Worth any and all Zelda fans' time!
1. Graphics- The graphics are an example of why you should review this game for what it is--a Gamecube game. People either praise or complain about it's graphics. I for one find it to be one of the GCN's better-looking games, surpassed in style only by RE4, and the Metroid Prime games. The artistic direction is fabulous indeed, and the only things I find to look sub-par are the trees, and the grasslands in Hyrule Field, everything else is very nice, including water effects, and movements (especially Epona's dashes). What they did with the Twilight Realm is also very nice, inside and out (the Twilight's outside looks great IMO). With all that put down for reading, I still wouldn't say it takes graphics to a whole new level of it's console generation like Okami (for PS2) may have done. But as it's said, graphics aren't what truly make the game.
2. Story (Note: this was taken from a post I made at Gamespot)- Plotwise, TP is definately better and more well-developed, and more engaging than any previous ones. Link not only has more personality through his expressions and actions, but it proves he doesn't need a voice to have a notable personality (I wouldn't mind seeing just how good a voiceover they can find for the kid though). Complaining that OOT's was better than TP's is a laugh. Not to bag on OOT at all, but let's face it, it was either the techical limitations of the N64, or just the times, but OOT's plot was scarcely touched upon (subsequent ones were more notable though). The game also has the best cutscenes in any Zelda game to date, and a much larger cast of very unique and likable characters (Telma, anyone?).
3. Gameplay- Everything that the other 3D Zeldas had, and still with a few mechanics that make it unique to itself (just like in most others). Dungeons and puzzles, to save space, are plentiful, as is the well-rounded, if farily easy to pick up, sword combat and item roster, the latter of which adds a few new things to the table. However, some of these items have little use outside of their respective dungeons, and some of them may have simple funtions (that, to some credit, can go a long way). I'll admit here and now that my least favorite new item is the Dominion Rod. Though it's a cool as hell-looking item, it's got a dull as dirt function (even if the item itself plays a large role prior to the seventh dungeon, not to give any plot parts away). The Spinner, for example was a neat item, and it was used fabulously for the boss battle of the dungeon in which you found it (making it, IMO, one of the fastest-paced boss battles in the game, if not the series), but there were a precious few spots where it was used otherwise. Overall, aside from one or two of the newer items being used with less respect than they deserve, the game plays just as a Zelda game should, nicely.
4. Difficulty- I'll focus on the primary spot where difficulty plays a role, in the boss fights. The bosses are big, their fights are fun, and they all make fine use of the items where you get in the dungeons (items which, like in most Zelda games, you get after defeating the mini-boss). Still, the main gripe of the bosses, and this game in general, is the difficulty of the fights, or lack thereof. The bosses all have really good tactics to them, but they're just too damn easy. You'll likely lose no more than a few hearts in each boss fight, and their attacks are usually pretty easy to avoid. The game comes just short of being average difficulty, but if one were to play OOT or MM for the first time after this one, they'll realize Zelda games can always be like this.
In the end, Twilight Princess is as much a Zelda game as all before it. Is it the best Zelda game ever? I'll wait until the series comes to a close to make that assumption, but it is at least one of the best ones yet (of course, I don't really consider any to be the best of the series). While some may be upset that it stays a little TOO true to the 3D Zelda franchise, that's because it's not meant to revolutionize the series and adventure genre like OOT may have done, it was meant to revitalize the quality and greatness of said series and genre for a good sense of nostalgia. I'll admit that I can see why people would be disappointed with that, but it didn't really keep me from liking this game. It deserves a spot in any Zelda fan's collection