DS Daily: At last (maybe)
by Alisha Karabinus 
{ Oct 4th 2007 at 9:00AM }
Are you already neck-deep in Phantom Hourglass, or are you stuck waiting for the weekend -- or even next week! -- like some folks we know? If you're among the lucky folks already playing through Link's latest adventure, how far are you, and what do you think so far? Is it the single greatest thing since sliced bread? We may be a little biased, but we'll lean toward a yes on that one. Of course, if you played an import copy, you're probably long finished, and want the chance to gloat in front of the others. That's just fine, too ... but try to be careful with the spoilers.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
jafar @ Oct 4th 2007 9:12AM
this game is the best zelda since ocarina of time
ryan @ Oct 4th 2007 9:15AM
harry potter dies. you guys are owned.
hermes @ Oct 4th 2007 9:54AM
I'm not far into it, finished the Fire temple and the subsequent Ocean king Run-from-the-phantoms temple thingy, but so far I'm lovin it. It tends to feel more casual than otherwise, but it certainly has plenty of Zelda-esque moments. The dungeons are short, if the Fire dungeon is any example, and the bosses too easy, But still sweet, and impart that small feeling of accomplishment most Zelda fans are familiar with.
I love and hate the sailing aspect. I'm one of the few who adored the free-roaming, huge, expansive sailing bits, and am disappointed it's so cut-down, yet feel it still has that yummy freedom feeling still attached. :D
Multiplayer grows on you, at first it feels slightly unsubstantial, then after acouple bouts you realize it's just sorta like chess, it's simple yet addictive, and coming back to it after a couple hours away isn't so hard.
It's a quintessential DS game IMO. Zelda fan or otherwise this game is the best single player game out for the DS, and giving it the cold-shoulder just because it's a casual zelda is morose. If you can come into this game expecting no more than it offers you will love it, it easily can stand on it's own merits.
Thumbs up peoples!
ZacMeoff @ Oct 4th 2007 10:03AM
I've never really been a big Zelda fan....don't hate....but I picked this up, and I'm having a blast with it. So Far I've defeated two dungeons, Fire and Wind. This game is awesome...although the wussy noisy Link makes when he attacks could be improved on :-)
exolstice @ Oct 4th 2007 10:34AM
I almost never buy games the day they come out. I'll get it eventually.
shaoron @ Oct 4th 2007 10:29AM
Based from my inventory.. i'd say i'm heading to the last dungeon.
Austin @ Oct 4th 2007 10:47AM
This Zelda is amazing... Just finished the Second Temple (Wind) and am exploring a little. I havn't felt this way playing a Zelda game in a long time. Can't wait for the weekend so I can play some more. I can honestly say I think this is the best game out there for the DS right now.
brentsf @ Oct 4th 2007 11:12AM
My favorite thing about this installment is the level of detail they went into on the little things, like when Link opens a chest and it's empty, and the usual "you got something!" chime sounds almost like someone pulled the needle off the record. That, plus some other very comical moments in the dialog (and Link's physical reactions to the dialog) really put this one at the top of my list.
Oh yeah, and you can shoot the annoying seagulls with the boat's cannon!
The only thing that frustrates me is the rolling attack. I find it difficult to do and end up trying over and over again. Anyone else having this problem? Anyone wanna YouTube themselves properly executing the rolling attack? :D
Joey @ Oct 4th 2007 11:15AM
bought it in Japan, day of release during June. SWEET.
jafar @ Oct 4th 2007 11:23AM
i am also having rolling problems but. youve gotta make tiny circles and the edge of the screen. and dont think the ds wont recognize a tiny circle
troy @ Oct 4th 2007 11:35AM
I am enjoying PH so much right now, I am taking it slowly (mostly because I have so many actual things to do) but I know that it is up there with my favorites. I really love the old school top down vibe and the puzzles, etc. Great game, full of expression.
Jage @ Oct 4th 2007 11:44AM
(okay, first thing: this is my FIRST Zelda. i've played bits of other Z titles here and there, but this is the first one i've actually set out to play from A to Z, as it were.)
people always talk about killer apps. how this game or that program is supposed to justify the very existence of the hardware, and make even to most rock-living-underest of us want, nay, NEED to rush out and do whatever it takes to get our greasy cheetos-dusted mitts on it.
i've been sort of skirting around a potential DS addiction, convincing myself that titles like Electroplankton and Jam Sessions weren't even games, just something to do on the train. i've barely touched the kanji-learning software i ostensibly bought the DS for in the first place. i've had to charge the thing up maybe two or three times since i got it.
then i bought Phantom Hourglass. now the quote of the day is, 'that sucks, this battery only lasts nine hours!?'
again, i'm new to the Z world, and not all that versed in DS gaming. but holy COW, this is good.
when i first was presented with the fact that the game was basically ALL-stylus, i was like 'yeah, well, good luck with that'. but it really does work; it works so well that i can't imagine other games improving on it. everything, from fighting to fishing, EVERYTHING works flawlessly well. it's the sort of thing where the reason you decide to spend 480 FARKIN RUPEES on an archery minigame is because you know that it's not the game cheating, it's really a question of skill, and you will indeed get better. the only thing is tumbling. i just can't do it to save my life.
i assume the story isn't throwing any curveballs at z-veterans' heads. but you know what? i CARE, somehow. i'm far enough into the game to just have learned Big Secret Number (maybe) Two, and i actually WANT to fix this. the actual script is a bit flat, but the story itself is warm and engaging. i'm sure there are nerds out there who have already read painstakingly translated transcripts of the whole dern thing on the internet, but, SOMEHOW, this game is one of very few (don't give me that 'gears of war will make you cry' crap) that causes you to become personally invested in the characters' fates.
i better shut up. it's awesome. one last thing: there's a bit with a sea map, and a very clever usage of the actual hardware? you know? that makes me smile to think about even now.
van @ Oct 4th 2007 12:08PM
I officially loved it when I had to draw my own map to one of the unknown islands and it turned out to be a whale. It's like a high tech connect the dots.
InspDim @ Oct 4th 2007 12:11PM
I really, really love this game. It's giving me carpal tunnel, but I DON'T CARE!
DirtBike06 @ Oct 4th 2007 12:23PM
im a huge zelda fan, I just got the DS lite 3 days ago. ESPECIAlLY for Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, which means it was killer app. My Router was also WPA, and the DS only supports WEP, so I had to risk to switch it to WEP, and now I can play online on Phantom Hourglass. The online is really fun, and the single player is awesome. I dont wanta rush it. but im at the cannon place. Really great game. and one of my favorites.
HenDawg58 @ Oct 4th 2007 12:46PM
This game is awsome. The puzzles are some of the most innovative ones I have seen in a long time. I especially like the puzzles that require you to draw on your map(which is most of them). The controls are not my favorite but I am slowly getting used to them. I wish nintendo had given you the option of the touch or the d-pad. Overall this is definitely a killer ap for the DS. But who would have expected anything different. It is Zelda we are talking about.
Jason @ Oct 4th 2007 12:55PM
I just unlocked the door with the sun key. I felt like an idiot after turning to a walk-through for that whole map transfer thing to find the location of the sun key. That was a pretty clever use of the DS. Loving it so far. Its great.
yoink @ Oct 4th 2007 1:00PM
Im having trouble beating the game because I cant stop playing multiplayer. Its soooo addictive to me for some reason.
T3H WICKERMAN (FDF) @ Oct 4th 2007 1:23PM
Ive liked it so far. I didnt play last night as I had a bit of a Torchwood evening. Im on the first of what will be multiple trips through the temple with the phanotms (darknuts). As i heard this is shaping up to be the most aggravating dugeon in a zelda ever( yes worse than Jabu-Jabu's belly). Like it though.
Your Lost Socks @ Oct 4th 2007 1:29PM
Pre-ordered it, got it the afternoon after the release date (freaking GameCrazy), had to work the rest of the day with it sitting in my bag next to me, and then experienced Halo 3 with the boyfriend that evening instead of pouncing on it when I got out of work. Am I great, or am I great? You're welcome. Not that Halo 3 wasn't cool. It was. But I digress.
I ripped into it, finally, the following lunch break, and over little fifteen minute gaming sessions while eating or on the way to something I have progressed to the point where I am about to fight the first boss. I am awaiting the weekend, when my WoW guild will hate me and I won't care.
I love the control scheme. I do have the problem that he rolls when I don't want him to and takes a couple tries when I do want him to - but I can always tell afterward what I was doing wrong. I warmed up to the rest of the controls extremely fast, even though my hands are WASD-and-mouse acclimated. Combat is fun, the puzzles are very simple so far but satisfying (hopefully they will get more difficult?), and as always I love the little tidbits you get interacting with people. I hope to encounter more sidequests/minigames, like I'm used to with Zelda games. It feels smaller, but not restrictive in any way... and I love sailing! I love pretty much -anything- that takes what I drew on the screen and does what I said. If anyone read that recent interview that was put up, with Tomonobu Itagaki, I loved what he was saying about the ratio of input to the results on the screen - satisfaction. This game delivers that.
Goldilocks @ Oct 4th 2007 1:39PM
My boyfriend and I went through hell with our preorder to get this on the second day but it all worked out and now I'm in Zelda bliss. I love the game and it's probably my favorite in the series because of the touch controls (which do cramp your hands!) And I love being able to draw on maps. The laughs are plentiful, the plot is [once again] awesome, the graphics are truly great; of the best for DS. It's an all around awesome game and it brings back a lot of memories, too. Everytime I hit the power button to play, I get the same giddy little-kid feeling that I did when Saturday morning cartoons were cool! Haha. PH is a kickass game.
Brello @ Oct 4th 2007 6:49PM
I'm not too far into it, heading towards dungeon three I guess. I got sidetracked by killing pirates and salvaging their treasures. I'm not a zelda fanboy by any means, never played LttP (lived in a genesis-dominated neighborhood), majoras mask or twilight princess (yet), but this game is well worth taking some time out for. The way the puzzles use every part of your DS's hardware is silly, yet somehow welcome...and the boss battles are just straight up fun. It's one hell of a game.
Eric @ Oct 4th 2007 7:00PM
I had to have it right away! Luckily my girlfriend was nice enough to pick it up downtown for me since I was at work and don't really trust pre-order.
So far it's totally awesome. I just beat windwaker earlier this year (my first zelda start to finish) so this was a no-brainer. The controls are amazing, I am knee deep in Link's Awakening but it always makes my hand cramp up.
They did a great job merging the windwaker style and cinematics, with the classic 2-d feel, all while introducing a new control scheme that I think really adds a greater feeling of freedom than before!
hermes @ Oct 4th 2007 7:20PM
I didn't find rolling hard at all, probably because i didn't listen to the "little circles" thing and just figured it out myself before-hand. All I do is make two quick jab-like movements towards the very end of the screen, works perfectly. XD
Icantgetthenameiwant @ Oct 4th 2007 8:25PM
I got it right when it came out at my local EB games , thanks to preordering it along with my launch Pokemon Pearl purchase. Hooray for foresight. Anyway, I'm almost completely done, no problem with the controls (rolling is easy, just squiggle your stylus at the edge of the screen)but i wish they could let you have the option to move with the d-pad. Otherwise, great buy.
LooP @ Oct 6th 2007 5:03AM
i haven't been this immersed in a game since Ocarina Of Time and i'm loving every second of it. i just got off the ghost ship, still have a ways to go i'm assuming...and i can't wait!