The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD (Wii U)

The Legend of Zelda first debuted on the NES 30 years ago, and the series has gone on to become one of the most legendary gaming franchises of all time. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess has been considered one of the best installments in the series since it came out in for the Wii 2006, and has been available on the Wii U since the console debuted in 2012. So why’d we have to wait another four years before we could enjoy a real HD version of this classic game? It can’t have anything to do with content, that’s for sure – in that regard it’s pretty much the same game we’ve known and loved for the past decade.

A New Paint Job

Everyone knows that good graphics aren’t really all that important if the game itself is solid. When Nintendo released Twilight Princess in 2006, the graphics were by no means cutting edge, even for the time. So how do they look in HD on the Wii U? With 1080p resolution, sharper and more vivid textures, additional animations, real-time shading, and more elaborate particle effects, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess looks almost like a recent title. At the very least I can say that the fun of the game is in no way hindered by outdated graphics, though if you compare it to a current-gen RPG title like The Witcher 3 on the PS4, Xbox One, or high-end PCS, there’s clearly a world of difference between them. So nope, even with the gussied-up graphics, this Zelda just can’t keep up with the competition. Of course, maybe Nintendo will be able to pull it off with The Legend of Zelda, which is supposed to be out later this year, the first Zelda game developed with HD graphics from the ground up. I’m keeping hope alive at least...

As captivating as ten years ago

Even by today’s standards, Twilight Princess is an awesome game. Just the way it introduces new abilities, nicely dovetailing them with quest objectives and integrating them perfectly into the story. An interesting change of pace is provided by those parts of the game where Link takes on the form of a wolf, journeying across the land with Midna on his back. The quest objectives and the puzzles are fantastic, an excellent blend of action and logic. And Wii U experience makes things a bit more convenient for you too – Link can carry more Rupees, a flashing lamp indicates nearby souls, and animals are easier to catch.

On normal difficulty, the game world is arranged like in the GameCube version of the game – that is, everything is a mirror-image of the Wii version. On the harder Hero setting, however, buildings and other landscape features are like in the classic Wii version. Other than that, very little has changed. If you’re looking for additional content, you can’t just play to unlock it. Instead, you’re going to have to go out and buy yourself some amiibo figures.

I need amiibos to get all the action?

The highest difficulty setting is only available to players who are willing to spend 13 bucks or so on the Ganondorf amiibo, and the Cave of Shadows will only open its gates to those who have the Wolf Link amiibo, which costs 20 bucks or more (though it’s also available bundled with the game for about $60). The regular Link amiibo gets you extra arrows, and Zelda or Sheik extra hearts. There’s nothing really necessary here, and I wouldn’t even recommend dropping that much money on them.