There is a checkpoint that is semi-useful, but there definitely should have been a second as the dungeon is split into three parts, yet you only get a checkpoint at the end of the first. The Temple of the Ocean King is probably the most gimmicky part of the game, as it forces you to go back through it on multiple occasions, making you repeat the same segments over and over again. The best addition to this game from Wind Waker is the ability to mark your sea chart and maps with the stylus, meaning you can mark things out that you know you need to come back to later, and also the golden frog warp points scattered about the sea. The sea in this game has a decent amount of content, but it often funnels you into the side content, especially in the much more linear first half of the game, and because of this, you may miss content in the sea during the second half, as you must instead explore to find it. There are some interesting bosses in the game, the highlights being Crayk, which uses an interesting perspective trick with the top screen to make you fire an arrow at him while he rushes towards you, and Dongorongo, where you take control of a Goron for half of the fight to aid Link.
There are some difficult moments in them, but the cause of these is almost always poor visibility due to perspective and lack of information, instead of good game design. The dungeons are extremely easy, and mostly boil down to slowly making your way around and executing actions you already know you have to do. Despite this, the characters are likeable enough, with some highlights being Linebeck, Jolene, and Oshus. The story found itself struggling between two halves of itself, one half wanting to be a standalone game, and the other wanting to be a sequel to Wind Waker, meaning that if you hadn't played Wind Waker before this, you may find yourself confused at some points, but if you had, you may be frustrated at the minimal references and lack of continuity (although this is somewhat resolved towards the game's ending). As an example, the iconic Wind Waker artstyle was reduced to a pixelated and blocky mess, which was somewhat reminiscent of the incredible cell-shaded style of Wind Waker than a complete re-imagining on inferior hardware (as Spirit Tracks managed to do). However, it left a sour taste and bad impression with me, after it blatantly copied and severely watered down many aspects of Wind Waker. Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good, get in the ship and shoot some seagulls.Īfter having played and enjoyed Spirit Tracks as a kid, I was looking forward to this game going into it. Still, comparing any game to some of the best games ever made is going to make it look worse. The plot is even simpler than usual, with the bland and predictable Ciela and Oshus cancelling out Linebeck's charm, and unlike The Wind Waker, it doesn't wait for Tetra to turn into Zelda before kidnapping her (twice). The dungeons are simplified and 99% of the time the music playing is one of four tracks. But stealth and time limits are fundamentally incompatible.Ĭompare Phantom Hourglass to any other Zelda in the run between A Link to the Past and Skyward Sword, and it'll inevitably fall short. It's here that map annotations are at their most useful.
#Loz phantom hourglass all hidden islands series#
It's the first in the series to have competitive multiplayer, and players can trade collectibles using Contact Mode, the progenitor of StreetPass.Īs for the Temple of the Ocean King, across the five visits most of the repeated areas can be done differently.
Its innovation isn't limited to the controls. I usually had to draw the symbols two to three times before anything would happen. The only touch element that doesn't work properly is the handwriting recognition, used once or twice in the main quest and many more times for fast travel. Being able to write notes on an in-game map is a strong enough idea for entire series to be based on (see Etrian Odyssey). Previously less useful items, the boomerang and bombchus, receive a massive upgrade. The contentious decision to make Phantom Hourglass control only with the touch screen added much more than it removed.
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