Reviewing a classic like The Legend of Zelda can be difficult, mostly because everyone and their mother already played it. It’s really no different than a seasoned movie critic reviewing Gone with the Wind or Citizen Kane in front of a group of enthusiasts, who memorized these movies and their offerings when they were still in diapers. But like any experience, there are still points and reflections that can be made about them -- even if they might seem redundant to some.
In an effort to point out more tedious and painful moments in a seemingly perfect game, here are some thoughts that crossed my mind as I was enjoying the original Zelda (for the umpteenth time) on the 3DS.
The cave could be forgotten
"It’s dangerous to go alone," says the old codger in the cave as he hands you a sword. And when some elderly guy in a hole gives you advice like that, he’s not kidding. I actually lost my progress during my first reply on the 3DS version, and began traversing the wilderness unarmed like an idiot after forgetting to revisit the cavern. Once realizing that nothing happened when I pushed the “A” button, I immediately turned around and consulted with everyone’s favorite octogenarian.
This got me wondering if newer players ever had gone "alone" (so to speak), and questioned why they constantly kept dying without a fighting chance. "What kind of sadistic game is this," they think to themselves. "Am I supposed to scare these monsters by winning a staring contest?"
It’s hard to imagine anyone rage-quitting a game like Zelda, though I’m sure stranger things happen. Again, it seems highly unlikely that players would forget the cave, but perhaps someone once decided --in their mind at the time -- that the cave was unimportant.
First Quest “Level 2” and “Level 3”
This isn’t highly significant, but one thing that’s always bugged me about The Legend of Zelda is how Level 3 is easier to find than Level 2, and how that second dungeon is so damn easy to miss. The biggest kick-in-the-face with all of this is how Level 2, unlike other castles, doesn’t have any special item you acquire to progress through other areas. In fact, the only reason I came to the realization that I forgot Level 2 was after completing Level 7 and noticing I was still one wedge behind in obtaining the Triforce.
From my experiences, locating Level 3 was a breeze; I simply maneuvered around the red thicketed area -- which still seems much closer to the starting point -- and went down a few spaces. Bam, there it is, in all of its glory. Why I didn’t look up and realize it said “Level 3” the first time I played the game is beyond me, but I didn’t care either way. The dungeon was easy to access and provided me with a key item essential for progressing. That’s right, I remember discovering how to use the raft before finding Level 2 which -- when compared to Level 3 – is practically located in the ass end of nowhere.
If you take nothing else from this, let it be a lesson that it’s always wise to hold on to your original maps and instruction booklets.
Death Mountain’s Interior
When I wasn’t having trouble remembering which room led where, I was low on keys needed to access other areas in Ganon’s stronghold. Seriously, after putting up with this madness I was starting to believe I’d arrive to a room with The Riddler instead of Ganon, and he’d tell me "Sorry Link, but our villain is in another castle." If Shigeru Miyamoto was looking to make these final trials an amazing challenge then he sure as hell succeeded.
Most others I’ve discussed this with had mixed feelings about the Death Mountain dungeon. Some found themselves in a similar bind, while others proceeded to gaze at me with a puzzled look while asking
"What’s your problem? That was easy."
Then again, it wasn’t uncommon to constantly encounter similar elements in other RPG’s. Many classic dungeon crawlers were almost unbeatable if you didn’t have a pencil and some graph paper handy, as creating your own map was a prerequisite for success. These experiences can’t be compared to the masochistic RPG elements we find in games like Demon’s Souls these days, but for 1985 this was probably quite the trial for your average home console audience.