The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD | Switch Review

Oh, Skyward Sword, why won’t you just let me love you? In the original Wii release of this title, I couldn’t even get far enough to receive Link’s iconic tunic. Now that I’ve beaten The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD for Nintendo Switch, I’m left unsure if it was really worth it. Despite having some of the best dungeons in the series, there’s a lot that gets in the way.

Waggle Your Wii

Let’s get one thing sorted right off the bat: I have no problems with the motion controls. While they were certainly a headache in the Wii version, the Joy-Cons are far more responsive. In fact, outside of a few things like stabbing or flying your bird, it was a lot of fun to engage via motion controls. While I would never want another Zelda with these controls, it’s not the nightmare the past decade of fanboy criticism would have you believe.

Chores: The Video Game

The major problem is Skyward Sword’s pacing issues, largely caused by its insistence on fetch quests. I have no problem with backtracking or revisiting areas multiple times in game, in fact I tend to prefer it since it lets me really learn about a location. The real problem is how Skyward Sword structures it. You’ll be moments away from entering a dungeon, but whoops! You need to go to an entirely different region, using the game’s plodding singular form of transportation, but that’s not all. You’ll get to this area, but darn. The McGuffin you needed is actually split into four different parts. Better whip out your dowsing ability (a ridiculously boring radar system) pronto!

This occurs ad nauseum, constantly, without fail. It’s frustrating as hell. Plenty of games force you to do quick fetch quests, but they usually dress it up with interesting characters or little stories along the way. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword goes nearly 20 hours without any significant story developments, a cardinal sin for the venerable franchise. It makes going through the motions feel like an actual chore.

It’s Dangerous to Go Alone

Whew, okay. I had to get that off my chest. Let’s talk about some things this title gets right. The characters, when they actually do show up, are universally great. This is the best Zelda we have outside of Breath of the Wild, and her friendship and flirtations with Link are adorable. Ghirahim gives Ganondorf a run for his money as a standout villain, and even tops him in certain ways. Link’s frenemy Groose has a shockingly satisfying arc. When the game’s big bad (I’ll give you one guess who it is) does eventually show up, you’ll be in awe of his presence and the showdown you have. Then there’s Fi.

No doubt Fi was a hugely contentious part of the original release. She’s your companion throughout the entire game, a magical AI construct that resides in the hilt of your sword. While her story concludes nicely, it’s impossible to feel affection for her. Navi became a cultural icon due to her annoyance of shouting “Hey, listen!” but I would take that over Fi any day of the week. Those aforementioned chores are made all the worse because every single time you begin one, Fi tells you how to accomplish it. Even if it’s something you’ve done a dozen times, she feels the need to pop her head out to tell you how to do it again. This is mitigated with the HD version’s ability to skip text, but only so much. My respect goes out to any soul that had the strength to finish the original game.

Dungeoneering

Now that we’ve accomplished even more complaining, let’s talk about the game’s greatest strength: dungeons. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD has, without a doubt, some of the best dungeons the franchise has ever seen. They start out simple enough, but by the end of the game you’ll be giddy as new challenges present themselves. What really sets them apart is how the game builds upon your items. That every dungeon gives you a new item is a Zelda staple, and typically the dungeon then builds all of its puzzles around that item building up to climactic boss battle that requires its use.

While this is also true of Skyward Sword, it also never forgets the items you already have. Sure, you now have the Gust Bellows that allows you to change around the environment, but don’t forget the only way to flip that switch is with your Whip. It facilitates some real head-scratching puzzles that made me exercise my Zelda brain in a new way. Things are kept engaging, as well, via the incredibly satisfying 1:1 motion-controlled sword fighting. Combat has never been as thrilling for the series as it is here.

A Sight to Behold

The dungeons are also just inventive and beautiful, doubly so with the game’s striking watercolor art style. Some of them are entirely outdoors, or may be in an unusual setting such as a pirate ship (one of the best dungeons in the entire series). It is such a thrill to never know what the next dungeon will look like, and it keeps this aspect of the game incredibly fresh. There’s even one area that requires you to construct your own dungeon layout!

The overworld map is often where much of the character of a Zelda game comes from. Whether it’s Hyrule Field or Clock Town, these are worlds that stick with you for years. Skyward Sword drops the ball completely in this regard. While your hometown makes a mild impact, there’s very little to do there. The “hub” area is a series of broken up islands, and outside of a single tavern and a two boring mine-games, there’s nothing to do on any of them. There will be collectibles on some, but you can’t even collect them until the game explicitly marks them on your map. It exists entirely as a way to slowly fly your Loftwing (flying bird) from one “spoke” area to the next. Your Loftwing is slow and requires you to constantly flap your Joy-Con like a bird. It’s slow, it’s boring, and it’s tedious as hell

We Expect Better

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD is a better version of a mediocre title that was stranded on the Wii. While there’s incredible dungeons, a memorable soundtrack, and wonderful characters, I’m not sure it’s worth fighting past the chores to get there. The final hours and ending is extraordinary, but you might be better off watching it on YouTube. I wish I could say the dungeons alone are worth it, but each one requires two to three hours of monotonous tasks in order to enter its one hour worth of quality content. My biggest takeaway is this game needed more than a remaster; it’s in dire need of a remake.

This review is based on a purchased copy of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD for Nintendo Switch. It is exclusive to that platform.