Doomed by the Hype?

[Mases]

Twilight Princess has arguably been the most hyped video game of all time. At the very least, the most hyped Nintendo title of all time. Ever since a glimpse of a next gen title back in a tech demo in 2000 (see other thread). To what many hardcore Zelda fans considered a disappointment in the Wind Waker. Then years of new trailer after new trailer. Talks of a game that was over 100 hours long. A delay. A change of console. A launch title. A mirrored version. Completely new controls, etc...

With all of this hype, most Zelda fans were labeling Twilight Princess the best game ever... before it had even come out. Thinking anything short of perfection would be a complete failure for this title. That is the standard that Nintendo and fans had set for this epic quest.

I remember the days before its release, reading reviews around the net and actually getting disappointed when I was seeing reviews of 9.4 or 9.5. Thinking to myself, wait, what? It's not absolutely perfect?

In fact, it is far from perfect. It is a great Zelda game nonetheless, one of the best. Was it doomed to begin with from all the hype that it recieved. There was no way it could possibly fill the role of what was demanded by fans. It just couldn't happen, yet we all expected it to.

Looking back on all this hype, I feel the game did fail expectations, but it was expected to fail expectations. Make sense? If you were a gamer locked in a closet for 5years after the tech demo was released, and then set free to see a brand new Zelda title and play it, you'd absolutely love it. The years of waiting... and waiting... and new twist after new rumor just ruined what truly is an amazing video game.

[Mr. Guffey]

First I wouldn't call TP the most hyped game ever. Halo 3 proved what over hype is. When Nintendo closes 2 NYC streets at midnight to drive a Hummer and perform a 3 ATV ballet for a game release, I'll call it "most hyped". TP won best in show and best game I believe twice in a row from E3 or some expo 2 years before it's release. Which like you said is hype and rather weak.

Rating scales mean ****. Especially the ones that go to 10 or even a 100. Even more so that use decimal ratings. 5 point rating systems are better because it recognizes that scores are broad generalizations. What is the actual difference between a 3.0 and 3.9 on 10 point scale? Obviously the game sucks, all the score is gonna do is be able to communicate to you is that the game is bad. If you want more nuance on the suckage, you have to actually go and read the review. See, in a 10-point scale, everything under 5 just means 'this game isn't worth buying', so there's no real difference. And there's no real nuance to a score difference of two- or three-tenths of a point. 5 point scores at least give sweeping generalizations for you to use as a guide.

Hold on I forgot what else you said that I had a reply to.

Ok. Failed expectations? What were you expecting? TP lived up to everything I wanted. Even if it did fail just a little it was the first on the Wii and could be looked at as just development and getting the feel of the Wii's SDK. OoT on 64 was one of the first games on the console and had horrible camera work. Yet people love it...

I don't know where I'm going now... I have to run to the liquor store before it closes..... so... ok..

[Avenged]

I believe he meant to say most hyped Zelda game, but I still believe OoT was the most hyped due to :

- The fact we're still writing articles and finding new discoveries of the development of OoT.
- It was the very first 3D Zelda.
- It was in the making for about 3 years.
- It was delayed more than any other Zelda title.
- Gold Cartridge.
- Ura Zelda.
- The many changes the game went through before final product.
- The list goes on and on....

[Mases]

I think the decimal system is all relative. I use gamerankings as a basis for reviews of games I haven't played. What they do is combine all the popular review magazines and websites and give a combined score for each game. Sure, from an individual game standpoint, the difference between a 8.3 and a 8.6 isn't much but it's all relative. Gameranking accumlates all review scores so I see it as being fairly accurate to what the critics think. So a game that got an 8.2 is clearaly critically less popular than a agme that got a 8.9.

The same thing with our "Mas & Vic" reviews. We give what seems to be arbitrary numbers when it comes to scores but once we get a really large collection of reviews, you'll be able to compare the games and see which ones we actually think are better or like more than another.

I used the example of scores because with TP, it was being mentioned in the same breat as OOT months and years before it was released. OOT, which has a consensus of being one of, if not thee, best game of all time. So fans of the series were hyping the game to be just as good. Even on gamerankings, OOT has the highest score. TP is still up there, currently ranked at number 30 amongst all games with at least 20reviews with an average score of '94.2' for the wii version, while OOT has a score of '97.6'. Even more, the Wind Waker scores a '94.6'.

So I see the ranking system has being a sign as TP was a great game, one of the best Zelda titles, but quite up to par with the "best ever" as the critics put it as in OOT. I just think the delays, controvery, and everything else that contributed to the hype made the game less than what it truly deserves.


Avenged, its a fair arguement comparing the hype of OOT to TP. I just think in general, the gaming community has expanded greatly since the N64 era. Maybe OOT had a higher percentage of fans hyped for its release, but I think TP had more actual gamers hyped. If that makes sense. Either way, I personally believe TP was the most hyped Zelda/Nintendo title ever. Not quite in the league of Halo 3, but a distant second in the gaming industry.

[xandar]

As far as rating systems go, I think they're all stupid because they're just telling you opinions. That's why I rate out or seventeen. If you're going to be stupid, you might as well be really stupid.

That aside, I don't think the hype did anything to this game at all. The game was made how it was made. If it had not had any hype whatsoever, and had just been released without anyone saying anything, no trailers, interviews, nothing, the people who liked it would still have liked it, and the people who didn't wouldn't have. Hype does nothingn to a game. You like it or you don't. That's just how it works. Sure, this game had a lot of hype, but so did Halo 2 and 3, and just as many fans were let down from those as well. It's all in how fun the game is. Hype doesn't do anything.

[Mases]

I think there are a lot of people that liked Twilight Princess but were also disappointed. Hype won't effect how much you like and enjoy a game, but it changes expectations. I'm sure there are a lot of people that when asked about Twilight Prciness say. Ya it was a really great game, but not as good as it was 'supposed' to be. At least theres a few people I know of who think that way.

[Taakeslottet]

I disagree with you Mases, I think hype can greatly effect the way you enjoy the game. I was expecting 100 hour game play, highly developed characters, sidequests, highly interactive environments and so on.

If I had played the game without any outside news or media I would most likely have enjoyed the game much more than I did.

Hype doomed my expectations. =(

[Avenged]

What game did you play? TP had the sidequests...maybe you just didn't notice since for once most side quests were needed to complete the game, very highly developed characters...Midna being one of them, the environments were much more vast..its a Zelda game, find some secrets in them environments. 100 hours of gameplay...well matters how much of the game you played....by completeing it 100% is over 100 hours, well give or take.

[Taakeslottet]

Tp hardly had sidequests, pay money to make a bridge? Collect poes and bugs? None of them seemed indepth and generally worth doing. I do agree with you on Midna, she was well developed, but the three heros that accompany you with Thelma could have had so much more to them, I was very disappointed.

(I have a theory that the warrior girl was actually living in the Snowpeak mansion)

[Avenged]

What about helping Thelma get through Hyrule Field? Collection of the tears? Magic Armor? Process of obtaining the hidden skills? There is much more, the game just needs to be fully played. Poes, bugs, heart pieces are basic formula of most Zelda games (gold skulltulas, heart pieces, etc etc etc)

[Mases]

I haven't completed Twilight Princess and thus don't know all about the sidequests and all, but from what I've read online and fan reactions, there seems to be quite a bit to do outside of the main quest. 45 Heart Containers, 24 Golden Bugs, and 60 Poe Souls.

Considering the game is so massive to begin with, this is quite the additions. Like Avenged said as well, a lot of the side quests were built into the main portion of the game. Sure there are always those but it seemed there were more of them in this game.

Overal, Zelda titles usually either have a massive gameplay story with decent amount of sidequests, (Ocarina of Time). Then theres the games in the middle like the Wind Waker which has a pretty decent sized quest and story with a good amount of sidequests. Then there are games that have a short main story and gameplay but have endless sidequests. (Majora's Mask).

I think Twilight Princess falls under the Ocarina of Time category, with the massive story and main quest, but with still a decent amount of sidequests. I think this was the least of the games problems.

Also, back to what Taakeslottet and Xandar were saying. I am not saying that Twilight Princess was a bad game by any means. Much like Halo 2 and 3, they were incredibly hyped up, that it was nearly impossible for them to satisfy everybody. A majority of Zelda and Halo fans would say that Twilight Princess, Halo 2, and Halo 3 are all great titles, but that they didn't quite reach what they expected. A game CAN be BOTH disappointing and amazing, as weird as that sounds.

[linkman8]

It doesn't sound weird. I understand exactly what you're saying, but I don't personally feel that way. I was 98% satisfied with Twilight Princess after I finished. I mean, sure, I'd heard it was going to be a great game and all that, but that just made it so I wanted it more.

[Taakeslottet]

I was expecting a Windwalker ammount of Sidequests.

[Mases]

I think I have come to somewhat of a conclusion when it comes to what Zelda fans truly thought about Twilight Princess.

There are three very general groups of Zelda fans.
1) Ones that are the old school Zelda fans that started the series at or before A Link to the Past
2) The Ocarina of Time generation. Fans that OOT was their first game.
3) The modern generation where they started the series with Wind Waker, Minish Cap, or Twilight Princess.

I think the first group of fans, the old school fans, generally view Twilight Princess is a great Zelda game. Definately not the best of all time and not the best Zelda title, but a pretty good one nonetheless.

Then theres the Ocarina of Time gamers. For the most part, they are the quick ones to compare Twilight Princess to Ocarina of Time. Usually ending up bashing what is really a great game in a undeserving way. It almost makes them seem they are defending Ocarina of Time.

Lastly, theres the modern Zelda fans, who almost all really love Twilight Princess, some of which consider it the best game of all time or at to a lesser extent, their favorite game.

Again, these are just my opinions and are very generalized. There are always exceptions to every rule. Do you guys agree with this generalization?

[pjizzile]

It isnt realy perfect. There were some stuff I wished I was able to see.
-no magic
-no mirror sheild
-Spoilerssorta: When in the twilight dungeon instead of getting a light sword. You should have gotten a black suit like the one from melee.

[Avenged]

You mean black tunic, and well it would be only that, a tunic. I was disappointed with the Light Sword only because I was almost certain it would have the beamblade attack with it. Who cares about a mirror shield, but yes the lack of magic was lame.

[pjizzile]

You mean black tunic, and well it would be only that, a tunic. I was disappointed with the Light Sword only because I was almost certain it would have the beamblade attack with it. Who cares about a mirror shield, but yes the lack of magic was lame.


I thought the mirror sheilds on ocarina of time and wind waker were cool. But the one on majoras mask was freaky.

[Charmy]

Twilight Princess was really the first Zelda title I ever played. I wasn't involved in all of the hype and talk and previews, I just bought it when it came out, cause it looked cool. I can see now that with all of the hype before the game came out, many people could easily be dissapointed. I wasn't dissapointed, because I had no reason to be dissapointed. I hadn't played any other Zelda game to compare it to, wasn't involved in all of the talk before the game, didn't get really excited about it, and it ended up being one of my favorite games of all time.

Now that I've played through other zeldas, like Ocarina to name one, I can see where it ranks among other Zeldas. I still give the game a 9.5. It would've gotten a 10 on my rank if it:

-Had more sidequests
-Difficulty was a little higher. The Sky Temple boss was a joke
-Had the magic in it

But even with all of that gone, it's still a great game.

Graphics are a big part of how much I like a game. I give Ocarina of time a 9.5 as well, partly because of the graphics. Ocarina and Twilight princess kind of cover each other's weaknesses, in my opinoin. Ocarina had the higher difficulty level, the sidequests, and the magic, but Twilight Princess had the graphics, the character design, and the beauty of Hyrule. I think both games are great, but neither game is perfect. Just my opinion.

[Mases]

Like I mentioned in my last post within this thread, with the '3 types of gamers', I think Charmy is a perfect example of that.

He's a younger gamer who is relatively new to the Legend of Zelda series. Twilight Princess was his first Zelda title that he ever played, so he naturally fell in love with the beuty of the graphics. He then went on to play Ocarina of Time, loved the game, but realized the graphics lacked a bit.

I think if the roles were reversed, and he played Ocarina of Time first, (of which he believed to have the better sidequests and a certain magic about the game), he would be classified in 2nd group of gamers I mentioned. Those that entered the Zelda world with Ocarina of Time.

I think those gamers, enjoy graphics, but realize it isn't the defining factor when it comes to Zelda games. Of course it is always a good addition, and contributed to part of the hype of the game. What fans really wanted was a game that had the magic of Ocarina of Time, but looked like Twilight Princess. Repeating the magic that made OoT so great is almost near impossible. Thus the game was destined to be a failure in the minds of the generation that started with OoT. Of course the word failure is all relative. It would still be an amazing game, just not what they were hyping it up to be.

[SolidLinkX]

The game didn't live up to its expectations but it is my favorite Zelda game nonetheless :)

[El Bagu]

I did not experience the hype. Was not that in to zelda back then. But I must say that it is a marvelous game.

[blackice_cc]

I only slightly experienced the hype, but yes, I thought it was like the game to end all games from the rumors. I wasn't expecting it to be perfect, so it wasn't a big letdown when I finally got it. I thought that the biggest issue was that it was too easy, even though it was pretty long. Up the difficulty a bit, or at least ad a difficulty option (I know, that's terribly un-Zelda-ish, but it would have been nice) and it could have been an 80 hour + game.

[Mases]

It really seems that they are somewhat learning from there mistake, or at least in my opinion. I think it was a flaw to announce and show the game, and then delay it for so long. It was first shown at E3 2004, but yet didn't release until the very end of 2006, almost 2007. That is 2.5 years after its announcement.

With the next Wii Zelda title, I think it should definitely be out within the next 2.5 years, but yet it hasn't really been revealed. I think that they don't want to create this hype for the title, since it just sets up for failure.

Although the last time I had posted in this thread I had yet to beat the game. After finally completing it... several times now, and now writing my own guide for thing, I do think it was over hyped. Calling it the 'true successor' to Ocarina of Time... was a slap in the face to The Wind Waker. What is that supposed to mean? That Wind Waker was NOT a good successor? Why, because it was actually something new and original? I don't get that quote and all it means to me, is that Nintendo was trying to produce hype for a game, but playing the Ocarina of Time card out of their deck... I guess it worked.

[Josh]

I think that two things killed TP.

1. The Fan boy status for OoT. Which is a LOT of people, who never give up OoT.

2. The Hype. I think that they should have left it with Halo 3. Because what I saw, it was insanely over hyped, but people still loved it. I don't think that they should have done it for TP, it just wasn't that perfect game. It was still a great game, but it did have a bunch of flaws.



Am I restating anyone here?

[Mike Pothier]

As someone who survived the wait for Ocarina of Time and ate up every scrap of news during that time, I can personally say that the hype for Twilight Princess doesn't even begin to compare to the hype for OoT. Its not even in the same ballpark.