Spoiler Backtracking in Skyward Sword

[dot dynamite]

I had been reading in several places that people didn't really like all the backtracking in SS. You pretty much go back to each region at least three times. What did you guys think?

Personally, I loved it. Backtracking is something you do in Metroid games A LOT, and I'm a big fan of Metroid, so the fact that you had to revisit places didn't bother me at all. I don't really get what's the big deal anyway. In OoT, you also backtrack, AND it's just to the same old places with new enemies in it. At least in SS, there were new areas to explore with the items you had acquired from the Silent Realms and whatnot, which is sort of what goes on in Metroid games. The desert is the best example of this. First it's just the Lanayru Desert, then the Sand Sea, then the Lanayru Gorge. Also, returning to the Skyview Temple with the Mogma Mitts was awesome since it showed that the temple was still relevant.

Maybe Metroid is what got me used to the backtracking, but I hope more Zelda games will be like this. Thoughts?

 

[winterbbytumblr]

I didn't really mind the backtracking, considering we opened a new place every time we went back there.
I mean i didn't LOVE it, because i like exploring new places, but as you said the new elements from the Silent Realms made up for the lack of area.

 

[Andurilsoulreap]

The backtracking was a bit annoying they could have had a few more regions.

 

[Heroine of Time]

I didn't mind it – but perhaps I just wasn't as tuned into it. I found it easy to ignore, mainly because each visit was different.

 

[gamerjamc]

i don´t like it but also i don´t hate it but i could live without it

 

[Emma Leaf]

I liked that the areas got visited again. I thought that was a nice touch as opposed to the "go in, do the dungeon, never return" system. I also liked that during the Song of the Hero quest two regions were completely altered (underwater and weaponless).

 

[link's hat]

i really didnt like it, i wouldnt mind if it was a big Hyrule field that i was riding through a bunch of times. but i dont like going to the same place three different times. it gets boring

 

[Warrior of Fire]

I didn't mind at all because I could tell that there were new areas to explore in each region. And Lanayru opened up more each time you had to return there.

 

[Night Owl]

I personally didn't mind that much as the areas were altered/different each time you return.
I didn't like the fact that I could pretty much flush everything out during the first couple times through.
Of course, some of that is my liking to 100% games and I try to do thorough exploring whenever I can.
Most of the other games were larger in the size of areas leaving me more room to wonder if I'd missed anything.

 

[lotrfanatic]

i didnt mind and i definitely agree with you. I havent played metroid though

 

[MW7]

Honestly I liked the return trips more than the first trips. There was more opportunity for exploring the world once you had more items and had passed through once already. I'm not even a fan of Metroid, but I love backtracking. It reminds me of the great collectathon games Rare made for the N64- Banjo Kazooie, Banjo Tooie, and Donkey Kong 64. I love rediscovering new things in familiar places, and those games had many instances of it. Actually it's also kind of like A Link to the Past and Ocarina of Time because both of those games have you explore places at least twice due to the Dark World and Adult Link world.

 

[theduckguy]

backtracking isnt something thats a major issue unless its constantly used, i use it all the time to get secrets, so that obviously shouldnt be a bothersome thing.

the way skyward sword used "backtracking" is not backtracking. the fools who called it that didnt have a real arguement about why skyward sword was bad, so they called it "backtracking."

 

[Beckira]

Backtracking in Skyward Sword was definitely similar to Metroid, but in the best kind of way. Successfully integrating a backtracking method into Zelda is just a testament to the delicate intricacy of the level design. It's a very hard integration to pull off seamlessly, and I honestly think that Skyward Sword did a very good job with it.

Plus, backtracking to the degree of Skyward Sword or Metroid really makes the game world feel a lot more lush to me. No place on earth is actually as linear as the dungeons in classic Zelda, so including different areas to explore and uncover at later points in the game almost makes it seem more realistic. A little odd, but that's the reason I appreciate it the most. It makes the whole world so much more immersive.

 

[SuperMetroid]

backtracking isnt something thats a major issue unless its constantly used, i use it all the time to get secrets, so that obviously shouldnt be a bothersome thing.

the way skyward sword used "backtracking" is not backtracking. the fools who called it that didnt have a real arguement about why skyward sword was bad, so they called it "backtracking."

What he said. I'm a massive fan of the Metroid series as well (obviously), having played a majority of the games. But I think that SS' 'backtracking' and the typical Metroid backtracking are dissimilar. The evolution of Zelda has made it quite a different game to Metroid. Metroid games don't usually have dungeons as such, but are more like one massive dungeon. Of course, backtracking in puzzle heavy environments is fun, because you're constantly thinking about the puzzle. The newer Zelda games involve dungeons and the overworld. SS' 'backtracking' involved going through parts of the overworld and merely discovering extended areas which were loosely connected to the previous areas. It got a bit tiring after areas were practically the same with a bit of a touch up. Sections such as bringing the water to the Fire Sanctuary. And the revisit of the Skyview temple was particularly frustrating for me. They simply gave the dungeon an extra key accessible only by using the Mogma Mits. When I heard that they were going to implement backtracking through dungeons, I thought there'd be a second map with at least a few more rooms that were interconnected with the main sections of the Skyview temple. Hardly on par with what Metroid has produced.

 

[TwilightDeku]

Backtracking was annoying but it is realistic. I didn't mind going back to certain areas because each time I went back I discovered something new.