The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

Twilight Princess
Full Title	Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Developer	Nintendo EAD
Publisher	Nintendo
System	Nintendo Wii Nintendo Gamecube
Release Date	Wii US November 19, 2006 JP December 2, 2006 AU December 7, 2006 EU December 8, 2006 Gamecube JP December 2, 2006 US December 12, 2006 AU December 12, 2006 EU December 15, 2006
Gallery	GH Gallery
Rating	ESRB: T

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is the thirteenth game in the Zelda series. Originally planned for release on the Nintendo Gamecube, the game was later delayed so that it could be released simultaneously for the Gamecube and as a launch title for the Nintendo Wii. Thus it was the last Zelda (and major Nintendo game in general) for the Gamecube, and the first Zelda game for the Wii. It was also the first Zelda game (and the first in any of Nintendo's main series, aside from Super Smash Bros. Melee) to be rated T.

Story

In this game, Link starts out as a humble rancher living in Ordon Village, on the outskirts of Hyrule. However, Link is forced to leave this sleepy town and engage on a journey to become a hero and vanquish the darkness of the Twilight Realm which has been gripping Hyrule. Link is helped in this quest by a mysterious imp named Midna, who guides him and acts as his only aid when he is transformed into a wolf form by the mysterious twilight. As usual, he must also help Princess Zelda, who is being held captive within her castle. Link's path to save Hyrule pits him against the Twilight King, Zant, and to do so Link must explore the mysterious history of the Twilit people and Hyrule, as well as how all of this connects to an old criminal named Ganondorf.

Gameplay

This game returns to the realistic style of Ocarina of Time (due in part to complaints about the cel-shaded style of The Wind Waker) and enhances it. There are also two main new gameplay additions in the game. First, is that there is now an advanced horseback combat system, which makes mounted battles possible. The second is that in some points of the game, Link will be transformed into a wolf. The wolf plays under a different gameplay style with a new set of moves, including the ability to target multiple enemies.

Aside from those additions, the game primarily builds upon gameplay from Ocarina of Time. The inventory contains various classic Zelda items but with some additions such as the Clawshots and the Dominion Rod.

Version Differences

One main difference is that the Gamecube version uses a controller for gameplay, while the Wii version uses the motion-sensitive Wii remote. In order to make things more comfortable for right-handed players, Link was made right-handed in the Wii version, and the game's world was flipped around in order to match this change. Finally, there are strange dialogue differences between the two versions, possibly caused by different people translating each game.

Continuity Notes

• This game has been officially stated by Eiji Aonuma to take place over a century following the "child" ending of Ocarina of Time and makes clear callbacks to the game. It was during press for this game that Aonuma elaborated on his idea that the series' timeline split during the ending of Ocarina into two parallel timelines due to the time travel involved. While The Waker followed the ending set where Link beat Ganondorf in the "future" as a teenager, Twilight Princess follows the more vague ending in which Link was returned to his childhood self. Twilight Princess only hints at the differences of Ganondorf's defeat in this timeline with the relation of Ganondorf's backstory. This split timeline is confirmed in Hyrule Historia's official timeline, (as well as a third option which is the branch containing the classic games) which has Twilight Princess taking place after Majora's Mask within the child timeline, and it is followed in the timeline by Four Swords Adventures.
• This game expands upon Hyrule's history in several ways. The game's backstory introduces a mysterious tribe of "dark interlopers" (the ancestors of the Twili) as one of the people who threatened Hyrule for the Triforce. Some details of them (being a dark tribe and a mirror being used for their imprisonment) are strangely similar to a story shown in Four Swords Adventures, and the Twilight Realm has several similarities to the Dark World, although it is unlikely that either is the same as the other.
• The geography is mostly consistent with Ocarina of Time. There is also a portion of the Faron Forest known as the Sacred Grove which seems to be intended as a version of the Lost Woods due to the music, maze-like area and the presence of a Skull Kid. The Goron and Zora civilizations at Death Mountain and Zora's Domain are also similar to their depiction in Ocarina.
• The Triforce has a more subtle presence in this game than in others. Link has a Triforce mark on his hand from the beginning (similar to Zelda II: The Adventure of Link and the Oracle games), and Zelda and Ganondorf are later shown to bear their own marks corresponding to their usual Triforce pieces. Each character seems to somehow have and sometimes use their respective Triforce pieces, and only Ganondorf's Triforce of Power is indirectly referenced. His piece notably seems to leave him at the end of the game.
• The Master Sword's location seems to bridge the gap between its locations in Ocarina of Time and A Link to the Past. It is found in the ruins of the Temple of Time (which matches Ocarina of Time), but the ruins are located within the Sacred Grove, and the temple is deteriorated enough so that the Master Sword is actually within the grove, resembling the grove in the Lost Woods where the Sword rested during A Link to the Past.
• The game ends with Ganondorf dying after being stabbed by the Master Sword. His last words vaguely mention that "The history of light and shadow shall be written in blood!" The meaning of this becomes clear when looking at the text dump, as amongst the unused lines are an extended version of Ganondorf's last lines which hint that he will reincarnate whenever people like Link and Zelda are around. This acts as a justification for Ganon's constant presence as a villain within the game in different time eras and foreshadows Skyward Sword, which ended with Demise's curse that would eventually manifest as Ganondorf's neverending cycle of life and death. When placed on the official timeline, Ganondorf's last views also foreshadow his actual reincarnation in Four Swords Adventures. This is notable as the one time Ganondorf is known to reincarnate, as in most other cases he is revived through other means or freed from a seal.
• This game features a set of six Sages which symbols matching those seen in Ocarina of Time. However, these sages have a very different physical depiction than the sage of Ocarina, as they all are human-like spiritual beings who look identical, and they are implied to have been around since before Ocarina of Time.
• Hena has a picture of the fisherman from Ocarina of Time in her hut and believes herself to be his descendant. She also has a similar habit of nervously scratching herself, which seems to be a subtle confirmation of their relation.
• A character named Impaz appears in the Hidden Village, which is referred to on a sign in Hylian as Old Kakarico. This hints that it is the Kakariko Village from Ocarina of Time, and the Sheikah are referred to. Impaz is also named after Impa, although it is uncertain whether or not she is actually Sheikah. Her frail and elderly appearance is similar to that of Impa in the artwork for the first two Zelda games.
• A mysterious ghostly figure known as the Hero's Spirit appears several times as a mentor. His dialogue implies that he is a previous Hero similar to Link who has had similar experiences, and the Hyrule Historia confirms that he is the spirit of the Hero of Time. Additionally, the spirit is summoned by "howling" songs from previous Zelda games into Howling Stones.
• This game hints at the existence of a sky people preceding the Hylians and implies that they are the Ooccaa. This appeared to be foreshadowing for Skyward Sword, but the Ooccaa people did not come up within the game.

Legacy

Sequels

The next game in the series is The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, but it acts a sequel to Wind Waker rather than Twilight Princess. The next Zelda game to be made specifically for the Wii would be The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword.