Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom- Videogames As Art

Nintendo has been a firm fixture in my gaming life since I was about 8 years old. Zelda: Ocarina of Time remained my favourite ever game until it was surpassed by Breath of the Wild just 6 years ago. It was with some high level of expectation that I was awaiting the release of Tears of the Kingdom and I have not been disappointed. I clocked in 121 hours on my Switch in 2023 and 83 hours was on TOTK.

This was by far my most played game this year across my PS5, PS4 and Switch.

It is an absolute masterpiece and, whilst I prefer Breath of the Wild due to its fresh approach to an openworld gaming, I appreciate the novelty of the Ultrahand power which led to some crazy builds and possibilities.

Here are screenshots of my playthrough.

The Year Ahead in Gaming

Okay, I've joined the fray- after the usual flurry of end of year gaming reflections there's the typical 'looking to the year ahead' SEO thing, and I'm no different so here's my version of that, strictly tongue in cheek mind. Now, no-one can predict exactly what is going to happen but why let that stand in the way of an article? Let me gird me loins and let's get cracking.

In January, I abstain from any form of videogaming and usually catch up on the books, comics, graphic novels, podcasts, films and TV series that I've been meaning to get to but haven't. It has been building up quite a lot after the Summer holidays last year, where I went on a massive reading binge whilst in Cape Verde for the week and inhaled a load of books.

I read through a lot but this January my plan is to go through this lot... I'm sure I'd have a good old go and finish a lot though so I've probably bought more by the end if the month and given myself another huge to do list... Anything to ignore the fact that life is entropy and we are all slowly one step closer to death. Ahem. Onwards!

So, February will see me hitting the games big time. Catching up on this sweet stash. Finally I'll finish Mario Wonder and pause to think what the mustachiod err wonder will do next. Also, I'd have bought the Another Code: Remake Collection, which would have come out on Jan 19th, and will lose my mind over how they translate *that* puzzle which used the reflective power of the DS screens.
Final Fantasy Rebirth will also come out at the end of the month but the £70 price tag won't sit right with me so I'll probably get it near the tail end of the year, after the hype and zeitgeist has worn off and get it at the second hand or sale price of about £30. That and I still have FF7: Crisis Core Reunion to finish off.

This is my ‘to do’ list.

I'm sure by the time March hits there'll be loads of games in my digital store and pile from the sales where I would have scooped them up. Heaven's Vault, a game I bought over 3 years ago on the Switch will have to wait, yet again... alas.

Summer will brig the release of Llamasoft: A Jeff Minter Joint-a film about the singular Jeff Minter. I love the games the guy makes and, with the exception of Tetsuya Mizuguchi, the only guy who really gets synaesthesia in the game space.

PlayStation Foamstars will come out, riding in the coattails of Splatoon but, like PlayStation All Stars compared to Smash Bros, will lack the charm, finesse and flair. I predict it will be short lived and by Winter, we will hear of a dwindling player base numbering in the tens.

By now, Switch 2 model predictions would have gone nuts. I'm guessing that it won't start too far from the current model but will be higher powered, more like a PS4, but it will have the ability to play a screen on the TV but have the pad play as the touch control screen like we had in the DS and 3DS- this would allow Nintendo to port over or virtual store hundreds of old DS and 3DS games onto the library.
I would have pre-ordered one as Nintendo casually announce it in a Direct whilst I'm teaching in class. Game will have one and I will reorder but the gits will let me down (yet again) as they can't fulfill the order... sods!

The Autumn season will see the release of the Elden Ring DLC and, as usual, the totally rational and not at least elitist Git Gud crew will discuss the merits of having a rock hard game which doesn't take into account accessibility needs. This conversation will be coherent, logical and not in any way excluding to those who are colour blind, have difficulties with gross motor control or are women. I will buy it of course and love it with all my heart as Elden Ring is my most played game ever with 168 hours of play.

To coincide with Halloween, Silent Hill 2 will be released to much disappointment as all that made the game a masterpiece will be removed. Fog? Gone as now we can see where we are going! Nuanced writing? Gone as AI made the whole endeavour cheaper and better! It will also have DLC where James can wear amazing hats and you can buy different shapes heads for Pyramid Head... Dodecahedron Head? Sign me up!

The year will be peppered with AI, NFT and Games As a Service nonsense and when it doesn't work out, executives will say targets have not been met, award themselves huge pay rises and deals and sack a lot of the workers who actually produce the work. The whole failing upwards trend will continue.

The next Ubi sandbox game is released and, in a surprise move that astounds everyone, has even more icon splooged nonsense it has an over and underworld as well as a usual map: that's three layers of icon filled definitely essential to story beats and not time wasting nonsense. They have played Zelda: TOTK and have learned the lessons built on from that Zelda-like Greek gods themed Immortals: Fenyx Rising.

Also, COD is announced by Activision and in no way consistent with real world politics features a story containing an entirely fictional country called Falestine where the evil women and children must be killed for some totally legit reasons. It will take into account complex legalese framework to sympathetically put geopolitical questions under a microscope… psych! It’ll be the usual ‘do this and shoot that POC.’

Overall, I'm looking forward to the year ahead and predict it will be amazing. I don't foresee Silksong and Metroid 4 coming out but look forward to all the Nintendo Directs and the other not-E3 shows getting blasted for the fact, even though no-one announced a date for either game.

Being An Elder Statesman of Gaming

Recently, I turned 38 and it dawned on me… I’m approaching 40 and what used to be called ‘middle-aged.’ Now amongst my father’s generation middle-aged meant they’d take up a hobby, usually golfing, tinkering with old cars or going through some form of a mid-life crisis but for me I’m not sure what it will entail.

As many people of my generation approach 40 we are less likely to own our own homes and so we have this weird stage of ‘man-baby’ males who are not on the properly ladder or even settled on what they want to do in life. I’m lucky as I’m a teacher and happy to be so (most of the time), married with a wife and two kids and I’m kinda on the property ladder. What middle-aged means to me is not new hobbies but an old one, the constant I’ve had since I was about 5 years old… gaming. I play a couple of hours of games most days and it shows no sign of abating. Even when people said that having children would put a dent in my gaming it really didn’t and hasn’t. Now I know this doesn’t reflect well on my parenting skills but I only play games when my wife and children are in bed and never during their waking day so it’s all good and healthy.

I have been reflecting though; will I be playing games when I’m proper old and crinkly? Will I plug in the Nintendo Holocube, Xbox Infinity, PlayStation 69 or Spectrum Revival II in my mancave and play some Final Fantasy 42, Zelda: The Kazoo of Space Time or Half Life 3. I don’t know but I hope so. However, I could become more reflective and look back and finally play the games of my formative years, Dizzy, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 or Mario Bros. 3. It’s what the older generation do isn’t it? Look back with nostalgia on past glories and milestones.

Whatever the case, I’m sure I’ll be a gamer until my (probably arthritic) body gives out or my spirit is crushed through the constant talk of Brexit… whichever comes first!

Maturity in Gaming

It's a topic that keeps cropping up every now and again, usually when Nintendo release their new console: should video games 'grow up?' People often criticise Nintendo for only appealing to children or an immature audience, saying they should provide more "mature" games on their platform. However I really value having excellent games that aren't trying to be ''edgy'' or '' dark'' all the time. Don't get me wrong, I love serious and intense games but it's a relief sometimes to play a game that isn't all about blood, guts and killing. Shooting everything that moves has its appeal but there are lots of game that do that.

Nintendo isn't just for kids, as a parent I play a lot of Nintendo games in front of my daughter as she won't get nightmares but feels engaged too.

Nintendo isn't just for kids, as a parent I play a lot of Nintendo games in front of my daughter as she won't get nightmares but feels engaged too.

The older you get, the more you realise how horrible and cruel the real world can actually be, so why would I want my video games to emulate that? Over the past few years it has often felt like we are in the darkest timeliness with some truly horrendous things occurring all around us. We are constantly barraged with horrific imagery, news headlines and 'hot takes' on some dreadful world events so for many  video games are an escape from the real world;  refuge from the general crap storm happening all around us.

Video games have the potential to test the limits of the imagination and induce a sense of wonder and awe that is often lacking in real life. That's part of the appeal for evergreen games series such as Mario and Zelda.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that all mature content games are bad. Many of them actually tell beautiful stories and have great gameplay, like Nier Automata or The Last of Us. But I believe the people who only want to play gritty games and complain about the vast variety of games that are out there (including walking simulators or simple puzzle games) are themselves immature.  Maybe they don't truly understand what video games are capable of and the potential they have to be a unique art-form. As books have a multitude of genres, some which appeal to individuals and some that definitely don't, video games has the same situation developing. Not every game is for you and the sooner some gamers realise that the sooner the medium can move forward and lose some of its toxicity.

LINK- Nintendo: My One Gaming Constant

LINK- The Beauty of Walking Simulators

New Zelda Game is a Breath of Fresh Air

We live in a time of constant news coverage with access to information 24 hours a day and when it comes to gaming we have tonnes of information available at the tap of a few buttons. 

When Zelda: Breath of the Wild was announced a while back I thought I knew what to expect, 8 dungeons getting progressively more difficult, each containing an item which would open up another area of the map. There is nothing wrong with this format however I feel that it was perfected in 1998 with Ocarina of Time and since then all the mainline Zelda games had been iterations of this format, with the possible exception of Wind Waker and Majora's Mask. The offshoots and quirkier games of the franchise emerged and some of these felt fresh and inventive but the mainline series had reached a creative plateau for me. 

Prince Sidon is a very... charismatic character. I dread looking at Deviant Art :S

However after watching a couple of trailers and reading a little in gaming magazines I grew more intrigued and excited but a bit wary, the amount of times I'd heard, "You see that mountain over there, you can go there," made me pessimistic... After years of game creators over-promising (I'm looking at you Peter Molyneux) I had grown a little jaded. However when I heard the heard the term 'open world' I was ecstatic and decided to open my heart to the possibility that an open world Zelda would be everything I had dreamed off with Nintendo game designing philosophy, which I'm sure would respect my time and avoid the usual open world problems of 'Go there and touch some random doodad' or overwhelming me with pointless fetch quests.  

Upon starting Zelda you awake in a cave and as you exit the panorama that greets you is truly awe inspiring. The cursed Hyrule Castle is there in the horizon and you can go to face Calamity Ganon straight away but it's not recommended as you are under-powered. You are left to your own devices to explore but only after you visit the 4 initial temples to hone your skills and gain the glider which opens up the huge game world. Having the whole of Hyrule available within the first few minutes of play and not being told to 'listen' by a NPC or given guidance of where to go gave the world a sense of authenticity and scale that I hadn't known before. The fact that the world is full of treasures, side quests and secrets not marked on the map makes the whole game a wonderful experience as it allows each person to experience the game in their own individual way. This game has given me a sense of childlike wonder and curiosity that I haven't felt for a long time. There are moments that will stick with me for a long time; discovering Kakariko Village after a long time in the wilderness, finally making it into Zora's Domain after being confused for a couple of hours, witnessing immeasurable moments of beauty as the sun sets and rises over the land of Hyrule.  The scale of the game is mind blowing and rather than following the critical path through the game I'm loving just pootling around and exploring this wonderful world.

So after 12 or so hours of gameplay I'm still just a short way in but declare that this is a masterpiece, a true gem. I love this game and when I'm not playing it I'm thinking about it. So here's to about another 100 hours or so of gaming!

The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses Concert Review

Concerts based on video game soundtracks have been a staple of entertainment in Japan but have only recently been gaining in popularity in the West, mainly due to the hard work of Tommy Tallarico and his Video Game Music Live concerts which have been going strong for many years.  The soundtracks to games are gaining prominence and airplay on the radio too and a wider audience is being reached. Bands like Anamanaguchi, who use old video game sound chips to help score their music, have further brought the video game sound to the mainstream and so people from all walks of life are developing a taste for video game music, in fact 3 out of the top 20 Hall of Fame tracks on Classic FMs poll last year were from video games!

This diverse audience for video game music was reflected in the Zelda concert where the audience ranged from early teens to people in their 40's and 50's. Most of the Arena was full and there were many people out in cosplays from the series. 

I was extremely excited as Zelda: Ocarina of Time is my favourite game ever and the series holds a special place in my heart. Joining me was my older brother, we had fond memories of working through Ocarina of Time and Link's Awakening in our youth.

Before the concert started there was a moments silence for Prince and then the concert began.
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra were amazing, bringing alive Koji Kondo's scores. The music was accompanied by stunning video footage of the various games in the series on huge screens and this made for a sense of synaesthesia, a real overload for the sights and sounds.
At just over 2 hours the concert went through a lot of classic tracks but my favourites were the Zelda Title track, Dragon Roost Island, Song of Time and Gerudo Valley.


What made the night even more special wad that there were pre-recorded interviews spliced in of people involved in the Zelda franchise including Miyamoto and Aonuma. This broke up the wonderful music and gave us an insight into the thoughts and feelings of the Nintendo staffers. Overall the evening was highly enjoyable and it has made me determined to finish Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword, taking over 100 hours getting me motivated to do that the gig must have been inspirational!

Those Little Moments in Games

Many games nowadays are about spectacle, those amazingly honed set pieces that wouldn't look out of place in a Hollywood production. But what about those quiet more contemplative moments in games, moments that stay with you long after the end credits roll? Well I'm sure we all have them but these are some of my favourites in no particular order. If you can think of some more let me know. Oh and BTW Spoilers alert!

Red Dead Redemption- John Marston entering Mexico to that Jose Gonzales track. When I played the game the sun was slowly setting in the horizon and I had my horse at a gentle gallop to take in the beautiful scenery.

 

Superbrothers Swords and Sworcery- This game has many moments like sitting at the Moon Grotto or going to the Concert in the Woods but for me the ending as you float down the stream dead sticks out. Perhaps it would have been insincere to have the Sythian survive her wofeul erand.

 

Fallout 3- This is one of the most breathtaking moment I have ever experienced in a game. You open the vault door and with the sun blinding you, your eyes adjust to the light. Then you look out and you see the Washington Monument with huge chunks missing and the Capitol Building with part of the dome caved in- you realise just how fragile the world really is...


Assassins Creed 2- It's a-me Mario! Nuff said.

 

Ico- In a game about friendship and love the moment that most sticks with me is sitting down with Yorda. A moment of respite and peace in a hostile world.

 

Bioshock Infinite- This game upped the ante from the original Bioshock. The opening when you ascend into the sky and enter Columbia will stick with me for a long time. The scene with the candles and baptism is really spellbinding.


Journey- This game is full of moments but the ending where you die, just before reaching the mountains zenith is heartbreaking. However the journey is not over, you come back and travel the world as a spirit- this game is transcendant!

 

Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons- This game is beautiful to look at, rather like those strange Eastern Block country animations and Jim Henson's The Storyteller style art prevalent in the late 70's and early 80's in particular. The ending is a real heartwrencher, I completed this game with my cousin and we both sat there in shock and full of despair. Get the tissues ready!

 

Final Fantasy 6- The opera scene where Celes poses as the Opera singer Maria and turns in a legendary performance. At the time this blew my mind!

 

Links Awakening- The Windfish waking up is a masterpiece on the Gameboy. This is one of my favourite Zelda moments of all time!

 

Monument Valley- In Monument Valley you'll guide Ida, the silent princess, through many levels that are filled with optical illusions, mysterious Crow people and more. You are all alone in this hostile world until you befriend a totem, then he dies.... slowly... in front of your eyes. Gaaaah the feels, the feels!

 

Proteus- This whole game is beautiful and full of wonderful imagery but I particularly remember the sunsets. Magical. In the video it starts at 12 minutes)


Okami- This is one of the most beautiful and underappreciated games of all time. The art style is unique and will never age but the thing that sticks with me is the marraige of the visuals to the sound, especially when the world is in bloom.

 

Thomas Was Alone- This game has some wonderful dialogue but Level 7.9 has some of the most honest writing in gaming; "James still felt weird, but he realised that everyone else was too. They were a crew of weirdos." It's difficult to convey the humanity of this game, especially because everyone in it is a quadrilateral, but trust me, it will get to you and make you think about friendships,  relationships and your past and formative years. It's that good!


Deadly Premonition- Out of all the games this was the one that will stick with me forever due to the pure weirdness and brutality of the deaths. For those who don't know a homicidal maniac known as the 'Raincoat Killer' is murdering people ritualistically. there are many horrible deaths but this one of Becky Ames is tempered with moments of beauty as she becomes a Goddess. A twisted masterpiece that needs to be played, especially for those who are fans of Twin Peaks and David Lynch.

So these are the moments of gaming that will stick with me, not all are wonderfully cheerful but they do have a beauty to them that I like. So are there parts of a game that will stay with you?