Saturday, March 28, 2009

Good News, Everyone

So Zelda finally clicked. I'm in the Forest Temple, and I'm actually enjoying myself this time around. This could be for a couple different reasons:

1) I have played this portion before, so I know what to expect. However, I played this more than 5 years ago, so I'm not sure how much I'm remembering and how much I'm figuring out.

2) I'm not overthinking the puzzles anymore. For instance, once you enter Lake Hylia for the first time, there's a bottle on the lake's floor. I noticed it, but swam right past it, looking for the next quest hook. I roamed around the lake for half an hour trying to figure out where to go next and consulted an FAQ, which told me that the answer was right in front of my face the whole time.

I have a habit of doing this. In fact, this DM of the Rings strip just about explains what happens to me in Zelda games. Instead of looking for the obvious solution, I run around trying to find the most complex one and get frustrated when it doesn't work.

Another example: Entering the Forest Temple, you're supposed to use the Hookshot to get onto the tree branch above the broken stairs. I tried using the Hookshot, but it didn't reach. So I started running around for ledges that I could climb up on, and swinging my sword at the tree, and looking for a ladder until I realized that I just had to move a little closer and it would work.

We'll see how long this lasts.

2 comments:

  1. well, i'm glad you are enjoying zelda...
    i just had a thought. you like the metroid series right? i have always thought (and this may upset some people) of the two games as sister games. different graphics, a different visual dimension, but your basicall scrounging for powerups and doing epic, if repetitive, boss fights. So if you like metroid, just remember that there is ALWAYS a new powerup coming. a new ability, that will open up whole other segments of the game. Ocarina is extremely non-linear, with all the little sidequests. I prefer the metroid series myself (again, people might attack for my saying that) but the two games ARE structurally identicle (powerup, powerup, boss, frustrated hours of random wandering). good stuff!

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  2. If I may add to the game comparison: You have mentioned Jedi Outcast in posts before... Never before have I played a game where you so often have to guess what it was the devs had in mind, with little to no direction. If you survived a game as (addmitidly great) frustrating, and directionless as Outcast, then you will have no problem with Zelda. Just remember to go back and flip that one little button you never noticed before, and everything will be fine.

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