This remake completely massacres the graphics. It's a shame. This would have been a perfect score if it wasn't for that. Because not only does the remake make the game much more playable than the GameCube original, it enhances it by adding a bunch of quality of life improvements. Collecting Triforce pieces in the original is a slog and a chore. Anyone that tells you otherwise is lying. So this game cutting down on that, while also making sailing a little less tedious to control, is amazing. But even then, I feel like this game is missing something compared to to its immediate two predecessors, and no amount of HD polish could have changed that.

I'll admit this is probably my least favorite 3D Zelda game, but that still means it's a wonderful experience with a lot to say about what it means to grow up and let go of the past.

Wind Waker's story, at least compared to Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask, is on the surface, nothing special. But in many regards, it's the culmination of what the series theming was trying to be since the days of Link's Awakening on the Game Boy. It's a love letter and warning about nostalgia. One can never truly go back to childhood innocence once it's been lost. The characters of Wind Waker show why. The King of Red Lions, Link, and Zelda understand the old adage that you can never go home again, and Ganondorf does not. Life is going to change you, and you can either accept the change, or you can wallow in bitterness. Judging from what I see online in the Zelda community, it's interesting that so many fans cite this as their favorite, yet seem to ignore the game's central message that it was trying to convey. So in that sense, maybe there's a little bit of Ganondorf in us all. This is perhaps the best Ganondorf has ever been in terms of being a sympathetic villain. These ideas of love, loss, nostalgia, and family would be explored much better in Mother 3, so it's interesting to see that Nintendo as a whole was examining these themes even in other franchises. I just feel like these themes could have been explored further. Wind Waker's development cycle was rushed due to Nintendo losing the console war that generation badly, even as early as 2002,
and I think it shows in the final product. Excellent ideas that should have been given more time to breathe just sort of wither and die on the vine. Which is unfortunate. Given how emotional the previous two games were, a chance to explore what happens after the world moves on from the end and what that means for a person and life is there. There are hints of what could have been in the final product, and so it makes me sad knowing there was so much left on the cutting room floor. But what we have left is still better than about 90 percent of games.

In terms of combat, the series would arguably peak here with its QTE counter mechanic. Twilight Princess would innovate on it, but never truly surpass it, and Skyward Sword and the Switch games would veer off into other directions. While I personally prefer the other directions, I can understand why someone would prefer Wind Waker's approach. The dungeons in this game are a lot of fun, but again, due to the rushjob of its development cycle, there's obviously places where there should be a dungeon, but there isn't. Thankfully, what we got is still great dungeon design. Unfortunately, this game is also far too easy. Don't ask me what the game over screen looks like. I never saw it. I get that this game was designed with kids in mind, especially compared to even earlier games, but even when I was 10, I still thought it was really easy.

Musically, this is one of the series' better entries, and if you know anything about Zelda, that's high praise. The sound effects that the series uses even today would make their debut here, as well. As mentioned before, the remake butchers the graphics, but that's not because of the art style. I was one of those kids that wanted the realistic Zelda game. After the Lord of the Rings movies came out, 10 year old me wanted Zelda to look like that. But current year me now looks at the art style of Wind Waker with kindness. The game's art timeless. The characters are so expressive in this game. Link in Wind Waker especially has a certain level of sass that you don't normally see from him. It's in large part due to the art style, which as stated before, holds up remarkably well. If you boot up Wind Waker in Dolphin now and upscale the resolution, it could pass for a modern game. Graphically, it didn't really need any overhauls. The remake, with its overuse bloom effects, already looks dated in comparison.

That being said, I really, REALLY hope Nintendo puts this out on Switch before they call it quits with the console. Preferably with an option to turn it back into the old graphics. Wind Waker is a tower of good game design, and everyone should absolutely play it.

Now that BotW 2 a.k.a Tears of the Kingdom has an actual release date, I have decided to continue playing every Zelda game that aren't the two DS titles. Much like Majora's Mask and A Link Between Worlds, Wind Waker was a game i had played before and like A Link Between Worlds, too much time had passed to where i needed to refresh my opinion of the game. I had played the original GameCube version but there's no reason to go back to that one since HD exists.

Wind Waker is a good game but with an asterisk because there's certain things that i like and simultaneously kinda don't. Sailing the Great Sea does really feel like you're in an adventure. At the same time, this Great Sea is pretty empty and there's barely anything to do on the islands that you do come across (also thank God for the Swift Sail). The Triforce hunt, made smoother in this version, is conceptually good. But it's also just padding and it feels like you're doing it simply because the game told you too. The counter system is great. But enemies are honestly a push over, you are never in any real danger, not that difficulty has been a big thing in Zelda.

Where Wind Waker excels at is in the artstyle and just how full of personality the game is. Even the original still holds up. Story-wise, it presents some interesting ideas. This game has the best incarnation of Ganondorf, a very fun version of Zelda even if it's kinda sus that the dark-skinned pirate girl was actually just a disguise for the white-skinned princess and just generally an interesting take on the Zelda story formula. It's no Majora's Mask but i wouldn't disagree with calling it one of the better Zelda narratives.

The dungeon design is fairly standard, i don't really have too much to say about it. I do really like the Earth Temple though, it's honestly on the same level as the Stone Tower Temple with how it uses the mechanics it presents. This game also has Molgera, which cemented itself as one of my favorite bosses in the series. Music's good because it's Zelda, of course it is.

Yeah this game's about as good as i remember it being....with an asterisk.

Nintendo: "How do we improve upon the original's graphics? It still holds up perfectly."

Nintendo Employee: "Bloom! Everywhere!"

GTA V Graphics Modder's: "Write that down! WRITE THAT DOWN!"

The story is engaging, the characters are lovable, and the overworld is really fun to explore, especially the larger islands. The HD graphics also make it look like a brand-new game.

However the game is brought down quite a bit by boring dungeons, a lack of sword moves beyond the basics, and repetitive side-quests. The triforce search in particular is a low-point for the entire series.

The HD version does improve on all of this quite a bit compared to the original game, and it's still a decent game for it's age, but I definitely much preferred Twilight Princess to this one.

Ocarina of Time’s Hyrule and Majora’s Mask Termina are both technically “open” worlds - the individual areas are segmented and limited to one place but most importantly, you can go anywhere you want, yet they still feel limiting and almost like a “hub-world”. But with Wind Waker, Nintendo took this formula and went absolutely crazy with it: Vast open-seas that you can sail across - littered with secrets like mini-games, fairy islands, indimidating enemies and side quests - the “fake” freedom that was present in OoT and MM has vanished, you can go to any part of the map and more than likely find something to do there - sound like any other game?

What makes Wind Waker so special to me though is its characters. The iteration of Ganon is far and away my favourite, the impact he makes during his short time is incredible, and I love the route they took with him; a full contrast to the man we saw in OoT. The rest of the cast is also strong, I love Tetra and the Red Lion King, and regular npcs are fun to talk with. Even the combat and general movement is improved immensely - the clunkiness that was present in the prior games while in combat is gone, and your traversal is made better because rolling is actually useful and there is now a grappling hook and a more polished hookshot. And god damn the soundtrack, Zelda games never miss the target with it but that triumphant music as you glide across the seas with the wind pushing you forward is unrivalled. The upbeat tunes of Dragon Roost and Outset island are iconic, and the evil, villainous music that plays when you enter a fight is epic. Hell, even the title track is a hit. The art style is especially notable here, at first it was downplayed when the trailer was shown but then the game released and everyone loved it. In comparison to both OoT’s and MM’s murkiness and oppressive style, Wind Waker’s is a lot more childish and artsy, which I think fits perfectly.

My only real gripe with the game is the dungeons. While the actual boss fights are incredible, I can’t help but feel underwhelmed by the actual dungeons themselves, especially when comparing them to OoT’s. Really the only good one is Forsaken Fortress, and even then I’m unsure whether to call that a dungeon, but the rest feel generic and rushed. It feels like all of the time went in to creating the world (which is completely fair). My only other nitpick is from the original game, changing the wind direction is interesting at first, but it quickly gets stale and frustrating. The remaster completely fixes this via the fast sail, a perfect addition that is only able to be obtained at a specific time, which doesn’t fully nullify the wind mechanic, but also arrives just in time for when it may get boring - fantastic game design.

Wind Waker for me is a very important game. It’s the first Zelda I ever played, and introduced me to the wonderful franchise. While I think it is an incredible game that could easily be considered a masterpiece, it feels like a premature vision of Breath of the Wild in all its ways, yet it still stands out among its contemporaries with brilliant character writing, and a world that is a joy to discover.