Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword: My thoughts

[Young Link Addict 67]

When I first saw it I thought, "Oh my god what the f*** is this?" All I did watch complain about it. I got the game at Christmas and in a little under 2 months I beat it.

Overall I would give this game a 7/10. It has it good points and it's bad points.

Good points: The story was amazing and it chained itself to the rest of series in a way I didn't think they could.

The graphics were still not to my liking, but I got over it. However the graphics made every person in the game really ugly and everyone one had really big lips.

The game play was ok and I liked the feel of the game and how the items were used and I liked the difficulty.

Bad points: Loftwing flying. It was kind of boring and the was easy to get turned around if you weren't paying attention.

The graphics- same as above.

The game play. Sometimes it felt like the sword was unresponsive. Like during the final fight sometimes when I went to swing my sword, Link wouldn't swing and I would get hit.

The puzzles were kind of difficult. You had to do somethings that you wouldn't even think of doing. Like

in the ship you had to look through the fan and shoot an eye.

How were you supposed to know to do that?

I didn't even think you could shoot past the fans even when they were off.

I know the bad out weigh the good, but the story just made the game.

However there was more aspect that I hated. That was upgrading things. I only used the upgrade system once to power up the beetle all the way. After that I never upgraded anything again.

Then there was the lack of shield needing. 95% of the game, I never had a shield equipped. Not until I got the ultimate shield which was a pain to get over all.

Oh and there's one thing I will admit that I liked that I never thought I'd say. I actually liked the boating in this game. It was fast, it was easy, and I'm kind of disappointed that there weren't more parts of the game where you use the boat. There was even a time I spent half an hour screwing around on the boat because I was having fun with it and I got to places in seconds. Unlike WW where it took forever to get where you want to go, but I digress.

This game, as I said, gets a 7/10 over all. I am honestly proud of this game and I'm glad I got it. Still though I wish I didn't need Wii Motion Plus because I will most likely never need it again.

[Arachne 25]

I'm glad that you're back, YLA, and that you played through SS despite your initial reaction.

The controls sometimes need adjusting, and there's a little bit of lag between your movement and when Link swings his sword. Luckily the game usually gives you that extra fraction of a second to make up for it.

As for the puzzles, they were fine for me.

There's a light shining directly through the fan to bring attention to it. After being able to shoot through grates and iron bars It seemed like the obvious solution. I'm really not one to talk though, since there was a part in the first dungeon where I couldn't find something I needed to proceed.

[T1g 1503]

so it lost points because it wasnt an easy zelda game

that gains points in my opinion

in my playthrough i paid attention and the controls were responsive

the graphics were colorful, the characters were memorable, and the upgrade system was a unique concept that i enjoyed

if it makes you feel better saha needed me to point out the fan thing to him.

I loved the dungeons and puzzles in this game for being all so terribly unique and interesting

[Young Link Addict 67]

I'm glad that you're back, YLA, and that you played through SS despite your initial reaction.

The controls sometimes need adjusting, and there's a little bit of lag between your movement and when Link swings his sword. Luckily the game usually gives you that extra fraction of a second to make up for it.

As for the puzzles, they were fine for me.

There's a light shining directly through the fan to bring attention to it. After being able to shoot through grates and iron bars It seemed like the obvious solution. I'm really not one to talk though, since there was a part in the first dungeon where I couldn't find something I needed to proceed.

I didn't lose points for being hard, it lost points for being far fetched at times. If I wanted to knock it down for difficulty,

it would have been knocked down for the Ghirahim fights because they were frustrating. In fact at one point I strained my arm from swinging so hard because I couldn't find a pattern in his first forms.

As for the fan thing,

I honestly thought they were for decoration to make the ship look more unique.

Also,T1g, that kind of does make me feel better because I felt pretty bad when I couldn't figure it out...

[T1g 1503]

first thing

didn't ghirahim say that the reason he was kicking your ass was because you project your attacks like a novice? Personally, I love to have a higher difficulty in these things

second thing

I didn't realize at first that i could use items through bars

[Eka 387]

You found flying the Loftwing boring? Christ I loved skyflying on my bird; the only time I wasn't a total fan of it was when you had to

attack Levias' eyes with it.

But that's because it was irritating hitting though things. =P Plus the song that played while you flew around Skyloft was great; got stuck in my head all the time and I loved it. xD

As for

the arrow thing, I sorta figured that out once Fi pointed it out first. Then I saw it again and was like 'Oh I need to use my bow to hit that dumb thing; through the fan then, eh?'

Iunno, didn't seem very surprising to me.

I agree on your point about the boat, though. Dang I loved that thing; I loved that whole area in Lanayru, too. There should've been more bits of minecarting too. I was willing to go back after I got to my destination just so I could get another minecart ride.

[Rika Code 29]

Lol, I have to admit I found the loftwings really hard to control

[Chase 390]

It certainly would have been much easier with the joystick.

See, this is what I hate about motion controls, or any kind of newer, untapped technology. The developers are just flexing their creative muscles. There's no real reason the loftwing had to be controlled with motion, it's just tacked on for the sake of being able to do it. I'm running through Uncharted: Golden Abyss on my Vita, and I'm running into the same damned issue. The menus are all touchscreen, no dpad support whatsoever, which is just stupid. Dpad is smoother, faster, and easier overall. Climbing by touching the screen or going up and down on the rear touchpad are also unnecessary and, frankly, stupid. At least with Uncharted, I can blame the newness of the Vita as the primary reason for the gimmicks. With Skyward Sword, there is no excuse. The Wii has been around for a very long time. What, 5 years now? 6? The "wow" factor of motion controls should be gone by now. And a lot of Skyward Sword is gimmick. Even the sword controls, which I'll admit are the best implementation of Wii Motion Plus yet and a very obvious evolution, aren't up to my high standards. When I can fight better and more efficiently using buttons, then that's a problem. I suppose the technology just isn't quite there. It's very, very close. But still not there.

[Ganny 285]

I don't know how easy it would be to use buttons to get the same dynamic of having to swing your sword in a specific direction to do specific things, which is a big part of Skyward Sword. What they did with that was really neat and improved the play immensely, and I found it easy to admire that. The motion controls went beyond being a gimmick to being a mechanic that made for a really meaningful play experience, simply because they did things that would be impossible or very difficult to implement using conventional button-presses. I also found their accuracy to be perfectly fine as well, but I guess some other people didn't

[Chase 390]

It wasn't accurate enough for me. Sure, Motion Plus is good at recognizing a general swipe. If you swipe diagonal, the majority of the time, Link will do the same. But it isn't 100% 1:1, and it proves really challenging during fights. I think fights are made much harder because of the controls and not the general challenge of the game. I often find myself dying to some of the weakest enemies due to inconsistent swipes. The enemies require near perfect efficiency in order to get around their blocks, but the controller isn't able to keep up with my strokes. Which, maybe I'm swinging wrong, and I'll grant that point. But I like to think of myself as fairly coordinated. I know how to swing something. Motion control should be fluid and consistent; an extension of my arm. As it is, it's choppy and, at best, different from using buttons, but certainly not better.

Also, calibrating the controller should never happen. It's just proof positive that the technology isn't there.

Skyward Sword was an interesting experiment, but I can't help but argue that I would have much more fun playing the game with a traditional controller than the Wiimote. True, there are unique challenges and experiences that only the motion controller can provide, but I'm of the opinion that those experiences are either worse or, at best, unique. Being unique doesn't make them better, just different.

For what it's worth, I love the idea of using a controller for a sword and it's something I've always dreamed of since I was a little kid playing Ocarina of Time. I'd be ecstatic to see it implemented correctly. Hopefully sometime in the near future with the Wii U, if the technology is there.

I feel like motion controls are in their infancy. Until we get full virtual reality (my avatar on the screen does exactly what I do) I won't be satisfied with these gimped controls. I think everyone is just wowed by Skyward Sword because it's the best of the best. You won't find better motion implementation anywhere, so people are of the impression that, since it's the best available, it must be great.

It's not great. The flying controls are terrible. The sword movement is choppy and inconsistent. We've a long way to go. People are impressed too easily, in my opinion.

[Arachne 25]

I still hold that the smoothest and most intuitive motion controls I've ever experienced were in Metroid Prime 3, but I still love what they did with Skyward Sword. I agree that we still have a ways to go, but at least that technology isn't being abandoned as soon as its initial gimmick appeal has worn off, at least non on Nintendo's part.

I'd like to see a full virtual reality game, but I just can't see that being a big thing in north america. That would be something to test in arcades, most of which are shutting down, and it would probably cost way too much for the average consumer to get in on. The cheapest I can think of would be something akin to the cameras on the Kinect with mo-cap tags to put on the player's hands, elbows, feet, etc., but that carries the unfortunate disadvantage of looking like a dork and/or Andy Serkis.

[Chase 390]

I think Kinect is really close. A combination of Kinect and WiiMotion Plus would be closer.

I don't think it's too far off. Just look how far televisions, cars, cell phones, etc. have come in the last 10, even 5, years.

[Sahaqiel 1232]

I'll be honest here, Chase. If you screw up with SS' controls, you're doing something wrong. Especially with flying. It took me awhile to figure out by looking down at my hand that I wasn't doing it right, and that flying is actually the easiest thing to do ever. The only reason the motion controls wouldn't work is if you move the controller too hard, too fast, and too much. True, it can be seen as a flaw to have this happen, but really there aren't many situations in which you would need to swing the Wiimote so fast it throws off the calibration. The only time I had it happen to me is when I did the bamboo cutting. But 95% of the time, your mistakes are due to you. I'll agree that the calibration was annoying to have to do constantly, but it was easy to get used to. Otherwise, if the game says you swung wrong, you probably did. Even if you're coordinated, you probably don't pay attention to your hand's specific position at all times. My assertion of personal responsibility for playing Skyward Sword was emphasized when Tappy came into chat saying tightropes were broken, and I told him I had the same problem in SS. The problem was that he assumed you were supposed to tilt the controller, when the screen clearly said to aim it left and right. People just assume things, like that their hands are 100% correct all the time with what they're thinking they should do.

And saying "until we get full virtual reality, I won't think motion controls are good" is just awful and a hindrance of progress. No one said they didn't want to watch television until the television is a direct portal to a scene. "I won't think motion controls are good unless they are good" is probably the better response. I agree that many games have tacked-on motion controls to satisfy casual or curious consumers, but Skyward Sword was built around them. It was not in any way tacked on, and they really were fluid. Maybe you have a flailing problem like pheo has with Okami. The Okami Wii controls were godawful sometimes if you weren't patient and precise with your swings. I did fine, but pheo just flailed like no other and couldn't attack right. Skyward Sword even compensated for his flailing problem. So I can't see why you'd think the controls are choppy.

As far as holding a remote control that is motion sensitive and having an accompanying accessory that is also somewhat motion sensitive, Skyward Sword is probably the best implementation of it thus far. So instead of comparing it to what it could be, you should acknowledge it for what it is. An amazing game with solid controls.

Sahaqiel

[Chase 390]

I knew you wouldn't agree with me =)

We're all entitled to opinions, and this is where I disagree with your assertions.

I appreciate that you think flying is easy, but, as a collective whole, the general response is that it isn't easy. And whether it's easy or not isn't the point. I put forth the argument that it would have been just as good or better with an analog than with the motion control, and I stand by what I said. The motion control detracted from the game for me, and that is enough to justify an alternate control scheme. What is wrong with choice, anyway? Forcing me to use the motion control is rather limiting.

I am human, so I will concede that there are times when it is my fault and not the game's. However, I'm very careful in my strokes. Link often doesn't do what I ask him to, and it's as simple as that. Perhaps I will record a video of myself playing and then we can both critique the situation better. As it stands, I'm not willing to discuss this particular point further, because I have nothing left to add to the discussion.

Yeah, I agree, it was a little improper of me to bash Skyward Sword with the whole virtual reality bit, because the developers did the best they could with what they had. However, virtual reality is something tangible in the near future. We're already seeing it with Kinect. I don't see how forward thinking is a hindrance to progress? I think that's how progress is made. When you're not satisfied with what you have, you set out to make something better. Also, don't think Okami or Twilight Princess level of choppy. The motion is much, much improved in Skyward Sword than in those games. But it's still not where I need it to be in order for me to consider it better than using buttons. As it is, it's unique, but it isn't better. Yet.

As far as holding a remote control that is motion sensitive and having an accompanying accessory that is also somewhat motion sensitive, Skyward Sword is probably the best implementation of it thus far. So instead of comparing it to what it could be, you should acknowledge it for what it is. An amazing game with solid controls.

I did.

I think everyone is just wowed by Skyward Sword because it's the best of the best. You won't find better motion implementation anywhere, so people are of the impression that, since it's the best available, it must be great.

I stand by that. It is the best. No argument there. But it's not good enough, because I would have enjoyed the experience more if it was tailored to a controller instead of the Motion Plus. Granted, it added to some interesting game mechanics, puzzle solving, and minigames, so that's definitely a positive in regards to the motion control.

I don't want you to get the impression that I hate the game or something. I don't. In fact, I rather enjoy it. It's an interesting experiment that I think has garnered more praise than it deserves due to its namesake and unique control scheme. At the end of the day, it's the best in motion control, and there is something to be said for that.

[Ganny 285]

It stands yet that a Skyward Sword without motion controls would be a different game entirely; that is, this wasn't Twilight Princess, where swinging the remote was equivalent to pressing a button, and the game was pretty much more controllable on the Gamecube. In order to replace the motion controls of SS with button-presses, the entire game would have to be revamped, as a large portion of the puzzles and enemies were built on the notion that you can swing your sword in eight different directions. So it's difficult to conjecture, "Skyward Sword would be better with button-presses rather than motion controls," as that couldn't be the only change in effect: if they were to change the nature of the controls, they would have to change the content of the game, and we can't know what it would be like in that case. Only if we could conjure up some button you can press that somehow knows in what direction you want to swing your sword or think up some janky and more difficult control scheme (hold A and move the control stick? I couldn't imagine this being convenient) could that comparison even be made