A: Is Skyward Sword good? B: WTF is going on with Lanayru?
-
Cheeky Devlin
- Member
- Joined in 2008
-
Tomous
- Member
- Joined in 2010
- AKA: Vampbuster
I love Skyward Sword. It certainly has its problems-poor pacing, repetition and while the motion controls weren’t an issue for me I know others had problems. But I loved the art style, the story/supporting cast and there’s some really great, unique ideas in there.
Also, Skyloft
Also, Skyloft
-
OrangeRKN
- Community Sec.
- Joined in 2015
- Location: Reading, UK
- Contact:
It's excellent. A perfect blend of old and new, classic and modern. While small criticisms can be leveled at the amount of hand-holding (Fi's interruptions and item pick-up text especially), such complaints are on the same level as the "too heavy" dialogue in Link's Awakening - a fault that does not stop that game being the best of the 2D outings.
Skyward Sword is especially notable for having some of the best dungeon design in the series - the sandship a particular highlight - and that focus can be seen in the entire game's structure, where the overworld areas themselves become extensions of the dungeons found within.
Skyward Sword was exactly what the series needed as a return to innovation and experimentation, following the incredibly safe (and subsequently most boring, although still good) Twilight Princess. It's legacy in ideas such as a stamina meter can be seen in Breath of the Wild, proof of the game's importance in Zelda history.
It's also got possibly the best motion controls ever in a game
Skyward Sword is especially notable for having some of the best dungeon design in the series - the sandship a particular highlight - and that focus can be seen in the entire game's structure, where the overworld areas themselves become extensions of the dungeons found within.
Skyward Sword was exactly what the series needed as a return to innovation and experimentation, following the incredibly safe (and subsequently most boring, although still good) Twilight Princess. It's legacy in ideas such as a stamina meter can be seen in Breath of the Wild, proof of the game's importance in Zelda history.
It's also got possibly the best motion controls ever in a game
-
OrangeRKN
- Community Sec.
- Joined in 2015
- Location: Reading, UK
- Contact:
-
Balladeer
- Member
- Joined in 2018
- Location: Lord's
This poll is too black and white. Far too much so.
Skyward Sword was a very interesting game. Focus on exploration and a sprawling overworld was removed to make a more story-focussed adventure with, as OR says, stronger dungeons - in a way, the anti-BotW (EDIT: beaten to that punch twice over!). It did that job quite well, but in doing so it removed some things that some Zelda fans (including myself) like a lot. I love cantering over a full cohesive overworld, and Skyloft just didn’t feel the same, separate as it was from most of the actual gameplay.
The motion controls were excellent. I will defend this to the death. I’m not even only talking about the most tactile and satisfying swordplay the series has had: I’m talking bowling bombs, the aiming, the Beetle... I’m mostly talking bowling bombs.
I also enjoyed the dowsing mechanic, and the silent realms. I enjoy quite a few things the game did anew in fact. I really liked the art style, which I think is better than BotW’s and second only to Wind Waker in the series. And while I didn’t enjoy many of the characters in all honesty, Groose alone made up for most of them.
Skyward Sword does have one big flaw for me, and that’s the sense of repetition setting in early. It repeats the fire and sand/time themes from dungeons two and three in dungeons five and six, in doing so introducing a grand total of no new enemies. (Also it only had two good dungeon bosses, and one was Ghirahim.) It mean that the strong dungeon design was held back by a feeling of ‘seen it all before’. This is taken to its logical extreme with the Imprisoned fights, with the changes in gameplay counteracted by the boss being the same thing each time with the same basic approach.
Skyward Sword was an interesting attempt to shake the series up, after the very iterative Twilight Princess. It succeeded in some areas and failed in others, and ultimately BotW was more successful in that aim. Put a gun to my head and I’d say it’s good, like almost every Zelda game not on the CDi; but it’s a shade of grey that the poll doesn’t allow for.
TL;DR: Dan’s thread is bobbins.
Skyward Sword was a very interesting game. Focus on exploration and a sprawling overworld was removed to make a more story-focussed adventure with, as OR says, stronger dungeons - in a way, the anti-BotW (EDIT: beaten to that punch twice over!). It did that job quite well, but in doing so it removed some things that some Zelda fans (including myself) like a lot. I love cantering over a full cohesive overworld, and Skyloft just didn’t feel the same, separate as it was from most of the actual gameplay.
The motion controls were excellent. I will defend this to the death. I’m not even only talking about the most tactile and satisfying swordplay the series has had: I’m talking bowling bombs, the aiming, the Beetle... I’m mostly talking bowling bombs.
I also enjoyed the dowsing mechanic, and the silent realms. I enjoy quite a few things the game did anew in fact. I really liked the art style, which I think is better than BotW’s and second only to Wind Waker in the series. And while I didn’t enjoy many of the characters in all honesty, Groose alone made up for most of them.
Skyward Sword does have one big flaw for me, and that’s the sense of repetition setting in early. It repeats the fire and sand/time themes from dungeons two and three in dungeons five and six, in doing so introducing a grand total of no new enemies. (Also it only had two good dungeon bosses, and one was Ghirahim.) It mean that the strong dungeon design was held back by a feeling of ‘seen it all before’. This is taken to its logical extreme with the Imprisoned fights, with the changes in gameplay counteracted by the boss being the same thing each time with the same basic approach.
Skyward Sword was an interesting attempt to shake the series up, after the very iterative Twilight Princess. It succeeded in some areas and failed in others, and ultimately BotW was more successful in that aim. Put a gun to my head and I’d say it’s good, like almost every Zelda game not on the CDi; but it’s a shade of grey that the poll doesn’t allow for.
TL;DR: Dan’s thread is bobbins.
-
Cheeky Devlin
- Member
- Joined in 2008
The thoughts I had on it when I posted them back in 2015 and I stand by them.
I was very disappointed with it. It's not a bad game, by any definition of the word, but I think it's easily the weakest of the 3D Zelda games.
What I liked:
The story. I liked that we were getting to see the beginning of the timeline. The characters were interesting and had some personality (Even Impa, who's usually got all the charm of a wooden door).
The boss fights. They were all enjoyable for the most part.
The art style.
Dungeons were pretty good too.
Skyloft was a great location, with some fun characters.
What I didn't like:
Motion Controls.When they worked they were great, but I never felt entirely confident with them. Most notably when I had to perform specific attacks within a short timeframe and it just wouldn't do what I wanted it to do. There were too many times I took damage, or even died, simply because the controls weren't doing what I wanted them to.
Motion Controls sucked all the enjoyment out of the combat, as I was spending far too long thinking about the wiimote and trying to get it to do what I wanted it to do, instead of being able to just do it. No other Zelda I've played has had me do that. With SS I was never 100% sure that I could do what I wanted to do, when I wanted to do it. I'm all for making combat more tactical and thought out, but this is not the way I would want to see it done.
Boring and poorly utilised location. Faron Woods was boring (Every visit there was a bloody fetch quest) and Eldin was just annoying (Hated every minute I was there). Lanayru was better and the only area I felt actually gave you an interesting challenge. The time-stone mechanic was cool, and each time you visited it opened up a new area with something new to do.
The graphics. While I loved the art style I felt it was let down technically by the Wii itself. Blurry textures, horrendous blur on things that are far away. Ugh. If there was a 3D Zelda that needed an HD Re-release it's this one.
The Stamina gauge. Seriously, this pissed me off so much.
The "Trials". Again, these were annoying as hell.
The constant need to prove that you're the Legendary Hero to people.
The Sky was a dull, lifeless, empty void with very little to do. At least Wind Waker broke up the naval travel with combat and Islands you actually wanted to explore instead of tiny rocks with little of interest.
So to me it's the worst of them. It's still a damn good game but it's not as good as the rest.
OOT>=MM>>WW>>TP>>>>SS
-
Cheeky Devlin
- Member
- Joined in 2008
-
Balladeer
- Member
- Joined in 2018
- Location: Lord's
-
Frank
- Member
- Joined in 2009
That big thumb boss you fight about four times was the worst 
But you also get the Groosenator so it cancels out.
Better than Twilight Princess, fo' sho
But you also get the Groosenator so it cancels out.Better than Twilight Princess, fo' sho
-
OrangeRKN
- Community Sec.
- Joined in 2015
- Location: Reading, UK
- Contact:
-
Pedz
- Twitch Team
- Joined in 2009
- Contact:
-
OrangeRKN
- Community Sec.
- Joined in 2015
- Location: Reading, UK
- Contact:
-
Pedz
- Twitch Team
- Joined in 2009
- Contact:
-
Balladeer
- Member
- Joined in 2018
- Location: Lord's
TP is my second favourite Zelda and in my top ten of all time. 
-
Pedz
- Twitch Team
- Joined in 2009
- Contact:
-
OrangeRKN
- Community Sec.
- Joined in 2015
- Location: Reading, UK
- Contact:
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: OldSoulCyborg, Peter Crisp, Robbo-92, Wedgie and 522 guests
