For you Zelda fans out there that haven’t gotten your hands on this game (or any of the non-N64 games, for that matter), this is a game to take a second look at. Although it’s about a childhood or more old, it’s still a great game (I got it about three years ago, and I still play it over and over again), and it’s reasonably priced (I’ve seen it for $25, but that’s the absolute cheapest). It’s obviously one-player, and it’s for the GameBoy (any of them, but if you have a GameBoy Color or Advance, and you get the edition with the Color Dungeon, then you get an added bonus).
“Link’s Awakening” tells the story of Link after he defeats Ganon (this is probably the storyline following “A Link to the Past”), and Hyrule is having its peacetime. Link decides to take a journey across the sea, but on his trip, a storm rages, and lightning strikes the small boat, shattering it. Link awakens on a strange island, seeing Princess Zelda, or so he thinks. Marin, the name of the girl who saves him from the violent ocean, stands before him, and from here, the adventure unfolds. Link’s quest is to find all eight Instruments so he can wake the Wind Fish and return home. The game is difficult without any guides (the REAL way to play), and not only are there eight (technically nine) dungeons to find your way through, but there are mini-quests, mini-games, and item exchange sequences that take almost the entire duration of the game to complete. As in all Zelda games, the dungeons go by difficulty level, with the first being the easiest and the last being I-can’t-take-it-anymore hard. “Link’s Awakening” will have you playing your GameBoy for hours.
The graphics are amazingly good for the GameBoy system. It has a few regular-play cinemas, and even fewer movie-like cinemas, but they’re worth waiting for. The color variety (if you have these kinds of GameBoy’s) is fantastic, and the game is very clear and easy to interpret. It also has humorous dialogue and situations, and even a picture-taking mouse that follows you around and keeps an album. The music is also very catchy and, amazingly, not completely electronic-sounding, like most games we know (Tetris, anyone?).
“Link’s Awakening” is a great addition to your Zelda collection, or just good for those long road or plane trips. For hours of great game play, good music, and just the feeling of holding Zelda in your hands, this game is perfect.