The+Legend+of+Zelda+Video+Game+Series

The Legend of Zelda: Video Game Series

By Christian A.

The Legend of Zelda is a high fantasy action-adventure video game series made by video game designers Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka. It was developed and published by Nintendo. The gameplay of the series is usually puzzle solving, fighting enemies, and exploring every nook and cranny to find yourself a Piece of Heart or a Heart Container, or a good amount of Rupees. The whole series is centered on Link, named like that because Miyamoto said he was supposed to be a 'link' to the player. Link is the protagonist, and is very often given the task of rescuing Princess Zelda. She has always been kidnapped by Ganon or Ganondorf, the antagonist, to retrieve Zelda's Triforce of Wisdom, so that he could take over Hyrule, and if he claims Link's Triforce of Courage, take over the world. The three goddesses of each piece of the Triforce, Din, Nayru, and Farore, have once been together, in the shape of three triangles making a big triangle, One triangle on the top, and two triangles on the bottom which will make a space that look like an upside-down triangle. the series is usually based on the Triforce, about Link having a piece of the Triforce, or being whisked away to another land for an unknown reason.


 * The Games**

The first game, //The Legend of Zelda//, was released for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), and for America on August 22, 1987.

The second game, //Zelda II: The Adventure of Link//, was the only game in the entire series that was an RPG (role-playing game), and was played mostly as a side-scrolling game. The Game was released for the NES and on December 1988.

The third game, //The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past//, returned to the top-down view and featured a new, alternative world, the Dark World. This game was released for the SNES (Super Nintendo Entertainment System) in 1991 and was re-released for the Game Boy Advance on December 9, 2002.

The fourth game, //Link's Awakening//, Link was stranded on Kolohint Island, after traveling back from one of his previous quest when his ship crashed. This game was released for the Game Boy Color in 1993.

The fifth game, //Ocarina of Time//, was the first Zelda game with 3D graphics. Critics has called this game a "near-perfect and amazing game." The game was originally released on the Nintendo 64 on November 1998.

The sixth game, //Majora's Mask//, was the sequel to Ocarina of Time, and was known for it's dark background and deep storyline. Although it wasn't better than //Ocarina of Time//, it was still given praise. The game was originally released on October 26, 2000. It was re-released on the Virtual Console for the Wii and was specially titled as their 300th game.

The seventh and eighth game was //Oracle of Seasons// and //Oracle of Ages//. These two games are 'linked.' Meaning you can play them in any order and countinue the link by entering a password into the next game you're playing. So some people will recognize you and get to enter passwords in both games. You get the password to link them at the end of the games. //Oracle of Seasons// was action-oriented and //Oracle of Ages// was more puzzle-oriented. The game was released simultaneously for the Game Boy Color.

The ninth game, //The Wind Waker//, featured cel-shaded art style and impressive polishing. It has been notified for its wide, open world full of surprises and exploration. If you were to pre-order the game, you would get //Ocarina of Time: Master Quest//, which is //Ocarina of Time// with more and harder puzzles and dungeons. It was released for the Nintendo Game Cube.

The tenth game, //Four Swords Adventures//, returned to its top-down camera angle. The game was 4 Links, Green, Red, Blue, and Purple, working together to save the Six Sages and Princess Zelda. The game featured levels, and sections that you have to play in and complete to continue on to the next. You have to collect Force Gems, and when you collect 2000, a message will pop up saying "You now have the power to repel evil!" Then the Links will say "Yah!" You can now shoot laser beams from your sword (They've done this many times.). This is required to beat a sections. The game was released in early 2004.

The eleventh game, The Minish Cap, Zelda has been turned into stone. After a few events you get a talking green hat. He will help you along the way and peck you if you're doing something foolish, like you were talking to an important person and offers you to sit down or something, then he would peck you and say something like,"What are you doing? You're talking to the important (insert name here)! Then you refuse and try to leave! You need to learn manners. So sit down and let him/her talk to you!" The game was released for the Game Boy Advance on January 2005.

The twelfth game, //Twilight Princess//, featured realistic graphics and some more deep storyline and was the first Zelda game to get the "Rated T for Teen" rating. It featured another world, The Twilight Realm. The light world of Hyrule has been engulfed in Twilight. Link can turn into a wolf in the Twilight, and later in the game, anytime the player wants. The game was released for the Wii on November 2006, and the Nintendo Game Cube on December 2006.

The thirteenth game, //Phantom Hourglass//, was the sequel to the //Wind Waker//, and takes place right after it. Tetra's pirate crew sail out to find the Ghost Ship, and did. Tetra went in and what was the last they ever heard was a shriek. Link gives chase, but slips and falls into the water. This time, there is a dungeon that you have to go through multiple times to continue the game. The game was released on October 1, 2007 for the Nintendo DS.

The fourteenth game, //Spirit Tracks//, is the sequel to //Phantom Hourglass//. 100 years into the future, Link is a train engineer in New Hyrule and goes to his ceremony to get his official certificate. Zelda gives him a letter, then sneaks past the guards to get to her room. After that, she asks Link to take her to the Tower of Spirits, since she thinks something is going wrong. In the middle of the travel, the tracks disappear and the train crashes. After that Zelda is a spirit and separated from her body. The game was released on December 10, 2009 for the Nintendo DS.

The fifteenth game, //Skyward Sword//, is currently a work-in-progress, and will be for the Wii. For now, click this link to know everything they've told the public so far: "Everything You Need to Know About Skyward Sword" from zeldauniverse.net

The sixteenth game, //Ocarina of Time 3DS//, is an official remake of //Ocarina of Time// for the 3DS. It has... well, it's a remake, a very good one. Not relly that much to explain. To see for yourself, go here: 4 Minutes of Gameplay from Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3DS


 * The Animation**

The cartoon was not a big hit. It lasted only 14 episodes, which never completed it's first season. It was known as horrible, annoying, and so not Zelda type. Nobody should ever watch it because it was just, unbelievable.


 * The Manga**

The manga series of Zelda was very much appreciated, way better than the cartoon. So far, it has been a huge hit with kids for its jokes, and how they tried to do the game in their own style. The games they have done so far are: //Four Swords Adventures//, Phantom //Hourglass//, //Ocarina of Time//, //Majora's Mask//, //Minish Cap//, //Link's Awakening//, //A Link to the Past//, //Wind Waker//, Oracle of Seasons, and //Oracle of Ages//.

That's all. The last two games posted here will be updated when they are released and people get what it's all about.