The Legend Of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD launched yesterday, and the reviews are pouring in. Fans will only just be getting their hands on the remaster, so what do the critics think? Is this re-release of a divisive Wii title worth full price?
Judging by review aggregators such as Metacritic, it’s a fairly solid victory for Nintendo. While there is indeed the odd average score to be found, it’s otherwise a sea of positive reviews, sitting at an average of 81/100 at the time of writing.
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Our very own reviewer Dave Aubrey agreed with this widespread praise. He gave the game four out of five, saying that, unlike the original release, the HD remaster should “finally please almost everybody”. He particularly praises the new controls and visuals, while admitting that the setting remains one of the least memorable in the series.
This sentiment was echoed by publications such as Screen Rant, gameinformer, IGN, and The Guardian, all of which gave the game a four out of 5, or equivalent. These reviewers do however wish the game had changed more from the original, especially by polishing the controls further, and addressing complaints that the open-world feels empty.
Some outlets went all-in with the praise, with VGC and GameOver giving Skyward Sword HD perfect scores. VGC concluded that the game is a “superb remaster”, that "throws in so many quality of life improvements […] that it immediately makes the original version obsolete.”
While it's these high scores that dominate Metacritic, others are not so complimentary. The lowest recorded so far comes from Launcher, calling it “clumsy and unstylish”, and that “for every one great design […] there are 10 that feel like bargain bin imitations.” The reviewer did however rate Skyward Sword HD 60/100, praising the visuals and the story.
Fan reviews for Skyward Sword HD will go live later today, so we can see where that stacks up compared to the critics' views. While the game is already out for general audiences, fans have to wait 24 hours before submitting scores to Metacritic.
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