GameInformer have done a little retrospective video discussing The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, as part of their Zelda 25th Anniversary celebrations. You can't embed the 10 minute video, so here's a link:

SPOILER VIDEO:

http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2011/09/26/spoiled-the-legend-of-zelda-wind-waker.aspx

Would you use the games awesome intro music at your wedding?...I think it's a great choice, It's easy to see how it would work very well.

I personally look back at Wind Waker very fondly, do you also?.

Thoughts?

I really liked it, it was a refreshing change to the art style of previous games. I didn't manage to complete it though, like alot of games I get to the end and don't have the motivation to see it through.

My favourite Zelda game, possibly my favourite game of all time. Its flaws were obvious, but it had such charm, polish and detail that it was so easy for me to ignore the rougher parts. So much hidden goodness in that game.

And I still love the black and white section.

Game looks and plays amazing, the art style is simply put one of the best ever for a videogame and the islands all felt unique and fun!
One of the last games that made exploring fun, but the sea sections could ofcourse be toned down a bit.
What I remember loving most is the music, the characters and all the things to do, the sidequests so to speak.
 
At the time I was playing it my siblings and dad thought I was watching a Zelda cartoon at first.
You have not truly experienced this game until you watched someone else play it, only then you will notice the stunning style. 
 
This will be my wedding song :
  

@GS_Dan said:

My favourite Zelda game, possibly my favourite game of all time. Its flaws were obvious, but it had such charm, polish and detail that it was so easy for me to ignore the rougher parts. So much hidden goodness in that game.

And I still love the black and white section.

I agree wholeheartedly with your sentiments. It's criminal that many gamers continue to pass this game off as kiddy. The game has charm oozing from every pixel and it's characters are very endearing.

I particularly liked Zelda in the tomboy role, she's probably the only butch lesbian I've ever liked. And that quack-nosed Rito girl, Medli, how could I forget her. I loved that bit in the temple where Link grabs her to fly, man that looked hella cute, the way she flaps her tiny wings, lol.

Ocarina of Time got my interested in the Zelda series, even though I played it a good six years after its release for the first time. Windwaker, though, that's the game that had me fall in love with the series.

@TaliciaDragonsong:

I really like that guys period outfit - tight fitting and red and black. If had Zelda music at my wedding, we wouldn't have it covertly done like this couple has, we'd fully embrace it.

@punkxblaze said:

Ocarina of Time got my interested in the Zelda series, even though I played it a good six years after its release for the first time. Windwaker, though, that's the game that had me fall in love with the series.

With it being the 25th Anniversary of the series, I've been seeing quite a few Top Five Zelda lists around, and it's been pleasantly surprising to see how highly Zelda fans rate The Wind Waker, it clearly seems to have left a long lasting impression on many.

@Contro: And the little Deku dude with the violin! Forgotten his name, but he was dope.

Still the amazing game it was all those years ago, played through it once again not long ago.

@GS_Dan said:

@Contro: And the little Deku dude with the violin! Forgotten his name, but he was dope.

Yea, and he's got the walk to prove it. Makar the Wind Sage, formerly a simple Korok till Link came along.

I think that cut-scene where you meet the Korok's and Deku Tree in the Forest Haven is on par with great Disney moments.

My favourite game ever :)

Definitely my favourite Zelda. Even with the absurd Triforce piece hunt near the end! I like that it forced you to visit all kinds of weird landmarks, like the ghost ship and a few of those fortresses scattered around.

My favourite Zelda game, possibly my favourite game of all time. Its flaws were obvious, but it had such charm, polish and detail that it was so easy for me to ignore the rougher parts. So much hidden goodness in that game.

And I still love the black and white section.

@Vegsen said:

Still the amazing game it was all those years ago, played through it once again not long ago.

I'm planning on playing again on my PC in HD and 3D, using the Dolphin Emu. My Asus Mobo has a Bluetooth unit, but I'm not sure what I need to do to get me playing the game using a Classic Controller... I need to look into it properly.

Favorite Zelda game. Favorite music. Favorite art style.

Yes, even over Link to the Past. Though I also liked the soundtrack in Link's Awakening.

I've been thinking of this game a lot lately. One thing that I particularly like was hearing a small melody every time you hit an enemy. It was a nice touch to the solid combat.

The characters were great and the end battle was pretty epic.

My gripes with the game was the long sailing parts and the short length. But otherwise, the game was fantastic.

Windwaker was the game that got my wife interested in gaming, and for that i am grateful. It is also my favorite game in the series and one of my top 5 games of all time.

At the time the game was released, I considered Wind Waker to be one of the best Zelda games i'd ever played and also one of my all-time favourite games. 8 years later, those feelings haven't changed.

Not my favorite Zelda game, but I enjoyed it.
 
Unfortunately I never got to finish it.

My favorite game ever.

I will never understand why people love twilight princess' artstyle more than windwaker's. Same thing goes for the gameplay, for me, Twilight is bland in comparison.

It's my opinion, though. I just loved exploring in this game, never used a walktrough and I'm pretty sure I've found everything you can find without the GBA. I love the feeling you get when you find something that you missed on your other playtrough. I remember the firs time I saw the ghost ship, I did not even have the map showing where it would be, it was amazing.

I don't think I'll ever like a game this much.

Enjoyed the game but never finished it. Couldn't get into the the whole "collect the "tri-forks" thing. I also felt like tha game had a bunch of random elements that I couldn't figure out as well.

@Fear_the_Booboo said:

My favorite game ever.

I will never understand why people love twilight princess' artstyle more than windwaker's. Same thing goes for the gameplay, for me, Twilight is bland in comparison.

It's my opinion, though. I just loved exploring in this game, never used a walktrough and I'm pretty sure I've found everything you can find without the GBA. I love the feeling you get when you find something that you missed on your other playtrough. I remember the firs time I saw the ghost ship, I did not even have the map showing where it would be, it was amazing.

I don't think I'll ever like a game this much.

I don't understand it either, and I also find Wind Waker's art style far more appealing than TP's. I think It's more emotionally engaging, the huge eyes in Wind Waker are used excellently to convey a wide range of emotions, they along with all the quirky animations do a fantastic job of telling the story and making you warm to characters.

I never once found the sailing boring, I respected it, thinking Nintendo wanted you to experience this aspect of real sailing.

I knew the seas like the back of my hand by the time I finished the game.

Nintendo should re-release the game and include an English translation of Tetra's Trackers.

I loved it, still love, it maybe more so.

The more I think about it, the more I really, really want to play Wind Waker again, if only because I've already played Ocarina of Time through about eight times.

It is my second favorite Zelda game behind Ocarina of Time. 
To me it also the best looking game of all time ( For now I guess) 
 
 
 
Also this is great.
 
  

It's my favourite in a series I don't like much.

@wolf_blitzer85 said:

@Contro: A 360 controller will work perfectly with Dolphin, and you can just map everything to the gamecube controller. If this is your first foray into using Dolphin, there are tons of tutorials out there in order to get your plugin settings right, and also set up how you want it to perform. Believe it or not, you still need a fairly beefy computer to get the games to run stable, but there are tricks. Anyway good luck, and let me know how the 3D turns out. Also the game looks freaking gorgeous in 1080p. Wind Waker is still my top Zelda game, even with the map hunt. That Game Informer also came with an awesome cover too. I didn't know what it was like all the previous covers, so it was an extra surprise when I pulled it out of the mailbox.

Yes, it will be, I've never felt the need before Xenoblade Chronicles came along. I'll give it all a go on the weekend.

I should be fine with a GTX580 and i7 2600k ;)

I do remember being surprised that they went so far as to have Link stab Ganondorf through the skull at the end, but then he turned into stone so I guess that made it a bit more fairytale like.

This is probably the last Zelda game that I played through more than once, if it's because I enjoyed it more or just had more time I'm not sure. I remember being disappointed by some parts of it, that there were almost no Gorons and Zoras, that the Koroks didn't look like the Kokiri, basically anything that didn't properly overlap with Ocarina of Time.

Thinking back on it now I guess they did really do a lot of things that tied it together with Ocarina, and despite being a little short the changes they made to the formula and even the artstyle I think makes it an overall better game. A few weeks ago I played through the openings of Twilight Princess and Wind Waker and WW stands out by far. It has better music compared to the, weirdly quiet, TP opening and a much cleaner look overall.

I dunno, playing WW again gives me further hope that I'll enjoy Skyrimward Sword, so long as the sword controls don't ruin the experience somehow.

I think it's pretty rad. Maybe my second favorite Zelda game. Maybe.

The game was a little too short and there was virtually no difficulty..

But it had a lot of charm and is a perfect example of how much a silent protagonist can express through just facial animations. I also really loved the hunt for the master sword in this game, and the two dungeons dedicated to powering it up.. It's in stark contrast to Twilight Princess, where you were told you had to find it, got it in a short dungeon.. then it was never spoken of again. The story just felt really epic, and it stands out a lot more than other games in the series.. it's easily my favourite game on the Gamecube and possibly my favourite of all the Zelda games (only because I grew up with Link to the Past).

I really enjoyed playing Windwaker, it was a lot of fun and the exploring was amazing, every spot on the grid had an island, and each island had something, no matter how quick, it still had something to do!

One of the best games ever made.

the search for Triforce pieces near the end is the one blemish in what is otherwise, my favorite Zelda game.

I should really replay that game. That's all I've to say.

Wind Waker is absolutely fantastic and it's probably my favourite Zelda game. Sometimes it's hard to choose it and Twilight Princess.

the soundtrack for this game was so damn good. and the graphics still look beautiful, and the climax is incredible. i even didn't mind the search for the triforce pieces so much since I was young and didn't mind exploring around the world. paying tingle thousands of rupees was a little annoying though.

@Resident4t said:

Also this is great.

that was pretty great.

In retrospect I really liked the art but goddam that sailing.....

Wind Waker is easily my second favourite Zelda game, right after A Link to the Past. 

Its a bummer other games haven't attempted that art style. I'm so tired of seeing rock textures stretched out far more than they should be in like every game. Keep it simple and consistent and you don't call attention to goofy oversites.

It's one of my all time favorite games, and it looks amazing. More games should use the same art style.

It's probably the only Zelda game I like.

@Resident4t: Day. Made.

I had played it years ago but never go to finish it. I went back to it again a few months back and managed to finish it and I have to say, not only is it one of my favourite games, it has one of the best art direction I have ever seen. I can never look at a Zelda game and not think "Why aren't they making it in Wind Waker's art style?" which is why I like Skyward Sword's blend of Wind Waker and Twilight Princess art styles.

Edit: Forgot to mention as well, it has an amazing soundtrack.

Wind Waker is probably my favorite Zelda game. I enjoyed sailing the ocean and exploring the islands. I wasn't one of the butthurt fans who were crying out for adult Link and shouting down the kid version. Nintendo had plans for a Wind Waker 2 but that was scrapped in favor of a "darker, moodier" Zelda because of the nerd rage.....and so we got Twilight Princess...ya. I like what I'm seeing with Skyward Sword but the one thing that I wanted to see continue from Wind Waker would be the artstyle. Skyward Sword needs to go all out like WW did.

For those that need their memory banks sparked...

Final Battle (Spoilers)

I find the face slapping of Zelda more shocking than the face stab to Gannondorf...maybe it because she's so cute tho.

I think it's my favourite Zelda by far and one of my favourite games ever. So I hold it quite fondly you could say.

This was the first Zelda game I completed, so it may come off as a little biased that it's my favorite. I really liked the other games, but as many have said before me, Wind Waker was so charming, so pretty, and there was such a massive sense of scale and adventure that it perfectly encapsulated everything I could ever wish for from such a game. Looking back on it, my best experience with the game was just exploring. Being able to sail and find new islands was so simple, but at the same time was so broad within the game world that it made everything feel so massive.

It's really something of a shame that few games have came close. I'd say the first Mass Effect almost did in it's mix of story and exploration, although the worlds available to explore were so barren that it was hardly as exciting, although just being able to explore alien worlds was fun, too bad Bioware ditched that in the subsequent game.

Fuck Ocarina of Time, Wind Waker is not just my favourite, but it is the BEST Zelda game.

This is still my favorite Zelda game by far, and will probably continue to be for a while. It's still beautiful to look at, and I never had issues with length because I was intent on exploring every corner of the game's gorgeous world. It may have just been me, but it felt like the combat flowed better and the dungeons were paced better than in other Zelda games too.

Loved the art style and game up until a point, than I put it down for good... I know there are guides and I can go back now but I seriously just gave up on the Triforce hunt. So boring. Glad it was made though as it spawned that art style for Link which has sticked with the portable games, my favourite portable Zelda being Minish Cap.