If you’ve ever wondered what a combination of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and Pokemon Red would look like, this designer has the answer. By dropping Link into a turn-based RPG, we have a clear example of what it would be like if you could choose to flee the enemies of Hyrule.
It’s fair to say that Ocarina of Time is often regarded as the best Zelda game - despite harboring one of the world’s hardest puzzles, the Water Temple - but the 1992 SNES title A Link to the Past is also held in high esteem. Unfortunately, A Link to the Past hasn't received the Link's Awakening revamp treatment just yet, although one fan recently decided to inject some new life back into the title in a different way.
French YouTuber and designer Nabil Ayari of GamebillStudio shared their three-minute preview of A Link to the Past with turn-based combat. While the creator retains the game’s top-down perspective and keeps the classic pink hair on Link’s sprite, it is strange to see him enter a turn-based fight whenever he bumps into a spear knight. The abilities to attack, cast a spell, flee, and access items are all included in the encounter, and the system also features an added screen shake whenever you attack an enemy. Fans of the video were keen to see the creator expand their proof of concept video into a full mod, but the fandom would surely miss Link’s “Hi-Yah!” attacks.
Now that we’re in The Legend of Zelda’s 35th year, we're expecting some big announcements from Nintendo. One new release will be the Skyward Sword port for Nintendo Switch, which will set you back $60. With the game’s updated motion controls and graphics, we’re wondering whether the port will supersede gameplay on the Wii, as it is considered to be one of the franchise’s weaker titles.
Nintendo has yet to treat Zelda’s anniversary with the same grandeur it showed Mario’s birthday, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t lots of goodies in the pipeline. Until further announcements are made, we’ve organized a guide for everything you need to know about Zelda this year.