Review
Played on: Switch
Released: 2019Originally released: 1993 (GameBoy)
Played on: Switch
Released: 2019
Released: 2019
Originally released: 1993 (GameBoy)
Introduction
There are a ton of incredible 8-bit games that have faded into some fictive category called "outdated". Sure, with the simplistic graphics of that period, you kind of had to be there to understand it. The basic hardware back then relied on the developers to be creative with the very limited resources they had available. The following 16-bit era did, after all, leave a lot more room for artistic details with more advanced 2D.
But what if you take the gameplay foundation of those 8-bit games and completely remake them graphically? Not just some added screen filters and a port to modern hardware, but a complete graphical overhaul and some quality of life additions? The result is somewhere in between a remaster and remake, but mostly leaning towards the latter.
GameBoy's famous Zelda game, Links Awakening got such a remake last year and it shows that young players of today can really enjoy pick up and play purity in the gameplay from a begone 8-bit era. An era where the core mechanics are learnt quickly, but the skill is learnt through repetition. Cleverly Nintendo have reintroduced a classic in such a way that it seems modern, albeit at it's core it's very true to the original.
I must stress that this is the very first Zelda I have ever actually played to completion! Although I have tried to play a few of them through the years, I had not previously done so with the original Links Awakening.
Let's take a look at Nintendo's clever remake of Links Island Adventure. from the GameBoy in 1993, on the Switch.
Plot and setting
After a short but sweet nod to the original intro, a hand drawn cartoon showing the premise of the story; Link gets caught up in storm at sea in a boat heading for new adventures and wakes up stranded on the beaches of Koholint island. You're taken to the house of father Tarin, where his daughter Marin has saved you. This house resides in the village which is the first area the adventure begins. An owl will give Link hints as to what to do in order to wake up from his dream. He has to fulfil various tasks to gain musical instruments to wake up the Wind Fish residing in an giant egg on top of the highest mountain on the island.
It's a dreamy and nice surrounding for a plot which sets to scale down the size and span of the 16-bit Zelda. This is about making a Zelda that works for handhelds, as such, the remake suits the Switch perfectly. The island is an entirely open map, but progression is in a classic Metroidvania style, segmented into areas that require abilities or items to progress.
Scattered across the island are many dungeons to discover and explore, further expanding the over-world map beneath the surface. It's a cute and colourful island, perfectly sized to keep track of. The game has a nice length to it and feels like a welcome break from the massive open world titles of today. People finding the SNES Zelda a bit overwhelming and difficult, might even find relief here.
Gameplay and features
Link controls in a four direction manner, although you can hit things sideways. Everything is viewed in a slightly isometric top down view and never rotated. I would have liked the d-pad to be available to play with as such. Response in the controls are fast and you learn the length of Links sword reach fairly quickly, as everything is placed grid wise on the map.
Compared to the original there are much more buttons available for Links actions here. No longer are we hampered by the limited A & B buttons of the GameBoy. Running and shield have separate buttons now, relieving the player from constantly mapping magic, shield, bombs and running etc. on the ability screen. Although, I would have preferred to see the jump button get a separate button binding, it was annoying to turn on and off.
Learning what ability is required to solve puzzles, beat enemies or defeating bosses is key. As you progress and get more and more of them, the game becomes more advanced with varying between ways to get through areas by forcing the player to change the use of abilities often.
Otherwise the game very much plays like the old game, reminding me a lot of the delight of simpler and more pure gameplay of the 8-bit days. Like many games from that era, you quickly try and fail the controls as they don't have many buttons to learn, but actually mastering the game is what takes time. Some modern benefits are very welcome here, though: checkpoints are added to a lot of places and an expanded widescreeen view to get a better bearing of your surroundings.
Video
While the original game moved from one whole screen to the next in a 4:3 format, this remake scrolls smoothly with the player in 16:9. Widescreen helps you get a broader view, but the screen by screen switching retains for dungeon rooms and even utilises a 4:3 format when it's required for original puzzles to work. A nice touch to help keep the game as authentic to the source as possible.
There's a very neat "tilt shift" style of camera used throughout the main over-world, blurring the top and bottom edges of the screen to give an appearance that you're looking close up on a tiny model world. It really suits the colourful and cute miniature style. I also like the blank black background when viewing an indoor location, where practically one floor of a house is cut out and shown with no surrounding detail. Very retro and authentic, used in many RPGs back in the 80s and 90s. It's a very easy game to fall in love with visually, setting itself aside with a unique look.
A dynamic resolution is used to try and keep the game at it's 60fps target, aiming for 1080p in docked and 720p in handheld mode, although they both fall under their target quite a bit. Sadly though, the 60fps target is not met a lot of the time, resulting in noticeable screen tearing and framerate drops. Although this game doesn't exactly require pin point accuracy, it's sad to see Nintendo not doing a better job at optimising to a locked 60fps.
Typically, crowded areas with a lot of detail makes the framerate drop, but also when you enter a new area of the map and the game transitions to new styles of environments, lighting and music. Nothing game breaking, but it's obvious and a bit distracting.
Audio
The whole chip tune style of the original GameBoy soundtrack is retained, but updated with modern instruments and audio quality. However, the simplicity of the 8-bit charm in music shines through regardless. There are some lovely compositions to listen to as you play. Entering new types of areas changes the music on the fly. I really enjoyed the soundtrack and once again was reminded that sometimes simplicity is a wonderful thing.
Otherwise it's got the classic, almost childish, Nintendo charm with sounds from sword fighting, enemies attacking and dying and Link making grunts as he moves objects around. Again, a sort of simplicity to reflect it's 8-bit origins is used to much success, while at the same time modernising it all.
Summary
Although, I have partially tested old 8-bit and 16-bit Zeldas through the years, I finally got around to completing one built on this style. I ended up really enjoying myself. The simplicity in the gameplay and world design was a nice break from the complex and often overwhelming size of modern titles, including Zelda's own Breath Of The Wild.
It plays and sounds like a game from my early years of gaming, with a nice new coat of colourful and charming graphics. It's been a beautiful ride through a magical island. Any young players interested in understanding the magic of the purity of core gameplay of retro games, should really check this out. In fact, it's a very recommended title in general on the system.
Now please remake more of these 8-bit gems, there are tons waiting for a new and young audience to discover!
