The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is a 2011 action-adventure game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii. A mainline entry in The Legend of Zelda series, Skyward Sword is the first game in the Zelda timeline, and details the origins of the Master Sword, a recurring weapon within the series. Series protagonist Link, a resident of a floating town called Skyloft, sets out to rescue his childhood friend Zelda after she is kidnapped and brought to the abandoned lands below the clouds. As Link, players navigate Skyloft and the lands below it, completing quests that advance the story and solving environmental and dungeon-based puzzles. The mechanics and combat, the latter focusing on attacking and blocking with sword and shield, are reliant on the Wii MotionPlus peripheral.
Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA, read 5 September 2026.
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- Released
- 2011
- Developer
- Nintendo Entertainment Analysis & Development
- Platforms
- 2 systems
- Critics
- Not scored
- Steam Deck
- Unknown
- Download
- Not stated
The record
| First released | 18 November 2011 |
|---|---|
| Developer | Nintendo Entertainment Analysis & Development |
| Publisher | Nintendo |
| Platforms | Nintendo Wii U, Nintendo Wii |
| Genres | Action Adventure |
Source. Catalogue facts from Wikidata Q861205, seeded 30 August 2026.
How long is The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword? How long to beat it
Total play time for The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is about 58.4 hours to do everything, and around 38 hours to reach the end of the main story. These are player-submitted times from HowLongToBeat, not our own, shown with the number of players behind each.
| How you play | Hours | Players logged |
|---|---|---|
| Just the main story: straight through the critical path | 38h | 358 |
| Main + the extras: story plus the side content most people do | 46.8h | 486 |
| Completionist: everything: 100% the game | 58.4h | 198 |
Source: HowLongToBeat community submissions, read 2026-10-19.
Where The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword sits on the grid
The grid places every game in the catalogue on measured axes rather than on an opinion. This is where The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword lands on each map it has the data for, with the share of the catalogue it beats on each axis.
- Year
- 77ahead of 30% of the catalogue
- Reach
- 57ahead of 94% of the catalogue
Percentiles are against the games that carry a reading on that axis, not the whole catalogue: counting a game with no figure as a zero would flatter everything that has one. How the grid works.
What readers say about The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Reviews written by people who have played it. These are separate from the GamingPickz Score and are never averaged into it: that score comes from thousands of Steam reviews with a sample-size correction, and a handful of unverified ratings would distort it rather than improve it.
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Where The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword appears
The ranked lists and finder pages The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword qualifies for, from its own genre and platform to what it takes to run.
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Common questions about The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
What platforms is The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword on?
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is available on Nintendo Wii U, Nintendo Wii. It first released in 2011.
Who made The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword?
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword was developed by Nintendo Entertainment Analysis & Development and published by Nintendo.
How long does it take to beat The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword?
about 38 hours for the main story, 46.8 hours with the main extras, 58.4 hours to complete everything, from HowLongToBeat's player-submitted times. These are community medians, so your own run may be shorter or longer.