So I was playing around with the google time period search, searching for 'majora's mask'. I found this rumor article about Skyward Sword between the E3 where the concept art looked exactly like Twilight Princess' and E3 2010 when we saw it when it... didn't. Anyway, not important, the interesting bit was one of the bullet points;
"There will be horseback combat, and your horse (possibly Epona, though that may just be a nickname for the horse in the translation) will be much better at avoiding obstacles."
This is when my mind was blown as, like we saw at the Game Awards 2014, the Zelda Wii U horse was made to dodge trees. This somewhat supports my longtime suspicion that Skyward Sword had elements cut and rolled into the development of Zelda U.
What lends this credibility was all of the things it got right or half-right about Skyward Sword such as Link not being left handed, a different overworld structure, a sword spirit-girl, the sword developing throughout the game, and time travel being involved.
This second rumor, published in September of 2012, claimed to know a number of things about Zelda U.
Unsubstantiated claims;
-Originally planned for 2013, delayed to 2014 (now presumably delayed once again).
-Comparable amount of dungeons to past titles, all distinct.
-"Some" 3-part "hours"-long dungeons.
-A forest larger that Ocarina's Hyrule Field constitutes one of the dungeons, gamepad used for navigation.
-Orchestral soundtrack with "hours of music".
-Minigames, side quests, story not started yet (as of 2012).
-Some of the gamepad features designed completely
Partially-confirmed claims;
-No official subtitle
-Skyward Sword-like art style
-Biggest, most ambitious Zelda yet (open world)
-Adult Link
-4 year development cycle
-Dark Souls-like miiverse message support, no multiplayer (quite like Wind Waker HD, so I wouldn't be at all surprised)
Now, I don't really want to debate the veracity of these claims (cause 's boring), so could those who care to discuss them do so in the hypothetical sense? I think some of these rumored features, like connected mini dungeons, could have interesting implications on traversing the world on horseback and with the sailcloth.
This... kind of reads like a stream of consciousness. It's not very concise. The discussion prompt at the end of your post doesn't seem to be related at all to the first rumour.
I think some of these rumored features, like connected mini dungeons, could have interesting implications on traversing the world on horseback and with the sailcloth.
How do you mean? I would think that connected dungeons and overworld transportation would be two separate systems, no? Or are you saying that maybe you enter one dungeon and then exit in a totally different location. In that case, I could see it being an inventive way to reach places that you can't even get to by horseback or sailcloth at all. For example, you enter a dungeon on the field, but you exit in a remote location up on a cliff or something. Would be a good way to expand the exploration.
I remember reading these rumours back in 2012 and liking everything about it. It's exciting to think about this being the most ambitious Zelda yet. From a purely artistic standpoint, everything about the game is already spectacular. The art direction, the animation quality, etc is breathtaking. If the gameplay and exploration delivers on equal levels, I can see this game taking up years of my life.
So Anakin kneels before Monster Mash and pledges his loyalty to the graveyard smash.
This... kind of reads like a stream of consciousness. It's not very concise. The discussion prompt at the end of your post doesn't seem to be related at all to the first rumour.
I think some of these rumored features, like connected mini dungeons, could have interesting implications on traversing the world on horseback and with the sailcloth.
How do you mean? I would think that connected dungeons and overworld transportation would be two separate systems, no? Or are you saying that maybe you enter one dungeon and then exit in a totally different location. In that case, I could see it being an inventive way to reach places that you can't even get to by horseback or sailcloth at all. For example, you enter a dungeon on the field, but you exit in a remote location up on a cliff or something. Would be a good way to expand the exploration.
I remember reading these rumours back in 2012 and liking everything about it. It's exciting to think about this being the most ambitious Zelda yet. From a purely artistic standpoint, everything about the game is already spectacular. The art direction, the animation quality, etc is breathtaking. If the gameplay and exploration delivers on equal levels, I can see this game taking up years of my life.
Life is a stream of consciousness, man... Anyway I just wrote about the first rumor because it had an uncanny resemblance to the current 'horses won't run into trees' thing and I thought it deserved mentioning for that.
What I imagined connected mini dungeons to be is something where you enter one dungeon, activate something, then ride a horse to the next, activate another thing which perhaps unlocks the third dungeon. You ride to a cliff overlooking the third dungeon and have to glide down to the entrance with the sailcloth. You've no idea how excited the deku leaf (functionally) in a terrestrial open world has me! That has so many implications on level design it's crazy! It could completely break some things out in the world if not done right.
Anyway that Skyrim sense of exploring a wilderness and discovering ancient ruins is right up my alley. Just the atmosphere involved is cool, not to speak of the possible ancient secrets within. I quite hope the temples have more narrative elements than in past games. I like to know why I'm venturing into the giant fire palace beyond 'I love playing Zelda'.
-Originally planned for 2013, delayed to 2014 (now presumably delayed once again).
Presumably?
Well if it was originally planned for 2013, then 2014 they must have internally delayed it to fall 2015 before the announcement.
There's no way Nintendo ever even dreamed about releasing Zelda U on 2013; there were developing ALBW and Wind Waker HD at the same time, after all and at that point Skyward Sword was less than two years old.
Currently on the plate:
Mount and Blade: Warband – Napoleonic Wars
Chivalry
Super Mario 3D World – Finishing the last few levels.
Mario Kart 8
There's no way Nintendo ever even dreamed about releasing Zelda U on 2013; there were developing ALBW and Wind Waker HD at the same time, after all and at that point Skyward Sword was less than two years old.
Yes, Zelda WiiU was never delayed because Nintendo didn't tell a release date.
I quite hope the temples have more narrative elements than in past games. I like to know why I'm venturing into the giant fire palace beyond 'I love playing Zelda'.
Honestly, I haven't found any of the 3D Zelda games to be lacking in narrative. The stories aren't complex, but a good story is all about how it's told, not what is told. Storytelling is more important than story and has been since forever. Human civilization has been telling each other the same few stories with different characters over and over again for thousands of years and it's not like Zelda is a prime platform to invent a new narrative. As in most high fantasy, the real story is in the lore anyway. Without all the rich lore, history, and culture, Lord of the Rings is just a forgettable story about a hobbit walking to a foreign country to destroy an evil ring and some humans killing a lot of really ugly elves.
Honestly, I haven't found any of the 3D Zelda games to be lacking in narrative.
I would agree, if there wasn't Skyward Sword. A game which has clearly a poor narration because of many many Cut-Scenes with a lot of text boxes. And in the Gameplay there are lot text boxes. I loved the game and loved the real sword fights but I was really annoyed of the trivial novels in the game.
I don't think it's a coincidence that my favorite Zelda games are all located under "The Decline of Hyrule" timeline split. I'm not sure where this one will fall but I'm not going to buy into it immediately considering I hated all of the recent Wii Zelda titles (Skyward and Twilight).
I'd like to see a bit more implicit storytelling. Like what Pandora's tower did, where you found accounts of the past as hidden dungeon items. It adds a feeling of mystery and discovery that you don't get when the story is explicitly told to you.
Currently Playing: Steamworld Heist, The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, Tales of Graces F
No official subtitle? Find that a bit hard to believe.
The rumor was posted in early 2013. The game didn't have an official subtitle then and as of now it still doesn't, which for the Zelda franchise is nothing new.
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