What has always been an especially cherished, sacred line of console entertainment remains to this day as magical and imaginative as it’s predecessors. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker brings all the puzzle and adventure gamers absorbed so generously from the series, now on next generation GameCube featuring liquid animation and vibrant color courtesy of an innovative graphical method called cell-shading. The newest Legend of Zelda consists of gracefully painted textures, dramatic lighting, and eye-melting special effects to make a softly detailed world, ripe to explore.
In The Wind Waker, the land of Hyrule has resided beneath a rolling sea for unknown ages. Island legend tells of a great evil that sought an object of unequaled power known as the Triforce. The Hero of Time, garbed in green, and armed with the sword of evil’s bane, rose up and defeated the dark one. When island boys come of age, they ceremoniously honor the Hero of Time by dressing in green. Enter the new hero, who departs on such an occasion to find his kidnapped sister. Eventually his destiny is revealed to him. He must become The Hero of Wind and master the forces of nature, and once again defeat the evil Gannondorf who seeks to reunite the Triforce and spread dark rule over all. In Zelda tradition, the quest is a long one, with many rich characters to meet, objects to seek, sub-quests to pursue, and temples to conquer.
What differs most about The Wind Waker versus past Zelda adventures would be the expansive sea fairing element of exploration. Our hero acquires a talking sailboat that takes him all over a great island-speckled ocean; complete with weather patterns, daytime and nighttime, and environmental hazards. The sea ranges between calm and blue, to gray and undulating, all depending on the time of day and current weather. Like any real sailing, you cannot go against the wind. Thanks to The Wind Waker-a magic conducting baton-the wind is at your command. In your boat you can also retrieve sunken treasure, wage cannonball warfare against enemy ships, and utilize tornados as a speedy source of transportation.
As I’ve said, the graphics are beautifully executed, and sound effects are no less excellent. Water resonance is especially detailed: fish splash up from the sea, waves lap upon the shore and beat against your boat, rainfall sounds like actual rainfall, and water drops reverberate from cold temple walls. Musically, The Wind Waker only has a fewnew tunes, retaining much of the soundtrack fromThe Ocarina of Time. Music mimics current surroundings. For instance, while seafaring, the approach of hostile creatures is accompanied by music parallel to the Jaws theme. And purists, fret not, the classic Legend of Zelda theme is present.
Gameplay has only slightly altered since the N64 LOZ. The lock on targeting system remains, and there are more complicated sword combinations, including a timing attack where Link rolls around an enemy to strike their backside. There is also a new super attack where Link spins in a whirlwind of destruction, capable of clearing whole rooms.
Most importantly to fans of the prev-ious Legends, puzzles play a concrete role in advancing your quest. The staple block pulling/pushing exists in every temple. As always, the use of items acquired are necessary to solve puzzles, and now natural forces are emphasized in interesting obstacles. Wind, water, sunlight, ice, fire, and gravity are all elements you must manipulate in order to get that last dungeon key or smite a stubborn foe. Throughout the adventure, you’ll find more and more uses for everything you find.
The only negative thing I can say would be the game doesn’t seem to last very long, yet The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker still shines as a golden beacon of gaming excellence. The genius of Nintendo once again sets them above the rest, giving a classic series a new moving story, delivered with soul and cinematic class, and no way exploiting the Zelda spirit to turn a profit. With over six thousand copies pre-ordered before release, and thousands more currently flying off the shelves, Nintendo has guaranteed future generations the pleasure of receiving their own installation of truly beloved characters and worlds.