Phantom Hourglass
Yesterday Nintendo released “The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass” for their DS handheld system here in the US.
The game’s art style uses that of “Wind Waker” the cell-shaded GameCube Zelda. The reasoning being not only that the DS hardware handles the cell-shading better for 3D objects, but also because it is a direct sequel to said GameCube game.
Players use the DS’s stylus to control the character around the screen, swing the sword, use items, navigate menus, etc.
Originally after hearing this, I wasn’t sure I could prefer this to good ol’ button pressing, but after trying it out for myself, I can say it works much better than I expected. So far I’ve only logged a couple of hours, but I’m enjoying being able to write notes on maps to remember things that I’d usually forget.
My biggest gripe is that when I try running really fast to the right [the further towards the edge of the screen you push, the faster you run…. also I’m left handed] my hand gets in the way a little and sometimes I miss things.
Overall though, it’s looking great, and is definitely the best looking ds game out right now, and if this game keeps it up, it might be one of the best games for the system.
