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SomethingClever

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Finally Playing Darksiders or How I Learned I Don't Love Zelda

I almost missed this game. I had heard about it, it sounded interesting. I believe I saw a quick look with Brad at the controls and thought I should check the game out. However, everybody everywhere was comparing the game to the Legend of Zelda.  "This is the dark Zelda game you've been asking for" or "it's an homage to the Zelda games" and things like that. All the Zelda talk cooled me on this game and I decided to forget about it. However, I got a good deal on some games through Amazon recently and ended up picking this up along with a few other little gems.  So glad I did. 
 
You may be asking yourself (assuming anyone other than me will ever read this) "self, why would comparing a game favorably to Zelda make him decide NOT to play this game?" and you would be right to ask that. It's hard to find someone who doesn't like the Zelda games. Well, here is one of those people. I certainly appreciate what they have accomplished and in theory I love what those games offer. The exploration, the epic quest, hell even some great music and much more. Yet every time I have ever tried to play any of those games I take an immediate dislike to them. I honestly couldn't tell you why.  
 
This goes back to when The Legend of Zelda, contained within its coveted gold cartridge was new and shiny and in my friends hand. I was 6 and had never seen anything like it. He invited me over, held up the glorious cartridge and in the most serious tone his 5 year old vocal cords could muster asked "wanna go on an adventure with me?" I sat with him as he played. We discussed paths to take, tactics to use, meanings and hidden truths found within the game. After some time and the newness had worn off I borrowed the game and took it home. I got ready to play the game for myself but it wasn't the same. I recreated the circumstances by having my friend come over and be my copilot like I had been for him. Still, I just wasn't into it. I would play for 5 minutes and get bored. However, when I handed the controller over to him we could play for what seemed like days at a time, getting lost in the magic of the game. 
 
Over the years I have tried... and tried... and tried over and over again to play each Zelda game and each time I play for maybe 5 minutes and get bored. These games sit on my shelf glaring at me, a totem of what I have perceived as my failure as a gamer. I sometimes feel ashamed that I couldn't love those games, at least not firsthand. I have learned that these are games I greatly enjoy being present for but have no desire to actually play myself. So, when everybody compares Darksiders to those Zelda games I knew I wanted no part of it. I was done inflicting the pain of wanting to like something only to discover I couldn't. 
 
Something whispered in my ear to give this game a chance. It sounded a lot like Brad come to think of it. Now I'm only about 15 minutes into this game but already I'm deeply infatuated with it. Maybe even starting to love it. That's 10 minutes longer than I've ever gotten in the Zelda games, I'm just hoping that the feeling lasts. 
 
*Edit* 
Oh, and also after hearing The Watcher only say one line (about getting under my skin or something like that) I instantly pegged him as Mark Hamill so that's cool.

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