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The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Developer	Nintendo EAD
Publisher	Nintendo
Designer	Eiji Aonuma (director) Shigeru Miyamoto (producer) Yoshiyuki Oyama (enemy design lead)
Series	The Legend of Zelda
Engine	Modified version of the The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker engine[1]
Released	Wii NA November 19, 2006 JP December 2, 2006 AU December 7, 2006 EU December 8, 2006 GameCube JP December 2, 2006 NA December 11, 2006 EU December 15, 2006 AU December 19, 2006
Genre	Action-adventure
Mode(s)	Single player
Ratings	ESRB: T (Teen) CERO: B (12+) PEGI: 12+ OFLC: M (Mature) USK: 12+
Platform(s)	Wii, Nintendo GameCube
Media	1 × Wii Optical Disc 1 × GameCube Game Disc
Input methods	Wii Remote and Nunchuk, GameCube Controller

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (ゼルダの伝説 トワイライトプリンセス, Zeruda no Densetsu Towairaito Purinsesu^?) is an action-adventure game developed by Nintendo Entertainment Analysis and Development and published by Nintendo for the Wii and Nintendo GameCube video game consoles as a part of Nintendo's critically acclaimed The Legend of Zelda video game series.

Originally planned for release in November 2005, it was delayed by Nintendo so that the EAD staff could add more content and refine the game.^[2] The Wii version was released on the dates of the Wii launch, in November and December of 2006. This makes Twilight Princess the first Zelda game to debut at the launch of a Nintendo console. The GameCube version was released in December 2006.^[3][4] Twilight Princess was called The Wind Waker 2 during its early internal development, but was changed to Twilight Princess as development progressed.^[5]

Twilight Princess is the first game in The Legend of Zelda series to be rated T by the ESRB, for fantasy violence and animated blood.^[6] The game's story focuses on Link as he tries to prevent the Twilight Realm from engulfing Hyrule as both a human and a wolf with the help of a mysterious creature named Midna. It takes place many years after Majora's Mask, on the timeline created after the events of Ocarina of Time.^[7]

Contents 1 Gameplay 1.1 Abilities 2 Plot 3 Music 4 Development 4.1 Twilight Princess on Wii 5 Critical reception 5.1 Sales 6 References 7 External links

Twilight Princess features a stylized, naturalistic art style (similar to, but far more advanced than that found in Ocarina of Time), rather than the cel-shaded look that The Wind Waker exhibited — although it still makes use of cel-shading effects, as it uses a very heavily modified version of The Wind Waker’s engine.^[1] In a further departure from The Wind Waker, Link is once again a young man, as opposed to a child, as in the latter part of Ocarina of Time and in The Adventure of Link. The game also has a darker tone, similar to Majora's Mask.^[8]

Link transforms into a wolf when entering the Twilight Realm, a void that has ensnared Hyrule. This is not a wholly separate place like the Dark World in A Link to the Past, but a darkened Hyrule.^[9]

The Wii version uses the Wii Remote and Nunchuk's motion sensors and pointers in conjunction with buttons to operate the game. The built-in speaker on the remote is used for sounds like the bowstring of the Hero's Bow being drawn and released, Midna's laugh when using wolf Link to jump from platforms with Midna, and the "Zelda chime" when discovering secrets, though this can be optionally turned off by turning the Wii remote's volume down to zero, in which case sounds will come through the television like other sounds instead.^[10]

By comparison, the GameCube version uses a control scheme mostly identical to The Wind Waker, except the player is able to equip only two items as the Z button is used to call Midna if the player is in need of help. Free camera control, controlled using the C-Stick, is available in the GameCube version only.

In Twilight Princess, Link shares similar moves between human and wolf. For example, when an enemy is on the ground, Link has the option to finish them off by plunging his sword into their chest; in wolf form, he can do this to Poes to rip out their souls. Link can communicate with animals in wolf form as if they were people. When transformed into a wolf, Link’s sense of smell is greatly improved, allowing him to follow trails left by certain characters in the game. However, Link cannot use any of his items, open any doors with handles or climb ladders until he transforms back into a human, and will also take double damage from enemies.

There is no extensive voice acting in the game. The characters laugh, scream, and make other such noises, as they have in previous installments. In conversations, Link remains silent, and his responses are implied by nods and facial expressions, much like other The Legend of Zelda games. In the game, as in various other Zelda games, Link screams when swinging his sword, and will gasp slightly when he sees something surprising. The singular exception to this is Midna, whose dialogue is spoken in an unintelligible fictional language.

Returning from Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask, a horse can again be ridden in Twilight Princess. The default name for the horse is Epona (the set name of the horse from the two aforementioned games) and is used as the main form of transport while human until later in the game, when various warp points can be used instead.

The enemy's AI of Twilight Princess is more advanced than in The Wind Waker.^[11] The enemies react to a defeated enemy and to arrows or slingshot pellets passing by. The AI can also detect the player from a much larger distance than in Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, and The Wind Waker.

During the game Link gains a number of new sword techniques (called "Hidden Skills") at various points. These techniques are learned by first finding "howling stones" in different areas of Hyrule while in wolf form and howling a song (different for each stone). A golden wolf appears and tells Link to find him in certain places marked on the game map. Once at this marked point and in human form outside the Twilight Realm, the wolf can again be seen and Link is warped to a supernatural area which appears to be on top of clouds. Various Hylian landmarks can be seen jutting up from under the clouds. Here, the wolf transforms into a skeletal ghost form clad in ancient platemail— the "undead incarnation of a previous legendary hero". The spirit teaches Link up to seven new techniques by allowing Link to try them out on him. The first technique taught by the skeletal warrior must be learned, as the game cannot be completed without it; the other six are optional.

In wolf form, Link has a "sense" ability, which he can use to track down certain characters by following their scents (or obtaining scents of other things to guide him, such as medicine or fish) with his enhanced senses. As a wolf, he is also able to find and dig holes to find new passages and uncover buried items such as hearts, Rupees, and treasure chests. This heightened sense ability is also the only way Link is able to see wandering spirits and hunt for Poes — which he can neither see (except for the Poe's lanterns) nor attack them without the ability. In addition, Link can talk to animals in wolf form, aiding him in gathering useful information.

Also, in a first for a 3D Zelda game, Link has no magic meter. The Magic Armor drains his Rupees rather than magic, and magic arrows are not available. While the Light Arrows and flaming arrows make an appearance in the game, Link cannot use them; however, Bombs may be combined with arrows to form Bomb Arrows, as in Link's Awakening.

See also: List of characters in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

Set over a century after the events of Ocarina of Time,^[12] the game begins with Link living and working as a ranch hand in Ordon Village. When monsters suddenly attack the village, and kidnap the village children and his close friend Ilia, Link pursues the attackers. A monster pulls him through a strange black wall, where the powers of Twilight transforms him into a large wolf. The monster drags him off before he wakes, imprisoned, in Hyrule Castle. An imp-like creature named Midna appears and releases him, and guides him to another of the castle's prisoners: Princess Zelda.

Zelda explains that the Twilight King Zant is trying to merge the Twilight Realm and Hyrule into a land of darkness using an evil power. Zant is a member of the Twili, a race of beings descended from magicians banished to the Twilight Realm by the great Light Spirits of Hyrule. Midna is a Twili who is searching for a weapon called the Fused Shadows to defeat Zant and save the Twilight Realm. Restoring the four Light Spirits of Hyrule, Link and Midna reassemble the Fused Shadows that had been broken up and hidden in the Forest Temple, Goron Mines, and Lakebed Temple. However, Zant then appears and causes all kinds of damage. He takes the Fused Shadows, embeds a black crystal in Link's forehead (trapping him in his wolf form), and exposes Midna to the light of the Light Spirit Lanayru, critically injuring her. Link rushes Midna to Princess Zelda, who reveals that the only way Link can return to his normal form is to find the Master Sword. Zelda combines her heart with Midna's to heal her, allowing her to exist outside of the Twilight. After Link reaches the Master Sword, Zant's black crystal is forced out of him. Midna keeps the crystal, allowing Link to assume his wolf form at will.

Link and Midna travel through Gerudo Desert and conquer the Arbiter's Grounds dungeon to reach the Mirror of Twilight—the only way to enter the Twilight Realm and stop Zant—only to discover that Zant has broken it. The ancient sages who guard the mirror reveal that they banished Ganondorf to the Twilight Realm using the Mirror, and that he may be the source of Zant's frightening, newfound powers. They also state that Zant attempted to destroy the Mirror completely, but could not do so, because only the true ruler of the Twili has the power to do so, and Zant's powers are false. He could only break it into four fragments, and three are missing. After journeying through the Snowpeak Ruins, the Temple of Time, and the Oocca's City in the Sky, they obtain the missing Mirror shards. After Link and Midna restore the Mirror, the sages reveal that Midna is the true ruler of the Twili, the Twilight Princess, and that Zant's curse turned her into an imp. When Link and Midna confront Zant in the Twilight Realm, he explains that he encountered Ganondorf while in a rage about being passed over as the king of the Twili. Ganondorf offered to make Zant's wishes come true, and made Zant a vessel for his power. Midna regains the Fused Shadows, and uses it to kill Zant, though he returns to life afterwards, immortal due to Ganondorf's power.

Link and Midna return to Hyrule Castle, which is surrounded by a seemingly-impenetrable magical barrier, but Midna breaks through it with the Fused Shadows. They then encounter Ganondorf, who possesses Zelda. Link is then forced to fight Zelda. After Link defeats her, Midna purges Zelda of Ganondorf's spirit. He then transforms into the form of a giant boar (his "Ganon" form). After Link defeats Ganon, Zelda's spirit is released from Midna's body, bringing Zelda back to life. Suddenly, Ganondorf reappears in the form of what appears to be a floating, flaming apparition in the form of his head. Midna teleports Link and Zelda to safety, and tries to destroy him with the Fused Shadows. However, after Link and Zelda are safely transported to Hyrule Field, Hyrule Castle is decimated, and Ganondorf, having apparently defeated Midna, appears on horseback holding the Fused Shadow Midna wore on her head, before crushing it in his hand. Zelda prays to the Light Spirits, who grant her the Light Arrows, and she and Link battle Ganondorf on horseback. Ganondorf falls from his horse in battle, yet challenges Link to a sword-fight. After battling, Link drives the Master Sword into Ganondorf's glowing wound. Ganondorf stands, impaled, believing the Triforce of Power will save him. However, the image of the Triforce fades from his hand, leaving a dying Ganondorf. The scene changes to show Zant's neck snapping, a sign that he is no longer receiving power from Ganondorf, and is thus no longer immortal. Ganondorf seemingly dies while remaining upright.

With Ganondorf defeated, the curse that Zant put on Midna, who survived her defeat at his hands, is broken, and she regains her true form. Link, Zelda, and Midna travel to the Mirror of Twilight, where Midna returns home. Before she leaves, Midna sends a tear into the Mirror, cracking it. After Midna enters the portal, the Mirror shatters, severing the only known link between Hyrule and the Twilight Realm forever.

During the ending credits, the image of the Master Sword returned to the Pedestal of Time in the Sacred Grove is shown. Afterwards, the village ranch owner runs to Link's house and calls him to wake him up (Link was previously a mere ranchhand), apparently oblivious to the events that had transpired throughout the entire game. Ilia is shown looking down the path leading out of Ordon in anxiety, and then the screen flashes to Link riding Epona through Faron Woods away from home (despite the general misconception that Link is riding towards Ordon, close inspection of the ending scene and the landmarks of Faron Woods show Link is in fact riding away). The final image is of the statue of the Triforce and the Goddesses above the throne room in Hyrule Castle, light shining on one half, the other half in shadow.

As is common for The Legend of Zelda games, music plays an important role in Twilight Princess. The game's score was composed by Toru Minegishi, Asuka Ohta and Koji Kondo. Additionally, Mahito Yokota was credited in the ending for teaser music composition.^[13] Minegishi headed up music composition and sound design in Twilight Princess, providing all the field and dungeon music under the supervision of Kondo.^[14]

With the advent of optical storage media the implementation of fully orchestrated tracks instead of sequenced music became possible. This lead to the inclusion of one prerecorded track that acts as both the E3 2005 trailer theme and the music for the demo movie played after the game's title screen.^[15] That song was composed by Koji Kondo^[16] and arranged for an orchestra by Michiru Oshima, later to be conducted by Yasuzo Takemoto. Three drafts of the trailer music have been composed by different musicians, one of them was released on the Official Soundtrack and is called "The Legend of Zelda: Orchestra Piece #2".^[17]

The fact that Nintendo has decided not to use recorded music for all the other music in the game, however, has been a point of criticism. Koji Kondo originally stated that he "would really like to push for" the music being performed by an orchestra, as he considers live instruments much more deep and expressive than the ones used in digital music.^[18] However, after the game's release, he stated that a full orchestra would have been unnecessary for that specific title.^[19]

For this installment in the series, the composers used the well-known musical technique of the leitmotif, repeating melodies and chord progressions from one or more representative themes in other pieces of the game's music. Excerpts of the Twilight Princess main theme can be heard in several locations and situations, such as in the Fishing Hole, Hyrule Field, Gerudo Desert, Snowpeak, the ending credits, and frequently during boss battles, when the enemy is disabled and vulnerable.

Many of the series' classical melodies make their appearance throughout the game—examples of the more prominently used remixed tunes are "Princess Zelda's Theme" and "Ganondorf's Theme". There are also occasions on which previous themes are woven into new tracks. For example, during the battles with Fyrus and Stallord, excerpts from "Dinosaur Boss Battle" from Ocarina of Time can be recognized, and "Kakariko Village" appears heavily modified, now having a more Native American feel to it. The "Hyrule Field Main Theme" also contains a small part of the original The Legend of Zelda main theme.

The game's soundtrack continues the series' tendency to approach a more "cinematic" style, rather than following the classic video game music formula of repeating the same theme over and over again. As in previous Zelda titles, much of the background music is interactive and may change depending on specific circumstances. The "Hyrule Field Main Theme", for example, takes a much more rushed draft upon engaging in a fight, as was the case for the same track in Ocarina of Time. The instrumentation of that theme changes depending on how Link is traveling. Fewer instruments are used during running, whereas more layers are added to the music when he's riding on Epona, the song then being dominated by brass sections. A very basic tune plays when he remains still or is moving slowly. For the first time in the Zelda series, there is music that appears specifically at night while wandering on Hyrule Field. It is a quiet, slower-paced piece, that also includes excerpts of the game's main theme.

The battle theme has followed a similar formula since Ocarina of Time. As Link sneaks up to an enemy, the track begins as a quiet and tense background theme, comparable to incidental music. When he is sighted by enemies, additional instruments are added to the source track. Upon attacking them, the music immediately changes to a faster-paced march version of the original theme, with a vigorous percussion track. When all enemies in the respective area are exterminated, the battle music will conclude, and return to the default song for that location.

While Link does not carry a musical instrument of any type until well into the game, he can pick up reeds of grass from certain patches and whistle on them to call an animal, be it a hawk or his horse Epona, depending on the situation. As a wolf, Link can howl near the same patches, to cause the same effect. There are also seven "howling stones" located around the world at which Link has to reproduce a melody shown on screen when being in his wolf form. Then, a golden wolf reveals himself before relocating to somewhere else in Hyrule. Most of the songs to be howled are from previous games in the series.

At E3 2004, the trailer of a then-untitled Zelda game was shown. At the end of said trailer, Link spun his sword around, then sheathed it infront of Hyrule Castle Town, which resembled the one seen in Ocarina of Time. Not much more about the game was said until a year later.

A number of rumors^[specify] about the game were confirmed at E3 2005, plus the official title, "The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess," was announced (the title was actually first revealed in a pre-E3 scan from Game Informer).^[20][21]

The game falls chronologically over a century after Ocarina of Time,^[22] though the reference to being before The Wind Waker has been omitted in recent interviews with the developers.^[23] Interviews and a playable demo exposed many new details, such as Link beginning the game as a ranch-hand, Link battling on horseback, changes in the horse controls from Ocarina of Time, thematic differences between dungeons, and so on.^[24]

The game received Game Critics Awards at E3 2005 for Best Console Game and Best Action/Adventure Game,^[25] and the award of Best Playable Game at E3 2005 by G4 TV's X-Play. Twilight Princess received the same awards, except for Best Console Game at E3 2006, as well.

The game's release was delayed extensively; its original release date was somewhere in November 2005, until August 16, 2005, when Nintendo announced it would be released some time after March 31, 2006, because the development team needed more time to work on the game.^[2] In February, Reggie Fils-Aime (then-Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Nintendo of America) stated in an interview on Spike TV that Twilight Princess would be released in the Fall of 2006,^[26] well past the expected spring or early summer release, but still in time for the holiday shopping season. At Nintendo's pre-E3 2006 press conference, Fils-Aime announced that two versions would be released simultaneously in the Americas: one for GCN, and one for Wii.

On September 15, 2006, Nintendo officially announced the release dates of Twilight Princess. The Wii, along with the Wii version of Twilight Princess, was released first on November 19, 2006 in North America, with the GameCube version coming on December 12, 2006. Both the GameCube and the Wii version launched simultaneously in Japan on December 2, 2006. Australia and Europe saw the Wii version launched on December 7, 2006 and December 8, 2006, respectively, while the GameCube version was launched on December 19, 2006 and December 15, 2006 respectively.

According to statements from Nintendo, such as from translator and localization manager Bill Trinen, it took the Twilight Princess game-testers an average of 70 hours to beat the game on the first run-through. He stated that he was working on his second play-through of the game, and, even knowing what to do, where to go, and skipping cut-scenes, he had logged about 27 hours, to make it about two-thirds of the way through the temples themselves (not even accounting for any of the sidequests or time-sinks like fishing).^[27] However, many who played and completed the game found this information to be inaccurate compared to the time they took, and members of the Speed Demos Archive speedrunning community have been able to complete the game in under six hours, without skipping any major gameplay components.^[28]

British publication NGC Magazine claimed, in December 2005, that when the GameCube version is played on Wii, the player will be given the option of using the Wii's unique controller;^[29] and it was not suspected that two versions of the game would be released. Reggie Fils-Aime denied these claims, stating that, across the board, GCN games played on Wii would not be compatible with Wii's controller.^[30] Nintendo of France Director of Marketing Mathieu Minel stated in a subsequent interview with Jeux-France that Twilight Princess would include Wii controller-functionality one way or another, but Nintendo quickly requested that this be removed from the interview.^[31] In the end, however, Shigeru Miyamoto himself confirmed the Wii controller-functionality in an interview with Nintendo of Europe.^[32] Time reported this also soon after.^[33][34] Finally, at E3 2006, Nintendo announced that there would be two versions of Twilight Princess: one for GameCube (released on December 12, 2006), and one for Wii (released on the console's launch date, November 19, 2006).

Shigeru Miyamoto had said in an interview that the only differences between the GameCube and Wii versions of the Twilight Princess are technical^[35] (as described above). The Wii version also displays in a 16:9 (anamorphic widescreen mode; see Wii) format in 480p, where the GameCube version plays only in 4:3.^[36] 480p is possible on early DOL-001 models of the GameCube, using the component-cable.

In the Wii version of Twilight Princess, Link is right-handed, despite his normal left-handed preference. Miyamoto noticed that players preferred wielding their "swords" right-handed, but by that point, all the maps, bosses and models had already been designed with a left-handed stance in mind. The "simplest" solution was to invert the entire game horizontally. In the GameCube version, Link remains left-handed, and the maps and player guides for the two versions are mirror versions of each other, with east becoming west in the Wii version.^[37] Anything in the game referring to east/west or left/right is changed accordingly between the two versions, including the in-game maps. This explains why the sun rises in the west during morning and sets in the east at dusk, and why characters shake hands left-handed.

In the early NTSC release of the game, a glitch when saving in the broken cannon-room would force the player to restart the game from the beginning. In the GameCube and PAL releases of the game, the error was fixed prior to release. For players affected by the glitch, Nintendo offers an updated disc replacement through Customer Support.^[38]

Twilight Princess has received universally positive reviews focusing on its art direction and gameplay. Many critics, such as IGN's Matt Casamassina, proclaimed it as the "best Zelda game ever." ^[52] At Game Rankings, a web site that compiles game reviews and averages reviewers' scores, the Wii version of Twilight Princess has achieved an average of 95%. The GameCube version has an average of 96%, making it the highest rated game of 2006. At Metacritic, another review aggregate site, Twilight Princess has received an overall average of 96 out of 100.

Some reviews have mentioned drawbacks about the game, however. The most commonly mentioned is that the game, having been designed for the GameCube, is not up to scratch with the cutting-edge graphics of its competitors, and that much of the game feels familiar to devoted Zelda fans, as though it is a compilation of Zelda's "greatest hits". Some aspects of the game's design have been more firmly criticized by a number of reviewers, such as the director of Ōkami speaking of his disappointment in the feel of the game's visuals.^[55] Reviewing the Wii version, GameSpot's reviewer criticized the feeling of "tacked-on" Wii controls and out-dated graphics, a consequence of the game being designed primarily for the older GameCube platform.

The game received Spike TV's Critic's Choice Video Game Award^[56] and also won X-Play's "Best Action Adventure Game" and "Game of the Year" awards.^[57] It was the game of the year of 2006 according to Game Trailers and also won the awards of Best Adventure Game, and Game of the year 2006 according to 1UP. Electronic Gaming Monthly awarded Best Level Design, Best Battle System and Game of the Year 2006. At the 2007 IEAA Awards, Twilight Princess won two awards: "IEAA Nintendo Game of the Year" and "Best Selling Role Playing Game".^[58] It won the "Best Writing" award at the 2007 Game Developers Choice Awards, and was nominated for "Best Game,"^[59] and was named Best Game of 2006 in the Spacey Awards.^[60]

The Wii version of Twilight Princess sold over 1 million copies in the Americas,^[61] 139,011 during its first two days in Japan,^[62] and 240,000 during its first weekend across Europe.^[63] During its first week the game was being sold alongside three of every four Wii purchases^[64] and passing one million Wii units sold in North America alone within three months.^[61] In its first month of availability, the GameCube version sold 532,900 units, and outsold the Wii version for a short time.^[65] After three months of availability, the GameCube version sold over one million units worldwide, and after four months of availability, the GameCube version had sold over one million units in North America alone.^[66] As of July 2007, the game has sold 3.61 million copies on the Wii,^[67] and over 1.32 million on the GameCube,^[68] for a combined total of over 5 million units, making it the third-best-selling game in the franchise's history.

In spite of the game's success in America and Europe, Miyamoto has publicly expressed disappointment at Twilight Princess' modest sales in Japan. The reason, he believes:

“

"Well, I think a lot of people who bought the Wii are not necessarily the types of people who are interested in playing that kind of game. And a lot of the people who would want to play it [due to chronic shortages of the console] can't find a Wii! But mostly, I think it's that there are fewer and fewer people who are interested in playing a big role-playing game like Zelda."[69]

”

• The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess official Japanese website
• The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess official North American website
• The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess official European website
• The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess at Nintendo.com (archived at the Internet Archive)
• Game page at Wii.Nintendo.com for Wii version
• IGN coverage
• Game page at official Zelda Universe site

v • d • e The Legend of Zelda video games
Games	The Legend of Zelda · The Adventure of Link · A Link to the Past · Link's Awakening · Ocarina of Time (Master Quest) · Majora's Mask · Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages · Four Swords · The Wind Waker · Four Swords Adventures · The Minish Cap · Twilight Princess · Phantom Hourglass
Spin-offs	Freshly-Picked Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland · Tingle's Balloon Fight · Link's Crossbow Training
Other	LCD games · CD-i games · BS The Legend of Zelda · BS Ancient Stone Tablets · Collector's Edition