Summary
The Legend of Zeldais one of the most well known and beloved franchises of all time. Making one groundbreaking title after the next, with some being so well received that they inspired countless developers to adopt and even improve on what made these titles so special at the time.
There have beenZeldatitles that did not resonate as well with fans of the franchise as others did, such as the CD-i games. This article will not target games on how they wereperceived at launch, but rather on how the opinion of a game has changed from the time of its release to how it is perceived whilebeing replayed nowadays.
The originalZeldagame is a classic, and it is still fun to play. In fact, one might say thatit has not aged that badly at all. The issue comes with all the quality of life elements that the gaming community has come to expect in similar titles. Players who pick up and try some of theLegend of Zeldatiles from the original Game Boy will be able to move diagonally, a feature not present in the first game. Players can move either horizontal or vertical, but they cannot do this at the same time.
This can make movement feel very stiff and cumbersome, resulting in some modern gamers not continuing their playthrough. Fans who played the game as part of their childhood will have nostalgia to help drive them onward, but even some of these die-hard fans will feel the frustration.
Sequel titles on the NES and SNES were known for being harder than their originals; they were meant to provide even more of a challenge for those who beat the first game. Such is the case forZelda 2: The Adventure of Link. The side scrolling portions are still regarded as being more difficult than they should be, and it’s notin a fun soulslike way. Dealing with enemies feels less like a feature and more like a chore.
This title in general is seen as the most dated in terms of user-friendly features, and many fans doing a replay of the franchise will skip this title. Thankfully, it is thelast entry in the timeline of the Fallen Hero. The Nintendo Switch version of the game does provide players with some quality of life features, which changes it a lot from how the original release feels. This can be credited to save states, which prevents players needing to repeat a section of the game over and over again.
Breath of the Wildwas a phenomenal milestone for the franchise and is heralded by many as one of the most groundbreaking titles in gaming history. Fans far and wide would see game trailers and call them a “Breath of the Wildclone,” no matter how small the similarity. However, many of these games were close to this claim and were heavily inspired byBreath of the Wild.
Having so many games doing whatBreath of the Wildpioneered has made returning to the game feel somewhat lackluster.Newcomers to the gamemay feel like it should be among some of the free-to-play comparisons. When it launched, it was indeed an otherworldly experience, but the spark that made it so unique and special has been passed around so much that the game doesn’t feel as magical as when it first released.
It’s hard to find a badLegend of Zeldagame on the Game Boy Advance. In fact, allthe GBA-eraLegend of Zeldagamesstill hold up across the board. They are visually charming, have solid controls, and feature lengthy stories and great gameplay, but the same cannot entirely be said for the NDS titles. The visuals have a weaker, more pixelated aesthetic to the GameCube-era ofZeldagames, and the stylus does not feel as solid as a controller. Still, these titles are not bad by any means and are still fun to play.
Gamers who want a whole new experience will get it. The games utilize the hardware very well, and players can definitely have this on their list of games to still play — but those looking to enjoy an olderLegend of Zeldatitle will find this more cumbersome compared to other options. This is a title that wouldbenefit from getting a full remake, allowing current day gamers to enjoy it in a whole new way for modern systems.
The GameCube-era ofZeldagames saw new entries and some re-releases for fans to enjoy. This includedThe Wind Waker,a re-release ofOcarina of Time, andTwilight Princess. All these titles came out a rather long time ago, and each is a little dated in some departments.Twilight Princesshas the most dated visuals due to it being less colorful and artistic. This was to capture a darker tone using the graphics of the time — as opposed toThe Wind Waker, whichstill looks gorgeous to this day despite its age.
However,Ocarina of Timehas the most dated controls, with them feeling very clunky by modern standards. Gamers wishing to revisitOcarina of Timeor play it for the first time should look towards the 3DS version. This version includes hardware that lets one aim using a gyroscope, serving as a massive improvement over the original N64’s targeting. This gyroscopic targeting is also present in otherZeldatitles for the device.
