{"id":2588,"date":"2013-03-19T17:55:29","date_gmt":"2013-03-19T17:55:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.controlpadblues.com\/?p=2588"},"modified":"2013-03-19T18:10:27","modified_gmt":"2013-03-19T18:10:27","slug":"my-top-100-8-the-legend-of-zelda-a-link-to-the-past","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.controlpadblues.com\/?p=2588","title":{"rendered":"My Top 100: #8 – The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"1992<\/a>

1992 – Nintendo (Super NES, Game Boy Advance, Virtual Console)<\/p><\/div>\n

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I believe\u00a0that Zelda<\/em> games were\u00a0meant to be played from a top-down perspective.<\/p>\n

Sure, the age of 3D gaming has been pretty kind to the series, and all of them have been incredible in one way or another.\u00a0 Furthermore, it might have taken a while for me to truly appreciate the side-scrolling nature of Adventure of Link<\/em>, but even that worked really well.\u00a0 Hell, I’d even be willing to try a turn-based Zelda<\/em> game!\u00a0 Nintendo did a great job with Super Mario RPG<\/em> and the Paper<\/em> series, so why not?<\/p>\n

Playing with a top-down view just goes back to that first time we set out on a Hyrulean adventure.\u00a0 It was just as simple as going up, down, left or right, and there was no lock-on targeting to worry about – walk around, hit stuff with a sword, and you were good to go.<\/p>\n

A Link to the Past<\/em> brought gamers back to the basics after Zelda II<\/em>‘s radical departure from the original formula.\u00a0 Not only was the world bigger this time around, but the Light World\\Dark World dichotomy added a whole new layer to the gameplay (pretty much literally).\u00a0 There were a bunch of new items that would become series mainstays,\u00a0such as\u00a0bottles, the hookshot, coloured tunics, as well as the legendary Master Sword.<\/p>\n

This doesn’t seem like a big deal now, but by\u00a0adding the Piece of Heart thing (finding four pieces\u00a0grants one Heart Container), you were given yet another reason to explore both the Light and Dark Worlds extensively.\u00a0 Death Mountain in particular had several caves and ledges for you to drop down from, and it was never obvious how to get to them – you often had to travel from one world to the other in order to get to otherwise impossible-to-reach locations.<\/p>\n

I could go on and on about why the game mechanics made it fun to play, but the overall mood of the game is great, as well.\u00a0 From the moment you step out of Link’s house and into a torrential downpour, you’re shown just what this 16 bit console was capable of.\u00a0 The lighting and graphics were not only fun to look at, but they set the mood quite well.<\/p>\n

NPC’s were also given a much larger role this time around.\u00a0 No longer were they simply hidden in a cave to give you random tips, or walking around a village aimlessly.\u00a0 They could now be found anywhere on the map, and would\u00a0not only give you a tip or two, but give you some kind of beneficial side-quest for you to complete.<\/p>\n

A prime example of this would be talking to the Swordsmith in Kakariko Village, who mentions that his partner got lost along the way; you KNOW this guy can probably give you a better sword, and you’re left scratching your head, wondering where the hell his partner is.\u00a0 You eventually find him later on in the game, but the idea that such a seemingly minor plotline could help you so much made you want to talk to everyone, and finish every side quest there was.<\/p>\n

Throw in some of the best music on the Super NES, and you’ve got one heck of a game.<\/p>\n

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