A few decades ago the masses believed video games were a waste of time for lackadaisical youths to pacify themselves while ignoring their responsibilities as both kids and young adults. As more and more people started understanding the benefits of gaming so too did the perception of what a video game is and, most importantly, the benefits gaming can bestow on a person’s life changed.
Hi, my name is James Bullock and I am a gamer who has spent the better part of his existence testing the laws of physics, exploring the vastness of a world ruined, and been a champion inside various arenas courtesy of digitized worlds both driven by reality and created through pure unbelievable ingenuity unlike anything seen by human eyes. And as a gamer I’ve discovered something else video games provide: life lessons. Today I examine the game that showed all sort-after rewards in video games aren’t beneficial, “The Legend of Zelda: Orcarina of Time”.
Sometimes Hard Work Doesn’t Pay Off
Like many of its Nintendo-produced brethren, “The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time” is looked upon fondly by many and can be considered one of the top ten games of all time. With that being noted, the game features a weapon that is a pain in the Goron booty to not only find out about, but to obtain. Arriving in Goron City, the player (through Link, of course) will find that he/she can purchase a legendary knife for 200 Rupees (after waiting six in-game years, mind you). Without knowledge of how much it costs beforehand, the player will most likely have to begin a side quest post-information to get the “Adult’s Wallet” and fill it up before being able to purchase this “incredible” piece of hardware.
The grind would seem to be worth it until it’s revealed the knife is a poorly crafted piece of junk! Going into battle, the knife breaks after four hits! No matter the enemy or object, The Giant’s Knife snaps like a chicken wing at a church picnic. Just when the player thinks all hope is lost, Link is given an opportunity to repair to sword … for 200 Rupees. Don’t worry, it’ll break again, and again, and again until the player hopefully realizes it’s nothing more than a cheap knockoff of the best sword in the game, Biggoron’s Sword. But, of course, this vital information wasn’t readily available when the game was released almost two decades ago; leaving uninformed players with 200-plus Rupees gone down the drain and nothing but a broken sword to show for their work. There’s no doubt the developers of “Breath of the Wild” played “Ocarina of Time” and though it would be just wonderful to make modern gamers feel the same pain and frustration they experienced all those years ago.
Have you learned any major life lessons from playing “The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time” or any video game for that matter? Leave them in the comments below and, as always, thanks for reading.
