The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess leaves a precious mark among the many high-quality titles in Nintendo’s illustrious Zelda series. Returning to an art style similar akin to its predecessors on Nintendo 64, Twilight Princess offered a darker, more subdued tone than the colorful Wind Waker. In this game, Link gained new sword techniques, became a wolf, and adventured across Hyrule along with the mysterious Midna.
Despite this game’s notable release on GameCube and Wii, however, it wasn’t by any means perfect. While anyone can argue that Twilight Princess remains a high point among Zelda releases, a few flaws stood out throughout the game. However, it also offered some of the best features ever to grace the series.
10 Liked - Atmosphere
In contrast to some of its predecessors, Twilight Princess offered a darker tone in Hyrule. Right off the bat, Hyrule was already conquered by the forces of Twilight. It wasn’t afraid to mention the deaths of characters and put Link in a troubled spot.
Twilight Princess features a strong use of the keyboard, piano themes, and chorus to move the emotion within the player. The ominous clouds invited a tense, eerie atmosphere every time Link stepped into the Twilight realm. Meanwhile, nothing felt quite as calm and haunting as entering the Sacred Grove. And thanks to its art style, Twilight Princess could convey the story in its own, unique way.
9 Disliked - Fetch Quests
In the original Twilight Princess, players had to collect Tears of Light. As Wolf Link, these obstacles were waiting for players every time they entered a new region of Hyrule. It took over a dozen tears of light to erase the Twilight from said region.
Fetch quests are generally pointless replacements for the challenges that predate dungeons in games such as Majora’s Mask and The Minish Cap. They would later become lengthened tremendously in Skyward Sword. Thankfully, they were condensed from 16 to 12 in Twilight Princess HD for Wii U making exploring more enjoyable and less of a hassle.
8 Liked - Combat Mechanics
Much like in Wind Waker, Link can hit the enemy with combos. He gains the ability to parry and it’s more challenging than in Wind Waker thanks to the stricter timing. Plus, as with Zelda II and Minish Cap, Link will unlock and learn new sword techniques.
Enemies will attack Link with blunt weapons, sharp blades, and projectiles. Link will use shield bashing, parry strikes, and helm splitters to counter and overwhelm them. The combat was, until Breath of the Wild, the best in the series.
7 Disliked - Combat is Too Easy
Unfortunately, while the combat itself was engaging, enemies were never punishing. It was rare for an enemy to even take off a Heart of damage. Compared to past Zelda entries, this felt underwhelming.
Even the Darknuts, the strongest enemies in the game, were prey. This was particularly noticeable when fighting Ganondorf at the end who could be exploited with the fishing rod. Players can either choose to use the Ganondorf amiibo every time they play or they could boot up Hero Mode. However, the latter does not allow Hearts to spawn anywhere in the game.
6 Liked - Story and Characters
Twilight Princess follows the familiar Triforce story involving Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf. While the new villain, Zant, initially runs things, Ganondorf’s role is later revealed. However, Zant’s conquest of Hyrule Castle, learning of his relationship with Ganondorf, and learning Midna’s identity were among the key parts of the game’s plot.
Midna is one of the shining stars of this game. Getting to know this mischievous imp developed into layers of identity as players began to sympathize with her crisis. In that manner, it served as a wonderful connecting point for Link while playing foil to the hero.
5 Disliked - Barren Overworld
Hyrule Field is unquestionably large. It’s much larger in scope than the Hyrule Field of Ocarina of Time. However, just as before, it does not involve much activity.
The 2D Zelda titles do a better job of balancing exploration with enemies, puzzles, and activities. Breath of the Wild particularly did well with the 3D overworld and all the things to discover. However, Epona gallops quite fast and the beautiful setting will surely accompany players on their ride across Hyrule.
4 Liked - Dungeons
Twilight Princess features unquestionably challenging dungeons. Not only are the puzzles as clever as one might hope from the Zelda series but they feature fresh settings. Among the best include Arbiter’s Grounds and Snowpeak Ruins.
One involved a prison site in Hyrule while the other was a huge mansion occupied by a Yeti couple. The Palace of Twilight also offered a ton of atmosphere with its beautiful backgrounds and keyboard music. The final dungeon itself offered a serious, haunting sense of melancholy and dread.
3 Disliked - Lack of Weapon Variety
Twilight Princess offers a standard selection of weapons in the series. Bow, Boomerang, Bomb, and the Clawshot, which replaces the Hookshot, make an appearance. The new items include the Wrecking Ball, Spinner, and a wand to guide machines. And that’s about it.
One of the most enjoyable things about Zelda titles is the different ways to defeat enemies. Whether it’s roasting them with the Fire Rod, fighting them as Zora Link, or pulling out the Hammer to smash them, Twilight Princess felt lacking. The Wrecking Ball felt unwieldy with minimal value while the Spinner, even as a potentially fun exploration item, was reserved largely for puzzles. Even items made for mobility, such as the Deku Leaf and Grappling Hook in Wind Waker, offered combat abilities for Link. On the flipside, however, at least Bomb Arrows returned from Link’s Awakening.
2 Liked - Bosses
The title offers a strong selection of powerful monsters to combat. While the ease of difficulty was mentioned earlier, they still create presence and feature patterns that must be discovered. Among them include Morpheel and Stallord which are two of the largest enemies in the series’ history.
Twilight Princess also returns the boss’s name and description which went missing after Majora’s Mask. Plus each boss theme engaged the player to keep fighting. One particularly memorable fight happened during the Blizzeta battle which scared many players right before the fight.
1 Disliked - Lakebed Temple
The glaring exception to the welcoming dungeon design comes from the Lakebed Temple itself. This massive dungeon can take hours to complete if it’s the player’s first time. It comes with multiple floors and must be explored underwater as well.
This callback to the infamous Water Temple from Ocarina of Time is easily as big of an obstacle now as it was then. On the flipside, Lakebed Temple certainly provides a challenge in navigation. Moreover, it comes with some of the most beautiful aesthetics featured in the game.
NEXT: 10 Action RPGs To Play If You Like The Legend Of Zelda Franchise
