The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past - Review

Author: Nanaki_Xii Date: May 14 2005 - 16:34 Score: 60 points

After Link's Adventure II, thousands of fans were waiting for a faithful return to the Legend of Zelda, but they were left waiting for years, a long, slow process. There were hints of a brand new game; we saw trailers, previews, and countless sneak peaks. Then, when the game was released, it couldn't have been better. Everything the obsessed Zelda fan could want was here, all the sword-fighting, magic, exploration, and especially the "rescue the princess" storyline that the series had kept to this very day. Link to the Past has been considered the best in the Zelda series, although I can't agree myself, it's quite certainly a very good choice.

A Link to the Past (LTTP) is a deliciously gorgeous game, even as the years went by, to the end of the SNES's life cycle, there was rarely a game that could surpass it's visual appeal. Animations are smooth and beautiful, effects dazzle the eye, each monster is different, making sure you never have to look at the same grotesque face too much. LTTP certainly uses lighting to its advantage; a certain dungeon even has you relying on your source of light to defeat a powerful opponent. There are some small details that just make it so much more satisfying. Whack a bush with your sword and it'll burst into a bushel of leaves that slowly flutter to the ground, and there's even some fog floating around in a few of the forests. LTTP certainly pleases in the visual department.

Sound is beautiful. You'll hear Link yell and vocalize as you battle various enemies, giving you a feeling that you're actually playing a human being with a voice. Music is fantastic; the composers in LTTP tried their best and came out with a great soundtrack. There'll hardly be a time you´d actually want to turn down the volume, each song is pleasing and enjoyable, fitting the mood and following you as you play. Each situation plays music according to what's happening. A boss battle will ignite an energetic beat. Compared to frolicking in a town where it a takes a lighter sweet song.

LTTP certainly doesn't let go of you. You'll be having fun till the very end, and even then you´d probably replay it to discover each secret. LTTP contains a plethora of treasure collecting, you'll be finding "pieces of heart" to increase you health meter, and search any nook and cranny for hidden bonuses. You gain more and more items as you play the game, allowing you to traverse farther in the world. A net can help you catch life reviving fairies, an ocarina will let you travel across the huge world via a huge bird, and so on. Combat is one of the best aspects of LTTP, you have a huge selection of choices, pick up a pot and hurl it at an enemy, push an enemy of the edge of a pit with your sword, use a boomerang, bow, sword, etc. One never really seems to realize, but LTTP has a nearly infinite amount of ways you can send enemies to their demise. Bosses are well thought out, and provide a definite challenge. Each has a different weakness. There's hardly ever a boss that can be defeated by repeatedly hitting it with a pointy object.

So if you're still reading, then you should know that by now I'd be telling you that there's no possible excuse not to play this immediately. Link to the Past is a classic, revolutionary and a fantastic piece of art. Don't pass up the chance to play a jewel of the past.

	Title / Type	Submitter	Date
	Review	Nanaki_Xii	May 14 2005

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