In a comedy of errors that could only be described as “worst timing ever,” Nintendo decided to finally get around to sending out reviewable Wii/Zelda units to us Friday afternoon… and I had long ago made plans to be out of town over the weekend. So this morning I’ve embarked on a mind-boggling journey to beat the game in four days, write a two reviews and hopefully not develop bedsores from having my ass planted to my couch for a week.
The good new: Five days of sitting at home doing nothing but playing Zelda. For this I draw a bi-weekly paycheck?
The bad news: Five days of sitting at home doing nothing but playing Zelda. I’m not really much for marathon play sessions, and I find being a game-obsessed shut-in depressing. (I’ve tried it a few times and always end up wanting to disavow all knowledge of video games by the time I’m done.)
Happily, Nintendo sent us one of their rare and precious Wii component cables, which was sent home with me. Worried that Wii games are going to look like crap on HD sets? Fear not. Zelda looks amazing on my LCD set, and this is not a television that is kind to non-HD content. Even those rare creatures known as widescreen PS2 games in 480p look like garbage next to this. I’m not sure what foul magic Nintendo used to get Wii to look so good at non-HD resolutions, but I will not complain.
32 thoughts on “Ze-ru-da”
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Suddenly I’m not as jealous of your game reviewers. I think I honestly prefer waiting another 6 days for the game, just so I can play it at a leisurely pace.
The sheer amount of Zelda coverage on the internet over the last week has turned me from being pained to hear about spoilers (pretty much everything in this game seems like a spoiler) to now grasping at every new tidbit that comes out. ITS ALL YOUR FAULT PARISH!
I noticed on the nintendo website among the launch window line-up a game no-one else seems to care about: Elevator Action Wii. Is this not curious?
I have never heard of Elevator Action Wii, else I would care about it.
Are you actually at home all week, or do you have to go into the office once in a while? Do you have to do the Zelda thing and the editor thing simultaneously, or are there others who can pick up the slack? I have a job that could totally be done from home, but I still have to commute 25 miles to an office; and while I know I should be jealous of you I don’t know exactly how jealous I should be.
Let me know about the difficulty if you could, sir. A part of me is holding out for AoL level absurdity.
the URL for where I saw it is: http://ms.nintendo-europe.com/wii/?site=w_launchtitles.html&l=enGB
The more I think about it, the weirder it seems.
I sent an e-mail to the publisher, Digital Bros, and it was bounced back with a recipient unknown error. I also e-mailed Majesco on the off-chance they might know anything about it. I am determined to be the source of all the world’s Elevator Action Wii information, at least until the end of the work day.
Wii graphic quality looks good? I’m shocked!
Oh wait, no I’m not.
Good was a given. Good on an HD set? Not a given.
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I’m doing this entire week from home. In order to make that possible, I’ve had to clear out my calendar — which means penning roughly 30 articles over the past two weeks and planning/setting into motion a week’s worth of features for two major hub page events. This week will be a lot of work, but it’s a vacation of sorts, too.
Hey, how pretty is the game? Supposedly it’s not even up to Gamecube standards, if Penny-Arcade and and Joystiq are to be trusted.
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Of course, from what I understand, Twilight Princess might be just as big as Final Fantasy XII, so perhaps a hit to the graphics is easily understood.
Yeah, they’re pretty much retarded, or have terrible TVs. The game looks great. Art direction counts for far more than poly count or ground texture or whatever nitpicks they want to wallow in, and TP’s art direction is excellent.
Speaking of Penny Arcade, I’m pretty sure Gabe called you a New Games Journalist. Are you gonna let that stand?
I think a lot of the time Joystiq just wants attention. If you look at the nitpicks they’re actually raising, it’s seriously a stretch.
“I have to press A to read a sign, therefore immersion is *totally ruined*”? Um. Okay. That’s just not really an issue for me.
I have a confession to make: I read joystiq.com. In my defense, it’s one of only a handful of gaming related sites that still make it through the company firewall, but that’s not a great excuse and I know it; joystiq is almost entirely crappy filler non-stories crappily written and edited, with crappy comments. I think you’re right, most of the time they just want attention, but yeah, they’ve been crappy for as long as I’ve been reading them; bad pieces on TP aren’t the exception around there.
I’m pleased to hear that Zelda looks good on HD sets. I sprung the cash for a flatscreen last month. I’m mostly using it as a computer moniter at the moment. DVDs look pretty good, DC games looks decent out of composite cables, and my NES/SNES are actually suprisingly playable: No prcieved lag whatsoever. Picture’s a little grainy, but no where near the horror stories I’ve been told about 2D on LCD… or at least what I imagined. Maybe my standards are just lower.
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But yeah, I’m definately hunting down component cables this Sunday. I plan to take as much advantage out of my set as I can.
From what I have read, the component cables aren’t shipping until December. Based on Parish’s gift from Nintendo, however, I am starting to believe that was only a rumor. I really hope it was a rumor, because if not, I will have beaten Zelda before they even come out. To not play it in it’s full glory would make kind of sad
(disclaimer: No it wouldn’t, I would be playing Zelda. Therefore, it would only slightly detract from an extremely large happiness quotient. Thus, sadness would be an impossiblity)
Man, marathon sessions are awesome, if you find a good enough game. I got in about 30 hours of FF XII the weekend before last, and it was great. Of course, I didn’t have a review looming on the horizon, so I could just relax and take my time.
Seriously, I don’t get how you can take the time to really enjoy a game when you have to grind it for a review deadline. Double so for a game like Zelda. It’s times like this I really don’t envy folks with your type ‘o job. Unless it’s something that totally draws me in, I usually kick back and take my time on games.
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I sincerely hope that the component cables aren’t waiting until December. I intend to use every last inch of screen I can get.
I don’t understand people who can no longer live without their cherished HD resolutions. I mean, we are talking about people in their late twenties (early thirties, perhaps?), who grew up looking at crappy 14 inch, UHF compatible, non-flat screens. Now they go Comic Book Guy on everything that is not cutting edge. That is sad. And dumb.
If the art direction is as beautiful as the gameplay is engaging (as is often the case with Zelda, and Nintendo overall), I’ll play the games and be very happy with them. End of story.
For me getting an LCD wasn’t about going HD. I mean, yeah, I will at some point here, but it was all about getting all my electronics condensed and centralized. My room is quite small and having seperate setups for my computer and consoles was totally out of the question. Solution? Nice LCD tv. Yes, the picture quality is nice, but the convience of having everything in one unit is nicer.
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That said, if I got it, I may as well get the best I can out of it.
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Besides, I’m only twenty-one, so I’m not even sure that I fit your description (or even if your comment was aimed at me.) :)
No, it wasn’t aimed at you. You’re nice. :)
I didn’t allude to anyone who had posted before me, either. I was thinking of people I’ve met in forums and other dreadful corners of the Internet. Man, I have cried because of their insanity.
I hate the term “bi-weekly.” It could mean either “twice a week” or “every two weeks.” “Bi-annual” dishes out similar bouts of confusion, but the option of “biennial” makes things much more convenient.
Bi-weekly: once every week. Semi-weekly: twice a week. The more you know!®
Protip: Biweekly occurs every two weeks. Semiweekly occurs twice a week.
Regardless, what kind of weird Martian job would pay someone twice a week? I don’t even go buy an ATM that often.
Actually the both meanings for biweekly — twice a week, or once every two weeks — are in the dictionary (ref: American Heritage). They’re both right.
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Parish’s definition of “once every week,” however, is as far as I know unique to him.
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As a side note, since the English language is usage defined, easily-confused words like this are often going to end up with both meanings. Because people like to pretend English is a prescribed, they like to claim one meaning is correct — word of mouth (or first grade teacher) isn’t a reliable source. Look it up! In a real dictionary! And even if the dictionary agrees with them, consider using a term that isn’t as potentially-confusing.
I’ve already paid for my copy of Zelda and am excited about it (especially after reading all of your positive impressions), but I think I’ll miss Cute Link.
Ah fudge. 1UP posted a “BIG SPOILER” video on the front page. Now I’ve got to be extra careful for the next four-odd days.
“I think I’ll miss Cute Link.”
He’s not gone, he’s just going to be on DS for the time being.
Very true, Andrew. I may not have a GameCube or Wii, which makes all this Zelda swooning slightly frustrating, but I *do* have a DS, so I’ll at least be able to get a Zelda fix next year with Phantom Hourglass. In fact, it’ll be the first Zelda game I’ve owned since Link to the Past. I look forward to it.
Well, Gamecubes are rather affordable these days… :)
I’ve gone under the rock that is Final Fantasy XII while the internet works ever so hard on trying to spoil Twilight Princess for me. I look here at the Toastyfrog, and I look at the New York Times site (where I still get video game news, generally ‘Sony still fucking up with PS3!’ along with the rest of the depressing things about the world) and occasionally I brave my e-mail. So tricky!