The art is larger, and more is revealed!

This is just one example of how much bigger the English version is versus the original Japanese version. (Click to enlarge.) The paper and printing are just so much nicer too. And my suspicions were correct (I mentioned it a long time ago) ~the larger format means that they uncovered more of the art. For example: notice how the extra spacing reveals more if the image in the English version. THANK YOU DARK HORSE

I'll post more examples and excerpts from the book in the coming days. For now, be sure to buy your copy! And join us on our Hyrule Historia group if you want some of the fastest Hyrule Historia updates on the net.

My Hyrule Historia Just Arrived! Some Differences: (Updated)

This is my personal copy and the other 2 that I bought as prizes for the Zelda Fanart Calendar Contest I hold every year: Check out the calendar we made this year. And come back soon to find out what the next one will be!

And they're GOOD differences. Anyone who likes the art will love this.

#1 Yes, it is quite a bit bigger. Here's a comparison with the Japanese version:

#2 My hopes came true: THE PRINT QUALITY IS BETTER! Only slightly, but it's still more clear. And yes, the images are larger. (I had already pointed out how that was going to be the case, but in case you missed the post I made about that ages ago, consider it confirmed ;) And, if you know me, you know what this means.

(Also, this is not the best picture. When I do a comparison review tonight or tomorrow I'll have better images.)

#3 Here's the edge of the book. It's not a big deal but, I don't think I've seen a picture of that yet, so I wanted to include it.

Mine came from Amazon, I have Prime: it was the 2 day shipping. The TFAW order is where my LE will hopefully come from, it has not shipped yet. And, like I said, I'm going to go do a write up and make some better images as soon as I can :)

(SO EXCITED! /Dies. It's like a dream!)

Small update I promised a few people: I just got the email from TFAW that says they'll be shipping soon. Both the regular and Limited Edition versions. Could be going out in 1-3 business days.

Hyrule Historia UK orders have been shipping

Congrats to you in the UK! The rest of us schlubs are probably going to have to wait until the 29th for both versions of the book to be sent out. If I hear otherwise: know that I'll be continuing to update with news on our (long outdated name) Facebook page for the book: NoA-Please-bring-us-Hyrule-Historia-in-English

image via Christopher A. : Facebook 

88 copies of the Limited Edition Hyrule Historia left on The RightStuf

Hurry if you want one, they're going to go fast: HERE!

SOLD OUT!
(but still check any of the stores that actually had copies, sometimes they'll put a few back up for sale. Maybe it's when someone was holding them but canceled the order.)

For perspective, it was only added to their shop today. I really do hope you were able to get a copy. 

Remember, I love nothing more than I love this book: So I will be diligently posting any news about it. If blogger isn't convenient for you, you can follow us on our Facebook group, and I also run the Hyrule Historia Localization Effort; which is a great place to be if you want to stay very current on any news regarding it.

Dark Horse just released ALL the English Skyward Sword Prequel Manga Pages

Dark Horse has released all of the pages of the Skyward Sword "Prequel" manga, by Akira Himekawa, as a promo for the Hyrule Historia Book that's for pre-order now (Find out where to buy it here)

It seems to have been released via Kotaku, and I discovered the news thanks to GenGame. Their page reader shows the pages in the reversed order though, so I've put them in the right order, of first to last, below. Read them right to left, or "Japanese style." Enjoy!

Please buy the book! It's going to be AMAZING! And it's SO CHEAP on pre-order.
Thank you Dark Horse!

Amazing News: Nintendo Making Sure Their Copyright Works With a Fan Project?

A source for this can be found on the project's facebook group. Visit: http://zreomusic.com and http://twilight-symphony.com for more info on their projects.

Quote:
“Hey fans, we have a very important, yet exciting update! Those of you wondering what is causing the delay, continue reading.

Some of the top people at Nintendo have taken notice of the project and have become involved in an advisory capacity.

Nintendo wants to make sure our entire project is consistent with their brand identity. This is the largest fan-project of its kind, and the first time that a lot of this material will be legally available to the public beyond the game that made it popular. Joypad Records is currently working with Nintendo's head of copyright to make sure that this release complies with their wishes, above and beyond what is required by law. However, most of the changes Nintendo has asked us to incorporate are cosmetic, and should not affect the audio quality or physical packaging of Twilight Symphony as originally advertised.

Because of this, discs aren't expected to be finalized, pressed, and shipped until early-to-mid December. Unfortunately this also impacts the digital release, so we are unable to distribute the digital album until we receive the green light from Nintendo. Fear not! We ask that you please understand the situation and know that we are working very hard in conjunction with Joypad Records and Nintendo to bring this release to you as quickly as possible.

This is the end of a very long road for our team, and we appreciate your patience and understanding as we bring all of this to a proper, successful, celebratory close. Thank you for your undying support.

Your friends,
The Twilight Symphony Team”

News via ZeldaInformer

Some Limited Edition Hyrule Historia Pre-Orders Are Getting Canceled

I couldn't think of a good, calmer, headline~ but please don't freak out, and don't freak others out: Just, if you pre-ordered the Limited Edition of Hyrule Historia (not the regular edition that has been for pre-order for a while) check your order status. Some have been canceled.

(For more news and info on Hyrule Historia, please see the blog's Hyrule Historia tag)

The most sane and reasonable explanation at this point is semi-unconfirmed (I will update when there's an official link/letter) but it's that the online shops like Amazon.ca (Not amazon.com) and Barnes and Noble posted the listings without knowing that there would be limited copies, or at least that they would have such a limited number of copies: so they over sold the amount they were actually going to be allotted.

I have not heard about any cancellations from Amazon.com or TFAW yet: so please don't assume the worst. Dark Horse has no news on this, certainly no bad news, so this really just seems like a problem with those specific shops, and the shops alone. (Or it was a problem with Dark Horse communicating with those shops: but, from the customer's end, that equals the same problem of not having their orders filled.)

So, yes, that explanation is sort of speculation, but it also makes the most sense at this point. From my experience, it sounds right. So, until I hear more, I'd say that's the best thing to think. Again, I will update if we can get hard evidence that is the case. People are being very informative and helping us by sharing their information.

There is absolutely no reason to think that all Limited Edition orders have been canceled. Dark Horse was very clear about them releasing this Limited Edition version of the book. Common sense seems to dictate that they would have been the first to announce if there was a problem with the release. And there is also, ABSOLUTELY, no reason to think that there will be any cancellations of the regular edition. Again, this just seems to be a problem with a few orders from a few shops for the limited release of newly announced Limited Edition.

***

At this point, from what I am hearing, it sounds like most Amazon.ca orders (again, that is not amazon.com, it is the Canadian version of Amazon that is experiencing the problem) were canceled and that only some of the Barnes and Noble orders were canceled: Many orders from B&N still seem to be valid at this point. We have conformations from a lot of Barnes and Nobel customers that their orders were either canceled, or are still good.

-- If you ordered from Barnes and Noble, you actually have to go check your order status. So do that now.

-- Amazon.ca sent out emails letting customers know about the cancellation  the wording was atrocious, but more about that below.

And feel free to let us know the results; good or bad news, it will probably help assure a lot of other fans and give them more of a clear idea of what they need to do. (Like, they might need to re-order the regular edition, because many people canceled their normal pre-order to get the Limited Edition)

***

Now, I'm going to post more about this below but, first, if you use Facebook, go to our group here and check out the posts and comments: http://www.facebook.com/pages/NoA-Please-bring-us-Hyrule-Historia-in-English/316841885016483

It's where people are posting about it, and where I'm staying more up to date (The admin posts there are by me and I try to make sure the info I post under the group's name is confirmed, or I will say otherwise)

Here is the original blog post by Dark Horse saying which stores would be getting copies of the Limited Edition Hyrule Historia. http://www.darkhorse.com/Blog/1195/hyrule-historia-limited-edition and here is what they said:

"The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia Collector’s Edition is on sale February 12th, 2013 for $69.99 and will be available in limited quantities at the following retailers:
- Nintendo World Store
- Think Geek
- Things From Another World
- Forbidden Planet UK
- PBM (Holland)
- Amazon.com
- Barnes & Noble (online)
Additionally, this book can be preordered from your local comic shop. Call them today and reserve your copy! To find a comic shop near you, call 1-888-comicbook or visit ComicShopLocator.com."

Notice that last part: That might be your saving grace. Dark Horse does love actual Comic Book shops, so I really do think there's a chance they allocated a number for special orders coming in from brick & mortar comic book stores. Call your local one up and see if they can get you a copy.

Also, and I'm saying this only out of past experience with other special order items: if you ordered from an online store that is not on that above list from Dark Horse, please be semi-skeptical of your order and check in on it. If it were me, I would not think it would be honored, especially since some are promising things that sound too good to be true. Dark Horse was oddly specific with where copies were going; I don't see why an unnamed online store would be getting them in. But, on the other hand, I am also not familiar with some of the web-shops people are saying they've used; and maybe those places ARE just really good about securing pre-orders. (That can often be the case & you'd know your online shops better than me.)

I posted about this a few days ago but, again, if your order was canceled on you or you did not get an order in, all I can think of is that: Some of the stores Dark Horse listed as having been promised copies have not seemed to offer them for sale yet. This is what I said: "Amazon.com appears to have sold out on day 1. Barnes and Noble: late on day 1, or day 2. TFAW: Day 3 (today.) Nintendo World Store does not do online or phone orders, and I can't assume how to purchase in the store since the book is not out until next year. I can not find a listing for Hyrule Historia on Think Geek, Forbidden Planet UK, or PBM- (Please feel free to double check, I can miss things) which are the other stores Dark Horse mentioned would be getting copies. This may mean they have not tried to sell their copies yet; so you may have more opportunities to purchase the book (outside of ebay.)" And, again, keep the comic book store option in mind.

***

Here's one of my older Facebook posts on the matter that also helps explain what is going on:

Yes; we're hearing that Amazon.ca canceled the Limited Edition orders on people. I don't know if this is for everyone who ordered from them, or just a few people. If you know of other cancellations, please let us know! If you ordered from Amazon.ca and DID NOT get a cancellation email, please let us know too. Keep in mind: This is for the special edition, not the regular one that's been for pre-order for a while. (There's no reason to think that one would be canceled, sounds like they're making a butt-load of those.) Brandi shared with us the letter Amazon.CA is sending out for the Limited Edition cancellation, it reads: "We're sorry to report the release of the following item has been cancelled:

Shigeru Miyamoto, et al "The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia Limited Collector's Edition"

Although we'd expected to be able to send this item to you, we've since found it won't be released after all. Please accept our sincerest apologies for any inconvenience we've caused you."

Again, as far as I know: Even though it says "won't be released at all" this is ONLY for people who ordered from Amazon's CANADIAN branch. There's no reason at all, right now, to think that the book pre-orders have been canceled for anyone else. Dark Horse has been very clear about their release of this product, even making a video for it. We know that Dark Horse (the publisher) said certain stores would be getting a certain number of copies each. Amazon WAS one of these stores, but it was Amazon.com not Amazon.ca. This may be the important detail. I think it shouldn't make a difference but, my assumption would be that, they may have just listed it on Amazon.ca because there was a listing for them on Amazon.com; not knowing that it was in such limited supply: so they've had to back-track. That is technically an assumption on my part, but it's my best one at this point based on all the dealings I've had with publishers and just ordering from Amazon throughout the years. But, yes, please let us know if you also get a cancellation notification, and where it was from- Even if just so other fans can know what to expect. Or, if you talk to one of these companies, let us know what they told you.

Dark Horse: Confirmed 276 Pages for ALL English Versions of Hyrule Historia

Finally an official response that sounds like they checked and confirms it for sure! -This was in regards to the rumor that the Special Edition version had less pages"

Dark Horse Comics: "The Editor assures us that both versions have 276 pages. When we first solicited the book to retailers and the book market we were given a less definitive answer on final page count and now we're trying to bring all retailers to the same page count."

New, Limited Edition, Version for Hyrule Historia (UPDATES)

UPDATE 4: Some orders were canceled. Please stay calm, (it's isolated!) but check out this thread for more info.

The Faux-Leather Cover for the Limited Edition
More Info from Dark Horse Here

Limited to 4,000 Copies

Shopping Links: TFAW, Barnes and Noble, Amazon

Other shops? Nintendo World Store, Think Geek, Forbidden Planet UK, PBM (Holland)

Keep in mind this response from Dark Horse: "B&N will get 500 Copies and it's up to them how they sell those. However, if for whatever reason B&N doesn't work out the following retailers will also have copies. This is a Limited Edition and we have to be fair to as many retailers as we can who want to sell the book."

"The limited edition of Hyrule Historia looks like it could have been pulled off the shelf of one of the sages in Hyrule. The faux-leather hardcover bears the symbol of the Gate of Time, debossed, on the cover, and gold gilded pages. The limited collector's edition of The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia is perfect for the hardcore The Legend of Zelda fan "

Update: Please don't freak out about the page-count yet. Both versions are consistent in page count on Darkhorse's page (the publisher) and their shop (TFAW) and that has ALWAYS conflicted with what other stores have listed as the page count. Please see my past posts on the matter. Example: DH-LE: 248, DH-S: 248, TFAW-LE: 248, TFAW-S: 248, so I do not believe any rumor that the Limited Edition will have fewer pages. But, please, try to get Darkhorse & TFAW to comment. I've been trying for ages to no avail, except from the wonderfully nice editor that assured me it would all be in there a while back.


UPDATE:
Confirmation! So, after pestering them, and contacting the editor again making him aware that the issue had become an issue on many fan sites, Dark Horse issued a statement that sounds like they finally checked and confirms it for sure! -This was in regards to the rumor that the Special Edition version had less pages.

Dark Horse Comics: "The Editor assures us that both versions have 276 pages. When we first solicited the book to retailers and the book market we were given a less definitive answer on final page count and now we're trying to bring all retailers to the same page count."

UPDATE 2:
After months, it appears they have finally updated the page count on most of the shop listings.

UPDATE 3:
The Limited Edition of Hyrule Historia seems to have sold out at the 3 stores that I could find online links for. This means: If you do not see a "purchase" option at a store, or you only see something like a "notify me when this product becomes available"  -Then they are probably sold out! It sounds like each store only got a set amount, such as a limit of 500 copies. Amazon appears to have sold out on day 1. Barnes and Noble: late on day 1, or day 2. TFAW: Day 3 (today.) Nintendo World Store does not do online or phone orders, and I can't assume how to purchase in the store since the book is not out until next year. I can not find a listing for Hyrule Historia on Think Geek, Forbidden Planet UK, or PBM- (Please feel free to double check, I can miss things) which are the other stores Dark Horse mentioned would be getting copies. This may mean they have not tried to sell their copies yet; so you may have more opportunities to purchase the book (outside of ebay.) Please DO keep in mind that the regular edition of Hyrule Historia, which has the exact same content (and, arguably, a prettier cover- green instead brown) is STILL for pre-order and I have seen no indication that it will be limited in number in any way. I'm sure they'll keep doing print runs for as long as people want it. :)

Hyrule Histroia Information (Purchasing and Release Dates)

If you would like more detailed info, check out the old Hyrule Historia Info Post and the Hyrule Historia Tag.

What is "Hyrule Historia?"
It's a book, officially released by Nintendo, that covers the whole Legend of Zelda series: from the original game up to Skyward Sword. Basically half of the book is timeline and story information, the other half is concept art from almost all these games. It also includes interviews and other information. The book's Editor is one of the series' main creators, Eiji Aonuma. It also includes a 32 page comic, a "prequel to Skyward Sword" if you will, which was done by the current manga-ka's for the series: Akira Himekawa.

Peek Inside the Japanese Version, here's a released page in English, and here's the Skyward Sword Prequel manga.

Basic Information on the History of the Book's Release:
There is a Japanese version of the book that came first. In December of 2011 it was available for pre-order (Japan only.) Many fans thought it would be a limited edition run for the 25th anniversary of Zelda. The pre-order sold out instantly. After a long wait, more copies were printed; it can no longer be considered a limited run. The book is still currently available in Japanese. (The end of the post has info on purchasing the Japanese version)

Eventually, Nintendo of America approached Darkhorse (Comics/Publishing) and they agreed to bring it out in English. You can pre-order the English version now. The release date is/was January 29, 2013 for most shops.

A Note: It looks like the release date is being moved around a little bit by the publisher's shop. I would not be worried about this at all: I'm just thinking that this might mean newer orders might be shipped a little bit later due to demand. I could also be wrong and/or they could just have the wrong info listed. If you pre-ordered it from TFAW, the publisher's store, a while back: you got a slightly earlier release date of January 16, 2013. They now have a release date of February 12, 2013. So... I'm basically just saying I'm not sure how this affects orders or orders made on other shops.

Explanation of the Covers:
There are 3 4 covers that you might see. This is what they are so there's no confusion as to what is what:

Limited Edition's Cover:

The Limited Edition English Version is a newer development. You can find info on that version of the book  at this link.

Where to Buy the English Version:
(cost and release dates usually vary from shop to shop and country to country.)
Note: We do not currently know if it will be localized into languages other than English. But, the English version IS available in other countries. The English version is the same version of the book no matter which country you buy it in. I will provide shopping links below. (If you know of good shops for other countries, please email me the links (or leave them in the comments) so I can add them to this list.)

The base price/list price is $34.99 USD. (Many shops have a great discount price on the pre-orders.) The ISBN in every country is 978-1-61655-041-7. It's hardcover, 9x12 inches, full color, the cover is stamped foil, and it's a total of 276 pages. 

The page count varies on different sites.* (this is old info; see the update just below this paragraph) Just know that I've checked with the Editor of the book for the English version and that he's confirmed that it should have all the same stuff the Japanese version has. The Japanese version has 272 pages. So it will at least have 270 pages. If you see 280 pages listed for the English one: those may be filler pages or .. it may have slightly more content? I can't really speculate on that much. I don't know why some shops have 280 pages listed. If you see 248 pages, that is an OLD number that they have forgotten to update on their shop: again, that is a confirmed fact from the book's Editor.

*Update: I was right ;)

Dark Horse Comics: "The Editor assures us that both versions have 276 pages. When we first solicited the book to retailers and the book market we were given a less definitive answer on final page count and now we're trying to bring all retailers to the same page count."

 United States: Facebook Localization Effort and News

-- TFAW (the Publisher's Shop)

-- Amazon

-- Barnes and Noble

-- Walmart

 Canada

-- Amazo.ca

 The UK

-- Amazon.uk

 France: (It's officially being localized into French!)

-- Amazon.fr

 Spain (It's officially being localized into Spanish!)

-- Amazon.es

 Germany (It's officially being localized into German!)

-- Amazon.de

 Italy

-- Amazon.it

 Australia

-- ??? Until I know more, just do an ISBN search on AU bookstores.

 Mexico

-- ??? Until I know more, just do an ISBN search on local bookstores.

Ordering "Offline" and Other Importing Methods:
You can also ALWAYS call a bookstore in your town and see if they can order it/import it for you. For example: Kinokuniya is very reputable, I use them a lot, and they have many world-wide locations. I call them when I use them, but you can probably email them too.

Note: Glitterberri, a fan-translator for the Legend of Zelda series, is helping with the localization. (So, yes, someone who is very familiar with the series will be working on the English version.)

Read it in Other Languages:

Since the English release is pending, I will not be posting links to English fan-localization efforts on this page. Until there is release info for other languages, I will provide links to fan translations for any other language. If you know of other sites with translations, please email me the links (or leave them in the comments) so I can add them to this list.

German:

-- http://www.zeldaeurope.de/forum/thread.php?threadid=6641

Spanish:

-- http://www.hyrulehistoria.com/pages/p070-es/

French:

-- http://www.hyrulehistoria.com/pages/p130-fr/

  Info for purchasing the original Japanese version:

This is the original version of the book that was released in Japan and is in Japanese. This is NOT the english version I've posted info for above.

Purchase: Amazon.co.jp has (expensive) international shipping

Purchase: Shogakukan, the book's publisher, only ships within Japan but, if it's in stock at the publisher's shop, THEN many local bookstores, like Kinokuniya, can import it for you.  The shipping should be much cheaper this way. Kinokuniya also, very often, has it in stock on their shelves in their actual stores. That means NO shipping fee.

Currently IN STOCK

Language: Japanese

Japanese Title: ハイラル・ヒストリア ゼルダの伝説 大全: 任天堂

Hardback: 272 pages

Publisher: Nintendo/Shogakukan

ISBN-10: 409227159X

ISBN-13: 978-4092271593

Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.2 x .7 inches

Price: 3,255 yen (roughly $40.00)

Note: The Japanese version is actually slightly smaller in size (dimensions) than the English one.This means that there's not much of a reason you would need to worry about buying the Japanese one unless you're just a collector. I do not know what the difference in print quality will be like yet though, I'm just hoping the English one will use even better paper-stock & printing.