get old but you do it for the chibi clout. Because much like the rest of the game you can look however you want and do whatever you want and sometimes you just feel like kicking back and throwing lure in the water at the beach. I never got super into the fishing in this game but it won me over with its adorable design and stylish atmosphere.

Animal Crossing Series

Of course I had to include the most popular game right now. Animal Crossing has become something of a connection between people when we can’t leave the house. A thing we all have in common on social media and with our friends. My first experience with Animal Crossing really starts with New Horizons and I was completely blown away. The fishing isn’t super complex or difficult but the range of what you can pull out of the water and what you can do with it is absolutely breathtaking. For a game about cartoon people living with humanoid cartoon animals the fish looking photo realistic. And the museum where they can be kept is stunning. The museum looks like it was designed to capture the feel of being in a museum and matches the design of all the great real life aquariums and observatories. Although it is a bit frustrating when your rod breaks it is easy enough to make one (or worst case buy one) to get your bait back in the water.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Tell me I’m wrong, you can’t. Isabelle getting added to Smash brought a very powerful fishing move that isn’t practical all the time but is really funny. Wouldn’t recommend this game if you are looking to relax and fish but I do recommend hooking your friend with a fish hook and send them flying off screen if you had to.

Minecraft

I have a very special role in Minecraft when I join a friends server. A role that I assign to myself. While everyone is off getting awesome swords, spelunking for diamonds, and exploring the infinite landscape, I build a small wooden shack and I set up a farm with an irrigation canal and start fishing. A steady supply of food is necessary and while I’m hanging out with my friends in a server I’m happy to be the one to provide it. The fishing in this game is probably the slowest of all the ones on this list but is the most useful. just throwing the fish in the oven creates food that can help keep you and your companions alive for a long time. I think I definitely have my limits with Minecraft fishing and I couldn’t do it for hours on end it is rewarding to set up shop and find a nice place to settle down for a few hours to fish.

Fire Emblem: Three Houses

This is the only Tactical RPG in this post. Fire Emblem: Three Houses has sections between combat where you can go and talk to your students and do other activities. We aren’t here to discuss other activities though we are here for the fishing. The fishing allows you to catch fish for some reason that I’m sure is good but never intrigued me enough to learn. All I know about the fishing in Fire Emblem: Three Houses is that it’s fun. I started to bust through combat just so that I could get back to fishing. The funniest part about this one is that the fish has a health bar. Pressing the A button at the exact moment finds a way to become easier and still find ways to mess you up. Either way, I’m not that interested in tactical RPGs but I heard there was fishing in this game so I had to play it and it was worth it.

Jak & Daxter: The Precursor Legacy

In Jak & Daxter, Daxter gets turned into a small animal by dark eco while exploring a dangerous island off the shore of his home with his best friend Jak. To get back to the island to investigate, the pair have to borrow a boat owned by a fisherman who is troubled by an invasive species of poisonous eel that is ruining his haul. He asks Jak to catch fish for him without catching any eels. This fishing mini game can only be done once but it is going to either be something you think is very unique or a huge waste of time. All I’ll say is that the sound that the fish makes when it goes into the net is absolutely a reward in itself it is so satisfying. But anyways, more intense than some other options here but get it done so you can get back to absorbing eco powers and jumping on stuff.

Shovel Knight

Shovel Knight is a 2D action platformer but you can also fish. And you fish for the best kind of fish, money. You can get some other stuff too like health pickups and magic replenishers but we know what you want. You see that little glint and you pop out the fishing rod and pull out those money bags. If you are devoted enough you can even get a surprise from the Troupple King (long live his highness) if you fish out the right stuff. I don’t even know if I fished all that much when I played Shovel Knight but it’s hilarious that you can.

NieR: Automata

I did not play a lot of NieR and that’s because I was fishing. I don’t know why all I did was fish but you throw your little robot in the pond and you lean on a magical stool so honestly it was good enough for me.

Club Penguin

If you know then you know. In hind sight there really wasn’t a whole lot to do in Club Penguin but this mini game really messed me up. You basically get to move up and down, catching fish and avoiding trash and other hazards. Basically trying to do this and catch as much fish as possible to avoid having to ask your parents for real money to pay for snacks to feed a virtual ball of fluff with eyeballs. I don’t really remember how challenging it really was but I remember getting decently high scores to about like 100 fish per round so I guess it was pretty easy if I could do that at age 10.

Rune Factory 4

I’m gonna be very honest about this one and say that the fishing in Rune Factory 4 is basically just Animal Crossing fishing but more anime. The fish react to the pole the same, the fish almost look the same, and the buttons to respond are the same. What makes this one special is where you can take it. You can fish in the little moat in town, in the lake, in a dungeon full of monsters, in a lake that is eternally the season fall, anywhere. You are constricted by the boundaries of Stardew Valley and that is how much energy you have and how much time you have in the day. It’s still fun to fish but I wish that they had used their fun fantasy setting to give the ability to fish up some cool made up fish instead of strictly things that exist in real life.

Xenoblade Chronicles 2

Ok, diving, fishing, same thing. Diving in Xenoblade Chronicles 2 is just fishing with your whole body. It works a lot in the same way as Pokemon where you fish up monsters to fight and get the rewards from them. It is a completely optional activity however if you decide to undertake the grind of scavenging in Xenoblade Chronicles 2 then you will never hurt for money ever again. It makes my wonder why Rex stopped being a salvager to do odd jobs because this was PROFITABLE. The main incentive is that there are spots that spawn a certain enemy that drop cores. Cores are like gacha or loot boxes that contain new anime girl partners that deal huge damage in fights. They even have their own side quests and story lines. I spent maybe 30 hours grinding before giving up on this game and while it does become tiresome I really enjoyed the random rewards of possibly getting a new companion or a really cool weapon.

It’s been tossed around that every great RPG has fishing in it. I won’t argue that point but a lot of great RPGs certainly do have fishing in them. Everyone needs a break sometimes and fishing is the perfect activity to remind us to stop and take that break. Even games can get long and without these distractions it might be so much harder to complete these harrowing tasks. Don’t forget to take breaks and just enjoy the sound of the water every once in a while because there’s no rush playing video games.

Honorable Mentions:

Kingdom Hearts: Sora fishing with his bare hands on Destiny Island

Persona 4: Weird aqueduct fishing

Persona 5: Marina fishing life

Sea of Thieves: A pirates life for me

[lucky-clover-gazette]

not gonna lie, the amount of hype surrounding windwaker compared to like. playing it. is not what i expected (i'm halfway through hd)

it just feels kind of empty? and i really really REALLY dislike what happens to tetra. it's genuinely hard carrying on with the adventure and just leaving her in the castle. there's never been another time in a zelda game where i've thought "god i wish i wasn't playing as link right now," which sucks? and the king of red lions is such a waste of a companion character. i like FI more, somehow. the combat is kind of oversimplified with the onscreen commands for "parrying" so victories feel unearned. the great sea is nothing compared to botw hyrule and some of the sfx, especially link's noises, grates on me.

i sit down to play windwaker and always end up wanting to play botw instead, which is the weird part of coming at the series without nostalgia goggles. i played botw first. playing twilight princess was fantastic bc it's SUCH a unique experience compared to botw and felt more compelling and streamlined than the controls and story in ocarina of time. skyward sword hd was good to me partially bc my expectations were abysmally low. i had pretty high expectations for windwaker and honestly so far i can find things to love (link's expressions and the art style, dragon roost island music) but in general it just feels a lot more hollow than a lot of video essayists express.

and yeah i know the story is special to a lot of people and a meta commentary on the success of the franchise or whatever but just like with skyward sword, i find it still pretty basic despite it being unique compared to the other games? again i'm guessing it's a nostalgia thing, but it's not like i had nostalgia for twilight princess, which ironically has my favorite story and makes its subversions in really subtle self-aware ways, and seems to really CARE about each and every character. god, i hate what they did to tetra in windwaker lol.

i also think i can kinda pinpoint why the open world in windwaker feels like a repetitive chore and i've spent like 1500 hours in the botw open world, storytelling is so much more possible and encouraged in botw. it's about the journey more than the destination. windwaker has repetitive locations that almost always have things to help link on his quest. botw world is just like, yeah there's a shrine, but just EXPLORE for the hell of it! learn about the world, tell your story! find 900 koroks and in that process become intimately familiar with every inch of the map! you don't need a fish to fill out your chart and tell you about the one (1) Thing to Do in the area. the game teaches you how to observe, how to innovate based on what you know of nature and the physics engine, and doesn't make 95% of what you're doing NECESSARY, which imo makes it all the more special to do.

link's character in botw has this profound feeling of wonder and experiences healing through nature after trauma. he grapples with identity and purpose in a way other links haven't, even if that's up to the player to observe in flashbacks and realize with the kind of gameplay that's encouraged. windwaker link is more of a coming of age story and just feels less meaningful so far to me personally, and it's even more annoying bc the main female character is both sidelined (and whitewashed which what the FUCK needs to mentioned more bc that's bullshit) in favor of link's story. maybe the second half of the game will change my mind, i hope so!

[butterfrogmantis]

What are some of your favorite video games?

Oo a personal question nice. Well for starters my favourite game series has always been The Legend Of Zelda :) My dad used to play OOT when I was a kid and if I heard him playing I'd go storming to his room and he'd let me run around Hyrule field on Epona XD When I was about 12 I received my first Zelda game - Twilight Princess for the wii and that's the first I finished fully. From that I've played Skyward Sword, Ocarina Of Time (which was nostalgic since I played it myself then) Majora's Mask, Wind Waker, Link To The Past, Breath Of The Wild and Link's Awakening remastered. Excited for BOTW 2 this year hopefully! I have 2 of the Hyrule Warriors as well but not completed either.

Apart from that, I have a small steam library which you can see on my desktop (along with other random things)

Tbh I haven't played as much of Subnautica or King Of Seas as I'd have liked but uh I'll get to it. Probably.

I ADORE tycoon games and my absolute shining star of this library is Planet Zoo which I have probably around 300 hours on now XD I cannot recommend that game enough, sure it's taken a lot of money off me but it's worth it because as an animal obsessed kid who loved basic zoo building games I always wanted a more realistic game just like it and the graphics are stunning!

And then there's everything else lying around like old childhood wii games (Dogz and Catz were my childhood) Pokemon mystery dungeon which I have the original DS of but also the Switch vers which is much improved, and just old DSI games which still has pics of me on it from like ... 2009 yikes, kind of funny to look back on as a adult) But yeah, I love talking about games!

[devilsflowermantis]

Team of asks for you :> Inkay, Pikachu, Musharna, Farfetch'd, Kricketune, Toxtricity

ah thanks!!

Inkay (If you were a Pokemon what would your method of evolution be?) - learning a certain move feels right to me. not sure which one, though. there's so many haha. and maybe after a certain level. i don't know if that's a thing in the games, but who gives a shit

Pikachu (If you could have any one Pokemon IRL which would it be and why?) - scyther/scizor! it's my favorite pokemon line, and i like the personality vibes i get from it! it reminds me a lot of my own. i also love bugs, and mantids especially have always been a special interest of mine so yeah

Musharna (What is your dream Pokemon game?) - italy would be really cool (even though it's not really a DREAM game), and seems pretty likely actually, thinking of potential future games. of course the pokemon would follow you, that's objectively one of the best features in any game haha. i also really liked gold/silver for having 8 gyms. HGSS are still my favorite. also pixels/sprites againnnn or at least a different 3d style. i really dislike the current one for some reason. it just doesn't appeal to me at all.

Farfetch’d (What’s something you wish they’d base a Pokemon on?) - virginia opossum definitely. it feels strange to me that there isn't one already tbh

Kricketune (Which video game or game series has your favorite music?) - legend of zelda: twilight princess. my favorites are orchestra piece #1 and midna's theme. i also love the heroic theme that plays during boss battles after you've gotten the upper hand. so good, especially in the ganon fight omg

Toxtricity (Put your music on shuffle and make a playlist of the first five songs.) -

- ocean rain - echo and the bunnymen - new born - muse - air on a g string - bach - like spinning plates - radiohead - shine on you crazy diamond - pink floyd

i have no idea what i'd call this playlist lmao

[easilyconflicted]

We Might Still Get Ocarina of Time, Majora’s Mask, and Wind Waker for the Switch

 ***Disclaimer: I am not a trademark lawyer. I am only a regular person trying to make sense of the numbers. I am not making a formal stance as I may be reading the information wrong.***

***Warning: This is going to be very long with lots of pictures.***

A lot of people are bummed about there not being a Zelda All-Stars for the 35th anniversary. Some are even thinking that Skyward Sword HD is all we’ll get since it is already so close to the anniversary. But I’m here to say that we could probably still get it, or at least Ocarina of Time, Majora’s Mask, and Wind Waker separately. Here’s why I think that and it’s the same reason why I knew Skyward Sword was coming: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). You can also find the same information on the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) database.

What’s so important about trademarks? I don’t know, but I know they are important enough that the government is involved with regulating it. All I know it essentially means you have ownership over that mark. Remember when the Fine Bros tried to trademark “React”? (link) The USPTO and WIPO database are public to search for any trademarks in any category.

A few months ago when people were starting to guess what Nintendo was going to come out with for the Zelda 35th anniversary, I happened to remember that you can use the USPTO database to figure out if a new product was coming out. I decided to look some things up. The first thing I searched was Skyward Sword. **Tumblr ruined the quality of the images, but if you click on it, the quality should be better.

Edit: Clicking on the image will NOT work if you are on desktop and directly on my blog because Tumblr sucks. You can right click and hit view image, but that will take you from the page. You can also zoom in with your browser controls if you don’t want to go back and forth between my page. Both options may still be hard to read, so right clicking, view image, then zoom may be be the best option.

A trademark for Skyward Sword? With the priority date (apparently when Nintendo filed in a different country), filing date (apparently when Nintendo filed application in the U.S.), and registration date (apparently when USPTO allowed it) all being in 2020? And in the “recorded electronic game programs; downloadable electronic game programs; recorded video game programs; downloadable video game programs; video game cartridges; and much more categories” categories and more? Why would a divisive game that is a decade old get a trademark in 2020? So that’s how I knew the game was coming to the Switch.

So what about the other games?

Ocarina of Time?

Also a 2020 trademark under the same category that Skyward Sword was in. Should note that the priority and filing dates are in 2020, but the registration date is in 2021.

Majora’s Mask?

Same as Oot and SS, but we have some differences. Priority and filing dates are in 2020, but there is no registration date. It does have published for opposition listed for 2021.

Wind Waker?

Same position as MM. Priority and filing dates are in 2020, but there is no registration date. It does have published for opposition listed in 2021.

Twilight Princess? *Spoiler: It doesn’t seem promising.

Yeah the years on this are 2007/2008. It does have a renewal date in 2018, but it is listed under the category of compact discs and other distinct categories. The other ones are under downloaded games or video cartridges categories. There seems to be no overlap.

Off topic, but when I search twilight princess, only two things pop up: TP’s trademark and that huge monstrosity of a filing. Like look at how many words they tried to trademark?! And it’s from one person! Edit: Turns out it is around 660 words! Apparently she went to court about it, too, if you are curious. (link) Back on topic.

I should note that I could not find a separate listing for Zelda All-Stars, but I also can’t find a separate listing for Mario All-Stars. Only Sunshine has a 2020 trademark listing; 64 has a 1996/2000 trademark with a 2020 renewal and Galaxy has a 2006/2007 one with a 2017 renewal. Again, I may be reading a lot of things wrong here. All that’s on the USPTO database; I’m getting more info on the WIPO. 

On WIPO, I did not find listings for Mario or Zelda All-Stars. 64′s active trademarks are from the late 90′s. Sunshine has 2020 trademarks. Galaxy has some active 2018 trademarks but not in the US. So It seems like there is some differing info. Let’s see about the Zelda games.

Skyward Sword has 2020 trademarks with some pending in Canada (CA), New Zealand (NZ), etc and some active in Australia (AU), Japan (JP), United States (US), etc. All filed under video game categories similar to the ones listed with USPTO and Skyward Sword’s trademark. Not surprised it is active in the US because if we compare it to the USPTO, SS has a registration date (when USPTO allowed Nintendo’s trademark).

Ocarina of Time has 2020 trademarks with some pending in CA, NZ, etc and some active in AU, US, JP, etc. All under video game categories. Not surprised it is active in the US since in the USPTO, it has a registration date.

Majora’s Mask has 2020 trademarks with some pending in CA, NZ, US, etc and some active in JP and AU. All under video game categories. It is pending on WIPO in the US and it also does not have a registration date in the USPTO database.

Wind Waker has 2020 trademarks with some pending in CA, US, NZ, etc and active in JP and AU. All under video game categories. Again, pending in the US and no registration date for the UPSTO.

Twilght Princess has 2006-2008 trademarks with them being active in JP, US, KR (Republic of Korea). All under video game categories.

What does this all mean? We already know that Skyward Sword is coming. So maybe Ocarina of Time, Majora’s Mask, and Wind Waker will be coming soon but I don’t know when. I think pending/registration dates may be a factor as to the timeline, especially in countries with a big gaming demographic. But again, there are still decent size countries with pending status for Skyward Sword, so there may be more to it. I don’t think Twilight Princess will be coming soon considering all the evidence and especially since it was already got ported in 2016 onto the Wii U, but maybe one day TP fans. I have been sitting on the USPTO info for a while and wanted to let somebody know, and now seems like the time.

Again, I am not versed on trademark terminology. Any extra information that isn’t directly from the databases came from a quick google search and my skimmed over analysis of it.

Edit: Ignore the next paragraph. I was an angry gremlin by time I finished this and was venting.

If there are any errors and I was not clear, I have been working on this for five hours. I also realized that WIPO was a thing while making this, so I had to go and research it. Tumblr glitched and ruined half my progress. It is also 5am where I am. I am tired.

But I hope you all learned some new information from this post. Also here are the links for the databases if you want to do your own research.

USPTO (click search our trademark database, I used basic word mark search) : https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/search

WIPO (Just type in the box by text but make sure to delete the search below goods/services if moving on to another search)  : https://www3.wipo.int/branddb/en/