Goin' for the gold (nunchuck)

Did anyone else recently drop a whopping 900 Club Nintendo coins to get one of these bad boys?

Mine hasn't arrived on my doorstep yet, although a recent e-mail from Nintendo of America assures it's on its way.

Although I'm eager to rip it open and hold it in my hands (or at least stare at it longingly), I'm no longer as eager as I was when I first placed my order. That's because I just watched the rather awkward unboxing video below, which reveals that Nintendo of America cheaped out (once again) and shipped these beauties in plain, plastic bags--you know, as opposed to nice, branded boxes, like the ones that were used in Japan.



Even before I came to this disappointing discovery, though, I was a bit unsure as to why I decided to "waste" 900 Club Nintendo points on this particular prize--mainly because I don't have a gold Wii remote with which to pair it. Maybe this will spur me to pick one up along with a copy of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword?

See also: Previous Club Nintendo-centric posts

The Hyrulian Book of Biology

By the end of this week, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword will be available pretty much everywhere in the world. How many of you have picked it up already or are planning to do so in the next few days?

Those of you who are Zelda fans but have yet to buy Skyward Sword should do what I've been doing for the last few days--which is stare at artist Andrew Kolb's "The Hyrulian Book of Biology" and then contemplate all of the wonderful things (including more illustrations like the ones that appear on the imaginary book's cover, below) that could be contained within such a compendium.

Kolb created "The Hyrulian Book of Biology" for an awesome Zelda tribute blog called Fill Up Your Hearts! (or is it Well, Excuse Me Princess?), by the way. Check it out here if you're so inclined.

Buy: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

'It's dangerous to go alone'

As many of you likely are aware, the latest entry in the Legend of Zelda series--subtitled "Skyward Sword"--will be released in just a few days (on Sunday, Nov. 20, to be exact).

To celebrate that fact--even though I'm not yet sure I'll be picking up the game myself--I scoured the blogosphere for awesome examples of Zelda fan art. The one was my favorite:

I found it on the Art Jumble blog, in case you're interested. Also, it was created by Cancún-based artist Carlos Lerma. (To see more of his illustrations, check out lerms.deviantart.com and lerms.net.)

Are any of you planning to pick up a copy of this long-awaited Wii game?

Pre-order: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

A Link to the Pakoto

I know I've written and published a number of Zelda-focused posts in the past few days. Sorry about that. This will be the last one for a while (or at least the last one this week), I promise!

After coming across the following drawing--officially titled, "Link (quick sketch in table)"--on Flickr this morning, I couldn't help but share it here.

It was drawn by artist Pakoto (or is it Pakotoo? I'm not exactly sure), by the way. For more examples of his work--like the rather stunning trio of Up-inspired pieces seen here--check out his blog or his Flickr photostream.

Going back to Zelda for a second: Did you know that Nintendo has released a new trailer for The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword? Well, now you do. Watch it here (it's the video on the right).

I'm surprisingly wary of buying The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

Full disclosure: I haven't played a Zelda game since Wind Waker. Actually, scratch that--I played Twilight Princess for about an hour before giving up on it for some reason that I can't remember.

Given that, I'm a bit wary of buying Skyward Sword, despite the fact that I very much like what I've seen of this upcoming Wii release--which seems to harken back to the series' glory days (i.e., The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time). I mean, will I buy it and then simply stare at its box, as I have with its predecessor, or will I actually play through a Zelda game for the first time since the above-mentioned Nintendo 64 iteration? (Yes, you read that right: I played Wind Waker but never finished it.)



The one thing that likely will spur me to pick up Skyward Sword despite the reservations shared above is the gold Wii Remote Plus that will be included with the limited edition of the game. (That version will be released in North America on Nov. 20. Pre-order it here.)

Are any of you similarly unsure as to whether or not you will be buying Skyward Sword? If so, what are your qualms with this, the eighth Zelda game to be released for a Nintendo console (not including Four Swords Adventures and Link's Crossbow Training, of course)--and what will it take for you to quell them?

See also: 'Let's Play: Which Box Art is Better? (The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword edition)'

Let's Play: 'Which Box Art is Better?' (The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword edition)

While working up a post (that should be published tomorrow) about The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, I came across the art that seemingly will grace the covers of the standard and limited editions of this much-anticipated Wii game. Well, you know what that means: Another round of "Which Box Art is Better?"

The following piece of art will appear on the "limited edition" versions of the game that will hit store shelves in Europe on Nov. 18, North America on Nov. 20 and Japan on Nov. 23. (Pre-order the North American limited edition here and the standard edition here.)

As far as I can tell, the art above will also appear on the "standard" versions of the game that will be sold in Europe and North America, while the art below, which I nabbed from andriasang.com, will appear on the standard version that will be sold in Japan:

Which one do I prefer? Well, I usually like Zelda games to have golden covers, but this time I'm casting my vote for Japan's shimmery, summery standard edition.

Which piece of box art do all of you prefer and why?

See also: Previous 'Which Box Art is Better?' posts