Review: A Link Between Worlds

Hey everybody, I'm back and I just finished playing A Link Between Worlds! And when I say "just finished", I really do mean just finished. I closed my DS five minutes ago and I wanted to write this immediately while it was still fresh in my brain.

I'm going to go over a few categories: gameplay, the look of the game, and the story. Let's start with gameplay. (I'll go over the story last and avoid spoilers up until then. But once I start, there will be spoilers everywhere, so keep away if you don't want to see them.) Also, this review only covers the main storyline, since I haven't finished any sidequests.



If you read my first impression post on this game, you'll know I wasn't impressed. I consider myself to be a pretty good gamer, but when I first started this game I was getting swatted down left and right, and the lack of hearts wasn't helping. However, this game does get easier as it goes on. After beating the first two or three dungeons you've accumulated enough heart containers to be able to withstand attacks. You also get new tunics that reduce enemy damage, which is nice.

I think one of the reasons I had such a hard time in the beginning was the controls. This game uses the circle pad and buttons, whereas past DS Zelda games have used the stylus. Personally, I prefer the stylus. The circle pad can sometimes make it hard to face exactly the direction you want which is important when fighting, and using buttons only allows for one basic slash. In Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks, different stylus touches translated to different sword moves, which was helpful. The stylus also allowed for more precise controls of some tools. I think the stylus would have been extremely helpful in this game for tools such as the ice rod and fire rod, the two I had the most trouble with. As for the circle pad, generally it was fine, but as aforementioned, sometimes it was hard to face exactly where I wanted to face, and in boss battles, it was sometimes difficult to maneuver just because my hands sweat when I'm in intense situations in games, so the circle pad became harder to use. However, I managed to work around most of my problems with the controls and they weren't terrible to the point that I couldn't play.

There were also several puzzles that were not very intuitive. I had to use a guide for this game more times than any other Zelda game I've played, mainly because several mechanics were new and I just didn't instinctively think to use them. I often forgot about the painting gimmick in the early parts of the game, and later on I got stuck on parts of dungeons where you had to drop from one floor to another, especially in the Ice Ruins.

The non-linear layout of this game is supposed to contribute to more exploration and freedom, but I didn't really feel that, maybe just because it's a 3DS game, which naturally feels confined. Also, running from one end of the map to the other didn't take very long, when compared to the length of sailing/train rides in Wind Waker, Phantom Hourglass, and Spirit Tracks. I think decision to make the game non-linear is the reason the story was so underdeveloped, but I'll talk about that more when I discuss the plot and characters.

Bosses were surprisingly easy in this game, although it seemed like they took longer to kill. They also didn't have any names/titles like they usually do, not sure why. Even the final boss, the Yuga/Ganon/Hilda hybrid pig, was pretty easy, just basic dodging attacks, the Zelda classic of Dead Man's Volley, and slashing. I will say I loved the final stage of the battle, where you shoot light arrows at painting!Yuga while Link is also a painting, it looked really cool.

That staff/paintbrush looks a lot like Bowser Jr.'s. Did Yuga get it from Professor E. Gadd?

Let's talk about the overall feel of the game. I liked it. Being a 3DS game, there was definitely a step up in graphics from the last portable Zelda, Spirit Tracks. Everything looked very crisp and stylized and colorful, and it was a nice game to look at. Again, though, I'm no graphics snob, so even if the graphics had been a little lower quality I might not have minded. The soundtrack was also very good at setting the mood of the game, especially the parts in Lorule. I'll admit that walking around Lorule for the first time spooked me a bit, just because of the music. However, there weren't many iconic tunes besides the classic Zelda overworld theme; nothing really unique to this particular game. Except one. Ravio's theme is a great song and it fits his character perfectly. But beyond that, I can't recall a single other song.

And now, my favorite part: the story. In my first impressions post, I wrote that the story was really the only thing keeping me invested in the game. And I hold to that. Unfortunately, this game is rather short, and there are not that many cutscenes that drive the story. Basically you get the set up, a chunk of gameplay, a bit more set up, then the main chunk of gameplay, then the final boss, and the wrap-up cutscenes. This is probably due to the fact that this game is meant to have an open world with non-linear exploration of the dungeons, but the consequence of that is there is no structured plot, with one event leading to another. Story is inserted in chunks, not spread out over the course of the game, and I'm not sure I liked it. There were no scenes to show character development, backstory, etc. Ultimately it seems to me like this game sacrificed story for and open world format, and if it was my choice, I would have done it the other way around.

But let's forget about all that and just focus purely on the plotline itself. I loved it. Unfortunately I was spoiled ahead of time regarding Ravio's identity, but I never suspected Hilda's true intentions. It was a great twist, and I loved how they made her a sympathetic villain. But speaking of villains, here's where I was disappointed. After you defeat the Yuga/Ganon beast, he just vanishes. He doesn't even get a cutscene detailing his defeat. Yuga was the villain who had hooked my interest in the beginning, and he didn't even get a proper final scene. I was left wanting to know more about him. Where did he get his powers from? Why was he obsessed with perfection? Why exactly did he betray Hilda? There was so much more potential in Yuga's character and he was left disappointingly flat. Not to mention Ganon, who it appears is simply a vessel for Yuga in this game. No backstory, motivation, not even any speech. The story could have given those two much more depth, which ultimately would have served the story better.

Everybody could have used a lot more backstory. So say I, Hilda of Lorule...

Ravio was easily my favorite character. His sleazy salesman persona lent humor to the game, and there was something strangely endearing about his cowardice and general smarminess. But again, why couldn't we have learned more? What is his history with Sheerow? Where did he get the magic bracelet? Did he steal it from Hilda? What exactly was his relation to Hilda? (When he shows up at the end to talk Hilda out of destroying Hyrule I saw so much romance between them, but maybe I was wearing shipping goggles.) Apparently in Hero Mode you can read Ravio's journal in the Vacant House, which gives a tiny bit more backstory to Ravio, but why couldn't that be in the main game? There's so much more about Ravio I want to know but unless he shows up in a future game, I won't get it.

A warm welcome to you, Mr. Hero! I'm sure you want to know more about me, but how about you forget that and rent something?

That's really my main complaint with the story. I wanted more. I didn't really get excited about the story until the final boss, and by that's rather late in the game. I wish there had been more cutscenes sprinkled through out the game that could have given more insight, more detail. We could have learned more about Ravio, more about Hilda, more about everything, really. I suppose the reason we don't is that the two main twists: Ravio's identity and Hilda's betrayal would be more shocking if there was no foreshadowing, but this leaves the game as nothing more than dungeon hopping with no story to keep the player interested.

My final verdict: A Link Between Worlds is a pretty good game. I speak only for the main storyline, as I haven't completed any of the sidequests. It's a little slow in the beginning and middle, but story at the end really makes up for a lot of that. The characters and overall plot are wonderful, but could have used a lot more fleshing out. Gameplay utilizes fresh mechanics that are interesting, and the overall difficulty is beginner-intermediate. For me, story is always the selling point of games. I play for the plot, and even though A Link Between Worlds was disappointing in the beginning and could have had more than was given, it delivered well enough at the end. I am glad I played this through, and as always, am looking forward to my next visit to Hyrule.