Reviews// The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess - The Full Review (Wii)

Pro Tip: after finishing a combo string, immediately hit the [A] button to put your sword away. If you time it right Link does the fancy sword twirl scene at the end of the E3 trailer. You’ll feel like a total bad ass!.

The [Z] button on the Nunchuck handles your lock-on allowing Link to easily circle around attackers during combat. The [B] button, (a.k.a. the trigger on the Remote) handles all your other weapons/items, which are selected with the d-pad. The [C] button switches to a locked feet first-person mode that allows you to survey your surroundings. Everything else is pretty much inventory and maps and such.

Now, before raving about the joys of pointer-based aiming, a bit of bad news: the controls are not perfect. For most things they work satisfactorily, but there were various occasions where I was forced to backtrack through ten minutes worth of dungeon in order to retry climbing a ladder because I was unable to walk straight up to it and instead jumped off a ledge.

This seems actually to be even more of a problem now than it was in previous 3D Zelda outings because you no longer have complete camera control to assist your aim. The lack of a second analog stick means that the only way to manipulate the camera is via a quick tap of the [Z]button to centre it behind you. This is most assuredly not a deal breaker but it did happen often enough that I became frustrated with it.

Now, for the good news; when in intense combat situations (as opposed to non-intense ladder-climbing ones) such as high speed horseback riding while fending off a horde of attackers, aerial assaults, or trying to defend a caravan, targeting with the Wii remote is a godsend. I've not got around to trying it out on a Game Cube yet, but after playing all the previous Zelda games, I can imagine these sequences to be significantly less "fun" with analog stick aiming.

Using the Remote's motion-sensing for sword/teeth control doesn’t actually improve the gameplay as far as responsiveness goes but it does do a lot to help pull you into the role. Though, to be fair, shaking a stick doesn’t exactly make sense if you want to make a dog (or, indeed wolf) bite. The upside, however, is that you can still press [A] to attack if that’s what you fancy.

Other special attacks, like the now legendary Spin Attack, are handled with a variety of buttons and motion controls. The Spin Attack itself is executed by quickly shaking the Nunchuck from side to side. Unlike most previous Zelda games, where the attack button had to be held in order to "charge up" and "release", it is now readily available. Now it’s just shake’n’attack (well, Spin Attack).

There are few seconds of recharge time after each spin to prevent you from going through the whole game like you were Tanoki Mario on crank. Interestingly enough the Spin Attack carries over into your wolf form and has the exact same effect. When living Teen Wolf style however, most of your other abilities are lost or replaced. Any of those fancy toys you picked up deep in dungeons are rendered useless.

Thankfully such novel powers as "Dig" and "Sense" easily make up for not being able to use your claw-shot. All kidding aside these abilities do offer many new puzzle opportunities and help to keep the game play fresh throughout.