TPHD

Twilight Princess HD

Overall, I'd say that this game is trying really hard to be Ocarina of Time, but doesn't quite get there.

I came into this game really optimistic and excited. I had just finished playthroughs of the Oracle games, which I LOVED, and was excited for more Zelda. But I started off not being super impressed with it. The game felt a little bit slower paced. The story was a little awkward, too. I didn't feel as immersed in the world of the game as quickly as with some other Zelda games. In some ways, that never really changed.

This was also the first Zelda game I've played where I haven't gotten 100%. The mini games just didn't seem that interesting, and the bug/Poe hunting just seemed too tedious for me. I didn't even do the bonus dungeons (Ordeals/Shadows) because they just seemed too long and tedious to be worth their reward. I did, however, get all the special moves. I thought those added a lot to the game, and made combat much more interesting than Ocarina/Majora.

But the game really grew on me as it went on. In particular, I thought the dungeons were absolutely fantastic. This game had some of the most creative use of puzzles and items I've seen in a Zelda game. There was an interesting mix of traditional puzzles and new gear that just made it wonderful. The second dungeon started winning me over with the Iron Boots and magnetic floors, and I was completely sold by the time we got to Snowpeak's haunted mansion. The final battle was absolutely epic.

There's a lot more to say, both positively and negatively, but I'll kind of leave it at that. I suppose that I could probably keep talking about the game for a long time says something about its quality. After finishing I was already hungry for more Zelda, so I loaded up Wind Waker HD afterwards just to get a taste of it. It looks absolutely beautiful and I love the feel of it already. It says something else good about this game that it left me wanting more so immediately.

Twilight Princess didn't quite achieve the goal it set for itself, but it was a great experience along the way.