A Hyrulian Verdict

[11.26.98] » Readers offer their deep, meaningful (and sometimes downright weird) impressions of Zelda 64

   A few days ago we asked you for your impressions of Nintendo's recently released hype-monster, Zelda : Ocarina of Time. Most of the letters we received praised the game extensively, but a few strongly objected to Zelda's hype and high ratings. Here's a few of the comments we received:

   "It's awesome! I'm just not sure I appreciate the fact that I need the Rumble Pak to use the Stones of Agony or play the fishing game. I'm sure it will be a much better experience that way, but I haven't used a Rumble Pak in months." - Rasteen

   "I got my gold copy and, well, I say Zelda 64 is the best game of the year, no doubt. I thought Xenogears was going to be but I was wrong! Too many good things were put into Zelda. (Music, graphics, etc.) But I will not call it the game of the millennium. Because who knows what's coming out next year? (FF8 and so on)" - "Lost"

   "Like others, I reserved my game, and I went out and got it the first day. Am I pleased? No. I have waited for over four years for this game, and I can easily say that it did not live up to the hype.
   "I turned on the game, was greeted by the pleasant intro, and then started the game. I expected something a little more "cinematic" than what they showed at the beginning.  Metal Gear Solid still ranks in my book as the most cinematic game ever.
   "The voices they have in the game are ill-chosen, and pop up every once in a while to be annoying. The sound effects are clear, but the music is almost atrocious. The instruments sound fake, and there isn't even the main theme from previous Zelda games!
   "The graphics are nice and well modeled, except that the textures are exceptionally blurry. The character models are somewhat good, but they could have spent a bit more time on the weapons.
   "Keep in mind, these are my impressions from my three hours of playing, and there may be a startling revelation where the graphics turn high-res, the main theme comes back, and the characters look nicer." - Mike Lindberg

   "My first impression of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was quite good, the introduction was amazingly well done, and to my delight, pretty much the same as the actual game engine. The graphics are really splendid, the game control takes a little while to get used to, but after you do, it's really well done. I'm not all that far into the game, but it already looks to be very good." - Brad Lohr

   "Zelda takes the phrase "Next Generation" and kicks it in the groinal area, body slams it, kicks it around and spits on it. You may need a napkin playing this game... You'll drool, I'm sure." - Aaron Linde

   "Zelda? Well, I think Zelda is one of the best games ever made. It has supurb graphics, sound, gameplay, and is pretty long. The secondary quest is a bonus, too. It's the same tired "Save the Princess" story, but I didn't mind. Heck, it's for the NES, what are you going to do?" - Thor Antrim

   Somehow, I don't think ol' Thor read our news story too closely. Anyway, in the rather remote case you still aren't sure of whether or not to purchase Zelda, expect a full review coming your way from GIA soon!