What everyone expects from the greatest game series of all time.
The story begins in Link's (or your preferred name) home village of Ordon, where he is called upon to run his daily farm chores at the Ordon Ranch. Unlike previous Zelda games, Link is able to ride the horse Epona (or your preferred name) at the start of the game to help him with his chore of rounding up the cattle. After you have completed this task, you are free to roam the village and find out information about various problems the villagers are having and the basic skills of the controls. A task that is to be met is that Link must deliver a sword to Hyrule Castle and begins preparing for travel. Whilst journeying around the village, Link comes across his childhood friend Ilia and the Swordsman's son, Colin, who are suddenly abducted by a giant ogre. You spring into action to save them, only to be confronted by a mysterious wall blocking the path. Without warning, Link is pulled into the Twilight world where his inner beast is born.
While Link is stuck within the Twilight world, he is unable to revert back to his human form and must remain a wolf. You'll soon meet with Midna, an imp-like creature who guides you for the rest of the game. Unlike Navi, Midna is able to assist you in certain areas and even provides Wolf Link with a nifty attack (not that I don't have anything against Navi). Midna is also faced with problems of her own as a tyrant has risen to enslave their world and Link's world into a dark oblivion. Both worlds seem to be overlapping each other as the spirits of people from Link's world are located in the same spot in the Twilight world. While in wolf form, Link can use a technique to sense the spirits and see them with their physical bodies, allowing you to listen to any useful information. Wolf Link also has the capability to sense special areas in the ground that he can dig to reveal items or secrets. It is a handy technique running low on rupees or hearts. Another neat advantage of being a wolf is that you can now communicate with animals. Most animals that you come across will give out various hints or clues which may assist or not in your quest. As you gradually continue adventuring throughout the Twilight world, it is then you will meet the Princess of Destiny, Zelda who also has seemed to be captured by the Twilight creatures. As she has done in Ocarina of Time, she aids you in what you must accomplish next in order to gain the courage and power to overcome the evil within both worlds. Not only must Link save his close friends from certain disaster, he must now summon the courage and strength to save two worlds.
The gameplay of Twilight Princess follows a similar pattern to that of Ocarina of Time, which may please Zelda fans and gives an idea to gamers new to the franchise what Zelda is all about. As always, you begin with either no items or the simplest of items, and as you progress through the game, you will find new items to improve your strength and allow further access to other parts of Hyrule or to defeat a dungeon boss. Many items from previous Zelda make a comeback with a few changes. The Gale Boomerang is able to create a gust of wind which can stun enemies for a short period. The clawshot, an improved version of the hookshot is also used in the same way and seemingly can grapple onto almost anything. Both the bow and bombs are attainable once again with the bow being allowed to combine with bombs for more power and the Hawkeye mask acts as if the bow was a sniper allowing for precise and distant shooting. However, not all items are from the past. The ball & chain is introduced during the middle of the game and proves to be quite powerful as because of the weight must use both hands to both carry it and be able to swing it over his head. The spinner is also unlocked during the middle of the game which allows Link to travel across sinking sand and attach itself to certain types of walls. Due to the absence of the Ocarina, an item made Ilia called the Horse charm allows you to call Epona from any location, which replaces the grass that is normally used. A new defense has been introduced known as the Magic Armour. It allows damage to be transferred from hearts to rupees. So instead of losing hearts you'll lose rupees, however even if you don't take damage, your rupee count will continue to decrease at a rapid rate. Although taking damage may be a rare occurrence as Link is able to learn several new techniques during his journey. These techniques allow for a stronger attack to defeat enemies with one attack rather than repeatedly attacking.
As we all know, puzzle-solving has always been a crucial part of any Zelda game, and Twilight Princess does not disappoint. There is probably more complex puzzle-solving in Twilight Princess than in any other Zelda game. You may find yourself stuck quite a bit of the time so it might be an idea to take a look around at the environment to get an idea or clue on how to advance. If the dungeons and puzzle-solving are stressing you out then there are other side quests to complete while you think of ways to figure out what to do next. One side quest that can be completed is the collection of golden bugs for the girl, Agitha. Agitha asks of your assistance to collect 24 golden bugs for her ball. These bugs are scattered all over Hyrule and each type of bug will have a female and male partner for the ball. The sound of a chime will indicate if you are near a bug. As in Ocarina, there is also the fishing hole. Unlike the previous fishing game of just catching the Hylian Loach, the lady who is in charge wishes one day to have one of each type of fish for her aquarium. It proves quite challenging as the fish appear at different seasons and catching them may depend on the different type of lure you use. The use of the wii-remote and nunchuk come into play when you fish and proves to work quite effectively. By simply flicking the wii-remote forward, Link will flick the fishing rod forward casting the lure into the water. While the lure sits on top of the water, moving the wii-remote side to side will cause the the lure to hop around while rotating the nunchuk will act as the reeler (it might be easier to shake the nunchuk side to side). The last main side quest would be the gathering of poes' souls. While in wolf form, you are able to attack poes and literally rip out their souls. A man named Jovani has been placed with a curse where his greed has turned him into solid gold. The only way to lift the curse is to collect the souls of the poes. The poes are scattered all over Hyrule including the dungeons and can only be attacked while in wolf form and only during the night (poes in dungeons or in secret areas can be caught during any time of the day or night).
The enemies of Twilight Princess prove to be a handful at times, however are easily defeated with a shake of the nunchuk or with a jump attack. Due to the ease of the enemies, it seems disappointing that although they look stunning graphically, they simply are just push-overs. Even boss dungeons are lacking in strength and use repetitive techniques which are easy to read and to conquer within minutes. One enemy that may prove difficult are the Knights who are heavily armoured and wields an enormous sword. You must use both your dodging and sword skills in order to deliver successful attacks. This enemy proves even more difficult than many of the final dungeon bosses which further emphasises the ease of defeating them. Then again, the enemies from Link's world and the enemies from the Twilight world are different in a way. Enemies from the Twilight world are based on the same enemies of the other world, however they seem to be a bit stronger and most of the enemies do not have faces. One group of enemies that may prove difficult are the creatures who fall from the portals and form a barrier when you enter the territory. If you do not destroy them together then the one left on their own is able revive the previous ones you destroyed. Of course as you progress, Link becomes stronger and these enemies can be quickly disposed of. This however may or may not affect the gameplay whatsoever and you may enjoy the beautiful detail and graphics of all the enemies of both the Twilight world and Link's world.
Now we move away from what you will be doing and onto how you will be doing with the newly innovative wii-remote and nunchuk. When you begin to play, you will notice a fairy that seems to resemble Navi. This fairy is the indicator to where you are pointing the wii-remote which is efficient of knowing where to aim prior to using the bow or clawshot. The targeting system actually works quite well after you get use to the sensitivity of the pointer and the trigger button. Another innovative idea is how Link will be using his sword. Instead of pressing a button to use your sword, you swing the wii-remote to use it, but it may not be what you expect. The wii-remote does not act as if you were holding a sword, but reacts to perform the sword moves programmed. So when you swing, it will only perform the horizontal or vertical sword techniques. And there is no need for gigantic swinging arms as a simple side to side action will be enough to perform the techniques. As for the infamous spin attack, a quick flick of the nunchuk will perform it successfully. There is a clash between this however, as the spin attack can be misinterpreted as the shield attack. Because the shield attack is performed by moving the nunchuk forward, it is similar to using the spin attack. This occurs most often while in Z-targeting mode due to the angle that the mode puts you in. Besides this problem, the wii-remote and nunchuk work surprisingly well and reaction time is almost perfect, giving a new dimension on how Zelda games will be played in the future.
The graphics of Twilight Princess do not show the full capabilities of the Wii due to the fact that this game was originally intended only for Gamecube. Both games remain the same graphically and the only difference is that the Wii version is mirrored so that it could accordingly with the wii-remote. It is quite disappointing as the game was one of Wii's launch titles and was unable to show its full capabilities, showing the gaming community that this is clearly to boost the sales of the launch (the Gamecube version was delayed until after the Wii version was launched). Although graphically, the game could be improved, artistically it is the best-looking Zelda game amongst the series. All the characters, enemies, dungeons and areas look superb in terms of the depth put into it. Designers clearly decided to give Twilight Princess a more serious feel which sets it apart from other Zelda games. So in terms of graphics, it could of used improvements but makes up for it through its artistic design overall.
Sounds of Twilight Princess ring new and similar bells between the music in the background to the sound of the whizzing arrows. Although there are no actual instruments (namely the Ocarina) to play the humble songs no one can forget, some still make an appearance. The howling stone's Link comes across howl certain songs that Wolf Link must howl. Songs such as Zelda's lullaby and the Healing song make a comeback even though they are played only once. Another similar song is Epona's song which obviously is used call upon the mighty steed, which has only been changed to a whistling tone rather than the Ocarina tone. Background music of Hyrule Field has never sounded better and Zora's Domain still sounds majestic. Kakariko Village has an eerie tone to it, which suites the current setting of the once peaceful village. The sounds of items haven't changed as much, but because of built-in wii-remote speaker, it allows you to hear the items from a different perspective. Items such as the arrow leaving from the wii-remote to your television is an excellent idea, however because of the size of the speaker, it produces a low quality sound which can only be a downside to a fitting soundtrack. Some concerns from gamers is that characters still haven't been given a voice thinking that it was time to give them dialogue rather than text. The only character who seems to have some sort of voice is Midna who seems to be talking in a Twilight dialogue. Directors made the right decision of text only because of the fact that the game itself is enormous and the use of dialogue would only prolong the completion of the game. The use of new and old sounds will please classic Zelda fans and shows new gamers the beautiful sounds that made this game series one of the best sounding games ever.
Overall, this is a must have for any Zelda fan and has been worth the wait. This is to date a truly magnificent game and probably the only competitor of the Ocarina of Time. That is not to say other Zelda games have been a let down or a disappointment because they haven't. It is only because Ocarina of Time was such a revolution that it would be difficult to be the successor of it. Twilight Princess may not be as revolutionary as Ocarina, but in terms of gameplay and efforts put into this game, it truly shines as one of the best Zelda games and in overall games to date.