Played and beat A Link to the Past for the first time!
As a big Zelda hater as a kid, I skipped the series completely. I’ve been going through to experience them all in order now. I really enjoyed the first two games of the series so I expected to like this one too. What I didn’t expect is was that it really is one of the best games on the Super Nintendo if not one of the best games of all-time.
If you liked it and have access to a 3DS, you should play "A Link Between Worlds".
It uses a very similar overworld / "dark" world but a different story/time period. It's not quite a remake, has some cool mechanics, and is a spiritual successor. Definitely recommend it if you like LttP.
I need to get a new battery and backplate as my 3DS battery has bloated but I definitely will be playing a Link Between Worlds soon. Every retrospective I’ve watched since beating A Link to the Past recommends it as well.
So interesting! I can see the merits of 2D Zeldas, but to me the N64 Zeldas were what really elevated the series (LttP is a great game, sure, but I'm in love with OoT and Majora's Mask).
I think they are really different experiences despite the shared DNA and so will appeal to different people differently.
I mentioned elsewhere in the thread, but I tried playing OOT for the first time somewhere in my 20s. I hated the camera and controls and gave up on it pretty quickly. I never played any GameCube games, so I'm not sure there.
Definitely check out Link’s Awakening when you get a chance! It has a really cool mechanical evolution beyond LttP: you have 2 equipment slots that you can swap independently! So instead of always having the sword + 1 item, you can have 2 different items with no sword!
That’s one thing I always like about handheld games during that era especially the Zelda and Mario Land games. They weren’t under the thumb of the original developers that created the series so they were willing to take more risks.
I read in some interviews about the development of A Link to the Past they wanted to allow the player to map any item to either Y or B but Miyamoto made them change it back to just allowing an item equipped to Y and the sword always being equipped.
Link’s Awakening is next on my list, I’ve just started it and I’m looking forward to the rest of it!
My entire life I’ve been avoiding Zelda games thinking they just weren’t for me. But when Nintendo added Link’s Awakening DX to Nintendo Online I decided to give it a try.
It’s just a lovely game. I love the graphics, the way it holds your hand a little more than earlier games, that feeling when the puzzles “click”, everything about it. It has turned me around on Zelda games and I intend to play the Oracle games when I get a chance.
ALTTP is still my favorite of all time. I didn't try OOT until I was in my 20s because a roommate wanted to play it and it was on the wii shop. Hated the controls and everything. I'm watching someone do a blind playthrough now and I like the ideas, but hated actually playing it.
OP, you should also check out ALTTPR -- there are many randomizers to get tons of playtime out of the game.
Another game I personally loved was SoulBlazer (SoulBlader in Japan and maybe other areas).
If you liked LTTP the best don’t sleep on the other titles in that world/style. ALBW, Links Awakening, Oracle of Ages, Oracle of Seasons and Minish Cap are all great.
I definitely will hit up a randomizer when I revisit it again. One of my first thought after beating it was “I should find a randomizer and play again”
I really liked a lot about the minish cap but the gacha game heart piece and the fact that you leave one of the three goddesses unhoused felt very antethitical to Zelda. Almost perfect otherwise.
This has been my experience with it. I really struggle with games where your directional inputs are just up, down, left and right because the attacks and blocking are based on what direction you're facing. Funny thing is that I grew up with a mega drive and ps1 plus an old Compaq pc and I had a game boy colour and advance as well as a ds so I should be ok with four direction based movement games.
I can see that, especially with the early game when you don’t have heart containers and you don’t have the master sword either. No shame in playing with save states if you have access to switch online or an emulator.