While some details may change for the final game, most of the things described in this preview will also appear in The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time when you go out, buy or rent, and play it.

The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time, or Zelda no Densetsu: Toki no Ocarina in Japanese, is the first Zelda game to come to the Nintendo 64. It's supposed to be the machine's saviour in Japan, as there the sales haven't been that positive lately. Zelda V is the fifth Zelda game for a Nintendo system, and also the fifth designed by Nintendo's master game designer Shigeru Miyamoto and his team. With the new Zelda game he may just be able to create his best game so far.

In it's native country, Japan, the Zelda games have never been published on a gold-painted cartridge, so neither will the 64-bit sequel. However, Nintendo are releasing it on such a cart in the rest of the world, just like the classic NES Zelda games.

I can't be entirely sure that The Ocarina of Time will be the subtitle for the game in the USA, Europe and Australia, but it seems pretty likely at the moment. For sure is that it will be the title for Japan. As you may already know, even The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past had a different title in Japan, so pretty much anything can happen. Some like to call it Zelda 64, or abbreviate the title to Zelda: Toot, but I rather call it Zelda V for short.

The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time is going to be published on an astonishing 32 Megabytes cartridge. In comparison, Super Mario 64 was only 8 Megabytes. While you may have expected this would be the case, the huge size will not affect the game's price at all. The Japanese will have to pay 6800 Yen to obtain their copy of the game. In the rest of the world, a similar price is to be expected: just about similar to the price of all your other games.

Why they keep delaying the game
On the internet, and in several magazines, you may have heard people constantly complaining about the delays that have faced the new Zelda game. However, these people unfortunately aren't right most of the time. Originally, the game was supposed to come out in time for Christmas 1997 in Japan, after which it got set back to April 1998. It is still supposed to by out in that month. Any other dates you may have heard were just speculation, or wishful thinking.                        "I'm sorry for the delays on Legend of Zelda 64.
                                                                                                                                                        We intended to launch the game for  Christmas '97 but, as you can see, it'll be three months late,
" Miyamoto said on last year's Space World
exhibition near Tokyo, Japan.
At that time, the feel of the game
was about 90% complete.
The rest was around 80% done.
To me, that seems like the game was
pretty much in it's final stages,
ready to make it's April 1998 release date.
 
 

Most likely, the Americans will be able to obtain the game starting August or September. There's a small chance that Nintendo will push this back until November, if they don't have a better game especially for the Christmas holiday season. Europeans and Australians should look forward to the game about two months after their American friends.

The game begins :
As far as I have been able to gather, the game takes place long before any of the other Zelda games. In The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time certain events that were described in The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past's storyline will actually take place during gameplay. One of these things will be the transformation of Ganondorf Dragmire, king of thieves, into the evil Ganon we have all grown to hate, because he claimed the Triforce. Further, things like the Imprisoning War may happen in the game, in addition to fun things like the forging of the Master sword.

It seems like the game starts off in a preparation of Link's coming of age ceremony. As usual with the Kokiri, a very strange and unusual type of Elves, he will receive a fairy since he has reached adulthood. The Kokiri don't get born, but they just occur, and after having lived their life, disappear again. This fairy will accompany him for all his life, and help him where she can. It's a bit of a guardian spirit for the Kokiri.

So, after winning some tips on how to succesfully play the game from the people in his small village in the forest, the Lost Woods, Link ventures towards the Fairy Tree, where his ceremony is going to take place. However, he finds the Fairy Tree heavily damaged by a strange creature. With help of Navie, which he finds out is his guardian spirit, he can slay the creature, but the Fairy Tree is already far off. It is able to tell Link that it is his task to prevent the thief Ganondorf to claim the Triforce, and that he should take the Sacred Stone that it gives him to a wise man, but dies thereafter. Link takes the Sacred Stone that he finds there, and travels to Hyrule Castle.

There he meets Princess Zelda for the first time in his life. She tells him more about the Triforce, and where it can be found. She also tells about the magical Ocarina, and about the three stones that fit into it. So Link's race with the evil Ganondorf for the Triforce has begun.

The Ocarina seems to be used to travel through time, although it also seems to be needed to find the Triforce. At some point in the game, we know that Princess Zelda will be captured by Ganondorf. It is also likely that at some point Ganon will get the Triforce, thus bringing in another plot twist. All of this is just speculation right now, though. One thing that is sure, however, is that Zelda V will have more story-driven gameplay than any Zelda game before.

The role of time in Zelda :
According to the game's title, time will play an important part in it's gameplay. Similar to The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, where they recycled the game's world, by making a Dark World, now there will be two time zones to go to, recycling textures and polygons. In one of them you will be Kid Link, about 7 or 8 years old, while in the other you will be normal Link, an 18 year old with an earring. During the normal Link's time zone, the world has intensified a bit.

The plot that will allow for this time-travelling madness may have something to do with Ganon succeeding in obtaining the Triforce, and going back to the past to prevent him from becoming the King of Thieves at all. I have no idea how big a role time-travelling will play in the actual game at this point, though.

Further, the game will have an actual day and night system, though it's not expected that you will have to stay at inns during the night. This is yet another bit of proof of my statement, saying that time is very evident in The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time. I have no idea of how long such a day will take in real time, either.

Controlling the hero:
Above all, The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time
will be an action game.
Thus, fighting will be very important. To achieve the possibility of having good 
fights in a 3D environment,
Zelda V introduces some new ideas,
which you can expect to see in lots
of other games, in the future.
They are quite a bit revolutionairy, actually.
Of course the analog joystick will allow you to
move throughout the environment just
like in Super Mario 64,
where the more Link gets hurt, the less
speed he will have when moving,
but it doesn't stop at such small things.

For example, normally, you are not able to jump. Not with some button at least. "Since Nintendo was the first company to make a game with a jumping ability, we were moved to try something new, so this game will have a 'full auto jump.' Even if the player doesn't press the jump button, he or she can still jump. Is this an epoch-making event? The jump will depend on your character's speed and the topographical features," said Miyamoto about this radical change in gaming.

Perhaps the most innovative thing in the game so far is the use of the Z-trigger. This is the "attention" button. Pressing it near an object will make you lock onto it, making the attention mark appear. If you press it while moving, you will rotate around the object you locked on to. You can view anything with this button. When you're fighting an enemy, using the Z-trigger will ensure that you hit the enemy, instead of missing it, something that happens all too much in 3D action games.

The B-button is the key to another revolutionary factor in the game. The function it has changes with whatever you are doing in the game. The green circle onscreen shows what the function currently is. For example, in a fight, while being locked onto an enemy, it will allow you to jump, enabling you to avoid the enemy, or defeat him using very nasty moves, slashing him with your sword while jumping. There are many other functions for the B-button, such as climbing on and ascending off a ledge, but also opening, pushing, pulling, talking, swimming, and crawling.

With the A-button, you will be able to use your sword. Pressing it once will unsheathe it. Combining the A button with different directions will allow you to make many different sword moves. Just like in The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, holding the button will let you accumulate power in your sword. Letting it go will give you a powerful helicopter slash. Press A three times to swing the blade from the bottom to the top. Press it and turn the joystick around to swing the sword around... there are many possibilities. You can hold a sword in both of your hands.

The C-buttons don't have any very revolutionairy functions. The top-C lets you zoom in on a situation, or lets you view a situation from above. There are no more camera options available, simply because these aren't needed. The camera is intelligent enough to handle that work itself. The other C-buttons can all have a corresponding item with them, which can be selected in one of the option screens available through the start-button. Like with the A-button, this item gets unsheated for use after pressing the button once.

With the R-button, you can raise your shield. This shield is made of wood and Link's family crest is in the middle. Miyamoto was tight-lipped about some secret use that the shield also has. While protecting yourself with the shield, you can't use your sword or any other weapon. Also, when you have swords in both of your hands, you can't use your shield. The L-button is only used to turn on or turn off the small map in the right-below corner of the screen. The direction that the little arrow is pointing toward on the map is the direction Link is facing.

The start-button will bring you into a 3D cube with menu's on each part of the inside. There is an extensive Dungeon or Environment map there, as well as an Item screen, a Special item screen, and an Equipment screen, where you can equip Link in four different areas: Sword, shield, clothes and boots. Here you can choose, for example, which item to assign to which C-button.
 
Equipment screen. 1. I couldn't make this out. 2. The usual screen overlays are still visible
here. 3. Swords selection. 4. Shields selection. 5. Clothes selection. 6. Boots selection. 7.
A title bar for what you're doing, perhaps.

The Legend of Zelda is Rumble pak compatible, but only slightly. Miyamoto is thinking about puzzles involving the device, however, he feels that people without it should also be able to solve these. There's no need for a Memory pak, since the EEPROM onboard the cartridge can save up to three games, and therefore the Memory pak will not be supported.

The items available:
As ever, there will be many items to be found and used in Zelda V. While Miyamoto has said there will not be very many items, I have been able to compile a pretty large list of them already. Some items will be returning from earlier games, but there will also be a lot of new ones. Some items will only be available to Kid Link, while others can only be used by the normal Link. For example, the normal Link is the only one who can use magic.

Items only for Kid Link: Dagger, Sling shot and pachinko balls, Wooden stick.
Items only for Adult Link: Short sword, Bow and arrow, Long Sword.

Some items, such as the boomerang, can be used in two ways. You can use it without having something targeted with the Z trigger, so that it just goes into some direction, for example to gather bonuses such as rupees and hearts. Now, when you don't catch it right, you will hurt yourself. Further, you can use it with having an enemy targeted, allowing the boomerang to go straight towards the bad guy. The bow and arrow are used in the same way. Using the top-C button, you get a first person perspective which allows you to target perfectly well, without having something locked.

With the Eyeglasses of Truth, you will be able to see enemies that you couldn't see before, much like the Cross in Zelda II: The Adventure of Link.

In The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, the Magic hammer was used for driving in stakes or turn enemies upside down. This time, it can do various things, but different from before. It's large size makes it a great weapon.

The Magical nuts are a special type of weapon, which you can throw into the air, after which it'll explode, like a firecracker.

The Bombs aren't only for sale in shops, but there are also plants which produce them. Pushing the button you assigned for your bombs, you lift up one above your head. Then, you can either toss it into a direction, or put it down on the floor in front of you.

With the Ocarina you won't only be able to travel through time, but to make it work you can play a melody on it, using the different buttons on the joypad.

There will be six types of magic, all represented by their own medallion. The six types are wind, water, fire, earth, darkness and light. You can use the magic together with the bow, to allow for magical missiles. Miyamoto is thinking of allowing you to mix different types of magic, giving extra special effects and magical powers.
Additional items that are mentioned: Heavy boots, Hookshot, Writing stone, Medicine, Keys.

Some friends to help you along the way
Although it will be in the game, the rooster will not be an item. It appears that this one will be similar to The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, where it follows you, if you want that. Miyamoto warned that you shouldn't bully him... sounds like a lot of fun, doesn't it? Perhaps the rooster will still care for the chickens, which will also still be appearant in this game. Boy, am I glad!

As far as I know, the fairy, Navie, will follow you around everywhere, all the time. She will not only provide you with hints, but she will also gain certain colors according to the object you've locked onto with the Z-trigger. When locked on to an enemy, she will turn red. With village people she may, for example, turn green. Further, she will lead you the way, and she can carry things for you. With the B-button, you can talk to her. There will also be a storyline element involving this fairy. Like in the cartoons, where the fairy Spyrte is in love with Link, this time Navie feels something for him. So, she actually is jaleous of Zelda!

There will also be horses in the game. Only the normal Link will be able to ride it, though. It has already been unveiled that you will be able to give the horse any name you like. What about naming it after your favorite supermodel so you will finally be able to ride her? Standing next to your horse, the B-button's function will change to "ride". Pressing it will allow you to step onto your horse. Pressing it again will allow you to use your whip, making it gallop faster and faster. At top speed it will easily vault over obstacles that might be impassable for Link on foot. For each time you use the whip, you have to give the horse a carrot. While these carrots recover, you cannot use too many of them at a time. Some enemies will also ride horses. In any case the ultimate bad guy, Ganondorf, will ride one. His horse will be black, whereas Link's will be brown. It seems like Zelda's horse will be a white one.

Horses won't be the only way of fast travel in the game though, as there will also be warps, and other magical ways of transportation.

Venture back into Hyrule
The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time will undoubtedly amaze you with its multitude of different environments. According to Miyamoto, crossing the whole land of Hyrule will take an entire gameday. While I don't know how long a day will take, it certainly sounds very impressive. No wonder they had to include a horse to make the game playable.

The size of the land is not the most astonishing part. It's the fact that this huge land has such an enormous variety, instead of being more of the same all the time. Locations include Link's House, the mysterious Lost Woods, a river area ending up in the Zola lake, the wide plains that lead up to Hyrule Castle, in which a beautiful city, modeled after European style, lies. There are huge mountains, narrow valleys, dark caves, deserts, dungeons, tropical shores, and what not.

Luckily, that huge country is not an abandoned place. While there are friendly creatures like chickens, there are enough enemies to keep you busy for a while. Many have returned from previous games, but there are also a lot new baddies. Pou, the ghostly figure, is back, Ghoma, the spider, has returned, but Dodongo is there again, too, and he still hates bombs being thrown into his mouth. There's Dekubaba, a cross between Mario and a dog. And there are Octoroks, Wall Masters, Stalfos, Iron Knuckles, Keese, Leevers, Ghomas, Lizalfos, and many more. Also, there will be different versions of monsters, such as Stalfos, which vary in strength, depending on the type of weapon they wield.

The bosses will be larger and scarier than any of the bosses you've ever seen in a videogame. Miyamoto plans on making at least ten of them, but maybe as many as sixteen.

A wonderful experience
Above everything, Miyamoto wants to put certain moods and bits of emotion into the game. He wants to make use of warm feelings, instead of stress, creating a game that plays like an unfolding story or a movie. Many settings will include special lightning effects, and fog, to make the settings more realistic and to set the mood. Dramatical camera angles will be used in some areas to create the cinematic effect that Miyamoto wants to achieve.

There has been put lots of effort in Link's looks alone. For example, he now wears earrings. His face has undergone a lot of development, before the team that created the game was happy with it. For example, his nose is a lot smaller than in earlier games because in 3D it would simply look quite weird.

But the rest of the game's graphics aren't too shabby either. The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time will be the first Nintendo game to extensively use realtime lightning effects. According to Miyamoto, the Nintendo 64 processor always has some extra power, which can be used in a game for a special feature. In StarFox 64 this was the amazing amount of speach, and in Zelda V this will be the lightning effects, which will allow for some spectacular sightings.

Unlike Final Fantasy VII for the Playstation, which is being seen as Zelda V's single competitor, the Nintendo 64 renders all the graphics in the game in real time, including the cut-scenes. This allows for a much better transition between story-telling and gameplay. The fact that objects are truly 3D (not rendered beforehand on a very fat computer), which causes you to be able to see them from all sides, allows for a much more realistic experience.

About the game's sound and music not much is known, so far. You can be quite sure it will be pretty similar to music in earlier Zelda games, as it will be done by Koji Kondo, Zelda's original music composer, again. The music in the dungeons seems to be very ambient, relying more on eerie sounds than on melody. According to Miyamoto, the songs' imagery is close to environmental music, like the murmuring of a stream. But there's also orthodoxal classical music, and Western full orchestra. The sound effects are said to be very clear and realistic.

An interesting matter was whether Zelda V would include lots of spoken voices or not. This seems not to be the case. Link will say nothing, except when he gets hurt, he'll say "Ahhh!" or "Ooooh!". When he rides the horse, he shouts "Yaaa!", but that's about it. Navie is the only speaking character so far. Also, villagers will greet you. It doesn't seem like there will be many more sounds samples in the game than there were in Super Mario 64.

You simply must have this game
Without the slightest bit of a doubt, The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time is one hell of a game to look forward to. While Alundra, an action RPG for the Playstation, similar to The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, gets called "The Zelda Killer", The Legend of Zelda evolves into this wonderful combination of 3D environments, fantastic gameplay, and much, much more, making itself immune to so called Zelda killers. If there's one game that can help the Nintendo 64 in Japan, it's this one. Zelda V gives me the same feeling that I get when I read about the upcoming new Star Wars prequel trilogy... I'd rather die than not experience it.