It is March 3, 2003, and you've just got back from the store with a fresh copy of The Wind Waker for the Nintendo GameCube. You've avoided all the skepticism from your friends about the graphics, and now you are ready for the all new adventure. A few hours after diving into the game, your phone rings. Reluctant to be disturbed, you still answer it, and it's that friend. You know, that friend that won't buy anything unless he's tested yours first; the same friend that refused to buy his own The Wind Waker because of the graphics. He asks to come over to see the new game. You'd rather just ignore him, but he is still your friend so you do the right thing and let him over.When he arrives he sits quietly for a while watching you play, but after a few hours, he gets bored and asks if you can play something with him. You knew this would happen when he came over, and you'd much rather continue your remarkable game. You think to give him a turn, but you don't want him tainting your precious record. Suddenly your prayers are answered by a small creepy man in green tights, Tingle.
The Wind Waker introduced us to the Tingle Tuner, probably the most overlooked item in the series. The Tingle Tuner allowed a second player to control Tingle using a Game Boy Advance with a link cable. The second player's functions were heavily limited, but he acted as a support character, offering assistance in combat and providing hints throughout the game.
This feature was wonderful, because it allowed friends to hop in and out of another player's game, bringing them into the adventure as well, rather than making them sit on the side lines. The only problem was that the feature played more like a last minute add-on rather than a properly implemented function of the game. To start with, the second player was forced to look at the Game Boy screen during game play. This would be fine if there was something interesting to look at. Two-thirds of the screen is dedicated to a very simple overview map of the area, with Link displayed in the center, and the enemies all displayed as the same generic dot. The rest of the screen pictures Tingle and displays tips for Link. This bland screen quickly becomes boring to look at after an hour or so.
Unfortunately, Tingle can be more annoying than helpful sometimes. Tingle can drop bombs to aid Link in combat or any other breakable object, for the cost of 10 rupees. If the bombs are well placed, they will leave 10 rupees behind for Link to pick back up, making the bombs free. This prevents Tingle from spraying bombs like crazy, but also allows players early in the game to still use the feature, when rupees are still necessary. The problem with the Tingle bomb is that Link takes damage from the explosion, much like standing too close to his own bombs. With the tiny Game Boy Advance screen, it can be difficult to tell what a safe distance is from Link, and since the shoulder button automatically locks the cursor onto Link, be prepared for several accidental bombings directly onto Link. This often occurs while sailing, sending Link flying from the boat nearly drowning him every time. Your friend better be competent and kind, otherwise Tingle can become a far greater evil than Ganon could ever hope to be.
With the other button Tingle does this annoying attention getter that completely halts the game forcing Link to focus in on the location of Tingle's gay little avatar. We can assume that this feature is there to help Tingle point out points of interest to Link, but Tingle's map is so bland that there are very few things to find. There are a few exclusive side quests to participate in with Tingle, but they are, for the most part, pointless. So the primary purpose of this feature is to further annoy the player, making Tingle all the more deviant. So only allow the most trusted friends to play Tingle, otherwise your progress will suffer greatly. There are other abilities to unlock as well, but they are merely excuses to pointlessly blow rupees.
Despite the shortcomings of the Tingle Tuner, the thought of the supporting character is a great idea. Super Mario Galaxy for the Nintendo Wii had a similar feature allowing a second player to fire projectiles or hold down enemies for Mario to safely hit. This allowed the player to watch the TV screen, rather than staring at the bland Game Boy Advance map. Imagine if Twilight Princess had something similar. The second player could have played as Midna, using her twilight hair/hand to hold down enemies for Link, or perhaps fire some sort of twilight like projectile. Once Midna collects the Fused Shadow, her abilities could improve, making player two's actions more powerful and significant. During the final battle with Ganondorf, player two could have controlled Zelda's light arrows, during Midna's absence. So there are plenty of potential ideas for implementing a similar Super Mario Galaxy feature into an upcoming Zelda Wii title.The Tingle Tuner was a nice step in implementing a hop in drop out two player experience for the Zelda series, although its functionality suffered due to bad implementation and poor planning. While the Tingle Tuner may have been just a shameless promotion for the Game Boy Advance link cable, that is no reason to give up on the concept. The game mechanic resurfaced in Super Mario Galaxy, which reopens possibilities for the upcoming Zelda Wii game. We shouldn't have to wait for another Four Swords cooperative game, in order to share the Zelda experience with our friends.
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I have somewhat mixed emotions towards the Tingle Tuner, which I for some reason always call the Tingle Turner. Anyway, I do agree that the concept is a good one, but a badly implemented one. The reliance upon a GBA, and the cable is bad.
While Zelda will always be a personal experience for me, and something that I want to play alone, I do support the implementation of a feature like in Super Mario Galaxy, where it is possible for those that choose to play with friends to do so, and those that want to play alone can, unlike in FS/A.
I remember playing a Shrek game on PS2, with a friend, a while back where to get through the quest file you controlled a range of characters, and anytime you came to the quest log you could choose from 1 to 4 people to play from where you are up to, cooperating. That wouldn't necessarily fit in Zelda, but it did work well. Forcing it like in FS is a no, but allowing it is a yes.
My main gripe with the Tingle Tuner is that for 100% completion of TWW you need it for the Nintendo Gallery, which annoys me. Allow for friends to play, but please don't make it necessary for total completion Nintendo.
Back when they first released Burnout Paradise, I was annoyed at all the gaming media for insisting that the ability to park your car at traffic lights in the single-player would switch to an online race. People called it revolution. And made out that it broke down the border between single-player and online. I on the otherhand, thought that I'd seen this revolutionary ability before: All the way back during the retro 2D days: Namely, the ability for a second player to just hit start on the control and join it at anytime.
The point of this story: Screw small assistance roles, they should just have a fully functioning Multiplayer Co-Op mode, allowing up to Four Links, whilst perhaps multiplying the enemies to compensate. Plus, it'd be good for online too.
You could even have exclusive multiplayer/online quests in the same style as Ancient Stone Tablets. That'll be miles better than any Tingle Tuner-esque nonsense.
I thought the Tingle Tuner was an absolutely great concept, which was unfortunately poorly implemented.
However it would be amazing if we had an expansion of this concept for the next Zelda. It is far easier to hook a DS up to a Wii than a GCN to a GBA. No cables! Touch screen!
I just used the tuner on my own (had to borrow a GBA connector though). I enjoyed finding the 6 or so tingle statues. I was saddened in files that I could not collect them. They were quite nice to look at.
"It is March 3, 2003, and you've just got back from the store with a fresh copy of The Wind Waker for the Nintendo GameCube."
Not me!
"You've avoided all the skepticism from your friends about the graphics"
Yeah, I the gore obsessed, testosterone junky teenager couldn't have cared less about my favorite videogame series turning Looney Tunes.
"You know, that friend that won't buy anything unless he's tested yours first"
That would be me...
"This feature was wonderful, because it allowed friends to hop in and out of another player's game, bringing them into the adventure as well"
Actual co-opt would have been appreciated.
"This bland screen quickly becomes boring to look at after an hour or so."
More like five minutes.
"This allowed the player to watch the TV screen, rather than staring at the bland Game Boy Advance map."
Wow, a minor improvement.
"Imagine if Twilight Princess had something similar."
Co-opt? :D
"We shouldn't have to wait for another Four Swords cooperative game, in order to share the Zelda experience with our friends."
From a philosophical standpoint, I've always seen Zelda as a solo experience. That said, if you guys want the series to move in a more multiplayer oriented direction, I'll come along for the ride. I just think that, as the series currently stands, we have a lot more pressing issues to attend to. I think, though, you began to touch on a much deeper point.
There has always been the potential for a great two+ player Zelda game, or any Action Adventure game for that matter. Sure, we saw the beginnings of this w/ the FS series, but it was never really fine-tuned and individualized to its full potential. I would like to see a mechanic where you could start a campaign w/ people over the internet. It would be like, you could drop in and out at any time, and the kind of puzzles/enemies in the game would automatically readjust to these changes. I know this is a little unrealistic, (Even for the HD consoles) but it's something that will likely be possible come next generation.
Waah, I let my friend be tingle once. She kept on bombing me and Makar over and over again. And then after I ran out of rupees she started making Tingle go "HEEEEY!" over and over again. I was so mad.
So thats why everyone hates tingle so much.....
You can also have an antagonist be you co-op in smg. They can waste you star bits and make you jump at bad times. Of course if your co-op is trust able they give you a huge advantage, more so against chain chomps and ice water.
Where to begin...:
Gotta admit, a little device that can help you with tips and hints, probably useful... but with TINGLE?! Oh come ON Nintendo! Is he your little sickening joke on us?! Partner a little 12-year old boy with a 30-something year-old man in a green suit and big red balloon... hm... sounds like the next news report of "Green Pedophile Strike Again" is just around the corner... Ugh...
And you need a partner with a GameBoy Advance and connector... found the annoying partner with a GBA, but no connector for miles... ffffffffffffffffffffffffffrack...
AND you need them to complete the Nintendo Gallery!? Frickin'ay! After two weeks of searching around, snapping pictures of everything you see, warping back to Carlov, conducting the Song of Passing innumerable times, paying a ton to Lenzo just to get Jabuns picture 30 times over again, and you're still not able to finish with every figurine available?!?!
FOR THE LOVE OF FRACKTAIL IN THE NAME OF MATANUI GERBEN HAGEN FRAAZ!!!!!!! I'M TICKED!!! *Bangs head on desk*
Wow, was I the only one who had a blast with the Tingle Tuner?? I used to use it with my little brother, especially since we used teamwork instead of attacking each other.
Plus, you could get red and green potions, plus temporary Magic Armor without going through the whole sidequest shenanigans.
Also, the tingle bombs were essential to beating those annoying floormasters easily...all you had to was freeze with an ice arrow and blast with a Tingle Bomb. Saved me MANY headaches with Medli and Makar.
I'd love to see a new item like that in Zelda Wii, DS-to-Wii is a lot simpler than GBA-to-Gamecube.
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Yeah, I remember the accidents with bombs... But they were not quite accidents, as my friend was blasting me on purpose, with my own rupees! After that, my hatred for Tingle skyrocketed...