The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker Retrospective | The Wind Will Guide Us 

Correction: It's been brought to my attention that you CAN'T do the Earth and Wind Temples out of order. I could've SWORN I did a playthrough a long time ago where I did the Wind Temple first, and I've heard others claiming they've done the same. Can't be done though, apparently.

I think Windwaker has the best Zelda story. It's great and compelling. I also like that we get to interact with Ganondorf several times and develop him as a character.

my earliest memories of being a kid was around 4 or 5, being in a hospital and finding a gamecube booth, playing TYD and wind waker

Re: Tetra's confusion at discovering she's the reincarnation of Zelda - I think this is because Tetra's mother died when Tetra was young. I've always thought this meant that Tetra's mom never had the chance to tell Tetra all of the secrets of their lineage. Perhaps Tetra's mother would have told her when Tetra was old enough.

Perfect timing for this retrospective, as Wind Waker just has the prefect summer vibes. I feel like this is the Zelda game with the strongest identity, even if it's lacking some content here and there. The final fight is top tier Zelda, and the sense of exploration is incredible for the limited hardware. This game just has such great atmosphere throughout. The music, visuals, story, and everything else are like a nice warm blanket. Really enjoyed your inspiring closing thoughts at the end. An amazingly well made PGR Zelda video?? No surprise here. Great job with this one!

Incredibly well done video my friend. I’m in my late 40’s and began with Zelda 1. This is the closest in nature to the LOZ that I grew up with until BOTW and TOTK. I am pretty sure this is my favorite of the “normal” 3D Zelda games. BOTW and TOTK are such dramatic changes, it is hard to compare them to the others. WW is just on another level than any other game to me Including OOT. I just can’t say enough about it.

this guy gets it. favorite zelda game of all time

I want to point out that the hero falls timeline always made perfect sense to me as that timeline starts out as a post apocalyptic world ruled by monsters and Ganon in his demon king form. Similar to breath of the wild tbh

This game is one of my favorites of all time. The music and sound effects are amazing and help to make the game magical.

The Wind Waker is the GOAT!! Favorite OST of any zelda game. Just sailing the great sea relaxes me. I can do that all day. Best Ganondord, best Zelda and best Link…. Also, let’s not forget that grandma’s theme is basically Michael Jackson’s I’ll be there

Always a treat to see a new retrospective release from you. I have honestly found more good video essays from smaller channels, than from channels with a ton of subscribers. Keep up the great work man. I love your content

This is a game I never got to play until recently. I never had the game cube. I had a ps2 and so on and didn’t get another Nintendo system until the switch. Breath of the wild blew me away so I set out to play the games I missed in the series. When I got to wind waker I played it on the dolphin emulator on my series x. I was absolutely blown away by it. I think because every character was so expressive and emotive that the story felt more engaging and heartfelt of the entire series. The soundtrack is my favorite of the series.

This is my favorite Zelda game by far and one of my absolute favorites of all games. I loaned it to a friend a few years after it came out because his sister wanted to play it. I had to ask a few times to get it back. She kept the case and manual, but fortunately did return the disc. So now I only have the Player's Choice version of the cover art instead of my awesome original, unmarred by being a "BEST SELLER". And two discs. Always confused me, the backlash against the art style. It's so cool! And the character designs are so cute! I love all of Link's different faces. I remember them selling that point in Nintendo Power, about how dynamic and expressive the faces and eyes were for Link and everyone else. Also, for what it's worth, I just replayed Zelda 1 and 2 (along with Metroid 1 and 2) for the first time in many years and had a blast drawing maps and discovering new secrets and strategies. Using only vague memories and the maps in the manuals that you can download from Nintendo as starters, I was able to recreate to some degree that old feeling I had trying to play the games on my NES as a kid with just the tips my aunt and cousin gave me. Giving it some time and revisiting these games with their original ethos in mind is still very rewarding, even if it's not quite the same as going in blind.

Hi. I’m 39. I recall my childhood friend getting Zelda 1. We played what we could. His mom was super strict. Then, he moved. Played Zelda 2 with another friend, but as little punks, we couldn’t beat it. GameBoy. Links Awakening. That was my jam. My first BRAND NEW game. Made me draw my own maps as well. A Link to the Past was another title I mastered back in the day. I never owned it. But daaang. Did I ever impress kids that did have it. Those guides and tips&tricks mags helped out a young feller. Unfortunately, by the mid nineties, I was mainly playing outside. Played both OoT and MM at a friend’s. Skipped GameCube and Wii games. Don’t get me wrong. I did see or play a bit of them. Just not as much dedication towards them. As an adult, I did go back to play most of the console titles. In the end, Zelda and I grew up together. Ups and downs. Reunited after SkyWardSword. Game on! Respect and peace!-)

I'm glad I'm not the only one that enjoyed the triforce quest as a kid, it felt so rewarding for exploring and finding them all 😊

I still play wind waker and love how the art style still stands up

Thanks for making this, I enjoyed it. This game means a lot to me. What you said about nostalgia in the end hit a nerve. Keep up the good work.

I think Wind Waker is my favorite Zelda game. Twilight Princess is a close second, but it’s so - good story wise? Like link is so expressive and him waving to his grandma makes me SOB

I replayed this with my two girls in anticipation for Tears of the Kingdom and man what an adventure. I hadn’t played it since I was very little and replaying it brought me back. It doesn’t look that great on a modern tv (playing GameCube version) but it’s still such an incredible experience.

Bro.. my heart strings. They have been pulled.

20:00 I feel like Tetra just tried to deny her larger role as the princess, I don't think she knew everything but I'm sure she knew that she had a larger role in all this

Wind Waker and Twilight Princess are the 2 best Zelda games. They are the perfect yin and yang to one another: Both have a dark and tragic backstory yet Wind Waker is bright, cartoonish and goofy, while Twilight Princess is dark, moody and realistic in style. They both have the best music in the series and both seem to have had the most heart and passion put into their creation, far more than any other Zelda.

the wind waker was my first zelda game too and it will always have a special impact on me. Thank you so much for this amazing & intentional retrospective.

This quality of video is far above what I would ever expect from a channel below a million subs. I am in disbelief. You have a gift, please don’t stop making videos. I haven’t been this entertained in a lengthy video in a while.

This was my first zelda game, and i grew up with OoT and Majora’s. You put it beautifully and this was my zelda one and majoras being my zelda 2. Thats probably why they hold such reverance in my heart and remain my favorite LoZ games to this day. Beautifully done my dude cannot wait for the ToTK retrospective. Yes ive watched all of your zelda ones and they are amazing. Keep up the good work!

the best closing thoughts I have ever heard for a Game, very touching

This was such a great retrospective! As for you, wind waker was also my first zelda, so i can really relate when you say that this game will hold a special place in your heart. Keep up the excellent work, you deserve way more subscribers my friend.

I wish you had a donate option or Patreon! These retrospectives are amazing and more than just nostalgia videos and I appreciate that

I love playing the randomizer with a pen and paper instead of a tracker, it really captures the same vibe you described playing the game as a kid. I definitely recommend it!

Sick video bro, just taught my girl how to play 3D video games with this one. Wind wakers a great adventure!!

3:06 and a quarter of a century later... we _STILL_ haven't got anywhere near that level of graphics for a Zelda game! :)

Been watching your Zelda series and I can only say: good job! You make some very interesting points, excellently articulated. Have a sub and I will continue to watch your stuff.

Been binging your channel qbd and I'm sure you get this a lot but your videos are ridiculously high quality and don't match your sub count. Definitely subbed.

I’m a little late this video I doubt you’ll see this but I just wanted to say your videos on the Zelda series are great! I watched OOT and then MM and now this one . This one shocked me the most so far maybe it’s because of your passion but it made me feel something. It surprised me because this is one of my least favorite Zelda games but after watching your video I want to go back and play it again. It is a beautiful game I think it has the most charm out of all the Zelda games. And that whole bit at the end of your video about growing up. Moving on , not being stuck to the past was just spectacular I see even though your series looks finished I hope you continue to make more Zelda content you got heart.

A hello and sacrifice ro the algorithm because PGreviews does some great video essays.

13:14 THANK YOU. The complete lack of a causal time-song to create the split for the hero dies timeline makes it stick out so badly.

This game helped shape my childhood.

Really been enjoying these videos dude ! Keep grinding you'll become far more popular on RU-vid these are very high quality and I enjoyed the analysis. Also you know you're getting older when you have memories of getting a game on release and the person talking about that game was a baby then lol My brother got Wind Waker for his bday and it actually came with a second disk that had every single Zelda on it for the Gamecube - pretty cool! Got so stuck on that first fortress though. Hopefully they release this game on Switch

I love your videos thank you so much again

What a nice retrospective!

I 100% did the homemade sea chart too! Id have symbols for each square based on things like submarines, caves and enemy outposts to keep track of what ive done. It really made you feel like a real explorer.

It's always refreshing to find a video where someone talks about a game they love dearly in realistic terms. Not claiming it is perfect, not denying every flaw, but loving the mess along with the successes in the game.

Thank you so much for all your thoughts on this majestic game. It truly is ‘special’ in many of our hearts. Wind Waker has been a great comfort to me on replays during harder times in life. It’s truly a pleasure to triumph and adventure alongside Link and to awaken the spirit of courage-and of the hero within 😌 Some of my happiest memories are of playing this game with my cousins during the summer, sailing the great sea in search of adventure, plunder, washed up attractions, and the ghost ship 👻!, watching the sun rise in-game, right as the sun rose in real-life, as we played this majestic game into the morning. Because then, I knew, that we were all just like Link, navigating this great world of magic, mystery, treachery, and triumph in search of our own, personal adventure🥹 p.s. and nothing beats Dragon Roost 🎶 😭😇

The Wind Waker HD was my first TLOZ game. I had just bought my Wii U and got the game because my cousin recommended it, and I think that's probably one of the best purchases of my life. I fell in love with the franchise because of that game, what a masterpiece.

That story of running to the food court & coming back finding out the copy was gone honestly made me say “Awwwww no!” Lol I have a similar memory to that one but I’m happy you ended up getting your game my dude

The original Zelda was not meant to be played blind. It came with a pretty extensive manual that was intended to be relied on. Back then, they couldn't fit all required information into the game with such limited memory.

Thanks for including me as a surprise cameo at 14:56 ! Also, props to you for pulling yourself away from Tears of the Kingdom to put together this fantastic video.

I remember getting this game around 2005 & put so many hours a day into the game. From 2005-07 i must have played through this game at least 30 times & I had so many great memories of this game

I started playing Zelda games at 8 or 9 when I was too young to understand English properly and ended up using guides for my first games, those being Wind Waker and the first Zelda. I don't remember much about either one these days, which is a shame because I could have just waited longer or maybe had a parent translate the texts so I wouldn't have had to resort to using guides. Though I've forgotten most of the dungeons and such, I do still remember the music of both games very vividly. The title themes feel especially nostalgic to me.

i wish this game skipped holiday for next holiday for another year to make it a true master piece

WW Ganondorf was by far my favourite iteration of the character. He seemed way less like the stereotypical fairytale bad for the sake of it bad guy but like a believable character. And honestly, I sympathised with him. He just wanted to go home and was measured in his actions until Lonk screwed that up. "How ridiculous... So many pathetic creatures, scattered across a handful of islands, drifting on this sea like fallen leaves on a forgotten pool... What they can possibly hope to achieve? Don't you see? All of you... Your gods destroyed you!" Tell me our man was wrong. And what did he get it? "The wind... it is... blowing..." Honestly a bit haunting

I have a really odd thing with this game. I played it for the first time on the WiiU when I was 15. I was living with an abusive stepfather and after the most traumatic thing happened to me, I remember going to my room and playing this game for the rest of the night. I was on Dragon Roost island. Letting my mind escape what just happened. It was so comforting and peaceful to me. So I have a sense of comfort with this game. Also, when I heard the slowed down dragon roost theme in Rito village for botw/totk, it got me emotional

This games connection to ocarina of time is so cool and it hypes me up for ganondorf in tears of the kingdom

I remember getting wind waker for wii through backwards compatibility and I couldn't save lol didn't have a memory card so I would Speed run the game since I couldn't save still was a great birthday present

The first time I played this game was on my birthday. I was excited and surprised when it started off on Link's birthday too

you sound like somecallmejohnny nice video btw. it was worth the wait.

It's crazy how similar our Wind Waker tales are. I was born in 1999 so my first console I played as a concsious person was the GameCube and Wind Waker was my first game ever. Then later on I also ended up getting the Wind Waker HD Special Edition Wii U and it's sitting on my desk as I type this. This game truly is special and even though it's not my favorite, it's still in my Top 3 alongside Majora's Mask and Twilight Princess.

Got this game on my 10th birthday. Thought it was awesome that it was Links birthday my first time playing. I can’t decide if this is my 2nd or 3rd fav Zelda game (OOT, WW & TP are top 3) but this game is 100x better than the last 2 Zelda games.

Very beautiful ending to the video.

I freaking love this game. I played it on gamecube many years ago at a place where you'd pay to play ( common in my country back then) I'd go every day during lunch break at work where I had a 2 hour lunch break. I probably spent enough to buy my own gamecube and zelda, but I enjoyed every single minute of it.

I had the GameCube the year it released and when I first saw WW I fell in love, and couldn’t wait for it. When the spring of 2003 hit I had it reserved so I got the bonus disc, and this is probably my 2nd favorite Zelda game (ALTTP being 1st)

I was 5 when this came out and I have fond memories playing it with my brother late at night

32:29 Also adding a "Put the rupee back" option would help. The tingle grind feels worse when you know you deleted 200 rupees by accident.

I played windwaker for hours I loved it so much

I would love to see fans attempt to put back in what was taken out somehow you'd have to invent a couple things and entire dungeon basically but the ancient cistern was confirmed to be a wind waker dungeon from skyward sword so it's not out of the question to put it all back together at least best we could I never thought about the existence of a third stage being a thing but now it makes so much sense

i spent my entire childhood not knowing that i owned a gamwcube and owned windwaker… didn’t play it until the HD version came out… i’m so pissed i never played it as a kid

Playing The Legend of Zelda on the NES when the closest thing before it I had played was Raiders of the Last Ark on the Atari 2600 was beyond mind-blowing. The excitement for the NES 1987-1989 was really something special.

I was a freshman when Zelda 1 came out ... man, i stayed up all night SO many times playing that game ... yes, without the internet.

For me, the overwhelming impression left by my first playthrough was of sailing across empty ocean waiting for something to happen, and of having to stop repeatedly to farm large quantities of rupees in the late game for the triforce quest. The HD version improves matters, but it's never going to be my favourite Zelda.

oh randomizers are so much fun, its a MUST

Granted, I did originally beat NES Zelda without a guide, we mostly played it with the map that came from the Nintendo magazine. And that online map, is basically the same exact map we all had from the magazine. So you good, young blood.

Thanks for making me feel old, I grew up with the sega mega drive and gameboy color 😅

Was just thinking about replaying ww on my steam deck! Ive only played it once before when hd came out

I love windwaker, my favourite zelda, I love getting just lost in the world

I was about to watch this but the intro made me nostalgic. I have a feeling that I should finally 100% windwaker hd after years of playing it in and off and getting mid way and forgetting about it. I feel weird when I don’t play a game for awhile so I restart it. I haven’t gotten to experience the whole game like I should. I’ll watch this video when I’m done ☑️

As huge of a Zelda fan I am it's hard to admit that I was one of the people who dismissed this game when I was growing up, simply because of the graphics. HOWEVER, I finally gave it a chance in 2019/2020 and was VERY happy with the game

I will say about the timeline that there is actually a lot of references to it in manuals and guides before the official timeline. I think only one game placement was retconned but there was thought to how the games fit together from the beginning imo

I wouldn't beat yourself up too much about using a guide bro... I was born in 1990. And I still needed a guide to 100% it and went many years without doing so. The first zelda is just a beast of a game lol

what a beautiful story

Everyone has their first zelda. That’s what makes the series so special

It's one of my favorite games in the franchise but a Link to the past is what got me into the series. I was in middle school when it came out,,,,...too bad you couldn't experience that

I loved the Nintendo figurine quest. I completed it and each figurine made, I couldn't wait to find it in one of the doors leading to whatever themed gallery the figurine was displayed in. I love every side quest. I just wish that the trading side quest with the plants you can place around Windfall had a purpose and would activate a reward or another side quest if placed in a specific order with certain plants being suitable for certain areas of town. It didn't seem to make any difference whichever plants you placed. I also spent more time on the painting puzzle in the Cabana than I have in any video game in the past few years.

i have been playing LoZ since the first game and Wind Waker was absolutely my favorite.

Same story for me with the original wii. Checked gamestop/EB games every time I was at the mall and one day we were there and I didn't have the money but I saw a couple wii's behind the register and I begged my mom to lend me the money because the money I saved was at home. One of the best experiences of my life was finally getting the wii after trying to get it for what felt like forever.

awesome!!!! i love the game too

I didn’t like the cel shaded art style at first but I read a game preview in a game magazine and was sold

Windwaker was my first gamecube game, I love everything about it. Of course I had to buy the special edition Wii U which I still have with the box. This video makes me want to play again, but I have a feeling they will release it on the next switch. Zelda is my favorite game series of all time, so much so that I named my son Link. 😅

Personally I think Tetra's mother was beginning to tell her of the legends of Hyrule and of their bloodline's origins, but passed before she could tell her daughter the full story.

Everyone dunks on the gamepad, but it was almost like having a switch way before it was technologically possible, and I loved it. I'm not a big fan of playing games on a TV, I like it in my hands.

I wake up every morning and google whether WW got announced for Switch yet. Even if it's the GameCube version I need it.

Wind waker was my first Zelda game just has nostalgia to it

I feel the same way with final fantasy 1.... I got it back in the '80s on the NES first RPG I have a beat as a kid around 9yo.... still my favorite game.

I love the newer version big time. The game is way to easy, that was always my issue with it, but its not a bad game by anymeans. Its a beauty

I mean, sure you missed out on the OG nes title 🤷 but you sure picked an amazingly good one to start with anyway ❤ 😊

Stokedddd

43:38 "This enemy?" Thats a Stalfos...

There absolutely were online guides and walkthroughs available when Windwaker came out.

41:31 "All I know is my gut says maybe"

Y U MAKE ME CRY

14:12 was a good laugh.