Life

Just started Ocarina of Time and I don’t like it

Forward:

Now, I will be the first to say that I am not the most skilled gamer.  I love video games.  I play the ones that I can and the rest I happily sit down and watch others play.  Finding out how the story plays out and the ending is amazing to me.  It’s like playing through a book.  And like a book, the cliffnotes are sufficient to tell what happens but not nearly as immersive or enjoyable.

A number of people I know grew up on videogames.  I didn’t get my first console till I was in middle school.  The PS One was expensive, and the year I got my Game Boy color and Pokemon Gold was mind-blowing.

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Needless to say I growing up I didn’t have a N64.  I never played Ocarina of Time.  But, now as an adult with adult money, I decided to get the 3DS version of Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time.

Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=13334935At the time this game was a ground-breaking game changer.   And, after all this time, I finally have a copy to play–I don’t like it.

Maybe I am not skilled enough or maybe I just don’t have the right mindset or just don’t the old school gaming experience/ patience to play.  All I know is that I’ve just only gotten to Kakariko Village and already feeling bored and frustrated.

The game has it’s cool points:

  • It’s move forward at your own pace
  • There’s an wide variety of NPC characters
  • The aspect of time passing is interesting
  • Only being allowed to do certain things at particular points of the day is an amazing concept

Yet, this game just isn’t for me.  Perhaps it hits too close to home. In that the game is just too close to real life. For example:

You go to work at a certain time each day, 9-5. However, you have to get your driver license renewed, which can only be done at a certain time each day, 8-5.  So, the choice to go to do which task is up to you and both are controlled by time.  Do you go to work today? Do you not go to work, because you can only get your license renewed during that same time?  And, if you wait too long, you may not even get through the renewal process and have to come back again during that same time slot.

Regardless of the reason, I can’t get into it.  I really don’t see how deciphering cryptic, momentary dialog to figure out where to proceed next is fun.  Running or rolling around vast landscapes of nothing, how is that fun? Dealing with only doing certain things at a given time and not being able to move forward in the game until you get your schedule right, how is that fun?

To me, it’s not fun.  None of it is fun.

For those who grew up with the game and had that old school challenging gameplay exposure, may find this remake fun.  Looks like I tried to join in on the fun at the wrong place and at the wrong time.