New Zelda games: less plot, please.

[DarkDragoonX]

Yes, I know what you're thinking, "'Too much story'? Are you nuts?" Well, just think about it. In the first Zelda game, there was hardly any story at all. In fact, the entire story is summed up if you wait a while at the title screen.

Z2 and LTtP had SOME story, but it was kept to a minimum. In those games, the story was the last thing on your mind... what you were focusing on was where to find that new item, or if that boulder you just passed has a secret under it.

OoT is where things start to crumble. In the previous games, you always had to find and talk to a few select people, and they would give you hints as to where you should go. In OoT, however, they don't give you hints... thay outright tell you EXACTLY what you should be doing. The only thing left to "explore" are the minor secrets... but in the first game, even the next level you had to find was, in many cases, a secret. It was that feeling of action, exploration, and the joy of solving a fiendish riddle, all at the same time, that made the first game great. The later games didn't adhere to it as well, but they still had it.

Zelda games are starting to fall into the "hold down the button and wait for the next cutscene" routine. OoT moved the game forward via the plot, whereas The first few games moved the game forward via the accquisition of new items.

The new Zelda games aren't bad, of course, but until they stop trying to cinamatize the series, Zelda will never, EVER be as good as it was.

[mikeron]

I agree, but I don't think it's the story that's the problem. Like you said, in Z3, etc., the story took a back seat to exploration, and that kicked ass. I think the problem with the newer zelda games is that by going 3D, they have removed a great deal of your field of vision. Because of this, they focus more on exploring specific locations than on roving the map. You win some, you lose some.

[vegeta1215]

I couldn't agree with you more DDX. That is one factor that makes Zelda and Zelda II my favorite Zelda games.

Then again, the gaming community has changed alot and people expect more from games nowadays then back in the late 80s when the NES was the thing to have. These people are goofy of course, but still.

[Axel]

there's a fine middle ground between telling you exactly what to do, and not giving a clue.
you have to provide some clue where to go, or else you'll do like I did my first time playing FF1, go someplace right off you weren't supposed to until much later. but if you hold their hand, it loses interest real fast.

I found that OoT felt alot more like a Zelda game when you're kid link, did you?

[Ganonator]

Originally posted by Axel
I found that OoT felt alot more like a Zelda game when you're kid link, did you?

absoultely, although I wasn't a fan of waitinf for the Deku tree to tell me where to go next.

The series has crumbled a bit. I just hope WW will not have directional plot elements.

[MottZilla]

That's another thing. The world in OoT while big, it was very limited and infact small and boring. Hyrule field is one big flat boring field. Majora's field was about the same with a few landmarks... Hardly all that interesting.

[vegeta1215]

Originally posted by Axel
I found that OoT felt alot more like a Zelda game when you're kid link, did you?

That's exactly what I think too! I think without a doubt that the Deku Tree and Dodongo's Cavern dungeons were the most thought out and well made dungeons in OoT which have more of a "Zelda" feel than any other parts of the game.

[Aliem]

I agree. OoT and MM WERE a little bad. And, if you think about it, OoT was just a revamped version of LttP, with less temples. I read that WW is supposed to be pretty much one big novel.

[vegeta1215]

Yeah, OoT is just like LTTP in my opinion. But, I must say MM was a much better game. I just really liked the clock system and Clock Town was so cool. I love just walking around through it. (though I would've liked 2 more dungeons, the ones in MM were pretty good)

[Ian]

I liked it when you were a kid, but once you got to adult, people said things like "The next medalion is hidden deep within the depths of fire" or something like that, but even that was a bit obvious. Though, there were a few parts that you had to figure out for yourself, they were at a minimum. I hope you get more freedom in WW (and we probably will since you travel from island to island) and hopefully it is harder than the latest games (nintendo's become soft when it comes to hardness in games, some games are too easy)

[Axel]

hard? you want impossible? try Jedi Knight 2: Outcast. the levels aren't hard, but the controls are impossible!

I meant to get MM because OoT was so fun as a kid, any suggestions?