Facebook – Top 100 FAVORITE Video Games: 82

82: Legend of Zelda – Wind Waker (GC)
Developer: Nintendo
Year: 2003

Even I hated the way this game looked the first time I laid eyes on it. Boy, was I wrong in the end. While the big N clearly took a major risk on altering the art style from the Space World tech demo they had previously showcased, changing it into an overly cartoonish, cell-shaded style, the end result was two parts mystifying, three parts amazingly fluid. Say what you will about the game’s animated appearance, but Wind Waker stands as not only one of the finest Zelda games ever made – I would put it above any that have come since and a great number of those that have come before (but that’ll be obvious as we move forward through this list) – but one of the best Gamecube game ever created.

The strength of the game lies heavily in the thing that it was most criticized for; the graphics. After Ocarina of Time on N64, people clamoured for an adult Link to return, but Wind Waker presented gamers with another kid version, this time looking as though he was lifted right off the TV on a Saturday morning. The fact remains, though, that this choice by Nintendo resulted in gorgeous gameplay, highly-stylized and without flaw. The fluidity of the world around you – both on land AND on sea – is so surreal and wondrous, with the world open before you, that if you just get past the looks for a second and play the game, eventually the looks will become apparent, again, only this time they will be far more impressive. The colours alone will amaze.

Aside from graphics, the gameplay and storyline are not too drastically different from Zelda games in the past. You run around, find towns, kill monsters, get money, traverse dangerous caves and dungeons and castles and… sail across the sea on a boat? Yeah, its common knowledge, now, but when it was revealed that all of Hyrule was underwater and you spent almost the entire game above it, it was shocking. But its really a blast (and not that daunting once you get a bit into the game and learn some songs that transport you across the water with ease). You will never experience any load times at sea, so the openness of the world is both staggering and awe-inspiring at the same time. Coming across new land, enemy pirate ships, or just strange events in the water is cool and original for a Zelda game that is usually dedicated to making you run through maze-like woods and mountainous terrain (although these are both featured heavily in this game, as well).

The storytelling, though, while similar in content to previous titles in the series, is really a step above the rest in terms of presentation. From the opening moments, depicting the events of Ocarina’s “future” and its aftermath, to the characterization of the freaking King of Hyrule, to giving Ganon a more human like role in the narrative (for once), the story is told in a much more compelling way (despite the now overly frustrating lack of voice work. Come on, Nintendo, get with it already). Keeping Link as a mute still works, though (although, hearing him call out to a large stone statue he controls with a hearty “Come on!” is both cute and hilarious, so much so that I did it more than was necessary…), as his facial expressions bring out any dialogue he might have had.

All in all, Wind Waker maintains the steadily increasing quality in Zelda games that started with, well, the first one. While I feel there has been a massive drop off since then (I liked Twilight Princess, but stack it up to this or Link to the Past or – goodness – even Link’s Awakening…? Player, please), Wind Waker remains a bright spot. It took many of the franchise’s now famous gameplay staples (Z-targeting, music-based puzzles/mini-games, horse-back riding… oh, wait a minute) and continued to flush them out, all the while baffling players as to how the game fit into any kind of running timeline (split timeline theory for the win, yo!). In the end, though, you know you really can’t go wrong with a Zelda game. Uh, aside from those guys that made Wand of Gamelon on CD-i. They went wrong with a Zelda game.

Classic Moment:
The ending. Seriously. The epic final confrontation with Ganon under the sea (undah da sea!), light arrows flying, swords getting jammed into foreheads, and the King of Hyrule showing up at the last possible second to save the day… it was all righteous in its own way. The soundtrack, too, helped everything become just a touch more fantastic, amounting in one of the top two final Zelda fights in the entire franchise.

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Added September 30, 2016
If they put this out on 3DS? Immediate purchase.
I’ve almost purchased a Wii U just for the HD remaster of this game, alone. Paired with the subpar Twilight Princess, playing Skyward Sword, and the new one? It’d really just be a Zelda machine. But oh well!