(No, not the ingame item, but something that's actually useful...!)
So, I dug up my beloved old GameCube to play The Wind Waker a little bit, just to get the full feeling of the old game, before the new version hits the stores. I already had replayed the game two years ago, but your memories still might trick you into thinking that the game was something that it's really not. Interestingly Aonuma used this as a design approach for The Wind Waker HD according to a recent interview with US Gamer. If something didn't match up to their memories, they tried to improve it.
Well, I didn't want to replay the game from start to finish, because that's something I want to do with the remake, so I decided to do some sailing, looking for some uncharted Light Rings, which I might have missed. I usually try to 100% all Zelda games and I claim that I did that with every Zelda so far, but in some cases it's really hard to judge, if you really got everything and didn't miss anything. Of course for Pieces of Heart and similar collectibles that's easy to figure out, because you have clear indicators for those, but with uncharted treasure chests out in the open, you never know. Especially with all the little Light Rings on the ocean of The Wind Waker. They are everywhere and very easy to miss.
Previously I used the Tingle Tuner to "scan" the ocean for any left treasures in my 100% completed 2nd Quest savegame. However, that was a big hassle. You have to move the reticle over every pixel of the map screen in order to find something hidden. And of course the Tingle Tuner will be absent from the HD version, so that's not really an option anymore. Luckily there's the incredible Light Ring Chart at GameFAQs by Crono2418 and Banjo2553. Definitely one of the more useful guides out there (next to my awesome Ring Guide). It tells you the locations of all the uncharted Light Rings, which is a huge help, if you really want to have nothing left in the game world.
I even made a printable version of the guide for myself:
Print this and mark the Light Rings, when you get them. Perfect for a new playthrough. (I assume/hope that the Light Rings remain in the same position in The Wind Waker HD or otherwise the above chart will sadly be useless in the HD version.) You could consider this "cheating", but I suppose it's better than travelling over every point of the ocean and never knowing if you missed any. Or using the Tingle Tuner.
So, I returned to the savegame from my replay session two years ago (a 1st Quest, where I managed to collect all figurines at the end), travelled the ocean and looked for any left treasure chests there ... The Light Ring Chart works great, but in this case it was hard to use, because I didn't know which ones I already had gotten two years ago. But with The Wind Waker HD I will print this chart and cross out the ones I get right from the start. Should work great then (unless of course they changed the locations). I also used to make a little note chart while playing, where I would write down, in which squares I've conquered Platforms, Submarines or Secret Caves, got Blue Jelly from Blue Chu Chus or defeated Big Octos. I guess I can just combine the two, cross out the Light Rings and write down any stuff I did on the squares.
I've played the original GameCube version for about two or three hours this week and I have to say that I really, really want to play the new HD version instead. While sailing on the ocean all I could think about was the new Swift Sail. I want it SO BADLY. You travel much faster, there's no need to change the wind, it's perfect. I could imagine that the new Swift Sail makes cruising on the open sea so enjoyable that you won't miss any Light Rings anyway, because you'll cruise over every square inch just for fun.
And navigating in the original version is really inconvenient, when you constantly have to switch between the game and map screen. It should be so much nicer, when you can just look at map on the GamePad, while playing the game on TV. I'm really looking forward to these improvements.
Also, I think the original looks kind of dull and bleak now that I've seen the updated visuals. I know that many people don't like all the bloom and are making lots of bloom jokes, but I think it makes the game look a lot fresher and more interesting. It makes it really pop. The only thing that might disturb me is when there's new lighting effects without any obvious light source. I've noticed this seems to be the case in dungeons, where they cast shadows while there's no torch, lantern, window or anything in the room...
So, I dug up my beloved old GameCube to play The Wind Waker a little bit, just to get the full feeling of the old game, before the new version hits the stores. I already had replayed the game two years ago, but your memories still might trick you into thinking that the game was something that it's really not. Interestingly Aonuma used this as a design approach for The Wind Waker HD according to a recent interview with US Gamer. If something didn't match up to their memories, they tried to improve it.
Well, I didn't want to replay the game from start to finish, because that's something I want to do with the remake, so I decided to do some sailing, looking for some uncharted Light Rings, which I might have missed. I usually try to 100% all Zelda games and I claim that I did that with every Zelda so far, but in some cases it's really hard to judge, if you really got everything and didn't miss anything. Of course for Pieces of Heart and similar collectibles that's easy to figure out, because you have clear indicators for those, but with uncharted treasure chests out in the open, you never know. Especially with all the little Light Rings on the ocean of The Wind Waker. They are everywhere and very easy to miss.
Previously I used the Tingle Tuner to "scan" the ocean for any left treasures in my 100% completed 2nd Quest savegame. However, that was a big hassle. You have to move the reticle over every pixel of the map screen in order to find something hidden. And of course the Tingle Tuner will be absent from the HD version, so that's not really an option anymore. Luckily there's the incredible Light Ring Chart at GameFAQs by Crono2418 and Banjo2553. Definitely one of the more useful guides out there (next to my awesome Ring Guide). It tells you the locations of all the uncharted Light Rings, which is a huge help, if you really want to have nothing left in the game world.
I even made a printable version of the guide for myself:
Print this and mark the Light Rings, when you get them. Perfect for a new playthrough. (I assume/hope that the Light Rings remain in the same position in The Wind Waker HD or otherwise the above chart will sadly be useless in the HD version.) You could consider this "cheating", but I suppose it's better than travelling over every point of the ocean and never knowing if you missed any. Or using the Tingle Tuner.
So, I returned to the savegame from my replay session two years ago (a 1st Quest, where I managed to collect all figurines at the end), travelled the ocean and looked for any left treasure chests there ... The Light Ring Chart works great, but in this case it was hard to use, because I didn't know which ones I already had gotten two years ago. But with The Wind Waker HD I will print this chart and cross out the ones I get right from the start. Should work great then (unless of course they changed the locations). I also used to make a little note chart while playing, where I would write down, in which squares I've conquered Platforms, Submarines or Secret Caves, got Blue Jelly from Blue Chu Chus or defeated Big Octos. I guess I can just combine the two, cross out the Light Rings and write down any stuff I did on the squares.
I've played the original GameCube version for about two or three hours this week and I have to say that I really, really want to play the new HD version instead. While sailing on the ocean all I could think about was the new Swift Sail. I want it SO BADLY. You travel much faster, there's no need to change the wind, it's perfect. I could imagine that the new Swift Sail makes cruising on the open sea so enjoyable that you won't miss any Light Rings anyway, because you'll cruise over every square inch just for fun.
And navigating in the original version is really inconvenient, when you constantly have to switch between the game and map screen. It should be so much nicer, when you can just look at map on the GamePad, while playing the game on TV. I'm really looking forward to these improvements.
Also, I think the original looks kind of dull and bleak now that I've seen the updated visuals. I know that many people don't like all the bloom and are making lots of bloom jokes, but I think it makes the game look a lot fresher and more interesting. It makes it really pop. The only thing that might disturb me is when there's new lighting effects without any obvious light source. I've noticed this seems to be the case in dungeons, where they cast shadows while there's no torch, lantern, window or anything in the room...
Very helpful map. Thanks!
ReplyDelete