Tuesday, May 28, 2013

In the Earth Temple's Depths

I didn't remember just how co-operative the Earth Temple is. Perhaps it was a matter of running up against the Gamecube's limitations, but the game would be much more interesting if more than the final two dungeons were one-player co-op experiences.

Having two separate inputs in a 3D adventure-type environment can't be easy to keep track of, after all. Plus, some sort of system for door opening would be needed. An alternative could be to make the game split screen and give each dungeon player their own third person view, but stuff could be easily missed then.

Aesthetically, the Earth temple is this game's Shadow Temple. Being an Earth temple, what's safe to assume would have been a place worshipping the fertility of the earth and whatnot, its creepy, old ruin look and atmosphere at first seem out of place. But, kick in the fact that a giant stone head and an impassable magic door were blocking it off for centuries, it's not too surprising to find it populated with floor masters, purple chuchus, and redeads.

Oh boy, this game's redeads. They aren't the lurching creepy polygonal mask-wearing bodies of Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask, but they have a jibblies-inspiring look all their own. And rather than just moaning and latching onto you they screech and their faces become clown-ish before they launch their teal skeletal forms at you. Indeed, their's is a kind of scare that only the Happy Mask Salesman could conjure.

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