Link Between Worlds

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds is fantastic from start to finish.

Really, I could end the whole post there if I wanted. The game is just pure fun. It gets you right into the action right away - no boring tutorials, no awful villagers you need to talk to for hours before you get your sword, no learning how to pilot a boat/train/bird, it's just "Hey, here's your sword, go fight and explore."

My favorite thing about the game is how open it is. At anytime, you can go do whatever you want. I thought the item renting thing would be kind of a letdown at first, since you just have all the items for the most part right away, but I actually wasn't bothered by it at all. It allows the designers to just make the dungeons and overworld as they see fit, and not have, say, the hookshot be the key to get to this part of the world, the hammer be the key to this part, etc. The world switching thing is fantastic and is an excellent mechanic (Link being able to flatten himself onto a wall and then walk along it makes for some fun puzzles). Even the sidequests are fun!

I put a solid sixteen hours plus into the game, which includes beating the game and finding everything (and I mean everything). There are bonus treasure chests in every dungeon, and they all contain a power up for Link, which adds to the exploration aspect. There are 100 little things to find scattered throughout the overworld, and every ten you find allows you to upgrade an item of your choice - again, the game acknowledging that every player may like to use certain items to fight. I used the Hookshot quite a bit throughout the game, but many players swear by the Wind Rod thing. It was pretty useful for the very fun battle gauntlet, but that was really the only place I used it much.

The fighting mechanics are spot on, too. Swordplay is just as fun as in LttP, if not better, and the secondary items are fun to use too. I went through the battle gauntlet three times - three times! - in a row, with pleasure, to unlock everything you can get from it. I talked to all the NPCs (not that many of them have anything revelatory to say, but they often hint at secrets). I thought the story was pretty fun, if kind of basic.

Probably the best part about the game, though, is how it uses Link to the Past's world not only for level design but for putting nice twists on old areas for veterans of the old game. There was one particular item that I did not get until after I beat story mode - despite being able to get it almost right off the bat! This is because Link Between Worlds inverts an old puzzle from Link to the Past, so that I didn't think I could complete it until I found the item I'm referring to. I should have seen it coming!

The music is amazing, as well. Link to the Past really has good music, and this game remixes it to great effect. The Dark World theme in particular really shines as probably my favorite tune in the game, despite the Hyrule Forest music being present and as always, fantastic. Despite some people's complaints about the graphics, I found them fine. At no point did I stop and think to myself "Wow, this game is ugly," so people who say the graphics are terrible are exaggerating. Are they as gorgeous as LttP's spritework? No, but they also aren't bland, boring New Super Mario Bros-esque, either.

I absolutely loved the game, and alongside Animal Crossing which I remain addicted to, will likely go back and play Link to the Past. Link Between Worlds made me realize I have a lot of nostalgia for that old game, despite not beating it until highschool, ten or so years after it came out. Who knows if it'll hold up as well compared to the new game - a curiousity that surprises me, considering how good the old game is. Link Between Worlds is just that good.