So it sounds like it is harder, that's good.

Was going to play a lot yesterday but my brother came over and we played Resident Evil 5 together instead. I did get another hour in though. The beginning is sooooooo slow, especially if you are like me and don't have time to really sit down and get through it. I'm 2.5-3 hours into the game and it still feels like I'm at the "tutorial"! I've barely gotten to do anything substantial yet. I know recent Zelda games all start off like this, but I'm not entirely sure why? I guess just to give you the sense that you're living a fairly ordinary life before getting thrust off into adventure or something, but I don't think it would hurt the series to get you out doing more right away.

Anyway, I'm not really complaining about anything other than my lack of time to put into the game. I know it'll open up and be much more interesting, I just haven't gotten there yet.

The only motion control in the game I'm not really digging is for flying and swimming. I know people liked it in WSR, but it kind of hurts my wrist after a while. I understand motion control on the sword because it's letting you do things you can't do otherwise (or would be really hard to mimic on a second analog stick), but the flying? I'd rather just have it on the analog stick.

The game is f'ing amazing and gets even more amazinger as it goes on...but yeah, I'll be darned if I don't like having to waggle the Wii remote to gain altitude.

I just spent 2 hours in the woods grinding 1600 rupees. Loved every second of it.

My copy finally came in today. Just getting started.

Ok so I passed the third dungeon and had some options on what to say - Did anyone choose Am I late? I so wanted to but just went with the more heroic option. If you guys did choose it..what was the response?

S

@Zero
Why RE5 and why now? It's an awesome coop game.

@Smerd
Haha same here. Didn't wanna spoil the moment.

@Smerd & @carlosrox

Same! Impa so deserved a snarky comment, lol. I'll choose it on the inevitable replay.

It's official: A Luigi's Mansion game for Wii would have controlled so well.
Ya get me?

Also, those evil cats just use their ears to fly back to the island. Grr.

Question for anyone who did a sidequest involving Karane - Did you give her the letter, or did you decide to give it to the hand in the toilet? I really wanted to give it to the hand in the toilet, but I wanted to see how the Karane/Pipit story would unfold so I gave it to her. Apparently, you get the Gratitude Crystals for going either way, so you're free to do whatever you want. I like that a lot. In games where morality plays a role, I'm always concerned about whether or not I'm doing the "right" thing, so it's cool to see that I can get those Gratitude Crystals regardless of the option I choose.

@Smerd

I chose that option. Only read if you don't plan to play it again or can't wait to see. Impa was mildly amused/pleasantly caught off guard. She responded, "No. You're right on time." It was a phenomenal moment made all that much better because I actually had the choice. Makes me look forward to meeting back up with her later and learning more about her character. I've finally made it to the forth dungeon after several times thinking I had to be there. So I figure I've got a bit to go.

Included the character name in the spoiler tag. -- BBbot

@legendofalex
Thanks!

Yeah I plan on replaying it again but for that comment I can make a spoiler exception.. Thanks for letting me know!

and please put spoilers on "Impa"! not everyone is there yet!

@legendofalex
That sounds so much better. Damn, wish I chose that.

Ah yes, I also chose the "Am I late?" option and got that satisfying response, too. Felt really good, like getting back a bit at Impa for saying I was late the first time and this time I ended up saving the day...even if for a bit. Felt really good. About to start the 4th dungeon here and I must say, if it's anything like the first 3 dungeons that got progressively better and better...oh yes! :D

You guys play the Skyward Sword theme backwards yet? I tried to search for a thread but nothing came up. Even if old..my mind is blown.

@Smerd

Old for me, but a neat thing nonetheless. Nintendo is so crafty.

Anyone who didn't choose "Am I Late?" is playing the game wrong. Please delete your save file and start over to play through correctly. Such a great moment.

As for there being unnecessary motion controls, yeah there are but in most of the implementations at least is an analog option so slight adjustments do matter. The only one that really throws me is when you are falling on to land and can steer with motion. For some reason it feels like it should be reversed from what it is. By and large though the motion in this game holds up and I would say it's an acceptable trade for standard controls. Now when it comes to what I would rather have in my Zelda games going forward, that I can't say. Especially when we have a new console on the horizon with a fundamentally different controller. It will probably be something totally new.

@carlosrox Well it's a very long story but basically back when RE 5 came out my cousin bought it and we started the game together, got about halfway through, and then he played through the rest with my other cousin. So I bought it off of him to finish up on my own, played about 20 minutes of the single player, realized how much I despised managing Sheva's terrible AI, and decided to hold off until I could find someone to play through the rest co-op together. I guess I could have looked for random people to play it online, but I'm not too big into online gaming. Anyway, a few months back I talked my brother into finishing it up with me, and so here and there we get a chance to play.

I was hoping to find some time to play Skyward Sword today but I just waited an hour! to get a haircut so I'm a bit behind on my schedule.

@stephen08 Wait, do the dialogue choices you make actually matter in this game? I mean other than maybe getting different dialogue for the rest of the scene or something.

I'm back from vacation and completely hooked on Skyward Sword! I've just beaten the second main dungeon and there's a ton of stuff I could talk about. I'll just throw 'em down as they come to me in a bulleted list:

-The visuals are surprisingly good. I wasn't really sure what to make of them in screens, but it all came together nicely as I was running around Skyloft. The bright, pastel colors are a welcome addition and keep the series from getting too drab and serious. And on that note, I really like the character designs too--quirky and memorable all-around. Reminds me just a little bit of Skies of Arcadia, mixed with TP and TWW.

-On that note, the game's humor is a lot of fun. Zelda herself is charming, as are plenty of the Skyloft residents, and one of my favorite bits was (pre-dungeon 1 spoiler) the fat Kikwi elder lying on his belly, thinking he was camouflaged as well as his tiny associates.

-The combat is quite excellent, although I can't seem to get my sword strikes to work 100% of the time the way I want them to. Usually it's a result of me doing a slightly diagonal swipe when going for a horizontal one or something to that effect. Those occasional hiccups aside, combat is a blast and really feels beefier than in past titles against tougher foes. And the improved difficulty is much welcomed, thank you Nintendo!

-In fact, the whole game just feels tighter and streamlined in general. Link's agility bar not only lets you traverse the land in really agile ways, but it also makes for some great platforming/combat strategy. It's a terrific addition.

-To echo what I think Carlos had mentioned, the combination of stinginess with loot/supplies mixed with the difficulty mixed with the tons of available stuff to buy ends up making for some of the most rewarding adventuring in the series. Combat is tough, meaning I want potions, but they take up space and cost money, so I'm also looking for bugs to beef up my potions, and more rupees for increasing my space, while on the lookout for dropped loot to beef up other supplies, etc. It just feels like everything I'm getting is useful in some way and goes towards making my adventure more enjoyable and/or more manageable.

-I enjoy the adventurer's pouch inventory, as well as some of the new stuff that can go in there, like the medals that increase drop rates for certain things. A very nifty new addition indeed. I also like the increased emphasis on potions and increased rarity of fairies, makes the game just feel streamlined and balanced. The loot aspect is pretty rewarding and reminds me of Rune Factory Frontier.

-Flying is a neat addition, although it's not as full fledged as The Great Sea. That's okay though, since it's not nearly as emphasized as sailing was in TWW. But I do like that small aspect of exploration and finding chests and stuff. I've stumbled upon some pretty neat things out there.

-Beginning takes some time to get rollin'. The writing and cast are charming but things don't really get into the full swing for me until around the first temple. After that everything just clicked--side quests opened up, I got a feel for the whole adventure pouch and various subplots in Skyloft.

-The bosses are 2 for 2 so far. The first one was a lot of fun and surprisingly tricky and strategic, while the second was very unique and almost killed me even after I downed an 8-heart potion.

-The music is very good, but not Galaxy level (yet). All of it has been pleasant, but very little has really wowed me.

-I find myself doing a lot of new things in this game: combat/platforming segments requiring smart use of the stamina meter, rolling/throwing bombs into weak spots and through narrow openings, tightrope walking, digging, flying/landing mechanics, Beetle-based puzzles, dowsing, cutting trees repeatedly and accurately, and more.

-There's been a lot of talk about the main plotline, but how about those sidequests, subplots, and odds and ends? I've found a ton of these on my own, and each has been delightful! Beedle: try leaving his shop without buying. Also, try sleeping in his bed until night time, it's pretty awesome. Peatrice, the item girl: seems to hate her job, but is warming up to me, oddly. I found a relative of hers on a distant island that revealed something pretty surprising about her. Groose's tall lackey: enjoys bugs, apparently. He's dopey-looking, but seems to have a little passion about that. Try finding him at night. The potion shop couple: the wife is nice enough to give you a bottle, but it seems she doesn't have the same care for her family that she does for her business. Visit them at night to see the husband struggling with the baby. The bazaar general store owner: overtly cheery and in-your-face at work, although refusing an item gets you a blank stare from him. And when he's off the clock, he's quite gruff. The townspeople seem like a really well-rounded and interesting bunch. Could Skyloft be the next Clock Town?

-All in all I'm having a great time so far and can't wait to see what's next!

@TriforceBun
Hmm, I remember the 2nd boss being rather easy actually. First boss was way more tricky. Although the second was more "wow awesome".

I agree about the townsfolk, I'm finding I like them a lot. I especially love the general store owner's animations. The defeated slouch he gets when you walk away from his table is priceless.