Welcome one and all to the inaugural edition of New Gamer Nation’s Retro Review. In this segment we’ll look at games from yester-year and see if they’re still worth playing. This week we’re cranking the way back machine all the way back to 1986 and taking a look at the original NES classic “The Legend of Zelda”.
Although players may be more familiar with recent entries into the series the original entry does have a familiar feel to it. You play as Link on a quest to assemble the Triforce, stop Gannon, and rescue Princess Zelda. Link’s quest takes him though 8 dungeons, each with one piece of the Triforce as well as variety of landscapes from Graveyards, to Mountains, and Deserts. Whether discovering hidden dungeons or getting through the Lost Woods The Legend of Zelda has a good mix of puzzle solving and action that make it easy to see why this game is a classic.
Speaking of the gameplay, it’s fairly basic and easy to catch on to. Link uses a variety of weapons and tools while defeating enemies and solving puzzles. Weapons such as the boomerang, bombs and wand provide a variety of ways to defeat enemies so that the gameplay doesn’t get boring. Enemies also drop rupees which can be used to purchase equipment upgrades. Whether using bombs to blow open holes in the side of mountains, taking on armored knights or discovering new weapons by digging through graveyards The Legend of Zelda is a satisfying action/adventure experience, even if the graphics and presentation aren’t up to today’s standards.
Overall, the gameplay and puzzle solving are what make the original Legend of Zelda a worthwhile play. It’s a quick, fun, game that shouldn’t take more than about 6-7 hours per quest to complete. Furthermore, the Legend of Zelda has a second quest with different dungeon layouts which contributes to the replay value. While many gamers may not have access to an NES system, it is available for download through the Nintendo DS store. If you have a DS this game is definitely worth checking out.
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