A PIRATE'S WORTH - The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD - 2 

Dude, this game is freaking hilarious.

You know Ganondorf is thinking two things when he saw Link in that outfit: 1. He is thinking about Kokichi Link and how much he ruin his plan, feeling nothing but anger. 2. How uncomfortably warm that outfit must be.

Link's design, specifically his expressiveness, was MADE for the barrel launch scene. It just wouldn't look right without his hilariously terrified expression.

Nico acting like the Zelda timeline is confusing when he's the biggest Kingdom Hearts fan on planet Earth.

gotta say when those children started asserting dominance, Nico's reaction was pretty understandable

Link before the barrel: "Maaan, how am I gonna get all over there?" Link in the barrel: "WHAT THE HELL, TETRA?!"

During the barrel launch: “I am Apollo Link and I am NOTFINENOTFINENOTFINENOTFINE HELP HELP HELP”

Apollo Link going “I’m a savage” has the same energy as an angry cat whose dinner is 5 minutes late

"Respect has nothing to do with how many years you've been on the earth. But you're probably too young to understand that." Jesus christ that joke is hilarious, or maybe it just caught me off guard.

Some more info on the Zelda timeline: - A lot of the top-down Zeldas (Link to the Past, Zelda 1 and 2 for NES, Awakening and the Oracle games) fall on the Bad Timeline. One of the two distinguishing traits of the Bad Timeline is that, while Ganon the giant pig monster is frequently the main protagonist of those games, Ganondorf the _Gerudo_ never appears. He just keeps reincarnating as a pig or whatever. The other main trait of this timeline is that, the further down you go, the less of a "kingdom" Hyrule becomes, slowly just becoming wilderness and skattered villages/travelers. - For the Child timeline, Twilight Princess follows Majora's Mask. Much like what the legends say at the beginning of this game, Ganondorf *does* return, but that version of Hyrule has a Link to save it, so Hyrule Kingdom remains (also 4 Swords for the Gamecube apparently follows it, but i'm not entirely sure why). - For the Adult timeline (as is obvious, since you're playing it), Wind Waker follows, where there was no Link to save Hyrule when Ganondorf returned. And following it are the DS toon link games, Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks. Basically, Hyrule slowly decays in the Bad timeline, everything's cool in gritty Child timeline, and the cutesy Adult timeline got the godly equivalent of a near extinction event.

39:41 Actually, it *is* possible to move that boat without a sail… it just moves super super slow without a sail. It’s possible Link was unconscious for a few days before reaching the island.

Love how Nico immediately predicted that the final boss, Ganon, was actually at the top. This man does not miss.

58:32 Something that's only mentioned in the Japanese version is that this guy is actually dancing by his father's grave here

“I haven’t slept in like a fortnight” “I love fortnite!” “I’m going to throw you off this ship” If someone doesn’t make a best-of compilation by the end of the LP I’ll do it myself

Tetra: Hey Link. Want a new outfit? Link: Yes please. Tetra: Here you go. *Gives him Rex’s pants* Link: Nevermind. I like my old drip better. Niko: BURN THOSE PANTS!

Fun little fact, one of the QoLs this game introduced over the original is a bigger starting wallet that can hold up to 500 rupees. In the original version, you could only hold 200 at the start. Still a pretty decent amount, especially compared to Ocarina of Time's, but 500 is REALLY generous. Another of this game's added QoL can actually be found at that auction you read about, and I'd strongly recommend keeping it in mind for when you can do it. It's 1000% worth it.

The US advertising for this game is actually hilarious. When Wind Waker came out advertisers thought it's bright and light-hearted art style and tone would put off consumers. Ads were made that made the games seem a lot more serious, but if you watch them they still used gameplay footage, so you have this super serious voice over this gameplay, where they seemingly cherry picked the darkest looking scenes they could find and put an "edge" filter over it. Note that Kingdom Hearts came out the same year in 2002.

To expand onto the comment of the day: one of the reasons why Wind Waker was so controversial on release was due to the era of it's release. It came out during the sixth generation of console games on the GameCube alongside PS2 games and XBox games. During the previous generation (when Ocarina of Time came out) Nintendo did quite well for themselves with Ocarina of Time and Super Mario 64. Unfortunately, this was also the era when story heavy games with dark themes started becoming hits with games like MGS and FF7. Nintendo as a whole unfortunately had garnered something of a reputation as "that company that made kiddie games" due to it's association with IPs like Mario and Pokemon. The Legend of Zelda was actually one of the series that managed to avert this reputation with the considerably darker and story heavy games of Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask and many fans (who were now Teenagers) were hoping that the series would continue on this path, something the tech demo had promised which is why it excited so many people. Wind Waker ended up going in the exact opposite direction. This was a problem because Sony and Microsoft were now specifically advertising to Teenagers (aka people who absolutely do not want to be treated like children) with games like God of War, RE4 and GTA. Meanwhile Nintendo's "kiddy" reputation started to hurt them financially. The Game Cube's toy like appearance certainly didn't endear it to teens who again, want nothing more than to be treated like adults and not kids. This had the unfortunate side effect of making Wind Waker into the embodiment of Nintendo's outdated practice of catering to children. The reason Zelda decided to change directions with Twilight Princess was because not only because of fan outcry but because the competition advertising games to teens actually manage to make Nintendo struggle on a financial level. Of course, this ended up being ironic because it turns out that Wind Waker actually DOES have a very interesting and complex story. Not only that but as those same teenagers started growing up (and in the process realized that being treated like children was not the worst thing ever) greater appreciation was given to the game's story and characters without the baggage of advertising practices and corporate competition. Basically, the sixth era of console games was the era in which companies wanted to specifically advertise to teenagers. The fact that Wind Waker seemingly rejected that idea entirely not only hurt it's reputation among buyers but had tangible fiscal consequences for Nintendo, thus why they later strayed away from it. Later however, when the audience had grown up and cooperate rivalries were no longer a part of the equation, the game started to be appreciated for the exact reasons that people disliked it: that it was a breath of fresh air and optimism while still being able to tell a compelling story.

I feel like this game is giving Nico so much material to work with. It's so full of personality that he can legit make a joke with every NPC.

If you are wondering which zelda games go after OoT if link gets defeated, some notable games are A Link to the Past, the Oracle games, the very first Legend of Zelda, and Link’s Awakening (Not necessarily in that exact order). I believe you played A Link to the Past before? That game is right after Oot going into the Defeated hero’s timeline.

Ah, starting off this LP with a classic Nagito Boats joke. This should be fun.

Ganondorf ain't fat. The robes make him look bigger and more intimidating.

15:53 I love how Nico moves away from his mic like he bonked his own head and fell over like Link.

49:35 Ah yes, the infamous noob trap room. I freaking love how the devs played on the expectations that players will make Link go out his way to break pots and go vandalizing inside someone's home without punishment, and deliberately made the pots here sparkle just to lure you into doing so here. Then BAM! You just lost 80 rupees because you didn't think anyone would call you out on it. (Well, 70 rupees. The first one was just a warning.)

You just know Tetra was laughing her ass off during the bokoblin fight.

Fun fact about Wind Waker: it has a direct sequel featuring the same Link (similar to Majora's Mask) called Phantom Hourglass. Phantom Hourglass also has a sequel 100 years later called Spirit Tracks and it is easily the most underrated game in the entire series! Spirit Tracks has one of the best OSTs of any Zelda games and has the best iteration of Zelda to date (maybe besides Skyward Sword Zelda.)

This barrel scene has been engraved in my mind since I was a kid. What a goddamn beautiful piece of art that was.

The reason the sister is always surrounded by seagulls is because it's a little nod to the ending of Link's Awakening. It's silly but fun.

Nico putting Niko on the thumbnail. The Nico Everywhere system continues. So what that’s like, 3 Nico/Niko’s now?

Now back to... Komaeda: Hey Link! DO YOU LIKE BOATS?!?! Toon Link: Uh, no? Not particularly...

Wind Waker definitely has a great sense of humor. Probably one of my favorite Zelda games on that front. Also just one of my favorites in general, but more on that later. We’re still in the early game, after all.

16:39 For some reason the whole conversation with this pirate made me laugh so damn much I don't know why

Lazy Link sounds like Your Shuichi voice. Which honestly makes it all the more hilarious since he’s told the legends of Kokichi Link

Ya know despite being disliked at the time Windwakers Art Style has aged fantastically well, as has Super Mario Sunshines, Kirby's Air Rides, and Luigi's Mansions... all games disliked/under appreciated at the time.... its really a shockingly common thing on the game cube.

It's really interesting going back to this game with knowledge of both the games before and afterwards. You think the 3D Zeldas are somewhat disconnected from each other, but you can really see how some of these concepts were developed through every subsequent game. This 'taking enemies weapons' feels like an evolution from the Deku Sticks in Ocarina of Time, and it eventually became the ability to disarm and use weapons from any enemy in Breath of the Wild.

I'm kinda surprised Nico didn't recognize the name Rito from Breath of the Wild, but it has been a while...

Could you imagine if Link was in a game with the Dragon Engine? Good god, the property damage would be Uncountable.

Just to further clarify, here is the Zelda timeline laid out in full: Unified Timeline - Before all the branching in Ocarina of Time The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Fallen Hero Timeline - Link loses to Ganondorf in Ocarina of Time The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes The Legend of Zelda Zelda II: The Adventure of Link Child Timeline - Link is sent back in time at the end of Ocarina of Time The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures Adult Timeline - Link disappears from the present at the end of Ocarina of Time The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks Great Calamity - No specified timeline has been given, but these games take place long after all the others The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

*Link solves a "puzzle"* Link: "Yeah, high five brain!" *Facepalms* "Ow."

I remember as a kid, I NEVER could get to the end of this level cause I couldn’t remember where to go. So I always just replayed the game over and over. As a result, when I got through it. I felt like I was playing another game or just something else in general Now thinking about it, I’m so pissed at how f*cking stupid I was as a kid with games like these and wish I could appreciate them on a deeper level

Fun fact: This game was actually the origin of the idea of taking and using enemies weapons, which was expanded upon greatly in breath of the wild.

The thing with that realistic tech demo is that it's like a case study of how expectations shape opinions. People wouldn't have been nearly as harsh on this game's artstyle if they didn't feel they were being bait and switched. That's also why a lot of the people who were too young to have seen that tech demo or got into the game later, don't have the same bias towards it. Speaking personally my first Zelda was the Minish Cap which used this same artstyle for just in 2D, so I've never seen this artstyle as weird and I think that's mainly true for the rest of my generation too.

Link: "So my sister got kidnapped, I got catapulted into a brick wall, and thrown into the ocean by a giant bird. Worst birthday ever!"

I feel like a kid again, seeing Nico react to everything brings back so many memories! This adventure was unforgettable on the GameCube, and these lp's really are like experiencing a game for the first time again. I can't wait!

40:31 that kid grows up to become the beloved Dr. Livesey 😊

I think after Twilight Town and Auressco, Windfall Island is probably my third favorite town/city. The music and atmosphere is so lively and the side quests get really good as the game goes on

Link hide in the barrel. He also reached to the big door safe. All of the sudden his nose start to itch* Link: ACHHOO!!! Moblin: huh? Link: um meow* Moblin: ah just a cat. Link: phew* that was close. All of the sudden he let out gas accidentally fart* Moblin: !!!!! Throw the fire at Link burning him to death Tetra: Link can you hear me!? Link!? LIIIIIIIIINK!? Game Over*

Link’s longstanding reputation: the cold, silent, stoic hero. Fulfills his duty with courage and does not stray. Toon link: lazy, tired, done with literally everyone, ready to drop a deathstare in just about any given moment.

I fcking LOVE how expressive Link is

If there's one thing I think Zelda as a whole does the best out of many other series is tone. The games can either have a great sense of humor or some seriously dark themes and it never feels out of place. For a series that tends to stray away from overcomplicating things too much in any department (I guess save for the timeline), they absolutely nail the many tones that each game has. As for me personally, Wind Waker was the first Zelda game I ever completed with Twilight Princess shortly after. I have fond memories of the GameCube era of Zelda, including the Zelda collection that was bundled with the GameCube. Even after all these years, Zelda is timeless for me

I can’t unhear link’s barrel beat every time he’s shot out of a cannon

"Oh I love fortnite! I'm gonna throw you off this ship" I don't know why but that line and it's delivery really made me laugh

Link: (Has a boat called King of Red Lions) Nagito: *Do you like boats?* Link: Aww geez...

A fun fact about this game: the textures you see in the remaster is what the team had originally designed however they overestimated the GameCube’s hardware and had to pare it down. Thankfully they kept the files preserved and were able to make the remaster quickly. In contrast with Twilight Princess where Grezzo had to make all new textures

Giant cell for prisoners? No guards posted and tunnels dug through the walls. A chest containing 10 rupees? AUTOMATIC LASER TURRET These guys definitely have their priorities straight.

Somewhere on the ship Link could hear the faint sound of someone saying: “Previously on The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker”. Link decided to leave it alone

There is actually a lot of musical leitmotifs that are in Wind Waker that are also in heavy association to Ocarina of time as well. If you listened carefully to the music on Outset Island, you will realize that it's actually a different arrangement of the Kokiri Village music from Ocarina of time. Another example of such leitmotifs can be heard on Windfall Island as well, where if you listen to it with knowledge of Ocarina of Time, you'll realize that Windfall Island's ost is another rendition of Kakariko Village. It's subtle things like this that really gave credence to this being a sequel to Ocarina of Time and also hinting at there being separate timelines based on the events of the previous game which many people theorized even so long as the mid 2000's before Hyrule Historia came out to confirm the branching timelines. Back then many people theorized that Wind Waker was a sequel to Majora's Mask, but the reality was that it was a sequel to Ocarina because of the time split. Looking back on it as a modern zelda fan is an interesting read and incredibly mind blowing how close everyone actually was.

16:34 Link: you need to grow up Pirate: Grow up? I'm 38 years old!

This game really messes well with NicoB's sense of humor :'D And all of this is giving me warm fuzzy childhood memories

Kokichi Link: Hey Shuichi, it would be hillarious if you break those pots. Shuichi Link: I'm not sure, isn't that wrong. Kokichi Link: There's money inside. Shuichi Link: Sign me up! *goes on a smashing spree* Kokichi Link: Yes, embrace it! No pot shall survive! Seven Link: Man you guys are weird.

19:41 This is the most "done with everything" face I have ever seen.

I really hope nico checks the official manga after finishing the game, it is honestly one of the funniest official manga that you can find

8:15 “Wait- YOU KNOW ABOUT The World!?” “The World’s been a meme for years, bro.”

Man one thing I'm really loving about this playthrough is you talking to the NPCs o: I'm getting reminded of their character traits/details I forgot about like the parka guy knowing Tingle!

Ah the Forsaken Fortress. Such fond memories! Especially when link accepts that he’s going to be launched out of a freaking CANON!!!!!! Also, be sure to look forward to many physical comedy moments in this game. Hilarious!

I always love the different Link personalities. This one is fantastic

For me the funniest Zelda moment of all time comes from that Barrel Launch scene. I was in stitches the first time I saw that part lol.

30:26 Suddenly, I’m reminded of Dr. Livesey now when I see those pigs and their bug goofy grins. They just need the walk now.

9:40 Wow, I have NEVER seen this piece of dialogue before.

That intro's gonna throw me off 'cause I'm not really used to hearing people say "THE Windwaker." I didn't even notice it in the title before.

Link's sister Aryll having a strong affinity for seagulls is actually a reference to a character from a previous Zelda game - but the details might be spoilery, should you ever decide to play that one.

It says a lot about Zelda games that a talking boat probably doesn’t even crack the top 5 weirdest things in the series. The idea of a talking boat just seems kinda seems normal to me at this point.

26:30 Oh yeah, these guys are Bokoblins! Now a staple Zelda enemy, they actually made their debut in this game! Their name comes from "boko boko", the sound of knocking on wood, a reference to their preferred signature weapons - wooden sticks and clubs. They prolly got more popular as enemies im Zelda cause their small size makes it much easier to put them everywhere, compared to their much larger Moblin brethren.

Watching this playthrough brings back memories; one Christmas, my dad bought a Legend of Zelda compilation for us and it contained a demo of Wind Waker. The demo was weird; it allowed to start at either Forsaken Fortress (right after you're launched), Windfall Island or Dragon Roost Island, but it only allowed you to play for 20 minutes before it went back to the title screen. I always tried to play as fast as possible so I could see a little more of the game, but I never got far.

As for timeline shit: Child timeline -> Majora's Mask, Twilight Princess, Four Sword Adventures Adult timeline -> Wind Waker, Phantom Hourglass, Spirit Tracks 'Fallen Hero' timeline, created when you 'game over' in OoT -> ALttP, LA, OoS & OoA, ALbW, Triforce Heroes, TLoZ(Zelda 1), TAoL(Zelda 2) Breath of the Wild takes place in *all 3* timelines, at the end. Skyward Sword, Minish Cap, Four Swords occur before OoT.

So I never had the chance to play this game as a kid--instead I played the direct DS sequel, Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass. It's not as beloved as Wind Waker, but personally I had a lot of fun with it and I have a lot of fond memories.

I imagine since the King of Red Lions doesn't have a sail he constantly had to use his head as a paddle. I can also imagine him complaining about it the whole time. "Oh for fuck's sake, this child better be worth it, the varnish on my figurehead is getting more water damaged with every paddle!"

The fallen timeline, the one where Link dies, leads to Link to the Past, the Oracle games, Link's Awakening, and Minish Cap, among others. The games are not listed here in order.

*Moshirige Pirate:* "are you the new swabbie?" *Link:* "swabbie? Do i need to swab the poop deck or some shit?" *Morishige Pirate:* "what? Poop deck? Eew! no, gross! nobody poops on the deck!" *Link:* "oh, really?" *Looks at S.S. LP full of PENGUINS* *Link:* "im glad im not the sucker that has to swab THAT DECK!"

The Forsaken Fortress was so scary for me as a kid the moblins in particular freaked me out

The Zelda Timeline was made official in the Hyrule Historia (2011), around the same time as Skyward Sword. But they did cover their ass by describing the timeline as a “tapestry”, where adding something could change its entire meaning. So the addition of Link Between Worlds, Breath of the Wild, & Tears of the Tears of the Kingdom could upend everything we know. Not to mention if they decide to add things like Tri-Force Heroes & Age of Calamity.

This stealth section scared the absolute shit out of me as a small child. The sound when the pig guys notice you gives me flashbacks😂😂

Toon Link is best Link for one reason: He is very emotive and not a piece of wood.

How funny that we get a COTD talking about how high expectations soured opinions towards a decent game right on the heels of a Nintendo direct where high expectations (some _for_ a WW remaster) soured opinions towards the games that were announced/discussed

Games for the “Fallen Hero” Timeline (the numbers are in the release order, the dash is for the rerelease games) A Link to the Past (3/9) Link’s Awakening (4) Oracle of Ages/Seasons (7/8) A Link Between Worlds (17) Triforce Heroes (18) The Legend of Zelda (1) Adventure of Link (2) - At the end of Adventure of Link Zelda figure out a way to warn a past Zelda about Ganondorf and to aid a boy in green with a fairy, which we all know is the Ocarina of Time. FYI Ocarina of Time was the 5th game release. Like this comment if you want the other Timelines

I love that Nico started playing this game right as I start my 4th play through

44:54 The postal mafia claims yet another life... This needs to be stopped, but the Rito power of flight has taken hold too great over the Great Sea. No boat can travel mail nearly as expediently. Their enchanted mailboxes with fire arms may never be stopped at this rate.

From Seven Link, to Kokichi Link, now presenting: Emotionally Burnt-out Hero Apollo Link. A perfect representation of the emotional journey Link has gone through after way too many reincarnations defeating the same dude. That boy needs some sleep.

I was just thinking I needed another episode. Thanks for reading my mind Nico

37:00 Rex and gramps vibes

Could you imagine if they announce the remaster in the *next* Direct? That'd be a funky little bit of hilarity.

I love WW so much. Seeing Nico play this and with those adlips and everything... gosh this will make my day EVERY time

All of the games in the adult timeline(so far) use this toon style so that’s an easy way to know what timeline a game is in.

Nico, you’ll find that the timeline is convoluted because the devs themselves constantly put it aside and come up with a timeline for it retroactively. Matter of fact, we still don’t even definitively know which timeline breath of the wild is on.

I have embarrassingly failed that rope swinging minigame way too many times on the gamecube version when i first played it. In that version, you can't dynamically swing the rope in any direction. You have to come to a dead stop and then turn to face whereever you are jumping.

_"...And who can forget dear, ratboy."_ Niko: _"Ratboy! I resent that. (Gnaw gnaw gnaw gnaw)"_ Tetra: _"Niko! I've told you a dozen times, stop gnawing on the ship wall."_

Apollo link, Mikotoba Red lion, Tetra also reminds me of someone from ace attorney that i cant remember...oh god...is this the legendary game...The legend of Ace Zelda?

When I was a kid, like 6, playing this, Niko telling me that the rope jump game would take one year legitimately scared me into thinking I was going to be stuck on this part for a full year. I remember asking my dad if we could buy a guide for the game because I didn’t want to be stuck on this part for a year…to which he just beat the mini game himself and gave me back the controller.

1:03:55 I wasn’t aware that Nico could do an Alan Rickman impression.

You got lucky with the rat. That rat likes to jump down and snack you right out if your barrel, which in turn if the moblins are facing you, they sound the alarm right away! You have no chance to escape when you're lying on the ground from a rat tackle out of barrel. It's happened to me before.