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E3 2011: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword Preview

Tons of details for Link's new adventure surface as we spend quality time fighting and flying in Skyward Sword at E3 2011.

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Though Nintendo made much ado about the 25th anniversary of The Legend of Zelda during its E3 2011 press conference, it showed precious little of the next new entry in the venerable franchise: Skyward Sword. Fortunately, things were different inside Nintendo's booth on the E3 show floor, where three different demos offered three different experiences. The dungeon and boss battle will sound familiar to anyone who has donned the green tunic before, but bird riding? Now that's a whole different story. We also snagged some new details about Link's sword abilities from the Nintendo executive roundtable, further painting the picture for this attractive new adventure.

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All of the demos took place on a small island chain floating above the clouds. The settlements on top of these land masses had a small-town look reminiscent of other Legend of Zelda starting areas, and the craggy undersides made them seem as if they had sprung from the ground below. In the first demo we played, three great birds streaked across the sky, leaving contrails of red, blue, and green. As they came together in formation, they evoked the three Golden Goddesses (Din, Farore, and Nayru) featured in other Legend of Zelda games, who created the Triforce and the land of Hyrule. These deities have previously bestowed magical power on Link, so perhaps these birds augur the appearance of similar abilities in Skyward Sword.

The trio sped over a lighthouse, and the camera panned down to show Link standing in a line alongside three other townsfolk. Apparently not yet summoned to protect the land of Hyrule and take up the Hylian shield, Link wore a casual outfit with dark green pants, an embroidered brown vest, and a cream-colored long-sleeved shirt. Three town elders stood before him, announcing the start of the bird rider's ceremony. The first competitor to catch up with the golden bird and snatch the statue from its talons would be crowned that year's champion. When the chase began, we were prompted to dash towards the ledge, leap off into oblivion, and press down on the D pad to summon our bird. The reckless leap into a freefall turned out to be a lot of fun, so we stayed in the plunge a little longer than our competitors, reveling in the sensation. Not wanting to linger too long, we whistled and were immediately swept away by our winged mount.

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The bird was quite sizable, comfortably transporting Link on its back with only a neck harness keeping our hero in place. Bright red plumage adorned its head, back, and wings, while white feathers covered its neck, belly, and wingtips. Its neck was curved to look like a pelican, though the large beak was more ducklike, with a sharp tip on the end--kind of like an egg tooth. The field of pursuit was mostly wide open, though a few boulders floated here and there, and our opponents flew off ahead while we figured out the controls. The bird flies in the direction you point the Wii Remote, and shaking the remote causes it to flap, as well as gain both speed and altitude. A tap of the A button was good for a quick speed burst, and pulling the B button slowed the bird down to allow for tighter turning.

At first, it was a bit disorienting, and we had some trouble getting in the race. Flying a bird in Skyward Sword is one of those Wii experiences that improves the more you get into it. It was tough to steer confidently with simple wrist articulations, but when we held our arm out in front of us and began exaggerating our motions, our results improved drastically. We saw the golden bird making a broad left turn and set ourselves on an intercept course. We found that by flying high and then diving down toward the bird, we could close the gap quickly (and the bird tucking its wings in for the dive was an invigorating visual touch). Even once we had the hang of things, the pursuit wasn't easy, and some meddling from our competitors made the challenge a bit tougher. In the end, however, Link prevailed, and on his way back to the ceremony, he got a drop-in visit from Zelda (whom he had to catch after she too leapt off the cliff). The two shared a nice moment, and Zelda looked at Link in an affectionate way before the two headed back to town. Her blond hair and braids looked familiar, but her straight bangs created a distinct look for the new game.

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The dungeon demo took place inside the Sky Temple. Link was dressed in full combat regalia (green garb, sword, Hylian shield) and entered a large domed enclosure. Paths circled around a central chamber and were populated by bats and goblins that we easily dispatched. The large spiders hanging from the ceiling were a different story. In one approach, we just ran up and took a whack at them. This sent them spinning off only to swing back toward us, nasty legs and all. We glimpsed a purple weak spot on the belly area but weren't able to time our sword attacks correctly with the spider's wild multidirectional swinging. Delving into our bag of gadgets, we whipped out the flying beetle we first used in our E3 2010 preview. We launched it from our wrist and then steered it toward the line holding the spider aloft. On the way, we clipped a few boxes free from the ceiling, scattering their contents on the ground before finally snipping that spider's support. Still a formidable foe on the ground, the spider blocked most direct attacks and managed to both wrap us up in webbing and leap up on us with its chitinous arms as we fought to subdue it. The character model added to the creep factor, with beady eyeballs, bristling leg hairs, and a skull-like pattern on its abdomen.

Having finally vanquished the foe, the rest of the dungeon exploration held few surprises. More creative beetle use let us collect key gems, and a battle against a big skeleton forced us to use the deliberate sword tactics we picked up during last year's demo. The Wii MotionPlus corresponds directly to your sword's movements, and enemies are designed to make simple slashing fairly ineffective. While the dungeon structure seemed familiar, the art design gave it a unique and vibrant feel. Glowing mushrooms and frilly foliage grew through cracks in the ground, and toppled pillars gave the impression of a temple long abandoned. Sunlight streamed in from above, illuminating floating dust motes that gave the atmosphere a nice sense of stillness that befits an ancient place. The saturated colors and painterly vibe combined with thoughtful environmental touches to create a very appealing visual palette.

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The final demo pitted Link against a nimble boss named Ghirahim. He was a slender, pale-skinned fellow clad in white, diamond-patterned spandex. He stood cockily with a smirk on his face and a sword in his hand, repelling many of our straightforward attacks with ease and sometimes going so far as to grab our sword with his bare hand. Throwing stars, rushing lunges, and the ability to disappear in a flurry of diamonds made him a formidable opponent; thus, we had to employ assiduous blocking and dodging tactics to avoid death. If this is one of the main villains in Skyward Sword, Link has his work cut out for him.

As if three distinct demos on the show floor weren't enough, later on that day, Nintendo revealed even more details about Link's new adventure. Series producer Eiji Aonuma, at the Nintendo executive roundtable held on the eve of day one of E3, said that beating up on bad guys wouldn't be the only thing Link would be able to do with a sword.

During the roundtable, Aonuma demoed sections of Skyward Sword from a Japanese version of the game. In the first demo, Link came across two molelike humanoid creatures (tentatively called mogmas) talking about how they had broken up the key to a massive door in the level and buried its five pieces in different locations. After dispatching the two mogmas, Link entered dousing mode. This switched the screen perspective to a first-person view, with Link's sword jutting out of the middle. Moving the Wii Remote back and forth made Link move the sword. As he got closer to the location of a buried key piece, the beeping became more insistent and the glow emanating from the center of the screen became larger. Once found, Link switched out of dousing mode and started digging (using special gloves that you'll need to find within the game, Aonuma said), finding the first piece of the key. While the first piece of the key was easy to find, the next few proved more challenging and required some clever lateral thinking (and use of conveniently placed bomb flowers).

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Aonuma's second demo showed how the environment--and how well the player knows it--will be a key component of Skyward Sword. This demo began in the forest area featured in last year's E3 demo. Link plunged his sword into the ground, a move that transformed the familiar surroundings into a strange, muted version of itself. While it was basically the same layout, the environment's coloring and inhabitants had changed--policing this area were a group of large statues called guardians. As Link's sword was still hilt-deep in dirt, he was unarmed in this section, meaning his only option was to flee from the guardians. Link's job while in this mirror world was to collect a number of green orbs, and though he was without a weapon, he was not completely helpless. Scattered throughout the environment were tear-shaped objects, which, when collected, froze all guardians in place for a short amount of time. Aonuma says this type of gameplay will occur regularly in Skyward Sword, which means players will need to become familiar with the title's environments to better cope with their limited abilities in this mirror world.

And so, though you might not have guessed it from Nintendo's Tuesday morning press conference, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword had a big showing at E3 2011. From flying on a majestic new creature to manipulating your environment with the power of your sword, there's plenty of new stuff in store for aspiring adventurers. Skyward Sword is scheduled for release this holiday season, toward the end of 2011.

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penpusher

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@rouguesquadron to be honest I dont blame them for keeping away from the ocarina/twilight kind of "realistic-esq" look, aside from the fact that zelda graphics styles have always been varied I reckon they've taken into account that if they go for taxing the wii hardware people will just compare it the best on the 360 and ps3 and it'll thus be undermined by its own graphics ... where as now some narrow minded few are moaning that it looks to bright and colourful Its kind of a no win situation for nintendo

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SlinkMacTavish

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Man I am so excited for this game!

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EbenOlemaun

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Very very exciting. Does anyone know if they had mentioned whether this game was going to potentially have Classic Controller support?

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rouguesquadron

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@JJ_Productions I've got to say that although I'm really looking forward to this game I've got to agree with you. The Wii is an amazing piece of hardware capable of producing spectacular visuals (Metroid Prime 3 anyone.) I just don't understand why Nintendo decided to go this route (I've read the explanations) but I still don't understand esp. since they went with the realistic look for Twilight Princess. Oh well maybe we'll get what we want on the Wii U.

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rouguesquadron

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@riariases Have you ever played Majora"s Mask? I'm re-playing it right now and I've got to say that it's the darkest (and one of the most fun) Zelda games out there. I mean the whole world is going to be obliterated in three days you can't get much darker than that.

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kaem79

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Leave Wii and Zelda for PC and Witcher. I know I did and it was the best thing I've done.

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dovberg

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it seems like the more i see of this game the more i like the art style.

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wewerethere

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"The dungeon and boss battle will sound familiar to anyone who has donned the green tunic before, but bird riding? Now that's a whole different story." You ride a bird in Twilight Princess. This looks like it's going to be even better than Twillight Princess. I hope they don't make it too easy though.

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wolfieboy13

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its like a mix between wind waker and twilight princess

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FForward

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@Deferet yeah, forgot

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lukajus

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AWESOME

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al_win

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Hey for anyone who is in the USA just a quick note on Friday 17 of June Skyward Sword will be previewed on NBC on Late Night with Jimmy Felon (I think that's how you spell his last name). they just previewed Battlefield 3 and it was funny can't wait for tomorrow night! :)

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Wolflink001

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@fighterguard Fail troll is fail no? *I couldn't help it*

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fighterguard

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@FForward sucessful troll is successful Problem fans? :P

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Deferet

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@FForward Zelda has always been on nintendo... I'm guessing not a big fan? I for one am a HUGE Zelda fan, and have played every one. I will be waiting in line at midnight (if there's a midnight release) to buy and play this game. Twilight princess was epic, so if it's anything like that, and I'm hoping they impoved upon, it should be a great game!

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xXl_z3r0_lXx

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@FForward ...What?

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Gurzociurlo

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@TBoneTony Same here, I turned 20, I think it's time to think about studying and finding a job, so I - sadly - think this is going to be the last game I will ever buy, but it looks great. Always been a big fan of nintendo's, since 1997, but the wii u made me skeptic... But it's to early, I was skeptic about Skyward Sword's graphics and now I love them, I guess I just have to wait. Meh, I don't know, I probably won't buy any of the new systems, but if I change my mind, maybe I'll consider getting one of them (nintendo probably, but it won't be no day one buy... I'll have to make up my mind carefully).

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FForward

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If I'll get this game then probably only because it reminds me of my childhood playing the very first games of zelda on nintendo

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Frosty192

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Maybe I should buy a wii...

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ChiefFreeman

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If only this could have visuals like Elder Scrolls: Skyrim. I just don't like the way this game looks. Very simplistic.

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TBoneTony

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This will be on my pre-christmas gaming list right at the top. I plan to spend a whole December playing this beauty of a game. Perhaps my last great Nintendo game I would get because of me being in University and needing to save money. I won't be getting any of the new consoles sadly. So I am happy to end my gaming with this generation on this game.

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Sanilujin

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Amazing game, cant wait!

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Sleepyhun1

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Minish cap, sky people anyone?

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almossbb

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My hype meter flew up for this game after E3, now i just wish they would have released it this summer, and not the holidays. damn I'm dying for a new Zelda! but i still have to wait until Christmas...

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MrBlobz

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they will probably re-release this on wii-u

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loveless9

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Looks really awesome. Can't wait.

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ShadowofSonic

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FALCON PAWNCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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annoyingdevil

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Are the giant spiders scary? the ones in zelda twilight freaked me out.

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annoyingdevil

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@darkevilKoala yep.

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waZelda

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Skyward Sword will make sure the Wii goes out with a bang.

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inaka_rob

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@riariases Twilight pricness was the nail in the coffin for me. I bought a wii and bought the 3 games that I wanted to play the most. Mario Galaxy. Hated it! Metroid Prime 3. Prime 1 and 2 being my favorite gamecube games of all time. They RUINED the prime series! and then Twilight princcess. I had to force my self to beat that game. i sold my wii the next week. i know people love it. but its just not for me. I also hate half the other multi gen franchises out there like COD and GTA. they are boring now but started great. The thing is the only thing nintedno has going for them are their few key exlcusive franchices, the ones I dont like anymore. atleast the ps3 and 360 have SOOO many other games to fall back on. I am sitting on a pile of 15 360 games and 5 ps3 games. and I game EVERYDAY. the wii only has 20 good games, and that how many 360 games I bought in the last 3 months alone!

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J-man45

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I like how 95% of the haters will still get the game and still love it. You know it's true. That's the power of Zelda.

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raptures330

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@JJ_Productions Sounds like you just want to play Skyrim. Why not play that? I like the animation style that Zelda games are known for. I don't need realistic rendering in Zelda anymore than I need it in Futurama.

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DrEvilKoala

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@annoyingdevil That's odd. I found twilight princess to be ridiculously easy. I'm pretty sure this one won't be a whole lot easier, because they would really be pushing the limits. Was Twilight Princess your first Zelda game perhaps?

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Wolflink001

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@alienvspredata3 Nintendo is terrible eh? They need to step it up and get some ideas?? The next question I will now ask you is are you a brain dead noob Sony fan?

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nocandy4u

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@a_marth_user I don't know, the Zelda games that people tend to call "more realistic", OOT and Twilight Princess, are my two favorites of the franchise (with OOT tied with Mass Effect 2 and Half Life 2 as my favorite game(s) of all time)

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a_marth_user

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and no a realistic zelda would ruin everything,thats a horrible idea

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a_marth_user

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looks sexy

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soulreaper-4

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@Quinzark People sometimes are so ignorant that they don't stop to amaze me. The graphics aren't GameCube quality, go back and play those games. It's like saying Mario Sunshine has the best graphics as the Mario Galaxy 1-2. Personally i was playing Mario Sunshine not so long ago and you can clearly see the difference, enviroments, things happening, effects, etc. Those aren't noticeable in screenshots.

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cspark809

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WOW!!!!!!!!!AWESome visuals. Pretty much they max out every drop of wii hardware I believe.

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theslimdavylp

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Wii graphics FTL... Zelda FTW :)

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Quinzark

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graphics are gamecube quality but hey if its as much fun to play as Zelda games normaly are then it could have snes graphics & i'd still enjoy it :)

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warhawk-geeby

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@JJ_Productions Was just about to say the exact same thing. It'd be nice to see what they could do with the graphics.

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samures

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best game of 2011

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BirdofTokyo

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One of the only games coming out of E3 from Nintendo that I can bank on

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JJ_Productions

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I'm going to speak the honest truth of whats on my mind. I want a realistic Zelda game that pushes the graphics of the system to its limits. I want to see the chain mail under links green tunic detailed and react to lighting. I have played every zelda if not most, and I would just like to see how it would be, realistic zelda, real gritty story of a warrior doing battle with creatures and all that.

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mdchapel9

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any crazy cuckoos?

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annoyingdevil

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Is this easier then twilight princess? in twilight princess i had to use a guide for every temple level

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Morokoo

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I'm really excited for this, I wish it had the look of Twilight Princess though.. It's just so colorful. Nothing wrong with it I just wish it had a more serious look to it.

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riariases

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@inaka_rob I really agree with you. But there were still parts of Wind Waker and Twilight Princess that made them entertaining for me. The whole idea of sailing a huge sea and discovering new islands in Wind Waker was really fun for me. There was so much to explore. The story itself wasn't so great, just the gameplay. But for Twilight Princess, they totally revamped the story. Yeah, it was still the same. Zelda is captured, collect 3 gems, save Hyrule. But they added all that dark stuff to it. Twilight Princess was the first Zelda game with a serious, dark and captivating story line. I mean, for a game with a plot about the destruction and demise of a Kingdom, Zelda games usually have a light feeling to them. And obviously that's the case with Skyward Sword. You can tell by the art style.

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