Link’s Awakening is one of my favourite Zelda games. It is up there on my gaming recommendations, especially the original version or the Gameboy Colour DX version because for an original Gameboy game, it is a relatively meaty game, taking several hours to complete. I haven’t played the Switch version, and probably won’t, as nice as it looks visually, it just doesn’t feel like a game that really needed to be remastered, with the modern Nintendo first party price tag. That doesn’t mean it isn’t worth playing. Personally, I think the game is best appreciated on the original hardware, just because it probably falls into the category of being technically impressive.
Link’s Awakening takes place at… Some point… The Zelda timeline is a mess, and I really don’t care too much for it. All you need to know is that Link was caught in a storm and ended up on Koholint Island, which if Breath of the Wild is to be believed, is just off to the southeast of Hyrule. The fact that Koholint island is referenced in Breath of the Wild will always fill me with a sense of joy. Link is woken up in the house of Marin and Tarin and told he washed up on the Beach and his sword might be there. After obtaining your sword, an Owl appears and sets the main goal of the game. I talk about these characters, because it is interesting that Marin and Tarin could be seem as similar in design to Malon and Talon from Ocarina of Time, and the Owl is something reminiscent of Kaepora Gaebora. Though this game was originally released in 1993, compared to OoT’s 1996. The Zelda franchise re-using iterations of characters is not an uncommon thing.
After that, it is a standard Zelda affair, at least what had become standard by 1991 and the release of A Link to the Past. You travel the world, find dungeons, go into dungeons and get items that allow you to access later dungeons. Obviously whatever item you get in the dungeon is instrumental to beating the boss of said dungeon (Exceptions do occur). That trope will always make me laugh; it’s like Superman having a block of kryptonite in his fortress of solitude that could be used against him by any plucky raider. From a gameplay perspective this all makes sense, but I always find this to be a big narrative hole. Though this is one that I don’t find to glaring or one that totally puts a damp squib on the game. But the thing that needs to be appreciated here, this is all being done on the Game Boy and it was done competently. A portable game that felt like A Link to the Past on Nintendo’s little grey brick is a quite the marvel.
The game itself is quite challenging in places, some of the dungeons and their puzzles, whilst not impossible, can be tough for kids to understand. I am thinking more about some of the late game dungeons like Eagle Tower or Turtle Rock. There are several potential stumbling points on this game, the second boss of Pot Grotto is not the easiest, and because you are likely to be sporting 4 hearts, there is a chance he will ruin you, again and again. Also, though the game does throw rupees at you, not knowing that you require the bow to defeat the Armos Knight in the Face Key shrine can throw you through a loop. The bow in this game costs 980 Rupees, considering that you can only hold 999, that is a huge amount of wealth. I suppose you could always steal the bow from the shop and forever have your name changed to THIEF.
There is a lot to appreciate about Link’s Awakening, it was the first Zelda game to include a collectible in the secret seashells and included a mandatory fetch quest, which you are required to do the finish the final dungeon. The latter being potentially frustrating as for first time players. In fact, the secret seashells can also be a bit of a nuisance as it is easy to accidentally lock yourself out of getting the Shell Sword, something I thought was mandatory to beat the game when I was younger.
Something I was not aware of when I used to play this game, the game features a bonus at the end if you beat the game without dying. On the original GB version it isn’t anything too special, but I am under the impression that you get an additional ending screen. Beating the game deathless is surprisingly challenging as the previously mentioned Pot Grotto boss can be tricky, but once you have a couple of hearts under your belt it isn’t too terrible.
I need to pick up the DX version again, as there are significantly more achievements to unlock on that game via RetroAchievements. Much like a lot of the Zelda games in this decade, I have played Link’s Awakening several times and every time I find myself enjoying it, it is probably up there within my top three Zelda games, though it is battling with Majora’s Mask for that third-place spot. Incidentally, my second favourite Zelda game is Hyrule Warriors, especially the Switch’s definitive edition. You have no idea how happy I was when they added the Link’s Awakening DLC to the 3DS version, playing as Marin is a treat and was a great way to pay homage to this fantastic entry in the Zelda Series. If you have never played Link’s Awakening, and like Zelda games, you really owe it to yourself to give this one a play. It honestly does play like a dream.
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