damsel [dam-zuhl]
noun
1. A young woman or girl; a maiden, originally one of noble or gentle birth.
EX. Nintendo doesn't really like to take risks anymore. Maybe I'm wrong, but it seems that with the DS and the Nintendo Wii practically printing money like some magical boxes that the Sneetch salesman presented us (get the reference and you get a star) and, therefore, we've just been getting new slightly updated iterations of the DS every year and as for their next console, the Wii U, the tablet could be innovative but, with the console's power only comparable to that of the Xbox 360 and other worrying factors, hardware innovation seems fairly unlikely. Then again, that's not a big deal- right? Nintendo's biggest innovations have always been in the creative use of their hardware with software that has the edge on the competition in fun and accessibility.
The core franchises of Nintendo are the following; Super Mario Bros, Legend of Zelda, Metroid-- those titles make up the big three-- as well as, Donkey Kong, Kirby, Star Fox, Pokemon (a powerhouse on its own), and Super Smash Bros. There are certainly a few other franchises, but I think the one I've just mentioned are the staples that Nintendo go back to every time they need a new game to push a console or a hardware gimmick. Of the big three, the basic premises of Mario and Zelda are two male heroes rescuing a princess from a big baddie; the two games are vastly different in their approach to this archetypal story but the ends are the same. Then, we have Metroid, a game series where you play as a kick*** female bounty hunter, Samus Aran, but, up until her recently panned game, had been the Wonderwoman of the big three. Metroid needs to probably rediscover its roots a little bit, getting
back to Super Metroid and the Metroid Prime trilogy, and really doesn't
need to stray too far in its old formula. So, where am I going with this?
I am a little sick and tired of the "saving a
damsel in distress" scenario that is prevalent in both Mario and Zelda. There has been one Zelda game where you play as Zelda (it was a bad game) and one Mario games where you primarily play as Peach (a terribly offensive game where Peach's powers were based on her emotions). I've given up on Peach as a protagonist; she literally fights enemies with a frying pan, umbrella, and her badonkadonk in Smash Bros... So, when I need a heroine, whom do I like to for a damsel who has the potential to kick butt?
The obvious choice is obviously Princess Zelda. If there was ever a heroine deserving of a good game it is Zelda. She changes more than Link in the video game series, but the best versions of Zelda have been wise rulers, talented warriors, sometimes either a ninja or a pirate, and able to go past expectations to be as brave as Link (if not braver). Zelda would sacrifice her life in an instant to save her kingdom and her humility is often quite impressive. In the TV series, it was often Zelda who saved the day, alongside Link, and in
Ocarina of Time, when disguised as Shiek she helped Link in several of his trials. The next question is what sort of Zelda game do we want?
Do we want a game where she spends most of her time as a ninja like Shiek? Think of it as a more kid-friendly Metal Gear Solid, a new entry in the stealth genre, with Zelda sneaking around tunnels, dungeons, and castles to aid Link without being caught by the guards. She could even go on missions where she needed to take out encampments of Moblins without being spotted and have sword/bow fights with bosses. This would provide a very different Hyrule experience and would be a unique franchise to add to the Nintendo library.
Or do we want to give Zelda the chance to fight through dungeons, solve complex puzzles, and save Hyrule the way that Link has for twenty five years? The unique opportunities of playing as Zelda would be the ability for us to play a character that isn't like Link (the perpetual orphan that you can just put yourself in the role of) and instead take on the role of a monarch trying to reclaim her kingdom from evil. I think having her have to rescue Link from Ganon might be a little too obvious, but it could work if given a more dramatic tone.
I think in the end what matters is that Nintendo continue to take its software brands seriously and try to diversify by taking advantage of the opportunities just waiting and begging to be exploited by earnest game designers. We all know that the next couple of Zelda games are probably going to star Link, we're probably not gonna be getting any new Nintendo franchises, and as far as we know, the Wii U is just more of the status quo. But what if I'm wrong? What if Nintendo games stopped just trying to reference what worked in old Nintendo games and instead had sincerity? Wouldn't that be wonderful...
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| Who was your favorite Princess Zelda? |
