15th June 2003, 3:44 AM
Who am I to argue with an artist that a tree is not the most beautiful thing on this earth?...
With that in mind, I have to say that SM64 and OoT are both amazing games. If Ihad to choose, I'd say OoT is the better game, but both were magnificent experiences.
I bought SM64 at launch and there is no other way to describe it than shock and awe. After living my entire life with 2D games, it was an exhilerating, intuitive, pee my pants, laugh like a school girl moment when I took my first steps in SM64. I played that entire game on a perpetual high.
But OoT slightly edges out Mario 64. From the first words of the Deku Tree to the frozen moment of Link meeting Zelda, the quest always seemed important, real. It was the perfect game to take the 3D genre and mold into an adventure game. It challenged my mind, spirit, and determination like no other quest.
Chalk it up to age, skepticism, or otherwise, but SMS and WW don't add the same amount of WOW as SM64 and Oot. They are good sequels. Judged without reference to time, they are better games than their predecessors. But they fall short of the improvement curve of the rest of the industry. They fail to introduce ideas in gaming that touch people.
I believe that WW an artistic masterpiece at moments. There are flashes of inspiration in WW: the swirling dust on Dragon Roost Island, the vibrant characters on Windfall Island, the endearing Koroks and Deku Tree, the kick-ass boomerang, the humanization of Ganondorf, the heart-wrenching sacrifice of the Hyrulian King, and the final battle. But if one view of the ocean is a striking vista, we are treated to 60 beautiful vistas a second. In Wind Waker, you will spend at least three hours simply crossing the ocean, which is 648,000 beautiful vistas throughout the game. But there is a diminishing return factor. After you've seen 100,000 beautiful vistas, it's hard to appreciate the other 548,000. The Dungeons, while beautiful and artfully created, are strikingly linear. The idea of character switching is used wonderfully, but it's not a completely new idea (ICO). If OoT was inventing the boomerang, WW was making the boomerang kickass.
I'm slightly more disappointed with SMS. The team must be commended for the freedom of movement in SMS. It's fun to just jump around the Lobby, kicking durians, sliding on the beach, rocketing across the water, and shooting up to rooftops. But as much as OB1 might contest, I FELT much less variety in the worlds of SMS than any predecessor. FLUDD is pretty neat, but it's not mind-blowing. I must admit that the water is beautiful, but if it wasn't, you'd be looking at something fugly for 99% of the game. The sub-levels were great, but they were essentially 2D platforming levels with a rarely-optimal camera. I feel SMS is a testament to the flaws of 3D platformers. Platforming is essentially a 2D action. You can curl it around a cyllinder, make it verticle, diagonal, whatever, but 3D platforming has always been 2D platforming where the camera is not always in the right place. Exploration is a naturally 3D action. Sadly, the 3D platformers of the recent past are all too materialistic. Shines, Stars, Jiggies, etc. are all an easy, but limited, way of tracking progress. I am frustrated with the Blue Coins in SMS, especially because they make up practically 20% of the shines in the game. For me, SMS is a fun and colorful diversion.
With that in mind, I have to say that SM64 and OoT are both amazing games. If Ihad to choose, I'd say OoT is the better game, but both were magnificent experiences.
I bought SM64 at launch and there is no other way to describe it than shock and awe. After living my entire life with 2D games, it was an exhilerating, intuitive, pee my pants, laugh like a school girl moment when I took my first steps in SM64. I played that entire game on a perpetual high.
But OoT slightly edges out Mario 64. From the first words of the Deku Tree to the frozen moment of Link meeting Zelda, the quest always seemed important, real. It was the perfect game to take the 3D genre and mold into an adventure game. It challenged my mind, spirit, and determination like no other quest.
Chalk it up to age, skepticism, or otherwise, but SMS and WW don't add the same amount of WOW as SM64 and Oot. They are good sequels. Judged without reference to time, they are better games than their predecessors. But they fall short of the improvement curve of the rest of the industry. They fail to introduce ideas in gaming that touch people.
I believe that WW an artistic masterpiece at moments. There are flashes of inspiration in WW: the swirling dust on Dragon Roost Island, the vibrant characters on Windfall Island, the endearing Koroks and Deku Tree, the kick-ass boomerang, the humanization of Ganondorf, the heart-wrenching sacrifice of the Hyrulian King, and the final battle. But if one view of the ocean is a striking vista, we are treated to 60 beautiful vistas a second. In Wind Waker, you will spend at least three hours simply crossing the ocean, which is 648,000 beautiful vistas throughout the game. But there is a diminishing return factor. After you've seen 100,000 beautiful vistas, it's hard to appreciate the other 548,000. The Dungeons, while beautiful and artfully created, are strikingly linear. The idea of character switching is used wonderfully, but it's not a completely new idea (ICO). If OoT was inventing the boomerang, WW was making the boomerang kickass.
I'm slightly more disappointed with SMS. The team must be commended for the freedom of movement in SMS. It's fun to just jump around the Lobby, kicking durians, sliding on the beach, rocketing across the water, and shooting up to rooftops. But as much as OB1 might contest, I FELT much less variety in the worlds of SMS than any predecessor. FLUDD is pretty neat, but it's not mind-blowing. I must admit that the water is beautiful, but if it wasn't, you'd be looking at something fugly for 99% of the game. The sub-levels were great, but they were essentially 2D platforming levels with a rarely-optimal camera. I feel SMS is a testament to the flaws of 3D platformers. Platforming is essentially a 2D action. You can curl it around a cyllinder, make it verticle, diagonal, whatever, but 3D platforming has always been 2D platforming where the camera is not always in the right place. Exploration is a naturally 3D action. Sadly, the 3D platformers of the recent past are all too materialistic. Shines, Stars, Jiggies, etc. are all an easy, but limited, way of tracking progress. I am frustrated with the Blue Coins in SMS, especially because they make up practically 20% of the shines in the game. For me, SMS is a fun and colorful diversion.