What's so good about Zelda?

To start off, I haven't played a single Zelda game before. But today, I managed to get my hands on an old GameCube and Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. So I figured I'd start playing and find out what's so good about this series. First thing I notice is that the horse controls pretty clunkily. (Maybe it controls better on the Wii version with the wiimote, I dunno.) Then it seems I have to go around herding goats. After that, I played only for a little while, and I'm actually going to get back to it now, but kinda iffy on why this series is considered so good. Can someone tell me what the strengths of this series actually are?

The atmosphere of it all.

And nostalgia. Lots of it.

I have no clue.

I've tried every main Zelda game, and dropped them all except Wind Waker.

I might finish Twilight Princess, Skyward Sword and OOT at one point, but it won't be anytime soon.

I have no clue.

I've tried every main Zelda game, and dropped them all except Wind Waker.

I might finish Twilight Princess, Skyward Sword and OOT at one point, but it won't be anytime soon.

Tikeio

You just mentioned the best game of all time (OOT). Go play it through. You will NOT be disappointed.

And nostalgia. Lots of it.mmmwksil

[QUOTE="mmmwksil"]And nostalgia. Lots of it.starjet905

This is one series I'm not scared to say owes more than its fair share of success to the stuff. :P

The magical puzzles and atmosphere, of course. BTW it sounds like you're only at the start of TP. Keep playing, because it gets much better (aside from the wolf stuff), but the beginning is very boring.

The only 2 zelda games that are amazing from start to finish besides the original are a link to the past and darksiders.

Zelda games have excellent design, plots and pacing. It's called an adventure series but it really has turned into a more of a puzzle series since that's become the main source of challenge (particularly the Aonuma ones)

Twilight Princess will turn a lot better later on. I admit that the game is really slow to start. Skyward Sword is very bad in this way too. I find the problem with the series in general is that the middle game is so much stronger than the beginning and end. Part of that is that the games are a bit on the long side. By the end, the impending plot resolution is what drives your interest to continue on moreso than the challenge or adventure. Nintendo likes to drag this part out too.

Another thing about TP is that it has the best dungeons in the series, hands down. To be good at this series you have to be aware of your surroundings and understand all the items and abilities you have because the dungeons will try to make you overlook things. TP does this in a very fair yet challenging way.

You should stick with the TP. You don't need to start with OoT. OoT is better in ways but worse in others. The technical difference is also very noticeable.

Oh look, it's this question again.

Its just nostalgia, nothing more. It was once great, now, compared to high quality 3rd party games its almost a generic adventure game.silversix_

Zelda is based around puzzles and exploration. It's not for everyone, but it is good at what it is meant to do. So for those who are into this sort of thing, they would have a good chance at loving Zelda.

you mention herding goats for like ten seconds in one game and cant figure out why the entire series is praised?

I've got four words for you. (no, not those four.)

Link to the Past.

Your problem is that you started with TP. If you want to know why Zelda is so good, look no further than Gametrailers' retrospective of the series. He tells you the reasons why people praise the series as a whole, but if you compare those older games (such as TP) with contemporary "AAA" games, you'll get nowhere in your search.

Its just nostalgia, nothing more. It was once great, now, compared to high quality 3rd party games its almost a generic adventure game.silversix_

How is it generic when every other big name game game uses 1997 controls, while The latest LoZ title, aswell as many other titles, pushes the latest control scemes.

How is it generic when every other big name game uses the generic and standardized quicktime events, button mashing controls, in fight cutscenes, whilst Zelda is purely play.

How is it just nostalgia if there are Zelda fans of all ages?

When I think of the word adventure, I think of Zelda. Probably my favourite video game series.

[QUOTE="mmmwksil"]And nostalgia. Lots of it.starjet905

Its not, you havent even scratched the surface of Twilight Princess yet. Go play it more, it has really slow start but then gets amazing. Give it the chance, it deserves it and WILL pay it back to you.

There are two kind of gamers - Those who love Zelda and those who havent played it.

you picked an awful zelda game to play as your first. you should play ocarina of time, link to the past or link's awakening firstmems_1224

There are better Zelda games than Twilight Princess...

Well, Twilight Princess is a last gen game technically, and while I thought it was amazing, it became less impressive very quickly as time passed. What makes it amazing for me is the atmosphere; Hyrule really is a magical world that has a lot of story behind it. Dungeon design is also great, with every dungeon having rather intricate puzzles, plenty of secrets and a climatic boss battle. Adding to that, the story, while not terribly original, manages to suck you in rather well.

Of course, with games like Skyrim there really is no reason to go back to that game at this point, but for its time, I think it did well.

The atmosphere of it all.

And nostalgia. Lots of it.

mmmwksil

Nostalgia, that's about it. T'was my first dungeon crawler, essencially.

Thanks for the replies. No, this is not a Zelda bashing thread, I'm frankly interested in trying this franchise. I just accidentally came across Twilight Princess, though, so thought I'd give it a go anyway. So far, I'm just like an hour into the game, so I guess there's a lot more to see. (Though I really didn't like the whole call hawk-get cradle-give to lady-get fishing rod-fish-let cat steal fish-go to shop-look all over for rupees bit.) Surprisingly, my eyes are kinda adjusting to the GC graphics, so I'll put some more time into this and see. :)starjet905

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past >>>> than all other Zelda games.. Start with that one, and you'll understand why it is such a legend...superclocked

Twilight Princess isn't one of the better Zelda's out there. Try Wind Waker or Ocarina of Time and you'll see what people talking about.

[QUOTE="superclocked"]The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past >>>> than all other Zelda games.. Start with that one, and you'll understand why it is such a legend...BrunoBRS

Twilight Princess's first couple of hours are very tedious. You have to give the game some time before you can actually say "I get this Zelda thing!" or "It's just not for me."

If you beat the first dungeon (the one with the monkeys... You'll know what I'm talking about when you get there) and you just don't see yourself enjoying the rest of the game, then Zelda probably isn't for you. But you really need to give it some time. Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword have that very awkward "Do meaningless crap for three hours and then you'll start to see what this game is all about" design that may put off some people who are just trying to get into the franchise.

[QUOTE="BrunoBRS"][QUOTE="superclocked"]The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past >>>> than all other Zelda games.. Start with that one, and you'll understand why it is such a legend...superclocked

Twilight Princess's first couple of hours are very tedious. You have to give the game some time before you can actually say "I get this Zelda thing!" or "It's just not for me."

If you beat the first dungeon (the one with the monkeys... You'll know what I'm talking about when you get there) and you just don't see yourself enjoying the rest of the game, then Zelda probably isn't for you. But you really need to give it some time. Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword have that very awkward "Do meaningless crap for three hours and then you'll start to see what this game is all about" design that may put off some people who are just trying to get into the franchise.

LordQuorthon

you picked an awful zelda game to play as your first. you should play ocarina of time, link to the past or link's awakening firstmems_1224

No. Twilight Princess is probably the best 3D Zelda to start out with, as its main problem is that it feels too familiar to previous Zelda games. That said, it does pretty much everything Ocarina of Time does, but better. People who are introduced to the series by Ocarina of Time at this point are probably just gonna wonder what all the fuss was about.

People say Majora's Mask is good. The rest sucks though.

[QUOTE="Tikeio"]

I have no clue.

I've tried every main Zelda game, and dropped them all except Wind Waker.

I might finish Twilight Princess, Skyward Sword and OOT at one point, but it won't be anytime soon.

Johnny_Rock

You just mentioned the best game of all time (OOT). Go play it through. You will NOT be disappointed.

I can't tell you. Wind Waker was the only one I made it a decent way through without getting bored to tears. I graduated to voice acting and more fleshed out stories. Nintendo games are like playing learn to read books with bad graphics. Just not fun anymore.

Nostalgia mostly. I think the series is starting to show its age, but nintendo diehards will still defend it to the end. I think skywardsword got the score it deserves.

What's so good about Zelda?starjet905

Nostalgia mostly. I think the series is starting to show its age, but nintendo diehards will still defend it to the end. I think skywardsword got the score it deserves.

edo-tensei