Players may have some difficult choices to make
http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/rumor/42518/possible-details-about-zelda-wii-u-emerge
Rumors have begun to emerge about Zelda Wii U from sources close to the matter, who previously identified the existence of Paper Mario: Color Splash.
The following things are rumored:
Nintendo has not commented on the rumor, and is expected to not comment about the game until E3 2016 in June. We will keep you posted if anything changes.
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[size=0.813em]Players will have a choice of gender for Link[/size]
All of these rumors are things I agree with. So....I guess they must be true! ;)
I've heard a lot of people complain about having the option to be a lady hero. Just choose the dude hero and name him Link and play the game like you normally would. Pretend there's no choice.
I am against having the option to play as a female Link because it will mean the end of all of the male-specific features that are the reasons I play the game, such as Link's traditionally deep and guttural voice, his large and muscular frame, his conspicuous genitalia and Ganondorf repeatedly yelling, "You are a male, link! A male with XY sex chromosomes and a penis and a self-identity that is completely and entirely consistent with those biological features. And it is those features that drive our underlying conflict and thus the story of this game, which is the primary reason that people play it!"
Female Link would just ruin this illusion for me because girls might have fun, and **** that.
While I don't care, there is an argument to be made that time spent developing options that one won't use is time taken away from developing options that one would use.
One argument against "choice" I guess is that it probably moves things further away from a very distinctly described narrative built around the main character. I haven't played the latest Fire Emblem game, can anyone speak to how well it wove a detailed story when the gender of the main character was optional?This is my main issue with the gender choice, which factors into the immersive qualities of the title. See, if they explained the choice of the two playable characters as siblings within the narrative, I would be fine. But the more you place the character creation in the hands of the player, the more hands-off the narrative becomes. And listen, Zelda stories have never been incredible, but allowing the players some sense of immersion is important. It was one of the hardest things for me to get over in Xenoblade Chronicles X- within the scope of the main plotline, my character had little to no use in the story, and Elma and Lynn were the main characters.
Of course, I personally believe that Zelda games need less hard-set plot and more adventure, so I don't really subscribe to a line of thinking that will turn The Legend of Zelda into Final Fantasy.
It was one of the hardest things for me to get over in Xenoblade Chronicles X- within the scope of the main plotline, my character had little to no use in the story, and Elma and Lynn were the main characters.
While I don't care, there is an argument to be made that time spent developing options that one won't use is time taken away from developing options that one would use.
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I don't feel as if the option of choice takes away from the character development(as if there's a ton of that in Zelda games). I expect a female Link to make the same dumb, goofy expressions and reactions to story elements that a male Link would make.If written properly or with the right amount of effort allocated, games have a potential to handle this idea with ease. However, there is the potential (as with Xenoblade Chronicles, I hate to cite the same title but it's currently the only reference I can think of, in terms of Nintendo-related products) for gender-ambiguous characters to be referenced less, or to have odd connotations. Would Zelda's dialogue with Link at the start of Skyward Sword have as much tension if she were talking to a female? She says she wants to ask him something, but is cut off- this moment would have a completely different connotation if the protagonist had a different gender, and that's a pretty awesome thing- if the risk to keep that sort of dialogue remains.
Why would anyone be upset because you have different options in games? If you don't like an option, don't use it. Problem solved!That is not entirely true. Link's Awakening had a slightly more established portrayal of Link then other games in the series. Also, let me remind you that the Hero's Shade in Twilight Princess is a past incarnation of Link.
This is especially mystifying with Link. The character is intentionally a blank slate,
Wow....this is the stupidest fucking thing I've heard all month.I'm sorry you feel that way. I know I got a bit wordy in my post, but don't get me wrong- I think having choice of gender is not a bad thing by any means. i just hope that it doesn't hurt the narrative, even if that narrative has a minor inclusion.
There are really only two games in the series that really actuallyWhy would anyone be upset because you have different options in games? If you don't like an option, don't use it. Problem solved!That is not entirely true. Link's Awakening had a slightly more established portrayal of Link then other games in the series. Also, let me remind you that the Hero's Shade in Twilight Princess is a past incarnation of Link.
This is especially mystifying with Link. The character is intentionally a blank slate,
Flavor text is what causes the most immersion- how characters react to you based on the things you do- and depending on the world the game is set in, there could be neutral reactions to a male or female doing something, or there can be the exact opposite sort of reaction. However, when characters within a game react in a neutral way to a player and then in the opposite way towards each other, it creates a disconnect that separates the player from the game world. When the innocence and simplicity of its text is muddled with neutrality, I worry the overall experience would be quite bland.I agree with just about everything you said, but this part in particular was something I had trouble putting into words. Well-spoken, mate.
Not your post. The female Zelda. I thought Linkle was stupid enough.Wow....this is the stupidest fucking thing I've heard all month.I'm sorry you feel that way. I know I got a bit wordy in my post, but don't get me wrong- I think having choice of gender is not a bad thing by any means. i just hope that it doesn't hurt the narrative, even if that narrative has a minor inclusion.
or a female Mario, ect,ect.
As each year passes, I become less and less a fan of Nintendo. I honestly feel Nintendo is closer to becoming a third party developer than what any of us realize, even Nintendo, themselves. If it is true that one can play as a female Link, I will not buy the game, and I may just completely quit playing on Nintendo consoles. No one wants a male Samus, or a female Mario, ect,ect.
All Nintendo does anymore is alienate its fans, make stupid gimmicky aspects to their consoles, that no one wants. Nintendo has no clue, period.
And for those who care about gender, you realize Link is an elf right? For all you know Link is already a female and it's completely rational to think that Saria is a dude.I can't figure out why everyone assumes that the characters in the Zelda universe are bound by the real world's standard gender structure. I can't use magic potions. I don't randomly find giant green crystals when I mow the grass. When I get sick or injured, I don't get better by picking up red heart-shaped blobs., I've never seen a game at the county fair where you get prizes for throwing powerful explosives into jars. So why do we assume that Hylians have normal genitals, or have genitals at all?