Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks pulling into retail station Dec. 7
by Griffin McElroy 
{ Sep 15th 2009 at 3:57PM } 
A Nintendo press release promoting the company's holiday lineup has confirmed a December 7 release date for Link's next Nintendo DS-based outing, The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks. That's just in time for the cold, harsh winter -- but it's still quite a ways off. We suggest playing through Phantom Hourglass while watching reruns of Thomas the Tank Engine in order to tide yourself over until then.
If you're not familiar with the Spirit-ed, Hylian adventure, check out our hands-on impressions of the game from E3 earlier this year, or watch the debut GDC trailer!
If you're not familiar with the Spirit-ed, Hylian adventure, check out our hands-on impressions of the game from E3 earlier this year, or watch the debut GDC trailer!
Gallery: The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Storm Eagle [Resident Capcom Megafan] @ Sep 15th 2009 4:03PM
Just in time to get placed under my tree for Christmas. Awesome.
uncle jesse @ Sep 15th 2009 4:05PM
Seriously, I don't think I will ever NOT want a new Zelda game.
bearxor @ Sep 15th 2009 4:05PM
This looks... awful.
Storm Eagle [Resident Capcom Megafan] @ Sep 15th 2009 4:09PM
In terms of what?
No, it doesn't matter. You're crazy.
bearxor @ Sep 15th 2009 4:19PM
I guess just in terms of what I'd like to play. Probably the fact that I haven't played a Zelda game since Ocarina before picking up Phantom Hourglass and not being really impressed with PH on top of that is probably making me feel all kinds of 'ewww' towards ST.
Honestly, I didn't even really like Ocarina. LttP is still tops in my books.
Storm Eagle [Resident Capcom Megafan] @ Sep 15th 2009 4:23PM
While LttP is second best in my book, saying that you "didn't really like Ocarina" forever removes all credibility you have towards commenting on past, present and future Zelda titles.
We're done here.
ToadStoolPorridge @ Sep 15th 2009 4:08PM
I don't think I've purchased a DS game since Phantom Hourglass, and now 3 titles that I'm very interested in are all coming out right now. I'm picking up Scribblenauts and Mario & Luigi 3 on Friday and this will be a sure-buy for me when it comes out. My wallet will not be happy with me this fall and winter...
Rob S. @ Sep 15th 2009 4:13PM
Ditto, So many games, so little time and even littler money.
Danthok @ Sep 15th 2009 4:14PM
Can never go wrong with Zelda. Looks like they have really perfected using the DS touch screen for game mechanics.
Danthok @ Sep 15th 2009 4:15PM
Spirit Tracks is a pretty lame name though.
bearxor @ Sep 15th 2009 4:16PM
I guess just in terms of what I'd like to play. Probably the fact that I haven't played a Zelda game since Ocarina before picking up Phantom Hourglass and not being really impressed with PH on top of that is probably making me feel all kinds of 'ewww' towards ST.
Honestly, I didn't even really like Ocarina. LttP is still tops in my books.
bearxor @ Sep 15th 2009 4:17PM
Joystiq reply fail.
bearxor @ Sep 15th 2009 4:18PM
Double reply fail. I think I'll just stop here and step away from the comment system,.
Storm Eagle [Resident Capcom Megafan] @ Sep 15th 2009 4:25PM
It's Karma.
MRLN the Amazing @ Sep 15th 2009 4:45PM
It's actually just general fail. It's the comment system's way of saying, "screw you, play more Zelda before saying it sucks."
Phantom Hourglass is arguably one of the worse Zelda games to date, please play Wind Waker before continuing with your unfortunate opinion.
Jimmijam @ Sep 15th 2009 5:04PM
O RLY!?! Phantom Hourglass is arguably worse than, say, Adventures of Link!?
Let's not make asinine remarks unless you have actually played all of Zelda titles.
I get that the repetitive gameplay at Ocean King's Temple killed the overall experience. But really, that was only a small (albeit annoying) fraction of the overall package. It certainly wasn't the worse.
Quiggy @ Sep 15th 2009 6:35PM
Jimmijam, I have played every Zelda game barring the CD-i ones, and they don't count. Yes, Phantom Hourglass is arguably one of the worst Zelda games. As in, one can argue that it is one of the worst Zelda games. One of. There's a few duds in there. Phantom Hourglass is a pain in the ass because of the Temple of the Ocean King, although the rest of it is great. Zelda 2 is tough-as-nails, but very fun, as is the original Zelda.
Funny thing about opinions: everyone's got different ones. I'm one of those weirdos who liked Wind Waker the best out of any Zelda game, but I don't hate on everyone says Ocarina is the best.
bm @ Sep 16th 2009 7:17AM
I seriously do not freaking get why so many cry like babies over the ocean king temple. Are you people even gamers? Have you never even played a game where you had practice on something a few times to figure it out/develop the skills to get it right? You people must absolutely loathe like half of all game genres out there.
The ocean king's temple was a very well thought-out piece of gameplay, just because you're a whiny pussy doesn't change that fact.
nickux @ Sep 15th 2009 4:30PM
While I'm sure this game will sell an insane amount of copies- I am a little surprised Nintendo didn't try to get it out in October or November to catch all of the early holiday shopping.
Mr Khan @ Sep 15th 2009 4:38PM
It's not entirely unprecedented for Nintendo, though the last instance i can think of was Melee, which launched in December in America.
Won't sell insanely well, at least, not according to the standards of the real DS (and Wii) heavy hitters. 3-4 million, probably. Great sales, but not insane :)
esposch @ Sep 16th 2009 1:31AM
The first one sold just over 4.5m (and rising) - but I suspect this one will beat it and sell 6m. Already got the first game giving it a free boost...
nickux @ Sep 16th 2009 11:29AM
Are Zelda games as "evergreen" as games like Mario Kart or NSMB? I don't think it really needs it but did Phantom Hourglass see a long, steady sales record? I honestly forget.
GewurztraminerX @ Sep 15th 2009 4:31PM
It's not often you can ask what do Ringo Starr and George Carlin have in common
Huey2k2 @ Sep 15th 2009 4:36PM
CHOO CHOO
Maulok @ Sep 15th 2009 4:38PM
I hate that I never finished Phantom Hourglass, all because of the annoyingly repetitive, timed, stealth Ocean King Temple. It's the first Zelda I have played that lost my interest.
No Ocean King Temple = I'll be buying Spirit Tracks day 1!
Jimmijam @ Sep 15th 2009 4:48PM
I hear ya, but as much as that was painful, the final battle and watching the story unfold was awesome. Really, if you can muster up a pound of patience to get through that Temple, the rest of the game was truly fantastic.
Mr Khan @ Sep 15th 2009 4:56PM
I didn't mind having to re-do the temple over and over again (it had a sort of Metroid element to it, each time through with a new item yielded new secrets), but i absolutely loathe any kind of adventure game that gets set on a timer, part of the reason why i never committed to buying Majora's Mask.
So the timer was the killer for me in that, not having to do it multiple times.
ToadStoolPorridge @ Sep 15th 2009 5:01PM
Playing the final boss battle was pretty awesome. Like Jimmijam said, if you can dig deep and find some extra patience then it would definitely be worth it to try to finish it.
samfish [is sad there is no Gene in Tats v Cap =( ] @ Sep 15th 2009 5:04PM
Same here. I seriously about once or twice a month sit there and contemplate restarting Spirit Tracks, but I can just never bring myself to do it :\ The stupid temple ultimately made me lose interest, even with the shortcuts.
I'm excited for Spirit Tracks, but not as excited as I would be if it were more in line with a traditional, topdown Zelda. I don't want to have to get around via train tracks or something. I at least hope you can jump out of the train and wander around, though. Heck, just remake A Link to the Past with the PH/ST engine!
bm @ Sep 16th 2009 7:44AM
"part of the reason why i never committed to buying Majora's Mask."
Ugh, figures that someone who hates that temple is exactly the kind of person who wouldn't buy MM, possibly the best Zelda game to date. Just... ugh.
im you wii maker @ Sep 19th 2009 4:20PM
u just suck at it
for the ending boss was to easy i even cried i finished it in 3 weeks
Mr Khan @ Sep 15th 2009 4:39PM
I don't often say this, but, releasing a holiday release schedule that dates everything *but* NSMBWii?
Fuck you, Nintendo.
samfish [is sad there is no Gene in Tats v Cap =( ] @ Sep 15th 2009 5:34PM
What is that? Like the first time you've ever typed the F word before?
Mr Khan @ Sep 15th 2009 5:37PM
No, that i've specifically strung "Fuck you, Nintendo" into a sentence.
Of course, it's not in the context of real rage, just of vague frustration. Everything else they'll reveal, except the one game everyone's after...
Probably save it for one of their upcoming events, like Kyoto CMEX or that London thing
Nook @ Sep 15th 2009 9:31PM
see Mr. Kahn, you can't go saying it half assed like that. mean it or don't say it, don't devalue the word.
it's either - fuck you nintendo
or
damn, oh well, motomansan says a delayed game is...
MRLN the Amazing @ Sep 15th 2009 4:47PM
First Crystal Bearers and now Spirit Tracks is coming before the holidays? Next they'll be telling us that Dragon Quest IX is coming out December 12th! (hopeshopeshopeshopes)
Mr Khan @ Sep 15th 2009 4:54PM
Crystal Bearers comes out 1 day after Christmas. Unless you live in Japan
MRLN the Amazing @ Sep 16th 2009 3:34PM
Eh, I'm not Christian, I just use the end of the year as an excuse to give people presents.
CloudStrife @ Sep 15th 2009 4:50PM
Hopefully the European release will be around the same time. It better be
Danzaiver @ Sep 15th 2009 5:06PM
Wow, this game actually looks good.
Guess I will have to buy a DS just for this game :(
Just kidding, there are many cool DS games. Maybe a new Zelda DSi? YES PLEASE!
Marius @ Sep 15th 2009 5:31PM
eh no thanks
This game blows. @ Sep 15th 2009 5:54PM
The Zelda series has been doing extremely bad since, minish cap, i played that for 5 minutes and that game was horrendous.
Now looking at this game, i want to vomit, and puke all over everything because they have even bastardized one of gaming greats, in a swoop of repitivity and mediocrity mixed with a little shit in it.
I for one, and about 20 of my freinds will be not buying the next nintendo systems,
it is either make the games great again or cease to exist.
Anyone who does not disagree at all, is fine with not having good games what so ever, so have fun playing your crappy forms of once great games.
And jimmijam what the fuck is wrong with you, you are allowing a great company, you are actually praising that phantom hourglass was lackluster, if you keep on doing that, the games will get worse and worse.
BE A FUCKING MAN and crticize the bad parts of the game. ONLY with true criticism and not false praise can anything, and i mean anything get better then where it is in the present.
How stupid it is of an idea, make a game that is on rails, and the enemies cannot even kill you, the dungeons are explicitly easy. And the music is absolute shit. What the hell is wrong with all of you for not knowing that. And not no one here acknowledged that, it is like the world is too scared to speak the truth. And since that happens our culture begins to degrade it self. Think of Nazi Germany back in the 1930s,
Ziggy @ Sep 15th 2009 6:11PM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrcpufOa2ic
LINKS AWAKENING LAST BOSS kills the shit out of this Last enemy.
That is right i will not call it a boss because it is too easy and simplistic to be a boss.
Go watch them side by side, how many hearts did the one person lost when he played 1 fucking heart from a fucking boss what the fuck is this degradation of skill required for this game.
When will game developers stop caring so much about graphics and actually improve the difficulties in games, and stop worrying about dlc. And actually make changes in the game play in itself.
We have games that are exactly the same, that are the best, that tout the best graphics , and the greatest quality of dlc, when we should focus on difficulty and gameplay. When 2 generations ago, games were completely different from each other. The graphics were good for its time.
Metal gear solid anyone. Super Smash brothers. Banjo kazooie. Ocarina of time. Glover. Resident evil.
Face it our games are in a rut, you are paying 60 dollars for 2 versions of the same game, then 20 dollars for a 4 hour expansion of the same game, that ooh you also get two weapons previously unheard of. shotgun and a tec-9. Then you pay 15 dollars for maps that you can use those weapons on, for multiplayer, and not to mention 50 dollars per year to play games online.
We need some creativity, the world needs some creativity, because without it we are all the same.
esposch @ Sep 16th 2009 2:07AM
I both disagree and agree with you there Mr. This Game Blows. I took New Super Mario Bros back to the shops and got a refund, thought Metroid Prime Hunters wasn't up to the standard of the console games, and that Phantom Hourglass wasn't as good as Wind Waker (although I still thought it was very good).
HOWEVER, this seems to be because Nintendo focused on the console versions of their games. Galaxy, Twilight Princess and Corruption were all great games (although Twilight Princess was arguably overrated). Instead, Nintendo has supported the DS with great "non big 3" games - Elite Beat Agents, Advance Wars, Pokemon (Platinum - Diamond sucked IMO) and the 2 Mario & Luigi games are some examples of great work Nintendo has done on their new systems. Yes, I wonder how Phantom Hourglass could have been as a more Ocarina-ish game, but instead Nintendo chose to shake up the formula a bit - and it worked quite well IMO.
What I think you should never do though is bring up Hitler. It was the worst mistake I ever made. Your actions have consequenses. Long story short: I was once arguing with a friend who's grandfather was killed in a concentration camp (I didn't know at the time) and we got into such a big fight because he was so offended he stabbed me. I left town and never came back, and never spoke to any of my friends again... Bringing Hitler into fanboy arguments devalues the death of millions and you should never use it in a some shit flinging contest about new vs classic... So yeah, basically, I got in one little fight and my momma got scared; she said "You're moving in with your aunty and uncle in Bel-Air." I whisted for a cab and when it came near the license plate said fresh and had dice in the mirror. If anything i could say that this cab was rare, but i thought nah, forget it
yo home to Bel-Air! I pulled up to a house about 7:00 or 8:00 I yelled to the cabby yo homes, smell you later. Looked at my kingdom I was finally there
to sit on my throne as the prince of Bel-Air.
Chibi Chaingun - blackhivemedia.com @ Sep 15th 2009 6:03PM
What is up with the train?
Mr Mobius - the wandering artist @ Sep 15th 2009 6:06PM
Is Galaxy 2 also coming out during then holidays? Either way, I'll not be getting Metroid Prime Trilogy until Christmas (no console gaming during university generally so all DS gaming - and Scribblenauts seems perfect for the 15 min gameplay I get at uni.
Glad that this year I've no exams at Christmas so I actually get guilt free gaming unlike the past two years where I've had Christmas day and Boxing day, and then had revision after that.
Mr Khan @ Sep 15th 2009 7:38PM
SMG2 is tentatively set for early next year. I'm betting March or April, myself, but then again i was betting on October for Spirit Tracks...
gaph2000 @ Sep 15th 2009 10:04PM
Didn't Miyamoto say next Holiday? Plus, there is that rumor that Other M is coming out in March (If you're not familiar with the rumor, in the trailer at the end when it says "2010", if you look at the top, Samus' missile count and Health reads "3 / 25")
sparkster @ Sep 15th 2009 6:13PM
Will wait for the reviews for that one. Or rather for reports from friends. If the dungeons are more creative and the puzzles more interesting than in PH, I might force myself to deal with the gimmicky controls. But if it's another "hit switches in order 4213" type of game, this will be the first Zelda I won't play (other than the CD-i ones that is).
bm @ Sep 16th 2009 7:47AM
"gimmicky controls"? lol, you tool.