Targeting

I think that targeting makes 3D zelda games too easy. The first time I played Windwaker I didnt realize that I could target certain things and use certain combos until almost the near end of the game :embrsd: (Hey give me a break I didnt read the manual cause i was just renting it...) but anyways... the second time I played Windwaker(after I bought it of course) I used the targeting throughout the whole game and the bosses were soooo much easier. Take the Temple of the Gods boss for example. While I was fighting the boss the first time without targeting, I had to aim carefully at the little ovals on his hands and then I had to aim really really carefully when hitting his eyes. I remember losing to him many times through many long arduous battles until finally i beat him and i felt a certain sense of accomplishment and pride. The second time I played him I used targeting, and I beat him on the first try, no problem, in like 1 minute. I was very angry after that thinkning "does targeting make 3D zelda games tooe easy?". It is not just windwaker that makes targeting too easy either. I remember playing the water temple boss and just targeting the circle thingy (I think they called it a nuclei) and shooting it repeatdely with my hookshot. Think about how hard many boss battles would be without targeting... I wouldnt be too dissapointed if they took targeting out of zelda games. Im sure they could find other ways to do cool combos on evil guys without targeting...
Well just post your opinion below....

Well, I think the targeting system is a wonderful feature. It makes fighting
enemies so much fun. I love to use arrows while targeting, because you have
to admit, using arrows in first person view sucks.

Targeting was originally added to Ocarina of Time to make the transition from 2D to 3D easier (As was Navi) and I, personally, like it. You don't need to use it, you yourself said that you almost beat the game without it. But it does greatly help most players, the 3D Zeldas were designed with it in mind, it allows you to keep facing your foe and perform more combat moves. Without it the controls would have to be more sensitive to allow you to face opponents more acuratly, and over-sensitive controls are the bane of every gamer's existence.

Originally Posted by GDwarf

Targeting was originally added to Ocarina of Time to make the transition from 2D to 3D easier (As was Navi) and I, personally, like it. You don't need to use it, you yourself said that you almost beat the game without it. But it does greatly help most players, the 3D Zeldas were designed with it in mind, it allows you to keep facing your foe and perform more combat moves. Without it the controls would have to be more sensitive to allow you to face opponents more acuratly, and over-sensitive controls are the bane of every gamer's existence.

You do need targeting to beat WW. You can't use the parry attack without targeting, therefore making it impossible to beat Ganon.

Targeting is fun. It also makes the games much easier. Yeah, both true. BUT:

A more interesting question is:

Should targerting be in the future Zelda games?

Think about that!

AHAHAHAHahahah, that's pretty funny. But I know somebody who dosn't use targeting on purpose, he says it's "easier" without it.

Originally Posted by King_NeoRej

Targeting is fun. It also makes the games much easier. Yeah, both true. BUT:

A more interesting question is:

Should targerting be in the future Zelda games?

Think about that!

I'd say yes, they should. Targetting allows for better battles, when targetting an opponent you are able to dodge/roll/jump/parry/throw/shoot, when you aren't your abilities are limited. To put it another way, no targetting, and battle become "Slash 'till they die".

And yes, as was pointed out, you do need targetting to beat Ganon in WW, so I was off by one fight.

Targeting is useful, and in my opinion, doesn't make the game easier in WW's case. There were many elements that made that game too easy.

The developers would have an incredibly difficult time trying to make a battle system without the Z-Targeting, or targeting in general... Link doesn't have enough mobility.

I agree that targeting is a useful addition to the zelda series, and certainly helps bridge the gap between the 2d and 3d Zeldas, making it clear that they belong to the same series. However, I don't feel that they've used the system to it's fullest potential. Sure, link has a series of different attacks, accessible by pressing the control stick in its four cardinal directions and pressing A or B. This may seem like plenty, but there's a lot more to be explored.

Notice that when locked on, the zelda combat system actually becomes almost identical to that of a modern 8-directional fighting game. Imagine what Zelda could be if Link had a whole plethora of combo moves to pull off while locked onto an enemy? Perhaps special attacks, multi-button attacks, or being able to control more precisely the direction of Link's sword-swings.

When Aonuma said that Twilight Princess would feature new moves for Link, I had hoped that this might be the sort of thing he had in mind. Unfortunately, after having played the E3 demo, the only new move that I noticed was the stab attack. Cool, certainly, but functionally the same as the jump attack/parry move. Oh well. We can still dream, can't we?

i have to say that i disagree with HOY!
anyone who has tried to play a 3D Zelda without the targeting system will know that Link's movement becomes erratic and difficult to control - the direction he faces is far too sensitive to the control stick and you cannot accurately take out the more skilled enemies like Stalfos. The targeting system however, allows you to face one direction, focused on a single enemy, allowing combat to be smooth and the player to be in control, and allows Link to fight more strategically, using various sword combos and jump and dodging techniques. remove this element from the game, and all you have is mad, panicky slashing and panicked, poorly aimed first-person shooting. this replaces enjoyment with frustration, and i'm not sure about some of you, but i play games for fun. who wants an OOT that plays like LTTP? the SNES style Zelda engine where rapid slashing worked just doesn't fit into a 3D system.

I think targeting should be in all 3D Zelda games because, well, OoT basically INVENTED the modern lock-on system seen in most games, and without it the camera can become unruly in dungeons, combat is clunky, and it's difficult to use special sword techniques. Yes, in that sense, it does make the game easier, but it also makes it much more fluid and intuitive to learn. Without it, I know I'd be constantly wrestling with the camera to keep the view on a quickly-moving enemy, and combat would degrade to simply running up and pressing B.

Hmm, I never thought about taking away targeting to make the games harder! They didn't let you target Ganondorf in OoT and that made him REALLY hard to beat! I remember I got like 20 gameovers before I beat him!

But yeah, something about the constantly switching to first person view to shoot arrows just doesn't feel fluid enough. If they added a challange element to targeting, giving you more control (and therefore margin for error) the intensity of the game would increase! Maybe something like, Z targeting keeps Link facing his enemies, but the bow still needs to be aimed up and down with the control stick to hit enemies above and below his direct horizontal line of fire.

Without targeting, your focus becomes facing the enemy and striking accurately. It may be more challenging, but perhaps not the way the programmers intended. It's not realistic, and the difficulty is mostly due to technicalities like limited control. With targeting, your combat becomes more flexible and the focus switches to reflexes, strategy and the like.