TwilightPrincess
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Blogging through every Legend of Zelda
Ever wanted to read a novelization of the Legend of Zelda series? No? Well, we've got one for you, anyways.A blogger known as Grownup Gamer has begun a project where he will be writing extensively about every game in the Legend of Zelda series in chronological order. We can't emphasize the word "extensive" enough -- each entry is extremely detailed, but Blogging Zelda fortunately is well-written enough to be an interesting read. Grownup Gamer has actually been blogging since the end of May, spending just under two weeks to complete the first and second quests in the original NES Zelda. He is currently mowing through Zelda II: The Adventures of Link. Fifteen titles in all have been planned for completion, including the yet-to-be-released Phantom Hourglass.See Also:The Shields of Zelda[Via 4cr; image source]
Twilight Princess speed run in under 6 hours
A new speed run for The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess has just been posted on Speed Demos Archive. Daniel Hart blazed through the game in 5 hours 39 minutes, about ten times faster than we hobbled our way through on the first try. Daniel says he could shave 5-7 minutes off the final time but is happy with the current achievement. We say he's bragging, but boy has he earned it. Videos are available for download as well as embedded in Flash (Part 1 is shown above) for easy ooh-ing and aah-ing. [Via Nintendo Wii Fanboy]
The Abridged Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
We've gawked at speedruns before, but this one is unique in that it's a speedrun of a Wii game. Daniel Hart recorded himself completing The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess in an incredible 5 hours and 39 minutes. That beats our best time by roughly infinity. We didn't watch the whole thing, because five and a half hours, while short for a Zelda playthrough, is long for a video. Honestly, the speed-goatherding in the first segment is entertainment enough for us. But if you're stuck in Zelda, or need some strategies, this would be a great resource since the dude knows how to play.[Via Aeropause]
Zelda DS Lite mod demands slew of positive adjectives
Being a generally mild mannered and lackadaisical bunch, we become worried when an impressive DS Lite mod appears on eBay and suddenly implants within us desires that are nothing short of sinister. Crafted by the same hands and mechanical forceps (probably) that produced an equally attractive Legend of Zelda Wii makeover just over a month ago, this particular variant of Nintendo's portable powerhouse demands a dramatic increase in our current rupee supply.We don't care how many blades of grass we have to mercilessly chop down or how many pots must be senselessly shattered to further our goal. This little device, with its customized charging stand and LED that is "calibrated to not be overbearing or too dim" must be ours. Or yours, if you outbid us. True, a portion of your money would go to Penny Arcade's Child's Play charity, but we'd forever hold a grudge. The kind of grudge that will see all your precious (and amusingly buoyant) pigs tossed into the nearest ocean.%Gallery-2941%[Via DS Fanboy]
Twilight Princess trading cards?
Apparently, yes, as the soon-to-be released set of trading cards will feature none other than Link and gang when it hits retail shelves sometime in the future. The set, which features a total of 86 different cards, does not have a release date at this time, but will only set you back $1.99 per pack. Each pack contains 3 standard cards, 1 special foil card, 1 tattoo card, and 1 sweepstakes card (win a Wii kind of thing).We'd probably have enjoyed it more if Twilight Princess could be turned into a trading card game, but anything else we can get our hands on to remind us how amazing that game is, well ... we won't complain. [Via Land of the Legend]
The Zelda tattoos, or, An Ink to the Past
Hello, I'm not sure if we met. I'm Joystiq writer Justin McElroy, and that's my calf. A couple of years ago my two brothers and dad and I started thinking about getting a shared tattoo after my mom passed away. Since we had just been through some bad stuff, it seemed like a good idea at the time. Grief's funny like that. We were all gamers, there were three brothers, so the Triforce seemed a natural fit. We made the decision to do it, then promptly didn't for two years, because I was a wimp.
GameStop wants to punch you in the face
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/GameStop_wants_to_punch_you_in_the_face'; Well, maybe they don't want to punch you directly in the face, but after reading about one employee's confirmation that the company would be spoiling the end of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess via a looped commercial inside the store, we certainly felt like our extremely attractive face (if our mom says it, it must be true, right?) had been punched. Seriously, why can't this company get their act straight?And we'll play devil's advocate for a second and say that Twilight Princess has been out on shelves for awhile, giving those of us who have played it or are currently playing it more than enough time to complete the game. However, due to continued shortages of the console, perhaps everyone who had planned on giving the game a go hasn't had the chance? That's what we're thinking and this latest news of the retail chain just strengthens our resolve to never shop there.[Via Joystiq]
Gamestop spoils Twilight Princess ending in stores
We're not really sure why, but Gamestop is desperate for you to finish Twilight Princess. First, it was begging you to hurry up and finish it so you can return it and now they've decided to cut to the chase and start showing the ending to the game in stores. We haven't seen it for ourselves, but a few employees of the of Gamestop/EB Games family have clued us in that the last 10 minutes or so of the game is on display on their in-store TV network. We can't reveal exactly what's shown without being spoilicious ourselves so, suffice it to say ... it's everything.Wait, it gets better. The original complainant on the GameFAQs message board says he got the impression that this was going to be a new monthly feature. Some of you may have a problem with it, but think of the convenience! Now you can just go in the Gamestop, put down $5 to pre-order a game, see how it ends and pre-order something else. You could never have to play a game again![Thanks, evilmax17]
Wii Warm Up: Your favorite so far
We talked about some of the best and the worst games according to the reviews, but we want to know what your favorite game has been so far on the Wii. Did the latest Link steal your heart? Are you a Wii Sports devotee? Or are you passionate about something else entirely? Tell us what you've loved the most, and tell us why.
Wii ad 'too violent' for some in UK
Red Steel and Twilight Princess are reminiscent of terrorist videos ... at least to one individual in the UK. Apparently, this ad was a bit too "violent, offensive, and disturbing" for seventeen (yes, seventeen) television viewers in Britain, and they made their displeasure known. After a review by Britain's Advertising Standards Authority, however, the ads were deemed okay to go. "We also considered that viewers were unlikely to link the ad to recent events in Iraq. We concluded that the ad was unlikely to cause serious or widespread offence," the Authority said. Translation? Damn, y'all are sensitive.Obviously, we've now won the console war. Sony and Microsoft can just go home. Good game, guys. Good game.
Seventeen Brits complain about Wii ad violence
Nintendo's advertising efforts have apparently hurt the company's kid-friendly image with at least a few Britons. An adjudication statement from Britain's Advertising Standards Authority outlines seventeen distinct complaints over the animated violence in an ad for Twilight Princess and Red Steel. One complainant even thought the ad was "reminiscent of recent videos released by hostage-takers in Iraq." Yikes!Fear not, freedom-of-speech loving Brits; the Authority reviewed the content and determined that "the ad was unlikely to cause serious or widespread offence. [sic]" Surprisingly, we have yet to hear any similarly official complaints about Sony's excessively weird PS3 ad campaign. Apparently a creepy guy in a jock strap ranks below simulated sword violence on the British disturb-o-meter.[Via VNUNet]
Zelda Wii mod, champion of our hearts
Behold the magnificence, rejoice in the glorious Triforce-ocity -- the Wii mod of Wii mods has arrived. We're not really sure there are even any points of potential improvement in this Zelda shrine, unless of course it could magically turn into Link and wanted to be friends with us. The word from comments is that the fancy sword and shield are from the collector's edition of the Twilight Princess score, and it turns out you can remove the sword and flail it around like you don't even care. The best news is that you can make this Wii your own, since it's already up on eBay, waiting to dive into the arms of the highest bidder -- just look out for the mind-melting embedded Zelda theme music MIDI when you hit up that read link, death comes to all who hear it.[Via Nintendo Wii Fanboy]Update: Apparently eBay was giving our good-hearted seller a bit of a hassle, so he had to relist it with proper permissions for sale on behalf of a charity. Check out the new listing here.
Nintendo team playing with Miis in Twilight Princess
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Nintendo_team_playing_with_Miis_in_Twilight_Princess'; During an interview with Shigeru Miyamoto, MTV's Stephen Totilo threw out a speculative question: Had Nintendo experimented with using Miis in Zelda: Twilight Princess? Miyamoto answered that, in fact, the developers at EAD had in fact been playing with that feature! After completing the game, the team started experimenting with putting Miis into the Twilight Princess engine, just for fun.So, working at Nintendo is so awesome that programmers continue working on their games after they've shipped for recreational purposes. That is a shining endorsement if ever there was one.The MTV Multiplayer site is set up so that it's impossible to link directly to the story; you'll have to scroll down or search for "Nintendo's Miyamoto On One-Handed 'Mario,' Miis In 'Zelda".
Joystiq not-so-live coverage of the IGF and GDCA awards
6:20 p.m.: The Joystiq crew walks the red carpet, because we're just that important.6:33 p.m.: Gnarls Barkley's cover of the Violent Femmes' "Gone Daddy Gone" is blasting as we find seats in the press section. Cushy seats with recline-able chairs.6:42 pm: Sam and Max introduce the start for the independent games festival. The mention of projectile vomiting is disturbing, but welcoming somehow. 6:43 pm: Jamil Moledina and Simon Carless march onto stage, noting that the show is being broadcast to the entire world. We sense somewhat sinister undertones.
Gears of War takes best game at GDCA, Aquaria wins IGF best game prize
At tonight's Game Developers Choice Awards, Epic Games' Gears of War took home three awards: best technology, visual arts, and the coveted Game of the Year award. On the independent side of things, Bit Blot's Aquaria won the Seumas McNally Grand Prize from the Independent Games Festival.Okami picked up a win in one of the four categories it was nominated in (take that, AIAS). Unfortunately, Loco Roco did not pick up any awards despite two nominations (character design and audio). Independent game Everyday Shooter won two awards and a distribution deal from GameTap.View the full list winners and nominees from both events below.
Okami director not so impressed with Twilight Princess
During that same Media Arts Festival Yoot Saito demonstrated Odama with Wii controls at, the fellow responsible for directing Okami, Hideki Kamiya, talked a bit about Twilight Princess. His words, however, were not as one expects when someone is talking about Link's latest adventure; words strung together in such phrases as "it was phenominal" and "my life has been profoundly changed" were not used. Instead, Kamiya could only muster an apathetic response when asked how he felt about the game.Kamiya said "To be frank, I was disappointed when I saw [Twilight Princess'] visuals. I'm a Zelda freak -- it's no overstatement to say that I created Okami because of Zelda. I really wanted [Twilight Princess] to have that regal aura, because Zelda was what we were aspiring to. I wanted it to show me things that were surprising, but..." Wow, we thought the visuals were downright impeccable at times, such as riding Epona across Hyrule Field during the day. What do you guys think?[via Joystiq]
Okami creator 'disappointed' by Twilight Princess
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/Okami_creator_disappointed_by_Twilight_Princess'; Okami is deeply beautiful to our eyes, and it's a superb game. Twilight Princess, we feel, is a deeply brilliant game. But is Link's most recent adventure also beautiful? Okami's Director, Hideki Kamiya, was in Tokyo last week to pick up an Entertainment Award (for his work on Okami, natch) at the 10th Media Arts Festival, which is an event held annually by Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs. (And that must have felt good, after Capcom's no-show at the AIAS awards.)Kamiya was asked how he felt about Nintendo's Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, and he explained: "To be frank, I was disappointed when I saw [Twilight Princess'] visuals. I'm a Zelda freak -- it's no overstatement to say that I created Okami because of Zelda. I really wanted [Twilight Princess] to have that regal aura, because Zelda was what we were aspiring to. I wanted it to show me things that were surprising, but..."So, which game do you find to be more beautiful?[Thanks, pokemogu]
God of War dev thinks Wii gets boring quickly
As a director for the upcoming Sony game God of War 2, Cory Barlog is no stranger to the game's industry. He knows the ins and outs, and (we imagine) has a large love for the medium. We'll tell you what he doesn't love though: his newly-acquired Wii. Upon getting the gift and opening it, Cory contributes "It was fun...but the wow factor wore off fairly quick."He goes on to talk a bit about the game he wanted to play most (how that wasn't Twilight Princess, we'll never know), saying "The one game I wanted to play, Trauma Center, was definitely a bit of a let down. The wiimote was woefully inaccurate and sapped the fun of the game. The Wii sports golf and bowling was cool...the boxing is freaking terrible though. In the end I hope to see some cool games come out of it, though it has me worried that the whole 'what new thing can you do with the controller' fad will wear off after awhile and I will have left is a much slimmer wireless gamecube." We can't say we share his opinions, but what about you guys? Do you think the system is headed where he sees it going?
President's Day surprise: Jefferson (?) in Twilight Princess
Even after the day, the spirit of President's Day (sure, why not) continues in Videoland. Zelda Dimension posted this picture of a painting found on a wall in Zelda: Twilight Princess, and it looks an awful lot like Thomas Jefferson ... or maybe George Washington? Or maybe dust? Apparently, one of the NPCs is a student of American history. We love finding secrets in Zelda, but we don't like being confronted with a blurry texture in a Wii game. Maybe the Zelda Dimension blogger was using composite cables, and that's why the picture is blurry? Yeah, that's the ticket!We look forward to seeing the Zelda timeline theorists chew on this one.[Via digg]
Nintendo's Koji Kondo joins Video Games Live lineup
If one plans to append adjectives to Nintendo's music composer, Koji Kondo, the word "legendary" makes for an obvious start. The Legend of Zelda, along with Star Fox and Mario, are just some of the properties Kondo has contributed to since joining Nintendo in 1984. Attendees of this year's Video Games Live concert will be pleased to learn that the man himself will be making an appearance and performing "one of his favorite melodies" on stage. Can't say we've heard that one -- could someone hum a few bars?The event, which brings GDC to a symphonic end, is being held at Nob Hill Masonic Auditorium, San Francisco on March 9 at 8PM. Other highlights in this year's show include Martin Leung with a new piano arrangement, an acoustic medley by original LucasArts composers (Monkey Island!), a Chris Kline Contra presentation and a performance by voice-over artist, Dee Baker. Get your tickets here, if you please.[Via Press Release]
