There have been plenty of great games I’ve played in 2011, but picking my favorite wasn’t a tough choice at all. It’s not every year that a Legend of Zelda game is released, but when one is, I lose myself in it. Skyward Sword is a masterpiece, upholding series’ tradition of giving gamers an amazing experience.
Motion controls
One of the biggest concerns with Skyward Sword was implementing the Wii motion plus. Besides games like Wii Sports Resort, the motion plus hasn’t been used much. Requiring it for Skyward Sword seemed a bit risky. Fortunately, the controls really work well. In order to properly fight, fly, or throw a bomb, the Wii remote must be swung in a precise way. This can be a bit challenging at first, but I found it interesting to figure out exactly how to swing my “sword” in order to defeat an enemy.
Story
Since Skyward Sword is the first game in the Zelda timeline, the story is important. Nintendo delivers a tale that is exciting, emotional, and gives gamers answers to questions that have been asked for decades. It may start off as a “typical” Legend of Zelda game with Link becoming a reluctant hero because trouble found Zelda, but as the game progresses, there are quite a few surprising plot twists. The best one being the Demise’s curse at the end of the final battle.
Replay value
Like with all Legend of Zelda games, there are a lot of places to explore, side missions, and items to collect. Finding all of the game’s secrets in one play through is difficult. In order to make the second time tougher, you have the option to play Hero Mode after your first game is finished. Hero Mode takes away all the hearts enemies drop. It also gets rid of finding hearts in jars or on flowers. The enemies are tougher and Link takes twice as much damage. While none of the locations of dungeons or items has been moved, like in the original Zelda game, it is still worth experiencing.
Even though I bought Skyward Sword the day it was released, I’m still having fun playing it. The game is truly a step in the right direction for the series. While I’m not the biggest fan of motion games, the controls in Skyward Sword take the experience to a new height. The story is one of the series’ best, and it draws you in with its unexpected twists. I’ve been replaying Zelda games since the original. I know I’ll be enjoying Skyward Sword for years to come.