Nintendo should have scrapped the Zelda formula after Ocarina of Time.

If someone had said this to me in 1998, I would have doused anyone who would dare make such a claim about a series I love in a substance combining the stench of rotten eggs with the staying power of skunk juice. But subsequent Zelda releases have taught me a very important lesson - there is such a thing as too much of a good thing. With the only change in the series coming in the form of better graphics (big whoop) and a tacked on, gimmicky control scheme (an uninspired game can’t be disguised with motion or touchscreen controls), I think it’s past time that Nintendo figuratively took Zelda behind the barn and literally killed it.

But how? The concept of traveling to various dungeons linked by a giant overworld is still a perfectly cromulent game design choice. Keep the traditional Zelda aspects alive, but make the bring the rest of the adventure into the modern era.

Make it fun

Zelda should never become Nintendo’s version of God of War, but it should certainly learn a move or two from Sony’s best franchise. The combat is GoW is almost as simple as Nintendo’s lock-on-and-swipe maneuvers, but it is eminently more satisfying. Why? Because it has style. With a few button presses, it’s easy to bust into a whirly dervish combo, washing the enemy in a gooey mist of a fabulous sword ballet. Shouldn’t Link learn a few new moves, something to spice up the tired combat?

Ocarina was extremely satisfying because I had never played a game with lock-on controls before. Easily hitting enemies with arrows or diving out of the way from attacks was seamless and fun. But that was 1998. We need more speed, more variety and more flash. Make the combat fun and exciting, not a chore that keeps you from that next puzzle.

Make it interesting

Nintendo has worse storytelling acumen than a hungry beagle. The last Nintendo game to have copious amounts of spoken dialog was Star Fox 64 (”Your daddy screamed real good…. before he died!”). Is it really too much to ask for a little speech in my game? The Jazz Singer came out over 80 years ago! It’s clearly time for Nintendo to make the leap to talkies.

But that’s not enough. We know how bad talking without direction can be in a Zelda game. Everyone hates Navi and her cries of “Hey!”–I know I do…I still have nightmares. Zelda needs a real story. It needs to build more motivation for going into dungeons than simply finding a piece of amulet or whatever sacred items needs to be restored. That motivation worked in the 80s, but it’s time to introduce real characters with actual thoughts and needs. These games last more than 40 hours. I think Nintendo could find a way to add some much needed story in these arduous quests.

Now let’s try to remember why Zelda used to be one of the premier gaming franchises in the world. Take the Ocarina trivia and hope we see another leap this sizable again.

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