I got really scared and excited reading your closing commets today, because I think that I'm becoming "one of those weird dudes who was all about "The Adventure of Link." And it's all happened in the last couple of days.

You see, I recently aquired the Zelda Collector's Edition disc by doing a buddy's dishes (yup, he got ripped off).... I really wanted it for Majora's Mask, which I had never played, but when I finally got it I just couldn't get into it. I hadn't given the classic Zelda games much thought, because we live in the age of emulators, right? I already have those game on my computer (not that I'd played them really). But you couldn't imagine the effect that having a flawless version of a classic game on a new Nintendo system would being..... Zelda II connected to my flatscreen TV and stereo with a Monster S-Video cable is a marvel to witness my friend.

And this week, in which I bought Onimusha 3 and Eternal Darkness, I just have not been able to play anything BUT "The Adventure of Link".... There's something amazing about it.... The tunes are perfect. The gameplay is tough as hell! And it just feels like you're wading in Nintendo. Not the new Nintendo trying to tap into old nostaliga with a new game, but TRUE Nintendo. It's all about the iconic sprites and NES synth music, man!

So my friends come over last night pissed drunk (I live in the clubbing section of my city, so I often get these unplanned afterparties) and I'm playing Zelda II. One of my drunken friends called me a "nerd" with a laugh. I mean, not because I was playing videogames (everyone loves videogames these days) but because I was playing an OLD videogame.... And you know what I was thinking? Nerd? No, I'm hardcore. I'm exeriencing something you'll never know. In fact Zelda II doesn't want you to play it, you're not worthy. Only I am worthy.

So it's ironic that a game I haven't really been able to get into for the 16 years that it's been avalable, I am now able to enjoy in this world of 128-bit 3D Jean Reno cameos and sanity effects....Perhaps I had to see it in this context, stripped of any graphical glory it may have had, to realize how hardcore it truely is. Zelda II has been ready for 16 years, but I was not yet ready. Now, it is time.

So... I think I officially qualify as "one of those weird dudes who was all about "The Adventure of Link" now... Finally, I have found my calling.

~Alex M.

P.S. I'm eBaying a NES and tons of classic games now.... That's all there is to it!

Chris,

Like most people, my pants were filled with crap when I saw screenshots of the new Zelda. It looks badass, no question about that. After thinking about it for a little while, though, I got a little down. I really liked The Wind Waker, it was the first 3D Zelda I played (I skipped N64 for PS, now I have the Zelda bonus disk and am working on OoT and MM). I had heard rumors of bringing Hyrule up out of the water and such, and was pretty pumped about playing a Zelda in the style of WW with the majority of game being on terra firma. No one can deny the beauty and innovation of WW's graphics. I guess I feel like from this point forward, no matter how many more Zeldas we get, they'll all be in the "realistic" style. I think we should get one more in the style of WW, as MM was in the same style as OoT. I know Shiggy could always go back to whatever style he wants, but people would freak out even more if he did that after this new game's graphics.

So, I'm excited but a little let down at the same time. On a side note, Metroid Prime 2 was my most anticipated title, but I'm a little bothered by it too. Way too much black and gray in all the screens. And ammo for the beams?

John

Mr. Gesuauldi,

Oh, you cunning fox. First you made me write about Mega Man, now both you and this surprise Zelda announcement force my hand again, for there is no series more dear to my heart than the Legend of Zelda.

The first item that must be addressed is Wind Waker. I adore it. Subjective art direction aside (I find the cel shading invigorating and elegant, personally), the game makes one correction to the formula that was handled poorly in the Nintendo64 games: it is not a world of ends. Perhaps it was due to hardware limitations, but both Ocarina and Majora’s Mask eschewed the old method of distributing areas of interest throughout the map. Ocarina suffers one worse by having almost no enemies in this ‘central hub’ area. Then Wind Waker gives me an enormous ocean to explore, with a map that had to be filled as I went. Genius. The sheer thrill of discovery has never before been so prevalent in a game.

The only flaw to that element was that much of what you would discover wasn’t terribly interesting (little islands and what not). That, and it’s hard to fight traditional enemies in a boat. Also, I’ll own up to the standard complaint of wanting more dungeons and challenge. Still, it was a great ride.

Second, we must discuss this new Zelda. My feelings on it are: well, that’s an impressive engine.

What else can I say? We know nothing about it.

I could go on about the stylistic differences between this game and it’s Nintendo 64 brethren against Wind Waker, but it’s a tired subject that’s been hashed and rehashed with little respect given between the camps arguing either side. With any luck, Nintendo won’t overcompensate the ‘dark’ element and turn the series into Braveheart, because that would be a tragic day.

You know, a ‘Zelda’ topic really is too broad to cover in one letter. I suppose I’ll wrap this up by discussing continuity in the series.

People. Put your charts away. The Zelda timeline does not exist. No matter how hard you try, you cannot connect all the games without making huge leaps of logic.

Nintendo simply didn’t have the foresight to give the game a rich history when they first created it. Then they contradicted themselves in a Link to the Past. Then they tried to bolster that history with Ocarina of Time, and just created more holes. If anything, I’m glad that Wind Waker and Ocarina have more or less said, “This is the story we’re going to go with. Forget the others.” While my deeply ingrained love for these older games makes this a sad path to walk, at least Nintendo is taking action. Otherwise, we may end up with another Mega Man X series, where the developers seem deliberately intent upon making things as confusing as possible.

And lastly, I did enjoy the Adventure of Link. It may be my least appreciated among favorites, but, hey. At least it’s not one of the CD-i games.

- Dustin Vogt

Guess what!? I'm one of those weird dudes that loves The Adventure of
Link!

That was such an awesome game! I don't know why people hate it! It
makes me sad!

I would love to see the new Zelda fans get through Zelda 2's Death
Mountain and find that damn hammer! They wouldn't be able to do it
without a guide! And even then it would probably still be iffy!

As for this new Zelda game on the Gamecube... I spent an hour or more
getting the trailer (since I have dial-up. <3 that so much...). It
-may- be an improvement since the N64 and Wind Wa(n)ker days of Zelda
games. Since there seem to enemies for Link to battle. Which is always good! And I didn't see one sign of an ocean! Which is even better! Of course, as Kefka pointed out yesterday, the puzzles will probably just be pushing giant blocks into giant holes!

But, there's no way to tell if it will be good or bad until we get to
play it! Which will be like 4 years from now! Because Nintendo loves
to delay things! Especially Zelda's!

Oh, and the new Link isn't very sexy. I think the sexiest Link was the
one in Smash Bros. Melee. But still, he wasn't even all that sexy
either. Oh well.

~Shrubey, who hopes that the Zelda Overworld theme makes it into the
game. Because he's sick of it not being there!

P.S. I think Jet Set Samurai is cool

There is one major problem with the new Zelda. Link isn't sexy! How
could they make a realistic Zelda without making Link sexy?!

- Zeth

So, I'm hoping that this new Zelda game will offer a new, more serious story than previous offerings. But I'm more interested in what sorts of changes they'll be making to the overall gameplay, since from the trailer it just looks like Ocarina but with better graphics. Therefore, I'm sure Nintendo will be doing something with this game to set it apart from OoT. So why the change back to the realistic look? Well, Miyamoto provided his reasons for this change in an interview at 1up.com: 1. Because fans wanted them to This is understandable. They show a realistic Zelda at Spaceworld to show people what they're capable of doing, then they try the cel-shaded style which scared away some gamers, now they go back to the original style to show what they're still capable of doing and maybe winning back those fans turned off by Wind Waker's style. Now, his other reason doesn't make quite as much sense... 2. Because using the same style of Wind Waker again wouldn't be unique Wha... huh? So bringing back Ocarina Link is unique? I guess this is Nintendo's way of saying, "We gots to innovate
by re-using older ideas! The new stuff, it's just too fresh to re-use." Hence, all the SNES games on the GBA, I suppose. But at least we're finally getting an all new GBA Zelda. Of course, it's not being developed by Nintendo themselves, but Capcom has proven themselves more than capable of handling 2D Zelda, so I'm sure it will be just as good all the same. Just as I'm sure it's no coincidence that the final battle in Oracle of Seasons was highly reminiscent of the final boss in Mega Man 3.

Now here it is, your moment of Zen...

1up.com: "Miyamoto stated that there are two reasons they decided to make a game with an older Link: because a lot of fans want them to, and because it is a way to provide a unique Zelda game for the GameCube. Making a Zelda game in the same style as The Wind Waker would not be very unique, so they chose an art style similar to that of Ocarina of Time."

Konichi-wa Chris-san. Kore wa nan deska?

Zelda, Zelda, Zelda....no other game has been responsible for my ascent into
gaming that this game. I remember watching my friend play a Link to the
Past in a tent that he had for some reason put up in his backyard and had
set a TV and snes up in. Great game that Link to the past, no matter how
many times I beat it I still want to play it over again.

With that said, I look forward to this new Legend Of Zelda game for the
gamecube. The screen shots made my jaw drop and hit the floor when i first
saw them, I had no idea the gamecube could do things like this. I am
excited about this new title, beyond what words might be able to convey but
i'll have to try. Horse back combat just sounds cool, charging a group of
enemies and cutting through their ranks like a hot knife through butter.
What would be even better was having one, JUST ONE, large scale battle in
the game. Having more than one would cheapen the concept and then we'd have
another dynasty warriors on our hands. It could be the climax, the battle
between the two waring faction. Fighting off a seige on the hyrule castle,
catapults raining fire on the battlefield as you swing away at the monsters,
or leading a calvary charge down from the hills on the unfortunate group
down below. Alot of it sounds like something you might have seen in the
LOTR trilogy and some would say that's unoriginal since they already have a
game for each movie. Still i would welcome it, very much so.

One thing that puzzles me, is it set after the ocarina or time or in its'
own little universe? One theory that was offered to me on another forum was
that this was showing the fall of the hero of time, events that eventually
lead to wind walker. Never played the game myself as being on a ship takes
up alot of my free time but from what I've gathered, it takes place
somewhere in the future after the fall of the hero of time. If the game was
all about the fall of Link i would be somewhat upset but also amazed that
Nintendo was willing to kill off one of their main characters. That ,to me,
would be like mario dying in a battle against bowser. If i'm wrong you can
point and laugh, not too much though.

Farkas of doom, still drooling over the ten screen shots.

Conquistador Gesualdi

Good day, kind sir.
I have very fond memories of the latest Zelda games, but for some reason I cannot remember too much about my NES-ing days. I do know that the only Zelda game I have not beaten (besides those God-awful CD-i games) is The Adventure of Link....it just never looked too appealing.

The one thing I do remember is turning on my brand-new Oracle of Seasons GBC game and seeing "Capcom" on the screen. I promptly flipped out. Shouts were heard from my room, consisting of "CAPCOM?! What the Hell? I didn't buy Resident Evil: Link's Story! I didn't pay for "Link Meets Megaman" (match made i heaven BTW)!!" but alas, OoS turned out to be one freakin' awesome game, and I quickly went out and got Oracle of Ages soon after beating it. Unfortunately, I then lost OoS. OoA is inferior.

I also remember when I first got Majora's Mask, and my N64 was in the basement, where it was cold. Everytime I wanted to play MM I wore a winter hat down to the basement. I now refer to that hat as "Majora's Hat". Lovingly of course.

HAIKU TIME!

Legend of Zelda
How I love thee so much
Link is teh r0xx0rz

Jet Set Samurai, who has concluded that 1984 is the weirdest book EVAR. Period.