Twilight Princess without Gravity pt02

First post || Next Part

An epiphany came to me as I was watching this video on the Oracle games. At about the halfway point, KingK says that certain games in the series have mixed priorities, name checking Ocarina of Time, Wind Waker and Skyward Sword. So while they're still good, they aren't as strong as others. In contrast, he name checks three games that knew exactly what they wanted to be, and set out to do that. Those three games were Majora's Mask, Breath of the Wild, and naturally, Twilight Princess.

And while I understand where he's coming from, I gotta say I completely disagree.

Since this is a study about Twilight Princess, I'll go ahead and repeat what he says about it here, beginning at 22:40. *ahem*

"Twilight Princess was an epic adventure. Everything in it was in service to this goal; the blinding linearity, the epic set-pieces. While it might not be what everyone wanted from Zelda, it was clear that Twilight Princess wanted to be something.

"Majora's Mask, Twilight Princess, Link's Awakening, Breath of the Wild, Oracle of Ages. These are the Zelda games. The ones that forego any sense of tradition, that ignore any need to conform, and just roll with some crazy idea or concept.

"It could come with unintended consequences, like the lack of satisfying puzzles in Breath of the Wild or the backtracking in Majora's Mask, but the unique good outweighs the typical bad in a way other Zelda games don't quite manage."

The thing is, those games he said aren't formulaic, are. In everything else he's correct, but they are still formulaic, because adding that to what KingK said is basically how Nintendo makes games.

I honestly have a lot of baggage when it comes to Nintendo as a company. At one point they were my favorite, but now? Not so much. I'm going to stick to what's relevant for this study though and just say this; Nintendo doesn't care about making a new game unless they can do something unique with it. Sometimes this works out like with Breath of the Wild or the Wii or the Switch. Other times it means the degradation of the Paper Mario series, not seeing a new F-Zero game in 15 years or having unique things shoved into Star Fox games when they probably should be made more traditionally.

Like most companies, Nintendo is severally out of touch and it has had an effect on its games. I would say out of any of their series, the main Mario series, Kirby and Zelda fair the best in Nintendo's want to make unique things. Because yes, every Zelda game has its own unique feature that distinguishes it from all the other Zelda games because Nintendo know what it wants Zelda to be.

But that focus doesn't mean Nintendo doesn't have blindspots, and that's where those unintended consequences come in.

Basically what I'm saying is this; every Zelda game is good and unique, but also tragically flawed, and the enjoyment you get out of them will be how much the unique good outweighs the typical bad. And I can think of no finer Zelda to showcase this then Twilight Princess.

Because make no mistake─Twilight Princess is an excellent game and at its best moments it feels like completely its own thing, like no other Zelda game, or even any other game, feels like. But at its worst it feels like it was made by machines with no love or tenderness poured into it.

But we'll get to that when we get to that. At the very least, most of today will be about the unique good, because we'll be talking about Wolf Link!

When we last left off, Link's friends had been kidnapped, the forest near Link's home shrouded in darkness, a creature pulled him into the darkness and it caused him to transform into a wolf and pass out.

Now we've woken up, and we're inside a prison cell! You get a few moments to move about, try to escape yourself, but to no avail. But after a few seconds Link notices that someone is in the cell with them, and when they turn to look, they see... this... face.

Theydies and gentlethems, I present to you one of the best
characters in any game ever.

A strange little imp creature proclaims that she "found you!" The imp starts to belittle and taunt Link, but also frees Link from their imprisonment. This is a great introduction to this character; she's both playful and domineering, mocking Link any chance she gets, but also pointing out how Link owes her for getting them out of that cell, a debt she plans to keep you accountable for.

She also sets herself apart by, well, not being very helpful. Whereas Navi would tell you things straight out, or Talt would question how you could not know something before telling you, half the time Midna won't tell you something you directly ask her. One of the first objects you encounter is a chain hanging from the ceiling with a ring at its end. Minda says, and I quote "Try pressing L. After that... Well, you'll figure it out."

She does the same thing in the next room. You see a small, green, floating fire and she tells you to hit X to "see something interesting." Rather then tell you what you need to know, she lets you figure it out on your own. It both reinforces the fact that she sees you as a tool, a means to an end, while also letting the player figure things out for themselves.

And honestly, I just love this part of the game. You just saw your friends carried off into the darkness by monsters, you have no idea if they're safe or what happened to your town, and now you're trapped in a dungeon, without any idea of where you are, and the only character you can rely on is completely unhelpful. It's just a terrific part of the game that adds a lot of suspense and intrigue to the suspense and intrigue we already hand, and without going overboard on it. It's well set up.

Still, describing this point in the game as "being thrown into a dungeon without knowing anything and the only character you can talk to is completely unhelpful" can probably describe about 80% or so of all RPGs out there. Oblvion comes to mind, since Patrick Stewart tells you basically nothing before he kicks the bucket. Curse you, Patrick Stewert! For not telling me a bloody thing yet still being such a wonderful and charming actor! How dare you!

Oh, right. That green ball of fire? It was a ghost. Because you're a wolf now, you have enhanced senses, and while the ghost can't see you, you can hear what he's saying. Our imp friend is helpful for once, telling us this and that we can see more weird stuff with our super senses.

This part is actually quite great since by answering a gameplay question, i.e. what is that green ball of fire, you find yourself with more narrative questions. Where are you? Why is a solder's spirit here? Why is he so frazzled? Something clearly happened, but what is it? Giving the player questions but answering another question is top notch writing, and I commend the designers for this.

Now let's talk about Wolf Link. And to be blunt, your initial impression of him is just amazing! They're just a ton of fun to play! Movement in Twilight Princess is serviceable, but it never feels quite as fun as it did in Wind Waker or even Ocarina. But Wolf Link is different. They're faster than normal Link, while not incorporating any stupid movement gimmick, so it feels natural and fun to move around! Wolf Link honestly feels like a new transformation mask from Majora's Mask, and it totally rules!

As for battle, Wolf Link is a little wild but not so much so to be distracting. In all honesty, in ways it's a lot more fun to fight in wolf mode. One of the reasons is novelty. I mean, in 99% of games you play as a bipedal humanoid, so it's nice to get something different. But also, the animations on Wolf Link are just killer!

Next time you play or watch someone else play look at the way Wolf Link bites into rats, and then throws them away. Look how when they climb up on a platform they use their hind legs to help get themselves up. Look at the way they move at different walking/running speeds. It's all fantastic.

And to top all that off, your imp friend has fantastic animations, too! Reacting to everything Link does, trying to keep balance and occasionally relaxing on her wolf mount. It's sooooooo good!

Then there's the platforming, my glob, the platforming! After missing a jump in a spiral stairwell inside a tower, the imp tells you she'll point out all the places to jump. Just target her and press A. Now what could have just been on rails jumping is, again, animated so well that it feels alive. You quickly jump from spot to spot, and the little sound effects make each new jump feel so good. I so badly wish I had a give to show you it.

So let's recap; we got a good fast movement speed, attacks are wild but fun to pull off, you get to play as a non-humanoid, the animations just knock it out of the park and a unique form a platforming that feels good to pull off even though the skill threshold is very low level. It's all so good and we aren't even done yet! We haven't talked about the super attack or the fact that they've got BEAN FEET!

And as the final cherry on top of everything else... I got a blue rupee! That's worth 5 rupees! That's nice!

There is, sadly, a lot wrong with Wolf Link's gameplay, but for what it's worth they've got some solid fundamentals going on here, and that's pretty awesome.

There's also some cool map design here. There's a sluice puzzle where you have to open two gates to make the water go in and then back out. But here's the thing, you can't reach the second gate until you hit the first, and when you do get to it, it has an NPC next to it. That's a cool way to show that you didn't wind up back at the first gate again. It's smart design.

Ok, we're finally out of the dungeon and onto the roof of some... place. It looks like a castle. And in fact, another spirit guard says it is, in fact, Hyrule Castle! Woah! That feels big.

Also, now that we're outside, why don't we talk about this world's dark zone, the Twilight Realm. Inside the dungeon you can't really tell you're in another realm that well, other than these cool, floating, black squares that rise up from the ground. Though now that you're outside, you can see clearly how everything just looks off, and this is done through smart use of colors!

The sky in the twilight realm is bright orange with yellow clouds. This is already cool not only because most dark worlds don't look like this, giving it that unique flair, but also because it evokes feelings of twilight, as it should. The ground is also this pale, sickly off-green color to help differentiate it from the sky. This is unique since green and orange aren't usually colors that fit well together, but they looks amazing here. It's just a shame that the game already over-saturates itself with orange, so the Twilight Realm doesn't stand out as much as it should.

I stand by what I said about Columbia being the primer
water-waster of fictional video game cities

I said it last time too, but it really would have behooved the game more if it saved orange for special occasions, like Final Fantasy X did with water. Making the main character's home town water themed, besaid being a watery island, Sin being a creature that travels in and attack cities by the water. Water is used incredibly well in FFX, and I wish Twilight Princess would have taken a page from its book.

This roof section also acts as a bit of a hidden tutorial. The only enemies here are these flying bird things, but the only way to hit them is with your lunge attack. Small problem; the lunge attack can launch you right off of the roof and into the bottomless void if you aren't careful. So you either have to learn how to run away, or use your lunge without hurting yourself. So the game is teaching you how to fight enemies, how Wolf Link's combat skills work, and to pay attention to your enviorment, all without a single word. It's freaking brilliant.

Finally you get inside and meet a mysterious fig─It's Princess Zelda. Yeah, it really isn't that mysterious, honestly. But she does immediately say the Imp's name is Midna, so at least we know that now.


 Again Midna shows her domineering side by, instead of explaining what's going on herself, gets Zelda to do it by saying it's all her fault, even calling her "Twilight Princess" in a mocking manner, since the kingdom is now covered in the Twilight Realm. It seemed a little forced when I first played it, like "we did it, guys! we put the title in! Woot!" But it's actually a very smart line in retrospect.

Zelda explains that the story Rusl told you at the beginning of the game with twilight beings in another world was true! And now their king has come to Hyrule to claim it as his own.

 Zant, the king of twilight, is an effective villain. This first scene with him establishes that he is a force to be reckoned with, capturing Hyrule castle for himself, and bathing the land in darkness. Now every person from Hyrule in the Twilight Realm have transformed into spirits, like the soldiers we saw before, unaware that they have transformed at all.

The cloaked Zelda then reveals herself to be Zelda! What a shock! Zelda then mentions that the shadow beasts are searching everywhere for Midna, though Midna denies knowing why. With that, we're told we must leave quickly before the guards that keep Zelda prisoner arrive.

After leaving, Midna returns Link to where they first entered the Twilight, back at the spring in Ordon. But then reminds Link of the captured kids. Thing is the only way through the curtain of Twilight is with the help of a creature of darkness, like Midna. And she'd be willing to help, of course, so long as Link promises to be her servant.

Her first command is to get a sword and shield for her, and fortunately Ordon village will have those. Only... You're still a wolf, and the village was just attacked by monsters. So Link's wolf form probably won't be welcomed there.

Or at least, not by the humans. After taking out some bandits that are lingering about, a Squirrel informs you that you should try talking to the animals if you need help. Considering you smell like the Ordon trees, most of them will be inclined to trust you.

Now you're in Ordon village, and you have to sneak about to get find information on and eventually get a sword and shield. That's right, it's a stealth mission! But truth be told, it's a good one. Like mentioned before, Twilight Princess is incredibly linear, and while that hurts it in some places, here it's welcomed because it won't randomly fail you because the game feels like it.

Heck, there's only one real sneaking part right at the beginning where the Mayor is talking with another villager about how Rusl was hurt in the attack, so he'll take that villager's shield and the sword they were going to present to the royal family to find the kids. If you do get too close and get spotted, they run away, but just walk over the nearby bridge and they respawn. You don't even have to reload the area. That's super cool.

Actually, I think this is a good spot to talk about the theme of Twilight Princess. Whether Nintendo was aware of what they did or not, I don't know, but there is a consistent theme going throughout this entire game; the story of Twilight Princess is not the story of another Link, but the story of every citizen in Hyrule.

Your return to the village is just one example, as you get to hear how all the citizens react to the attack on the village and the kidnapping of the children. The only people in the village who aren't children is Link and Fado, and all the rest are their parents. Seeing how badly they don't want to just sit around and actively find their children is a nice touch. And this kind of thing happens all throughout the game.

You meet so many people with more worries then for Link to stop Zant. The villagers want their kids back, there's a researcher is looking for legendary city in the sky, there's barkeep who just wants to help people! It helps form a real, tangible Hyrule. One you can actually get lost in. And not just because Hyrule Field is freaking huge!

And it's not just the people, the places you go have such a rich history, including the dungeons! From Arbitor's ground, an abandoned prison in the desert to The Goron Mines that actually feel like a place that people mine in. The places you go feel like they're actual, functional places and not just nebulous places of worship to store one of eight magic thingies.

Heck, the Ice Temple is just a couple's house & you need their help to get through it! That's a twofer!

I admit it's not as expansive or as deep as I'd like it to be, but it's also not hollow, and there are a quite a incredibly special people, places and moments this game has to offer.

So we know where to find a sword and shield, but as we get close to the shield's house, one of the children's father spots us and he calls upon the hawk from before to attack! He's not that hard to dispatch, but I really like this moment, too. It shows that even though this guy's an NPC without class levels, he's still willing to fight in anyway he can to rescue his kid (even if he's attack the wrong person). Also on the day you were walking about the town, he talked about hawk grass, so it makes sense that he fights in this way. 

Also as soon as you're attacked, the cat you got the fish for earlier will tell you how to defeat him, and if you call the hawk by howling near the grass he'll apologies for attacking you, he's just duty bound to obey anyone who calls on him. It's all around a nice scene.

So you get the shield, Rusl we see a scene with Rusl, showing he's patrolling the area. Sneak around him without getting too close to him or his wife and you can dig into his house to get the sword. Now we can return to the Twilight and save the kids! Maybe. But now we head back to the forest, but on the way, we're called back to the spring.

But just as we draw close, a magical gate seals us inside, and one of Zant's shadow beasts emerge from the portal the Bulblin King opened earlier.

This is a fairly effect fight, teaching you how to deal with these things, especially since this is the only time you fight them one on one. From here on out, they come in groups.

Dispatch the shadow beast and the voice will reveal itself as Ordona, one of four light spirits entrusted by the gods to protect hyrule from the Twilight Realm. Turns out Zant's plan is to have his shadow beasts weaken and steal the light from the four beings so that the Twilight Realm can spread across the land, allowing him to rule all of Hyrule, and eventually cover the entire world in darkness. And now Link must retrieve the light of the three fallen spirits to restore the land. Why Link? Well, it doesn't really say ever as far as I know, but I think it's because Link has the Triforce of Courage in him already. That's why he turned into a wolf instead of a ghost like everyone else.

So now we gotta restore the light spirit in the woods. Also, if we restore it, it will be able to return us to human form, so that's neat. I guess it's on to Faron woods then and the... ugh. Bug hunting quest -_-

So once you reach the curtain of twilight Midna pulls you back in. There's a quick scene here with Midna, where she explains she needs you to gather some things fro her after you restore the light spirit. You walk forward a bit and more shadow beasts arrive. Three of them this time. And Midna is her usual helpful self and just bails on you as soon as the fight starts. Nice.

Kill the off the beasts and you'll discover when only one of them are left, they revive their fallen brethren. Go back up to Midna and she gives Wolf Link a new upgrade! Hold down the B button until a large circle comes out and covers all the enemies, Link will preform quick dashes through all the enemies, and prevent the last one from reviving anyone, too. Not only is this a cool attack, but it also is one of Link's strongest attacks in the game. I do have a huge problem with it, though, but that can wait. Just remember this scene for much, much later. Because believe me, I'm going to come back to it.

I do quite like these fights with the shadow beasts, though. While the first few dark beast fights are just standard to get you used to fighting them, they eventually become puzzles where you need to figure out how to kill the last two at the same time. It's pretty neat.

But let's stop stalling. Get to the spring with the weakened spirit, and it'll give you the Vessel of Light to return its power to it. So how do you return the spirit's power? A fight with a boss? A cool dungeon full of traps and puzzles? What creative way have the designers come up with for the reoccurring main mission quest?! BUG HUNTING! Yeah. Bug hunting.

You gotta find all of these bugs scattered throughout the forest, retrieve the light they've stolen, and when you get 16 of them, the land returns to normal. Woot.



While the animation on both the bugs and the light they release really good, this part is incredibly boring. It's just so... underwhelming. All you're doing is busy work, especially this first bug hunt. I'll give the dev team credit that each hunt feels different, for example this is the only time all the bugs are on a linear track, making it another stealth tutorial for the bugs. That still makes it feel like more busy work, and I just want to get back to playing as normal Link at this point and tackle my first dungeon. At least it's short because this slow start is really, really wearing out its welcome. I swear, if this had been a single mini-quest longer I would have lost my mind.

This part coulda been great, but instead it's just crappier Skulltula hunting. So not only is it a excellent idea with lousy execution, but it's also an homage to Ocarina of Time! Take 2 shots!

I will give this part this, though; it is fun to see the forest area in Twilight, and seeing all the enemies you fought before as their dark world counterparts, so that's cool. And part of the forest is covered in a poisonous fog now, so you needa Midna jump over it. Pretty sweet.

So we finally save the light spirit Faron, and he's so pleased with us that he even gives us new clothes! And they look awesome! I've always loved the crawdad jammies that Wind Waker Link has at the beginning of the game, but these may be my favorite of Link's outfits. It has so many cool little details, from the chainmain under shirt to show how Link can withstand attacks, to the arm bracers that protect their hands while fighting, the little poaches on their back to show some of the extra ways they store items and even to the soft, white undershirt under chainmail. I love this outfit so much. It's a perfect blend of classic styling and modern sensibilities. 


Faron tells you that turning into a wolf proves you have the power of the chosen one within you (oh, I guess they do mention it!) and that you must now find the temple deep within the woods and retrieve the dark power resting inside it. Normally that spirits would rather it stay locked away, but in order to fight Zant, we'll need to match his dark powers with dark powers of our own

And funnily enough, Midna's heading the same way we are. How curious.

I think that about wraps it up for this issue. Join us next time when we visit our first dungeon, talk about monkeys, meet a Link from the past and discuss the pros and cons of the combat of Twilight Princess.

Like I was going to leave this part out

Thank you so much for reading, and until next time, take care 💜

Part 01 || Part 02 || Part 03