Developer:
Nintendo EAD
Publisher:
Nintendo
Genre:
Action/Adventure
Platforms: Wii
U
Website: http://www.zelda.com/windwaker/
Age Rating: 7+
(PEGI)
There are many great debates in this world, each with
their own points and counter points to be made. This being the internet,
however, debates tend to turn into unreasonable, scathing attacks on each
other’s sexuality for some reason so I’ll just throw this statement out in the
open: Wind Waker is the best Zelda game there is.
If you’re not seething with fury and preparing statements
filled with name calling instead of punctuation, willing to listen to my
argument or just have plenty of free time on your hands, hit that ‘read more’
button and I’ll tell you why.
Ocarina of Time is rightfully known as a landmark game
and was even ahead of it’s time in a fair few regards. Many of the 3D worlds
created in the mid-90s weren’t particularly expansive and didn’t have much to
see, but the Ocarina of Time version of Hyrule felt more real than anything
before with every region connected for relatively easy travel and exploration.
Fast forwards to now and we’ve had three more main series
Zelda titles, they being Wind Waker on the Gamecube, Twilight Princess on both
Gamecube and Wii and Skyward Sword on just the Wii, the former now getting a
remake on the Wii U.
Wind Waker is set on the Great Sea, and epic expanse of
water stretching for miles in every direction. As usual in a Zelda game, you
control Link as he starts on Outset Island, witnessing your little sister’s
kidnapping and setting out with a group of pirates to rescue her. As with every
Zelda game, Zelda herself and Ganondorf crop up eventually but the typical
‘destined hero to defeat recurring villain to save the land’ story arc is
somewhat less in your face, while some of the secrets beneath the Great Sea are
mind blowing once revealed.
I know most people already know what’s down there, seeing
as the original came out in 2002 in Japan (2003 in Europe and the States), but
if I can keep spoilers away from those who haven’t experienced the game, then
all the better. Final Fantasy VII was ruined somewhat for me a hundred times
over when that particular spoiler was plastered all over the place well before
I had a chance to play it.
Now, why do I think Wind Waker is better than all those
other Zelda games? Well, there are two main reasons for that: The gameplay is
smooth as silk and the world is epic, stretching on seamlessly around you as
you sail. Sword fighting feels fast and kinetic as you deliver blows, block
attacks and deal devastating counter attacks, never quite letting up but also
never becoming overwhelming when fighting groups, though single targets are a
bit too easy to deal with.
The epic and open nature of the world is amazing as well.
Plenty of people have complained about all the sailing required (and I do agree
the need to change the direction of the wind constantly is annoying), but it
makes the world feel big and makes that speck you see on the horizon all the
more exciting as you head of in search of adventure or the next dungeon. It’s
certainly more appealing the crossing a slightly different field to get to the
next place.
The Wii U update has also seen a few additional and
tweaks to make the game even smoother, utilizing the gamepad to quickly swap
active items, view maps and even use the gyroscopes to aim your bow and arrow
an hookshot while the much hated ‘Tri-Force Hunt’ has been tightened up so you
now only have three pieces to find in the ocean, the rest moved to more
reasonable locations so you don’t have to visit Tingle so often. A new ‘Fast
Sail’ has also been added so you can sail faster across the ocean with the wind
automatically adjusting to give you the best boost.
It is slightly disappointing, however, that the map on
the Gamepad can’t be drawn on like they could in Zelda: Phantom Hourglass on
the Nintendo DS, which would make exploring slightly easier as you could mark
squares on the map you’ve visited or need to visit again with an new item. Or
just draw willies, of course.
Twilight Princess in comparison is more of a re-fined and
improved version of Ocarina of Time, which in itself isn’t a bad thing but it
casts asides the joy of exploration for the same few fields and deserts that
separates familiar landmarks. Skyward Sword, on the other hand, despite all its
imaginative puzzles and dungeons has an awkward game structure that doesn’t
seem sure if it wants to ape Zelda or Metroid games and doesn’t do a good job
of aping either, not to mention Link’s as flat a character as he’s ever been,
some repeated and dull boss battles and Fi is the worst support character in
the series (mainly because he/she’s just dull and doesn’t know when to shut
up).
That’s not to say the game is utterly perfect. There’s
plenty of times when the game feels too easy and the joy of exploring is
somewhat diminished when you realise you have to go to many of the game’s
islands to progress. The manner in which you get the titular Wind Waker also
amuses me somewhat as while the Ocarina was gifted to you as a farewell present
in Ocarina of Time and your transformation into a Wolf was somewhat shocking in
Twilight Princess, the Wind Waker is pretty much dumped on you almost as an
afterthought early on, with a line akin to “oh, you might be able to make use
of this. Now get on with it”. Another fault to me is that Tetra, one of my favourite
characters in the Zelda series along with Midna in Twilight Princess, becomes
somewhat defunct later on when her own secret comes out.
Whenever Wind Waker’s discussed, the game’s cel-shaded
graphics always come to the fore. The original still looks fantastic today,
which is especially funny when the ‘realistic’ games of the time look terrible
now. Wind Waker HD, while still looking extremely good, suffers a bit from a
re-jigged lighting system that occasionally undermines the interactive cartoon
aesthetic and gives it a Claymation quality, most noticeable when Link acquires
an item. The music remains as good as it was even after tweaking and the sound
queues as you land a combo of strikes remains one of my favourite parts of the
game, though some sounds have been turned down such as the almost scary “Oh?”
of statues as they come to life.
Wind Waker HD is more than a worthwhile title to have on
the Wii U and if you’ve not played the original, it’s well worth getting a Wii
U to experience. Even in the face of the Xbox One and PS4, Wind Waker HD shines
brightly and continues to prove how good Nintendo is, even if they’ve not quite
hit the same high since.
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