Hey guys! I’m back with #VideogameTuesday and today I’m focusing on my first impression of the Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening.

So let me preface that I did not play the original released in 1993 on Game Boy so I’m coming at this as a complete newbie to the game. Also I’m currently playing the game so I haven’t finished it yet. Also also there may be a couple of spoilers 😬, but I’m going to try to not spoil it haha. Now that the disclaimers are out of the way let’s talk about the game! I’m going to focus on the game design, music, and overall story.

Game Design

I love the design of the game. I have played the 8-bit versions of the Legend of Zelda and LOZ 2 and I could definitely see how the developers kept that old school feel with a new vibe. I love the bright colors and how cartoony it looks, which is very reminiscent of Wind Waker. The game mechanics are fairly simple and it doesn’t seem to diverge from how the original game would have played. Again I’m basing this on LoZ but it seems the same. The only downside o can see is that you have to equip things you want to use. Now that’s not usually a bad thing, but that’s because nowadays you have plenty of slots. Well in Link’s Awakening you only have two slots AND you have to equip an item to be able to jump. I can’t tell you how inconvenient that is for the first dungeon. But so far that’s all I have for the game design.

Music

It’s nice to hear the familiar LoZ song as I run around the island. It’s also nice hearing the change of music as you travel from place to place. There’s also a NP character named Marin who likes to sing. I believe her song is probably going to be important as I progress. I’m also collecting instruments after each dungeon so I feel like there’s an epic song coming. I was low-key excited when I saw I was collecting the instruments. Maybe Link will get a chance to play them 🤷🏾‍♀️? I don’t know but I’m looking forward to it.

Overall Story

I’m going to try to sum up what’s happened so far and where I’m at in the game without giving too much away. So Link is on a boat and he gets shipwrecked. He wakes up in the house of Marin and her father Tarin. They let him know he’s been washed ashore and has lost his belongings. Once he retrieves them, he starts his quest of waking the Windfish to return home.

So it’s been so long since I’ve played a dungeon-based Zelda game. It’s been a MINUTE since I’ve seen a typical LoZ styled dungeon. And I’m loving the dungeons in the game so far. They are just challenging enough to be interesting and to keep you engaged without being too hard. There’s also this trading system that’s pretty interesting. I am also encountering a lot of original Zelda enemies as well like the Octoroks and Orange Leevers. I am also enjoying the added Mario elements. I don’t know if it was in the original but I definitely like it. I’m working on dungeon number three so we’re making progress.

So far I’m really enjoying this game. I like trying to figure out the puzzles and fighting the mini and big bosses. I’m happy Nintendo took the chance and remade Link’s Awakening. I hope with the success of the game we can look forward to other old school games coming to the switch.

But that’s all I got! Tell me what’s your favorite thing about Link’s Awakening? (please no spoilers). Find me on Instagram @the_nerdlight. Peace!