It's November 7 as I write this. Which means only 13 days until the release of the much-anticipated Legend of Zelda: Skwyard Sword. To me, it's the true sequel to Twilight Princess, as I continue home console Zelda games part of the same series as the handheld, but a different breed, certainly. Oh, and Ocarina of Time 3D counts as a home console one, just saying.

Technically it's a prequel to Skwyard Sword, considering it is the first in chronological order, coming before even Ocarina of Time. The story places Link as a...teenager, I think, maybe early twenties...living in Skyloft, the land above the clouds. Zelda is a childhood friend rather than a princess, taking over the role of Ilia (Twilight Princess) or Saria (Ocarina of Time). Zelda gets kidnapped, duh, by Ghirahim the Demon Lord, a new villian. This game also supposedly talks about Ganon's origins. Nice to have a prequel explaining stuff.

Now, Game Informer is releasing their full review on the 11th, in 4 days, but they have announced it is a 10/10 game! It is the third entry in the Zelda series to score that from them (as well as almost all perfect scores from everyone else), following The Wind Waker and Twilight Princess. Ocarina scored a 9.75, I think, on the N64, and a 9.25 on 3DS. Just meant for home console, I guess.

I think Skyward Sword is what I'd call a semi-RPG. There are lots of side things to do, according to IGN-or maybe GI, but I know one of them said that. There's also a system of collecting items, which seem like they'd be used for crafting. But you give your weapon, the desired items (they have to be the right ones though) and some gold to a blacksmith, who upgrades your weapon for you. I'm definitely going all the way on all the weapons after I finish the main story. There's a form of transportation, the newest incarnation of Epona, a red bird, taking the place of a traditional RPG's horse. There's a huge landscape apparently, much bigger then Twilight Princess's. If it takes at least an hour to walk from one end to the other (including Skyloft) then I'd say it's definitely RPG worthy-on the size, that is. But I think if SS's follow-up keeps this and adds on a bit, it could be a full Zelda RPG, also known as a fan's best dream.

The whole semi-RPG thing brings me to The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, hitting stores...soon. Right below Skyward Sword on my list, hopefully getting it with Christmas money. The sequel to Oblivion, supposedly going to be the biggest game ever, whereas Oblivion was but was pushed to second by Just Cause 2-or so I've heard. Not Just Dance 2, mind you-that would suck for Oblivion, really suck. Not trashing JD2, just saying if a dance game is bigger, that would be sad.

GI's cover story on Skyrim got me super-psyched, and it shouldn't be M. Let me tell you why it is-Alcohol Use means you can get drunk. In the Elder Scrolls series, when you're drunk, the screen goes blurry and your Intelligence and Willpower drops until you sober up. The whole inappropriate content means there are a few low-cut dresses, and maybe some flirting. The violence is fighting people, the blood isn't a big deal in the game, and there aren't actually that many cuss words, and they usually aren't too bad. I'm telling you people, M is closer to PG-13 than R. AO is R.

So yeah. I rambled on and on. Enjoy.