The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is almost 20 years old. However, the game has lost none of its original charm.
Twilight Princess made its debut in November 2006, just before Christmas. I already called some handheld consoles my own, but nothing beyond that existed in my household. Until that one fateful Christmas when my father brought the first console into our living room: the Wii. He had bought two games, and one of them was The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.
When I started the game for the first time and saw, for me back then, the most breathtaking opening sequence of all time, it felt as if a gate to a new world had opened.
The Dark Hyrule
I can still vividly picture Link and Epona galloping across a cliff landscape, accompanied by the howl of a wolf – pure goosebumps. As a child, without any clue who Link or Zelda were, this main menu alone made me hungry for more – so much more!
This was the introduction to a franchise that still follows me to this day. The entire theme of the game and its dark atmosphere that surrounds you constantly, the shift between the light world and the shadow world – I never experienced anything like that in a game. The pure panic as a kid when you rush through the dark forest as a wolf to fill the tears bar on the right side, sweating every time the shadow beasts appeared? Absolute terror, and yet I still wanted more.
The game implements the switch between different play styles so masterfully that it’s no wonder how quickly Twilight Princess grabs you and never lets go. One moment you're the shining hero, chosen to save the world (and of course Zelda), the next you're a wolf who scares away people, or gets chased out of their home.
In this game, Midna accompanied me. In my opinion, she is one of the best hint-givers and companions in all Zelda games. She has this personality that makes her incredibly lovable and kind of suspicious at the same time. With her light touch of sarcasm and the huge mystery that surrounds her for a long time, her story is incredibly well written.
The Idyllic Life Becomes An Adventure
It already says a lot when certain scenes of a game stay with you that vividly. The game starts out beautifully calm. Life in the small village of Ordon is perfect. We herd the goats just like every other day. The wildest thing that happens is the fact that Ilya just kidnaps our horse Epona, I still remember how annoyed I was by that woman...
At first, there’s just a series of small tasks that serve as a great introduction to the game. When I'm finally allowed to take Epona with me again to bring a sword to Hyrule Castle, the plot twist of the century begins for me: Ilya and the village children get kidnapped by the nasty King Bulblin after Link is knocked out.
The score still manages to stress me out in exactly this situation. You follow the tracks and reach a dark portal. As a small side note, Twilight Princess first introduced me to the concept of jump scares as a hand pulls you in, and then comes another shock I had to endure as a child: we transform into a wolf and are brought to Hyrule Castle as a prisoner… because we lost consciousness… again… Thinking back, Link passes out quite often at the start of the game.
Exciting Dungeons And Spectacular Boss Fights
No matter how annoying the first dungeon in the Faron Woods was for me, I could play it another 50 times more. The puzzles and monkeys might drive you to despair at times, but at least the primates are very cute while doing so. The reward for the effort is that excellent feeling you get when you defeat the Twilight Parasite Diababa and free the Faron Woods from darkness.
Twilight Princess was the game that made me discover walkthroughs – and then let me toss them aside out of pure ambition because I wanted to beat everything myself.
In general, every completed dungeon feels like a truly great achievement. I can’t remember a single boss that made me think afterwards: "Phew, that was easier than I thought."
And you never really question why you're doing all this. Every dungeon you complete, every tough boss fight, feels like a huge step towards saving the world.
The approach to solving the various puzzles stays exciting throughout the entire game. Every time, you have to come up with a new strategy thanks to new items and figure out how it can be used in the new situation.
And when you’re finally done chasing all the shadow insects and have successfully freed the Spirits of Light, the game is far from over. It felt more like a second epic act for me. Without giving too much away, it’s absolutely worth to keep going.
The Hero’s Journey You Still Remember Years Later
No other Zelda game has managed to still draw me in after such a long time. Nineteen years later, I still remember details, and maybe you do too. The dark setting of the game, its characters, and the story it tells are, in my eyes, a masterpiece of gaming history.
Whether you're a complete newcomer to the Zelda franchise or a longtime fan. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is a classic you should have played to understand just how good it is. With the HD version released for the Wii U in 2016, you can play the game with better graphics on a somewhat newer console.
The music still takes me back to that Christmas evening when Epona galloped across my TV for the first time and the world of video games opened up to me. For me, Twilight Princess remains the best Zelda game, even though I find almost every title of the franchise insanely good. Twilight Princess just has this special charm of mystery and nostalgia, all wrapped into a gripping story.
Did you also play Twilight Princess back then? What's the best Zelda title for you? Feel free to share your thoughts with us in the comments!