The Legend of Zelda Part 9

Here we are again, half way through.  It's really incredible how high of quality most of the Zelda games are.  Very few game series have this many entries and I am so glad that it's still going.  If you have not read my post on Oracle of Seasons I highly recommend it because you will be missing quite a bit of context without it.

8. The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages (2001 Gameboy Color)

The second game in the Oracle series, Oracle of Ages is quite different from its counterpart, Oracle of Seasons.

Oracle of Ages takes place in the Land of Labrynna, an area unique to the Zelda series.  Link has been sent by the Triforce to help the people of Labrynna and to save the Oracle of Ages, Nayru.  Upon arrival in Labrynna, Link awakens to the site of Impa, Princess Zelda's attendant and supposedly trustworthy person.  Impa asks Link to remove a barrier in the road that only those baring the Triforce on the backs of their hands can open (Link has the Triforce of Courage on the back of his hand).  As Link opens the path and ventures forward with Impa, they come across Nayru singing to a group of Labrynnians and some animals.  As the singing continues, Impa begins laughing maniacally and reveals that she has been possessed by the Sorceress of Shadows, Veran.  As Veran breaks from Impa's body, she reveals her true self only to quickly possess Nayru.  Using her new found Oracle powers (time travel), Veran creates a portal to the past and vows to use her powers to take over Labrynna.

In the aftermath of this terrible tragedy, Link is sent to the Maku Tree, the guardian of Labrynna.  The Maku Tree informs Link that the only way to restore balance to the world and save the life of the Maku Tree is to collect the eight essences of time.  These essences are located throughout time and Link must use Nayru's Harp of Ages (Link is holding it in the box art) to traverse time and save the world.

All of this happens within the first 10 minutes of the game or so and while it seems like quite a lot to take in, the game does an excellent job of pacing the time traveling aspects of this game.  At first, Link can only time travel in certain areas (not as limiting as you might think) and it's not until later in the game when you can time travel pretty much everywhere.  Veran's handiwork can be seen throughout the Land of Labrynna in both the present and the past and in the people and the landscape.

Labrynna itself is a brightly colored world filled with the typical altering environments characteristic of all Zelda games (forests, water, fields, fortresses, etc).  Labrynna feels a bit special though compared to other worlds in the Zelda universe; mainly due to the time traveling aspects of the game.  Present time Labrynna, with it's vibrant colors represents a happier, more complex time.  The Royal family is no more in this time, having been replaced by a democracy at some unspecified time in the past (monarchies be damned).  Past Labrynna is an entirely different story, instead of the colorful and happy world of the present, we get a simpler and frankly more dull past.  This is meant to represent a time when the people of Labrynna were simpler, perhaps even less ambitious.  They were still under the rule of the royal family, the landscape shows less signs of human impact, some of the towns are less developed, and many of the NPC's are completely different.  I like looking at the maps next to each other because you can clearly see the effect that the people of Labrynna have had on the landscape once they were free from the rule of the royal family (I hope this was an intentional shot at royalty).  I like Capcom's commitment here to an engaging and quality environment.  These two time periods effectively double the size and scope of the game and I personally love any Zelda game that introduces time travel into the equation; it just adds so much more to the plot when people are messing with the flow of time.
The people of Labrynna are all just charming; it seems silly to characterize them all this way but I just love how full of personality many of the NPC's are in this game.  The NPC's are a huge reason why I prefer Ages to Seasons.  In Oracle of Seasons most of the characters are human or Subrosian; in Ages, we get appearances from the Zora, from the Gorons, Lord Jabu-Jabu, and that creepy hand guy!

I LOVE THE CREEPY HAND GUY (known in the game as ???) SO MUCH!!!  He's been stuck in several toilets throughout the Zelda series and he always wants paper.  His inclusion in this game ought to propel this game into the top 5, but alas I have to use some sense when I write this blog (curses).  Apart from my friend the creepy hand guy (more on him in later blogs) there are several noteworthy characters I have to mention.  Maple, the apprentice of the Witch named Syrup, can be seen throughout the game flying on her broomstick.  Each time you encounter (video of an encounter) her, Maple runs into you whilst flying on her broomstick (occasionally it's a vacuum).  This causes both you and Maple to drop several items all over the ground (anything from rupees, hearts, potions, rings, even pieces of heart) and initiates a mini game: whoever picks up the most stuff as fast as possible wins.  These encounters are pretty silly and are an awesome way to stock up on a few key items when you are deep in exploration mode; got to applaud Capcom for this fun game mechanic because they just as easily could have tossed a few more treasure chests here and there but instead we get an enjoyable character and a fun little change of pace every once in a while (I love stuff like that in video games).  I also love the decision to give the Zoras and the Gorons a larger role in this game.  Each of the major races has their own area of the game and each of them just looks great on the gameboy color (even better on a tv through the gamecube).

Zora's Village in particular is one of the best looking areas in the game and I especially love that it's underwater (and that Lord Jabu-Jabu is a resident).  The contrast between the past and the present in also quite strong in Zora Village as well.  As you can see in the picture, Lord Jabu-Jabu looks much smaller than one might remember him being in other Zelda games.  This isn't a graphical limitation of the GBC, it's just that this is Jabu-Jabu in the past.  When you see him in the present, he looks a lot more like his usual impressive self (I'll let you play the game to find out).  The story in this area is also quite intriguing.  In the past, you have to clean up poisoned water to prevent the future King Zora from dying in present Labrynna.  It seems like a simple story, but you will in fact empathizing with the Zoras quite a bit.  I think the empathy has to do with the fact that the Zora's often get quite screwed over in the Zelda series and saving them without any lingering consequences is quite a nice feeling.  To round out the NPC discussion I have to talk about the unique creatures to this game, the Tokay.  The Tokay are a Lizard people that live on Crescent Island in the south of Labrynna.  Link will hear a lot about them from villagers on the mainland, mostly rumors, and he will encounter them during the lead up to one of the dungeons.  When Link is moving around on Crescent Island, he is also in the process of recovering most of his gear that was lost at some point during the game.  In order to get it all back, you have to participate in the Tokay's barter economy; probably one of the best item trading sequences in the whole of the Zelda series.

The Tokay are an interesting people, not quite my favorite extra race in the Zelda Universe but certainly one of the more enjoyable parts of this game. I wish races like these made more appearances in the rest of the Zelda games as I feel the series could truly benefit from exploring characters like these more often.  There hasn't been a single extra race in the Zelda series that I haven't immensely enjoyed.

The gameplay of Ages is very reminiscent of pretty much all top-down handheld Zelda games.  The player controls Link with the d-pad and assigns an item to the A and B buttons respectively.  The controls are as precise as they always are and many of the items from Oracle of Seasons have carried over to this game with a few notable exceptions.  These notable exceptions are the main reasons I put this game above Oracle of Seasons in terms of quality.  These items are the Switch Hook, the Seed Shooter, the Power Glove, and the Cane of Somaria.  The Switch Hook is used to kill enemies and to switch places with certain faraway items throughout the game.  I love the way this item is utilized in the game and it's a much better alternative to the magnetic gloves that were used in Oracle of Seasons.   The Seed Shooter is where the gameplay truly shines.  Instead of the simple seed bag you get in Seasons you get a full blown gun that allows you to bounce the seeds off of walls, kill enemies from a distance, and just simply be that much more of a badass than you already are.  The Power Glove simply increases Link's strength however I always do like the puzzles that utilize heavier objects being thrown (manly shit).  Finally, the Cane of Somaria is an item that fans of A Link to the Past will remember fondly.  The Cane creates a block that Link can then move around and use to help solve certain puzzles.  I just find myself enjoying the unique items in this game so much more than I do in Oracle of Seasons.

One other aspect of gameplay that the two games share but Ages utilizes better are the three animal companions you can get throughout the game: Ricky the Kangaroo, Dimitri the Dodongo, and Moosh the Flying Bear.  Link uses these companions throughout the game to get across certain areas with fast currents, to break open certain areas, and to get to places only a flying bear would be able to get to.  I just love how silly this game allows itself to be sometimes; not much is funnier than that fat flying bear or riding around in a boxing kangaroo's pouch.  I personally love these guys all so much and  eventually you can even get a flute that will allow you to call one of them to you pretty much wherever you are in the game.  Oracle of Ages also takes advantage of the excellent Ring equipment system that was used in Oracle of Seasons.  Link can equip one ring at a time and carry up to five that he can switch through.  Each of these rings offers a different affect, some of which can really be quite useful and even comical.  For a more detailed description of the ring system, check out my post on Oracle of Seasons.

There are nine dungeons in Oracle of Ages, all of which are completely different from the Dungeons in Oracle of Seasons.  This game does dungeons very well and they get a double win in my book for having Lord-Jabu-Jabu's Belly; the fact that it's the best dungeon in the game doesn't hurt either.  The Dungeon focuses on the upgraded Switch Hook, the Long Shot.  Some of the puzzles require some pretty intricate block switch and platform traversing and it's quite enjoyable throughout the whole experience.  You also definitely notice the fact that you are walking inside of a fish, not so much because of how the environment looks (let's face it it's a GBC game), but Nintendo does a good job of making the rooms seems like certain parts of the fish; I really have to emphasize here how much better this game is when you play it on a larger screen the gameboy color.  All of the colors are so much better and the size of the screen really adds to the detail and the player perspective.  The level itself is a lot like the Water Temple from Ocarina of Time in that you have to raise and lower the water level in order to get access to certain areas of the dungeon.  At the bottom of the dungeon map (pictured) you can see what looks kind of like a Mario stage.  There are several screens like this throughout the Oracle games and they are fun little platforming bits just tossed in for the heck of it.  They feel very much like old school Mario stages and I am a huge fan of the fact that they were included in this game.  This game also shows why it is better than Seasons by the inclusion of the Black Tower.

The Black Tower was constructed by Queen Ambi in the past to help lead her husband back from the sea.  However with Veran running around screwing things up, its intentions become much more sinister.  The player will eventually be tasked with reaching the top of the tower and you will have to fight many enemies as you make your way to the top.  A very challenging and very enjoyable experience, it's a great way to finish off the game.

The bosses in this game, while not necessarily the most challenging in the Zelda series, are all slightly unique in their own way.  One of my favorite looking bosses is the fight with Pumpkin Head (they shout out to Pumpkin Head in Animal Crossing).  As his name implies, he is a monster with a pumpkin on his head; it's a simple fight but I always enjoy when companies take slight risks like this with bosses.  We don't always have to see the generic bosses we get from all of the other Zelda games (not that those are bad but it's nice to see something fresh).  Another battle I really enjoy is the battle with Smog (link to battle).  This one uses the Cane of Somaria as its main weapon and the battle is just as much about solving puzzles with blocks as it is about slashing Smog with the sword.  I love how creative this battle design is and I'm honestly surprised more Zelda battles don't utilize more mechanics like this.

The final fight with Veran is a pretty excellent fight and certainly one of the most unique in the Zelda series.  As Link reaches the top of the Black Tower, he will encounter Veran in possession of Queen Ambi's body.  Link will have to stun her with mystery seeds and then use the switch hook to pull Veran from Ambi's body in order to slash her with the sword.  After this initial part of the battle, Veran will change into her fairy form and summon the four Dark Links you see in the picture.  These Links will opposite mirror Links movements  and you have to dodge them, doge blue energy balls from Veran, and hit Veran with your sword.  After this, she will go to her final Metamorphosis form where she will switch between being a giant beetle, a giant bee, and a giant spider.  These three insect forms each have their own challenges and there is no way to tell which form she will use at what time (she always starts in Beetle form).  I love this battle because it's the best mix of challenge, creativity, and fun.  Unless you come super prepared, you will probably die the first time you play it and I actually love that about this battle.  I want to experience it and I want to win but I don't want to be handed victory either.

This game is just awesome.  If you played Oracle of Seasons back in the day and didn't play this one you are seriously missing out.  For those of you interested, once this series of blogs is over I will be doing a shorter consolidated one on the best overall Zelda experiences and there I will talk about some of the features of the Linked Game you can do between Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons; certainly one of the top 5 overall Zelda experiences (but that's for a different day).

Next time #7.  IT JUST GOT TOO REAL UP IN HERE

The Legend of Zelda Part 8

THIS POST HAS SPOILERS!!!!! YOU SHOULD KNOW THIS MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is the Zelda game that when you mention it many people go huh?  What system was that on?  It's amazing to me the number of people who never even knew this game existed.  While it has sold just over a million copies in its lifetime, it's 13th in terms of overall sales for the franchise.  Truly a shame that Nintendo only gave it to Ambassador 3DS adopters; if they want to make money they will release it somewhere again soon.

9. The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap (2004 Gameboy Advance)

Developed by Campcom in the wake of Four Swords, many people were nervous about how good of a job Capcom would do for the sole true Zelda title on the Gameboy Advance. Thankfully for us all, Capcom knocked the ball completely out of the park.

The story itself begins what is known as the Four Swords Trilogy.  This trilogy includes all events revolving around the Four Sword and the evil Wind Mage Vaati.  The Minish Cap (MC) is where this story arc begins and it does so much more to establish story than Four Swords or Four Swords Adventures ever did.

The story of the MC begins in the prologue (link to opening scene, it has very cool artwork and is worth the 50 seconds): "A long, long time ago...when the world was on the verge of being swallowed by shadow...The tiny Picori appeared from the sky, bringing the hero of men a sword and a golden light.  With wisdom and courage, the hero drove out the darkness.  When peace had been restored, the people enshrined the blade with care."  This opening sequence introduces a tremendous amount of lore into the Zelda universe: the Picori (more on them later), a hero that has as of yet never actually been in a game before, the Four Sword, and the "golden light (a force bestowed to the people of Hyrule by the Gods)."  I myself am a sucker for lore inside of game series, so this game will appeal to anyone with that kind of a fixation.  The story itself takes place 100 years after the last Picori festival, the time that the Picori world and human world are supposed to connected.  The people of Hyrule are excited about the upcoming sword fighting tournament; the winner of said tournament wins the right to touch the Picori Sword, the sword that was not only a gift from the Gods but was used by a previous hero to seal evil monsters inside of the bound chest.

Link, a blacksmith's apprentice and lifelong friend of Princess Zelda, is traveling to Hyrule to see the tournament and to present a sword to the winner.  He arrives just in time to witness the winner, Vaati, turn up to claim his prize.  Unfortunately for the people of Hyrule Vaati ends up turning Princess Zelda to stone, breaking open the bound chest, shattering the Picori blade and releasing many evil beings into the land of Hyrule.  King Daltus, the King of Hyrule, instructs Link to seek out the Picori (also known as the Minish) so that they might help reforge the broken blade (they were the ones that made it).  Until this point in the story, the Picori were but a legend and no one in Hyrule, apart from the royal family, knew they actually existed.  Link, armed with his newfound knowledge, travels to the Minish Forest where he encounters a strange green bird looking creature being attacked by some monsters.  After dispatching them quickly, Link learns that the things name is actually Ezlo, a Minish sage and craftsman who was once Vaati's master.  Ezlo tells of how he created a hat that would grant the wearer whatever they desired.  His young apprentice, Vaati, eventually stole the hat so that he could use it to exploit the evil in the hearts of the people of Hyrule. With Ezlo's help, Link will hopefully be able to reforge to Picori Sword, save the Minish, save Hyrule, and return Ezlo to his proper body.

This whole turn of events introduces one of the main mechanics to this game, Ezlo the hat (Wizard).  Ezlo rides around on Link's head throughout the entire game, offering forth useful information and occasionally acting as a parachute or other helpful item.  As you can see from the picture, Ezlo looks just like the green hat that Link usually wears, minus the large squawking yellow beak (Ezlo is hiralious).  However, Ezlo's main function in the game is to help Link shrink down to Minish size.  The Picori (Minish) themselves are of course a major focus in this game and the player will spend a good deal of time playing as Minish sized Link.  Link transforms into Minish Link by jumping on tree stumps scattered throughout the world and falling/shrinking through a small hole in the top.  Link will than emerge as a seriously small version of himself that the player than has to navigate around the world.  Controlling this little Link is a tad awkward, not necessarily in a bad way, mostly because there aren't really any games I can think of that have used this kind of a mechanic before; they put a small picture of your face by the dot to make it easier.  When Link is in Minish form and enters certain areas, the view changes from super small Link to normal looking Link but as if he were a Minish inside that area.

I really enjoy this gameplay mechanic so much because it just opens up the world to a staggering degree.  Not only are you trying to figure out where you can go with normal sized Link, but you are figuring out how to get into the houses and other buildings as Minish Link (the picture showing Link on a bookshelf is a scene I remember very fondly from the game).  I just plain love how they fit Link and the Minish into the environment; there are scenes on rafters, scenes inside furniture, under the floorboards, I just love how much effort they put into making the Minish environment seem like a genuine world apart.  The rest of Hyrule, apart from the Minish world, is a vibrantly colored world filled with the usual changes in environment for Zelda games.

I particularly enjoy the look of this game, the colors are all very bold without looking ridiculous and the whole game is just a pleasure to watch (play it on a gameboy player if you can, the experience is even better).

This colorful world is filled with a staggering 102 NPC's; way more than any Zelda game discussed in this blog so far.  While a good number of them don't say more than 1 or 2 phrases, I love the clear demand for excellence and immersion that Capcom was going for with this game.  Some of the NPC's are quite recognizable: the Carpenters from Ocarina of Time, Beedle with his shop, Anju, and many others with previous appearances in the Zelda franchise (even though all of the games are set decently far apart from each other).  My favorite out of all of the new characters has to be the Minish.  The interactions with these miniature beings are a heck of a lot of fun and I love the lore they bring forth to the Zelda universe. They are the ones who put rupees and other treasure under rocks (as a kid I always demanded an explanation for that and I'm glad this game gave me one)!  There are forest Minish, city Minish, mountain minish, all of it just makes sense; why wouldn't some Minish move away from the forest?  The Minish are quite possibly my favorite "extra" race (races that aren't Goron, Zora, or Deku) from any Zelda game and I really hope we see some shout outs to them in the future.  My one regret in terms of the characters of this game, keep in mind this is a regret not a complaint, is that the Gorons don't make more of an appearance.  I know they can't be in every game but I just love them and we only see them in a few select caves in this game.

The gameplay itself is very reminiscent of most top-down view Zelda games: the player controls Link with the d-pad and assigns items to the A and B buttons.  While a good number of the items in this game are the typical Zelda ones (bow, bombs, and boomerang) a number of them are quite untraditional and either appear in no other games or in just a few.  I really enjoy the items pictured here a great bit, the Mole Mitts and the Cane of Pacci.  Link uses the Mole Mitts to dig through certain softer sections of soil.  While you are limited in where you can dig, the game makes up for that by allowing you to dig in a surprising number of places throughout Hyrule; and they certainly never make it easy to find everything.  The Cane of Paccis used to flip over certain enemies and items during gameplay; it's a fun item to use for breaking pots. Another couple of items I enjoy that haven't made enough appearances in Zelda games are the Roc's Cape and the Gust Jar.

These items, used for jumping gaps and making wind respectively, are used to great effect throughout the game and I love the unique feel that they give the game.  I also love the amount of upgrades there are in this game: you upgrade your sword 3 times (all the way up to the Four Sword), you get the mirror shield, and you get light arrows, bigger bomb bags, and quivers; just another example of how this game commits to keeping you interested the entire way through.  

The dungeons in this game are all excellent; not one of them is mediocre.  All of them make great use of the items you find within them and all of them add to the lore and story of the game itself.  I love how the first dungeon, The Deepwood Shrine, is the place where humans and Minish used to meet up.  I love that the third temple, The Fortress of Winds, explains how some of the Minish moved into the sky and the mountains.  I especially enjoy that when I play these dungeons I feel connected to the world I am playing in.  Too often video games, including Zelda games, just toss in a snow temple or fire temple without giving any context whatsoever; I love that the developers of this game were obviously against cutting any corners whatsoever.  

The bosses in this game are just as high quality as the rest of the game.  The two bosses I want to highlight in particular are the fights with Mazaal in the third dungeon and the final fight with Vaati.  The fight with Mazaal (link to fight) is the perfect mix of challenge, item utilization, and just plain fun.  The player must use the bow to attack Mazaal's hands and then shrink down to size to attack the inside of his head; make sure to avoid his hands as they try to crush you.  Once inside his head, you have to attack one of the six pillars holding up his head, after which you will be chucked out and have to do it five more times.  Mazaal is definitely the best dungeon boss in this game, but he has nothing on the fight with Vaati.  This Vaati fight is arguably the best final boss fight in a Zelda game.  To start, the fight itself is actually quite challenging; something lacking in a lot of Zelda boss battles.  Vaati himself has three forms: a sort of heightened wizard form, his first monster form, and his final (traditional Vaati) two armed monster form.  Because the player will have the Four Sword as opposed to the Picori sword at this point in the game, several stages of the battles will involve making Link split into four Links and attack several points on Vaati at the same time; and not just with the sword.  

You will be tasked with dodging projectiles from Vaati, falling rocks from the ceiling, lasers shooting out of every projectile you don't destroy, shrinking down to Minish size, accurately shooting arrows, and staying the fuck alive.  This battle is superb (link to battle, don't be fooled by how fast the guy in the video beats Vaati, he knows exactly what he is doing), a great challenge and certainly one of the best moments in any Zelda game.
I must admit though, despite all of the awesomeness I have already discussed, I have yet to discuss the best thing about this game.  There are so many damn collectibles you can get/will want to get that the overall gameplay is extended by at least 20 to 30 hours.  Throughout the game you will find Mysterious Sea Shells which can be traded in to the most despicable man in the world, Carlov, owner of the figurine shop.

Carlov has in his possesion 136 different figurines.  136 brilliantly colored and artful little sprites that are just a joy to collect.  This game feeds right into that little spot in my brain that makes me want to get every single thing possible.  The figurines range from people, bosses, enemies, and even entire areas of the map.  Collect all 136 of the figurines and you will unlock the "Sound Test", a phonograph that gives you access to the entire soundtrack of the game.  I just love this feature so much because it gives you a serious reason to want to collect all of the figurines.  If the 136 figurines wasn't staggering enough there are also three different types of ability upgrade butterflies to catch, eight different sword techniques to can learn (only 1 is mandatory), and many Kinstones to find and fuse with people.  These Kinstones come in different colors and shapes and are used to unlock secret areas, give you large amounts of rupees, advance you in certain dungeons, and for getting a golden Tingle statue.  Im serious, you will collect everything in this game with a fervor with which you may never have experienced.  Prepare for a war of attrition, Kinstones, and Figurines.

This game is incredible.  It is without a doubt the most challenging handheld Zelda game and certainly one of the best in terms of overall story.  I wish the Minish weren't banished to this game as I think they could be utilized very well throughout the Zelda series. If you have never played this game, go and find yourself a copy; I'd highly recommend playing it on a Gamecube if you can because the full screen experience is so much better than on the crappy Gameboy Advance screen.  

Thanks so much for reading everyone!  There's honestly just so much to say about this game.  It's not higher up on the list, but don't let that fool you for a second.  Go play the crap out of this game.  Go do it now.

Next time, #8!

The Legend of Zelda Part 7

SPOILER ALERT!!!!!! LEARN YOURSELF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here we are.  The Top 10.  It becomes very difficult to distinguish between the quality of these games at this point.  How do you measure what makes these games good?  Does it make a difference if it's a handheld as opposed to a console game?  I had to think of all of these questions when compiling this list. While I have complete in this list, it's a very difficult thing to distinguish between 10 games that truly are great.

10.  The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (2009 Nintendo DS)

The second of the stylus controlled Zelda games, Spirit Tracks feels like a do over.  When Phantom Hourglass (PH) first came out on the DS in 2007, many people were disappointed with the somewhat jerky and at times imprecise stylus controls.  Zelda fans in general felt that Nintendo needed to deliver on the promises they made with the first DS Zelda game.  Thankfully, Nintendo more than made up for the disappointing experience that was Phantom Hourglass; in pretty much every conceivable way.

The game begins 100 years after the events of Phantom Hourglass with a young Link hard at work in his home town of Aboda Village in Hyrule.  Link, an apprentice train engineer, has finally earned the full rank of Train Engineer and has been tasked by his Master Alfonzo, the Greatest Train Engineer in Hyrule, with traveling to Hyrule Castle to receive his Engineer's Certificate.  When Link arrives at Hyrule Castle and is presented with his certificate he is discreetly told by Princess Zelda that she suspects Chancellor Cole and Byrne, two of her advisors, are secretly working against her.
She decides that in order to figure out what is going on and why the tracks around Hyrule have been disappearing, they must travel to the Tower of Spirits.  As the two depart for the Tower the track beneath them suddenly disappears and the train crashes.  Chancellor Cole and Byrne appear, they kill Zelda (for reals), take her body, and leave Link for dead.  We learn later that Zelda's spirit still remains in Hyrule (only Link can see her) and that Chancellor Cole and Byrne plan to release the evil Malladus from his prison beneath the Tower of Spirits.  Malladus is a new addition to the Zelda universe and a welcome addition he is.  Many of the Zelda handhelds choose to have an antagonist apart from Ganon and I always applaud Nintendo when they take risks like creating a new villain.  I do wish though (as my friend Jordan rightly points out) you don't really see much of Malladus until the end of the game.  When you do see him it's awesome, but I wish Nintendo could have highlighted this new character more throughout the story instead of focusing for so long on Chancellor Cole and Byrne.

The story in this game is, in a sense, a carbon copy of Phantom Hourglass.  Link will continually visit the Tower of Spirits throughout the game, just like the Temple of the Ocean King in PH, Link has a train and tracks to get around the world instead of a ship and the ocean to navigate, and instead of an old man to help you out through the story (Oshus from PH) we get Anjean (older lady).  Some of you might say, well than if this game is just Phantom Hourglass with a different skin, why the heck should I drop 40 bucks on it?  The answer is simple, this game does everything and more that Phantom Hourglass does in much more fun and efficient ways.

To start, the overworld map and traveling around it are immensely more enjoyable.  Instead of the clunky boat, with frankly terrible controls, we get a train with three speeds: normal, fast, and reverse.  As you travel across the overworld, unlocking new regions and tracks, you will notice how much more cohesive and connected the world seems.  Traveling on the tracks here actually feels like you are going somewhere with purpose whereas on the ocean in PH I felt pretty disconnected to
the whole world.  Traveling from place to place there had no sense of adventure, no sense of accomplishment; I really just wanted it to be over.  With the train, while at first pretty limited, you only have so many routes you can go, but it feels like a more authentic experience.  While you can't actually get off of the train until you reach a destination, you can still interact with certain things in the environment, including some kamakazi armored trains that will prove to be the bane of your existence (running from these guys can actually be pretty fun).

The NPC's in this game in this game are a wonderful part of the overall experience.  We get back every NPC from PH except it's their ancestor 100 years in the future.  And of course, we get the return of the ever pompous and always overconfident Linebeck, although in this game he is Linebeck the 3rd.  Linebeck has a much diminished role in this game compared to his previous one in PH, but his role is no less important.  Linebeck runs his own trading post in this game, the place where you can not only sell the treasure you find but can also trade it in for better train parts.  I really enjoy the train customization parts of the game and the fact that you get to deal with the condescending Linebeck is a real treat.  I also love that they once again included Beedle, and he rides around in a balloon.  I must say though that I was a bit disappointed in the "Lokomos" in this game, the elders that are in charge of each realm respectively.  They all have different names, look quite similar, and are honestly quite forgettable.  My favorite NPC's in this game though are the Anouki.  The Anouki are a new race introduced here in Spirit Tracks and you will encounter them in the Snow Realm.  The section of the game where you have to help them out is definitely one of the better experiences of this title.  I also just love how they look, look at their little horns!!  I really hope these guys make an appearance again in the Zelda universe; after all, they are located in Hyrule so it's not out of the realm of possibility.

As you travel through the game and explore all of the other locales, you will obtain a cannon for the train which allows you to fight off those armored trains.  Riding around the train and shooting the cannon is actually quite a fun experience.  The only downside to the train is the fact that there is no fast traveling.  Now, you don't really ever have to go from one end of the map to the other, but sometimes you will end up having to travel a large distance and that can get kind of tedious; but this is a small complaint compared to how fun it is overall.

As you travel around the overworld there are plenty of places to stop along the way.  The story will begin in the Forest Realm, one of the five realms within the game: Forest Realm, Snow Realm, Ocean Realm, Fire Realm, and Sand Realm.  Each of these realms contains towns, small villages, temples and unique little places to entertain yourself.  One place I absolutely have to mention is the Rabbitland Sanctuary.  Through your travels aboard the train, you will see rabbits perched on top of rocks throughout Hyrule.  When you shoot these rabbits with your cannon, a mini game pops up where you have to catch said rabbit with a net.  There are 50 rabbits in all and catching them all is actually quite an undertaking.  I loved doing this while I played the game; call it a guilty pleasure, call it what you will, I loved it (the guy that runs the sanctuary is especially entertaining).

The items you use in this game also take excellent advantage of the unique DS controls.  One item that has to be mentioned is the Whirlwind.  Blow onto the mic and a gust of wind bursts forth, knocking out enemies and helping
solve certain puzzles.  All of the items in this game just feel so right with the controls.  The whip, the bombs, the bow, and the boomerang are all a complete pleasure to use.  One last item I have to mention, a unique item to this game, is the Sand Wand.  You don't get it until much later in the game, but it allows you to raise squares of sand up wherever you move the wand with your stylus.  Even though you don't get to use the item all that much, it just makes me tingle in that special place.  Nintendo needs to bring this item to a new Zelda game, or at least something else involving manipulation of the environment.

These items of course could not be complete without some excellent dungeons to use them in and this game more than delivers on that.  There are five main dungeons, one in each realm, and the Tower of Spirits; which is visited after each temple.  Unlike the tedious Temple of the Ocean King in PH, you don't have to backtrack through any part of the Tower of Spirits.  Instead, the goal is to reach the uppermost floor, solving all of the puzzles along the way.  To help you do this, Princess Zelda's spirit can possess the phantoms that walk the halls of the tower. These phantoms are dead set on making sure you do not reach the top and can return you to the start of the floor with one swing of their sword.  Zelda can take possession of them and then team up with Link to make their way up the tower.   When Zelda is possessing a Phantom, the player controls her path by drawing where she should go and who she should attack with the stylus. The Tower of Spirits is challenging and yet feels nothing at all like the Temple of the Ocean King, despite the fact that it's an extremely similar gameplay mechanic.  Nintendo also got rid of the time limit which was completely necessary to make the Tower enjoyable.  In PH, the time limit did nothing more than to piss you off, it didn't add to the fun of the Temple at all and it makes plenty of people give up on PH all together.  The Tower of Spirits feels like an adventure by itself and this game is worth playing on its merit alone.


However, my favorite dungeon overall in this game has to be the Fire Temple.  It just feels like an extremely old school gaming experience.  I like the puzzles focused on obstacles, I like the fire, I love how they make you use the bow and arrow in this temple, and I love that you get most places in mine carts.  Not enough though could ever be said about the boss fight in this temple with Cragma (Cragma reminds me very much of the boss fight with Eox in Phantom Hourglass, except that this fight is even better).  The fight begins with Link on the floor and Cragma towering over him.  Link must use a combination of arrow strikes, timing, and dodging in order to defeat Cragma, except that you also have to cope with the fact that you have to ride in a mine cart during most of the battle.  After you hit Cragma with a few arrows while on the ground, you will be able to get onto a mine cart and ride up to Cragma's head, hitting him with arrows as you move further up.  I just love this battle so darn much (link to Cragma battle), especially the way the game takes advantage of both of the screens (that's why Cragma's body looks cut off in the video).  The rest of the boss battles in this game are all quite enjoyable but nothing is better and more challenging than the final confrontation with Malladus.  I won't spoil the ending too much but needless to say it involves several stages: destroying a demon train and Malladus in his true form.  The battle is pretty darn excellent and it finishes out Spirit Tracks in very strong fashion.

I do have to mention one glaring problem with this game.  The problem is the reason that this game is not ranked higher up the list.  The musical instrument in this game, the Spirit Flute, just plain sucks.  It's extremely difficult to play the damned thing because all of the songs you have to learn require you to blow onto the screen in time with the music.  At the same time, you have to move the stylus back and forth to change notes.  It seems like a decent enough idea, but executing the songs is just so hard and doesn't make any sense.  Sometimes you will play the song while other times you will think you did but the game just tells you to try again.  I don't get it and I hate that part of the game so much.  Luckily, it's only about 15 total minutes of gameplay and I eventually did learn them; but damned if it wasn't one of the most frustrating experiences I have ever had while gaming.

Besides the problem with the Spirit Flute, the rest of this game is fantastic.  I can honestly say that I was blown away at how much of an improvement this game was over Phantom Hourglass.  The story is solid, the gameplay mechanics are completely improved, and it truly is a fantastic gaming experience that any Zelda fan absolutely has to try.


Thanks so much for reading!  Next up is #9!  Nearing the halfway mark!

PS - This game makes some great shout outs to Phantom Hourglass and Wind Waker.  If/When you play this game, make sure to look out for them!

The Legend of Zelda Part 6

THIS POST HAS PRETTY MUCH NOTHING BUT SPOILERS!!!!!! THINK ABOUT IT!!!!!!

A quick note about this game.  Oracle of Seasons was released simultaneously with Oracle of Ages.  The two games use an excellent password system to Link the games together; showing parts of the story that would have otherwise been unavailable to you, including a fight with Ganon!  Sadly, that is not what this review is about.  Later on, I will do a less in depth list for the "best Zelda experience."  This list is judged mostly off of the original experiences I had on the original consoles these games came out on.  Anyway! On to the magic!

11. The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons (2001 Gameboy Color)

For me, this is a very difficult game to judge.  I find it very difficult to talk about this game without talking about Oracle of Ages.No matter which game you play first, at the end of the
game you receive a password to unlock an extended version of the other Oracle game.  This extended game features different new temples, new enemies, new bosses (Ganon and Twinrova) and oddly enough, Princess Zelda makes her first appearance at this time.  If I could mold these games into one long one, I'd certainly rank that game in the Top 5 Zelda experiences.

This was the second to last Zelda game I ever played.  Having not owned a Game Boy Color when they were out, I missed a large portion of the excellent games the GBC has to offer.  Thankfully, my brother (in his infinite awesomeness) got me copies of each Oracle game in excellent condition for Christmas one year (next level move, take note).

Oracle of Seasons takes place in a unique setting for the Zelda series, the land of Holodrum.  Link is sent there by the Triforce in order to defeat the evil general Onox.  Onox has kidnapped the Oracle of Seasons, Din, and sunk the Temple of Seasons into the ground; throwing the seasons completely out of whack.  In the aftermath of this horrible tragedy, Link is taken to the Maku tree, the guardian of the Land of Holodrum, where he is charged with collecting eight essences of nature.  These essences will return the Maku Tree to full strength, allow him to return power to the Temple of Seasons, and help Link to defeat the evil General Onox (pictured).

The story in this game is truly excellent.  General Onox is a special kind of evil and it feels fresh having a completely different cast of characters for Link to interact with.  Because it isn't Hyrule, you don't expect to see anything, you don't recognize familiar faces (ok some people look sort of like other Zelda characters) and it's nice to have surprises like that in a Zelda game.  The story is complemented really well by a cast of over 40 NPC's and 40 unique areas/shops/homes/etc.
This is all aided further by the rapid changing of the Seasons that takes place in this game.  Not to spoil too much of the actual gameplay, but Link (pretty early on) gets access to the Rod of Seasons (Link is holding it in the box art).  This magical rod allows him to stand on these magical logs, swing the sword, and cycle through the Seasons at will.

As you can see from the picture, the seasonal changes to the environment can be quite drastic in both where you can go in Holodrum and how the environment looks.  I love this mechanic so much and I really hope Nintendo finds a way to work it into another Zelda game some day.  It truly makes this game stay fresh the entire time.  You don't ever feel like you are endlessly backtracking and in fact, many of the puzzles that involve changing seasons at the right time and place are quite challenging and enjoyable.

Speaking of how the look of the game can change, I just plain love how this game looks;  I mean, just look at how bright and colorful the world map is.

I have scoured the internet for a poster of this world and I don't believe it exists, this is a travesty.

It really is hard for me think of any one part of this game that I enjoy the most, but one area that comes immediately to mind is the entire area of Subrosia.  Subrosia is the world that exists under Holodrum, it is where the Temple of Seasons has sunk too, and Link will travel here often throughout the course of the game.  The people who inhabit this underground world are really what make it what it is, although the lava filled environment looks excellent as well.

Down in Subrosia, Link interacts with many of the Subrosians, visiting their stores, homes, and helping them solve some problems.  Subrosia is more than just a small extra area, it's practically an entire other world map!  There are several different areas to explore, many of which you can't get to until you progress along equally in the overworld.

In addition to the beautiful and dynamic world, Link is able to interact with it in some pretty unique ways.  One of the items that Zelda fans won't recognize from other Zelda games is the seed satchel.  This satchel ends up holding four different kinds of seeds: ember (burn stuff), scent (not telling), gale (fast traveling), pegasus (increased speed),  and even mystery seeds (too mysterious to say).  The game also sees the introduction of a new item in the magnetic gloves.  These gloves are used to defeat several enemies made of metal, to cross gaps, and to solve puzzles.  Yet again, this game shows that it means nothing but business, and I haven't even gotten to the best part yet.  This game features an extensive ring equipment system whereby Link can collect 64 different rings.  Depending on the size of the ring box you have, Link can carry up to 5 different rings; switching between them and taking advantage of their abilities.  Some of the rings raise Link's abilities, some make him change forms, some decrease his stats, it's a pretty extensive and fun system.

This game also does it right when it comes to Dungeons. One in particular that comes to mind is called Snake's Remains.  I enjoy the dark and eerie looking style, I enjoy the block moving puzzles, I like the power bracelet you get inside, and I especially love the mini-boss of Snake's Remains, Facade.  Facade is literally the room itself and Link must use a combination of dodging and bombs to defeat him.  I think this mini-boss battle is great for how much it throws you off when you first encounter it, but I did find it rather lazy that they make you fight him again later on.  They didn't develop his character at all and I didn't see any serious connection between him and General Onox.  I also really enjoy the battle with the two headed dragon Gleeok.  It requires a good bit of jumpy dexterity and it might take you five or six times to beat him, but darn it if it isn't an excellent battle.  Apart from these battles, the rest of the are all relatively generic Zelda boss battles, you fight Gohma, Dodongo, Manhadia, and a variation of the giant eye boss.  I don't dislike these battles, but with how many things that are different about this game from the average Zelda experience, you'd think that the developers would have made up some more unique boss battles as well.  It just feels like they did so many distinct things with this game that they were almost afraid to take too big of a step, for shame Nintendo (you almost had it)


To the developer's complete credit, the final boss battle with General Onox is pretty damn epic (link to boss battle, don't let the video fool you, the battle is very tough if it's your first time). Onox starts off the battle with a giant swinging spike ball, swinging it violently as Link runs around the room.  Link must not only slash Onox with his sword while avoiding that ball, but he also has to switch to the Rod of Seasons and use it to hit the crystal that is holding the kidnapped Din inside.  Aimed properly and the crystal will bounce around and strike Onox.


After rinsing and repeating this for a bit, you will fall through the floor and Onox will transform into his true form: the Dark Dragon.  I was completely thrown off the first time I saw this and I really do love how challenging this boss is.  A truly excellent conclusion to a truly excellent game.

Amazingly, I really didn't even touch on everything there is too experience in this game.  That's how much fun this game is.  It isn't without its faults of course, but they are few and far between.  Whenever we do eventually reach Oracle of Ages on this list, I'll discuss the other great parts that these games share, including the Linked game features.  Spoiler alert, it's not the next one on the list.

Next time we crack the top ten.  Things are getting too real.  Thanks for reading.