The Video Game Critic

I am currently clocked at 35 hours in the Sky Palace(god, this level has what could be THE spookiest, most enchanting song to a Zelda game ever!!) and I have barely collected anything(5 bugs, 4 skills, 22 poes, and assorted heart pieces). This game is phenomenal!

The Nintendo reps said it would last more than 70 hours without collecting much. Even without a guide I can't see the game lasting more than 50 hours if I play it straight through without stopping for heart pieces, bugs, and poes. I do agree it could be a very lengthy game without a guide, and I plan on clocking in some hours on fishing as well, a part of the game I have hardly touched. 

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I don't know where you're getting that from.  What I heard from Nintendo is that their testers took 70+ hours to get through the *entire* game, including all peripheral side quests and items.  It didn't say that it took 70 hours without collecting much.  Maybe there's a press release I didn't read.

I can confirm that without any guidance catalogues, it took me about 73 hours to finish the game, which includes finding all heart pieces, etc.  There are some places that were pretty difficult for me, such as trying to find all of the bugs in Kakariko village, or having to catch a reekfish just to catch its scent and follow it.  I can't tell you how many times I caught that fish only to lose it immediately.  I thought it was some cruel joke until it dawned on me that that's what was supposed to happen.

All of these types of things would be exceedingly easy (and short) if I had a guide in front of me telling me where to go next, or a FAQ to help me get out of parts where I was lost as to where to go next.  That doesn't mean that everyone will take 70+ hours, but it's certainly not a "lie" to point out that it did for many, including Nintendo's testers.

The Nintendo reps said it would last more than 70 hours without collecting much. Even without a guide I can't see the game lasting more than 50 hours if I play it straight through without stopping for heart pieces, bugs, and poes. I do agree it could be a very lengthy game without a guide, and I plan on clocking in some hours on fishing as well, a part of the game I have hardly touched. 

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I don't know where you're getting that from.  What I heard from Nintendo is that their testers took 70+ hours to get through the *entire* game, including all peripheral side quests and items.  It didn't say that it took 70 hours without collecting much.  Maybe there's a press release I didn't read.

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(sorry about the last post, please delete it, it's nothing I accidentally posted it)

I got that from either 1up or ign (I believe 1up). In one of the previews the person said that the Nintendo reps told him it takes 70 hours without collecting anything. It is always possible that he was mixed up.

[QUOTE=a]I got that from either 1up or ign (I believe 1up). In one of the previews the person said that the Nintendo reps told him it takes 70 hours without collecting anything. It is always possible that he was mixed up.[/QUOTE]

http://wii.ign.com/articles/744/744044p1.html : "I asked how long it took Nintendo's testers to complete the entire game the first time through. The answer is a whopping 70-plus hours. Adding insult to injury, diabolical Nintendo translator and localization manager Bill Trinen told me that he was working on his second play-through of the game. Knowing what to do and where to go, and skipping cut-scenes, Trinen said that he had logged about 27 hours to make it approximately two thirds of the way through the temples themselves - and that doesn't account for any of the side quests or time-sucks like fishing, a single operation that could easily add hours upon hours to Zelda's depth."

It sounds like what Matt was saying here is that the first play-thru was complete, or at least it's not implied that it wasn't.  It's the second play-thru that took 27 hours for 2/3 of the temples, WITHOUT side-quests.

[QUOTE=a]I got that from either 1up or ign (I believe 1up). In one of the previews the person said that the Nintendo reps told him it takes 70 hours without collecting anything. It is always possible that he was mixed up.[/QUOTE]

http://wii.ign.com/articles/744/744044p1.html : "I asked how long it took Nintendo's testers to complete the entire game the first time through. The answer is a whopping 70-plus hours. Adding insult to injury, diabolical Nintendo translator and localization manager Bill Trinen told me that he was working on his second play-through of the game. Knowing what to do and where to go, and skipping cut-scenes, Trinen said that he had logged about 27 hours to make it approximately two thirds of the way through the temples themselves - and that doesn't account for any of the side quests or time-sucks like fishing, a single operation that could easily add hours upon hours to Zelda's depth."

It sounds like what Matt was saying here is that the first play-thru was complete, or at least it's not implied that it wasn't.  It's the second play-thru that took 27 hours for 2/3 of the temples, WITHOUT side-quests.

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My mistake. I guess I misinterpreted it the first time. I think I thought that last sentence applied to the first play-through. I still need to try fishing; I'm sure I can log in a lot of time on that.

Only half way through the gamecube version and so far I prefer Wind waker just a little bit more. Not only did it have a darker storyline, but the Picto Box quest was a great addition to the series. Taking pictures (pokemon snap style) of your enemies and getting scored for how well the pics turned out was a blast.

I hope nintendo decides to bring it back in the next zelda...

I'm about a hour in right now, trying to find where the kid and that monkey went to right now. Its been everything I expected so far, though fishing seems like its been simplied a ton compared to the awesome way they did it in Ocarina (I'm playing the GameCube version).

Only half way through the gamecube version and so far I prefer Wind waker just a little bit more. Not only did it have a darker storyline, but the Picto Box quest was a great addition to the series. Taking pictures (pokemon snap style) of your enemies and getting scored for how well the pics turned out was a blast.

I hope nintendo decides to bring it back in the next zelda...

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Man, I really have to disagree.  I did the Pictobox quest, collecting every figurine.  It took me three games to complete it, primarily because missing the only opportunity to take a picture of something meant you had to wait ANOTHER GAME to do it.  It was tedious, and I only did it cause I am Zelda completist, but I hope I never see it used in a Zelda game ever again.

I would've liked to have done it if what you said wasn't true. By the time I tried halfway through to start doing it, I learned that I was too late to do it for everything so I stopped.

Didn't like Wind Waker enough to consider playing through it a second time.

I'm about a hour in right now, trying to find where the kid and that monkey went to right now. Its been everything I expected so far, though fishing seems like its been simplied a ton compared to the awesome way they did it in Ocarina (I'm playing the GameCube version).

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You're using the crappy wader fishing pole. Later on there is a fishing pond where you can use an actual pole. It is much more complex; it involves reeling the fish in with the nunchuk and such.