Pros: gamplay, graphics, sound
Cons: none except the controls for Wolflink
The bottom line: Awesome game! Its a must have for any Wii owner.
The first ZeIlda game I ever played was The Legend of Zelda Oracle of Seasons for Gameboy Color. After playing it I started to get into Zelda games. The next Zelda game I played was The Legend of Zelda A Link to the Past for Gameboy Advanced. After playing that game I really liked Zelda games. When I saw they had a GameCube Zelda game I wanted to try it out. Luckily I only rented the game because it was no where near as good as the other two Zelda games I played. So I just sticked to A Link to the Past since it was still fun. I was hoping they would make a better Zelda game for the GameCube sometime. When I first heard about a new Zelda game I was hoping it was going to be for GameCube since when I first heard about the new game the Wii was in the working. At first it seemed like The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess was going to be on the GameCube only, but as it got closer to the release of the Wii I found out it was going to be for the Wii and the GameCube. Even though they made it for GameCube too I decided to wait and see If I could get a Wii so I could play the Wii version. I didn't purchase The Legend of Zelda right after I got the Wii though since we only had enough money to buy the console. It was while after I got the Wii before I got the game. Once I finally got The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess I wanted to play it right away. As soon as I started to play the game I was having a lot of fun even though the controls were a little hard to get use to at first. To find out how great this game is continue reading my review.

Story

The story starts in the village of Ordon which is in the southernmost region of the Kingdom of Hyrule. In this game Link starts out as being a farmhand in the village of Ordon. He is known as the most skillful rider in all the land. The real story starts off with Link showing his swordsmanship to all the other village children and a monkey appears. The children notice that its the same monkey that has caused lots of trouble all over the village and they decided to go chase after them. Of course Link rushes off to find where the children went and when he rushes into Faron Woods he notices the woods are teeming with tons of monsters. So he you have to fight through all these monsters while trying to find the children. You end up finding some of the children safe on the way but you end up having to save one of the children and the monkey who were held captive. After you save the children and go back to the village the next day the mayor asks you to deliver the villages tribute to Hyrule Castle. When you get ready to leave Link's childhood friend Ilia notices your horse Epona had a injury and she starts to complain about how careless you are with your horse. She ends up leaving with your horse with a huff, so now you have to go get your horse back before you can head toward Hyrule Castle. You end up tracking Ilia and Epona at the mystical spring that is near by the village. Link tries to apologize for injuring Epona but Ilia won't forgive him. Then a young boy from the village named Colin convinces Illia to forgive Link. Just after Illia forgives Link a monster on a boar comes crashing in. The monster ends up knocking you unconscious and then the monster takes Colin and Ilia away.

At first you are supposed to be traveling too Hyrule Castle, but after Illia and Colin get captured by a monster he end up going off to save them. He ends up having to save others throughout the game along with finding Illia. Links ends up having to rescue Hyrule from the Twilight which covers part of Hyrule in darkness. The lands covered by Twilight are teeming with real dark creatures. You have to save the light spirits who are trapped in the Twilight. I don't know the whole story though because I still have a lot of the game to complete.

Gameplay

There are many different screens and displays you will use while on your adventure. There is the main screen, item screen, map screen, and the collection screen. The main screen is where everything happens and the main screen will adapt to each situation. Near the top right of the screen is the Action Icon which displays which actions and selected items you can use by pressing the directional pad in a certain direction. Right below the Action Icon is the B Action which displays the item that is currently assigned to the B button. To use the item assigned just use the B button. At the bottom right corner is where the amount of rupees you have is displayed. Above that is A Action which shows the current assigned action for the A button. At the top left corner is your Life Gauge which decreases when you take damage from enemies. Below the Life Gauge is the Mini Map which displays your immediate surroundings. At the bottom of the screen will also see the Adaptive Command which shows an action that is particularly important to the area you are in at the time. There are a couple of special displays and gauges that will appear as you go through the game. One of these is the Vessel of Light Gauge which will appear only when you have to collect tears of Light. This gauge will appear right behind the B and A Action when you are collecting Tears of Light. The other one is the Oxygen Gauge will appear whenever you go underwater.

The item screen is where all your items are shown that you can use. The item screen is used to assign to items to the directions of the directional pad so you can switch which item you assign to the B button. To switch which item you want to use with the B button all you do is press the direction of desired assigned item. To open the item screen you have to press the minus button on the Wii Remote. There are two types of map screens you can display. These two map displays are Field Map and Dungeon map. To open either map you have to press the 1 button on the Wii Remote. The Field Map is displayed when you are on the field or in a village. The Dungeon map is displayed only when you are in a dungeon. The field map shows the map of the area you are in like the Faron Woods. Your current position is marked on the map with a yellow triangle and the blue triangle shows where you just entered the area. The dungeon map shows the map of the dungeon you are in. On the left side of the dungeon map screen is a vertical triangle with Dungeon items displayed. These dungeon items are Dungeon Map, Compass, and Big Key. The Dungeon Map shows a map of every room that is in the dungeon. The Compass is used to reveal the position of any treasure chests that are in the dungeon and where the boss is in that dungeon. The Big Key is used to open the door that leads to the boss.

The last screen is the collection screen, which lets you access various information on equipment, items, records, and save and change game options. To open the collection screen you press the plus button on the Wii Remote. At the bottom of the collection screen are the options Save and Options. The Save option of course lets you save your game, which you save your progress in a Quest Log. The Options option lets you change the game settings for the game. On the left side of the collection screen is a model of Link with his current equipment. Below the model of Link is a rectangle with your Gathered Items, which include: Fish Journal, Golden Bugs, Letters, and Hidden Skills. To the right of the model is where Links current equipment is displayed and right next to that is where your pieces of heart are displayed. If you collect 5 pieces of heart you will get a heart container which adds a heart to your life gauge.

There are many different actions Link is capable of doing in the game. Some of the basic actions are walking, running, swimming, and jumping and to do all these actions you just have to tilt the analog stick on the Nunchuk. Link can also lock on to targets and defend against enemies attacks. To guard against attacks all you have to do is press the Z button on the Nunchuk when an enemy goes to attack you. The Z button is also used to lock onto a target so you can focus on a single enemy. To wield Link's sword you have to swing the Wii Remote like a sword. To perform Link's Spin Attack you have to swing the Nunchuk from side to side. For a Jump Attack you hold the Z button on the Nunchuk and press A on the Wii Remote.

To Sidestep while fighting an enemy you need to hold the Z button tilt the analog stick to the left or right and press the A button. The Backflip action is done by holding the Z button tilting the analog stick down and pressing the A button.

With the return of Link's horse you can now ride on your horse and even fight while riding your horse. To get on or off your horse you just have to press the A button when you are stationary. To actually ride your horse you just have to tilt the analog stick in the direction you want to move your horse. If you press the A button your horse will start to gallop, and when you press the A button to gallop it will expend one of the dash icons. While your horse is galloping you are able to jump over any fences or small obstacles. While riding your horse your Dash Icons are displayed at the bottom of the main screen. There are a total of six dash icons and they will regenerate over time after they are used. While you are riding on your horse you can swing your sword by swinging the Wii Remote or Nunchuk just like when you are standing on ground.

At certain points in the game Link will turn into a wolf. When you turn into a wold you can't use items and some elements of the controls change. As a wolf pressing the A button will cause him to dash while he is moving. You can also talk to animals while in the wolf form by pressing the A button. Wolflink attacks enemies by biting them and to perform the action you have to swing the Wii Remote. The problem is that it is to easy to fall off a cliff or accidentally jump off while trying to attack an enemy. To jump attack you need to hold the Z button and press the A button which is basically the same for Link when in regular form. Wolflink can also perform the Spin Attack by swinging the Nunchuk from side to side. Wolflink can also push and drag things when you press the A button. Wolflink can use his senses when you press left or right on the direction pad. When he uses his senses he can see things that are invisible to the naked eye. Wolflink can also dig things up and to do this action you just need to press down of the directional pad.

There are many types of items you will find on your adventure that you can use to help you on your adventure. These items include: Fishing Rod, Sling Slot, Gale Boomerang, Lantern, Empty Bottles, Bombs, Hero's Bow, and Ooccoo (and Ooccoo Jr.). You will also find Rupees which is the type of currency you collect to buy items. There are 4 types of Rupees and each of the types of Rupees have a different color and value. Green Rupees are worth one, Blue Rupees are worth 5, Yellow Rupees are worth 10, and Red Rupees are worth 20. You will also find hearts which refill a little of your life gauge. You can also find Pumpkin Seeds which can be used as ammunition for your Slingshot.

Controls

When playing the game you need to hold the Wii Remote in one and hand the Nunchuk in the other hand. There are only three controls on the Nunchuk and all three of them are used in the game. The control stick lets you walk, run, swim, and jump. The C button is used to switch to first-person perspective. The Z button is used to lock onto an enemy when attacking them. The Wii Remote is used to do everything else in the game. The A button is used to talk, check, open, pick up/throw, and get on and off your horse. The A button is also used to perform actions and select options. The B button is used to use the item assigned to the button. The control pad is used to switch out assigned items and talk to Midna who is a mysterious creature you meet while as Wolflink. The Minus button opens the items screen and it also skips cut scenes but you have to press it twice and the Plus button opens the collection screen. The 1 button opens the map when you press it and the 2 button turns the minimap on or off.

Graphics

The graphics about blew me away when I first started playing the game. The graphics are so much better than the last Zelda game which was Windwaker for GameCube. Link himself looks a lot better and a lot more detailed. I really liked that they made him look older and more mature in this game. The dungeons and the field are very colorful and detailed and the monster are real detailed and colorful.

Sounds

The Sound is the game is a lot better than any of the other Zelda games I played to. The music is the same as all other Zelda games. Most of the time I really don't pay attention to the sound or music I just focus on the playing the actual game. Just like in most Nintendo games there are no voice overs in The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess.

Overall The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess is an awesome Wii game. It is a must have for your Wii collection. I recommend this game to anyone Wii owner who hasn't played this game yet.