legend of zelda
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Wii Warm Up: 'Fess up to your gaming non-achievements
We've all got them: those classic games that we just never got around to completing, or, in some cases, playing.For his part, this blogger has only ever completed two -- TWO!! -- Zelda games (Link to the Past and Twilight Princess), and only made it through one-third of Super Mario Bros. 3. I have played other Zelda and Mario titles of course, sometimes for scores of hours each, but just never quite found the time to finish them. As for Super Mario Galaxy, that was left to collect dust a month ago, with only 21 stars obtained, and 99 still missing.I am not proud of these facts. But I am coming clean now, and it feels good! So put any concerns about your precious gamer cred to one side, and tell us: which gaming classics have you either failed to complete, or not even tried? It'll be our secret. By which we mean, the entire internet's secret.
Dojo update: Another character unveiled!
Oh. It's ... Sheik. Everybody back to work! We're sorry, but you'll have to forgive our lack of surprise. You see, we already discovered that Zelda's tomboy alter ego would be appearing in Brawl.Nevertheless, we did learn some new tidbits from today's dojo update. For example, we now know that swapping between Zelda to Sheik is dead easy -- it's allocated to the down special move -- and that there are benefits to using both. Apparently, the two are completely unique characters, and comparing Sheik's moveset with Zelda's proves this to be true.Finally, if you're wondering where Sakurai and his team took the design for a Twilight Princess-era Sheik from (you'll recall that she doesn't appear in the game), it's taken from a bit of concept art that was drafted up during development. So now you know: at one point, Nintendo was kinda thinking about including Sheik in Twilight Princess, but never got around to doing so. %Gallery-10206%%Gallery-6869%
Wii Warm Up: Gaming marathons
Gaming endurance seems to be a bit of a theme this week. First, there was the story of Bill Tangeman, who racked up a quite unearthly score by playing a single round of Geometry Wars: Galaxies on his DS for 24 hours. Then, and perhaps more impressively still, we heard about these guys, who are trying to complete four Zelda games in 48 hours for charity and pizza. As we type, they're speeding through The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker.You pretty much know where this is going, then: we'd like to hear about your own marathon gaming sessions. It'd be nice if these were on the Wii, but we're also happy for you to tell us about that time you spent thirteen straight hours playing the first Halo in a friend's attic. Wait, no ... that was me. Oh, the sweaty, unwashed shame of it all!
You got The Quilt of Power!
Look, it's all well and good stomping off to rescue princesses and reassemble golden triangular relics, but at least remember that it's a cold, unforgiving world out there, and you'll need something warm to wrap around yourself at some point. As the only other Zelda quilt we've posted about was never put up for sale, this one should do the trick, even if it is ... $475?! We advise chopping grass to raise the required funds.Take a closer look at this work of art after the break.
Becoming the Hero of Time is cheaper than it was last year
You know what's missing from this blogger's life, apart from a fleet of Aston Martins, an unlimited supply of Cool Original Doritos with salsa dip, and a wife who is also Audrey Tautou? The Master Sword, that's what.Fortunately, Zelda fan and amateur bladesmith Jerry Bennett has given yours truly a chance to fill that weapon-shaped hole with this frankly stunning functional rendition of gaming's most famous blade. Jerry has placed the weapon on eBay with a "Buy It Now" price of $1,800, which is some $1,500 cheaper than the Master Sword we wrote about last year.With a blade forged from three pounds of steel, a handle crafted from the wood of a golden apple tree, and the ability to repel all that is evil in the land of Hyrule, we're truly sorry we don't have two grand burning a hole in our pockets. As it is, we can only scroll sadly through the various pictures of the sword we'll never own over on this forum thread. Join us, why don't you.[Via The Tanooki]
The Legend of the Engraved DS
New York City's Nintendo World Store has been offering a DS engraving service for over half a year now, so we're surprised that we haven't heard from more people who've taken advantage of this $20 customization. The etched system above comes from Zelda fangirl Kimya, showing off a Minish Cap-era Link handling a gust jar.What would we get if we had the opportunity to have our handheld engraved, you ask? Well, we have a certain lizard in mind ...See also: Someone put a damn unicycling llama on their DS
Reminder: End of the Year Blowout!
Each day, between now and the 26th, we're going to look at a different piece of the DS Fanswag End of the Year giveaway as a reminder of exactly why you need to hightail it over there and enter -- and we figured we might as well start with the crown jewel: the Limited Edition Legend of Zelda DS Lite with Phantom Hourglass. It's gold. It's gorgeous. And it comes complete with one of the best games this year. Don't you want it? It's part of the grand prize, so if you're interested, head over and throw your name into the hat! Remember, you can enter once per day. And if you're having any trouble with the comments, check here for a handy walkthrough.
Promotional Consideration: Why we're not watching the Spike Video Game Awards tonight
Promotional Consideration is a weekly feature about the Nintendo DS advertisements you usually flip past, change the channel on, or just tune out.American cable channel Spike premieres the 2007 edition of the Spike Video Game Awards tonight at 9:00 PM (likely re-airing it a dozen times over the course of the next couple of months). Despite the scorn it received from gamers in its previous years, the show lives on, now in its fourth year. There are many reasons one could give for refusing to watch the two-hour program tonight -- the event really is as ridiculous as you'd expect a video game award show to be -- but one specific flaw brought about our decision to avoid the production ...
Blinged out Zelda Wii is absolutely luscious
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/nintendo_wii/Blinged_out_Zelda_Wii_is_absolutely_luscious'; This Wii mod was made with Swarovski crystals, but if it had been made with a glue gun and some rhinestones from the dollar store, we'd probably still want it.Aside from drooling over the fact that it's just so shiny, the infusion of Zelda related goodness earns it an extra special place in our hearts. Even if this turned out to be a Paris Hilton original, that wouldn't make us enjoy this any less. No wait, it definitely would.One more bling-filled Wii picture after the break.
Friday Video: Bundles are beautiful
What's a dedicated DS lover to do when two sweet new bundles hit the streets? There's really only one option on the table: shoot a video of the boxes, complete with music and dramatic close-ups. It's just such a random thing (and yet, exactly what we would probably do) that we couldn't resist sharing it with you as part of this week's video spotlight.
Galaxy back down to #2 in all-time rankings, we burn our copies
Super Mario Galaxy's recent appearance at the top of the Game Rankings all-time pile has come to a swift end. Previously, the Mario romp had former champ The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time pinned against the ropes, thanks to an average review score that was just 0.3% higher than that of Zelda. But the fresh-faced pretender tired, and has now slipped back into second place, thanks to a recent flurry of new reviews. Will the plumber get another shot at the top spot? Barring a sudden deluge of perfect scores, probably not.On another note, it's nice to see the top three can all be played on the Wii.
Super Mario Galaxy sitting pretty as the #1 ranked game
Remember the days when The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was the top ranked game ever? Well, those days are over, and now Super Mario Galaxy reigns as the champion over at Game Rankings with its average score of 97.9%. That's right, it just barely squeaked by Ocarina by a 0.3% margin. Let it be known, however, that Ocarina is still first on Metacritic.Are you happy or sad to see Link trumped by Mario? We tend to not put enough stock in these combined rankings ourselves to care either way, but hey, maybe that's just us.[Thanks, Andres!]
3D Link to the Past 'interests' Aonuma
OK, show of hands, please: who fancies a 3D remake of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past? If your arm just shot up, know this: you're far from alone. Series director Eiji Aonuma wants it, as well. Or at least, he's "very interested" in adding an extra dimension to what is arguably probably unquestionably the greatest Zelda game ever conceived.Aonuma, who most recently acted as director on the DS's splendiferous Phantom Hourglass, revealed his wish in the latest issue of the Official Nintendo Magazine (the UK edition), stating that "The first Zelda game that I played and felt potential in was Link to the Past. I'm actually very interested in what it would be like if we remade that title as a 3D game."Now, we confess that's a loooong way from us actually getting a 3D Link to the Past, but the mere fact that Aonuma has even considered this makes our legs go all wobbly. If you've never played the game, and therefore can't comprehend that reaction, then we suggest you stop reading, head over to the Virtual Console now, and commence downloading. For $8, it's a quite obscene bargain.
Zero Punctuation disembowels Phantom Hourglass
We've all played or heard of The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass. We all know that everyone who played it loved it. Let's move on. Wait ... what's that? Not everyone loved it? Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw, in fact, despised it?Apparently so! But hating on a game is never as amusing as it is in The Escapist's "Zero Punctuation," so we don't mind. We found this review to be rather funny. If you don't feel like your poor heart can take it, though, feel free to watch some other reviews of Phantom Hourglass that involve girl cosplayers.Warning: The audio in this video makes it NSFW. Oh, and there's some bad visual bits, too.[Thanks, Brian!]
Zero Punctuation hates on Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
This week on Zero Punctuation, the ornery Yahtzee puts into video form (after the break) the same basic ideas discussed on the last Joystiq podcast regarding Zelda: Phantom Hourglass. Luckily for Yahtzee, he's embedded in Uluru and need not fear reprisals like most members of the gaming press do when speaking ill of Zelda. Everything he says about the Zelda franchise and Nintendo has pretty much been said before, just not in a sexy, angry, British accent using a grab-bag of verbs and adjectives. The real kudos (you know, for people who don't fear for their life) come at the end of the piece when he implies that the next time Nintendo wants to make another Zelda... they should just make Okami.[Thanks Sam]
Today's most retro montage: Zelda ads
Currently popular on GameTrailers, we missed Skullkid700's montage of Zelda commercials from earlier in the year. Since this sort of thing only gets better with age, we're highlighting it here. We've come a long way.See the montage after the break. Yes, it includes the Zelda rap. You have been warned.
Rapping, puppetry, and misogyny: Zelda commercials through the ages
This compilation of western and Japanese Zelda TV commercials is by no means comprehensive, but it does feature three or four that are new to us. Some are just downright peculiar -- the second Legend of Zelda advert recalls David Lynch's Eraserhead -- and there's clearly been an unsettling amount of rapping involved in the marketing of the series, something we hadn't noticed previously. The advert for Twilight Princess is utterly tame in comparison.No doubt you'll have seen a couple of these about a gazillion times (the Ocarina of Time commercial from the days when Nintendo didn't think twice about calling you a weak little girl, and the fabulously dorky "Your parents help you hook it up!" ad from the late-'80s), but it's still worth a watch for the more obscure stuff, some of which even manages to out-weird Sony's recent output. And that's a heck of an achievement.
DS Fanboy Review: The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
For a franchise as lengthy and storied as that of The Legend of Zelda, we're honestly surprised that Nintendo has managed to keep things fresh and engaging throughout each of the titles. Take Wind Waker, for example, which was quickly met with cries of "Cel-da!" and "This looks like utter crap!" by many internet-faring folks following its unveiling, but managed to be one of the best entries to date (it was our favorite before Twilight Princess hit the scene, to be honest). But, for as much as Nintendo has tried to keep the franchise alive and well, The Legend of Zelda games have always maintained a set of core features and values, becoming a bit formulaic lately. Hey, don't get us wrong, we love the games, but you have to admit that it's becoming old hat in the way that they are doing things, always sidetracking you with another task when all you want is entry into one area of the game (see: where you need to go). This "gopher" way of doing things (go for this, then you can go for this) is kind of becoming a problem with the franchise.One of the ways Wind Waker was better than its predecessors and tried to nip this in the bud a bit was the inclusion of its open seas, allowing the player to go wherever they wanted from the get-go. Sure, the fields and other locales that made up Hyrule proper in these titles (even in Twilight Princess, which released several years after Wind Waker) were accessible and presented an illusion of a game world that was freely navigable from the outset. The reality was, in fact, different.So, what does this have to do with Phantom Hourglass? Everything.%Gallery-4748%
Fan-made Zelda video makes us drool
Because this video has been out since May, you might have seen it already. If not, though, we highly recommend taking a look at this fan-made Zelda movie called "Dark Sage." Using a program called 3DS Max, Youtube member Coloniser combined his game designing skills, talent, and awesomeness to create this Zelda homage. We're definitely impressed by this project, and only hope that there will be a sequel in the future.[Thanks, Jack!]
Lon Lon Milk refills hearts of brave adventurers
If you've had a nasty run-in with an Octorok recently, or got in a scrape with a Stalfos, then there's only one thing for it, dear reader: you need Lon Lon Milk, and you need it fast.And right now, your nearest vendor is none other than Etsy user tiffanybell, whose Lon Lon Milk Bottle charms come packed with heart-filling, nutritious* Lon Lon Milk.Yours for a paltry 20 Rupees three bucks.* Probably.
