jeremy1456's Full Review: The Legend Of Zelda Ocarina Of Time for Nintendo 6...
Can anyone remember what started all the Zelda 64 hype? Well I sure can. It all started when Nintendo showed a short clip of Link in 3-D fighting two Skeletons, and ever since that moment fans were frothing at the mouth for this game. So Nintendo continuously worked for around 2 years, Miyamoto-san knew that he could not let fans down with this title, so he devoted most of his time into it. Well did he dissappoint fans? No way, Zelda is considered by most to be the BEST game ever, and I can see why they feel that way.
I can remember when the game was first released, the comercial aired constantly on tons of stations, and who can forget the not so clever logan, "Ye Snooze, Ye Lose"? Well I couldn't go on without buying this game, so I went out and purchased it just a few days after it's release.
The first thought that ran through my mind about this game when I slammed it into my N64 and hit the power switch was, "Wow, the start-up is pretty, but I wonder if the game gets even prettier", and yes it does. As you start up your new game you are given a brief introduction to the story, which was very confusing to me, but it's not because I'm blonde, it's because it doesn't really explain why the girl is riding away on the horse, or why the man is glaring at Link. But it does explain about the Kokiri elves and their fairies, Link is the only elf without a fairy, the reason he doesn't have a fairy is explained later in the game, I won't spoil it for you though.
This game introduces many new things to the world of Zelda, the most obvious being the transition into 3-D. This turns out to be a good thing, the world is surprisingly large and fog and pop-up are absent from the game, well actually Nintendo added fog in at dawn to add to the overall effect. The second most obvious new feature of the game is the fact that Link starts out as a child, now maybe he was a child in the other Zelda games, but it's not noticeable. And as being a child, Link can only wield lightweight weapons. But as an adult Link can use heavier weapons, but for some odd reason can't use a lot of the items child Link could, which is confusing to me. Well anyway the third most noticeable addition to the game is the ability to equip up to 3 special items, instead of just one like in the previous Zelda titles. You can set each special item to the C buttons: C Left, C Right, And C down. C Up is used to look around from Links point of view.
The "Z-Targetting System"
This is yet another addition to the Zelda universe. With the Z targetting system you can target an enemy, in doing so the camera will always face this enemy, and Link will always shoot/Swipe his weapon in it's direction. This feature is very useful in taking down enemies, not very helpful against bosses though.
Not an RPG?
Many people say that Zelda is in no way an RPG, they aren't wrong I mean they can have their opinion about it, but my opinion is that I think this game is an RPG. First lets define an RPG, it's a role playing game, right? Well in Zelda you play the role of Link, and it's a game, right? Quite a few people say that a game isn't an RPG unless it has turn based battles, and leveling up, and they could be right, but people refer to a game like that as a "turn Based RPG". Now remember, I'm not saying I'm right, I'm just giving my epinion on the subject. Get it? Epinion! Ok so maybe that one was a little corny. Sorry!
Your life points for this game are hearts. Each time you are damaged a certain amount of your hearts are depleted. You aquire a heart container which adds to your maximum hearts by defeating bosses. There is one other way to gain heart containers, by finding pieces of heart which are very familiar to the world of Zelda. They are hidden throughout Hyrule, you must find 4 pieces of heart to gain one heart container.
A nice thing about the Zelda series has always been the requirement for a specific item in order to pass a specific area. For example: a big boulder might be blocking the path to level 3, so you won't be able to pass it until you find the bomb bag in level 2. This feature has been in every Zelda game that I have ever played, so it is welcomed by long time Zelda fans.
The Zelda series is defined by it's puzzles. Not a single Zelda game has ever been made easy, mainly because of the puzzles each game in the series features. Sure, some of the puzzles may be as obvious as lighting a torch to open a door, but if you are like me then you often overlook important things in dungeons. And since I refuse to look off of strategy guides for the answers, and also since I tend to ignore the annoying fairy that constantly bugs me, I may not notice that a torch needs lighting, or a web needs burning.
The ocarina is a very nice feature to the game, basically you recieve an ocarina a little into the game, and you learn songs throughout the game that can unlock a door, make someone like you, or even warp you to a designated place in Hyrule. There's even a special scarecrow that will have you make up songs for him.
Warning: For all of those that do not know about the ocarina of time I suggest you skip this next paragraph and head straight down to my ratings, for this next paragraph will spoil the whole aspect of time for you.
The Ocarina of Time
My personal favorite part of the game is the aspect of time travel. Link starts out as a very young boy, I'm guessing maybe nine years old? Well you do not stay a child throughout the game, a little into it Link pulls the master sword out of the pedestal of the temple of time, and is warped 7 years into the future. Cool huh? Well basically all of the characters are still there, and have aged, with one exception: The Kokiri elves do not age, therefore they are still as small as Link remembers them. The future is very dark in Hyrule, basically the only village keft in good condition is Kariko Village (Probably misspelled that).
My Ratings
Graphics 5/5
Flawless, little to no slowdown, no fog or pop-up, awesome camera flares, and great lighting effects. That about sums up the graphics to this beautiful game. It is a big joy to watch the little cinemas throughout the game, they are wonderfully graphiced and highly detailed. The only tiny flaw I found in the games graphics, is that some very small items that you can view with the C up button, (for example: The professors laboratory's specimens) are pixelated. Not a problem at all though.
All in all there really aren't a whole lot of important characters in the game, there are a few, but not many. But ever character Link encounters are highly detailed and usually vibrant and colorful. Too colorful in Malon's case if you ask me.
Story 4/5
Story is an important factor in most games, especially in Zelda. I didn't give it a perfect score because of one main reason: the story just isn't epic like the rest of the game. I rated it so high because it is pretty interesting. But at heart it's just the same ole defeat Ganon and rescue Zelda story that has been used in quite a few Zelda titles over the span of the Zelda Franchises life.
Warning: Massive Spoilers in this Paragraph My favorite aspect in the story of this game is the time travel factor. Link must sometimes travel back and forth in time to complete a dungeon, or to get a special item. The game starts with young Link waking up to a nightmare about a girl on a horse, and a sneering man with an evil laugh. Link wakes up and is summoned to the Deku tree, the Deku tree is the guardian of the forest, so it is a great honor to be asked a favor by him. Well Link enters the Tree to destroy monsters living inside him, and so begins Links quest.
Control 4/5
This is the first 3-D platformer game that I have played and don't totally hate the control and camera. And that's saying a lot, trust me. Everything from swiping your sword, to shooting your bow is done with very relative ease and comfort, but sometimes in the heat of the battle I fumble around a little with the controller.
Sound 5/5
The music is great. The overworld theme is fast and jumpy, while the village theme is slow and layed back, like the people. My favorite track though has to be the Lost Woods theme, I could listen to it for hours, well maybe not for hours, but it is still very catchy.
Nothing wrong with the sound effects, everything sounds like it should, especially when firing your bow. This game is chock full of little sound effects to add detail to the game, you can even hear Links footsteps as he runs/walks. The only sound effect I got tired of was the sound Link makes when he swipes his sword. It can get pretty annoying sometimes.
MultiPlayer N/A
Multiplayer in a Zelda game? That would be cool.
TOTAL: 18/20
Grade = A
Note: If I remember right then this is the first A I've ever given out!
I have not known a single person who doesn't like this game, but then again there is a first time for everything, so I probably won't be able to keep this streak going! I highly recommend this game to anyone!
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