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The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Zeruda no Densetsu Towairaito Purinsesu) is a video game in Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda series, for the Wii and Nintendo GameCube. Originally planned for release in November 2005, Nintendo delayed it so that the developers could add more content and fine-tune the game. The Wii versions were released on the console’s launch dates of November 19, 2006 in North America, December 2, 2006 in Japan, December 8, 2006 in Europe, and December 7, 2006 in Australia, making Twilight Princess the first Zelda game to debut alongside the launch of a Nintendo console.

Twilight Princess is the first game in The Legend of Zelda series to be rated T by the ESRB, for animated blood and fantasy violence.

Story

When an evil darkness enshrouds the land of Hyrule. Link, a young man raised as a wrangler in a rural village, is ordered by the mayor to attend the Hyrule Summit. He sets off, oblivious to the dark fate that has descended upon the kingdom. When he enters the Twilight Realm that has covered Hyrule, he transforms into a wolf and is captured. A mysterious figure named Midna helps him break free, and with the aid of her magic, they set off to free the land from the shadows.

Link must explore the vast land of Hyrule and uncover the mystery behind its plunge into darkness. As he does, he’ll have to enlist the aid of friendly folk, solve puzzles and battle his way through dangerous dungeons. In the Twilight Realm, he’ll have to use his wolf abilities and Midna’s magic to bring light to the land.

Graphics

Footage from the game was originally shown at E3 2004 in the form of a short trailer, and was shown afterwards in several other trailers. It features a stylized, naturalistic art style (similar to, but more advanced than, that found in Ocarina of Time), rather than the cel-shaded look that The Wind Waker exhibited — although it still makes use of cel-shading effects, using a very heavily modified version of The Wind Waker’s engine.

Gameplay

In The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Link learns more moves than in any other Legend of Zelda game to date. Link also shares similar moves between human and wolf, for example when an enemy is on the ground, Link has the option to finish them off by plunging his sword into their chest or in wolf form (on poes, to rip out their souls). Link can communicate with animals in wolf form as if they were people. When transformed into a wolf, Link’s senses (smell, sight, and hearing) are also raised quite significantly. With these abilities come some disadvantages. While he is a wolf, Link cannot utilize any of his items, or open any doors with handles until he can transform into human.

There is no extensive voice acting in the game. The characters still laugh, scream, and make other such noises, just as they have in previous installments on the Nintendo 64 and Nintendo GameCube.

Weapons, equipments and items

Link first acquires a wooden sword (as he did in the original The Legend of Zelda) but later upgrades to the Ordon Sword (a regular metal sword) and then the Master Sword. In the Palace of Twilight, the Master Sword is infused with light. Link obtains a wooden shield early in the game called the Ordon Shield. Although this can catch fire (similar to the Deku Shield in Ocarina of Time), Link can replace it with a less refined plain Wooden shield, or the metallic Hylian Shield, which does not catch fire. Once an enemy is defeated the player can sheath the sword in a cinematic fashion; this also happens during cinematics that take place after boss and mini-boss battles.

The Slingshot also returns from previous installments of the series. Link obtains this item early on in the game so that the player can get accustomed to aiming with the Wii Remote.

A Lantern and Lantern Oil are also in the game, which is a first for a 3D Zelda game. Lanterns can be refilled by certain shopkeepers, and lantern oil can also be held in a bottle. The jelly from yellow Chus (a variant of a gelatinous blob enemy) can also be used to fuel the lantern.

The Dominion Rod (found in the Temple of Time) is used to bring statues with holes in them to life, making them mimic Link.

The game features many classic Zelda armaments, some with new twists, such as the Gale Boomerang. This novel version of the series staple can create a small whirlwind capable of picking up items, including lit bombs, and delivering them to other locations, such as to an enemy or back to Link.

The Iron Boots also return, which can now be used in conjunction with magnetic surfaces to lift Link to new heights. They are also used for purposes outside dungeons. For example, they are first used to prevent the player from being knocked off Death Mountain by rolling Gorons, and are also used in a sumo wrestling match against the Goron Elder.

Link has three types of bombs available: bombs (standard bomb), water bombs (bombs that can be used in water), and bomblings (bomb with legs, similar to Bombchu).

The player can combine items such as the bombs and arrows to create bomb arrows, among other items. This recalls a feature of Link's Awakening for the Game Boy, in which the player is able to create an explosive arrow by simply equipping the bow and bombs and firing both at once. This is now a fully documented ability which the player must use to progress in certain areas, whereas in Link's Awakening it was more of an easter egg.

Twilight Princess also introduces a new version of the Hookshot called the Clawshot. This item functions similarly to the Hookshot, except that Link can hang from the fully retracted claw when he has reached his destination, and when hanging from a ceiling he can extend or retract the chain to move upwards or downwards (reminiscent of the Grappling Hook item in The Wind Waker). Later, he acquires a second Clawshot which he wears on his other hand, creating a pair dubbed the Double Clawshot, which allows him to transfer from one Clawshot point to another and access previously unreachable areas.

There are three different outfits for Link: The original outfit he starts in, the green “Hero” tunic, another Magic Armor that makes Link invincible (though it quickly drains rupees while equipped and will make it heavier for him to walk once he runs out of Rupees) and a Zora Armor (with flippers and diving mask) that lets him breathe and swim freely underwater, yet increases the damage taken from fire and ice hazards. The Zora Armor is a gift from the late Zora queen for saving her son.

Classic items such as Potions and Bottles also return. Red potions restore 8 hearts of health, while the more expensive blue potions (over 3x the cost) restore all hearts. A new item that can be held in bottles is bee larva. They can be obtained from beehives Link knocks down and also from select shops. They can be used as fishing bait, or to eat and regain a quarter of a heart. While eating them, Link is said to have a “horrible, but hilarious” face.

In wolf form, Link receives a “sense” ability which is somewhat similar to the Lens of Truth from previous games. Also, using the sense ability, Link can track down certain characters by following their scents with his enhanced senses. As a wolf, he is also able to find and dig holes to find new passages and uncover buried items such as hearts and rupees. He can also search for Poes (Ghosts) in his wolf form, which can only be attacked when using his wolf senses. Finding 20, then 60 Poe’s Souls completes two of the side-quests in the game.

The “Twilight Realm” The Spinner is a large top-like object which he uses to move over quicksand and bash into enemies. It is also used to ride along tracks in Arbiter Grounds and other locations.

Another one of the new items is the Ball and Chain, a heavy ball at the end of a chain which Link swings and uses to hit enemies and break through weak walls. Using this item slows his movement considerably, though when carrying it, it can work like a shield to deflect arrows.

Golden bugs roam around Hyrule. Catching these bugs and giving them to a girl who thinks she’s a princess will get the girl to upgrade Link’s wallet and give Link some rupees.

A heart container now consists of five heart pieces instead of the traditional four. Thus, extending Link’s life meter is more difficult. It should be noted, however, that not only can Heart Pieces be found in dungeons, but there are two in each dungeon except the final (Hyrule Castle). There are 45 Pieces total (9 Hearts worth) and the remaining Hearts are dropped by Dungeon Bosses.

Ooccoo is a character present in most dungeons. When discovered, she behaves as a warp item, much like Farore’s Wind in Ocarina of Time. She will let Link set a warp point inside a dungeon, then warp Link outside; and, when Link’s ready to return to the dungeon, Link uses her child, Ooccoo Jr., who will warp Link back to the warp point previously set.

Developer : Nintendo
Publisher : Nintendo
Genre : Action/Adventure
Platform : Wii, Game Cube
ESRB : Teen
Release date : Wii Version US November 19, 2006 JP December 2, 2006 AUS December 7, 2006 EURO December 8, 2006 GameCube Version JP December 2, 2006 US December 12, 2006 AUS December 12, 2006 CA December 12, 2006 EURO December 15, 2006