August 19, 2009 - Surprise, surprise -- the Gamescom build of The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks was identical to the version shown first at the Electronic Entertainment Expo several months ago. So that means players like yours truly had the chance to go hands-on with three not-so-new demo stages, one of them previewing the new train travel system, another offering a look at dungeon exploration and combat and the final a peek at an epic boss confrontation. In addition, all of these stages were timed so that if you goofed off for too long, you had to start over. Of course, IGN Nintendo Team executive editor Craig Harris played and wrote about all of this last June. But hey, beggars can't be choosers, right? It's a new Zelda, for crying out loud!
I toyed around with all three stage types for this hands-on and came away with nothing but respect for Nintendo's next adventure extraordinaire. The same stylus controls remain, which means that you guide series hero Link through Wind Waker-esque environments by pointing and dragging in the general vicinity that you'd like him to move toward and he'll happily follow along. In combat, you simply tap on enemies to swipe at them with his sword or draw a circle and he'll perform his famous spin attack. In other words, it controls just like Phantom Hourglass before it, so if you liked that setup, you're in luck -- which means that I'm in luck.
The dungeon stage seemed typical of Zelda games in that Link needed to make his way through a series of rooms populated by enemies and sporting doors whose locks required hidden keys be inserted or trigger points pressed before they would open. This area was particularly difficult to venture into without the countdown timer bumping me out for good, but even with my short time adventuring I could spot traditional Zelda flavor where puzzles and difficulty are concerned. Spirit Tracks allows Link to take control of a Phantom Knight -- a big, armored battler -- and guide him around the world. This is done simply by touching the stylus to the Knight's feet and then drawing the path that you want him to follow. It works flawlessly and feels good. I quickly discovered the benefits of the Knight as I progressed further into the level. At one point, Link must find a way across a lake of lava and as it turns out, the Phantom can carry him. Later, I used the Knight as an obstruction to block oncoming fire by positioning him in front the hazard so that Link might walk by unscathed behind him. It seems clear even from this brief glimpse that the game will contain its share of clever and rewarding puzzles.
The train travel system has me both intrigued and worried. It takes place in full 3D, but on-rails, literally. As the train goes, you can slide its speed lever between full steam ahead, drive and reverse, and you tug on a rope to blow its horn, integral when you need to warn animals off the track. At certain junctions, you can switch tracks, intelligently diverting left or right to avoid potential dangers -- like, for instance, oncoming trains. And all the while you can send off fireballs at attacking enemies by simply tapping in their general area as they near your train. If you drag the stylus to the edge of the screen, you can control the camera, angling it in any direction you require for optimal views. I have to admit that this travel process is fun and frantic, but even after a short time with it, I wonder if the on-rails nature of moving from point A to point B -- especially at the slow pace in which the locomotive coasts along -- will wear thin after several hours or more of gameplay. For now, I'm optimistic.
The boss battle, meanwhile, pitted Link against a giant beetle baddie and, as usual, he needed to discover its weakness before his attacks could be proven effective. In this case, Link needed to use wind to his advantage -- and yes, you can still blow into the DS microphone for these kinds of maneuvers -- and I'll just leave it at that.
Old or not, the demo of Spirit Tracks is as engaging and satisfying as ever. I just wish Nintendo would get me a more finalized version of the game so that I might finally block out the world at length and rejoin Link on his latest adventure, which promises to be just as entertaining as his last.
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LowGmaN
però erano le 4 di notte, infatti stamattina ho risolto subito
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