6 replies to this topic

[Kite]

This is something I've been pondering for a bit.

How would you go about placing items in dungeons for a quest that just had 4 to 6 triforce pieces (a shorter quest, basically)?

I know the question is fairly general and could vary depending on circumstances, but I'm looking for general answers.

[Rambly]

Let's see if I've gotten the meaning of the question down...

I myself would probably just stick the normal amount of items in a dungeon as usual (one or two, assuming you mean items like the candle, hookshot, etc, and equipment), and add the optional items into mini-dungeons or shops. I might use these optional items for entry into other mini-dungeons so that one could create a semi-trading sequence-type-thing, where you collect items, beat mini-dungeons to get items, and use these items to enter other mini-dungeons... etc. Doing that, you can get one ultimate, very useful item, such as Din's Fire, Master Sword, etc.

I know that probably won't help you, if it was help you were looking for... though it may give you some interesting ideas. I was just offering my own stance on the question.

[Radien]

Well, why don't we look at what Wind Waker did? After all, that's a minimum-dungeon Zelda game that had to deal with a large number of key items from previous games.

It's okay to keep it to one item per dungeon, but in Wind Waker, the item in each of the dungeons was usually something significant that the player would be excited to obtain. Hammer, Hookshot, Bow and Arrow, Grappling Hook, and Mirror Shield... Nintendo made sure they always saved the "good stuff" for the major dungeons, and then gave you plenty of opportunities to use them.

There were still other vital items to find outside of the dungeons. So how did they tie them in? Well, some dungeons required you to have a certain item to enter... Iron Boots, Deku Leaf, Power Bracelets, etc. And once inside, that item was used often.

In my opinion, this method is important to know even for large ZC quests. This is because ZC has a ton of items, and yet I don't think having two items in every dungeon actually makes it more fun. Expect to see a very large amount of "entry ticket" items in DoR.

[LinktheMaster]

Yeah, I'm going to have to agree with Rad on this one. You don't particularly have to put items in the dungeons, you can have them required to enter the dungeon, or require them to use it in the dungeon. And, if there are any of them left over, and they are nice bot not needed to complete the quest, you can always put them in small side dungeons.

[SwordOfSeals]

I personally think that if you're having 6 major dungeons, be sure to make them especially interesting or long. Not too long or frustrating long, but you get my drift, right? Or if you want, a combination of both with maybe 2 items in dungeons, like what Mr. Z did in Link's Birthday. Remember your style matters most.

[Radien]

Actually, SoS, I am going to personally disagree on this one. I might have agreed with you a year ago, but after playing a bunch of Zelda quests, I realized: I don't particularly enjoy longass dungeons any more than regular length, and usually less.

You don't have to have less of your quest spent in dungeons, when you add up the minutes required to complete it. But if you make one dungeon really long, then you are spending that much more time having to look at the same graphics, fight the same types of enemies, and listen to the same music.

I don't know about you, but I would rather have 5 extra bonus dungeons, even small ones, than play several triple-length dungeons with multiple items. LBDX is now my favorite quest, but I think I'd like it a tiny bit more than I already do if it had one item per dungeon. His dungeons aren't horribly long, though, so it's not a big deal in that case.

[Mr. Z]

I can't stand having big dungeons with few items.
So I put at least 1 or 2 items in each dungeon.
Heck, I even had 3 in a few dungeons long ago, but that was a bit too much.

But now I've gone back to just 1 item per dungeon. (Small dungeons ofcourse )


Though, I noticed that you don't have to use items that much in my dungeons. :\



Offtopic:
Ooh, I just have to let this be known: An idea I just got by reading this topic.
How to make better use of the Mirror Shield:

Well, you got to activate the Trigger trick, so tile warps will appear in beams of light, which bring you to a small cutscene where you see the light get reflected.
That's it

Mr. Z out.