The gameplay has a few welcome changes, such as a more intuitive way to switch between different items and other equipment, but some of the core mechanics feel dated and a bit clunky, specifically the awkward auto-jump forward, the way to start climbing/descending a ladder and the lock-on system. The game also has some cool new items, but the controls, particularly for aiming, aren’t as sharp as the controls in previous games of this series. Perhaps the most baffling to me, is the way that the MotionPlus was implemented for the bow, which is clearly worse than how it was in Wii Sports Resort, a game released 28 months before by the same company! Full control of the sword with the Wii-remote is impressive but not perfectly responsive, with the thrust forward motion being the most inconsistent, and most enemies don’t really test your sword skills, since they can either only be killed by other weapons/items or are so dumb/defenseless that you can easily defeat them just by waggling the controller.
The sky isn’t as fun to explore as the sea was in The Wind Waker, for example, but it’s also a less prevalent part of the whole game world. The camera system is far from the most intelligent or practical ever created and you have to keep adjusting its angle every few seconds. The dungeons are very well conceived and unpredictable, although the puzzle designs aren’t the cleverest or the most inventive in the series. Some of my favorite moments in Skyward Sword were the boss battles, almost all of them thrilling and challenging events that were capable of both testing my fighting skills and stimulate my creative thinking.
The art design is wonderful but, from a technical stand point, Skyward Sword isn’t a huge improvement over Twilight Princess’ graphics, and it’s clearly behind the best looking games on the Wii. Still no voice acting, unfortunately and inexcusably. The music is good and orchestrated but the new soundtracks aren’t as memorable or as uplifting as the ones in The Wind Waker, for example.
I liked the beginning and how the friendship between Link and Zelda was portrayed, but I didn’t find the rest of story very compelling or interesting and none of the other characters in it exceptionally fantastic. But it wasn’t bad, at least Zelda’s role wasn’t just waiting for you to rescue her, the plot always had a clear direction and the narrative was never intrusive enough to significantly impact your enjoyment of this big adventure. Yes, this game is big, lasting around 50-55 hours before the end credits role, although a good chunk of that time is spent doing quite a lot of less-than-fun fetch quests, re-treading countless areas and places, and re-fighting a couple of the bosses.
GAMEPLAY = = = = = = = = ( 8 )
GRAPHICS = = = = = = = = ( 8 )
SOUND = = = = = = = ( 7 )
VALUE = = = = = = = = = ( 9 )
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MY GAME SCORE = ((( 8.0 )))