The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (2011)

Nintendo EAD Software Development Group No.3

Wii · Wii U

3.78 from 3032 ratings

6858 members have it in their collection · 406 playing now · 1916 backlogged · 1379 wish listed

How long? Main story 35h · with extras 40h · 100% 44h (from 79 logged playthroughs)

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is the first Zelda game created specifically with the Wii in mind. The game makes use of the Wii MotionPlus peripheral for sword fighting, with a revised Wii Remote pointing system used for targeting. Skyward Sword is structured very similar to previous Zelda games, as you travel through an overworld in search of temples … Read more
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is the first Zelda game created specifically with the Wii in mind. The game makes use of the Wii MotionPlus peripheral for sword fighting, with a revised Wii Remote pointing system used for targeting. Skyward Sword is structured very similar to previous Zelda games, as you travel through an overworld in search of temples to visit and once in you solve a series of puzzles before fighting a boss at the end and receive the next bit of plot. The biggest change is that the overworld is more focused on puzzles with only a handful of action. Read less
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Release dates

  • Nov 18, 2011 (Full Release) (Europe) Wii
  • Nov 20, 2011 (Full Release) (North_America) Wii
  • Nov 23, 2011 (Full Release) (Japan) Wii
  • Nov 24, 2011 (Full Release) (Australia) Wii
  • Sep 01, 2016 (Digital Compatibility Release) (North_America) Wii U
  • Sep 02, 2016 (Digital Compatibility Release) (Japan) Wii U
  • Sep 02, 2016 (Digital Compatibility Release) (Europe) Wii U

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Rating distribution

5 stars
792
4 stars
1171
3 stars
748
2 stars
257
1 star
63
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Community All Reviews Statuses

Ryker

Status Ryker Sep 10, 2021

It took me 10 years to finally get around to this game, but I finally did it. Thoroughly enjoyed it. I thought the plot was a little lacking for 2/3rds of the game, and the (assumed) main antagonist was kind of underwhelming, even though the twist with ghirahim being fi's counterpart being kind of cool, but the mini-lore dump …

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It took me 10 years to finally get around to this game, but I finally did it. Thoroughly enjoyed it. I thought the plot was a little lacking for 2/3rds of the game, and the (assumed) main antagonist was kind of underwhelming, even though the twist with ghirahim being fi's counterpart being kind of cool, but the mini-lore dump at the end made up for its short-comings.

The gameplay, namely the puzzles, were super inventive and I was shocked at how creative some of them were, even playing it post BotW. Just feels like a much tighter, if not more linear experience, but I didn't hate that. I'm someone who played BotW and didn't love how aimless it seemed, and that's putting it lightly. I don't really feel BoTW did much to progress the lore either and that the narrative fell flat because Miyamoto decided to make important story segments optional, and they were never meant to build off of each-other. Anyways, don't want this to turn into a BoTW hate post. Skyward Sword didn't let me down in this area. There was plot progression and a proper climax and all of the warm fuzzies and tearful moments at the end that I keep coming back to this series for. That's not to say there wasn't major tragedy- Well, anyone who has played the game to completion can tell you that it has arguably the most tragic development in the entire series, in fact it's the reason that there is a Zelda series at all, theoretically. Vague enough? Sorry. Play and find out. :)

Highly recommend this game to anyone who skipped out on it the first time around.

PS: I do have one complaint. My right wrist has been sore for a week after finishing this game. I hope I didn't develop carpel-tunnel, lol. Also, having to re-calibrate every 15-20 seconds for parts where I had to aim with the joycons was very obnoxious. I constantly felt handicapped, especially in that damn pumpkin shooting game!

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gedrickdelfuego

Status gedrickdelfuego Jun 8, 2021

I'll be honest. I always give Nintendo far too much of a break regarding their strange decisions, mostly because it's the strange decisions that have defined Nintendo for decades. But this issue with the $25 amiibo with the $60 remake is really making me reconsider.

I didn't like Breath of the Wild and was excited to finally play the only …

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I'll be honest. I always give Nintendo far too much of a break regarding their strange decisions, mostly because it's the strange decisions that have defined Nintendo for decades. But this issue with the $25 amiibo with the $60 remake is really making me reconsider.

I didn't like Breath of the Wild and was excited to finally play the only Zelda game I haven't played through a hundred times, Skyward Sword, but from what I understand, there is a major QoL feature locked behind the amiibo.

To be clear, I don't have the faintest idea how good of a QoL update this is, as I've only played the game for about an hour tops, but it really seems like it's something great based on what I've heard, that saves a lot of time with some sort of fast traveling system.

The amiibo is definitely in the lineups "top price" tier of $25, and I have collected amiibo for a few years, so on paper this sounds pretty cool and I'm ok with the cost of it. That being said...

There are two major gripes I have, one is a personal issue and the other is a longevity issue.

Issue #1: I don't want to have to keep an amiibo close by all the time [on a portable console no-less] for what sounds like is something you use quite frequently. That's a huge inconvenience in order to use a convenience feature. They cancel each other out.

Issue #2: locking QoL features behind physical DLC, with the Nintendo logo on it, can be summarized this way: "this feature will cost over $100 in 5-10 years once these amiibo are out of print". This is what truly bothers me the most, the shortsightedness of it all.

The high sticker price for Skyward Sword, I can understand. They really did have to change a good bit about the game with regard to the controls. And also, Nintendo will always Nintendo. The amiibo, however, should have been for little in-game bonuses (LIKE MOST AMIIBO) for the sole reason that in a few short years, players will be unable to use a feature they already paid for.

Actually, you know what? Forget Bitcoin, Skyward Sword amiibos + sealed copies of the game is the move here!

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GigaDeathNullGolem

Status GigaDeathNullGolem Apr 22, 2020

so i ordered a bunch of stuff having read i could use wiimotes for lightguns for PC (the main attraction) using a thing called Dolphinbar (a literal peripheral product for an emulator) and dolphin bar seems to work and does what its supposed to but the nasty little controllers i got where cheap chinese knock offs which did not include …

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so i ordered a bunch of stuff having read i could use wiimotes for lightguns for PC (the main attraction) using a thing called Dolphinbar (a literal peripheral product for an emulator) and dolphin bar seems to work and does what its supposed to but the nasty little controllers i got where cheap chinese knock offs which did not include the motion sense technology they claimed. it's a shame that wii controllers are pricey at this point because i would like to experience some of these games at least and slowly make my way trhough it over time. However, I did get a used set off ebay last night made by nintendo.

IF any of this is interesting to people, here is another option that might appeal to some people who have a Switch

i saw another video that claims you can use a PS4 controller as well and saw third party Switch controllers playing Skyward Sword too.

I'm curious if anyone has any input on a PC lightgun solution using IR controllers. There are housing/furniture for Joy Cons to do this and most people have sensor bars already.

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Salomon

Status Salomon Apr 21, 2020

100% completion! The awful pacing in this game makes me doubt I'll ever play this again...

StrictSnow

Status StrictSnow Mar 26, 2020

Finally nearing the end of Skyward Sword. It's been maybe 10-15 hours longer than I initially expected. While it's been very good so far, with some excellent level design in the dungeons, fun bosses, and a pretty decent storyline with great chemistry between Link and Zelda, it really has a pacing issue. Those 10-15 hours are filled with padding and …

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Finally nearing the end of Skyward Sword. It's been maybe 10-15 hours longer than I initially expected. While it's been very good so far, with some excellent level design in the dungeons, fun bosses, and a pretty decent storyline with great chemistry between Link and Zelda, it really has a pacing issue. Those 10-15 hours are filled with padding and backtracking. There's a particularly egregious chunk of padding right before the final dungeon that could have easily been implemented during the previous three dungeon/overworld crawls (the 2nd act of the typical Zelda 3 Act story) or negated entirely. It adds about half an act to the typical 3 Act Did I still have fun? Yeah, I'm still having fun, and I'll be writing a review later... Uh today I guess. Maybe tomorrow. But it doesn't excuse it for being poorly paced. Though to be fair, it's still better than spoilers for Wind Waker grinding for rupees to buy charts to find the 8 billion shards of the Triforce in Wind Waker..

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StrictSnow

Status StrictSnow Mar 21, 2020

Finally got back into Skyward Sword. I'm getting a bit annoyed with it, because quite frankly, I feel as though these last two arcs have been mostly padding, especially this one. Spoilers up to 5th dungeon (return to desert) So the return to the forest wasn't so bad. The only part that annoyed me was returning to the first dungeon …

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Finally got back into Skyward Sword. I'm getting a bit annoyed with it, because quite frankly, I feel as though these last two arcs have been mostly padding, especially this one. Spoilers up to 5th dungeon (return to desert) So the return to the forest wasn't so bad. The only part that annoyed me was returning to the first dungeon to go swimming. The return to the desert, especially the sand sea was utterly frustrating. Go here, do this whole big thing, puzzles, yadda yadda, only to be told that you're looking in the wrong spot for the boat. Three times. Then the dungeon, which should be cool because it's a friggin pirate ship, involves so much backtracking it's ridiculous. Do one half of a puzzle. Run back to the room to shoot the crystal. Run back. Do the other half. Oh hey, you didn't have the boat in the correct position. Run all the way to the beginning, lower the boat. Run back. Get on boat. Raise boat. Shoot crystal. Lower boat. Etc. With all the small loading screens it drove me bonkers. Lastly the boss is quite frustrating because the controls are not cooperative. Ranged weaponry with finicky Wiimote controls is not a fantastic combination. It's so hard to aim on the fly, especially if your wiimote is pointed in a direction other than completely flat, which it probably is because you're dealing with tentacles. Not only that, but the reward is utter shit. Fi can dowse more things? So I assume that there's probably going to be a horrible fetch quest, much like Wind Waker's stupid Triforce shard hunt, only worse because you have to fly on the stupid bird. God this game is so long, but I feel like I'm getting close. Overall I still really like it, but I definitely see why it's not regarded as well as any of the other 3D Zeldas.

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StrictSnow

Status StrictSnow Mar 11, 2020

Playing with an actual Nintendo wiimote is night and freakin day for this game holy cats. Still prefer a good Pro Controller in my hands but hey at least i wont be tearing my hair out.

StrictSnow

Status StrictSnow Mar 6, 2020

Just want to give an update on Skyward Sword. I am obsessed with Ghirahim. He's so fucking fab.

Fi is growing on me. She's not a great character so far, but her design is pretty good and idk, I kind of find her stating the obvious, paraphrasing the cutscene I just watched, or telling me my heart's have decreased dramatically …

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Just want to give an update on Skyward Sword. I am obsessed with Ghirahim. He's so fucking fab.

Fi is growing on me. She's not a great character so far, but her design is pretty good and idk, I kind of find her stating the obvious, paraphrasing the cutscene I just watched, or telling me my heart's have decreased dramatically when they're at full to be kind of endearing in a goofy way.

Thoughts on a side quest I am a bad person and I cheated on Zelda for Item Shop Girl Peatrice. No Rugrats.

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StrictSnow

Status StrictSnow Mar 2, 2020

So, started Skyward Sword and I am halfway through the first dungeon. It's certainly interesting, using the Wii motion controls. I absolutely would have preferred a traditional control scheme, but it's fine. When it works well, it's actually really cool seeing Link slash the exact same way I did. But most of the time it's kind of wonky, and I'll …

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So, started Skyward Sword and I am halfway through the first dungeon. It's certainly interesting, using the Wii motion controls. I absolutely would have preferred a traditional control scheme, but it's fine. When it works well, it's actually really cool seeing Link slash the exact same way I did. But most of the time it's kind of wonky, and I'll do an incorrect slash or just bring my shield up for no reason whatsoever. But going bananas and just slashing wildly works pretty well for several enemies so far.

So far the story is really interesting, Link and Zelda's interactions are super cute. Fi is fantastic at verbosely restating the obvious, but is genuinely helpful at some points and will sometimes sneak in a quip that is actually really funny. So she's not the worst character ever. She's basically Navi, but an AI(?). It's really interesting seeing the in universe origins of many Zelda tropes.

Overall I'm pleasantly surprised, but I'll be happy when I play all the other Zeldas with a controller.

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Olink

Status Olink Oct 21, 2018

I've finished this with Links sword going where I wanted it to like only 50% of the time. That was awful, but it can't have been like that for everyone, otherwise this game would be regarded way differently. Did anyone else have massive problems with the motion controls while playing the game on the Wii U?

Chainsawdagger

Status Chainsawdagger Aug 23, 2018

First time playing. Wii Motion Plus is killing me. Has it aged bad or does it just suck? Not ruining the game for me but definitely not adding many positives. Mostly frustration and cursing. I'm at peak cursing now and I'm at Lanayru Mining Facility. I will finish this game if it kills me. End rant . SMH