Let's put things in context: Metroid Prime 3 was by Retro Studios, Zelda: The Twilight Princess was a belated Gamecube port, and Super Mario Galaxy 2 was a do-over of its predecessor, and billed as such. So the last time Nintendo gave themselves this few excuses for failing--amongst their "Big Three" IPs--was. . . Super Mario Galaxy, which is by consensus one of the best games of the decade.
Anyway, I'm surprised--amid the suffocating Skyrim hype--that more people haven't earmarked Skyward Sword as a consensus GOTY contender, especially since its first reviews have pegged it as the Zelda series' return to the quality of the twin peaks of Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask. Don't get me wrong--Portal 2 was one of the best games ever, and if Skyrim can innovate upon Oblivion's formula it's sure to be a runaway success. But just because Nintendo's created a casual console doesn't mean you can dismiss their post-millennial C.V.: I mean, Portal and Half-Life 2 are both indelible classics; ditto Bethesda's recent output. But so is SMG, and I have a hankering feeling--given that this is the "other" Wii release with the potential to be monumentally brilliant--that we're all likely to be impressed (except for the Nintendo-haters, of course, but then again to dislike Nintendo is more or less to disown video games altogether--an idea lent particular credence by the fact that most games today would be unimaginable were it not for their influence).
Anyway, I'm surprised--amid the suffocating Skyrim hype--that more people haven't earmarked Skyward Sword as a consensus GOTY contender, especially since its first reviews have pegged it as the Zelda series' return to the quality of the twin peaks of Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask. Don't get me wrong--Portal 2 was one of the best games ever, and if Skyrim can innovate upon Oblivion's formula it's sure to be a runaway success. But just because Nintendo's created a casual console doesn't mean you can dismiss their post-millennial C.V.: I mean, Portal and Half-Life 2 are both indelible classics; ditto Bethesda's recent output. But so is SMG, and I have a hankering feeling--given that this is the "other" Wii release with the potential to be monumentally brilliant--that we're all likely to be impressed (except for the Nintendo-haters, of course, but then again to dislike Nintendo is more or less to disown video games altogether--an idea lent particular credence by the fact that most games today would be unimaginable were it not for their influence).