The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (1992)

Genre: Action, Adventure | Players: 1 | Developer: Nintendo EAD

A Link to the Past is the game that moved the Zelda franchise beyond the blind experimentation of the original and the mindless back and forth of its sequel. The upgrades in graphics and gameplay work in unison to finally crystalize what became the series’ keystones: exploration and puzzle-solving. It’s presented from a top-down perspective, like the first game, but secrets are marked clearly in both the overworld and dungeons. Emphasis is instead often placed on finding alternate entrances once one has been tantalized and stymied by what lies behind the easily visible ones. Also, navigating complex cave systems in order to mine them of all their treasures. Dungeons are composed of visually distinct wings and floors and maps make a return. Puzzles that span multiple floors replace exhaustive marches to elevators.

This is also the game that introduces the basic framework of the series: three dungeon items, Master Sword, more dungeon items, light arrows, Ganon(dorf). Though, the arrows are still silver, here. While it may have appeared in other games prior, for me LttP is the origin of the mechanic whereby one moves between two worlds in order to solve puzzles and progress. This went on to appear in Silent Hill Origins and the Constantine licensed game.

The second part of the game takes place primarily in the Dark World where you must retrieve nameless maidens from each of the dungeons before rescuing Zelda and scaling Ganon’s Tower. A Link Between Worlds replaces these maidens with a new generation of sages who are actually given dialogue and interactions with Link prior to them being kidnapped. This is the one true weakness of LttP, in my opinion. There’s a serviceable amount of lore on display, but there is virtually nothing in the way of character and story. I'm content with the level present in the 3D Zelda games, so I don't need MUCH, but I need SOME. Look, I don’t need or want story in Mega Man games, so you have my empathy and respect, even if I don’t have yours in this particular case.

If all you're looking for is solid 2D gameplay, though, you won't find much better on the SNES, or anywhere else, really.

Buyer’s Guide: Originally an SNES game, it’s also available on Game Boy Advance, the Wii and Wii U Virtual Consoles, and the SNES mini. The viewable area is somewhat cropped on GBA, however, so I’d recommend not seeking out that version unless it’s truly your only viable option. Several altered versions of the game were broadcast on Satellaview, but just wiki that yourself or check out Clan of the Grey Wolf’s retrospective if you’re curious from a historical perspective.

3 Catfishes 4x weak to Grass out of 5

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (2000)

Genre: Action, Adventure | Players: 1 | Developer: Nintendo EAD

As with Zelda II before, Nintendo saw fit to make their second N64 console entry radically different from its predecessor. Virtually all of Ocarina’s assets are present, but they are turned on their head to create as new an experience as this franchise has ever mustered. Most importantly, the characters—and some NPCs who were originally not much more than character models—are given entirely new roles. It is the exact methodology exhibited in Stephen King’s Desperation and The Regulators (1996, both), with equally effective results.

Young Link is put in a position where he has the option to help as few or as many of these unfortunate souls as you deem fit. Gameplay revolves around a three day cycle that can be reset at will once the Song of Time is recalled. Link gets to keep the items, heart pieces and masks that he earns in each cycle, but the characters' memories and all events reset along with the time. This leads to repetition, but it is thought-driven, unlike the mindless variety I personally find to be in Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon. To further aid in this, people’s schedules are automatically recorded in a notebook the moment they open up to you with their problems.

The above mentioned masks have grown from a side-quest in Ocarina to being the main focus here. A few are transformative in nature, granting new powers. Others function in more limited ways or aid entry into the four dungeons, the process of which is now, also puzzle-driven in nature.

Frankly, there are aspects of MM that made my soul sing and others that I absolutely fucking loathed. I had problems solving certain things on my own, but when I retroactively looked at each case, I had to admit that the game indeed provided the means to resolve those issues. At a different time in my life, I probably would have been more patient and capable of doing everything independently.

In the end, this is the kind of game that teaches you things about yourself and life in general, if you’re willing to listen: when to ask for and provide help, when to accept things, and when things just have to be let go. I can’t claim to prefer it to Ocarina, though I can absolutely respect those who do because they are as equal as they are unique from one another.

Buyer’s Guide: It is of utmost importance to know that if you want the original 64 cart you’ll also need to procure an expansion pack as it is one of the few games that require it. It’s also available in the LoZ Collector’s Edition on the Game Cube and on the virtual console. The 3DS remake will be available the month of this writing (February 2015).

4½ Distraught Goatse Shields out of 5

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds (2013)

Genre: Action / Adventure | Players: 1 | Developer: Nintendo EAD, Monolith Soft

It’s important to know what this game is, and what it isn’t. It isn’t a DS Zelda game starring Toon Link. It doesn’t bother with any stylus or badly executed split-screen shenanigans. I use my thumb to access the menus and I hold the 3DS like a handheld is intended to be for action-adventure games.

It isn’t a remake of A Link to the Past. It’s far more accurate to say that this shares the general maps of that game to create an experience that both rewards you for your intimate knowledge of them and consistently challenges your expectations in the same satisfying way as Maverick Hunter X.

The main gimmick on display is the ability to merge into walls, making Link 2D while the camera rotates down and to the side, presenting the world in 3D. Popping in and out can be disorienting but my adjustment period was remarkably brief. Thank goodness, as the mechanic is used EXTENSIVELY and never grows stale.

Outside of one dungeon, the ones on display can legitimately be tackled in any order. You could play the Dark World somewhat out of order in LttP, and if you were alright with finding out halfway through one that you were missing an essential item, you were free to do so in the original game, as well. Here, however, the dungeons are marked with runes at their entrances denoting which items are required for successful completion. You can first rent and then later buy many of the series’ staple items at a central shop and this is what makes true freedom of play possible.

I’m always going to tackle the Swamp Palace second, but in both of my playthroughs I’ve gone wildly out of order, otherwise. The biggest boon of A Link Between Worlds is manifest here: instead of literal carbon-copy maidens, the sages are legitimate characters a la the 3D Zelda games. I care about saving them and the order in which I will.

There are a few negatives, however. The analog stick makes aiming the hookshot a bit hairy, but that very imprecision is harnessed for appropriate balancing sections, to compensate. The game tells you that you should take a break occasionally when you save, too.

Petty bullshit complaints, I know. Bottom line: LBW remixes and updates LttP while introducing the most crucial element of 3D Zeldas to the 2D plane. The best 2D Zelda by countless miles, sanjou~

Buyer’s Guide: It’s a 3DS exclusive.

4 Tsundere Witches Stole My Heart out of 5

I do not have binocular fusion and are thus incapable of experiencing 3D. 

Don't ask me how it looks here, or in any other 3DS game.

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (2011)

Genre: Action / Adventure | Players: 1 | Developer: Nintendo EAD Group No. 3

The first full Legend of Zelda game built exclusively from the ground up to work with the Wii controller gives you all combat abilities from the beginning. It's perhaps by way of an apology for the actual fighting being so damn awkward.
Over time you’ll learn to compensate for the impreciseness, but there’s nothing in Link’s repertoire of moves that couldn't have been successfully mapped to a conventional controller; a Game Cube controller, for example.

There are one or two minor things that do actually benefit from onscreen action mimicking physical motion but I’d have traded them in an instant, because the sheer number of things that don’t work, that feel like a second-rate compromise, far outnumber them and it needs CONSTANT recalibrating.

There’s an obvious attempt at expanding the scope of the usual gameplay while simultaneously keeping it faithful to the core experience. Consequently, it’s a game with two distinct identities: 50% of it is wonderful, even the overly-familiar stuff, and the other 50% is a depressing chore. It holds the dubious honour of being the only proper LoZ title that I will never, ever want to play again.

There’s a hub world and three main areas with a Dungeon on each. There’s often a lot to do before you reach the actual Dungeon entrance, but once inside it’s business as usual, with some new additions, of course, because each new entry in the series introduces something new.

That’s the mechanics and map, but what of Link’s motivations? He’s searching for one person. He doesn't enter dungeons to rid them of evil or to cleanse the world for the greater good. He enters dungeons to find his friend. It’s a small scale noble endeavour, but he’s essentially trespassing. He helps people along the way but not for what you’d typically call selfless reasons.

I found myself unable to connect with Link emotionally, which is something I've not had issue with in the past. In the end my persistence came down to ‘I want to get through this because it’s a LoZ game and I'm invested in the franchise,’ and not the more enjoyable ‘I want to get through this to save X from Y and restore peace to the land.’ I just wanted closure, not to be a legendary hero. That realisation saddened me deeply, but was a completely inescapable factor.

Scoring is difficult. Compared to regular adventure games it stands apart, but when compared solely to other Legend of Zelda titles it's a disappointing:

3½ grabitude crackles out of 5

NOTE: If you're considering playing the game, FIRST READ the entry titled Song of the Hero Game Ending Error on the Zelda Wiki or you'll run the risk of activating a programming error that'll break your game midway through.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (2006)

Genre: Action, Adventure | Players: 1 | Developer: Nintendo EAD Group No. 3

When it comes to many console Zelda games there is a distinct formula at play: 3 dungeon items, Master Sword, more dungeon items, Light Arrows, Ganon(dorf). Zelda is stagnant in this regard. Still, I will offer the following defense: While dungeons follow the same themes they are outfitted with rooms and rooms of new puzzles and new items. You may defeat bosses with treasures found in their respective lairs, but even the series’ staple gear is usually given new features. New art-styles and radically different modes of travel occasionally crop up. None of this can be said of the Uncharted series or New Super Mario Bros.

It was Twilight Princess’s aesthetic that drew me to it. It isn’t as iconic as Ocarina, I will admit, but I have a soft-spot for the sepia strokes used to color the visuals and story. Midna is undeniably one of the best-realized characters in the entire franchise. She isn’t just an annoying tutorial given humanoid form. She’s manipulative and out for her own, yes, but she’s quite good at it and her association with Link is consistent food for thought. In addition to her, there’s a reliance on cutscenes which shift the story focus from simply the lore of Hyrule to the specifics of Link’s heroism in relation to a small cast of characters.

On the gameplay side, the first half forcibly alternates you between two distinct styles: as a human in Hyrule proper and as a wolf in the Twilight Realm’s shadow, which has been cast across the land. This focuses your early exploration on locations you wouldn't normally visit and prevents you from being distracted by items you can't collect until later, anyway. The game does make you put rupees back into chests if your wallet can't hold them, but this is to prevent grinding to fulfill the game's three investment schemes. Upon completion, you get a reward that indirectly remedies this problem.

The motion controls of the Wii version are admittedly slightly imprecise for the brief flight segments but this is handily outweighed by the logical movements (e.g., both types of fishing and shield bashing) and especially the chance to physically aim the bow, boomerang, and clawshot.

Quite simply, Twilight Princess excels as a Zelda experience because it infuses the practiced puzzle-driven action-adventure gameplay of Ocarina with a highly cinematic, character-centric story. I can’t ask for much more out of a game.

Buyer’s Guide: Though it originated as a GameCube game it was released on both GC and Wii. The Wii version is far more readily available and affordable at this point, however. It should be noted that this version is completely mirrored to accommodate the right-handed populace.

5 Paths of the One, Made by the Many out of 5

Link's Crossbow Training (2007)

Genre: First + Third Person Shooter | Players: 1 - 4

Developer: Nintendo EAD Group No. 3

Bundled with the Wii Zapper peripheral, the ‘game’ is more like a Twilight Princess (2006) mini-game that got a separate release. It’s a variation of Duck Hunt without the ducks; instead they're enemies from the Legend of Zelda universe. Environments are similarly themed and will be familiar to anyone that played TP.

The objective is to hit targets with arrows fired from your crossbow. You’re not required to reload the bow, it’s fully automatic, and you won’t run out of arrows, but you will run out of time. Each stage gives you a set amount of time to achieve the minimum score needed to advance. If you fail to achieve it you’ll have to redo that particular level again from the beginning. There are only nine playable levels, divided into three gameplay styles, with each being slightly more interesting than the one that preceded it. I’ll list them in the order they’re presented in the game:

Target Shooting:
The traditional circular Crossbow Target with the bullseye in the centre. They start out stationary, but as you progress they begin to move and/or get further away, making targeting more difficult. Your score increases faster if you hit targets in succession without missing. It’s all very boring.

Defender:
You have to defend Link from advancing enemies by shooting them as hurriedly as possible. You remain rooted to one spot but can swing your POV 360°, so expect to be attacked from all sides.
If you get hit by an enemy, or an enemy projectile, you’ll lose points. There was a sense of immediate danger that the previous mode lacked, and getting to fire upon an actual enemy was slightly less boring. At least it was the first and second time, but not so much the third, fourth, fifth…

Ranger:
The only game mode in which you get to move around as Link. As before, you’ll be shooting enemies, but you’re able to strafe and manoeuvre past obstacles to get a better view. This is where you'll be able to get the really high score multipliers.

Beat all of those (it should take about an hour) and you’ll go up against the game’s only boss battle. Boss battles are traditionally one of the highlights of a Zelda game and the same applies here. Find a weak spot that needs your attention and tear it a new one. And then you’re done. Game over. There’s no replay value unless you like to challenge yourself to beat your own scores and earn worthless medals that don’t do anything.

1 bottomless quiver out of 5

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998)

Genre: Action, Adventure | Players: 1 | Developer: Nintendo EAD

Until recently, I held quite the grudge against the Nintendo 64 and all of the proponents of Ocarina of Time. Due to my (shitty) memories, I felt it was inferior in uncountable ways to A Link to the Past and especially Twilight Princess. While I’m still not a champion of the console, I have to admit I have been wholly swayed into a bias for the 3D Zelda games. The atmosphere capable of being manifested in the 3D space completely eclipses that of the earlier titles and while the characters are not deep or fleshed out by any means, they are quirky, endearing, and sometimes surprisingly creepy despite their mostly momentary screen times.

The unease stemming from some characters (as well as certain locations and events) comes in small bursts, but still manages to outshine Twlight Princess in this regard, entirely. Nothing in that game comes close to touching my spine the way Ocarina now has. These moments (and all the rest) can be experienced in a way that feels surprisingly free-form in spite of the obvious, staggered exploration tropes of the series. I deliberately wandered without a guide as it had been so long since I had last experienced Ocarina. The vast majority of secrets are intuitable, the mini-games skew to the easy end of the spectrum, and the collection system can be milked of all its significant rewards in the course of normal play, if you have attentive ears.

The only negatives I can bring to bear are an aspect of the z-targeting system and the Water Temple. The targeting works fine for keeping the camera on enemies and allowing one to strafe, but Link’s movements feel a bit haphazard and I found myself striking air or facing backwards while attacking, early on. Mayhaps there’s a bit more homing to Link’s actions in the subsequent games? Still, it was the first use of the system and does far more good than harm. Regarding the temple, I personally had no problems whatsoever with changing the water levels, but was left stuck by the trollish placement of a time block.

As hackneyed a sentiment as it is, I now truly understand why this game is so highly regarded. It is the definitive, classic Zelda experience and it’s no surprise that it is still played, speedrun, glitched, and revered to this day.

Buyer’s Guide: Originally available on the Nintendo 64. Rereleased as part of the The Legend of Zelda: Collector’s Edition (with its Master Quest iteration, the original Legend of Zelda, The Adventure of Link, and Majora’s Mask,) on the GameCube. It was recently remade for the 3DS, as well. The cheapest and easiest route for most will be the Virtual Console, however.

4½ Inexplicably Ginger Villains out of 5

Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (1993)

Genre: Action Adventure | Players: 1 | Developer: Nintendo

The fourth installment and first handheld title of the Legend of Zelda series is a bit of an odd duck with an offbeat sensibility filled with cameos and 4th wall breaking. It has the winning Zelda formula without actually having most of the trappings of other installments as there is no Zelda, Hyrule or Triforce to be had. That isn't necessarily a bad thing.

It starts with Link on a journey home after adventures outside Hyrule, when his boat is caught in a storm. Link is washed ashore on Koholint Island where he is informed by a talking owl that he cannot leave the island unless we wakes the Wind Fish sleeping in a giant egg atop a mountain. The only way to do that is to find 8 instruments scattered in caves around the island and play them. Players do the normal overhead adventure stuff, but with a tone that is both epic and lighthearted. Controls are tight and simple and the music is a wonder. Link's Awakening is actually the first Zelda title to have different themes for each level. It is actually filled with firsts that would go on to become staples of the series such as an item trading mini-quest, fishing mini-game, playing songs on an ocarina (oh my!) and marks one of the few times Link can jump on command.

If you are in any way familiar with Zelda games it can be rather short, but that probably has more to do with its portable nature rather than design. The overworld is a bit small, but filled with secret items and areas if explored further. So there is a great adventure filled with fun characters, great soundtrack and a sense of humor that puts it near the top of the series titles.

Buyer's Guide:

Available on Game Boy, re-released in color for Game Boy Color and downloadable on the 3DS Virtual Channel for $5.99.

5 I stole the bow and never came back, bitch out of 5

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (2003)

Genre: Action-adventure | Players: 1 | Developer: Nintendo

The cel-shaded, GameCube entry in the legacy series.

Gameplay:
Largely unchanged from previous 3D entries in the series as Link still controls the same with lock-on targeting and auto jump. Combat is slightly tweaked with new options like parrying and taking enemy weapons. Sailing is the new mode of travel with the use of a conductor's baton that controls the wind. Link uses it to sail to a variety of islands on this adventure. Many don't like the sailing, but i found it quite enjoyable as the waves, music and various sea-faring enemies made the ocean feel more alive than the empty fields of other instalments.

Graphics:
Bemoaned at release, the cel-shading art-style has proven one of the game's best features. Characters are more expressive, colors are vibrant and overall very beautiful.

Sound:
The soundtrack is comprised of mostly wind instruments with an Irish influence that give a relaxed, tropical island feel. Very apropos and a great listen.

Story:
Link's sister, Aryll, is kidnapped on his birthday by a giant bird, so he takes to the seas in pursuit to rescue her.

Buyer's Guide:
Easily found, but the Zelda pedigree carries a premium. Even used copies go for around $30 which is twice the going rate for other games.

4 Triumph Forks out of 5