The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
7:40 PM
Rick
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I remember when this game first came out in 1998; carrying something as big as the Legend of Zelda on something as small as a GameBoy seemed like magic at the time, where did Nintendo shove all the memory into the cartridge? Unfortunatley for me, all my friends got it around the time of its release while I had to wait until next year to get the game. After the long wait was over, I finally got my hands on the latest edition to the Legend of Zelda series: Link's Awakening. Just after recieving it as a gift, I placed all my others games I was constantly playing at the time (on my GameBoy Pocket, to be exact) on the shelf to gather dust. Sounds like cruel fate doesn't it? Don't worry, one of those games was Pokemon, which took up more than enough of my time already and needed to be shevled for a good three months. Funnily enough, the gift I got ended up being the original Link's Awakening (which was released in 1993 for the original GameBoy). This meant that, instead of saving up to buy the more expensive version of the same game that was in color that I couldn't see on my GameBoy Pocket, I could have simply bought the cheaper version and gotten the same results; but, because I was so patient, I ended up recieving the game for free when I went to visit my Grandma, many blessings upon her.
Its has been over ten years since I played that game and Nintendo has just rereleased it for sale on the Nintendo e-Shop for Zelda fans to purchase... again. Please note that this game is a rerelease of the GameBoy Color edition, this means that the game hasn't been updated from its 8-Bit (colored) graphics and sound; and that it just the way I like it. Read more after the jump.
While I know that there are several people on the internet looking forward to an update to this popular GameBoy classic, the original's style is still very endearing. The graphics may have been somewhat limited due to the hardware of the GBC, we all know that, but they are still very colorful, and very vibrant. Nintendo certainly knew how to use the limited color pallet to its fullest, creating colorful and diverese landscapes. However, as diverese as the overworld may be, the dungeons suffer from the same shades of only a handful of colors.
The sound, however, doesn't fall anywhere near short of excellent; listening to these old-school tones from years ago brings back so many fond memories of my childhood. If you are interested in hearing an example, then let it be the Owl's Theme that serenades you into a world of mystery.
Is this song simple? Yes, it is safe to assume that this song might be one of the simplest compositions ever made by a musician working under the rights of Nintendo, but it gives you glimpse of mystery on this crazy and confusing island. Make no mistake, this simplest of tones is a work of art in its own way. If that didn't convince you, then just listen to the overworld theme, it takes a unique twist on the original Zelda theme.
Now enough with the presentation, how does the game hold up today?
Before even pressing start on your handheld, the player is introduced to the first piece of Link's adventure. Link is sailing in the ocean during a horrific thunderstorm when his boat is struck by lightning and destroyed! When the player first starts the game, Link wakes up in a woman's bed (heh... not like that you sickos) who has a very close resemblance to Princess Zelda. Once Link heads down to the beach and retrive his sword, the player's next objective is to wake the Wind Fish in order to find his way back home. Unfortunately, other than the main adventure there are very few side quests for the player to engage in; one of the side quests is mandatory to continuing further in the main quest as well, throwing most first time players into a brick wall early on in the game until they travel half the island and talk to every inhabitant in order to solve the quest. Despite the lack of side quests, the main game will still take more than one sitting to finish, especially for first timers. Going through the game a fourth time, I can assure you that exploration is key, try and get as much done as you can befroe progressing further in the main quest.
To make up for the GameBoy's lack of graphical power, Link's Awakening is a top down Zelda game with two item slots open to mixing and matching within your inventory. To help the player on their adventure are the standard sword and shield, the bow, bombs and other classical Zelda items; however, Link's Awakening adds a few unique items to the mix (some of which appear in later top down Zelda games) such as boots that make Link run faster, a feather that grants Link the ability to jump at will and other such unique items. The inventory might not be the most divesre of any Zelda game but it still bring its own magical touch to the series.
Being a Zelda game, the dungeons possess some challenging puzzles, but it's nothing that surpasses the challenge of the puzzles found in other Zelda games.
All in all, this is one Gameboy Color game you don't want to miss out on if you haven't bought it already. Sure the over world can be a little intimidating, but a little exploration and a little patience will take you a long way in this game which, in the end, will leave you with a satisfaction that few Gameboy Color games will make you feel.
Overall: 8/10
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