Blood in Zelda Games

[Conker]

EDIT:

When I say I want all enemies capable of bleeding to bleed, I do not mean over-the-top blood, and gore. I just mean subtle effects, is all.

 

Here, let me just slap my latest post here:

"I just want to see any creature capable of bleeding, bleed (and bleed blood that is colored to match what they are, of course).

 

Y'all know that red sparkle effect when you slash enemies in the games?

Just a few particles of blood to go with it, is all. What I have in mind is the blood animation that plays when you kill a Tektite in TP; it's subtle, and not over the top. But boy, does it make killing them more satisfying (for me, at least)."

 

I just want there to be a certain level of consistency, is all. And quite frankly, a little blood makes my blows with a sword feel more satisfying in a game.

Meh.

 

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So, this seems like an interesting topic of discussion.

 

Apparently we can't have blood in a Zelda because it'd be too realistic, or something. Well, see, it's not about realism... it's about consistency.

Why do I say that, though? Well, Zelda games have a pretty bad habit of allowing a few enemies to bleed, but the rest however, to not.

 

Look, I'm sorry, but it's either all (organic) enemies bleed or they don't.

There's no ifs, buts or arguments about it. The fact enemies behave as they do in this manner, shows major inconsistency in the design of these games.

Pretty much, it's a design flaw, and nothing more. If it was intentional by the developers, it's STILL a flaw, and STILL makes no sense.

 

Not to mention, the game features sword combat.

Last I checked, swords kind of tend to fuck with a creature's veins, and you know, kind of... tear them open, along with the skin, to let blood escape. 

 

ANYWAYS, because I feel it's necessary, here's a list of all Zelda games (that immediately come to mind) which feature enemies that bleed:

 

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Twilight Princess:

• Diababa: Yes, you know when you attack Diababa's eye? Blood sprays out of that fucking thing like crazy. You can even go check for yourself.
  
• Tektite: These enemies, upon being killed, spray blood out of their eyes. Not making this up, go check for yourself.
  

 

Wind Waker:

• Dexivine: Upon killing these enemies, they spray massive amounts of blood everywhere.
  

 

Ocarina of Time:

• Ganon: When you're finishing him off, slashing away at his face, particles of blood are flying all over the place.
  
• Ganondorf: He vomits up blood, people. A color change from red to green also doesn't make it normal vomit, either. It's still blood.
  
• Shell Blade: Those clam creatures, in the Water Temple. Yes, when you kill them, a cloud of their own red blood surrounds them.
  
• The Well: ...is almost literally painted with blood in certain locations.
  
• Some enemies release tiny particles of green/purple blood upon being attacked. Some.
  

 

Majora's Mask:

• Some enemies release tiny particles of green/purple blood upon being attacked. Some.
  
• I think there also WAS an enemy that had a more graphic display of blood in the game, but I cannot remember right now.
  

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So, in the end, would it really be so bad for every single enemy to bleed when you attack them?

No, no it wouldn't. In fact, I'm 100% supportive of 3D Zelda games ditching this inconsistent design flaw.

[HeavyZ]

Nope Zelda doesn't need blood it wouldn't be fitting, especially with enemy's like these.

 

Blood would not be suitable for this video game series *Scoffs* it's just not Zelda

It's not Zelda 1

It's not OoT

It's not Twilight Princess

I couldn't even see half of the enemies in MM bleeding.

It would never work.

[Conker]

Nope Zelda doesn't need blood it wouldn't be fitting, especially with enemy's like these.

Ah! Thanks for reminding me: this guy blows up into a giant pile of blood and guts when you defeat him.

[DeathBasket]

Guys, don't panic. As long as enemies don't bleed, it doesn't matter that there is a room with blood on the floor in the Shadow Temple, a room with blood on the walls beneath the well and some of the walls are made from skulls.

 

 

Does anyone remember the reason this was allowed to stay in the game when Ganon's blood wasn't?

[Conker]

Because it isn't animated, which is kind of a stupid reason.

 

 

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Sent from my iPhone, because Siri has my manhood in her purse... or something.

[Strati]

Oh, wait.... aren't we on a Zelda modding community? How convenient...

[Spire]

I prefer selective use of blood, not overt. The Legend of Zelda contains, but does not focus on violence. There is quite a lot of it, but the dispatching of foes is but a type of obstacle like other puzzles in-game. Most enemies are animals, but some are plants, and plants don't bleed blood. All Deku foes and Leevers should not bleed red blood. Green is very appropriate. Ever cut open a cactus? Full of green-pulp water.

 

Blood is a biological substance that exists in animals. It is thought of commonly as a physical life source. Without it, you die. I've grown really, really sick of how much gritty, bloody Zelda fan art is out there. I think such excessive amounts would dilute the importance of seeing blood. Everyone remembers the blood in the Bottom of the Well and the Shadow Temple for a reason. As an aesthetic, it was used to emphasize the purpose, the history, and the atmosphere of these particularly dark places, rendering them the most fearsome of all locations in Ocarina of Time.

 

I don't have a clear memory of where and when blood has been used in the series besides the aforementioned, so I will suggest what I deem fitting:

• Dead Hand could have benefited by spurting blood with every slash, given its gruesome appearance.
• Gibdos don't need blood because mummies are dried up.
• The ReDead are shrunken and are also perhaps devoid of blood. Maybe that's why they, like the Gibdos, gnaw on your head. For brain blood.
• Censoring Ganon's blood with a green tint was pretty lame.
• Moblins in Skyward Sword: pot-belly giants whose guts could have been sliced open, and while maybe not spraying blood, could have at least shown thick layers of fat.

I believe blood should be used sparingly in Zelda to emphasize that which is most likely to project, or be contaminated by the substance. Gore is just not necessary in Zelda. There is enough violence as-is.

[Conker]

I believe blood should be used sparingly in Zelda to emphasize that which is most likely to project, or be contaminated by the substance. Gore is just not necessary in Zelda. There is enough violence as-is.

 

I feel the same way, and kept saying the same thing in the other thread. I feel people are getting the wrong impression here.

 

I just want to see any creature capable of bleeding, bleed (and bleed blood that is colored to match what they are, of course).

 

Y'all know that red sparkle effect when you slash enemies in the games?

Just a few particles of blood to go with it, is all. What I have in mind is the blood animation that plays when you kill a Tektite in TP; it's subtle, and not over the top. But boy, does it make killing them more satisfying (for me, at least).

[Spire]

It's nice when a bug squishes, only because it feels more realistic. I honestly don't think any enemy should bleed, because it's a fantasy video game world where anything goes. However, if even the subtlest gore was added to the deaths of most foes, depending on how fearsome or docile the foe is, it might make the player (especially a young person) feel either satisfaction or guilt. Some enemies just don't look all that threatening, particularly in post-N64 games. If they bled and cowered when you slashed them, it could easily illicit an emotional response, and not a good one. What I'm trying to say is—blood adds a level of realism to violence, and if your point as a developer is to inform your audience of why not to act violently, then it could help prove your point. Otherwise, you could end up attracting the goregamer crowd to your corruption of a kid-friendly fantasy game. Notice how Nintendo dialed back the violence between TP and SS to retreat from T to E+? By taking Zelda into that darker aesthetic with a fair amount of blood, you're alienating some people.

 

I dunno man, your PSN gamertag is "GoreProducer". Seems you just like blood. I like when blood is used as a theme. We've got enough violence in this world, it's nice to escape that into friendly fantasy video game worlds every now and then. The games that try to emulate as much of reality as possible seem to lose their 'game' quality and become simulators of some sort. I'm happy that Zelda isn't a simulator; SS's swordplay was the closest form of anything-simulation the series has ever had.

[Conker]

I guess I see what you're saying, good point.

 

EDIT:

I dunno man, your PSN gamertag is "GoreProducer". Seems you just like blood.

 

Well, I was much younger than I am now when I made that.

Not that I like blood (like, have a weird fascination with it), it just makes kills in a video game more satisfying for me.

[Agnostic Priest]

I just want to say, the dead hand is actually splattered in bloodin the 3DS version of the game the red blotches are totally no apparent at all. serious find a gameplay video of the deadhand fight in the 3DS version of the game, the deadhands white, while in the n64 version of the game its splattered in blood

[Conker]

They made him look like a he's made of globs of transparent semen in the 3DS version.

[Twili]

They made him look like a he's made of globs of transparent semen in the 3DS version.

I actually took a picture of the Dead Hand when I first played.

 

[Conker]

He's so semen-y. :x

[HeavyZ]

you could end up attracting the goregamer crowd to your corruption of a kid-friendly fantasy game. Notice how Nintendo dialed back the violence between TP and SS to retreat from T to E+? By taking Zelda into that darker aesthetic with a fair amount of blood, you're alienating some people.

 

I see your point Spire, and point taken.

Nintendo just seems to be aiming for the younger audience these day more than usual I feel. At least in Zelda. The level of difficulty was retarded in Skyward Sword. I felt like my hand was being held the entire time.

One could say the difficulty of finding and slashing the goddes cubes, plus getting all of the crystals for whatever that demons name was would have added to it, but overall it just wasn't a hard game. It's a shame when comparing to classics like Zelda 1, 2, and ALTTP. Nintendo's old school fanbase, is.. well.. older. I guess it wouldn't be fare to add more violence at the loss of a younger crowd, and even though I may be wrong, I feel like Zelda really is more, or less our generations series. I wouldn't want to keep other young kids from playing it like we have, so taking this into consideration, I guess I feel a little torn between idea's of what would be best, and just plainly what I want for the series knowing your point is valid.

[DeathBasket]

 

One could say the difficulty of finding and slashing the goddes cubes, plus getting all of the crystals for whatever that demons name was would have added to it, but overall it just wasn't a hard game. It's a shame when comparing to classics like Zelda 1, 2, and ALTTP.

 

I haven't played Zelda 1 or 2 but I beat ALttP very recently. The only thing that made it harder than SS for me was the amount of damage you can take all over the place in dungeons. It was kind of like hero mode because the difficulty is only really there when you're low on health or there's a lot of enemies.

[HeavyZ]

I don't care how good you are at gaming, you can't tell me Turtle Rock was a piece of cake, having to avoid those lazers balls all over the place, especially when riding that pad and hitting the switches. A notable boss, who, while isn't hard, but very annoying is the Death Mountain boss, you fall off the edge half the time if you hit him wrong.

 

I never said the puzzles were hard in those games either, they always stick to the same puzzle formula, so after playing so many Zelda games no other seems difficult. When I say I felt like my hand was being held I was mostly referring to Fi, think about how much harder the game would have been without her pointing out everything. Sure anyone could have figured things out, it would have still taken more time surely though. She was worse than Navi.

I think the hardest puzzle in any of the Zelda games wasn't really a puzzle, but it was actually getting to Ganon's room in Lvl 9 in Zelda 1. It was soo difficult just to survive long enough just to get there, even if you did know where it was. Again, Zelda 2 did not have hard puzzles, but surviving some dungeons was as hard as nails, and some Palaces were very large with a similar layout that was seen in something like Metroid Nes.

 

Beat Dark Link in Zelda 2 without any cheats in front of any who have tried and they will all recognize you as truly skilled.

 

Demise was nothing, Looked cool, but was not difficult. None of the dungeons in SS had anything hard about them whatsoever. It's been a while, but I don't think I remember having any trouble with any of the bosses.

 

The Thunder Dragon's boss rush might have been the most difficult thing in the game, and I don't even count that because it wasn't mandatory.

[EXIA]

The simple reason why there's not is the demographic that Nintendo are aiming at. They don't want Zelda to be rated mature.I know what you're thinking - "a little bit of blood doesn't make it mature" - but combine that with the complex themes and dark stories that Zelda has and it's no longer for kiddies in the eyes of the ratings boards.

[Conker]

But the games already have blood. Making MORE than just a few enemies bleed isn't going to give it an M rating. :|

 

 

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Sent from my iPhone, because Siri has my manhood in her purse... or something.

[Spire]

The simple reason why there's not is the demographic that Nintendo are aiming at. They don't want Zelda to be rated mature.I know what you're thinking - "a little bit of blood doesn't make it mature" - but combine that with the complex themes and dark stories that Zelda has and it's no longer for kiddies in the eyes of the ratings boards.

 

Complex themes and dark stories? Aside from Majora's Mask, the series is relatively lighthearted. Most of the complexity comes from fans overanalyzing and arguing about moot points; what is presented in game is rather mundane. Zelda is a fantasy series about a lot of duality and triality, classic mythological motifs that build the backbone of Zelda history.

 

Its stories are not complex because we're following a vessel of a protagonist, not an actual character with a defined personality. Each game is more or less a romp through a fantasy world where you fight monsters, explore temples, solve puzzles, and earn treasure. As an added bonus, you get to fulfill some kind of story. You couldn't write a lengthy novel based on a Zelda game because there's not enough narrative resonance or dialog to compose a worthwhile story. I recall reading a novelization of OoT back in '99. Sure, it was exciting because I got to read Zelda in book form, but even in my youth I recognized it was kind of shoddy, and the pacing rather repetitive.

 

For this reason, I believe Zelda is best presented in the video game format. I once fancied the idea of a movie, but the TV show and the varied manga adaptations all lack something crucial: human input. Plus, they give Link a voice, so he says things I wouldn't want him to say, which is bothersome. And they break lore.

[DarthDub]

I hope what I'm about to say is relevant to this topic. I want to make a rom hack of Ocarina of Time (U) to change the green and blue blood back to red.

[mzxrules]

You don't need a rom hack for that. Just play v1.0

[DarthDub]

You don't need a rom hack for that. Just play v1.0

I meant all the green and blue blood. Besides wouldn't it just take a simple Gameshark code?

[Strati]

So... I might have stumbled on a way to change the damage animation and could use this request for blood to do some proof-testing.

 

If there's any interest, could you list some enemies that in your opinion should have the bleeding effect in OoT?

[Conker]

Gerudos (both the guards and the ones you fight), cuccos, Ganondorf, and... well, I just woke up, so I can't think too well currently, lol. That's all that come to mind right now.

 

 

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Sent from my iPhone, because Siri has my manhood in her purse... or something.