Armed with the Clawshots (can we all admit it’s among the best weapons in Hyrule?) and the Sacred Shield, Link stands at the ancient pier overlooking a sea of sand called, unimaginatively, the Sand Sea. Docked at the end of the pier is a small motorboat, complete with a Timeshift Stone. A nearby robot slumbers, awaiting – you guessed it – the activation of the Stone in the motorboat. The unimaginative-ness continues.
Except, the motorboat is rather fun! Yes, it looks like the SS Minnow from Gilligan’s Island, but there’s really nothing to worry about as you sail.
The sands turn to water as Link and Skipper the robot captain motor about, thanks to the Timeshift Stone it carries within, and for once Link is aided and abetted by someone who gives reasonably clear directions. The robot will send you on three mini-quests, each in a different part of the Sand Sea. It’s like boarding a Carnival Cruise that stops in Tampa, the Caymans, and Cozumel, except things are trying to kill you. And there’s neither a buffet nor shuffleboard. (Itzal and Demelza, of course, remedied the former with the usual provisions of charcuterie, chips, and a special paired cocktail, described below.)
You’ll be visiting Skipper’s Retreat, the Shipyard, and Pirate Stronghold. You’ll also feel like you’re on a wild goose chase most of the time but chase the goose you must. Then you’ll be sailing about trying find and exhume the invisible Sandship.
Skipper’s Retreat
No, this is not where Barbie’s younger sister runs a yoga studio for tired action figures. The ancient robot directs you to his house, which is inconveniently atop a stone pillar/plateau sort of thing. Conveniently, however, you have the Clawshots. Bounce around, kill things, argue with your Nintendo partner about having missed another Goddess Cube, go back for the Goddess Cube, and visit the Skipper’s house. Congratulations, it contains a small treasure. But Skipper will the direct you to your next destination.
Zelder Tip #1 – Although the Skipper gives good directions and nicely marks your map, you’ll benefit from dropping a pinned beacon on the destinations. That way you can see while you’re sailing, without flipping back and forth to the map screen.
The Shipyard
And here we have an excellent example of why Itzal likes to bark, “This game is designed by sadists!” There’s no reason to go through the roller coaster ride of the Shipyard. You get no key, nor weapon, nor…anything, really. Its purpose is to complete the task.
The rollercoaster is frankly annoying. You must start over when you fall. But it’s not too bad; we did it in three tries.
Zelder Tip #2 – “B” is your friend. Pressing the “B” button on the Joy-Con will slow the cart as it careens up, down, and around. Use it to SLOW THE HECK DOWN, until of course you have to SPEED THE HECK UP to jump gaps in the track. Holding your hands over your head and screaming, as you might at the carnival, is hard to do with the Joy-Cons.
Oh, and there’s a giant scorpion waiting in a prison-y room for you at the end. And, unlike the last time you fought a Moldarach and earned a heart container, this time you get bupkis for defeating said giant scorpion. Move on.
Pirate Stronghold
Here, at last, is a destination from which you get something. You’ll be moving through a lot of rooms and interacting with time by carrying a new type of Timeshift Stone.
Zelder Tip #3 – Take a bag full of bombs. There’s one room in particular where you have to kill all the monsters before the room works, and we wound up having to stand on the edge of time to stab a couple of Electro Plumes. But mostly the Stronghold is fun puzzles about where you and your Stone need to be in order for the right time to be taking place.
When the whole mess is behind you, be sure to fiddle around back outside the Stronghold and get the clue you need to convince the Skipper you can dowse for his ship.
Zelder Tip #4 – the motorboat’s cannon is just plain fun and has a good range (unlike many of Link’s weapons). Use it a lot because you need it for…
Finding the Sandship
Your ancient Skipper of a friend will explain that his ship has sunk below the sands or disappeared on the winds of time or some such nonsense. But if you dowse for the ship, you’ll have a direction into which to shoot the cannon and – like Brigadoon – the ship will appear three times, twice fading back into the mists. The third time, unimaginatively, is the charm. The Ship stays visible, Link boards it, and you’re ready for the dungeon.
Except you’re probably inebriated. We sort of were. And here’s why.
We probably should have gone with a “Yo, ho, ho, and a bottle of rum” cocktail for this pairing, but the Sand Sea put us in mind of a breezy beach cocktail of our youth, so we crafted our own version, the Sand Sea Breeze. We may or may not have been concerned the recipes we found online didn’t call for enough vodka. We have no shame for this. It’s an easy, tasty treat that any pirate or respectable sailor would enjoy. We think you will, too.