The Main Villain of Breath of the Wild 2 is Not Ganon (Probably)

     The Legend of Zelda: The Breath of the Wild was arguably one of the best games of 2017. The visuals, the story, the gameplay. It was perfect in everyway and all Zelda fans could ask for. Fans have already put the game in leagues of the series classic games like Ocarina of Time, A Link to the Past, and even the original Zelda. So what do you do when you make a game that everyone loves? You make another one.

     And that is exactly what Nintendo is doing when they announced that we are getting a sequel to Breath of the Wild during their E3 Direct. Aside from the announcement we got a special teaser.

    Not much is happening, everything is cryptic, but it does take place sometime after BOTW and aside from random cuts that from the game, Link and Zelda are in a cave witnessing the mummified remains of what looks like one of the sages from the previous game becoming corrupted and coming back to life. There's not much you can get from it but that isn't stopping fans from forming their own theories about what will happen in the game, more specifically who will be the antagonist. 

     Based on the how corrupting force that is in the teaser, most people are assuming that the villain will be Ganon, again.

*Before you read any further beware. There are spoilers.*

     In the last game Ganon, oops I mean CALAMITY Ganon, looked pretty much the same way for the majority of the game. Ganon evolved into a entity of pure evil and corruption, corrupting the guardians that were designed to destroy him should he ever came back to threaten Hyrule this time around. He actually succeeded in taking over Hyrule by fatally injuring Link enough that he had to be in a stasis in order to heal. Zelda however was able to partially seal Ganon or at least made him dormant so that he couldn't spread, completely corrupting Hyrule. In the end of the game Link was able to defeat him and Zelda was able to fully seal him away.

     Back to the teaser trailer, the corrupting force in the teaser looks very reminiscent of the how Calamity Ganon looked throughout most of BOTW. So, does this mean that Ganon's back this time around? Possibly, but it could be something else. Ganon is unquestionably the main antagonist of The Legend of Zelda series appearing in many titles throughout its history, but so have other villains, often taking his place while he was either sealed away, or killed. It wouldn't really make sense for him to come back and be the main villain in two games in the same era. Both examples of this are Majora's Mask and Spirit Trackers which were direct sequels of Ocarina of Time and Wind Walker, taking place in the same time era and where you had other main antagonists that Link had to defeat right after he just defeated Ganon.
     Story wise it wouldn't make sense either. A large part of BOTW was presented in Zelda's point of view and was in part a story of her growing and becoming this powerful person figuratively and literally as she was going through turmoil of how could she save Hyrule from Calamity Ganon's influence, meeting big obstacle, and overall being able to be strong enough to seal him away. Him coming back would cheapen BOTW's story. We do not know much of who will be the main antagonist and it could be very well be Ganon back again since he does tend to break out of his sealed prison just like a DC villain. This are just my thoughts. What are yours?

What Games Should Be in the Game Boy Classic (If There is One)?

     So Nintendo has been conducting the Nostalgia train with not one but two emulators. First we got the NES Classic which gave us a wave of 8-bit games that we used to play during that era. Then we got the SNES Classic that not only up the ante with all of our favorite SNES games, but gave us the unreleased Star Fox 2. Both emulators have sold well so it's no sudden surprise that Nintendo MIGHT keep the trend going by giving us a Game Boy Classic as well, according to rumors.
     I, like a lot of you all remember pestering our moms for one. I for one drove my mom up the wall playing my Game Boy so much that I literally wore them out and she had to buy multiple ones for me. I like a lot of took them everywhere and that was the whole appeal. You can play your favorite games anywhere, as long as you had a good pair of double A batteries. Anyway, if they do make it official what games will make the cut? Here's a list of what I hope will:

Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins

So the first one must've been so good that they had to make another one right? SML2 was in every way bigger and grander than its predecessor even to its graphics. Who can't forget playing this game. How difficult the star maze level was. Fighting the three little pigs in the Mario zone. Also this game was the debut of our favorite garlic eating money grubbing schemer Wario.

Super Mario Land

The original. This was almost like a Super Mario Bros remix as instead of Princess Peach, you had to rescue Princess Daisy in the four different kingdoms of Sarassaland. It was portable fun with classic Mario gameplay and a couple of screen shooter elements in it via Mario's toypop plane.

Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3

This was an excellent debut for Wario as he was on a mission to get treasure and a giant statue of Princess Peach. I remember trying to find all the secrets of the game to get a 100% and get the best ending.

Kirby's Dreamland

This was the debut of everyone's favorite little pink marshmallow. It has all true classic Kirbyness so why shouldn't this make the cut.

Donkey Kong '94

This is almost a remix of the classic Donkey Kong arcade game. It introduces the classic levels but also gives you a bunch of platform-puzzle levels. I remember how fun it was playing this.

Bomberman GB

We didn't get this in the US, not in its original version. So if Nintendo can pull a Star Fox 2, then they can very well do it again with this game.

Castlevania: The Adventure

You think the early Castlevania games were hard and fun on the NES, try a portable version of it. It plays just like the classic Castlevania games that we love without the truly horror induced 3D games that we weren't fond of. Also nobody's dressed up in weird BDSM leather crap.

Donkey Kong Land

The SNES port was so awesome right? Why not make a Game Boy version of it. For the most part it played like a condensed version of DKC, and that's not a bad thing.

Final Fantasy Adventure

Putting Zelda in a Final Fantasy game? What more could you want? This was one of the first Final Fantasy spin-offs they made where they experimented and tweaked with gameplay along with Mystic Quest. As I stated earlier this game was unique as it gave us the series' traditional battle gameplay elements mixed with Zelda gameplay with an top-down overworld screen and dungeon puzzle solving. This spin-off also gave way to the Mana series.

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

More Zelda is always good. So this was like mini Zelda in that you were not in Hyrule and solving classic Zelda dungeon puzzles in an island trying to wake a giant magic fish. It's more awesome than it sounds. More so that the Zelda team recently did a call back to the game with a quest in Breath of the Wild.

Mega Man: Dr. Wily's Revenge

More Mega Man. More good.

X

Want to know where that cool song from Super Smash Bros Brawl? This where it came from. This game was giving us 16 bit 3D before Star Fox.

Metroid II: Return of Samus

I know. We got a enhanced remake with Samus Returns. So why not compare both games by putting this on the list. Both seem to be great games in the series.

Tetris

This is the game you've wasted countless hours on playing. So it would be a crime for Nintendo to put this in the Game Boy Classic. This came out at a time where everyone was obsessed with lining weird shaped block in order. Hell, putting Tetris on the Game Boy was responsible for the Game Boy being as big as it was.

Game and Watch Gallery

Classic minigames from the Game and Watch series remixed with Mario. You can even play the classic versions.

How Will Zelda Mobile Play?

For the past year Nintendo has finally decided to make the leap into mobile gaming. And mostly with success. We had Miitomo and Super Mario Run which were both hits which generated millions of downloads. Then we had Fire Emblem Heroes which had a modest success. And let's not forget the reason we all braved the outside last summer, Pokemon Go. Of course with Nintendo doing so well with their mobile titles so far, and also promising to release a few titles each year, it is only plausible that not only would the company would make mobile versions of their other bigger titles.
     According to the Wall Street Journal, Nintendo is working on a Zelda mobile game. Nothing is confirmed yet and these are just so far only rumors. How exactly would a Zelda mobile game work?
Quite well. Zelda would be perfect as the series is known to be one of the best puzzle adventure games ever. But how will it look?
     If you could imagine probably it would work you can go back to the Game and Watch version of the original Zelda. In that version, they pretty much scaled down things by taking away the overworld and mainly focused on the dungeons of the game. But of course, unlike the basic Game and Watch versions Zelda mobile will probably retain the puzzle aspects of the series that we all love. The game could work like Super Mario Run where the dungeons will be level based and have you explore dungeons with different and more difficulties as you progress through the game. Because this is a Zelda games you have to have items to help you on your quest. You could rent or buy certain items like A Link Between Worlds to help you progress through dungeons. There might even be a magic meter like in most games that wears out if you use an item too many times.
     There's the question of how microtransactions will work, because of course this will be a freemium game and Nintendo needs more money. You can earn rupees (money) buy completing certain tasks or paying for them with real money. Gameplay might also depend on the magic meter that if it runs out, it might refill over time. Also like Super Mario you may have to buy certain dungeons to get the full game experience.
    Regardless of how the game will turn out I'm sure that we will love it, and Nintendo will love us throwing money at it. However another question about the game haunts us: Where will it fit in the timeline?

What are your thoughts?

Where Does Breath of the Wild Fit in the Zelda Timeline?

     Breath of the Wild is simply stunning. The game all about exploring an incredibly vast Hyrule as you brave trials and formidable odds in order to save Princess Zelda and Hyrule from Calamity Ganon. You can say fans are extremely satisfied with the game, or almost. While the game is incredible, one question or you can say one quest is left for fans to explore: Where does Breath of the Wild fit on the Zelda timeline? Beware of spoilers down below.

     For those who don't know most of the games in the Legend of Zelda series have been disputed exactly where they fit and relate to each other and theories of where they fit in a timeline have been one of the biggest mysteries in gaming, with few clues given, until Hyrule Historia officially revealed a map of where everything fits. There is a line where a few games are pretty linear like Skyward Sword happening before The Minish Cap. It gets funny when it gets to Ocarina of Time where there are three branches which is no wonder as that game deals largely with time travel. The three branches are a timeline where Link is returned to as a child at the end of the game (The Child timeline), the timeline that takes place after the events of the game (The Adult timeline) and a paradox timeline where Link fails to save Hyrule (The Fallen timeline).
    Like games before, Breath of the Wild gives sorta vague clues. In the game you do experience not only the ruins of the Temple of Time, but ruins of Lon Lon Ranch so this indicates that the game takes place after Ocarina of Time. Narrowing things down? Not really. Most of the games take place after Ocarina of time. Some fans have indicated that maybe the game takes place in the Fallen timeline as Link in this game has failed and has to be put to sleep for hundreds of years and the Master Sword is in the Lost Woods like A Link to the Past which is in the same timeline. While the former might be obvious, the latter could also be just a decision of visual artistry as the image of it resting in the Lost Woods is an iconic moment in the game. You do have things like certain creatures existing like Koroks and Ritos in the game which existed in other timelines, but that doesn't mean much as the series have done thing like put certain characters in other timelines as well.
    One theory is that the game takes place far in the future past the other games and is in a convergence time where the branches are rejoined. An example of this is where it has been stated that the Sacred Beasts in the game have fought Ganon 10,000 years years before and again 100 years and in during the final battle where Zelda has stated that Ganon, in his primal form has been tired of being reincarnated and that his final form in the game is his rage of doing so.
     So, let's get down to the nitty gritty. Does Breath of the Wild fit in the adult timeline? Not really. Even though it references a lot of stuff and creatures in that timeline according to the events in Wind Waker, Hyrule is under attacked by a somehow unsealed Ganon which causes it to flood and later on in the game Hyrule is forever in the bottom of the ocean, where the Temple of Time and Lon Lon Ranch is. It is most likely that it is in the Child timeline or the Fallen timeline, more so the Fallen timeline since what happens in the game seem to have a scenario where Link and Zelda fails and does have to restore Hyrule to its glory. Of course nothing is certain until Nintendo officially reveals where it is and shocks us all once again.

What are your thoughts?

Where Is Zelda in Breath of the Wild?

     We were recently treated to a new trailer for the next Zelda game, Breath of the Wild. In it we see towns and settlements as well as NCPs fighting Moblins. We also see what looks like the ruins of Hyrule Castle town in the wake of Ganon awakening and decimating the area as well as Hyrule Castle. What we also see is a bunch of characters most notably two female characters.
     One of the female characters we see is wearing a female attire almost identical to what Link's default outfit in the game and promotion. She also has a Sheikan tablet in her hands. Another woman is standing next to Link. We see this woman is wearing a gown embroidered in gold and blue. We  don't know exactly who these women are as their faces are not shown.

     Going back to the female in Link's clothing, you would think that this could be a female version of Link, right? Well, according to Eiji Aonuma, the director of the Zelda series, we are not going to have a female version of Link in this game. Perhaps this character will be Zelda in the game. This isn't the first time in the series where Princess Zelda's role hasn't been solely princess of Hyrule. She has been a pirate, and a Sheikan warrior in the past games. This could alude back to Aonuma's comments about a female Link in the game. He did say that if there were to be a female protagonist in the game, it would be Princess Zelda. In some form Zelda could have a role where she is going through trials and awakening posts just like Link is in the game or may even assist Link in some of his trials.

      If the woman in the female version of Link's cloths is Zelda, then who could the woman in the gown be? There have been rumor that this could also be Princess Zelda later on in the game, but it could also be another important character in the game. It could be Impa. The gown looks similar to the outfit Impa wears in Skyward Sword. It even has a braid, just like the braid Impa had. It makes sense for her to make an appearance in the game since you are using Sheikan technology and the Sheikan tablet in the game. Impa's role could be just like Skyward Sword where she is a guardian, or like other Zelda games where she is a sage. She could also very well be a priestess of something.

Why Releasing the Nintendo NX and Zelda Wii U in 2017 Doesn't Suck

We all heard the news earlier that the next console from Nintendo, the NX, would be officially released in March 2017. We also heard that Zelda Wii U has been delayed and is coming out sometime in 2017 instead of 2016 as well, but hey we get a new official artwork of Link cool right? The recent news has been a total bummer, or is it?

     The biggest reason behind the delay is also the obvious reason why the push back is a good thing. Nintendo has pushed back Zelda Wii U and the NX possibly due to not having anything to show us. We know exactly nothing about the NX and Zelda Wii U. The only thing we have gotten from the up and coming Zelda game is just a teaser trailer and a couple of artwork. We have no story or anything to see if game mechanics. The thing about the NX is just rumors of what it possibly can do and false rumors of how the controller might look like and work.

     Adding the the fact we know and have nothing about Zelda Wii U and the NX, the idea of them both being released this year, even in the fall quarter would've been bad. We have to have an idea of what we're buying in order to buy it. Nintendo can't expect consumers to buy based off of why and speculation. Even if they supposedly revealed anything at E3, it wouldn't be enough time to get people excited to buy these products.

      Luckily we are expected to have a playable demo of Zelda Wii U this E3. That does give us sometime this year and possibly next year to get an idea of not only how Zelda Wii U looks and plays, but more importantly what the NX can do. Until then, there's Miitomo. Don't know whether if that's a good thing or not.


What are your thoughts?

This Is A Linkle/Female Link Post

     A while back we were introduced to a "new" character for the up and coming Hyrule Warriors Legends game for the Nintendo 3DS, Linkle. Up until Linkle's debut she was just a concept art for the Hyrule Warrriors game. She was believed and written to be a female version of Link, the protagonist of the Legend of Zelda series. Now that she's an offical character in the game, Linkle is more of her own established character instead of being the female version of Link. This isn't more about Linkle's, but what she represented before she was made a full fledged character.
    Linkle represented an interesting ideal that whether the protagonist Link in the Zelda could be female. If you are new to the Zelda series the games and the Hyrule timeline spans across years with a new a different incarnation of the main characters Lunk and Princess Zelda. In almost each game you have a different Link and Zelda. This was introduced to the game Skyward Sword where Zelda was the reincarnation of the goddess Hylia and at the end of game both Link and Zelda's souls were destined to be reincarnated whenever Hyrule is in trouble. Linkle leads to a interesting theory that there could be a female incarnation of the

legendary hero. 

     It was a rumor that around Linkle's discovery as a concept art for Hyrule Warriors that the incarnation of Link that would be introduced in the upcoming Zelda Wii U game could possibly be a woman. The question is if Nintendo decided to switch the character of Link, and possibly Zelda, would it be a good decision?

     If Link was a woman in a possible Zelda game, it would be in fact good. Story wise, it would be interesting. It has never been said that the spirit of the hero has to be passed down to a male incarnation. It could add more to the Zelda mythology of the spirit of the hero being passed down to one person to another. It would be great as it would breathe new life to the supposed characters. It would be interested to see a Prince Zel and a female Link interact with the threat that could affect Hyrule.

     It could be important as it could symbolize what the character Link is suppose to be. Link is suppose to represent the link between him and the player. It is apparent that more women are playing video games as a hobby. It would be good for a girl who is new to not only video games, but new to the Zelda series to be able to play as a character that represents her.

What do you think about having a female Link in a Zelda game?

The Netflix Legend of Zelda Series: A Good Idea?

     News had just hit us that reportedly NetFlix and Nintendo are both working on making a live-action series based off of The Legend of Zelda games. As soon as word got around of this supposedly happening the interwebs was set ablaze. I, along with mostly everyone else, am very excited about this possibly happening. People have been praying to the gods of Nintendo to make something like a movie or anything else with The Legend of Zelda since I can remember. Even before the Super Mario Bros. movie was even being considered. Just as I am excited about this possibly happening I am also curious about whether this could work.

     First of all there is the major part of the Zelda games that NetFlix could have problems with: the source material of the games. If they decide to follow the source material, it could be hard to take stuff from the games and transfer it to this live action series. Especially if you consider that the entire Zelda series spans not only a few millennia, but also three alternate timelines. Which timeline will this series be based on and will seasons be set hundreds of years apart? It is possible that the series could set a new timeline where things like a Majora's Mask could be a bit influential for a season and the events in Twilight Princess could occur in the next.

     Another issue could be a royal pain: Princess Zelda. In the games Zelda is the damsel in distress and it is up to Link to save her. This could work in the first season, but what about the next seasons? It could be hard to write for Zelda as it wouldn't be that much development for her because she is often captured. Zelda is one of the few video game characters from the old days that have evolved from being just a helpless woman that completely depends on the hero to save her to having a bit of a backbone and can actually hold her own and even assist Link in the final battle, but having her not being held captive could, if not written correctly, could just have her be a prop.
     This hasn't been Nintendo's first go with a Legend of Zelda series and with live-action. Of course we remember, hopefully, the Legend of Zelda cartoon series and again, there's the Super Mario Bros, movie. Both haven't really been good. The Legend of Zelda cartoon is just this big campy mess and the Super Mario Bros movie has been considered to be one of the worst video game movies of all time. I doubt that the live-action Zelda series will be that bad, but hopefully the people at Nintendo and NetFlix have done their homework. It will be interesting to see how this will all look.

Do you think a live-action Zelda series is a good idea?