So far in my new Road to Nintendo Switch 2 article series, we’ve logged impressions for two first-party heavy-hitters: Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury and Super Mario Odyssey. Both are fantastic games, though if I’m being completely honest, I do prefer Odyssey over 3D World. It is a newer piece of software, after all, as the original 3D World first arrived on the ostracized Wii U back in 2013. Come on, that battery-limited tablet was super cool, right? Right?
3D World’s Bowser’s Fury expansion does actually come close to Odyssey’s general quality, which makes sense, because it was created relatively recently. Yet there’s something about the pure, unadulterated fluidity of Odyssey that ultimately wins me over and keeps me coming back for more.
But what about Nintendo’s other sacred cash cow, Link? No, not that The Legend of Zelda title (we’ll get to it soon, I promise). Instead, we’re going to take a modern peek at another classic remaster, this one originally hailing from the year 2011 on Nintendo’s uber-successful Wii console and then 2021 on the legacy Switch—The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD. And the remaster isn’t in 480p anymore! Hurray!
While it may be one of the less celebrated Zelda entries, Skyward Sword HD is an arguably solid game, but holy (cash) cow, the controls are what you might call… an acquired taste? This is probably putting it mildly, because I’m feeling rather chipper and generous today. It could be the copious matcha I’m consuming on an hourly basis. Green powder from the heavens, I tell you.
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I played through the game using the lovely Pro controller, which reliably feels fantastic in all gaming situations, regardless of software choice. Admittedly, I did get used to the convoluted control scheme after the 40ish hours I recently spent completing the adventure, but it wasn’t until about halfway through that I really settled in. I could see many gamers giving up early on, and what a shame, because they’d be missing out.
But man, the way the inputs are laid out here made this a very challenging and frustrating experience, at least in the initial hours. Rewarding, too, but trying all the same. Truth be told, I spent a whole lot of time simply battling the basic controls in Skyward Sword HD, and it marred an otherwise fun experience.
Obviously, coming from the waggle-infused Wii, Skyward Sword was originally designed with that particular console’s motion controls in mind, and when you play on the Pro controller in the Switch remaster, Link’s sword is mapped exclusively to the right analog stick. This gives the game a distinct Ape Escape flavor, in that it’s truly dual analog in nature. With this setup, unfortunately, certain consolations had to be made, and they’re unconventional, to say the least.
Namely, you can’t freely direct the camera with the right analog stick, because it angles your sword in real-time. To look around, you have to hold the L shoulder button, which changes the right analog stick’s function from sword control to camera control. So essentially, you can’t control the camera and the sword at the same time, and if you’ve been playing video games over the last few decades, such unconventionality will likely feel foreign and cumbersome.
When you’re Z-targeting enemies, this lack of finesse isn’t an issue, but when you’re exploring, it can be a serious pain. I lost track of how many times I accidently pulled out my sword when I meant to move the camera, or vice versa, and took damage as a result. Then you throw in a similarly clunky tool/item system and it’s a recipe for constant unintentional missteps and mistakes.
That said, combat is enjoyable but requires very deliberate action and attention; patience is rewarded in lieu of hacking and slashing. You need to carefully watch enemies for specific patterns so you know which way to swing your sword, and it can be difficult to achieve accuracy.
I’ll always respect Nintendo’s willingness to try new things and experiment with controls, but the way Skyward Sword steps outside the box left me yearning for a more run-of-the-mill input scheme.
Beyond control complaints, I found the world of Skyward Sword to be quite enchanting. The game’s pastel environments look stunning and inviting on the Switch, even in 1080p, but additionally in a revamped 60fps. Additionally, I found the main hub town of Skyloft to be cozy, if a bit devoid of life.
Skyward Sword reminds me a bit of Sega’s Skies of Arcadia, in that the adventure largely takes place on floating islands, although you often dive beneath the clouds to chart new territory. I also dig the Loftwings, Skyloft’s main method of organic transportation, which are giant birds who are definitely modeled after one of my favorite real-life birds, the prehistoric-looking shoebills.
Despite the weird controls, it’s a joy to run around the game’s levels, and it’s fun to soar through the sky on Link’s ruby red Loftwing. This is how you travel from one biome to the next, and the mechanics convey a great sense of majesty. Who doesn’t want to fly? I swear I have that dream every other night.
Skyward Sword’s story is pretty uninteresting, and the cutscenes are long and melodramatic, but you can skip them in the remaster if you want, as well as speed up the talking text. Is anyone playing a Zelda game for the story? I’d wager not. We’re here for the gameplay.
The last thing I’ll say about Skyward Sword is that it’s filled with signature Nintendo puzzles, but toward the end of the game, I had to resort to a guide because of how baffling they became. I typically don’t like using guides, but I have trouble believing that most gamers could make their way through Sky Keep, the game’s final dungeon, on their own with zero help. These puzzles slowed the pace down for me, and in doing so, I felt I was pretty much done with Skyward Sword a good five to ten hours before I finished it.
Is The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD worth playing in 2025? I’d say yes, though it comes with the caveat of strange controls that take some getting used to, if you stick with things. The visuals are pleasant and colorful, the gameplay and design are unsurprisingly polished and a bubbling sense of adventure permeates every pixel. Will I go back and finish the game again via the unlocked Hero Mode? Maybe, but I think I need a break from holding L for hours on end.
Stay tuned for the next entry in Road to Nintendo Switch 2. It’ll be drifting onto this Forbes page soon…
