The Third Oracle Game
Before you get to excited, I'll tell you right off the bat- there is no secret Japanese-Import Oracle game. This article is about what Nintendo meant to do with the Oracle series, where you can see signs of it, and question's we still haven't been able to answer.
Back in 2000 Nintendo was doing something a bit different with Zelda. The new "Linking" technology had been implemented, giving the effect of one giant uber-game split into three smaller parts. Another change was that my friend and yours Mr. Miyamoto was not working on the project; at all. With Capcom on board and a killer idea sure to be a hit, how could Nintendo go wrong?
They could go horribly wrong. Approximatly 4 or 5 months into production, the teams hadn't made very good progress. Things like stair cases missing from a dungeon and things like that ran rampant in the early versions of the game. They were also having a lot of trouble with the linking functions. And when you think about it, you've got to sympathize. Two games it nothing, theres outcome A or outcome B, because you have to start with one game or the other. With 3 though, you have many more possible scenarios, because they start with 1 out of 3 games, then they move on to 1 out of 2 remaining games, and the finally the 3rd. To develop a feasable story line that flexible would truly be an amazing feat. In short, past all the mathematics, the inital designers didn't know what they were getting into, and bit off more then they could chew.
What's a company to do? You've got a game thats crashing and burning slated for relese in a matter of months. I'll tell you what the Big N did; they made a little phone call to the man. Mr. Miyamoto was called to the project imediatly, in hope that he could save Zelda. Regardless, try as they might, the 3rd game had to be dropped, it simply wasn't pratical. So just like that, the game featuring Farore as the main character went poof, and her oracle days were forever spent behind a desk, living in a Giant Maku Tree.
Well, as you can see, things ended up ok for our woe-stricken game designers. With Mr. M's help they were able to get the games done, done well, and out by the set relese date. But signs of the inital ideas remain. These are especially prevelant in the linked version (SPOILER) when you see the 3 fires lit, and the 3rd one miraculously doesn't require the capture of an oracle and the destruction of a land and whatnot.(/SPOILER) It's obvious as well that each game was supposed to feature Goddess and the corresponding section of the Triforce.
Finally, just as something to ponder, there are many things that will forever remain a mystery about the lost 3rd Oracle game. Things like what was Farore really the goddess off? What was her special power? What was her average tallent? (Remember, Din could Dance, Nayru could Sing..) Where was the far-away land she lived in? As I stated earlier, these are things we'll never know, because the game was scrapped back when it was not even half finnished, so don't expect it to show up on a campaign disk or for GBA. That being said, the Oracle Series was still a milestone acheivement, even for Zelda games, but now you know the whole story.
Back to the Oracle of Seasons Section
|
Back to the Oracle of Ages Section
