Phantom Hourglass introduces a refreshing new control scheme, with some growing pains. Using the stylus to control both movement and attacks feels natural and intuitive. Tap a baddy to charge towards it and attack. Draw a circle for a spin attack. Pull out your map and write notes or doodle! While I initially felt as though I was playing Animal Crossing Wild World, I quickly adjusted and grew to love this slick new setup. The controls out at sea, which consist of drawing a route on the map, then defending your ship with your cannon, are also surprisingly entertaining. The D-pad (or face buttons for lefties) is optional but useful for quickly opening a menu, and the currently selected item (e.g. your boomerang) is at the ready with either shoulder button in conjunction with the stylus. In fact, the touch screen equivalents are counterproductive: inadvertent taps of on-screen buttons are an annoyance, and intentional taps are still less convenient than the D-pad and trigger finger shortcuts. Other minor control quips include being vulnerable when accessing the item menu, since the game doesn't pause, and that the roll gesture rarely registers.
The Wind Waker presentation also pays off on the DS. Sure, the game has some blurry textures (Link's eyebrows look really weird when the camera zooms in), but the cel-shading looks awesome. Even when seven or eight enemies are on the screen, or the game renders 3D on both screens, Phantom Hourglass rarely slows down. Lighthearted storytelling with amusing dialog—especially between Celia the fairy and the self-centered pansy, Linebeck—keeps the plot interesting in spite of its simplicity.
Unfortunately, like in Zelda 2 for the NES, the series-defying risks don't always pay off, and the game's quality therefore slips. The game unnecessarily strives to justify its touch screen controls through many puzzles that rely on the same basic premises of making note of a solution or hint on your map, then somehow using that note later. At first it's cute, but Phantom Hourglass has far too many push-in-this-order puzzles with solutions revealed on nearby stone tablets. The presence of such tasteless puzzles in Super Paper Mario and now Phantom Hourglass is rather discomforting, as they should be beneath Nintendo. Dungeons are also significantly shorter than in prior Zelda games—I completed one of the later dungeons in fifteen minutes. The only exception, the Temple of the Ocean King, emphasizes what remains the series' weakest game mechanic: stealth. While one could argue shorter dungeons are appropriate for a handheld game, dungeon length wasn't a problem for the prior four Zelda portables, and Phantom Hourglass doesn't really offer more dungeons to deliver a comparable amount of content. What's more, for the first time since A Link to the Past, dungeons recycle the same music. In fact, most of the game's music, including the dungeon music, is unbelievably boring!
All things considered, Phantom Hourglass is still an enjoyable game. Eiji Aonuma and his team clearly worked hard to reinvent Zelda for a new era; only to some extent, the Phantom Hourglass team threw the baby out with the bathwater. Hopefully Nintendo can retain Phantom Hourglass's victories while reclaiming the series' historic strengths as it sails into its next big Zelda game.
Pros:
Lastability: 7.0
The main adventure is fairly short at 10 to 15 hours, and without heart pieces, there aren't all that many side-quests to explore. Of course, side quests have never been as prominent in the portable Zelda games as their console brethren, anyway. Between the optional treasure hunting, ship part collecting, fishing, and mildly amusing multiplayer, completists should have enough to do.
Final: 8.0
Phantom Hourglass fosters the same love-hate relationship as Sonic Adventure 2: some parts are great fun, while others will leave many players cringing. At times it is brilliant, and overall the good outweighs the bad, but not by as much as you'd expect from a Zelda game.
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Originally posted by: Kairon
I think the only disconnect is in your head, and that maybe if you simply played the game and left the analysis for later, you'd find that the stylus is a major non-issue. I never had any issue with the controls taking me out of the game, and I use an even bigger stylus than you: the log stylus that came as a pre-order bonus to Lost in Blue 2.
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Originally posted by: NewsBot
The game unnecessarily strives to justify its touch screen controls through many puzzles that rely on the same basic premises of making note of a solution or hint on your map, then somehow using that note later. At first it's cute, but Phantom Hourglass has far too many push-in-this-order puzzles with solutions revealed on nearby stone tablets. The presence of such tasteless puzzles in Super Paper Mario and now Phantom Hourglass is rather discomforting, as they should be beneath Nintendo.
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Originally posted by: GoldenPhoenixQuote
Originally posted by: Kairon
I think the only disconnect is in your head, and that maybe if you simply played the game and left the analysis for later, you'd find that the stylus is a major non-issue. I never had any issue with the controls taking me out of the game, and I use an even bigger stylus than you: the log stylus that came as a pre-order bonus to Lost in Blue 2.
Gee really, a disconnect in your head? I thought it was liver that was disconnected. Now your going to tell me that "fun" is all in my head.
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Originally posted by: KaironQuote
Originally posted by: NewsBot
The game unnecessarily strives to justify its touch screen controls through many puzzles that rely on the same basic premises of making note of a solution or hint on your map, then somehow using that note later. At first it's cute, but Phantom Hourglass has far too many push-in-this-order puzzles with solutions revealed on nearby stone tablets. The presence of such tasteless puzzles in Super Paper Mario and now Phantom Hourglass is rather discomforting, as they should be beneath Nintendo.
I disagree heartily. In contrast, I found that the game actually held back from using pull-in-this-order puzzles. There may be just 6 types of puzzles like this in the entire game, possibly less, so how can there be "too many?" Actually, there are a variety of wonderful new puzzle types involving this ingenious draw-on-your-map feature, from connecting pairs of landmarks on the map to create intersecting lines, to feeding the player where un-marked stuff can be found in the ocean or on other islands (draw your own X, and any accompanying notes), to outlining invisible features that don't show up on the map to begin with. If anything, the game didn't use these innovative puzzles enough!
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Originally posted by: KaironQuote
Originally posted by: GoldenPhoenixQuote
Originally posted by: Kairon
I think the only disconnect is in your head, and that maybe if you simply played the game and left the analysis for later, you'd find that the stylus is a major non-issue. I never had any issue with the controls taking me out of the game, and I use an even bigger stylus than you: the log stylus that came as a pre-order bonus to Lost in Blue 2.
Gee really, a disconnect in your head? I thought it was liver that was disconnected. Now your going to tell me that "fun" is all in my head.
Well, if I can use a LOG stylus and not be discomfitted, is it really the stylus that's the problem?
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Originally posted by: GoldenPhoenixQuote
Originally posted by: KaironQuote
Originally posted by: NewsBot
The game unnecessarily strives to justify its touch screen controls through many puzzles that rely on the same basic premises of making note of a solution or hint on your map, then somehow using that note later. At first it's cute, but Phantom Hourglass has far too many push-in-this-order puzzles with solutions revealed on nearby stone tablets. The presence of such tasteless puzzles in Super Paper Mario and now Phantom Hourglass is rather discomforting, as they should be beneath Nintendo.
I disagree heartily. In contrast, I found that the game actually held back from using pull-in-this-order puzzles. There may be just 6 types of puzzles like this in the entire game, possibly less, so how can there be "too many?" Actually, there are a variety of wonderful new puzzle types involving this ingenious draw-on-your-map feature, from connecting pairs of landmarks on the map to create intersecting lines, to feeding the player where un-marked stuff can be found in the ocean or on other islands (draw your own X, and any accompanying notes), to outlining invisible features that don't show up on the map to begin with. If anything, the game didn't use these innovative puzzles enough!
Drawing lines has been used in connect the dots, all these are is an interactive connect the dots, meaning they are NOT innovative. So take that Catbus man!
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Originally posted by: GoldenPhoenix
You could be mentally deranged as well.
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Originally posted by: KaironQuote
Originally posted by: NewsBot
The game unnecessarily strives to justify its touch screen controls through many puzzles that rely on the same basic premises of making note of a solution or hint on your map, then somehow using that note later. At first it's cute, but Phantom Hourglass has far too many push-in-this-order puzzles with solutions revealed on nearby stone tablets. The presence of such tasteless puzzles in Super Paper Mario and now Phantom Hourglass is rather discomforting, as they should be beneath Nintendo.
I disagree heartily. In contrast, I found that the game actually held back from using pull-in-this-order puzzles. There may be just 6 types of puzzles like this in the entire game, possibly less, so how can there be "too many?" Actually, there are a variety of wonderful new puzzle types involving this ingenious draw-on-your-map feature, from connecting pairs of landmarks on the map to create intersecting lines, to feeding the player where un-marked stuff can be found in the ocean or on other islands (draw your own X, and any accompanying notes), to outlining invisible features that don't show up on the map to begin with. If anything, the game didn't use these innovative puzzles enough!
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Originally posted by: TheYoungerPlumber
Actually, I was grouping all the puzzles you just mentioned together into that category. I shouldn't have used push-in-this-order as the description here in my review. Walk-in-this-order and dig-right-here were really intended in that statement as well.
Also, thank you for not attacking me (yet), merely disagreeing with my review. I hardly expect everyone to agree with me, because I know there were a lot of people angry at Zach. I just felt this game deserved another review on the site, and others on staff who promised to write one have yet to do so.
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Originally posted by: Kairon
*continues to grumble about how the puzzles were actually new and unique and how everyone's lost touch with their inner child*
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Originally posted by: Kairon
I think that we should have a Hot Topic about why Phantom hourglass is so divisive. It definitely isn't as obvious as why Zelda II was, and the reasons behind Phantom hourglass could come from many different areas, such as franchise fatigue, generational gap, the parallel innovation of touch screen controls, the pull (or lack of) of Zelda into RPG-esque content and stylings, and other things.
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Originally posted by: GoldenPhoenix
Actually I think it is the touch controls and how they suck for a game like this. No need for a hot topic.
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Originally posted by: GoldenPhoenix
On another note, I personally think PH will be one of the most divisive Zelda's ever, while there were detractors in regards to TP it was overwhelmingly accepted, but PH seems to be splitting people. Now I wouldn't say it is Zelda 2 esque splitting but it still appears to be there.
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Originally posted by: pap64Quote
Originally posted by: GoldenPhoenix
On another note, I personally think PH will be one of the most divisive Zelda's ever, while there were detractors in regards to TP it was overwhelmingly accepted, but PH seems to be splitting people. Now I wouldn't say it is Zelda 2 esque splitting but it still appears to be there.
Wind Waker says hi...
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Originally posted by: GoldenPhoenixQuote
Originally posted by: pap64Quote
Originally posted by: GoldenPhoenix
On another note, I personally think PH will be one of the most divisive Zelda's ever, while there were detractors in regards to TP it was overwhelmingly accepted, but PH seems to be splitting people. Now I wouldn't say it is Zelda 2 esque splitting but it still appears to be there.
Wind Waker says hi...
I wouldn't even say that, people's complaints about Wind Waker really had nothing to do with controls nor even really the gameplay. Zelda: PH though has a wide gap between those that like the touch controls and those who do not. Some of us find the gameplay overly simplified and bare bones while others think it is just right. Wind Waker's main complaints were over ocean travel, triforce quest, and lack of dungeons. Besides PH has a lower overrall score than Wind Waker!
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Originally posted by: GoldenPhoenix
Actually I think it is the touch controls and how they suck for a game like this. No need for a hot topic.
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Originally posted by: GoldenPhoenix
What do you mean biggest controversy in Nintendo's history? The cell shading? That pretty much died off after the game was released, the only ones that complained about it afterwards tended to be people who didn't like Zelda much in the first place!
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Originally posted by: Kairon
I think the only disconnect is in your head, and that maybe if you simply played the game and left the analysis for later, you'd find that the stylus is a major non-issue. I never had any issue with the controls taking me out of the game, and I use an even bigger stylus than you: the log stylus that came as a pre-order bonus to Lost in Blue 2.
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Originally posted by: Rize
Becoming immersed in a hand-held game is quite difficult to begin with. Headphones and turning off the lights help. Having to use a stylus on the screen that the action takes place on pretty much ruins any immersion though. Sure I could simply play a game, but that's not as much fun as connecting with the game world deeply while playing it.
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Originally posted by: Mr. Jack
Oh and the fact that it is the most boring linear Zelda adventure ever (PH that is, not WW).
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Originally posted by: KaironQuote
Originally posted by: Rize
Becoming immersed in a hand-held game is quite difficult to begin with. Headphones and turning off the lights help. Having to use a stylus on the screen that the action takes place on pretty much ruins any immersion though. Sure I could simply play a game, but that's not as much fun as connecting with the game world deeply while playing it.
So is this a criticism of handheld gaming in general, or a criticism of the DS in general? Either way, it sounds as if it isn't the game's fault, and is a situation that should logically arise in any game that makes use of the stylus extensively.
But even then the complaint doesn't appear in NWR's review of Trauma Center, which required frequent jabbings of the stylus to various sides of the screen, possibly obscuring views, nor is the criticism anywhere in sight in NWR's impressions on Ninja Gaiden DS, where the stylus slashing-on-enemies-tapping-on-places-to-move-towards has been praised.
I just can't believe the argument that simply using a stylus breaks immersion or blocks the screen, I don't think it is a criticism that has backing.Quote
Originally posted by: Mr. Jack
Oh and the fact that it is the most boring linear Zelda adventure ever (PH that is, not WW).
*shakes fist* Wind Waker deserves that title!
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Originally posted by: Kairon
But GP, ALL Zeldas are linear. Well, maybe not the first one, but the rest are linear games dressed up with things to distract you from the simple fact.
And I guess we'll see whether the same criticisms for Zelda: PH's critically-acclaimed control scheme rear up in Ninja Gaiden DS.
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Originally posted by: Kairon
Actually, let me just clarify, I agree with a lot of TYP's review. It may seem like all this controversy stemmed from that, but it hasn't! This is just me never letting go of a meaty piece of discussion and chewing and chewing and rrarrgmmmuffin!
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Originally posted by: IceCold
Pssh. Immersion is way overrated. I'm not immersed in console games any more than I am in handheld ones, but I don't care about immersion.
There wasn't a huge amount of exploration in PH, but it had a vastly higher land-to-water ration than WW, and it used its land portions exceptionally well, giving you exploration puzzles in each island, sometimes exceptionally well.