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The Wind Waker Game was released in 2003 by Nintendo for the Nintendo GameCube. It is an action-adventure game with puzzle elements.
The Wind Waker had four versions: one for the regular Nintendo GameCube, another version for the Nintendo Wii U, and two special edition versions. Â The first special edition was The Wind Waker HD, released in 2013 for the Wii U; it has updated graphics and is available on Nintendo’s E-shop.
The second special edition version was a bundle of the Nintendo GameCube with a copy of The Wind Waker called The Wind Waker Limited Edition Console Deluxe Set; this set was never sold in stores and was only available through a contest.
The Wind Waker Game has sold millions of copies worldwide.
Bottom Line Up Front
The Wind Waker is a great game for those who loved Ocarina of Time. It’s available on several different platforms, so it’s perfect for Zelda lovers who have a Wii U or the GameCube. The graphics have been updated since it was released and it’s a beautiful game for those who are interested in the game’s appearance. However, if you never played Ocarina of Time, you may need to wait to play this one.
Game Inspirations
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker was inspired by the art style and character designs of “My Neighbour Totoro,” a 1988 animated film by Hayao Miyazaki. Miyazaki is one of the most influential anime/Japanese animation directors, instrumental in creating anime as a genre and helping it become more widely recognized. He is also the co-founder of Studio Ghibli, one of Japan’s most crucial anime production companies.
One of the other big inspirations for Wind Waker was “Princess Mononoke” (1997), another Miyazaki film. The game has many design elements similar to Princess Mononoke, such as the main character being accompanied by a young girl and a black fox and the main character fighting a giant demon.
Starting the Game
When you start a new game, the first few minutes will be a cutscene. You begin as a young Link with his sister, they live on an island, and their father is traveling to find something called “The treasure of Hyrule.” While he is gone, pirates attack the island. Link’s mother sends him to escape by going down to the basement, you get on your boat, and she locks you out of the house.
Outset Island
Your sister gets captured during the attack, but you escape in a small boat that eventually crashes into a mountain, knocking young Link unconscious. When he wakes up, he sees his sister’s spirit fly towards an island called “Outset Island.” You go to the village and learn some information about your sister; you meet a helpful owl that gives you his equipment, and then you go on a boat trip which leads to an island with a sword in a stone. You pull out the sword and return it to the man who owns the shield. If you do this, he lets you keep both items!
On your way back to Outset Island, you fight a giant bird who steals the bombs from the bomb shop. You can get them back by going underwater and finding them in a cave.
Reaching the Forsaken Fortress
Your boat gets hit by a flaming arrow shot from a giant ship called “Helmaroc King,” and it crashes into another island. You climb up the mountain to find Tetra, captured and taken away by pirates. She throws a key to young Link so you can reach their ship.
After getting on the pirate’s ship, you travel for a long time before finally reaching the pirate base, a place called “Forsaken Fortress.” You sneak into the fortress and meet an old man named “Tingle,” who gives you a map. The map tells you where to go in this vast, confusing place, depending on the time of day.
During this quest, you battle your first boss: Big Octo! To defeat it, you must use bombs to blow up the eyes and then slash at them when they are vulnerable.
Fighting the Helmaroc King
You will eventually learn about a vast bird named “Helmaroc King,” and you will have to go through many rooms full of enemies before reaching it. You fight this big beast and discover that Tetra is Princess Zelda in disguise! The king says he needs her as a sacrifice to revive Ganon, the demon king.
At this point, you must travel back to Outset Island and get on your boat. You will be captured by pirates (again), but you will eventually escape with Tetra’s help. Unfortunately, she gets caught again… but not for long!
Tetra can get out of her prison cell reasonably quickly. She throws bombs at the wall to break it open, walks through it, and then gets back in her cell again – clever!
You are forced onto a submarine that takes you into an underwater cavern. There you must battle with Gohma, a massive spider with one eye on its stomach! You must shoot this eye when he opens it. Eventually, this beast is no more.
The Return of Ganondorf
During your escape from the submarine, you meet up with Tetra again; she helps Link escape but gets injured in the process. You run off to find her father, who has come back to take Zelda away from all this. A man that dresses very strangely helps you escape.
Ganondorf has returned to the world of the living as a beast called “Ganon.” He shows up as a wall of fire on Dragon Roost Island, and you must go there and fight him with the help of the natives on the island. You also meet Medli, a girl who can turn into a bird!
You will go through many dungeons before you can fight Ganon. During these quests, you will learn much about the world of Hyrule and the creation of all things. It turns out that Ganon is a human man who has been transformed into a monster by an evil power. He has taken Princess Zelda to his tower of death, where she is now locked up with lots of other girls.
Link enters the “Tower of the Gods” far beneath the Great Sea. This place is full of enemies, and it is straightforward to get lost inside. There are many doors, but very few of them are real – if you jump through a fake door, it will lead to an empty room.
Eventually, you reach the top floor, where Ganon is waiting for you. He challenges Link to battle with his evil powers… can he be defeated?
The game ends on this cliffhanger… there is no way to know what will happen next unless you play the next game in this series!
Design
Wind Waker is a very elaborated adventure like all Zelda games and complicated. The whole world of Hyrule that we have seen before in many different games has been destroyed by Ganon’s evil powers. Many small islands are scattered throughout this strange new ocean, and every island has unique inhabitants and treasures for Link to find. Some of these islands can be found on the map, but others need to be discovered by exploring outside at night using your telescope – very similar to Ocarina of Time.
The world is set out beautifully, with Hyrule at the center. There is a wide variety of locations and inhabitants, and all of it has been created very cleverly.
This Zelda game’s graphics are stunning! They look like they have been drawn by hand, making them feel even more real. The sea waves look exactly like waves in real life, and the characters all have a cartoon feel to them. The world’s colors are very bright, which makes it much more fun to play!
Sound
The music is composed by Kenta Nagata. Many orchestral songs sound similar to those from Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask. There is also a lot of excellent new music that has been written just for this game.
Overall, the sounds and music in Wind Waker were some of the best in any Zelda game to that point.
The Controls
Wind Waker’s controls are similar to Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask.
The C-Stick, which we already know from Super Mario 64, controls the camera. Using the Control Pad, you can look up and down around you or.
The A Button is often used to talk to people and open chests. You can also press it while running to roll.
The B Button is used for your sword. You can swing it by pressing the button, or you can charge it up with magic power to make a more powerful swing that will kill more enemies at once! Whenever you get new items in this game, they are automatically equipped with the B Button.
The R Button has a variety of uses. You can press it to change the view from first-person mode, used for looking around and fighting in enclosed spaces. You can also use it to pick up items or read signs that you see lying on the ground. The last thing you can do with the R Button is equipped yourself with a shield to block attacks from enemies.
The L Button is used for changing items on your equipment screen. This means that you can have many different things equipped at once and switch between them with the L Button. You can even select one item to use as an extra attack if you need it!
You change the items using a menu, which is opened up by pressing the Y Button. From here, you can select any item to equip it with the A Button.
The X Button is used for opening your equipment menu when you are not using another item in combat – this opens up the same screen as pressing the Y Button.
The Z Button lets you crouch down and sneak around corners. You can also use it for diving down into the water and swimming around.
The C-Stick works the same as in Ocarina of Time, but now you can press Up on the Control Pad while moving it to make Link move faster! This is very useful when running or swimming because it will let you get to your destination more quickly.
The Start Button switches between the world map and the main screen to see Link himself. You can press it again to switch back if you need to go back to the map again.
The Control Pad is used for walking around and has a few other uses. On the equipment screen, pressing Up on the Control Pad will change the item you are holding. Pressing Down on the Control Pad opens up the maps screen, which shows all of your maps and gives information about where you are.
Using Items
One thing that has always been part of the Zelda series is that items are used very cleverly to solve puzzles or defeat enemies. This is true in Wind Waker, where all things are beneficial and come in handy when you need them.
The most valuable item you will get in this game is your new sword! You can swing it by pressing the B Button. If you hold down the button for a few seconds, then your sword will charge up with magical power, and you can release it to shoot a beam of energy at your enemies! This is very effective against bosses and many regular foes.
You also get a boomerang in this game. You can use it to stun enemies or hit switches and other things out of reach. After throwing the boomerang, you can change its flight path by pointing your sword at the R Button. You can also hold down the R Button to make it fly around Link in circles, which is helpful if enemies are trying to attack you while targeting another enemy!
The bombs are still quite helpful in this game. They help you defeat enemies that might be too strong for you to handle with your sword and also blow up weak walls so that you can go through them! There are many clever uses for bombs in this game.
By far, the essential item that you get is your telescope. You use it to see far away places on your map – very useful if something happens far away from where you are! You will also need to see the enemies that pop up at night since you can’t fight them without using your telescope first.
Link’s shield is still around in this game and just as valuable as always. Whenever an enemy shoots out projectiles at you or charges into you with its weapon drawn, press the R Button to hold up your shield. If you need to attack the enemy, press the R Button again, and Link will lower his shield for a second before raising it again, letting you swing at the enemies with your sword as they flash by!
FAQ
There’s a lot involved in any Legend of Zelda game, so it’s not surprising that you may have some additional questions. These frequently asked questions should help you understand more.
Question: What is the World of The Wind Waker Like?
Answer: The inhabitants of this world are amicable. They have never seen outsiders before Link appears, so they are pretty curious about him at first but soon grow to trust him as he journeys throughout the ocean on his quest. You will meet many interesting characters along the way, from the kind Rosa to the mischievous Minish.
Question: What Does Link Look Like in This Game?
Answer: In The Wind Waker, Link’s appearance has changed quite a bit. He now looks more like a young teenager than a child. You can see his lighter-colored eyes and shadow on the ground when he stands next to a wall. His hair color has changed from blonde to a light brown shade, and he wears his hero’s outfit!
Question: What Does Link Spend Most of the Game Doing?
Answer: In The Wind Waker, Link spends most of his time exploring the ocean, searching for something. However, there are also many interesting side quests that you will meet along the way, including things like collecting money for your boss or helping someone who needs it!
Question: What Are All of the Items That Link Uses in this Game?
Answer: Link gets his trademark shield and sword at the beginning of The Wind Waker. He also gains a boomerang quickly, which he will need to use since certain enemies hide behind its range. After Link gets his sword, he will also need bombs to defeat some of the enemies found in this game. Once you get your sword charged up with magic power, be sure to come back and see me again so I can tell you how to use it!
Question: What Enemy Types are in this Game?
Answer: There are many different types of enemies in The Wind Waker. You will see some familiar faces like the Octorok and the Pahat, as well as many new ones that you won’t find anywhere else!
Question: What is the Goal of Link’s Quest?
Answer: The main objective of Link’s quest is to track down his kidnapped sister, Aryll. He is searching for her on a mysterious island that he just saw in the distance through his telescope. He doesn’t have much information going into this search, but you can be sure that it will lead him to many exciting places!
Question: What do you Get for Completing the Main Quest of The Wind Waker?
Answer: The actual ending of The Wind Waker reveals the location of the Triforce, which will be helpful moving forward into future games!
Question: Is There Anything Else I Should Know About The Wind Waker?
Answer: This game is full of nooks and crannies just waiting to be explored. Whenever you see an island or a gap in the path somewhere, make sure you try to jump over the hole and search for treasure!
Final Thoughts
Link is the brave hero of the land of Hyrule. Throughout many adventures, he has proven himself time and time again to be a true hero – willing to sacrifice anything to save his homeland. The Wind Waker takes place several years after the events of Ocarina of Time, and Link has since been living peacefully on his tiny island home. He’s all grown up now and is ready for his next great adventure that lies just beyond the sea…
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