• Welcome to ZD Forums! You must create an account and log in to see and participate in the Shoutbox chat on this main index page.

Flying after Skyward Sword

OOT/MM/TP did the horseback gambit.

WW did sailing and SS did flying.

We had sailing to a degree in SS too but it seems that the closest we're gonna get to flying again (as far as we know) in ZeldaU will be floating/gliding with the sail cloth-come-deku leaf.

After the motion based flight of SS and knowing that ZeldaU has both analogue and gyro control, would you like to have a way to fly around the overworld or did Skyward Sword ruin the idea of flight in Zelda?
 

MW7

Joined
Jun 22, 2011
Location
Ohio
I didn't particularly like flying around the overworld, but I think the basic mechanics of it were executed well. I didn't like how everything was so spread out to make it seem like a huge area (I had the exact same complaint about Wind Waker's sea). In a different context, I definitely could see myself enjoying flight in Zelda more than I did in Skyward Sword. It was a really cool idea, but I think I would have liked it more if things were closer together, you could fly faster, or some combination of both.
 
Joined
Oct 14, 2013
Location
Australia
Flight and sailing are not the same as the horse. The horse was optional everywhere apart from the few timed tasks. You could just hot foot it everywhere and never use the horse. Actually you can beat OOT without even getting the horse. Just use the longshot to get into Gerudo Valley. Flying and sailing were complulsary. Without both you can not visit all the islands in the sky or water in SS and WW.

I think forced flying like in SS should not exist in ZeldaU. I think letting Link hot foot it everywhere is the best way to go. Force the players to enjoy all the scenery that the developers put time and effort into. Just have warp songs and be done with it.
 

Dio

~ It's me, Dio!~
Joined
Jul 6, 2011
Location
England
Gender
Absolute unit
Ss's flying sucked because the sky sucked, it was empty and there was nothing to do there. Flying itself could have been a fun method of travel if the sky actually had some decent islands in it. In Zelda U if there is flying it should be mission specific rather than a method you can opt for anytime. If flying were something you could just do when you please it would take away the ground exploration element which is going to be an important part of Zelda U.
 
Joined
Aug 28, 2015
Better executed, flying around could be a lot of fun. I like flying in Skyward Sword, but there's not much to do. I'm just glad its not as slow as Wind Waker. I would say flying around with analog controls in Zelda Wii U could be a lot of fun.

I would like to see a water/sky dungeon in Zelda Wii U where clouds, precipitation, and condensation are used.
 

SinkingBadges

The Quiet Man
It'd be great if it was basically like the horse but also let you travel vertically. If they ever go with a more vertical overworld it would be a nice means of cutting unnecessary walking time, especially if the world is seamless. Warps could also do that, but I have a somewhat unsubstantiated feeling that past a certain point, warp travel starts becoming a crutch for both the player and the level designers; more reasonably, it would open the possibility of using maps for more than one interesting challenge, maybe even a flying related one if it's robust enough.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Dec 14, 2008
Location
Louisiana, USA
I actually think flying would have been pretty great if motion controls hadn't been thrust upon it in the most intrusive way possible. It wouldn't have solved any of the problems with SS's "overworld" at all, but at least it wouldn't have given me hand cramps by just going from point A to point B.

If it's going to be used in the future, I'll echo the notion that it should be used as the "fast-travel" mechanic for the game, albeit a bit more interactive. Make it clearly superior to the horse or whatever in speed and usefulness for getting to major locations, but define its boundaries and limits in a way that it doesn't become a transportation crutch that the player uses above all else (like you can't use it to find a hidden cave or go off the main path/route). Having some variety and choice would go a long way towards making the world more believable and rich, on top of just giving the player more choice and control in general. After SS's "fly or nothing' approach and WW's "sail or nothing" approach, this would really be a breath of fresh air.
 

Linkmaster30000

Aim for the knee
Joined
Nov 21, 2015
Location
Minnesota, USA
I didn't mind the flying in SS, even the motion controls. I just hated how empty the sky was. There were a couple of enemies on rocks that shot rocks and those rocks always missed, so there was no real adventure. TP did a really good job of having lots of overworld enemies, but you could also use a lot of your tools on horseback. If they allowed that in the sky, I'd be open to flying again.

With that said, I don't think flying can ever be as good as the ground or the sea. The ground and the sea both have the option to have hidden secrets that are hidden in sealed-off (or invisible) caves or under leagues upon leagues of water. I can't imagine the sky would allow you to really feel that sense of adventure, since you'd have to see where you can land, and at that point it becomes ground.

What I'd really like is more underwater exploration, like with the Zora Tunic and a dolphin or something. That would give the same kind of movement as the sky did while allowing for some real exploration.
 

Lord_Cathaseigh

Like a sir.
Joined
Apr 21, 2012
I think honestly that flying could definitely be implemented better in future installments. What make Zelda, "Zelda", to me is having this real feeling of wonder and excitement, this feeling of building yourself up and getting to adventure through it better and better.

I don't think that all areas should be accessible by Loftwing. (That's just what I'm going go with.) I do however think they should be able to implemented impeccably well.

I want to be able to get a running start, jump on my loftwing and take off, without feeling like I'm not Link. It should be that exact feeling you get when you mount Epona in TP with sword in hand and slash an enemy two feet in front of you as you speed up. You should have that connection of bird and man, where your bird takes you exactly where you wanna go and you tell it exactly what you want to do.
 

Lord_Cathaseigh

Like a sir.
Joined
Apr 21, 2012
If flying came back, I'd really love to see the ways they could be used as an extension of you. You could upgrade it with bombs and teach it to drop them on hordes of enemies from above, have your loftwing hurl them in front of you to clear cliff side openings or release lava flows, shoot arrows from it (bomb arrows anyone?), and use it for advanced aerial maneuvers. You'd have access to your full arsenal, so you could zoom past some Keese or rock crystal formation hanging over a cliff and strike them as you fly by, or even hookshot the side of a mountainside village as you go by.

Some challenges afforded to you by having to fly to some areas could take the form of inclement weather, icy conditions, hot steam rising from lava flows, water flowing off the side of a cliff.

Altogether I think it could make the Zelda formula of traveling a lot more organic. It all depends on how it's implemented though.
 
Joined
Aug 28, 2015
What I'd really like is more underwater exploration, like with the Zora Tunic and a dolphin or something. That would give the same kind of movement as the sky did while allowing for some real exploration.
It would be cool if a whole Zelda game were based off of that. Underwater is one region not too explored (You have the Water/Lakebed Temples, but still) in Zelda, or IRL. If done right, it could be a really interesting game.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Top Bottom