@Shadowlink

I noticed that too the other night. Then I slept in his bed to spite him, lol.

Oh man, just got the Hylian Shield!

I totally didn't even expect that to be in this game!

EDIT: That's a post dungeon 6 spoiler I guess, though it was an optional side mission thingy to get it anyhoo :)

Just did the area before the third temple. That was some creative stuff! Cool as heck.

Anyone else feel that this game sometimes feels like Zelda meets Metroid Prime? The level design of the surface areas feels extremely Metroid to me--it's super-dense and trying. I like it!

@TriforceBun

I pretty much hate Fi. She talks way too much, spoils puzzles, and is completely devoid of any personality... not sure how they could go from Midna to this. Hah, how annoying is it that when your hearts are low, you have to listen to not only the standard beeping noise but also another one from Fi telling you about it.

This is easily the best Zelda since Ocarina, but it still suffers from a lot of the annoying Aonumaisms that have plagued the series since Majora.

@Hinph

I learned to ignore the beeping for being low on hearts, it goes away after about 3 or 4 beeps.

Yeah, but seriously... fans have been bitching about the way that these games insult our intelligence with excessive explanations of everything for how many years? I really wish they would at least try to compromise with a Metroid Prime style option to turn this stuff off.

Okay, I THINK I'm in the 5th dungeon. Please tell me others noticed the Titanic reference in one of Skipper's pictures. Please! That's just hilarious. I mean, in Zelda of all things.

Game complete after 41 hours.

Missed 3 heart pieces in the end, heh.

This game was just....absolutely phenomenal. The ending proved to be a hell of a lot better than I expected too

I can't help but feel like I cheesed the final boss though ;p He didn't touch me once since I just parried his attacks and went town on him in his first stage. Then the second stage I repeatedly parried his chain of 3 attacks then slashed him once - rinse repeat.

My 10 Hour Mark Impressions of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword:

I just beat the game. Still got stuff to experience, though. After that I'll write my Review.

I won't go into much detail about my thoughts because I'll save it for the review, but I'll say this. This game, like Wind Waker before it, is a very pleasant reminder that the Zelda franchise is one of the most diverse and uniquely competent franchises in the industry. You could say it has many black sheeps - Zelda II, Majora's Mask, Wind Waker, and in a sense, this game. But I say it doesn't - because there is no standard for Zelda. Each game is its own legend and its own beast. I love it. I love how the series constantly re-questions itself and takes turns, even if always following a similar gameplay structure. Which, even that, is redefined in this game. Like its predecessors, you can tell you're playing a Zelda game 2 minutes into the experience, because the gameplay binds the games together, but each one has its own unique feel, and it's no different in Skyward Sword. It feels like a Zelda game, but not like a sequel to Ocarina or Wind Waker or any other game, not even in spirit. There's no franchise quite like it.

I'd also like to say I like the sky more than the sea and the field.

@GelatinousEncore

That's a good description of Zelda games.

pre 6th dungeon spoilers (mini-review of the games B-items and sword) -

I'm kind of bummed the only totally revolutionary use of motion controls was laid on the bug net. It's the only thing where position and orientation is combined in the motion, like if we had a wider sword and could only cut if we swing in the direction of the blade, except the blade is the face of the bug net.

Despite what casper told me in the other thread, swording does not go beyond what an analog stick can technically produce. If you hold out your sword to one side, you can not suddenly swing up without first repositioning your sword, aka reorienting the remote. Sometimes it seems that you can, but I think it's just you outpacing the repositioning animation. There's no 'analog stick on top of an analog stick' mechanic. Rolling and translation is either ignored or reread as an action you could produce the usual way. I'm not counting the fact Link's animation does respond to pitching the remote with a turn of the sword because this isn't used for gameplay.

With that said, the remote is still way better. Positioning an analog stick slowly to position your sword, then moving the stick quickly to strike would be brokenly awkward. Analog stick will go to the center if you let go of it, letting you cheat since the sword could always be in the center before you strike, making you unreadable by enemies. An interesting case where disempowering the player is a good thing...it made skyward what it is.

The whip like expected works just like the sword. I don't know what casper was talking about. I spent like a half hour just testing what the whip could do the moment I got it. If I put enough effort into it, I could start, say, a horizontal strike, but get the whip tip to flick up at the end. You can also snap the whip by instantly pulling back the moment you swing it, which is pretty neat. Still nothing an analog stick can't fumblingly reproduce, however.

Switching between tossing and rolling bombs by orienting the remote is a slick idea, but switching could technically be controlled by a button, leaving an analog stick to control bomb spin and tossing.

Flying stuff like beetle and bird could be done before with an analog and shoulder buttons for rolling. Gust, bow/arrow, slingshot could all be just DA stuff.

I was discussing this in chat last night but I definitely feel like the whole intro sequence leading up to the 1st dungeon is slow and filled with a bit of fluff. And I don't fully understand why, because it is not a very casual friendly intro sequence, so what spurred on the decision to do it like this? I know Twilight Princess suffers from this a bit as well.

I think one thing that the God of War games do right is thrown you into an exciting segment ASAP, and then slow things down a bit afterwards. Zelda isn't an action game, but it could stand to learn from this a bit. Or even looking back into its own history, Link to the Past opened up with a segment where you basically rush into a castle full of enemies and fight a boss before slowing things down a bit. Awesome way to start the game.

Anyway it's not a huge complaint and I am definitely having fun with the game so far, and I know that it only gets better and better. Just kind of weird to me that Nintendo opened it the way that it did, because I'm not sure who exactly that kind of slow intro sequence appeals to, if anyone.

Just beat it... WOW. Fujibayashi needs to direct the next Zelda, and Aonuma should stay in the producing role. It turned out so perfectly unique. Perfect shake up of the typical formula (although at some pints a bit fetch-questy, nothing majorly upsetting though). Loved all of the items and how they were more handy outside of their respective dungeons... which were so enjoyable. The Sand Ship, good lord the Sand Ship. Actually, the whole desert area was surprisingly my favorite to explore (it's usually my least favorite terrain in any game). I think I did all the side quests, just need to hunt down the last heart pieces and any other treasure I missed, plus Hero Mode should add some lasting appeal.
Wow. I was expecting to love it, but I really loved it. The animations were out of this world in some areas. The music, while not the usual in-your-face catchy, was beautifully atmospheric. Some of it reminded me of Donkey Kong Country which is one of my favorite soundtracks from a game.
I'd say the only gripe I had was the re-centering the pointer at times, especially when things need to be fast paced. The combat, though... brilliant. I don't want to play a Zelda game without motion again and it's going to be interesting to see how I react if I replay the older console titles.
Wow, stil digesting the game, just... wow

Edit: Forgot to say what I loved the most - Rupees and treasures are useful this time around! Adds such a layer of strategy, and you want to go out and find the stuff so you can upgrade your gear. Exploring the sky was amazing as well. Perfect complement to the packed over world below the clouds. Gah, I'll stop gushing, I could go on for hours...

The long intro was discussed in one of the Iwata asks. It was in danger of being even longer, it was Aonuma who stepped in and said 'this feels like cutscene after cutscene, when are you going to let the players play the game?' D=

So yea..we got the 'trimmed' version, in their eyes. Some of the devs were really into making story/characters.

@MikeD487
God. Spoilers don't really help if you don't point out generally WHEN they are. I moused over your damn spoilers thinking you were covering that there is a character named Link in the game and he has a sword, but you spoiled a huge, awesome sounding area for me. Woulda helped if you mentioned generally when this area was so I wouldn't click anywhere near it.

Fuckin' pissed off my Wii just died, sorry.

@carlosrox

Oh man really? Your Wii just crapped out? Sorry to hear that Carlos. What's with that? You're the third person I've heard whose Wii has done that either during or the morning that this game came out. Maybe you can find a super cheap one on a Black Friday-weekend deal? I dunno. Hope things turn up for you pal.

@Zero I understand what you and many others are saying, but personally I didn't feel it. I felt the first moments of Skyward Sword are good, the very beginning is a bit story heavy, but I liked it, I got to know many of the inhabitants of Skyloft and Link's place in it all, and more importantly, I got to spend a lot of time with Zelda and see her nice relationship with Link develop. They're clearly in love, and they're both two young, charming teenagers which is a good change of pace, and this is the first time I actually want to save Zelda because I'm involved with her. She's such a nice girl!

After the Wing Ceremony when I went down to the woods, I gotta admit Fi got a bit annoying, but I was still enjoying myself, after getting accustomed to Skyloft, the setting, the characters and my bird, I was getting to know my sword. And then I did some routine stuff and went to the first dungeon. It's good stuff.

I also didn't feel the beginning is as linear as some people say it is. It's about the same as it is in TP, and Wind Waker too (Remember you can't sail wherever you want in the beginning of that game? Even after you get the Wind's Requiem, the King of Red Lions stops you if you don't go in the right direction). I got about 4 hours in before the first dungeon, I visited Beetle, checked out the bamboo-slicing contest, went to the Pumpkin and Fun Fun Islands, and explored all around Skyloft. I also tried to activate all the cubes I could in the woods. There's some nifty stuff to see.

And after that it just gets way better.

I'd have to say Fi was my least favorite part of the game.

Pretty much in every Zelda game, I at least felt a connection with my little helper, but Fi; I just wanted her to shut up. Throughout the entire game she continues to pop up and say absolutely nothing that I wasn't aware of already. Though at least I could go to her to find my playtime when a friend asked, heh.

End game spoilerrrrs

The whole last bit with her having to say goodbye since she's bound to the Master Sword, and confessing she felt emotions thanks to Link just fell completely flat for me. I really couldn't care less about her, and felt absolutely no emotion during that part. It would have been nice if they had her showing SOME development of emotion as the story progressed, rather than just throwing it in at the end as an effort to make me feel more upset about her and Link having to part ways. As I type this, it really makes it clear that I hated Fi primarily because she had absolutely no personality at all.

@kgtennispro I think the character development was cut down because of how the "producers" wanted less texts and more gameplay. Muyamoto anda Aunomou are ruining the series by holding back the story telling.