Is zelda's story supposed to be good?

I've just got done beating Zelda ocarina of time, and twilight princess on the gamecube, and thought they were both a master piece from a design standpoint however I thought the story was lacking. This I found weird, because many people phase the story in the games, but they felt interchangeable from each other, and rather predictable. I want to know if anyone agrees with me, or if people feel as though I wasn't understanding something important about the story(And if, so, tell me what it is)

[QUOTE="funsohng"]story in zelda is very simple - you are Link, a hero saving Zelda (in most of the cases, i guess MM is an exception) i think the charm of zelda's storyline is that it is extremely simple. but that does not mean it is a great story, really. TP should have had something going on with Ilia...jalexbrown

story in zelda is very simple - you are Link, a hero saving Zelda (in most of the cases, i guess MM is an exception) i think the charm of zelda's storyline is that it is extremely simple. but that does not mean it is a great story, really. TP should have had something going on with Ilia...funsohng

[QUOTE="funsohng"]story in zelda is very simple - you are Link, a hero saving Zelda (in most of the cases, i guess MM is an exception) i think the charm of zelda's storyline is that it is extremely simple. but that does not mean it is a great story, really. TP should have had something going on with Ilia...Lable1985

[QUOTE="funsohng"]story in zelda is very simple - you are Link, a hero saving Zelda (in most of the cases, i guess MM is an exception) i think the charm of zelda's storyline is that it is extremely simple. but that does not mean it is a great story, really. TP should have had something going on with Ilia...Lable1985

If you want a story in a Zelda game, play Majora's Mask. Other than that, the series usually has a very simple story.

[QUOTE="Lable1985"]

[QUOTE="funsohng"]story in zelda is very simple - you are Link, a hero saving Zelda (in most of the cases, i guess MM is an exception) i think the charm of zelda's storyline is that it is extremely simple. but that does not mean it is a great story, really. TP should have had something going on with Ilia...jalexbrown

A lot of people must like the simple story of Zelda...it is a very long running franchise and any time there is a new game out with Link 'n Zelda it sells big.

It's the execution of zelda that makes it a AAAAAAAAAAAA franchise.IgorAntunov

Zelda's story is supposed to be good, but in a straight-forward kind of way. It's very simple. As you continue gaming over the years, you'll realize that many videogames don't need elaborate, long, drawn-out storylines in order to be entertaining.

Individually, the games themselves have a very straightforward story. The simplicity is kind of the point of Zelda games. However, it is when you merge all of the games together that it gets interesting. Although noone can agree on a direct chronology, the way that each game adds to the overall lore and mythos of the world is really exciting for many players.

The key is imagination - these games are straightforward, but they imply so so much that you never actually get to see. The fun is in learning all that you can and being able to interpret more.

Think of them like the original Star Wars trilogy. The plot is straightforward, and consists of the usual stereotypes and binary oppositions. But there is so much back history implied that an extra layer of story telling grips you. Before the prequels, things like the Clone Wars, Darth Vader's rise and fall and the Jedi Temple were only in my mind; they reinforced the solidity of the films.

Also, TC, if you continue to play Zelda games, then try and talk to as many people as possible, and really pay attention to what they say. Each game has a central theme that the whole story revolves around, and I tend to find that much more compelling than the structure of the main story. It is most noticable in Majora's Mask, which almost doesnt feel like a Zelda game at all. There is a whole history implied there that is fascinating.

If you want to read more, then go to this link. It might spoil Majora for you, but I read it before playing and it really opened me up to the game world and its nuances.

I never found the stories in the Zelda games to be that great. I think they're brilliant from a design standpoint - perhaps Miyamoto's best work - but they do seem to be somewhat lacking in the story department.jalexbrown

i dont think the story is bad

its functional as it is engaging and lets you want to see whats next and at the same time it is not overconvoluted and has a lot of room for imagination..

Since when has Zelda had a good story? Where it excels is unrivaled level design, charm, puzzle mechanics, and overrall epicness.

[QUOTE="skrat_01"]Twilight Princess a masterpiece from a design standpoint? Oh wow. Lol, just lol. No, no TC it isn't.eveileb-ekam

Agreed. Especially compared to certain games this gen. :roll:

I've just got done beating Zelda ocarina of time, and twilight princess on the gamecube, and thought they were both a master piece from a design standpoint however I thought the story was lacking. This I found weird, because many people phase the story in the games, but they felt interchangeable from each other, and rather predictable. I want to know if anyone agrees with me, or if people feel as though I wasn't understanding something important about the story(And if, so, tell me what it is)

Lable1985

Stories of Nintendo games are always intended to be rather open, general, and multi-interpretable, so that the player can use his own imagination. This is no different with Zelda, and in this particular case, the interesting part is the way in which the story is told rather than the story itself, which is admittedly nothing special.

I don't think anyone other than diehard fans have ever promoted Zelda's story as anything more than adequate.

It isn't about the actual story being told (ie, the overall plot) in Zelda games so much as it is about the narrative, and for you to dismiss Zelda's story outright because it doesn't use traditional storytelling methods or because it lacks the "ZOMG, amazing twistz, lol" factor that so many people think constitutes good storytelling these days (I don't know what stories you like, so I can't really comment much further), is a bit silly on your part, and more so for declaring that those of us who think Zelda games have good stories are blinded by nostalgia. You're missing out on some good stuff, friend.

Zelda games are often chock full of moments of subtle poetry, and sublime beauty that no other series in gaming has ever managed to top, or even to come close to topping. Even some of the least introspective and spiritual Zelda games (OoT, for instance) are very satisfying on a artistic level, and when you take the cream of the crop (Majora's Mask, easily) and compare it with, well, any video game ever made, you'll start to see what I'm talking about.

Good storytelling doesn't necessitate enormous nonsensical plot lines filled with mind numbing drama and sudden revelations; all it necessitates is that a theme, a feeling, a concept, an emotional state, a spiritual moment, be successfully transferred from artist to whomever happens to be engaging the art, in whatever medium. In that sense, the Zelda series is an enormous success as piece of interactive storytelling, and I don't think you should dismiss it so lightly when it is capable of such moments of beauty and sadness.

Agreed. Especially compared to certain games this gen. :roll:

Dataleak

The overall story is simple but how you get to places to places and stuff is what makes it good.

[QUOTE="eveileb-ekam"] Twilight Princess is a fantastic game :|skrat_01

Agreed. Especially compared to certain games this gen. :roll:

Dataleak

I agree. I also agree with the essential view jethrovegas is talking about, though I think he went a little to... umm... poetic for my taste :P. A game like Wind Waker has a very simple story for instance, and I feel that I liked it more because of it, it's just something that is designed within the series. I simply found that some of the characters had a charm to them, which made the game very light-hearted and the game's story isn't so much told through a quality narrative, but the gamer's experience with the exploration of that universe... it's difficult to explain.

I can't believe I'm going to use Dragon Age again, I'm starting to sound like a hater... my disapointment with Dragon Age wasn't so much the narrative, actually skip that, I felt that a lot of the dialogue in Dragon Age was unecessary. While I did like the characters of Dragon Age, and the universe had a load of information in it, I didn't gain much of a connection to it... why? Because dispite all of the things the game threw at you, I found the universe to be uninteresting, unoriginal, and it's portrayel downright badly executed. I didn't find the art style appealing in most of the areas of the game, nor the level design, nor the execution of gameplay in relation to the universe(side-quests etc). In other words, I found that the game had high quality writing, good character structure, yet, I still felt detached from it... again it's difficult to explain...

On the other hand, while I wouldn't say that Wind Waker's story is the same as, shall we say Ocarina of Time, both games still center on themes and instances of plot that have been present throughout most of the games in the series. And I agree with some people who state that the plot pretty much boils down to some of these elements.

The story is pretty average at best, but the overall quality of the game from another standpoint more than makes up for this.

the story itself is simplistic, like Shadow of the Colossus. its supposed to be like a fairytale

Videogame stories, in general, are bad. Zelda's just happens to be more simplistic than others.

None have ever been exceptional, but they've been consistent due to its simplicity. However I would argue that Majora's Mask had a deeper story than the rest.mo0ksi

[QUOTE="jalexbrown"][QUOTE="Lable1985"] perhaps the nostalgia of the guys who were kids when they first played them clouds their judgment a bit on the story department of those games. And yea I was forced to play the games by one of those nostalgic indulged twit rackets which may have caused my bias toward the story from the start.

Lable1985

I agree that there are some instances where nostalgia helps a game. For instance, I didn't care much for Ocarina of Time, but I didn't play it for the first time until I was 21 years old...it came out when I was like 11. Other games, like Symphony of the Night, were also very old when I played them for the first time, and I still found them immensely enjoyable and high-quality.

Funny how all Nintendo's franchises are simple on the story, yet Metroid is too complex and heavily layered IMO (especially if you've missed a few out the series).tomarlyn

at least Metroid sort of gives you a run down of what happened in the previous game. besides I never payed attention to the Metroid stoyline...

As for Zelda...It's the Hero out to save the day story! What? Do you NOT want to be a Hero?

Zelda games are often chock full of moments of subtle poetry, and sublime beauty that no other series in gaming has ever managed to top, or even to come close to topping. Even some of the least introspective and spiritual Zelda games (OoT, for instance) are very satisfying on a artistic level, and when you take the cream of the crop (Majora's Mask, easily) and compare it with, well, any video game ever made, you'll start to see what I'm talking about.

jethrovegas

Case in point:

I'm no sure if they "intend" for it to be good, but merely fill the gap where a good story should be. The Zelda world is rife with material that cries out for a complex and deep story... but it shamefully is hardly ever given one (except for possibly Majora's Mask).

I'm no sure if they "intend" for it to be good, but merely fill the gap where a good story should be. The Zelda world is rife with material that cries out for a complex and deep story... but it shamefully is hardly ever given one (except for possibly Majora's Mask).

foxhound_fox

A little off topic, but did you play Majoras yet? DaViD_99

One of a kind story.. what other story has you saving the princess and becoming a hero ? :twisted:

Seriously, I love the Zelda series and if "n" offers a true next gen console in a few years they can really make the story / adventure more complex with a bunch of spoken dialog me thinks.

I Wonder what Link would sound like ? :P