The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

The Wind Waker
Full Title	Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
Developer	Nintendo EAD
Publisher	Nintendo
System	Nintendo Gamecube
Release Date	Gamecube JP December 13, 2002 US March 24, 2003 EU May 3, 2003 AU May 7, 2003
Gallery	GH Gallery
Rating	ESRB: E

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker is the tenth game in the Legend of Zelda series. The game is known for it's controversial cel-shaded art style.

Story

Several hundred years after the events of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Link is living on Outset Island with his grandmother and sister, Aryll. The legends of the people tell of a prosperous kingdom that housed a golden power. An evil man stole the power and used it to conquer the kingdom until a young hero wearing green sealed him away. He became known as the Hero of Time. The evil returned, but the Hero of Time didn't reappear. No one knows what became of the kingdom.

When boys on Outset Island, they are given clothes like the one the hero wore. As the game starts, Link has come of age. Shortly, Link spots a giant bird taking a girl to the forest at the top of the island. Link goes to rescue her, only to discover Aryll has been kidnapped. Link must now save his sister.

Gameplay

The game is similar in many ways to The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. The control scheme remains largely the same, including the ability to lock-on to enemies. There are dungeons to be explored and side quests for the persistent player to complete.

A new part of the combat system is the ability on counterattack. While fighting an enemy, a visual cue will appear. Pressing a button at the right time will cause Link to dodge an attack and counterstrike.

Probably the biggest difference is the fact the game takes place in a sea. Because of this, Link has a boat to travel in and gains the ability to control the direction the wind is blowing. Link's ability to control the wind is used in other places as well.

Also interesting is the Tingle Tuner. By connecting a Gameboy Advance to the Gamecube, the player can control Tingle. Tingle has a more detailed map and can sell the player goods and services in a pinch.

Legacy

Although its quality was debated, the cel-shaded style for The Wind Waker was popular enough to be utilized for most of the handheld games and Four Swords games which followed. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword would later use a cel-shaded style (but mixed with the realism of Twilight Princess) as well as a flying system that is inspired by the sailing in The Wind Waker.

Sequels

The next Legend of Zelda game was The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures, while the next major console game was The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess . The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass was later made as a direct sequel to The Wind Waker both in story and gameplay (complete with a modified version of the sailing system).