Skyward Sword: The Worst 3D Zelda Title

[Crash]

I agree, Portal is an awesome game. But with Skyward Sword, the surface could've easily been inhabited, the fact that nobody survived wasn't a crucial plot point - and people could've easily left Skyloft between the time of the monsters that took over the surface and the time of Link. That's easily fixed.

I'm sorry... that was a crucial plot point... They mentioned several times that the loftwings won't pass through the cloud barrier and the only reason even Link went under the barrier was to look for Zelda, guaranteed if she wasn't lost he wouldn't have went below the clouds either. Also, couple the fact that not everyone has a sailcloth and so if they were to fall through the barrier, splat... When you take a population and remove it and seclude it, it'll remain somewhat small... and I'm pretty sure fighting off a horde of blood-thirsty monsters would kill off a vast majority of any population.

I think the main problem you're having with this is that you're trying to compare this game with all the others... Trying to compare one game with another, even from the same franchise is going to disappoint you, plain and simple. There are things that this game were meant to do that the others weren't. In Majora's Mask it was the sidequest aspect. OoT was the brand new combat and 3d system. WW focused a little more on exploration with the large world and sailing. Twilight Princess was based even more on combat and the primal aspect of the world. SS is motion control. They all have their strong points that only these games are supposed to really have as their feats. Trying to compare SS with all of them when it's not all of them is folly. Play the game for what it is, not what it's compared to and I'm sure you'll see a difference. It's like going to watch a movie based on a book. Don't go in expecting it to be like the book or you WILL be disappointed, instead go watch it as a movie as itself and you'll often find that you'll get different reactions.

 

[4815162342]

I'm sorry... that was a crucial plot point... They mentioned several times that the loftwings won't pass through the cloud barrier and the only reason even Link went under the barrier was to look for Zelda, guaranteed if she wasn't lost he wouldn't have went below the clouds either. Also, couple the fact that not everyone has a sailcloth and so if they were to fall through the barrier, splat... When you take a population and remove it and seclude it, it'll remain somewhat small... and I'm pretty sure fighting off a horde of blood-thirsty monsters would kill off a vast majority of any population.

You do bring up some excellent points, but I was really hoping for a human civilization beneath the clouds. As much as the plot led me to believe that there wasn't going to be a society, I kept on telling myself "But it's still possible... there's just gotta be people down here somewhere..."

I think the main problem you're having with this is that you're trying to compare this game with all the others... Trying to compare one game with another, even from the same franchise is going to disappoint you, plain and simple. There are things that this game were meant to do that the others weren't. In Majora's Mask it was the sidequest aspect. OoT was the brand new combat and 3d system. WW focused a little more on exploration with the large world and sailing. Twilight Princess was based even more on combat and the primal aspect of the world. SS is motion control. They all have their strong points that only these games are supposed to really have as their feats. Trying to compare SS with all of them when it's not all of them is folly. Play the game for what it is, not what it's compared to and I'm sure you'll see a difference. It's like going to watch a movie based on a book. Don't go in expecting it to be like the book or you WILL be disappointed, instead go watch it as a movie as itself and you'll often find that you'll get different reactions.

I disagree with you here... I think the only way for progress in a series is to compare it to previous installments. I did that for other games I played - Compared Wind Waker to Twilight Princess, Ocarina of Time to Wind Waker, Majora's Mask to Ocarina of Time, and now Skyward Sword to Majora's Mask. And this is really the only time that I've been disappointed. Nintendo has the ability to improve. I just don't believe they showed it very well with this installment.

 

[LinkxZelda]

The only two complaints I have with SS is that you can't run and swing your sword and the sky is kinda empty. I care more about the characters in SS than MM, OoT and TP. If you compare the NPC's from SS to MM I think you see more character development in SS's NPC's more than MM's. The dungeons in SS are, to me, more fun than MM's. SS, to me, is an overall better game than MM and the others. I would not call it the worst 3D Zelda title but that is just me.

I found SS more enjoyable to play than the other 3D Zelda games.

And in the intro to SS it said that Hylia gathered the remaining humans and sent them skyward that told me that there would be no humans on the ground. So I wasn't disappointing about not finding humans on the ground I didn't expect to anyway.

The only reason it did not beat MM as my favorite game was that I grew up playing MM and not SS. It was my first Zelda game and I highly doubt any Zelda game will take that spot away from MM.

 

[4815162342]

The only two complaints I have with SS is that you can't run and swing your sword and the sky is kinda empty. I care more about the characters in SS than MM, OoT and TP. If you compare the NPC's from SS to MM I think you see more character development in SS's NPC's more than MM's. The dungeons in SS are, to me, more fun than MM's. SS, to me, is an overall better game than MM and the others. I would not call it the worst 3D Zelda title but that is just me.

I found SS more enjoyable to play than the other 3D Zelda games.

And in the intro to SS it said that Hylia gathered the remaining humans and sent them skyward that told me that there would be no humans on the ground. So I wasn't disappointing about not finding humans on the ground I didn't expect to anyway.

The only reason it did not beat MM as my favorite game was that I grew up playing MM and not SS. It was my first Zelda game and I highly doubt any Zelda game will take that spot away from MM.

I completely understand where you're coming from. Twilight Princess will always have a special place in my heart as it was the first Zelda game I played, even though I can clearly see it's flaws. Despite that, my favorite game is Majora's Mask.

Regardless, I'm going to need to play Skyward Sword again, as my opinion of the game varied greatly from that of many others.

 

[Ventus]

On your second playthrough, I highly recommend you pay attention to every little detail, every single plot twist and all the dialogue. Re-read every sentence two to three times and once you're completely done with the game (have gotten everything besides 99 everything – that's a Perfecter challenge and unneeded), come back and judge the game. If you still have a different opinion, that's because you truly do not love the game as others do. I'm much the same; SS has many flaws to me that others view as nitpicks (IDK the difference).

 

[JuicieJ]

I'm much the same; SS has many flaws to me that others view as nitpicks (IDK the difference).

Well, the thing is, the flaws in Skyward Sword are nitpicks. There's absolutely nothing negative about the game that affects its overall rating. They're all either personal disappointments or little quirks about the controls or new aspects that have been introduced. They took their time making this game and actually made it work to near perfection. This is why I've said I think Skyward Sword will be the Oblivion of the Zelda series. Zelda WiiU will fix all of those silly little quirks and perfect what Skyward Sword started.

 

[JohnFC]

Funny, because Clocktown gave you exactly nothing to do, unless you like pointless sidequests with no incentive to complete them. Yeah...sign me up...-.-

Pretty sure you just invalidated everything you've said up to this point.

 

[Ventus]

Pretty sure you just invalidated everything you've said up to this point.

No he didn't; he's just a proud supporter of Skyward Sword. Some people don't take kindly into the humanity presented in Majora's Mask, they just don't like certain aspects of the game and in turn makes them disagree with and vehemently berate MM as a whole , there's nothing truly wrong with that as it's their opinion. Others are the opposite. Some NPCs in Clocktown really were dry. However, if you take every single NPC in CT and combine them as a whole, I think you'll find Clocky to be much better than Skyloft as far as characters go.

 

[Majora's Cat]

Seems like the conversation is going in circles here. I'm just going to say that no matter how one tries to argue his/her case that Skyward Sword is either a disappointment of the opposite of one, no one's opinions is going to be heavily influenced.

Well, the thing is, the flaws in Skyward Sword are nitpicks. There's absolutely nothing negative about the game that affects its overall rating. They're all either personal disappointments or little quirks about the controls or new aspects that have been introduced. They took their time making this game and actually made it work to near perfection. This is why I've said I think Skyward Sword will be the Oblivion of the Zelda series. Zelda WiiU will fix all of those silly little quirks and perfect what Skyward Sword started.

Exactly. None of Skyward Sword's flaws really obstructs the player's enjoyment of the game. None of these things are significant enough to really impact your opinion of the game. It just makes me believe that all who criticize Skyward Sword are specifically trying to extirpate its problems and then go on a tangent about them.

Critics are probably trying to attract more viewers on their websites and review videos by adding to Skyward Sword's fall from grace. I think that it's pathetic that some of the issues pointed out in Skyward Sword by fans of the series and critics are much more noticeable in other Zelda games. SS is able to eliminate lots of previous Zelda games' errors and is paving a path of its own by introducing new mechanics to the franchise.

That being said, there's obviously going to be gamers who don't like these new mecahnics are much as others. Like Majora's Mask, I believe that gamers will be able to appreciate SS more when the precedents the game has set become more standard in the series - and trust me, they will.

 

[LinkxZelda]

No he didn't; he's just a proud supporter of Skyward Sword. Some people don't take kindly into the humanity presented in Majora's Mask, they just don't like certain aspects of the game and in turn makes them disagree with and vehemently berate MM as a whole , there's nothing truly wrong with that as it's their opinion. Others are the opposite. Some NPCs in Clocktown really were dry. However, if you take every single NPC in CT and combine them as a whole, I think you'll find Clocky to be much better than Skyloft as far as characters go.

Every NPC in Clocktown seemed dry to me while in SS they did not.

But that is my opinion. I like MM but I don't think any NPC in Clock Town made me want to help them.

 

[JuicieJ]

That being said, there's obviously going to be gamers who don't like these new mecahnics are much as others. Like Majora's Mask, I believe that gamers will be able to appreciate SS more when the precedents the game has set become more standard in the series - and trust me, they will.

Of course they will be. This is in major swing with WW right now, namely with the art style. It's gonna happen with TP at some point, too, just probably not as much. With SS, though, it might be bigger than MM's rise of popularity far after its time.

 

[Ventus]

That is actually what is confusing me; if someone is disappointed with the game, why shouldn't they feel as if the game has weak points and therefore detracts from the ability to enjoy the game? I mean, that IS what a review is about, the reviewer in question's thoughts of the game? So, for example, game A has X, Y and Z features and player A gives game A a 10/10. Game B comes along with B, X and Y features; Player A gives game B a 7/10 due to lack of feature Z. Isn't that fair, in a sorta kinda way? Or, say Game B has features X,Y and Z but has less emphasis on those three features and garners a 9/10 from player A. Because of missing/less emphasized features, player A couldn't enjoy the 9/10 game as he did the 10/10 game. That makes a little bit of sense to me (though a lot of nonsense has seeped in, admittedly).

To put that into perspective, I absolutely hate how SS has only a few characters that mean much to the plot, and I especially hate Zelda despite her involvement in the plot. Because of that, I did not enjoy SS all that much. That makes sense, right?

 

[JuicieJ]

That is actually what is confusing me; if someone is disappointed with the game, why shouldn't they feel as if the game has weak points and therefore detracts from the ability to enjoy the game? I mean, that IS what a review is about, the reviewer in question's thoughts of the game? So, for example, game A has X, Y and Z features and player A gives game A a 10/10. Game B comes along with B, X and Y features; Player A gives game B a 7/10 due to lack of feature Z. Isn't that fair, in a sorta kinda way? Or, say Game B has features X,Y and Z but has less emphasis on those three features and garners a 9/10 from player A. Because of missing/less emphasized features, player A couldn't enjoy the 9/10 game as he did the 10/10 game. That makes a little bit of sense to me (though a lot of nonsense has seeped in, admittedly).

To put that into perspective, I absolutely hate how SS has only a few characters that mean much to the plot, and I especially hate Zelda despite her involvement in the plot. Because of that, I did not enjoy SS all that much. That makes sense, right?

Yes, personal disappointments do play into people enjoying a game. I had a few with the story, and I gotta admit, if I hadn't speculated so much on SS's story, I'd have loved it quite a bit more than I do. But I do think SS is the best regardless. Maybe that's because I know how to look past personal disappointments and what actually makes a game good.

 

[everettkagan]

I think that if u hate skyward sword, thats fine, i have no prob with that, but i just want to state a few flaws with your reasoning. One, Skyloft is HUGE compared to castle town in oot, clock town in mm, and probably a bit bigger than castle town in TP. Two, i think that the dungeon designs are simpler, sure, but it is easier because u cant get lost so easy, which is soooo frustrating! three: I think that when u posted this, u knew that people were going to say things like this, so why did u do it? to me, it just seems annoying.

 

[Ventus]

Yes, personal disappointments do play into people enjoying a game. I had a few with the story, and I gotta admit, if I hadn't speculated so much on SS's story, I'd have loved it quite a bit more than I do. But I do think SS is the best regardless. Maybe that's because I know how to look past personal disappointments and what actually makes a game good.

That's what just makes my mind explode into a million pieces. Good is dependent on the beholder (like beauty). So, say a game has this aspect of it. I wouldn't say it is good if I do not like it, right? If I'm disappointed in something, it isn't good to me therefore the game has some bad aspects and it is not good. Augh, never mind, I can't think of how to properly word it.

I think that if u hate skyward sword, thats fine, i have no prob with that, but i just want to state a few flaws with your reasoning. One, Skyloft is HUGE compared to castle town in oot, clock town in mm, and probably a bit bigger than castle town in TP. Two, i think that the dungeon designs are simpler, sure, but it is easier because u cant get lost so easy, which is soooo frustrating! three: I think that when u posted this, u knew that people were going to say things like this, so why did u do it? to me, it just seems annoying.

1) Skyloft is HUGE, yes, but it has very little substance. It's better IMO than Market (OoT) and Castle Town (TP), but nowhere near as good as ClockTown.
2) That's the problem there, dungeons are simpler and easier, so it's less enjoyable to some players.
3) ZD is a forum, where you discuss stuffs lol. I even got a crummy article posted that was all about ways Skyward Sword could have messed up – I knew it'd get SOME negative reception but wasn't entirely expecting all that it did get.