5/5 ★ – BCC_LQ's review of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD.

I played through this as a teenager and though I enjoyed it I always felt I rushed it a bit, trying to move on to the next game in the series. Years later I finally tracked down a copy of HD (which is very expensive now) and have it another go. I remembered a lot of the basics but it was clear I didn't originally take the proper time to really take in everything this game had to offer, as now I think it's probably one of the most solid Zelda experiences ever crafted. The dungeons are great. I'm my the biggest dungeon guy in the world, but these all kept my interest the entire time and at no point did I feel like they overstayed their welcome. So many feel unique and creative. The story is super solid, much better than the modern open world era Zelda games. I feel like the characters are all more interesting and the plot gives incentive to keep going, I didn't feel at any point lacking in motivation to move forward. This was never my favorite Zelda art style, but going back to it now when dark muted colors are not as prominent as they were in the 2000s, it makes me realize how much I miss the variety in Zelda game styles. Not everything needs to be brought and colorful to look great. I especially like the architecture of the buildings like the Temple of Time and Hyrule Castle. They feel grander than they ever had or ever would feel up until this very day. The music, of course, is amazing. I feel like I slept in this score for years. It might be the most atmospheric of any Zelda game. While it doesn't have quite as many iconic melodies as other 3D Zelda games, the area music is beautiful and feels like it captures all the best aspects of that era of design. I nearly 100%ed the game, which is not something I normally feel inclined to do. But I had a lot of fun getting all the pows, bugs, and heart pieces. My one complaint with this over other Zelda games is canyon filled overworld has never felt great to me. It's a product of game cube era design, I know. But so much else about the game aged great in comparison. Very glad I went back to this one. Amazing game, nearly perfect. Peak Zelda.