Sorry for the small break in entries. I recently had to move to a different place temporarily, and it was a bit hectic. It’s late and this entry won’t be too long, but I felt like talking about it nonetheless.
Anyone who knows a thing about me and my gaming obsessions knows that The Legend of Zelda series is my absolute favorite. I was still a bit too young to fully appreciate the original NES, but when A Link to the Past rolled around for the SNES, I was just old enough to appreciate the magical world of Hyrule, the beauty and wisdom of Princess Zelda, the evil of Ganon and the courage of Link. I was amazed by the fantastical world, but still, at my young age (I was barely into elementary school when I first played it), many of the puzzles and dungeons of A Link to the Past were still a bit too challenging for me to complete on my own. The first Zelda game I actually completed was Ocarina of Time and then I went on to finish A Link to the Past. Ever since then, I have been following every new addition to the series, eagerly trying to complete the various dungeons and tasks in order to save the princess, as well as Hyrule.
As much as I loved each and every game that I played (minus Wind Waker, which I didn’t really think fit into the whole Zelda scheme), I noticed that with every game I picked up, it became easier and easier to complete. Now, at first I attributed this decline in difficulty to the mere fact that I’ve grown older and thus, smarter when it comes to gaming and puzzles. But even when I tackled Twilight Princess for the Wii, I found it to be much easier (except longer) than The Ocarina of Time journey. Others found this to be true, as well. So what’s going on with the newer installments of the Zelda series?
Many people blame the fact that Miyamoto stopped working on the series and that Aonuma just isn’t doing the series the same justice that the Nintendo genius could. In fact, ZeldaBlog did an excellent article on the differences between the two game designers. While I believe that this definitely could be a factor in the decline of difficulty, I don’t believe this switch is the only reason. I mean, sure, Miyamoto had a giant influence over the Zelda games he worked on, but each game also has an extensive team which modifies each little aspect of the games. To say that a switch of one person, no matter how influential, could really hurt a game is a bit far fetched. For the most part, if the same people who worked under Miyamoto also worked for Aonuma, I feel the quality of the game should still be great.
Not that I’m saying the actual quality declined, though. I personally thought Twilight Princess was an excellently thought out game with an interesting storyline, captivating characters, beautiful scenery, and really imaginative dungeons. Phantom Hourglass also brought a new twist to the series as it utilized the Nintendo DS’s features in every way possible and was incredibly enjoyable with all the characters, dungeons, and puzzles you had to face. They were both incredibly valuable additions to the franchise, but no matter how enjoyable, as a gamer, it feels like you’re breezing through it without much of a sweat at all. Not the same sweat that poured from your body as you tried to figure out the difficult puzzles and quests of A Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time, and Link’s Awakening.
I think also the new systems and the new gaming audience can play a major factor in a game’s difficulty level, especially with Zelda. Recently, with the Wii and DS, Nintendo has been marketing mainly towards casual gamers, children, and families, hoping that the loyal core gamers will also stick through for the classic titles we all love, like Zelda, while they try to capture the new audience. In order to target them, Nintendo has been downplaying the difficulty of a lot of classic games, in hopes that casual gamers won’t feel alienated by a game that may bet too “hardcore.” By making a game like Twilight Princess and Phantom Hourglass accessible for everyone, they hope everyone will be able to pick it up and enjoy it. (I mean, who doesn’t love that classic hero-saves-princess story?) Unfortunately, to make it accessible, they have to make it at a level of someone who does not game as often as a core gamer, and even more unfortunately, this means downplaying the difficulty. And for core gamers, this can take out a lot of the joy of playing a Zelda title, since there is nothing as gratifying as making it through an extremely difficult dungeon or puzzle, killing that boss at the end after a struggle, and then collecting your prize. It just feels well earned and satisfying.
Also, new Nintendo systems seem to emphasize on simplicity. The Nintendo DS utilizes a touch screen (and everyone can touch) and the Nintendo Wii uses motion sensing so a gamer can use everyday actions to duplicate the same actions on the screen. By simplifying controls, however, you are simplifying the different ways of playing the game. Things become easier to control, moves become easier to execute, weapons become easier to use. And of course, any type of simplifying makes the game much easier. While they have created interesting ways of using both systems’ controls, it’s just not as difficult as the older Zelda games, with all their fancy buttons and controllers.
But who am I to say how difficult a game should be? After all, I have gotten older since I was in elementary school and my brain has become a lot more complex. If I had played Ocarina of Time for the very first time now, it probably would’ve taken me a shorter amount of time in general. But I almost feel like the Zelda series should follow in the footsteps of the Guitar Hero series, with each game becoming increasingly more challenging, increasingly more beautiful, increasingly more entertaining, and just increasingly better. Even if they are a casual gamer, I feel like anyone can appreciate a good challenge. You don’t have to be a core gamer to understand that.
Games certainly are getting more beautiful, but beauty is only skin deep. I hope the essence of Zelda can still be preserved in this current trend of casual gaming, simplicity, accessibility, and … well, Nintendo.
GamerBunny
