TECH: New Look, Same Thrills

Since 1987, Link has been fighting the forces of evil throughout Hyrule in his neverending quest to save Princess Zelda from the evil Ganon. This week, Nintendo took another step forward in this epic saga as it introduced The Wind Waker. And while eight-year-olds everywhere are high-fiving one another, many Duke students are secretly pumping their fists and with good reason. This new upgrade is bigger, brighter and more engrossing then any of the previous games. While visually, it might look like child's play, Wind Waker, staying true to its Legend of Zelda traditions, is both challenging and exciting.

Set hundreds of years after Link's last victory over the dark forces of the world, The Wind Waker begins the quest anew in a Hyrule covered with water. It seems that Ganon has escaped his imprisonment and once again has set out to cover the world in shadow. Fans will be happy to learn that, as in the past, our hero has all his trusty weapons at his disposal as well as some new toys to spice things up. Nintendo has also added a two player cooperative option that makes use of the GameBoy Advance-Gamecube linking ability, meaning a friend can now play along and help to solve some of the more difficult puzzles and unlock hidden treasures.

The visual decisions Nintendo made for this game, however, provide the most drastic change from past Zelda experiences. Making use of the Gamecube's powerful toon-shading technology, Nintendo has created a fully interactive cartoon universe. The idea of toon-shading, pioneered only recently for home game systems, makes its first appearance on the Gamecube with Wind Waker. While the technology is still fairly new, Nintendo displays a level of polish on this game rivaled by few others. Elements often difficult to deal with in the virtual realm such as smoke, light and water are handled expertly.

While Nintendo claims that this more cartoonish breed of Zelda allows it greater creative flexibility, it has made a statement that is so much larger than that. With the increase in technology, home gaming has become more realistic over the past decade. With this change has also come an increase in violence, gore and sexuality. Suddenly, Super Spike V-Ball has become Dead or Alive Xtreme Beach Volleyball; River City Ransom has become Grand Theft Auto; even Tecmo Bowl has become NFL Blitz. It seems that for a game to take off anymore, it has to push the limits of what is acceptable. With Wind Waker Nintendo has shown that a truly great game doesn't need to have naked chicks playing volleyball or mobsters killing people with hammers. While, yes, these things are entertaining for a time, a great game can simply be a young kid striving to save his sister, and in the meantime getting caught up in a quest on which hangs the balance of all existence. Maybe the new and improved cartoon Link can show a new generation what video games can be.

-Jon Schnaars