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The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD released today!
Starting today, you can play the HD remake of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword! Lovers of the original and new players alike will be amazed by the 'digital facelift' that was given to this game. What to expect? You know the drill.
What is The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword?
The original Skyward Sword came out in 2011 for the Wii. What was special about this game at the time was the unique use of the Wii remote, Nunchuck and MotionPlus to let Link swing his sword and block attacks from enemies. Most of the gameplay was with optimal use of the Wii motion controls, which was quite controversial at the time: you either loved it or hated it. Nonetheless, you dealt with it. Because the game itself was more than worth it!
For new players, a small introduction: the game takes place on the beautiful island of Skyloft, which floats above the clouds. You play as Link (no surprise there) while he is still a knight-in-training. After your final exams and graduation, you and your childhood friend Zelda will go soaring through the clouds on your Loftwing bird and (no surprise here either) Zelda manages to be kidnapped by a dark tornado this time.
Image: Nintendo
It's up to Link, of course, to find her and bring her home safely. For this, however, he has to descend to 'The Surface'. A dark land under the clouds that the inhabitants of Skyloft thought was just a myth. Time to discover this new world!
Original vs Remake
The remake of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword promises to be one of the best Nintendo Switch games of this year. A classic adventure in a brand new, crystal clear and razor sharp HD jacket. But what has changed in this highly anticipated remake?
Most notable are the HD graphics. The frame rates have been boosted from 30fps to a visual spectacle of 60fps. Quite an improvement! With the newer Nintendo Switch, the movements are also a lot more accurate than on the Wii.
The motion controls were a bit of a thing with the original. At the time, the Wii controller, including Nunchuck, was used optimally during combat, to make Link swing his sword, block, roll over and you name it. Not everyone was a fan of these controls, and many Wii controllers were thrown around the room out of frustration. In Skyward Sword HD it’s possible to play both with the motion controls using the Joy-Con, or without the motion controls using the buttons. This way Nintendo keeps everyone happy during combat.
In the HD remake it’s now also possible to skip dialogues, instructions and cutscenes. Convenient for the seasoned Skyward Sword fans who already know what’s up. Less talk, more action! That also applies to Fi, your personal “Hey! Listen!” Navi. Her help is now optional, so if you don't want it, you can turn it off instead of being interrupted every time there’s a notification. This also applies to items: only with 'new' items that you pick up for the first time, you will receive a notification with some info.
Finally, there is one more small change in saving your progress. Besides the auto-save function that takes place at regular intervals, you can save at a Bird Statue. When you select a Bird Statue you will now get 3 possible save slots. That means several players can now save their progress without overwriting another savegame (this also prevents a lot of quarrels we imagine) and you can always go back to a previous save, if you want to do something differently or if you’re stuck.
Image: Nintendo
When is the release?
The game is for sale starting today: July 16, 2021. So if you’re ready to soar above the clouds on Link's Loftbird this weekend, you know what to do! Time to start swingin’ those Joy-Cons! Have fun flying and sword fighting in The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword!
