The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

Growing up in the 90s, many of my childhood memories involve road trips and playing Game Boy cartridges in the backseat, trading them back and forth with my brother and sister. Or in a case like The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening [ゼルダの伝説 夢をみる島], we ended up with two copies of the vanilla Game Boy version probably because our parents got tired of listening to us argue over who would get to play it. Since those days, I've also played the Game Boy Color reissue and the 3DS reissue. With all of that in mind, as good as it is, one has to wonder, with all the great games that have been lost over time, did Link's Awakening really need to be remade for Switch?

The answer is both "yes" and "no." With the original being over 25 years old, many who grew up with the game may want to share it was a new generation of youngsters, so in some ways, it makes sense to update the game, but having just recently played it, the original was such a great game that it scarcely needed to be updated. Nintendo seems to have largely agreed. The majority of the changes here are mere 'quality-of-life' improvements, such as several of the items getting dedicated buttons. For those who have only recently started playing games, it very well may be the best way to play Link's Awakening. It encourages different play styles than would have been practical in the Game Boy original, and having constant access to your shield at all times is a revelation. I found myself playing far more defensively than I ever did on the Game Boy original. Also, with a dedicated button for your sword and two item buttons, the constant dives into the menu are a thing of the past. This certainly makes for a more streamlined experience. These enhancements to how the game plays might sound small, and maybe they are, but they're enough to bring the game up to 2019 standards, even if the limitations of the original game were simple enough to work around.

At the same time, the developers didn't do much more than that. While the visuals and audio certainly wouldn't been possible of the Game Boy, they don't necessarily feel like an improvement. There is a real charm to the pixel art of the original game that isn't completely retained in this version. With some titles like The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures [ゼルダの伝説 4つの剣+], Nintendo has done a good job of updating a retro visual style to contemporary standards, but here, they took things in a completely different direction. While the new art design is undeniably sophisticated, it feels a bit hollow or generic. The game was after all outsourced to a third party, and I have to say that the new art style just doesn't seem completely on-brand. Likewise, although the music is higher fidelity than the chip tune originals, it stays so close in arrangement that it could hardly be called an improvement for any one who enjoys bit music. It all leaves an impression that changes are just to coddle inexperienced players.

That's largely the issue with the game. It's so close to the original title that it feels like a missed opportunity. The music is note-for-note the same, and the level and world design is almost exactly the same, barring a few additional rooms being added. The play mechanics are slightly more refined but basically the same, while the story is repeated verbatim. The Game Boy original holds up so well, that it's hard to recommend going out of your way to get this remake. Frankly, its existence leaves something of a bad taste in my mouth, and I think Nintendo should have had more faith in the design of the original game. Although some choices may have been made based on limitations of the hardware, the Game Boy version really can't be topped, and it arguably shouldn't have been attempted. However, while this feels more like a low-effort port than a true remake, it's still Link's Awakening, and it's a great way to play the game.

Pra mim, Zelda sempre aspirou criatividade e aventura. À medida que a franquia avançou, porém, alguns aspectos da sua estrutura narrativa e visual se repetiram em quase todos os títulos. E por isso jogar Link’s Awakening é tão refrescante.

Conciso e encantador, é aquele jogo pra quem ama Zelda mas sente que já jogou Zelda demais. Sair de Hyrule fez bem pro Link, talvez ele devesse tentar mais vezes.