As Link leaves the Goddess Statue, he encounters a woman standing at the top of the stairs and shouting in a loud voice for her daughter Kukiel. She Link if he’s seen her, and the options are “No” and “Who?” Disappointed with this answer, she asks Link to help find her. She says Kukiel’s been seen with a person with a scary face, or possibly a monster. Link agrees to look, and the woman goes back to shouting for her daughter, which would probably not be the most effective way to find her even if she weren’t kidnapped, but you do what you can, yeah?
Over in the southeast corner of the area, Link finds a woman who’s heard the rumors about Kukiel and the monster, and asks Link what he thinks. For her part, she doesn’t believe there are monsters on Skyloft, but Link’s belief reminds her about the old man at the Lumpy Pumpkin. (Then she tells Link he’d have to fly to get there. I’m surprised they didn’t leave that for Fi.) Conveniently, the Lumpy Pumpkin is where the Goddess Chest Link activated is, and has a gold rupee (300) for him. The waitress is outside looking at the pumpkins, and greets Link as “the brave knight who slayed [1] the chandelier.” Inside, the old man re-tells the story of seeing the monster (which he calls a demon), which is nice because I didn’t pay attention to all the details last time (bad me, you know better than that). The bartender doesn’t have anything new for Link, so it’s back to Skyloft.
The most important aspect of the old man’s story is he saw the demon at night, so it’s time to talk about Skyloft’s day/night cycle. It seems to be entirely controlled by Link sleeping in beds; he’s got his own at the Academy, but can sleep wherever he finds a handy bed to advance the time. (Even on Beedle’s airship, apparently. Also, hopefully, whatever musical instrument he gets will have a Sun’s Song/Song of Passing [2] so it’s a little less weird.) Link going to sleep has a silly animation of him taking off his sword and shield, then jumping and flopping on the bed, still in his armor and boots.
In the graveyard, Link uses a Skyward Strike on the grave nearest the tree to open the storage shed, as the old man said the demon had done [3]. Link goes in, and doesn’t close the door behind him, so he’s less polite than the demon. Down a narrow walkway, Link comes to a shack under the graveyard, and as he approaches, a girl screams. Link goes into the shack, and finds the demon – horns, bat wings, the whole deal [4][5]. He raises his arms and roars at Link, but when Link goes to attack, he cowers and asks Link to not hurt him.
His name is Batreaux, and he knows things look bad, but he and Kukiel “were just playing the scream-as-loud-as-you-can game” since there’s usually no one around to hear. He may be a monster, but he only wants to be friends with the people of Skyloft, not terrorize them [6]. Kukiel is the one person who hasn’t reacted to him with terror; she’s unharmed and seems to enjoy the time she’s spent with him, but agrees to go home to let her mother know she’s okay. Batreaux explains a story of his people: when humans make each other happy, they create Gratitude Crystals, and enough of these crystals could turn him into a human. And since Link seems to not be afraid of him, plus hopefully the sort to make more of these crystals, Batreaux asks him to gather them for him. He suggests they might come as rewards for completing sidequests, or even just be lying about the world, and promises to reward Link for his help. So, this is a combination of Spirit Tracks’ Force Gems and Ocarina of Time’s Gold Skulltulas/Twilight Princess’ Poe Souls.
Next: Time to start collecting, then.
[1] “Slayed” instead of “slew” sounds weird to me. Weird enough to merit a footnote, not so outright wrong as to earn a [sic].
[2] The Song of Time is okay, too, if that’s what they want to do.
[3] Well, minus the Skyward Strike bit, which may have been a bit overkill. Worked, though.
[4] He’s wearing a robe, so I can’t tell if he has cloven hooves or not.
[5] Actually looks more like a devil than a demon.
[6] At first the way he spoke reminded me of the vampire missionaries story, but talking to him more, he seems genuine… and, worst-case scenario, there’s a boss fight at the end of the collection sidequest.
Wednesday, November 13, 2019
Monday, November 11, 2019
Skyward Sword: Ghirahim
As Link enters the boss room, there’s a stunning flash of light. When it subsides, the man who was watching Link’s progress is seen trying to bash through a golden sealed door in the room. He notices Link’s presence and stops, turning to face Link. He’s the one who summoned the black tornado, but it didn’t do its job well enough because Link survived. Link is mostly irrelevant, though – the tornado was only meant to take Zelda (“Her Majesty,” even though she’s not a princess in this game) from the clouds, and succeeded at that. Now there’s just the pesky matter of actually capturing her.
The man realizes in his ramblings he’s forgotten to introduce himself. He’s the demon lord who claims to rule over the surface since the goddess sent her people to the sky, and his name is Ghirahim. (He prefers his full title, Lord Ghirahim, but he’s “not fussy.”) At this, Link draws his sword, only earning mockery, and Ghirahim goes back to the topic of Zelda. He nearly had her when she fell, but the woman in the Sealed Temple saved her. “Do you have any idea how that made me feel inside? Furious! Outraged! Sick with anger!” Ahhh. Twilight Princess was weird with how different Zant was at first from what I expected, but this is exactly the Ghirahim I know.
As Ghirahim said that last line, he disappeared, and continues to speak to Link, saying that he’s glad for the opportunity to take some of that anger out on him. He walks up behind Link, promising not to kill him (but just barely), then he waggles his very long tongue at the camera. Link stumbles away from him, Ghirahim gets rid of his cape, and the fight begins.
In the first phase of the battle, Ghirahim isn’t really trying to fight Link, merely toying with him. He holds up his hand and catches Link’s sword when he swings it. There’s a quick tug-of-war, and if he wins, he whacks Link a couple times with the sword, taunts him for telegraphing his moves, and tosses the sword away. It’s possible to get a hit through Ghirahim’s defense, but I couldn’t tell why sometimes he was blocking and sometimes he wasn’t. Doing research afterwards, I think the problem is I was too impatient and not luring his hand far enough away from his center to open up the other side before trying to actually attack.
After establishing that Link knows his stuff, Ghirahim recalls the sword he had earlier and begins fighting back. He’s got three attacks. First, he summons a bunch of daggers to throw at Link, and of course they’re in a line that of course Link has to make the right directional slice through and of course the Wiimote’s accuracy leaves much to be desired. Fortunately, there’s no reason Link can’t just walk out of the way of this one. The second attack has him teleport directly behind Link and stand there like a fool for Link to hit. Finally, the third attack is the one that I found easiest to counter: Ghirahim charges at Link and goes off to one side or the other at the last second leaving him open to attack. Hitting him leaves him stunned for a bit so Link can get in a couple more attacks.
After the battle’s gone on long enough, Ghirahim stops attacking. Link’s put up more of a fight than expected, but he now realizes Link has the Goddess Sword. However, there’s no reason to continue the fight, because Zelda’s gone. “Good-bye, sky child. Run and play this time. Get in my way again, though, and you’re dead.” He teleports out, leaving behind a heart container (how kind of him?); once he’s gone, the door Zelda’s aura was behind begins glowing.
Behind the door, which disappears when Link approaches, is a garden area. The centerpiece is another altar like the one in the cave where the Goddess Sword was. There’s a Goddess Cube behind the altar that Link whacks, and then it’s Skyward Strike on the altar, and Fi receives a message that she relays to Link. “From the edge of time I guide you, the one to carry out the goddess’s mission. The spirit maiden who descended from the clouds must travel to two sacred places to purify her body. You stand in one of these places: Skyview Spring. The other is known as the Earth Spring. This second spring is hidden away deep in the scorched earth of Eldin. The spirit maiden, ever mindful of the heavy task entrusted to her, has set out for this second sacred place.” As she says this, she dances and skates around the spring, ending with a long pirouette at the base of the altar. It’s weird, but also rather endearing, which she badly needs. (Immediately after the cutscene ends: “Master, as I have just translated, it would appear Zelda purified herself in the waters of this spring. I calculate a 97% chance that she has already set out for Eldin, where another great spring exists.” YES, I HEARD YOU THE FIRST TIME. At least Kaepora Gaebora asked before repeating things. Gah.) Link gets a second tablet, this one with a ruby.
Before Link returns to the sky, Machi comes up to thank him for helping reunite the Kikwis and ask if he found Zelda. After he leaves, Link uses a bird statue to return to the sky, then flies back to Skyloft. Inside the Goddess Statue, Link places the Ruby Tablet in the map section, which causes the clouds to part with a red beacon.
Next: Link goes around sleeping in everyone’s beds.
The man realizes in his ramblings he’s forgotten to introduce himself. He’s the demon lord who claims to rule over the surface since the goddess sent her people to the sky, and his name is Ghirahim. (He prefers his full title, Lord Ghirahim, but he’s “not fussy.”) At this, Link draws his sword, only earning mockery, and Ghirahim goes back to the topic of Zelda. He nearly had her when she fell, but the woman in the Sealed Temple saved her. “Do you have any idea how that made me feel inside? Furious! Outraged! Sick with anger!” Ahhh. Twilight Princess was weird with how different Zant was at first from what I expected, but this is exactly the Ghirahim I know.
As Ghirahim said that last line, he disappeared, and continues to speak to Link, saying that he’s glad for the opportunity to take some of that anger out on him. He walks up behind Link, promising not to kill him (but just barely), then he waggles his very long tongue at the camera. Link stumbles away from him, Ghirahim gets rid of his cape, and the fight begins.
In the first phase of the battle, Ghirahim isn’t really trying to fight Link, merely toying with him. He holds up his hand and catches Link’s sword when he swings it. There’s a quick tug-of-war, and if he wins, he whacks Link a couple times with the sword, taunts him for telegraphing his moves, and tosses the sword away. It’s possible to get a hit through Ghirahim’s defense, but I couldn’t tell why sometimes he was blocking and sometimes he wasn’t. Doing research afterwards, I think the problem is I was too impatient and not luring his hand far enough away from his center to open up the other side before trying to actually attack.
After establishing that Link knows his stuff, Ghirahim recalls the sword he had earlier and begins fighting back. He’s got three attacks. First, he summons a bunch of daggers to throw at Link, and of course they’re in a line that of course Link has to make the right directional slice through and of course the Wiimote’s accuracy leaves much to be desired. Fortunately, there’s no reason Link can’t just walk out of the way of this one. The second attack has him teleport directly behind Link and stand there like a fool for Link to hit. Finally, the third attack is the one that I found easiest to counter: Ghirahim charges at Link and goes off to one side or the other at the last second leaving him open to attack. Hitting him leaves him stunned for a bit so Link can get in a couple more attacks.
After the battle’s gone on long enough, Ghirahim stops attacking. Link’s put up more of a fight than expected, but he now realizes Link has the Goddess Sword. However, there’s no reason to continue the fight, because Zelda’s gone. “Good-bye, sky child. Run and play this time. Get in my way again, though, and you’re dead.” He teleports out, leaving behind a heart container (how kind of him?); once he’s gone, the door Zelda’s aura was behind begins glowing.
Behind the door, which disappears when Link approaches, is a garden area. The centerpiece is another altar like the one in the cave where the Goddess Sword was. There’s a Goddess Cube behind the altar that Link whacks, and then it’s Skyward Strike on the altar, and Fi receives a message that she relays to Link. “From the edge of time I guide you, the one to carry out the goddess’s mission. The spirit maiden who descended from the clouds must travel to two sacred places to purify her body. You stand in one of these places: Skyview Spring. The other is known as the Earth Spring. This second spring is hidden away deep in the scorched earth of Eldin. The spirit maiden, ever mindful of the heavy task entrusted to her, has set out for this second sacred place.” As she says this, she dances and skates around the spring, ending with a long pirouette at the base of the altar. It’s weird, but also rather endearing, which she badly needs. (Immediately after the cutscene ends: “Master, as I have just translated, it would appear Zelda purified herself in the waters of this spring. I calculate a 97% chance that she has already set out for Eldin, where another great spring exists.” YES, I HEARD YOU THE FIRST TIME. At least Kaepora Gaebora asked before repeating things. Gah.) Link gets a second tablet, this one with a ruby.
Before Link returns to the sky, Machi comes up to thank him for helping reunite the Kikwis and ask if he found Zelda. After he leaves, Link uses a bird statue to return to the sky, then flies back to Skyloft. Inside the Goddess Statue, Link places the Ruby Tablet in the map section, which causes the clouds to part with a red beacon.
Next: Link goes around sleeping in everyone’s beds.
Friday, November 8, 2019
Skyward Sword: Skyview Temple
When returning to the surface, Link is able to go to any of the bird statues he’s activated. Opening the dungeon requires hitting a crystal switch; once the door is open, a cutscene plays as Link walks in. Fi pops up to say that there are too many creatures in the dungeon for dowsing to work. As an alternative, she suggests Link look around to determine what to do next.
Why? Why did Nintendo assume players would need an NPC to reiterate what they just read and give obvious advice? “Look around to see where we should move next.” And here I was, planning to sit on my thumbs and hope the boss came to me and brought the dungeon item [1]. And later when Link gets the map, it’s “You got a map. You can use it to find your way around the dungeon.” Well, I’m glad you’re here to tell me these things! And, sure, the compass is no longer a separate item – the map comes pre-marked with all the relevant information – and that’s important to convey to the player. But the text popup window, as well as all the icons appearing on the map, would have worked just fine without having Fi explain it.
Let’s imagine Fi in some of the other games…
“Master, the man has said your journey will be dangerous and offered you a sword to use. You should take it and use it to fight Ganon’s forces.”
“Master, Agahnim has accused you of kidnapping Princess Zelda in an effort to turn the people against you. You should be careful with whom you speak.”
“Master, the mural says that Koholint Island is a projection of the Wind Fish’s dream. This means if you wake the Wind Fish, Koholint and its inhabitants will disappear.”
“Master, your fairy companion has shouted to gain your attention. She likely has something to tell you.”
“Master, the moon is about to crash into the earth. You will almost certainly not survive this.”
“Master, this is not Peach. It appears to be one of her retainers. You may find Peach in a different castle.”
I’m not exaggerating – in fact, the opposite, because I refuse to arbitrarily assign percentages. Link’s had companions who have pointed out things that shouldn’t need pointing out before. I didn’t think anyone would be able to pass Ezlo, but now… I am going to do my best to let Fi’s more useless statements pass unacknowledged from here on, but sometimes they may slip through.
Skyview Temple is a first dungeon, forest dungeon, and water level dungeon. There are two major changes to the key dungeoneering components. First, as mentioned, the compass is gone, and its features have been folded into the dungeon map. Second, instead of a Big/Boss Key, Link finds a golden sculpture thing, and the boss door has a niche for it, and because this game wants to use motion controls every way possible, you have to rotate the sculpture to fit in the niche by waving the Wiimote.
This dungeon solidified my opinion of the motion controls. For swordfights, as long as it interprets my swings properly, they’re… okay. I can see why they’d have wanted to put the time into developing this. The miniboss is a Stalfos who defends from two directions at once, so Link has to come at him from one of the other directions, and I had little trouble beating it, and it was actually a bit of fun. On the other hand, some of the doors are protected by eye guardians, and the solution is Link needs to wave his sword in a circle so they get dizzy and fall out to die. This was amusing once. The second and third time, the challenge is meant to be standing in the right place to get the attention of two or three at once. Instead, I had no trouble with that, but then getting the eyes to follow the sword and going in a big enough circle that they die hurt my shoulder. At least this still uses the sword, so I can see why they’d want to use motion controls instead of the thumbstick…
Unlike the dungeon item, the Beetle. The Beetle is a remote-control bug that can scout, retrieve objects, cut threads, and hit switches. It can affect enemies, but it’s too slow and cumbersome to really use in battle. It’s like the natural evolution of the boomerangs’ intricate flight paths, but it had to sacrifice the combat utility to get there. And of course, despite piloting with the thumbstick seeming natural, it’s controlled by the Wiimote’s motion controls. So there’s my opinion of motion controls: okay for swordplay (when it accurately interprets what I’m trying to do), but shoehorned into situations where there are better options [2].
New and returning enemies include green Bokoblins (hey, someone tell the Kikwis they do exist), Skulltulas (who sometimes break free of their ceiling webs, need to be flipped on their backs with a vertical slice, and finished off with an ending blow) and Walltulas, and a Staldra, a three-headed skeletal thing which lines its heads up and Link needs to cut the right way to kill them all at once. (That’s the other thing that bugs me about motion controls in combat: every enemy more advanced than a ChuChu has some sort of defense Link’s got to cut the right way to get around. It works for things like the Stalfos, but for common enemies it breaks immersion, which is probably the opposite effect from what they intended.)
There’s a heart piece in the dungeon, giving Link his first full heart container.
Next: I got so annoyed about Fi’s writing that I ran out of time for the boss.
[1] Actually, given who the boss is, if I sit long enough, this may not be out of the question.
[2] I didn’t mention this, but they’re also used for aiming the Slingshot.
Why? Why did Nintendo assume players would need an NPC to reiterate what they just read and give obvious advice? “Look around to see where we should move next.” And here I was, planning to sit on my thumbs and hope the boss came to me and brought the dungeon item [1]. And later when Link gets the map, it’s “You got a map. You can use it to find your way around the dungeon.” Well, I’m glad you’re here to tell me these things! And, sure, the compass is no longer a separate item – the map comes pre-marked with all the relevant information – and that’s important to convey to the player. But the text popup window, as well as all the icons appearing on the map, would have worked just fine without having Fi explain it.
Let’s imagine Fi in some of the other games…
“Master, the man has said your journey will be dangerous and offered you a sword to use. You should take it and use it to fight Ganon’s forces.”
“Master, Agahnim has accused you of kidnapping Princess Zelda in an effort to turn the people against you. You should be careful with whom you speak.”
“Master, the mural says that Koholint Island is a projection of the Wind Fish’s dream. This means if you wake the Wind Fish, Koholint and its inhabitants will disappear.”
“Master, your fairy companion has shouted to gain your attention. She likely has something to tell you.”
“Master, the moon is about to crash into the earth. You will almost certainly not survive this.”
“Master, this is not Peach. It appears to be one of her retainers. You may find Peach in a different castle.”
I’m not exaggerating – in fact, the opposite, because I refuse to arbitrarily assign percentages. Link’s had companions who have pointed out things that shouldn’t need pointing out before. I didn’t think anyone would be able to pass Ezlo, but now… I am going to do my best to let Fi’s more useless statements pass unacknowledged from here on, but sometimes they may slip through.
Skyview Temple is a first dungeon, forest dungeon, and water level dungeon. There are two major changes to the key dungeoneering components. First, as mentioned, the compass is gone, and its features have been folded into the dungeon map. Second, instead of a Big/Boss Key, Link finds a golden sculpture thing, and the boss door has a niche for it, and because this game wants to use motion controls every way possible, you have to rotate the sculpture to fit in the niche by waving the Wiimote.
This dungeon solidified my opinion of the motion controls. For swordfights, as long as it interprets my swings properly, they’re… okay. I can see why they’d have wanted to put the time into developing this. The miniboss is a Stalfos who defends from two directions at once, so Link has to come at him from one of the other directions, and I had little trouble beating it, and it was actually a bit of fun. On the other hand, some of the doors are protected by eye guardians, and the solution is Link needs to wave his sword in a circle so they get dizzy and fall out to die. This was amusing once. The second and third time, the challenge is meant to be standing in the right place to get the attention of two or three at once. Instead, I had no trouble with that, but then getting the eyes to follow the sword and going in a big enough circle that they die hurt my shoulder. At least this still uses the sword, so I can see why they’d want to use motion controls instead of the thumbstick…
Unlike the dungeon item, the Beetle. The Beetle is a remote-control bug that can scout, retrieve objects, cut threads, and hit switches. It can affect enemies, but it’s too slow and cumbersome to really use in battle. It’s like the natural evolution of the boomerangs’ intricate flight paths, but it had to sacrifice the combat utility to get there. And of course, despite piloting with the thumbstick seeming natural, it’s controlled by the Wiimote’s motion controls. So there’s my opinion of motion controls: okay for swordplay (when it accurately interprets what I’m trying to do), but shoehorned into situations where there are better options [2].
New and returning enemies include green Bokoblins (hey, someone tell the Kikwis they do exist), Skulltulas (who sometimes break free of their ceiling webs, need to be flipped on their backs with a vertical slice, and finished off with an ending blow) and Walltulas, and a Staldra, a three-headed skeletal thing which lines its heads up and Link needs to cut the right way to kill them all at once. (That’s the other thing that bugs me about motion controls in combat: every enemy more advanced than a ChuChu has some sort of defense Link’s got to cut the right way to get around. It works for things like the Stalfos, but for common enemies it breaks immersion, which is probably the opposite effect from what they intended.)
There’s a heart piece in the dungeon, giving Link his first full heart container.
Next: I got so annoyed about Fi’s writing that I ran out of time for the boss.
[1] Actually, given who the boss is, if I sit long enough, this may not be out of the question.
[2] I didn’t mention this, but they’re also used for aiming the Slingshot.
Wednesday, November 6, 2019
Skyward Sword: Goddess Cubes
Fi pops up and introduces the area Link has entered as the Deep Woods. Then she reminds him of his quest to find the temple and Zelda. A little way in, Gorko peeks his head over a cliff to invite Link to come take a look at something with him. Getting to Gorko requires fighting a new variant of Deku Baba, the Quadro Baba, which can change if the mouth/split is horizontal or vertical. The object of Gorko’s interest is a cube marked with the Loftwing crest that’s said to be left behind by the Goddess for her chosen Hero. There’s an instruction attached to the Goddess Cubes: “Summon forth the light from a heavenly blade, and may that sword’s master receive aid.” Gorko asks Link to see if they can figure out what it means, and points out the key phrase in the instruction, so it’s not just Fi who over-explains things. Link whacks the Cube with a Skyward Strike, and it glows before disappearing, sending a ball of light to the sky. There are more of these things, so they’re… treasure maps from Wind Waker? As if proving the concept, there’s a second Goddess Cube to whack between the first one and the dungeon.
At the dungeon, Fi says she senses Zelda’s aura inside, along with a bunch of monsters. She advises against overconfidence, suggesting Link could use a bird statue to return to the sky… to get a shield and potions. *headdesk* But there’s the Goddess Cubes’ output to investigate, so why not? As Link mounts his Loftwing again, Fi brings up the map to highlight the points where the Goddess Cubes’ energy landed. This confirms my guess about what the Goddess Cubes are meant to resemble: the sky is sort of like the Great Sea, only with… skislands, if you will. And no Fishmen to talk to.
The first Goddess Cube’s chest expands Link’s Adventure Pouch by one slot. He still only has three items to fit in the five slots, so there’s no need to go back to the Item Check. There’s a bar on the island, and as Link walks in, the camera tantalizingly hovers on the chandelier, which has rupees and a heart piece. The bartender warns Link not to break the chandelier. The waitress calls attention to the rupees inside, which I don’t care about because my wallet’s full. Among the patrons, there’s an old man who saw a monster in the cemetery one night and Groose’s non-egg throwing lackey.
Link goes up to the upper level of the bar and rolls into the guardrail, causing the chandelier to sway. Doing it again knocks it down onto the large table in the center of the bar, leaving Link free to take the heart piece. The bartender’s pissed, and demands Link come talk to him. He wants Link to work for him until the chandelier’s paid off; the first errand is to deliver pumpkin soup to Eagus, the man in the Sparring Hall, the Knight Commander of Skyloft. Sadly, he’s not inclined to give Link a bottle – maybe if someone hadn’t broken his chandelier, he might be more generous – so Link’s got to drink one of his potions so he can carry the pumpkin soup. Then he drinks it, just to see the bartender’s reaction. Then he gets another bottle to deliver. Eagus is grateful for the soup once it’s delivered. The bartender’s satisfied with Link’s postal service and tells him to check back later for another job.
While on Skyloft, Link has some shopping to do. First, he gets a potion to replace the one he had to drink. (Actually, he drank a Revitalizing Potion and got a Heart Potion. I wonder if the bartender will let him count that expense toward paying for the chandelier. Probably not.) While he’s there, he’s got the materials to upgrade his shield so it’s a little sturdier, and the item shop has a seed bag upgrade – that takes a spot in the Adventure Pouch. Are you fscking serious? Hoo boy, this is going to suck worse than I thought. Beedle flies an airship over Skyloft, and if Link gets his attention by shooting the bell on the ship, he’ll lower a rope so Link can come up to shop. Link can buy an Extra Wallet and Bug Net now; there’s an Adventure Pouch upgrade he could afford by farming a lot, but still has no need for, so he lets it go for now.
There are two more things to do in the sky before going back to the surface. First, the second Goddess Chest has another heart piece that doesn’t require destruction of property. Second, north of Skyloft, there’s a minigame where Link tries to cut a piece of bamboo as many times as he can before it falls to the ground. I had trouble with this at first because I was too deliberate, and I could get eight or so cuts before the Wiimote decided I was doing something other than what I was trying for, and once this game goes wrong, there’s no saving it. Then I closed my eyes, held the Wiimote flat, and waved it wildly, and got 31 cuts.
Next: Exactly how thick does this game think Link (and/or the player) is?
At the dungeon, Fi says she senses Zelda’s aura inside, along with a bunch of monsters. She advises against overconfidence, suggesting Link could use a bird statue to return to the sky… to get a shield and potions. *headdesk* But there’s the Goddess Cubes’ output to investigate, so why not? As Link mounts his Loftwing again, Fi brings up the map to highlight the points where the Goddess Cubes’ energy landed. This confirms my guess about what the Goddess Cubes are meant to resemble: the sky is sort of like the Great Sea, only with… skislands, if you will. And no Fishmen to talk to.
The first Goddess Cube’s chest expands Link’s Adventure Pouch by one slot. He still only has three items to fit in the five slots, so there’s no need to go back to the Item Check. There’s a bar on the island, and as Link walks in, the camera tantalizingly hovers on the chandelier, which has rupees and a heart piece. The bartender warns Link not to break the chandelier. The waitress calls attention to the rupees inside, which I don’t care about because my wallet’s full. Among the patrons, there’s an old man who saw a monster in the cemetery one night and Groose’s non-egg throwing lackey.
Link goes up to the upper level of the bar and rolls into the guardrail, causing the chandelier to sway. Doing it again knocks it down onto the large table in the center of the bar, leaving Link free to take the heart piece. The bartender’s pissed, and demands Link come talk to him. He wants Link to work for him until the chandelier’s paid off; the first errand is to deliver pumpkin soup to Eagus, the man in the Sparring Hall, the Knight Commander of Skyloft. Sadly, he’s not inclined to give Link a bottle – maybe if someone hadn’t broken his chandelier, he might be more generous – so Link’s got to drink one of his potions so he can carry the pumpkin soup. Then he drinks it, just to see the bartender’s reaction. Then he gets another bottle to deliver. Eagus is grateful for the soup once it’s delivered. The bartender’s satisfied with Link’s postal service and tells him to check back later for another job.
While on Skyloft, Link has some shopping to do. First, he gets a potion to replace the one he had to drink. (Actually, he drank a Revitalizing Potion and got a Heart Potion. I wonder if the bartender will let him count that expense toward paying for the chandelier. Probably not.) While he’s there, he’s got the materials to upgrade his shield so it’s a little sturdier, and the item shop has a seed bag upgrade – that takes a spot in the Adventure Pouch. Are you fscking serious? Hoo boy, this is going to suck worse than I thought. Beedle flies an airship over Skyloft, and if Link gets his attention by shooting the bell on the ship, he’ll lower a rope so Link can come up to shop. Link can buy an Extra Wallet and Bug Net now; there’s an Adventure Pouch upgrade he could afford by farming a lot, but still has no need for, so he lets it go for now.
There are two more things to do in the sky before going back to the surface. First, the second Goddess Chest has another heart piece that doesn’t require destruction of property. Second, north of Skyloft, there’s a minigame where Link tries to cut a piece of bamboo as many times as he can before it falls to the ground. I had trouble with this at first because I was too deliberate, and I could get eight or so cuts before the Wiimote decided I was doing something other than what I was trying for, and once this game goes wrong, there’s no saving it. Then I closed my eyes, held the Wiimote flat, and waved it wildly, and got 31 cuts.
Next: Exactly how thick does this game think Link (and/or the player) is?
Monday, November 4, 2019
Skyward Sword: Kikwis
Link catches up to the beacon he placed on the map, only there’s nothing there. He continues on to the next area, Faron Woods. Fi pops up to talk about the local wildlife – I didn’t realize I needed a tour guide. She also says Zelda’s probably nearby, so keep on dowsing for her. After a bird statue, Link comes to a gap he needs to swing across on a rope, and it’s motion controlled, but the controls are pretty much exactly like the Wind Waker controls only swinging the Wiimote rather than pushing the stick forward and backward, so it’s not so bad.
A little farther on, Link comes across a couple Bokoblins bullying a cowering plant creature. They see Link and spare him the trouble of coming over to them to kill them, and Link checks on the plant creature. He mistakes Link for a green Bokoblin and runs off, terrified. As it runs, Fi pops up, saying that the creature is resonating with Zelda’s dowsing aura. She identifies the creature as Kikwi – possibly an ancestor race of the Kokiri? – and encourages Link to catch him to find why the dowsing results match up. Link gives chase, with the Kikwi skipping off every time he gets near.
Finally, the Kikwi throws himself on the ground rather than running; he has a growth on its back that unfolds to resemble a bush as a form of camouflage, but the form seems poorly chosen when running from Link. Better than growing a pot, I guess. Fortunately, Link just stands there staring at him, and he realizes Link fought off the Bokoblins so he’s maybe not a bad guy after all. He introduces himself as Machi, and says he saw another human earlier. The Bokoblins were after her, but the Kikwi elder helped her escape. Fi pops up to comment, and Machi throws himself to the ground in panic once again. Fi recaps what Machi just said before getting to the point – Machi triggered a fake dowsing reading because of its contact with Zelda, so… it’s not just likely or probable that the elder will as well, but Fi says there’s an “85% chance” of it. Once she’s back into the sword, Machi stands up and asks Link if he’s going to see the elder anyway, to tell him that he’s okay.
Getting to the elder requires fighting more Bokoblins, Deku Babas, and what I assumed were Deku Scrubs but are actually Octoroks (Link needs a well-timed shield bash to reflect the rocks back at it). There’s also a rope he’s got to cut loose, and he can’t be smart and hold it with his left [1] hand while cutting with the right, noooo. It’s got to fly free and he’s got to jump to catch it. After making the swing, Link comes to Bucha, the Kikwi elder, who’s huge and lying face-down. (He doesn’t have any vegetation growing from his back, although he has the same growth Machi did.) Bucha is reluctant to discuss Zelda while the Kikwis are scattered and in danger, talking about how the situation has made his memory fail. He’s happy to hear Machi is safe, but there are three more. Fi pops up with another 85% chance estimate that finding the missing Kikwis might ultimately help Link in his search for Zelda, and so now Link can dowse for Kikwis. Fortunately, she’s able to not locate already-identified Kikwis, so Bucha being right there doesn’t throw Link off.
Getting to the first Kikwi requires crawling through a tunnel and walking over a tightrope, and the tightrope controls are terrible. Link’s constantly falling one way or the other and the Wiimote has to be pointed in the other direction to balance him and, screw that, it’s easier to fall so Link can grab on from below and shuffle along, climbing back up when the Stamina Lime starts running low. Then he has to stop a bunch of Bokoblins who are bothering the treed Kikwi. Finally, the Kikwi’s too shaken to climb down, so Link rolls into the tree, shaking him out. Fi pops up, scaring Lopsa, to tell Link that she’s marked the location on the map and there are two more Kikwis to find.
The second Kikwi, Erla, is on a surface Link can reach by climbing vines and using its camouflage bush to hide among real bushes. Thankfully, Link manages not to cut the Kikwi while getting rid of enough bushes to force Erla out into the open. En route to the final Kikwi, Link grabs a piece of heart across a tightrope. The final Kikwi, Oolo, is in a cave in a hole in the ground, and Link has to try to pick him up to get him to talk. Oolo is also scared of Fi.
With all the Kikwis located, Link returns to Bucha. Bucha remembers that Zelda went to the temple deeper in the woods. As thanks to Link for his help, Bucha flops on the ground and spreads the comically undersized bush on its back – which has a slingshot Link can use to help him on his quest. With Bucha’s encouragement, Link shoots a vine free and swings across a gap. After saving his game atop a “viewing platform,” he shoots another vine, which prompts Fi to pop up with an item and aiming tutorial. He climbs the vine and heads deeper into the woods as someone watches him from the viewing platform.
Next: Look, if you didn’t want your chandelier broken…
[1] Another side effect of motion controls: to match having the Wiimote in the right hand and Nunchuk in the left, this version of Link is right-handed.
A little farther on, Link comes across a couple Bokoblins bullying a cowering plant creature. They see Link and spare him the trouble of coming over to them to kill them, and Link checks on the plant creature. He mistakes Link for a green Bokoblin and runs off, terrified. As it runs, Fi pops up, saying that the creature is resonating with Zelda’s dowsing aura. She identifies the creature as Kikwi – possibly an ancestor race of the Kokiri? – and encourages Link to catch him to find why the dowsing results match up. Link gives chase, with the Kikwi skipping off every time he gets near.
Finally, the Kikwi throws himself on the ground rather than running; he has a growth on its back that unfolds to resemble a bush as a form of camouflage, but the form seems poorly chosen when running from Link. Better than growing a pot, I guess. Fortunately, Link just stands there staring at him, and he realizes Link fought off the Bokoblins so he’s maybe not a bad guy after all. He introduces himself as Machi, and says he saw another human earlier. The Bokoblins were after her, but the Kikwi elder helped her escape. Fi pops up to comment, and Machi throws himself to the ground in panic once again. Fi recaps what Machi just said before getting to the point – Machi triggered a fake dowsing reading because of its contact with Zelda, so… it’s not just likely or probable that the elder will as well, but Fi says there’s an “85% chance” of it. Once she’s back into the sword, Machi stands up and asks Link if he’s going to see the elder anyway, to tell him that he’s okay.
Getting to the elder requires fighting more Bokoblins, Deku Babas, and what I assumed were Deku Scrubs but are actually Octoroks (Link needs a well-timed shield bash to reflect the rocks back at it). There’s also a rope he’s got to cut loose, and he can’t be smart and hold it with his left [1] hand while cutting with the right, noooo. It’s got to fly free and he’s got to jump to catch it. After making the swing, Link comes to Bucha, the Kikwi elder, who’s huge and lying face-down. (He doesn’t have any vegetation growing from his back, although he has the same growth Machi did.) Bucha is reluctant to discuss Zelda while the Kikwis are scattered and in danger, talking about how the situation has made his memory fail. He’s happy to hear Machi is safe, but there are three more. Fi pops up with another 85% chance estimate that finding the missing Kikwis might ultimately help Link in his search for Zelda, and so now Link can dowse for Kikwis. Fortunately, she’s able to not locate already-identified Kikwis, so Bucha being right there doesn’t throw Link off.
Getting to the first Kikwi requires crawling through a tunnel and walking over a tightrope, and the tightrope controls are terrible. Link’s constantly falling one way or the other and the Wiimote has to be pointed in the other direction to balance him and, screw that, it’s easier to fall so Link can grab on from below and shuffle along, climbing back up when the Stamina Lime starts running low. Then he has to stop a bunch of Bokoblins who are bothering the treed Kikwi. Finally, the Kikwi’s too shaken to climb down, so Link rolls into the tree, shaking him out. Fi pops up, scaring Lopsa, to tell Link that she’s marked the location on the map and there are two more Kikwis to find.
The second Kikwi, Erla, is on a surface Link can reach by climbing vines and using its camouflage bush to hide among real bushes. Thankfully, Link manages not to cut the Kikwi while getting rid of enough bushes to force Erla out into the open. En route to the final Kikwi, Link grabs a piece of heart across a tightrope. The final Kikwi, Oolo, is in a cave in a hole in the ground, and Link has to try to pick him up to get him to talk. Oolo is also scared of Fi.
With all the Kikwis located, Link returns to Bucha. Bucha remembers that Zelda went to the temple deeper in the woods. As thanks to Link for his help, Bucha flops on the ground and spreads the comically undersized bush on its back – which has a slingshot Link can use to help him on his quest. With Bucha’s encouragement, Link shoots a vine free and swings across a gap. After saving his game atop a “viewing platform,” he shoots another vine, which prompts Fi to pop up with an item and aiming tutorial. He climbs the vine and heads deeper into the woods as someone watches him from the viewing platform.
Next: Look, if you didn’t want your chandelier broken…
[1] Another side effect of motion controls: to match having the Wiimote in the right hand and Nunchuk in the left, this version of Link is right-handed.
Friday, November 1, 2019
Skyward Sword: Sealed Grounds
Link uses the sailcloth to avoid landing in a bloody heap, and Fi pops out to officially welcome him to the surface world. Link has landed in an area known as the Sealed Grounds, which have a helical hill leading down to a seal at the center. Link starts making his way down the hill and is attacked by a couple Deku Babas, and here the motion control swordplay becomes important. The Babas open their mouths parallel to the ground or perpendicular to the ground, and Link needs to slash along the opening to damage them. The vertical Babas were little trouble, but the horizontal ones usually took a few tries – I think I tend to tilt the Wiimote as I swing so it interprets the slash as diagonal, which bounces off the Baba’s hide. At least, I assume that's what I'm doing wrong.
Link jumps off a ledge and the sky turns threatening. Link looks down at the center, where black smoke is coming out of the seal. Link has a vision of the black worm coming out of the seal and eating him; it passes, but the black smoke is still coming. He makes his way down the hill, and as he approaches the seal, a voice speaks to him, telling him to use a Skyward Strike to hit the pillar [1] at the center. Link does so, and the pillar glows with light as the black smoke subsides, and the seal returns to its natural state. Steam geysers pop up all over the hill, which Fi pops up to note.
Fi also says she’s sensing an aura similar to that on the sailcloth Zelda gave Link nearby, and teaches him to seek out auras via dowsing, which is basically an addition to the camera free-look mode. Link detects the aura up the hill and uses the steam geysers and sailcloth to make it back up the hill, and near the point where Link noticed that the seal at the bottom was weakening, a door’s seal stops glowing, allowing Link to open the door and enter.
Inside the Sealed Temple, Link finds an old woman sitting in the spot where the sun shines through the temple’s roof. She has been waiting for Link for a long time, and his mastery of the Skyward Strike indicates that he is the destined bearer of the Goddess Sword. Zelda arrived at the temple before Link did, but she wasn’t supposed to fall from a black tornado – the work of some evil power trying to disrupt what Link and Zelda are meant to do. Right now, that destiny led Zelda to Faron Woods, and Link needs to follow her. The woman teaches Link to create his own beacons on the map. She tells Link there’s a treasure chest which has a useful item and unlocks the temple door leading in to Faron Woods. The item in the treasure chest is a bottle full of Revitalizing Potion, which can repair damage to a shield and restore four hearts.
Not far down the road into the woods, Link finds a Goron being pestered by a bunch of Bokoblins, and jumps to the rescue. The Bokoblins… I think they’re blocking with their swords so Link’s supposed to have to attack from a different direction, but I came in with the Wiimote flailing and they all took hits and eventually died. The Goron thanks Link for the rescue and introduces himself as Gorko, an archaeologist researching the woods. To him, Skyloft is a legend known as the Isle of the Goddess. He points out a nearby bird statue, apparently one of many in the woods. This one is apparently a master statue that can activate others nearby.
After checking to make sure Link’s interested, Gorko talks about what the texts say about the Isle of the Goddess: people actually live there, using huge birds to get around. They worship the goddess, and have a perfect, conflict-free society. Well… pretty good, up till that last bit. Gorko’s descriptions go a bit into the fantastical, talking about buildings made of gold and a mystical river that grants eternal life, but Link continues to indulge his beliefs about his home. Gorko eventually runs out of things to say, so Link approaches the statue, which glows to life, to Gorko’s astoundment.
Next: Fi, quit scaring the Kikwis.
[1] In my introduction I said the Imprisoned has a sword stuck in its head. In Hyrule Warriors, I never really got a good look at it, and apparently, when you’re more concerned with fighting the boss than examining the thing stuck in its head, a triangular prism can look a lot like a flat blade.
Link jumps off a ledge and the sky turns threatening. Link looks down at the center, where black smoke is coming out of the seal. Link has a vision of the black worm coming out of the seal and eating him; it passes, but the black smoke is still coming. He makes his way down the hill, and as he approaches the seal, a voice speaks to him, telling him to use a Skyward Strike to hit the pillar [1] at the center. Link does so, and the pillar glows with light as the black smoke subsides, and the seal returns to its natural state. Steam geysers pop up all over the hill, which Fi pops up to note.
Fi also says she’s sensing an aura similar to that on the sailcloth Zelda gave Link nearby, and teaches him to seek out auras via dowsing, which is basically an addition to the camera free-look mode. Link detects the aura up the hill and uses the steam geysers and sailcloth to make it back up the hill, and near the point where Link noticed that the seal at the bottom was weakening, a door’s seal stops glowing, allowing Link to open the door and enter.
Inside the Sealed Temple, Link finds an old woman sitting in the spot where the sun shines through the temple’s roof. She has been waiting for Link for a long time, and his mastery of the Skyward Strike indicates that he is the destined bearer of the Goddess Sword. Zelda arrived at the temple before Link did, but she wasn’t supposed to fall from a black tornado – the work of some evil power trying to disrupt what Link and Zelda are meant to do. Right now, that destiny led Zelda to Faron Woods, and Link needs to follow her. The woman teaches Link to create his own beacons on the map. She tells Link there’s a treasure chest which has a useful item and unlocks the temple door leading in to Faron Woods. The item in the treasure chest is a bottle full of Revitalizing Potion, which can repair damage to a shield and restore four hearts.
Not far down the road into the woods, Link finds a Goron being pestered by a bunch of Bokoblins, and jumps to the rescue. The Bokoblins… I think they’re blocking with their swords so Link’s supposed to have to attack from a different direction, but I came in with the Wiimote flailing and they all took hits and eventually died. The Goron thanks Link for the rescue and introduces himself as Gorko, an archaeologist researching the woods. To him, Skyloft is a legend known as the Isle of the Goddess. He points out a nearby bird statue, apparently one of many in the woods. This one is apparently a master statue that can activate others nearby.
After checking to make sure Link’s interested, Gorko talks about what the texts say about the Isle of the Goddess: people actually live there, using huge birds to get around. They worship the goddess, and have a perfect, conflict-free society. Well… pretty good, up till that last bit. Gorko’s descriptions go a bit into the fantastical, talking about buildings made of gold and a mystical river that grants eternal life, but Link continues to indulge his beliefs about his home. Gorko eventually runs out of things to say, so Link approaches the statue, which glows to life, to Gorko’s astoundment.
Next: Fi, quit scaring the Kikwis.
[1] In my introduction I said the Imprisoned has a sword stuck in its head. In Hyrule Warriors, I never really got a good look at it, and apparently, when you’re more concerned with fighting the boss than examining the thing stuck in its head, a triangular prism can look a lot like a flat blade.
Wednesday, October 30, 2019
Skyward Sword: Bazaar
The knights’ uniforms, as seen on Pipit, are kind of like Link’s normal tunic, only yellow-brown. They apparently change color annually, and the new year’s color is, of course, green. Gaepora had doubts about the color, but seeing Link put on the uniform, it suits him. (Of course, anything’s better than the getup he’s had up to this point. No one else dresses like that.) Gaepora wishes Link good luck in his travels before returning to his quarters to study ancient texts for more information, and Link is welcome to return as he needs. He also suggests that Link stop by the Skyloft bazaar to stock up for the journey.
As Link leaves his room, Fledge approaches with a present he made for Link, an Adventure Pouch, which holds useful items. The starting pouch can hold four items, which include important items like Link’s shield and bottles. Right now, there aren’t enough items to fill the pouch, but they wouldn’t give Link four slots if he wasn’t going to use them all, and wouldn’t have the pouch (plus the Item Check for overflow items) if Link got to carry everything with him at the same time like he usually does, so… well, it’s obviously fine for now, but we’ll see how it works out. One of Groose’s lackeys – the short one who threw eggs at Link during the race – is stalking the halls and blames Link winning the race for Zelda’s fall and I don’t have time to listen to him. Outside the Academy, Instructor Horwell gives Link a wooden shield, warning that it might break easily and is susceptible to burning.
Fi pops up with a bunch of news. First, she recaps everything we know so far: the tablet she gave Link has opened a path through the clouds to the surface. But Link’s not ready to go to the surface yet; he needs to go to the the bazaar and stock up. Really, I don’t know what he’d do without her. She also points out that the huge controller displays that point out what the buttons do can be turned off when the player gets comfortable with the interface, so… maybe eventually.
As Link enters the bazaar, the fortune teller calls out to him, saying Link’s about to go on a dangerous journey. He offers to tell Link’s fortune, at a special rate of 1 rupee. Okay, I can make that back easily enough, so let’s do it. The fortune teller says Link’s about to head into a dangerous wooded area, so he should get a shield and potions. His eyes see everything, but somehow missed the big wooden disc on Link’s back. I want my rupee back.
Next to the fortune teller is the potion shop, and the potion seller says Link needs potions, which I think I would get by now even if they weren’t hammering that point home. But she actually sells them, so what else is she going to say? Oh, Link’s also going to need a bottle to carry potions in, so she gives him one to get started, and he buys one of the two available potions, the red potion that restores eight hearts. Link’s only got six [1] right now, so it’s not like he needs one of the better potions. And they’re not ready yet, anyway.
Also of note in the bazaar: The potion seller’s husband takes bugs and grinds them up to boost potions. Another man uses treasure to upgrade gear. There’s the basic item shop. There’s a woman cooking, but she doesn’t seem to be selling anything. Finally, there’s the Item Check, where Link can store items he can’t fit in the Adventure Pouch, and whoa, are they prepared to store a bunch of items. The woman who runs the Item Check has the same kind of terminally bored attitude that Salvatore did back in Wind Waker/Phantom Hourglass.
Finally armed with the shield and potion everyone’s telling him to get, Link finally heads out to begin his landward journey. The hole in the clouds has a bright green beacon shining through it, so it’s impossible to miss. As Link approaches, Fi pops out to explain that the green beacon marks the safe place to pass through the clouds, and that there’s a mark on the map just in case the beacon isn’t bright enough. Is it too late to trade her for a talking hat? Anyway, the Loftwing passes over the hole, and Link jumps off to fall the rest of the way.
Next: Men walk on earth.
[1] Yes, the game starts Link with six hearts rather than the standard three. I’m guessing this is their way of staving off the typical Zelda game issue where the early game is tough because Link doesn’t have much health.
As Link leaves his room, Fledge approaches with a present he made for Link, an Adventure Pouch, which holds useful items. The starting pouch can hold four items, which include important items like Link’s shield and bottles. Right now, there aren’t enough items to fill the pouch, but they wouldn’t give Link four slots if he wasn’t going to use them all, and wouldn’t have the pouch (plus the Item Check for overflow items) if Link got to carry everything with him at the same time like he usually does, so… well, it’s obviously fine for now, but we’ll see how it works out. One of Groose’s lackeys – the short one who threw eggs at Link during the race – is stalking the halls and blames Link winning the race for Zelda’s fall and I don’t have time to listen to him. Outside the Academy, Instructor Horwell gives Link a wooden shield, warning that it might break easily and is susceptible to burning.
Fi pops up with a bunch of news. First, she recaps everything we know so far: the tablet she gave Link has opened a path through the clouds to the surface. But Link’s not ready to go to the surface yet; he needs to go to the the bazaar and stock up. Really, I don’t know what he’d do without her. She also points out that the huge controller displays that point out what the buttons do can be turned off when the player gets comfortable with the interface, so… maybe eventually.
As Link enters the bazaar, the fortune teller calls out to him, saying Link’s about to go on a dangerous journey. He offers to tell Link’s fortune, at a special rate of 1 rupee. Okay, I can make that back easily enough, so let’s do it. The fortune teller says Link’s about to head into a dangerous wooded area, so he should get a shield and potions. His eyes see everything, but somehow missed the big wooden disc on Link’s back. I want my rupee back.
Next to the fortune teller is the potion shop, and the potion seller says Link needs potions, which I think I would get by now even if they weren’t hammering that point home. But she actually sells them, so what else is she going to say? Oh, Link’s also going to need a bottle to carry potions in, so she gives him one to get started, and he buys one of the two available potions, the red potion that restores eight hearts. Link’s only got six [1] right now, so it’s not like he needs one of the better potions. And they’re not ready yet, anyway.
Also of note in the bazaar: The potion seller’s husband takes bugs and grinds them up to boost potions. Another man uses treasure to upgrade gear. There’s the basic item shop. There’s a woman cooking, but she doesn’t seem to be selling anything. Finally, there’s the Item Check, where Link can store items he can’t fit in the Adventure Pouch, and whoa, are they prepared to store a bunch of items. The woman who runs the Item Check has the same kind of terminally bored attitude that Salvatore did back in Wind Waker/Phantom Hourglass.
Finally armed with the shield and potion everyone’s telling him to get, Link finally heads out to begin his landward journey. The hole in the clouds has a bright green beacon shining through it, so it’s impossible to miss. As Link approaches, Fi pops out to explain that the green beacon marks the safe place to pass through the clouds, and that there’s a mark on the map just in case the beacon isn’t bright enough. Is it too late to trade her for a talking hat? Anyway, the Loftwing passes over the hole, and Link jumps off to fall the rest of the way.
Next: Men walk on earth.
[1] Yes, the game starts Link with six hearts rather than the standard three. I’m guessing this is their way of staving off the typical Zelda game issue where the early game is tough because Link doesn’t have much health.
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