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10/9
Wind Waker HD has been released, alongside a Wii U bundle pack with a specially designed game pad & a free digital copy of Hyrule Historia. As it has now been released this thread will be moved to the general gaming forum so you can use it to discuss your experiences playing the game!

8/25
Updates!! Certain changes and extras for this re-release have been confirmed. Namely:
- Five pieces of the Triforce of Courage can be found directly, with only the last three requiring the use of translated maps
- Hero Mode confirmed: Similar to Skyward's version, health will only be re-gainable through potions and enemies will hurt harder. Biggest change: Hero Mode is available to start with right off the bat
- Picto Box: can store up to twelve photos, share with Miiverse, and, no joke, Link can now take selfies with various expressions (LOL)
- Swift Sail: faster sailing (can be acquired from the auction house after the first dungeon)
- General gameplay streamlining and subtle improvements to quest efficiency (ex. Tingle will be more directly introduced to avoid confusion/missing his island)

IGN

NEW Wind Waker HD/Wii U Bundle leaked

Similar to the limited edition Zelda 3DS/Ocarina of Time 3D release bundle, it seems Nintendo will be releasing a bundle pack containing a specially designed Wii U along with a copy of WW HD. Waiting for official confirmation from Nintendo but you can check out the preliminary image HERE


6/15
New information from E3!

A new trailer was introduced during the live stream of the video conference, find it here!!

A couple of changes have been confirmed in this version of The Wind Waker, which is set to release this October on the Wii U in 1080 HD resolution:
- At some point in the game you gain the ability to increase sailing speed at will, similar to the dash function from Skyward Sword (though there doesn't appear to be a limit to how long you can use it).
- The Tingle Tuner has been replaced with the "Tingle Bottle"! This is a brand new function designed to work with the Wii U's Miiverse; you can use the Tingle Bottle to send messages and even screenshots to the Miiverse and converse with other players. You will also be able to find other players' Tingle Bottles on random island shores to see for yourself!
- Eiji Aonuma was very vague in his discussion of this last point, but he did make the effort to mention that other aspects of the game were going to be changed slightly, such as the quest for the pieces of the Triforce of Courage. He mentioned how he understood that some aspects of that quest and other elements like it were rather tedious but did not give really any clues as to how they might be changing it. We'll see what happens!

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02/2013
As many of you may have already heard with today's Nintendo Direct broadcast, we have got some very exciting updates for what's in store for Zelda on the Wii U!!

Most notably, Eiji Aonuma said that in the process of working on the next official installment of the series on the Wii U, the Zelda team has been experimenting with revamps of graphic styles and gameplay structure of previous titles. The Twilight Princess tech demo we saw at E3 a couple of years ago is one example of this. Apparently, in the process of experimenting with The Wind Waker, the team was so taken with the results that they decided to release a full remake of the game with completely overhauled HD graphics!! The remade title is set to release this fall!



Click here for the source article on Zelda Dungeon with screencaps of HD Wind Waker!!

The remake will also feature some "fine-tuning" to elements of WW's gameplay - typically vague statements that seem to indicate a possible incorporation of the GamePad; perhaps similar to how the GBA was used as the "Tingle Tuner"?

We also got official confirmation that a new Zelda is definitely in the works for the Wii U (that's pretty much a "duh", but hey it's still nice to know!). As far as hints about what's happening with that, Aonuma stated that they are in the process of rethinking two conventional aspects of Zelda; namely, having to "complete dungeons in a certain order" and "playing by yourself". This seems to indicate we might be in for another multiplayer in some format and potentially a complete re-haul in dungeon sequencing and design. The latter has been tried in several different ways in the last few Zelda installments, so it'll be interesting to see what kind of new direction this may go in!

What do you guys think about all of this, particularly the news about the Wind Waker remake? I'm personally PSYCHED as all hell as WW is one of my top favorites of the entire series, but I also still hope that they might make a 3DS version of Majora's Mask, too. It would be a nice companion to OoT 3D and I think we're all pretty much dying for Nintendo to do something with MM anyway. We'll see!

Also, here is a link to a youtube clip of the entire Zelda news section of the Nintendo Direct video!

This. Is. BEYOND AMAZING!!! blaugh I can't wait!!! 4laugh

Yep, over here my brother and I were like "well hell I guess we have to get a Wii U now". xD We were waiting for something Zelda-related to come out for it.

o.o it wasn't my favorite Zelda game, but those graphics look amazing and now I am kind of excited for it!

Now that I've gotten my hands on the Wii U (Zelda Wind Waker edition, no less *^^*) and a (digital) copy of Wind Waker HD, I can offer some firsthand experience on the re-release!

The game is beautiful but to be honest other than the bloom and improved resolution (which does have a significant effect on the quality, it's quite nice!) I don't know if I'm noticing many other huge differences. Certainly compared to the original it's stunning and presents much better visually; the scope of the camera angles have also been improved. The soundtrack has been largely remastered and is absolutely lovely.

The more direct introduction of Tingle was definitely for the better. I don't want to ruin how they decided to do this for anyone (it could be considered a minor spoiler) but you have to find him very early in the game this time around. This gives you the Tingle map, Tingle bottle, and the opportunity to get the Pictobox practically from the beginning. I am addicted to taking selfies and using/reading posts from the Tingle bottle, it is SO much fun!

The swift sail is awesome and gives you a direct reason to want to participate in the auctions, which are actually kind of fun (if you have enough money...). I recommend going into the auction for the swift sail with at least 300 rupees if possible. I think I managed to get it for 270-ish.

Hero mode so far has proven more annoying than anything, especially at Dragon's Roost where you have the least amount of HP, you have one bottle to your name and everything is on fire. You have to be super careful and conservative with your defenses and potions/fairies. The mechanics for combat and defense have always been well done though and can effectively serve to support careful offensive strategies. Things get easier when you have more bottles and HP.

Controls are slightly different than the original and take some getting used to. For instance, you now have to press "B" to stop sailing and get out of the boat, whereas before it was pressing "A" that got you out (which is now, conversely, the button that whips out the sail; this is automatically equipped whenever you're on the boat). I can't tell you how many times I've whipped open the sail when I meant to get out. Grappling hook is different too, at least on the gamepad; you literally have to move the gamepad around while targeting with it to lock on.

Speaking of the gamepad, its implementation into WW HD is fantastic! The Tingle bottle posts can be read and accessed from it, as can maps and items. This allows, for example, one to work through a dungeon with its map open on the gamepad screen. You can also switch out items a bit more efficiently as this is all done on the gamepad; they took a leaf out of Skyward's book and made it so you don't have to pause in order to equip an item. Playing on the gamepad itself is nice too and looks great!

Boat-related items are automatically equipped when you're on the boat as you get them (sail, grappling hook, bombs, etc). Cruising has also gotten faster which is convenient. The Wind Waker is always equipped on the up button on the d-pad. Small things, but great enhancements in their own right.

It's been tons of fun replaying this wonderful game in this new, remastered form; and for all of the perks and improvements, none of them overshadow Wind Waker's original brilliance.