The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

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The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Thelegendofzelda-TP-logo.svg
Original title ゼ ル ダ の 伝 説 ト ワ イ ラ イ ト プ リ ン セ ス
transcription Zeruda no Densetsu: Towairaito Purinsesu
Studio
Publisher Nintendo
Senior Developer
  • Shigeru Miyamoto (producer)
  • Eiji Aonuma (producer, director)
  • Tōru Minegishi, Asuka Ohta, Koji Kondo (composers)
    		•
    Erstveröffent-
    lichung    		 Wii: November 19, 2006 December 2, 2006 December 8, 2006 NGC: December 2, 2006 December 11, 2006 December 15, 2006
    North AmericaNorth America
    JapanJapan
    European UnionEuropean Union

    JapanJapan
    North AmericaNorth America
    European UnionEuropean Union
    platform Wii , GameCube
    genre Action adventure
    Subject Fantasy
    Game mode Single player
    medium 1 DVD (Wii), MiniDVD (NGC)
    language German, English, Japanese (and others)
    Age rating
    USK released from 12
    PEGI recommended for ages 12+
    PEGI content
    rating
    Game contains violence

    The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess ( Jap. ゼルダの伝説トワイライトプリンセス, Zeruda no Densetsu: Towairaito Purinsesu , literally "The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess") is a video game of the Japanese gaming and console manufacturer Nintendo , which after a long development phase in Europe was released on December 8, 2006 as one of the first games for Nintendo's then new Wii console. In the United States it was released on November 21, 2006, in Japan on December 2, 2006. The version for the Nintendo GameCube hit stores in Europe on December 15, 2006. The Wii version sold over 7.26 million times worldwide (as of March 2018), while the Gamecube version - despite the initially high sales figures - 1.56 million times (as of October 2009).

    On March 4, 2016, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD, a new HD version for the Wii U home console, was released .

    action

    The game begins with the appearance of the main character named Link - the name can be freely chosen in the game - who works as a goatherd in a small village called Ordon. In addition to rounding up the goats and small relief services, Link enjoys the tranquility and seclusion of the small village when his friend, the swordsman Moe, instructs him to bring a sword forged by Moe to the royal court at Hyrule Castle. However, Link faces some problems as the children run into the forest to hunt a monkey. While searching for Taro , one of the children, Link meets Coro, the administrator of the Phirone area . Link receives one of the first important items from him.

    Before Link can carry out the job, he is knocked down by monsters, accompanied by King Bulblin, who kidnap both the mayor's daughter and the other children from the village. After Link regains consciousness, he tries to track down the culprits and finally stands in front of a huge, fluorescent wall - the entrance to the realm of shadows. Unexpectedly, he is drawn into the realm of shadows in a flash. There Link goes through a strange metamorphosis and takes the form of a wolf. He is captured and taken to Hyrule Castle. In the dungeon there, he meets an unusual, floating creature named Midna, with whose help he manages to escape from the dungeon.

    Link and Midna then meet Princess Zelda, who tells how Hyrule's strange transformation came about. The self-proclaimed king of the shadow world, Zanto, gave them the choice of capitulating and handing Hyrule over to the shadow or abandoning all residents of Zanto's anger and thus certain death. Zelda surrendered and Hyrule fell into the shadows where humans only exist as ghostly beings. Eaten by guilt, Zelda hides in a tower and sent Midna out to do something. This found Link, who in the shadows does not turn into a ghost, but "only" into a wolf and recognized him as the chosen one who had the power to save Hyrule (and to meet Midna's own wishes). Midna and Link flee from Hyrule Castle. The shadow world has now extended almost to the village of Ordon. At a healing spring near the village, Link meets the light spirit Latoan, who tells him about the other light spirits who watch over Hyrule. Latoan reports that Zanto took the light from them in order to throw their areas into shadow.

    Left's first “correct” task is to help the other three light spirits (Phirone, Eldin and Ranelle) back onto the screen. In the respective regions, shadow beetles must first be found and eliminated in order to fill a magical artifact called the "Crucible of Light". Link then has to explore a labyrinth . The first dungeon is the Phirone Forest Shrine, which is located in a dense and uninhabited forest. There he meets the monkey that Taro was chasing at the beginning of the game. He helps Link, but he has to help the monkey to free the other animals and to fight against the "boss of the monkeys" Ook. This ultimately helps Link in the fight against the shrine's final boss. The second dungeon is hidden in Death Mountain, a large volcano and home of the Gorons. They are a race of creatures best known as rock golems. Link helps the Gorons to free their chief Grogor. The third dungeon is a shrine that lies deep beneath Lake Hylia, the largest lake in Hyrule. He is guarded by the Zoras, a people of fish people. Midna, who accompanies Link, is looking for a weapon with which she can destroy Zanto and save her shadowy kingdom.

    Link frees the light spirits and also fights his way through the labyrinths, he also finds the kidnapped children of Ordon in the village of Kakariko in the safe care of priest Leonard, so that all the shadow crystals that could be looted in the dungeons are in Midna's hands. But as soon as the two reappear at the source of Ranelle, Zanto appears and banishes the spirit of light back into the shadows. Link becomes a wolf again and has a night crystal implanted in his head, which means he will remain a wolf for the rest of his life. Zanto tries to get Midna on his side, but Midna refuses. Therefore, Zanto brings the spirit of light Ranelle back to life; this rushes on Midna, who suffers greatly from his power. Zanto disappears again and Midna is so weakened that she is close to death. Link makes his way to Hyrule Castle again to visit Princess Zelda. This sacrifices all of its strength and transfers it to Midna. She gives Midna and Link the hint that the only way to Link's old figure is the fabulous master sword .

    Link finally finds the sword after various riddles, trials and tribulations in the Holy Grove, an ancient forest in the Phirone area. Midna finally pours pure wine for Link and explains that the only way to save Hyrule and stop Zanto is through the so-called shadow mirror - an ancient artifact that the gods of Hyrule once left as the only connection between the shadowy realm and Hyrule. Link learns that this mirror is in the Gerudo Desert and sets off for the desert castle. When Midna and Link finally arrive in the mirror chamber, they discover that Zanto has already broken the mirror into four pieces. His intention was to destroy the mirror, which only the true ruler of the Shadow Realm can do. One of the four shards is still in place, but there is no trace of the other three. From the wise men who watch over the mirror as luminous, spirit-like beings, there is a hint that Zanto's power is said to have come from the “prince of thieves”, Ganondorf. The wise men banished him to the realm of the shadows as punishment for trying to acquire the Triforce. During the execution, the chained Ganondorf was impaled with a white long sword before being sent to the other side. But since he still carried the Triforce of Power within himself, he survived this injury unscathed, tore himself from his chains and killed one of the wise men. While he was still pulling out the sword that had pierced his heart, the wise men were able to banish him to the realm of shadows at the last moment.

    After long journeys, Link and Midna finally find both the mirror fragments, which were hidden in three other dungeons (in the snow mountains, Citadel of Time and Kumula), as well as the way into the realm of shadows. At the end of the trip, Zanto is waiting, about whom one learns that he actually would have become king, but was passed over in the line of succession because his eyes supposedly reflected an enormous lust for power. In addition, the secret of Midna is revealed - she is the Twilight Princess , who was brought into her present form by Zanto, and thus actually the true ruler of the realm of shadows. Ultimately, Zanto Link also has to admit defeat and starts his last trip to Hyrule.

    In the meantime it turns out that Ganondorf was behind the whole story from the beginning. It was he who surrounded the castle of Hyrule with a magical barrier. With the help of Midna, who turns into a giant slime creature thanks to the shadow crystals, the barrier can be penetrated, making it possible for her and Link to penetrate into the castle. After they have reached the throne room, the fight against Ganondorf follows. With the combined forces of Link, Zelda, Midna and Link's horse Epona - the name can be chosen freely in the game - Ganondorf is finally defeated.

    This breaks Zanto's curse and Midna regains her old form. She then leaves the light world of Hyrule and destroys the connection between the two worlds with a tear. Link and Epona return to Ordon. While the credits are running, Link is shown riding with Epona from Ordon looking for new adventures.

    Gameplay

    Twilight Princess is an action-adventure game that focuses on exploring regions and collecting objects. The basic gameplay from the 3D Zelda games is retained (actions such as walking, running, attacking, defending and automatically jumping from ledges). The game offers several dungeons, large closed areas in which the protagonist Link fights against enemies, collects objects and solves puzzles in order to get to the final boss. Left main weapons are shield and sword. Other weapons commonly used are a bow and arrow, a boomerang, high-explosive bombs, and a grappling hook. To make fighting enemies easier, there is a "lock-on" mechanism that allows you to target an enemy while avoiding them. This technique is triggered by the Z button on the Wii version and the L button on the GameCube version. To get around faster, Link can either ride his horse Epona or teleport to designated points.

    Link transforms into a wolf upon entering the Shadow Realm. In the course of the game you can switch between wolf and human form yourself by asking Midna to do so. As a wolf, Link moves faster, attacks with his teeth and can dig holes to reveal objects or discover secret locations. He's also carrying Midna, a tiny goblin-like creature that provides clues, uses an energy field to attack enemies, and makes it easier for Link to jump longer distances. Link, as a wolf, can also communicate with animals which will give him useful information, and he has a better sense of smell so he can follow certain tracks. His sense of smell is also the only way the player can identify the individual tracks, e.g. B. following the smell of medicine and finding it.

    background

    • After the release of The Wind Waker , Nintendo announced that the next part of the Zelda saga for the Nintendo GameCube would also be based on the graphics engine used in this game, which, given the original working title The Wind Waker 2, suggested that it would be it would only be a kind of successor to The Wind Waker . Instead, a new preview was shown at Electronic Entertainment Expo 2004, in which Link looked similar to a video shown at Spaceworld 2000 . The new 3D graphics already delighted fans in advance. It is all the more astonishing that a modified version of the Wind Waker engine was actually used for the new Zelda title . Apart from the newer graphics, the trailer gave little information about playful innovations, but Link was seen fighting with a sword on horseback for the first time.
    • At the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2005 November 2005 was initially mentioned as the worldwide release date. According to Nintendo, however, some features should be added to the game, so that the release of the game was scheduled for the period after March 31, 2006. In an interview with the then American marketing manager Nintendos Reggie Fils-Aimé , who is now president of the American section of the Japanese group, he announced that Twilight Princess will not appear before autumn 2006. As announced at a press conference by Nintendo on May 9, 2006, the game would be released in the US distribution room on separate discs for both the Nintendo GameCube and Wii . The Wii version was released on December 8, 2006, at the same time as the hardware release. The NGC version came out a week later, on December 15, 2006.

    Wii port

    General

    Twilight Princess should appear shortly before the release of the GameCube successor console Wii . Therefore, Nintendo decided to implement the game for the Wii and also to advertise it primarily as a Wii game. Since both versions are based on the same graphics engine, and you wanted to avoid major differences in this regard, the graphics of the Wii version hardly differ from those of the GameCube. However, it has an exclusive 16: 9 mode and full screen mode ( 480p ).

    The Wii version differs from the original in the implementation of the controls, which are designed for the console's new controller, the Wiimote . For example, you can induce the Wiimote Link to swing your sword by making appropriate movements. Aiming at opponents or points in the game also works with the Wiimote. Since most of the players hold the Wiimote in their right hand, the entire game has been mirrored for the Wii version, so that Link wields the sword in his right hand, which is a novelty, since the designers have always used the sword in the the left hand was placed. The mirroring also meant that areas in the Wii version were on the other side than in the GameCube version and minor side effects such as: B. that the characters shake hands with their left hand. Another mistake or side effect is the wrong designation of the cardinal points within Hyrule City. Hyrule-West is in the east and Hyrule-East in the west of the city, which is why Link has to go east to find the western area of ​​the city and vice versa. Also, in the Wii version, the sun rises in the west and sinks in the east.

    Twilight hack

    The game achieved a special status among the available Wii titles through a hack that made it possible to start unlicensed, uncertified software on the Wii console by means of a manipulated game status. When starting the game with the special save file and moving the character backwards, a vulnerability is exploited which is based on the fact that a long character string was inserted into the game state for the name of the horse (usually "Epona"). If this is now loaded, a buffer overflow is triggered, which in turn boots the Hackmii installer. This makes it possible to execute manipulated program code with the "rights" of the licensed game. However, since the system was updated to version 4.0, this has been ruled out, as the manipulated score can no longer be copied to the Wii.

    HD version

    In a Nintendo Direct presentation on November 12, 2015, Satoru Shibata , President of Nintendo of Europe, announced an HD remaster of the game, which will be available on March 4, 2016 in Europe and North America and on March 10 of the same year in Japan Home console Wii U appeared. In addition to the improved visual display and game optimizations, the game supports Amiibo , including the Wolf Link Amiibo, which unlocks the new cave of shadows .

    Reviews

    IGN UK (9.5 / 10, Wii): "A truly epic new Zelda complete with a compelling, darker storyline, enhanced controls, and brand new gameplay mechanics."

    consolewars.eu (10/10): "This game raised very high expectations and was even able to trump them."

    4Players (90%, Wii): "An incredibly lovingly designed, fantastically arranged video game fairy tale."

    Spieletipps.de (93%): “The highlight of an unbelievable success story so far. The dense atmosphere, challenging puzzles and the large size will tie you to the Wii. "

    Magazine / website rating
    4players 90% (Wii, GameCube)
    Games current 95%
    GameTrailers 9.7 / 10 (Game of the Year 2006)
    Maniac 96%
    N zone 92% (Wii), 97% (GameCube)
    Bravo Screenfun Note 1
    Famitsu 38/40
    Wii magazine 98%
    GamePro 95% (Game of the Year 2006)
    GameSpot 8.8 / 10
    Computer picture games 1.47 (Wii), 1.87 (GameCube)
    ntower.de 10/10
    MasterZone 98%
    Edge (magazine) 9/10

    Awards

    literature

    Web links

    Individual evidence

    1. ↑ http://www.mobygames.com/game/wii/legend-of-zelda-twilight-princess/credits
    2. ↑ IGN on August 16, 2005 (English)
    3. ↑ Tor Thorsen: Fils-Aime: Zelda now coming in "fall". gamespot.com, February 20, 2006, archived from the original on May 24, 2011 ; accessed on March 6, 2016 .
    4. ↑ consolewars on September 18, 2006
    5. ↑ IGN on August 21, 2006 (English)
    6. ↑ IGN on September 20, 2006 (English)
    7. ↑ Nintendo Direct presentation - November 12, 2015. In: Nintendo Germany. November 12, 2015, accessed November 15, 2015 .
    8. ↑ IGN.com : Review
    9. ↑ consolewars.eu : Review
    10. ↑ 4players.de : The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for Nintendo Wii - Test (rating)
    11. ↑ spieletipps.de : Review
    12. ↑ 4players.de : The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for Nintendo GameCube - Test (rating)
    13. ↑ The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. gametrailers.com, archived from the original on June 19, 2006 ; accessed on March 14, 2014 .