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by Wubb |
| Other installments of Pulse |
| 11/18/98 We Have Not Begun to Hype Think Zelda hype is running out of control? Think it can't possibly get hyped any further? Think again. Beginning in a week or so, the Zelda trailer will run in movie theaters across the nation. It will run in a lot of movie theaters. If you go to the movies a good bit, you will get sick of seeing it. You will actually see it so many times, you won't drool while viewing it anymore. You won't be able to go see a movie for the next 3 years *without* seeing this trailer. (Okay, so I'm going a little overboard.) Nintendo is spending a ton of money to use this trailer. Remember when Godzilla came out? Remember the big 'mystery' about what the big lizard would look like? (They only showed a foot or tail in the previews.) Remember how it seemed like every movie you went to had the Godzilla trailer, how every show you watched on TV ran a Godzilla ad? Nintendo is spending more on the Zelda trailer than was spent running the 'Zilla trailer. Be afraid, noone is safe. Your mom will know about Zelda, heck your family pet will probably know about Zelda. What are the chances that Zelda will not be a spectacular game? Well, I'd say it's way less than the odds of the Washington Redskins going 1-8 (oops) or the Denver Broncos going undefeated through 9 weeks despite using their backup QB for a few weeks (hrrmmmm) (In case you *gasp* don't follow the NFL, both these things have happened.) Seriously, I don't think anyone thinks Zelda is going to be anything but an amazing video game. It ought to be, it's been in development for ages. What does everyone think of when they think of the good ol' original Zelda for the NES? 'Crazy amounts of exploration!' Uh yeah, that's true, but I was thinking of... 'A great mix of action and RPG!' Well, that's certainly true as well, but... 'That great 2nd quest!' No, they think of the GOLD CART, okay *everybody* thinks of the gold cart! Sheesh, you guys are always harping on the substantive qualities of a game, I think you do that just to cheese me off. That's right, Nintendo is making Zelda: The Ocarina of Time 'golden' as well, but only for preorders. Anyone out there preordered their first game ever, just to get a golden Zelda? I'm thinking about taking that plunge myself, but haven't yet. I wish Nintendo would just make all Zeldas gold, but such is life. I'm just imagining the ads on classified sections all across the 'Net as soon as the gray version of Zelda hits stores. 'Will sell gold Zelda: TOoT $90 like new' Trust me people, this will happen. Now, whenever there is as much speculation and information and anticipation for a game as there is for Zelda, there is always the question of 'ruining' some of the gaming experience. Remember the hype for Final Fantasy 7? There were some gamers who couldn't get enough info on the game. I think they would have downloaded a 2 gigabyte avi of a tester playing through the entire game if one was made available. Then there were those who didn't want to know anything about the game. Knowing the names of the characters in the game was even too much information. Well, I think looking at preview information is a personal choice each gamer must make for his or herself. Ha! Seriously, I haven't looked at any information on the upcoming Zelda since actual screens starting becoming available. Why? I know I am going to get this game, so I don't need to gather information to make a purchasing decision, it's a no-brainer. Oh boy, I have a feeling this column is gonna start veering off-topic even further... You know another thing that gets me? How quickly FAQs and walkthroughs are made for games. Now walkthroughs are great, and I have even used them on occasion. But *only* after getting stuck and frustrated to the point of tears by a game. I really try to beat a game on my own first, I mean that's the whole point of playing a video game, isn't it? Remember when Final Fantasy 7 or Banjo-Kazooie was released? The day it hit shelves message boards were flooded with requests for help on different levels and stages of either game. I mean, c'mon people, can't you try to beat a game on your own for longer than 30 minutes before going for help? Too bad Rare and Square didn't just set them up so that you turned on the game and a nice 'You Win!' screen appeared. Boy that would be a fun game! Well, when our paths cross next, I'll hopefully have finished Dune (the book), and have a copy of Zelda: TOoT in my grubby little paws! ; ) A call for feedback: Have you ever had a humorous or terrifying experience with a videogame store worker? Maybe s/he told your mom, 'All the kids are playing War Gods 64, it's selling like hot cakes!' or maybe you had to actually correct them on some point about their inventory, etc. I am planning a future column made up of my own experiences, as well as those of readers, so send them (along with any comments about the column in general) to wubb@hotmail.com. --wubb |
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