The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD Review
"Motion Agony"
Campaign
This is very much a unique entry within The Legend of Zelda series, it depicts an early period within the overall timeline. It’s similar in terms of the beats, but it also comes across as being very distinct story wise. You really get a glimpse into the bond that both Link and Zelda share with the opening being a very slow look at some of the time the two have spent together.
I would have actually preferred to have more of that as a focus in this one as I thought it was really neat. This franchise is largely based around Link always on the chase and it was somewhat refreshing to have them interact as if they’re just normal, albeit somewhat love interest intertwined individuals. Anyways, as things always go you’re after Zelda. She’s sort of on her own mission in this one too, and that was neat.
With that, you are enjoying the typical experience where you’ll be battling through dungeons and completing quests on your main goal. It’s linear in the progression of the narrative, yet still decently free in how you explore. It’s certainly aged in terms of the scope and design, yet the slight upgrades to help make the story beats shine through.
There were some very peaceful moments out there in the clouds with Zelda, enjoying those vibrant settlements above. The same was true in the more dangerous of spaces such as puzzle solving in dungeons or roaming about in old school jungle type areas. They weren’t really jungles, but I know not how to best describe the spots quite honestly.
Anyways, it’s a lengthy venture filled with peril and challenges as you go through it. I do feel that the pacing could have been a bit better, but I do also understand the era of gaming from which is comes from. The fact it’s aged as well as it has considering it comes from the Wii era is actually surprising.
Gameplay
While the visuals aren’t necessarily ground breaking, they do hold up decently well. In some areas they actually look quite good. The aerial areas for example are quite aesthetically pleasing and I loved the vibrant use of color within the settings. There are however some areas that look really bland, with those being the more open dirt spots or even in the dungeons. A mix of lower resolution texturing and less thrilling locations.
You do get some charming architecture that shines through for sure, and some fun stand out spots. Though for the most part it didn’t really feel super shined up if you get what I mean, at least in comparison to other remasters or well ports that I’ve seen over the years. Like I said, it holds up fine visually for the most part. I will note that the motion controls are not good, and I do not suggest using them. They provide some hilarity and were a nightmare for me while I livestreamed them, but I suggest button controls.
The motion of sword cutting is good, but doing literally anything else is a literal nightmare and it’s so odd that these are the default controls. I get that was the gimmick of the Wii, but they do not transfer too well into the current generation. Some might feel differently about that aspect, and that’s totally preference. I personally found them very hard to use, somewhat exhausting and mostly awkward. I wanted to give them a fair shot since it’s the default input, but I just couldn’t handle it. There are some creative gadgets with it as well, but still traditional button inputs were best for me.
When it comes to exploration I do wish there was a tad more guidance on what exactly I was doing at times. I understand that originally it guided players too much, and it’s great they adjusted it. They did however perhaps move things a bit too far out of there as I’d sometimes be wondering what exactly I was doing. Not where I was headed, but what exactly the game was wanting out of me. Sometimes it would be clear, at other moments I was sort of wandering about.
The Conclusion
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD isn’t necessarily a massive upgrade over that original experience, but it does clean things up and provides a different look at the fateful connection between Link and Zelda. It was nice to get some actual time with these two, and to see that they actually do get along as somewhat regular people.
It also teases a deeper connection right off the bat, it was just somewhat refreshing and more story focused than other entries. It was nice to have that distinction, especially with the whole flying element. That was a peaceful time between them. Past that, the motion controls were not something I enjoyed outside of slashing.
I really tried to enjoy them. You get a variety of gameplay here from intricate dungeon puzzles with unique ways to solve challenges and of course many combative locations. It grants a sense of open exploration, while at the same time taking you down a linear progression.
It provides something you can play quite a bit of, while feeling a sense of reward and value out of the journey. Just don’t expect massive upgrades, and you’ll find this to be a fine time. I’m not necessarily confident that this truly upgrades things, and the value will come down to whether you want to go on this journey again or enjoy it for the first time.
Read our Breath of the Wild Review
View our The Legend of Zelda Hub
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD Review on Nintendo
Review Code Provided by Nintendo
Rating Overall: 7.5
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