The Legend of Zelda NES (3DS Virtual Console)
|
3DS
| The Legend of Zelda

The Legend of Zelda is the game that spawned one of the greatest gaming franchises in the world, and it's still clear from giving it a play-through that many of those initial ideas have carried through to Zelda releases today.

It can be a little rough in places, where certain concepts haven't yet been honed to perfection, and some may find it rather tricky, but it's still great fun to see the roots of this dominant franchise.

Tri, tri, tri again

What The Legend of Zelda has - and the majority of more recent Zeldas arguably don't have - is a completely open world for you to explore, with barely any hints about where you're meant to be going.

You may find this confusing and irritating, as you wander around unsure where you're meant to be going and dying over and over as low-level enemies keep taking away your precious hearts.

But you may conversely find that the openness is key to the game's appeal. There's no hand-holding - you can go off on an adventure, explore the land, find the dungeons of your own accord, and complete the Triforce slowly but surely.

Death isn't a huge deal anyway - you're simply plonked back into the world, or at the start of a dungeon, and it doesn't take too long to get back to where you were originally.

Through perseverance and a willingness to forge your own path you can build a real sense of accomplishment. Of course, if you're not into all that personal growth stuff you could also grab a guide online and use it to steer you through the various dungeons. It's all down to how you want to play.

We are adventuring, we are adventurers

As I mentioned earlier, there are plenty of ideas in this original release that are noticeable in future Zeldas.

From enemies to items to music to sound effects, it's a real treat for anyone who's familiar with the series but hasn't played this particular game. If you're a fan, it's really enjoyable to see how it all began.

If you're looking for a slice of gaming history and the Legend of Zelda franchise is a favourite of yours then this download is most definitely for you.

The Legend of Zelda NES (3DS Virtual Console)

A great way to spend a couple of evenings if you're a fan of the Zelda series but haven't yet got around to seeing where it all began
Score
Mike Rose
Mike Rose
An expert in the indie games scene, Mike comes to Pocket Gamer as our handheld gaming correspondent. He is the author of 250 Indie Games You Must Play.