Spirit Tracks Zelda Trains. Zelda Trains? Zelda Trains!

[ihateghirahim]

Spirit Tracks is an unorthodox Zelda game. It tried new things that had never been done before. Is this game a gimmick that attempts to make use of the DS controls to appear creative? Or perhaps it is a really cool and unique idea that deserves to stand beside other Zelda games as a proud member of the series? I'm not sure myself.

 

[A Link In Time]

Yes, Spirit Tracks is a good game and I wouldn't go so far as to say its design is unorthodox. It's very much a Zelda adventure with removed overworld exploration due to its on-rails nature. Controlling two characters at once isn't a novelty-This was done in The Wind Waker with Medli to tag team the Earth Temple-but I appreciated that Nintendo expanded in the concept. It's definitely something I'd like to see return in a future installment. The touch controls don't detract from the experience. I found them very natural. That said, I'd prefer if Nintendo revisited OoT 3D's control scheme for Zelda 3DS.

While some of Nintendo's choices may appear strange, Spirit Tracks is a great game with a memorable story and characters as well as solid dungeon design. It's my second favorite portable Zelda after The Minish Cap.

 

[DarkestLink]

Spirit Tracks is really not that original. PH is original. ST is a game that focused on improving PH.

 

[Ventus]

I would not say Spirit Tracks is a true Zelda game thanks to its removed overworld, but the dungeons and OST still breathe the "Zelda soul" into the pottery. That is to say, they are everything us Zelda fans remember yet still bringing an aura of 'fresh, new paint' to the table.

I would call it a gimmicky reach but the touch controls were not actually the selling point, it was the train part of things. And since the train sections were oh sooo looong (well depending on your tolerance level and amount of business in your life), I'd say they got their gimmick to sell pretty well.

 

[Satsy]

Spirit Tracks is really not that original. PH is original. ST is a game that focused on improving PH.

PH isn't original either, for many reasons. The only thing it brought to the table for the series were the dedicated touch controls. As someone who doesn't like ST I can still agree that it tried to change things up a bit with what limits it had.

But yes I wouldn't have called ST unique. Touch controls were not. Microphone controls were not. Revisiting a dungeon was not. Side quests were not. Upgrades were not. Cannons were not. The story only really brought a twist on the old. Heck tracks aren't exactly new to the series either, we've just been using them for mine carts before now. And though I cannot think of other examples in the series right now, I'm pretty sure escort missions aren't the most welcome of additions either way.

Gotta be honest, the game isn't as unorthodox as is being insinuated.

 

[JuicieJ]

Spirit Tracks is a great game with a memorable story

Memorable, perhaps, but not fleshed-out. The pacing is awful.

 

[DarkestLink]

Memorable, perhaps, but not fleshed-out. The pacing is awful.

...It has the same pacing as Skyward Sword ironically enough.

 

[JuicieJ]

...It has the same pacing as Skyward Sword ironically enough.

No it doesn't. Spirit Tracks literally has nothing to advance the plot forward after the initial visit to the Tower of Spirits until after the third dungeon. Then it doesn't have any plot progression again until Malladus is resurrected. Then AGAIN until the end of the game. Skyward Sword... doesn't do that lol.

 

[DarkestLink]

No it doesn't. Spirit Tracks literally has nothing to advance the plot forward after the initial visit to the Tower of Spirits until after the third dungeon. Then it doesn't have any plot progression again until Malladus is resurrected. Then AGAIN until the end of the game. Skyward Sword... doesn't do that lol.

Skyward Sword doesn't advance the plot until the end of the Fire Sanctuary.

 

[Justac00lguy]

Spirit Tracks isn't really all that unique, the train is just an alternate form of transport to get from point A to point B and so on...

The fact that the transport was in fact a modern form of technology, in terms of the Zelda series anyway, was to an extent sort of unique however the concept was just the same as the sailing and the ship in Phantom Hourglass. If anything the train was significantly worse as it limited true exploration, as you had to follow a set path and it was rather boring with no diversity.

 

[DarkestLink]

Wait...didn't steam boats come out after the train?

 

[Demise_]

Spirit Tracks is really not that original. PH is original. ST is a game that focused on improving PH.

XD PH is a game that focuses on improving TWW. Well, not exactly, since it was on a hand-held and it changed all the controls and even gameplay style, but the main aspects - toon shading, sea sailing, etc. are all there; improvements include a smaller sea, more to do on islands (although fewer islands), etc. Then of course, as I said it's pretty different in some other aspects, but it's far too similar to be considered original. (I haven't played TWW much, but I have seen a lot of gameplay and such.)

As for the poll, I haven't played ST, but I have watched videos and info and walkthroughs etc. From what I've seen, it's not a bad system, but it would need a lot of modifications to be reused. Therefore I voted "It's ok", but I'm not against a similar system - just not too similar.

 

[ihateghirahim]

Factually: the steamboat came out about fifty years before the railroads.

 

[NewJourneysFire]

I would actually like to see more railroads in Zelda games. I was planning on putting railroads in my game until it became unfeasible.

But I would like to see railroads as an alternate, quicker form of transport. If I were to design a Zelda game, I would favour railways as a means of fast travel.

 

[snakeoiltanker]

I couldnt touch these games, i made it half way through the introductions and gave up. I couldnt play with the touch screen, and nothing was really Making me want to keep playing them!