The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Nintendo GameCube, 2006)

Twilight Princess is not one to disappoint.
The lands are vast. The plot and characters are interesting, as well as engaging.
Challenging.
Breath-taking.
Seductive.

Objects/weapons are fun and easy to learn.
The game can prove rather Helpful- if you find yourself lost.. keep searching.
You'll find a way out.

The aspect of playing as both Human and Wolf - is very very cool. I loved learning the "wolf songs" to unlock hidden scrolls.

With these hidden scrolls/skills, you become a more effective fighter.
The 'Helmet Blow' was one of my favorite~
In this move, Link jumps high - flips - and slams the enemy right in the head with his sword.
"The Ending Blow" - after getting an enemy to fall on his back, Link jumps and comes down with his sword hard into the villians' torso.

(But no worries parents, no blood is ever seen!
This game isnt what I'd call violent. Not at all)

Midna, the little girl/elf who helps you rescue Princess Zelda and save Hyrule - she's fasinating.

Ooccoo - a Chicken with the Head of a Human - so bizzare. Making this game further prove its worth.
Far less "cartoony" or "childlike" than some other Zelda titles.

The Fishing isnt too fun.
But there are puzzles throughout the game that are pretty difficult and satisfying.
*Minigames consist of only bout 1/10th of all gameplay*
So dont worry that there's alot of them.
There arent many at all.

The Graphics ARE stunning.
Especially if viewed on a good monitor/TV.
Game features lots and lots of Theatrical Scenes pertaining to the whole storyline.
Very entertaining.

The Music - not always fitting; could of been better.
Though, I will say this.. the music heard once in the Castle is *really* neat. Ancient and Timeless.
You really start to feel like you are part of something very old and very "noble", after playing this game for awhile.
Certainly worth your time and money.
A must-have.

I highly recommend purchasing the GameCube version over the Wii version.
The controls are easier and more functional.
Easier aiming and such.

The Gamecube graphics rival the Wii.
No doubt about it.
Very sharp. Very crisp/clean.
No lagging. Fast loading.

My Ratings:
Difficulty: 3-4/5 stars.
Graphics: 4/5
Gameplay: 5/5
Storyline and Plot: 5/5
Lasting Appeal: 5/5

Good for Children? YES - ages 10 and up.
With the help from an Adult.
((Remember- this game has no blood & gore))

I have already Recommended this Game Title to Friends and Family.
I play this with a little boy I babysit.
He *loves* it~ :)

All n all- a Beautiful, Stunning, Engaging, Enjoyable Game!
Try it out~

Alot of people are saying that this was the best zelda game ever, but I have got to say that that is overating it. Sure the graphics are good and a huge step up since windwaker *shiver*, and the world is vast but not overly vast, once again unlike windwaker *shivers again* but it just doesnt have as good a feel as ocarina of time. I like the plot and the new items are good but... there is no instrument. The only thing close to controlled musical output is the howling in wolf form and you can only do that if you are at a howling stone or that grass that you play to summon your horse or the hawk, and you cant ride your horse as a wolf and the hawk just points out stuff that you already knew was there but couldnt get too. If it had the classic ocarina it would have been much better.
Wolf form, its cool but it doesnt have many advantages over human form, sure you can warp and you can dig up stuff but most of the stuff you dig up is crap. Just green rupees or hearts and combat wise it is the lesser, you cant use items, you cant defend yourself, and it knocks down all enemies, but you cant use finishing strike so they are on the ground, but you cant attack them and they just get back up 5 seconds later wasting time!
Horse back fighting. Awesome but there just isnt enough of it. There oughta be a jousting mini game or something to include more action on the horse. Speaking of mini games... THERE ARENT ENOUGH GOOD ONES! Just the fishing hole, the canoe shooting challenge the baloon pop thing and the clawshot. All these mini games are fun in their own way but I would have liked something along the lines of the classic shooting gallery and the bombchu bowling ally.
Also, King Zant, he appears to be the lord of it all, the main villain but then he turns out to be a nut who is just Ganondorfs pawn in the whole scheme of things. Just like Aghanim in Link to the Past, he seemed to be an all powerful warlord but then turned out to just be a henchman. I like Ganon as much as the next guy, he's a great villain, the kind of guy who you just want to beat the crap out of but please give him a break! Get a new villain who actually seems to pose a threat (unlike vaati from Minish Cap).
Finally the music score. What I loved about ocarina of Time most was that it had a catchy array of tunes that were just amazing. This one, you have some good tunes (zeldas theme) and you had the really anoying (the lost woods) and finally you had the INCREDIBLY ANNOYING SONGS THAT WERE PAINFULLY CATCHY (the malo mart theme, the dance was even worse), unlike ocarina of time where all the tunes were beautiful and amazing. Even OoT's lost woods theme, I cannot understand what people find annoying about it, I love that song and cannot get enough of it, I wish I could say the same for TP's version.
Overall good game but it doesnt really have features that make me want to play it over and over like ocarina of time did. But still it is a good game and I recomend it but I wouldnt go as far as to agree with the game reviewers that it is the "best Zelda ever". They pin that on every new zelda that comes out. Final remark, great game but greatly overated

It is a very challenging and interesting game. It was awesome. We enjoyed playing it! It is the best Zelda game ever. All of the levels were well designed and the graphics were the best. We decided to buy this because there were no more Gamecube games that we had that we played anymore. All of our friends had it and recomended this to us. Although we had to use a few cheats a couple of times, the game was very interesting and fun. All of the sidequests were interesting and fun. Some of them were hard and some were easy. Collecting the heart pieces was challenging. You needed all sorts of different tools in order to get them. All of the weapons inculded the boomerang, sword ( there were three kinds. You first start off with the wooden, then the metal, or iron, then the master sword) iron boots, bow and arrow, bombs ( these included the regular bombs, the underwater bombs, and the bomb creatures) clawshot, lantern, the spinner, the ball and chain, the dominion rod, the double clawshot, the horse whistle, jars (these are not really a tool but great for storing stuff in) and slingshot. There may be more that I forgot, but that is all I can remember. (We gave up Gamecube for lent, and while I'm typing this, obviously I cannot go on to check) The clothing is the clothes that he starts out with, the hero's clothes, and later on in the game, the magic armor. The temples included the Forest Temple, then the Goron Mines, then the Underwater Temple (I don't remember the name, exept it is under Lake Hyla) then the Geru Desert, Snowpeak Ruins, the Temple of Time, then the Sky Temple, The Palace of Twilight, and last but not least Hyrule Castle. The Hyrule Castle is the most challenging, where we had to use the guide. It consists of rooms with doors and some of the doors go nowhere, or just back to the main room. This is where we had to use the cheat guide. The Geru Desert is also hard because of maneuvering the spinner to go to where you want it to. At the beginning of the game you start off with a wooden sword and have to but the slingshot. Then in the Forest Temple you don't get anything. In the Goron Mines, in order to get in it, you have to pass a mighty stubborn Goron. This is when you get the iron boots. Later on in the Mines, you get the bow and arrow. Also Berry's Bombs shop opens up enabling you to buy the regular type bombs. Then in the Underwater Temple you get the underwater clothes, also known as the Zora Suit, and underwater bombs. You also get the clawshot. Then in the Geru Desert you get the spinner. In Snowpeak Ruins you get the ball and chain, and in the end and beginning of the Temple of Time you get the Dominion Rod. In the last temple for getting items, the Sky Temple, your clawshot joins with another found clawshot to form a double clawshot. The jars can be found all over the map, so look carefully. Link can go into two forms, wolf and human. After defeating the Underwater Temple Zant, Lord of Twilight, comes. Midna, the True lord of the twilight, comes and tries to defend Link. Link changes to wolf form, but Zant easily blocks him. Midna finds a piece of rock and pulls it out of Link. She then says that he can transform anytime. After this cutscene you can change and warp anytime you want. But before this, you cannot. Overall this game is the best game that I have ever played for Gamecube yet!!

If you loved Ocarina of Time as much as I did, this will make you happy.

The graphics are gorgeous. The scenery is amazing. Everything looks beautiful, and the best part is it still feels like a Zelda game. They decided to revert back to the N64 Ocarina of Time/Majora's Mask style graphics (but much cleaner, of course) rather than the cell shaded Wind Waker. I like the realistic character design much more for Zelda than the cartoonish one from the other recent games.

You can also get Twilight Princess on Gamecube, but the Wii version has some extra benefits. One such benefit is the interactivity. When you go fishing, you use the motion sensitive controller to cast the line into the water and reel the fish back. This makes it a lot more fun than the somewhat tedious sit-there-and-wait-to-press-A fishing game in Ocarina of Time. I'm glad they revamped the fishing and brought it back. Also, it is much more integrated in the gameplay than the last fishing minigame in a Zelda game (which was, of course, in Ocarina of Time). You use fish in sidequests and for other purposes.

As far as the control, it feels very natural. You use one Wii-Mote and one Nunchuck together for it. You control Link's movement and targeting with the left hand and you use the right hand to move your fairy around with the motion sensor, and to supplement the left hand with looking around, that action button, and other functions. It's hard to explain without trying it yourself, but trust me, the controls are great.

You start out the game with your horse, Epona. You also get the option to name both Link and Epona when you start your file, although I'm not sure if this will have any effect other than what NPC's in the game call you. Sometimes games use naming for codes ("If you enter your name as ___, ___ will happen" type things) but somehow I doubt it for this game. Anyway, the controls for Epona are great too. Just like Ocarina of Time, you can press A to speed her up and jump over fences. She is very beautiful and detailed too. When you make turns, you can see Link pull in the reins. You use Epona for many minigames as well as just getting around. In the beginnig of the game, for example, you use her to herd goats into a shed. It's a lot of fun, and horseback riding is another feature I'm glad they brough back.

Also, don't worry if you saw Link with the weird goatherder outfit in all of the previews - he does get his original outfit later on. The dungeons are AWESOME. It's rated Teen, but Zelda games have never included inappropriate content in my opinion. You do kill monsters, but there is no realistic blood or gore, or suggestive themes. The rating says "Animated Blood, Fantasy Violence". Trust me, it's fine for kids. The action is all "hero against evil" type action. This game is a total blast, and both new and old-school Zelda fans will love it. Even if you've never played a Zelda game, try this one - it'll get you hooked.

I was about to sell my Game Cube until I realized that Zelda Twilight Princess was also available for the game cube. I placed a bid and I am very satisfied with this game. If you like adventure and action mixed with puzzle solving, then I recommend this game. You can explore riding your trusted horse named Epona, and use everything from arrows to grappling-hooks and Iron boots. Once you are able to transform to a wolf at your command, the whole land of Hyrule is open. You do meet alot of characters along the way, and there are plenty of surprises in this game. If you enjoy the previous classics, then this will not disappoint. I really enjoy using the grappling hook, which can bring you any object that you can hold from far distances, also the wind boomerang but I prefer the grappling hook. The control is flawless, but aiming your bow while riding may take some practice. There is no shortage of fun mini-games for Link to try, such as fishing, ballon popping, and yes gliding with a chicken to grab rupees. Make sure you explore thoroughly and search for pieces of heart, as for every five pieces you gain an additional health-heart meter. And you will need as many of these as possible as the Bosses get bigger and truly test your skills as a fighter and a strategist. The only complaint I have about this game is when I have to turn it off to either eat or sleep and go to work, other than that its awsome. The only difference between this version and the Wii, is that they are a mirror image of each other. I strongly recommend a strategy guide if your in a hurry to see the story and to get by certain puzzles that are time consuming or to assist in locating all 45 pieces of heart. If you do not have surround sound,I recommend using your PC speakers, it gives this game an awsome sound. In closing I can say that I have not played a game this good in a long long time. Grab yourself a copy and enjoy!!