Actually as I think about it I'm not sure if I agree with that statement or not.

Lionheads only real problem is that they cant make a long story, so if they worked with Nintendo on a new Zelda game while putting their whole effort into it, the resulting game would be



well, actually thinking of just how awesome that game would be is too much than I can take.

Wind Waker was less high-fantasy, and moved the game from out of the dark/middle-ages to sometime around the 15th century in setting and technology.

Yes, Zelda needs to have tougher combat. Things aren't "Nintendo hard" anymore, and that's a quality I'm sad to have lost.

OR you can just do crazy self-imposed challenges. Try tackling any Zelda game without ever getting a heart piece and container.

But you see even that's not hard on Twilight Princess because nobody does even a single heart of damage. I don't even think Ganon does.

Then how about going around with a fourth of a heart? That enough?

Self-imposed restrictions aren't as fun. They can be fun, yes, but they're not as fun at all because there's always the easy way out.

Also part of an engaging game is being able to triumph over adversity.

Zelda practically plays itself. I don't see how Link is a hero in Twilight Princess when any shmuck with a sword can beat it.

I don't believe difficulty is Twilight Princess' great fall. Ocarina of Time, the most revered game in the franchise, is not really hard by any measure. TP's fault, to me, lies in its atmosphere.

A major problem I had with characters like Midna and Zant was how inconsistent they were. First of all, Midna was a pretty good character at first -very sassy and almost evil. Then her character is completely dropped after one cutscene with Zelda, who gives her life for Midna (only to reappear at the end of the game?), and Midna respects that. I understand that, but then Midna loses everything that made her unique and fun, and she became another Princess Peach (let's help everybody!). That's not character development, that's bad writing. People don't develop like that. Someone like Midna may have respected Zelda after that, but would they really lose their entire personality? How would that effect someone where they'd lose all their sassiness or odd sense of humor?

Zant's probably the worst written villain ever. You first see him where he gives a cliché villain speech to Zelda "live or die?" Then you see him again, and he's all creepy when you meet him after Lakebed. At this point, he has a distinct creepiness to him; he's actually unique and compelling now. Oops, wait, then the little cutscene at Arbiter's Grounds comes along, and Zant is back to his cliché, boring self seen in the first cutscene. Finally, you meet him in his castle near the end of the game, he has a flash back... and now he's.... insane? What?! It's like the writers had absolutely no idea what to do with him.

What Ocarina did much better than Princess was giving you a sense of urgency to save the world. TP doesn't give you a sense of danger after you collect the Master Sword. OoT constantly reminds you that Ganondorf is out there. He meets you and beats you up as a child, and his evil continues to motivate you to stop him, especially after you get the Master Sword. You childhood home, Kokiri, is now overrun by monsters, and Saria is missing. Lon Lon Ranch is taken over by Ganondorf's rule. Ganondorf locks all the Gorons in the Fire Temple to be eaten by a dragon. Zora's Domain is frozen over. Hyrule Market Town is destroyed completely. Ganondorf unleashes a monster that sets fire to Kakariko. You are constantly given new reasons to beat that next dungeon, and when you finally do get to Ganondorf for the final battle, it means something.

Not in Twilight Princess, though. Midna just says "let's get the Mirror Shards!". Then you meet Ganondorf for the first time. He doesn't know who you are, but now you are expected to fight him to the death? The two of you are complete strangers! That's not nearly as compelling as Ocarina of Time. Majora's Mask, Link's Awakening, and The Wind Waker give you more of a reason to save the world than this excuse for a Zelda game.

I severely doubt that it would ever happen, but I'd like a one-shot "realistic" Mario game. It would be a pseudo-medieval fantasy game with Mario as the knight in shining armor with Luigi as his squire. After King Bowser, Lord of the Koopa Clan, launched a surprise attack which wiped out all of the Mushroom Kingdom's monarchy save Princess Peach who was kidnapped, Mario and Luigi go on a quest to rescue her.

It won't be easy though. King Bowser has let loose his army to conquer the Mushroom Kingdom while it is weakened and he is a great and terribly powerful king who has united many of the world's beastly races. Disciplined ranks of Koopa Troopers make up the core of his army and the battalions are led by Koopa Jr. and all of King Bowser's other illegitimate children, but other creatures are in his employ. The debased and barbaric remnants of the Goomba tribe, traitors to the Mushroom Kingdom. Bloopers, a slippery and intelligent race of undersea masters. Pokeys, a hardy and dependable race of desert folk. Shy Guys, the mysterious and unknowable guardians of an ancient civilization. Bob-ombs, the stoic construct-race willing to give anything for their cause, even and especially their own lives. In addition to may other races, King Bowser's army is supplemented by the dark magics of his court magician Kamek, who creates powerful magical constructs, animates the dead and binds the capricious Boos to the service of the Koopas.