The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD Announced for Wii U; Plus 'Next-Gen' Zelda Details

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The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD Announced for Wii U; Plus 'Next-Gen' Zelda Details

Post by Eorl @ 03:15am 24/01/13 | 21 Comments

Nintendo has unveiled new details for an upcoming HD remake of the popular GameCube title, The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker (thanks DM), which will see a release on the Wii U later this year. Producer of Zelda, Eiji Aonuma, took to Nintendo Direct earlier this morning to announce the HD title, while also revealing that the upcoming 'next-gen' Zelda is taking longer then anticipated and that the team is offering Wind Waker in the meantime.

Aonuma-san also announced several new details regarding the upcoming unnamed Zelda title, revealing that the team is wanting to "rethink the conventions of Zelda". Two of the main objectives were the ability to do dungeons in any order, and also a look at diverting from the play by yourself attitude that previous Zelda games held.

While no gameplay has been shown yet of the HD remake, screenshots were revealed during the stream, showing off familiar places from the original 10 year-old title. You can check those out below for a wash of nostalgia plus the full video of Eiji Aonuma's presentation.

nintendo legend of zelda: wind waker hd eiji aonuma wii u

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Hogfather
Posted 11:08am 24/1/13

Awesome, never played through Wind Waker, had the GC version for my Wii but never quite got there.

Glad now, this is apparently quite a good game?

Two of the main objectives were the ability to do dungeons in any order, and also a look at diverting from the play by yourself attitude that previous Zelda games held.

This worries me a little. One of the cool things about Zelda was the itemisation and the way it tied into dungeon difficulty. As you play through a zelda game you gather an arsenal of tools to solve puzzles, which in turn become more complex (as you need to combine your available tools).

Hope this doesn't get lost =\

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Nathan
Posted 11:18am 24/1/13

had the GC version for my Wii but never quite got there.

Not surprising, the game falls apart at the end.

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Mantorok
Posted 11:36am 24/1/13

This worries me a little. One of the cool things about Zelda was the itemisation and the way it tied into dungeon difficulty. As you play through a zelda game you gather an arsenal of tools to solve puzzles, which in turn become more complex (as you need to combine your available tools).Hope this doesn't get lost =\

Sounds more like they're going back to the series' roots. The original Legend of Zelda didn't really lock you out of dungeons. Hell, even Ocarina of Time let you do the Spirit Temple before the Shadow Temple with no problems, because you only required the Lens of Truth which you get from the Bottom of the Well.

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TiT
Posted 12:38pm 24/1/13

i still have the original zelda i remember taking me months to find level 7 or 8 cant remember which one. then i finally found it i was so happy, i think i had my game genie on too :)

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Khel
Posted 02:11pm 24/1/13

I think Zelda banks the most on nostalgia, out of all Nintendo's properties. With all the re-releases and the way OOT is remembered by so many people as such a classic, I think the series just kind of rides along on a wave of nostalgia. I came into it with Twilight Princess, having never played a Zelda game before, and I didn't really enjoy it tbh. Bought OOT when it was re-released on 3DS and only played it for a couple of hours before I was sick of it.

They're games I feel like I should love because so many other people do, but without those fond memories of past games propping me up, I just find them to be pretty average overall.

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Eorl
Posted 02:17pm 24/1/13

It is also the gameplay Khel that you have to enjoy, which can be difficult for people coming late to the Zelda party. Though I do agree that it rides on nostalgia, but Nintendo has done well in ensuring it continues with legitimate titles.

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Dazhel
Posted 02:19pm 24/1/13

I think Zelda banks the most on nostalgia, out of all Nintendo's properties.

As opposed to the stupefying Mario line?
The majority of those games bank on the enormous SMB nostalgia from the NES.

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Khel
Posted 02:21pm 24/1/13

Yeah, maybe it just comes down to my personal tastes, but I never played past Mario games either and still enjoy new Mario games more than I do new Zelda games. I find I don't need that pre-existing attachment to enjoy it like I seem to need for Zelda. I love Darkstalkers though and its basically reskinned Zelda so I don't think its purely a gameplay thing.

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Hogfather
Posted 02:25pm 24/1/13

I don't think you are lacking some supposedly necessary pre-existing affinity, you just don't like the games in question.

Its fine, really. You won't be shunned.*

* probably

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paveway
Posted 05:30pm 24/1/13

This will get R18 for sure

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Spook
Posted 05:44pm 24/1/13

does it need that to be considered a good game?

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greazy
Posted 05:50pm 24/1/13

Khel have you played Link to the Past?

Wind Waker is heaps of fun but the end part is very tedious. The guys making it ran out of time, I remember reading they had planned to add more dungeons but sadly you're left with a fishing expedition which is not as painful if you explored things as you went along.

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Khel
Posted 06:09pm 24/1/13

Khel have you played Link to the Past?

Nah, just Twilight Princess and OOT. Really I think I spoiled OOT for myself by playing it now and having never played it in the past, because they didn't really change the game, and mechanically it feels pretty lacking when stacked up next to new games coming out today. I know thats not really a fair comparison, because its something like 15 years old, but its a comparison I can't help but make cos its essentially a new game to me =\

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glynd
Posted 08:03pm 24/1/13

^ I think the problem is because so many people loved it, you had this massive expectation. I found Metal Gear Solid a struggle because of the hype behind it :\

At the same time, replayed OOT on my 3DS. Still easily top 5 games of all time for me.

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Dazhel
Posted 08:59pm 24/1/13

I think there's some truth to what you're saying Khel.
Link to the Past was pretty awesome but I'm sure there's a big element of nostalgia there and being younger with different gaming expectations. Ocarina of Time was quite good too, but not good enough to make me want to play Majora's Mask and by the time Twilight Princess came out I'd lost interest.

Obviously LTTP and OOT/MM/TP are very different games though, it makes sense that some people wouldn't have dug the transition to 3D. To me the Zelda series has always seemed targeted at younger players so yeah, there's probably a danger of growing out of the series.

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greazy
Posted 10:33am 25/1/13

Nah, just Twilight Princess and OOT. Really I think I spoiled OOT for myself by playing it now and having never played it in the past, because they didn't really change the game, and mechanically it feels pretty lacking when stacked up next to new games coming out today. I know thats not really a fair comparison, because its something like 15 years old, but its a comparison I can't help but make cos its essentially a new game to me =\

Go play LTTP. Heaps of emulators out there. All are awesome.

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Midda
Posted 10:42am 25/1/13

I'll agree that OoT doesn't quite hold up mechanically to modern games, but when it came out, I don't remember anything coming remotely close to how huge, epic and solid OoT was. It was far beyond anything else that came out at the time, which is why it's so fondly remembered. I still really enjoyed the remake, but that was likely mostly nostalgia, combined with the fact that it was a very faithful remake but with much improved visuals.

It's surprising that you say you love Darksiders though, Khel, because it truly is a reskinned Zelda (the first one, anyway).

I'm pretty keen for WW HD. It's up there as one of my favourite Zelda games. I'm also happy to hear that they're going back to the drawingboard with the next game. I loved Skyward Sword, but it's time for something new.

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Khel
Posted 11:01am 25/1/13

It's surprising that you say you love Darksiders though, Khel, because it truly is a reskinned Zelda (the first one, anyway).

Yeah, thats why I have this nagging feeling like Zelda games are something I should enjoy, and I can't really put my finger on why I don't. Maybe its just something as simple as the aesthetics of it

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Midda
Posted 01:13pm 25/1/13

Darksiders does have more in-depth combat, though.

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