The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time Aesthetics - Essay Example

Running head: THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: OCARINA OF TIME The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time – Aesthetics Analyzed of the of thecourse Name of the instructor The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time – Aesthetics Analyzed The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, the fifth sequence of the famous Legend of Zelda Series, is an action adventure 3-D video game created by the geniuses Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). This essay aims to cover the visual aesthetic features of the game that so conveniently set it apart from other series of Legend of Zelda in terms of genre. It will explore the stylish elements, structure and various ludological features of the game that the player notices while playing the game. The elements of game genre will also be highlighted. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was the first 3- D based project completed by Nintendo’s development team; therefore the visuals used displayed a “WOW” factor for that time. If analyzed today better visual versions of other games such as Max Payne and Resident Evil are available. Extensive graphical environments in 3-D animations are shown in the game depicting different functions and purposes. Detail of every minor inch has been taken care of such as spreading the sun light descending upon the mountains and moonlight spread lightly over the sky (Schneider, 1998). The most impressive graphics are shown in the largest 3-D environment Hyrule Field where the player almost feels free to explore. All characters have their own unique style and personality in terms of appearance, facial expressions, body language, fighting style and other specialties which adds a personalized effect to the game (Ferris, 1998). The sounds are fairly good not excellent. The environmental noises of birds chirping, ocean rumbling and the clanging sound of sword fighting are perfect but at the same time they have used MIDI tunes at several parts of the game which appears terrible to the poor ears of the player (Ferris, 1998). The visual and auditory clues and control scheme are also well designed being diagetic in nature they are easily noticeable for instance when an enemy is approaching Navi the Fairy becomes green. The three dimensional view that camera provides are good enough to lock the enemy with the Z button and then kill in one strike (Sivak, 2009 ). Furthermore, with regards to the structure of the game it is narrative. The narrator of the story is the fairy Navi who gives player clear cut direction about the up coming events. While Juui argues that more the narration in the story the lesser will be the interactivity in the game it is true to some extent till the player does not reach the puzzle solving stages, also with chain of events happening a narrator is highly essential (Jesper Juul, 2001). Still, complete disagreement with Juui’s point cannot be done either because with fairy telling the player everything it does hinder player’s ability to nurture his own gaming skills in the game. The game clearly follows the String of Pearls narrative methods. In the game, the young hero Link is informed that he possesses the power to kill the evil Ganondorf from both time and space. As Link travels through various dungeons of kingdom of Hyrule to defeat Ganondorf he attains more and more qualities that help him in achieving his quest such as a mirror shield. Every item that Link finds helps him in fulfilling his destiny. The game play is entirely in the developer’s hand revealing only what the player should see. The degree of subjectivity in this game is highly strong and is implemented without creating any issues for the game play. The balance between the game play elements and the diegetic narration is perfect just like it is supposed to be in a String of Pearls model (Lacy, 2009). The game play and the ludological factors of the game are virtually flawless. The rules of the game are all defined by the fairy, so the player faces no difficulty. In 70 hours of game play, the player has to collect heart containers to prolong his life, along with four swords and three shields. As the game proceeds it becomes more and more interesting while the player may loose interest in the temper temple once the player is out of it the game picks pace again. In the later stages of the game, Link becomes stronger and carries the ability to use better equipments and weapons. Overall, the 75% of the game play is action while 25% is Role Playing Game in which the player has to mould his own personality according to Link to proceed further in the game (Ferris, 1998). Several of the game mechanisms are worth a mention such as time and space traveling system. Time traveling allows the player to go forth and back for seven years at least. The moves of the camera become much clearer and sharper in the battle fields, giving more control to the player. Amongst all the game elements puzzles is the most interactive element available. They not only open new areas but also enable the player to attain new tools. To unsolved the puzzles the player needs to have a clear understanding about the functionality of the capabilities of the tools, environment and enemies. The tools come with multi tasking ability especially in the puzzles in the later stages for instance Song of Time opens the doors in Temple of Time and later can also be used to make the blocks appear or disappear with the time symbol. Puzzles are most seen in dungeons, water temple and deku tree (Rees, 2004). The story telling of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time strictly follows a linear narrative structure forcing the player to act on pre-defined paths to meet the goals of the game. The environment of the game is diegtic still it is an exhilarating experience to play The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time since the factors such as music, visual graphics and interesting plot contribute to it. Reference List Ferris, D. (1998, 01 12). The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - N64. Retrieved from Game revolution: http://www.gamerevolution.com/review/n64/the-legend-of-zelda-ocarina-of-time Jesper Juul. (2001). Games telling stories? Game studies , 1 (1). Lacy, T. (2009). Just Playing-How Narrative Defines GamePlay. Miami: Miami University. Rees, G. (2004, 12 1). The puzzle structure of Ocarina of Time. Retrieved from Gareth Rees Org: http://garethrees.org/2004/12/01/ocarina-of-time/ Schneider, P. (1998, 11 25). Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. . Retrieved from IGN: http://ign64.ign.com/articles/150/150437p1.html Sivak, S. (2009 , 10 03). Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time . Retrieved from ETC Press: http://www.etc.cmu.edu/etcpress/content/legend-zelda-ocarina-time-seth-sivak Read More