The sky’s the limit with Nintendo’s new Wii game The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword.
The game is the 16th in the franchise, offering the same typical gameplay found in all Zelda games: action, adventure and puzzle solving.
But this time the Wii Motion Plus for the Wii remote is required to play the game, which enables you to swing your sword just the way you’ve always wanted to.
Or roll bombs, or fly on your gigantic bird. It’s really up to you and what you do with your hands, which is what makes this game a lot more enticing than others.
As a gamer you are used to pressing a button for video games, but this new Wii game asks for a bit more. Horizontal, vertical and diagonal swings are all used to swing your sword — adding a fantastic addition to the game. Blocking with your shield, guard breaking, all the way to catching bugs with a butterfly net — are included in this game.
While hacking and slashing your enemies through this scenic world brought before you, there are two other goals you need to accomplish: find Princess Zelda and complete the puzzles and dungeons on your way there.
The puzzles for the game require a lot less problem solving than other games in the franchise. This game will not leave you walking around in circles for hours, in attempts to find out where to go next to continue the game. This game is a bit more basic and tends to walk you through difficult parts.
The only downside to this is that those who were finding the old Zelda Nintendo 64 games quite challenging will think Skyward Sword is simple and straightforward.
This game starts off above the clouds on an island that is your hometown, but you’re not just limited to the sky. Progress far enough and you’ll be able to shoot down below the clouds and into forests, rocky mountains and deserts.
Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is an integration of Legend of Zelda: Orcarina of Time for the Nintendo 64, Twilight Princess for the GameCube, and Wind Waker for the GameCube.
The Wii Motion Plus, required for the game, will soon be the new necessity for all Zelda games. In comparison to the old Wii remote, you would have to point at the motion receiver to get the cursor to show up on your screen.
With the Motion Plus, you just point it at the television and swing away. Re-calibrating the Wii remote is simple with just a click of the button.
In comparison to older Zelda games, Skyward Sword does not have as much “free-roaming” as the Nintendo 64 games and the GameCubes Twilight Princess. In these games you were able to walk to every different area with ease. In this game you drop from the sky to a certain destination, and can only roam within those areas before having to return to the sky.
The use of musical instruments, as found in other games, does not exist in the new Skyward Sword.
Worldwide Nintendo has sold 62 million games from The Legend of Zelda series since it first started 25 years ago.
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword has been receiving a lot of good ratings, with popular video game website IGN giving it a perfect 10. GameSpot.com has given it a 7.5.
Other than the fact that Nintendo took five years to finally perfect the Wii remote, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword shows promise of bigger and better Wii Motion Plus games to come.
This game has endless hours of potential gameplay, and you might find yourself logging 40 hours in the game and not even being close to finishing.
Overall, the gameplay is different from other Zelda games, but the change is not for the worst. If you’re looking for some in-your-face gameplay, with lots of pretty colours and puzzles, then The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is the game for you.
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