RETROSPECTIVE

The Legend of Zelda (1987)

In 1987, the makers of the NIntendo Entertainment System (NES) were were introduced to the explois of a young boy named LInk for the first time. In the ancient land of Hyrule, Link is tasked to find and recover the eight missing pieces of the legendary Triforce and with the eight pieces rescue the Princess Zelda from the clutchs of the evil Ganon.

The first Zelda title was a revolutionary step in rpgs. Although the dungeons had to beet in a predefined order, the game allows the player to break away from the set path and freely explore the land of Hyrule.

It is also the first Nintendo title to feature a built-in litgium battery that saved where you finished last instead of using a password, which was much better because how remembers all the passwords anyway? Finally - and most exciting, for thoes who discovered it by chance - The Legend of Zelda was the first video game to contain a hidden, different second quest players could access by starting the game after entering "ZELDA" as the player name or file name.

Zelda ll: The Adventures of Link (1988)

Zelda was a huge hit,and it wasn't long before its fans were clamoring for a seguel. In a year's time, Nintendo obligated them. The sequel departed from its predecessor in that most of it was played from a side,-scrolling platform perspective, but it maintained the puzzle and adventure elements of the origanal.

IN his second adventure, Link travels through-out Hyrule to the six palaces. He defeats the palace gaurdians and restores the crystales to their statues, waking Zelda from an enchanted sleep. Having restored the crystales, he opens the door to the great palace and battles the Thunderbird and even greater enemy - his own showdow!

A Link to the Past (1991)

After what seemed like an enternity, Link finally made his way onto the Super NES in 1991. In a "prequel" to the first two adventures, Link is called on to save the land of Hyrule from Ganondorf's forces, which have found the secret entrance to the Golden Land and are causeing havoc. With the help of his wizard Agagnim, Ganondorf has kidnapped Princess Zelda and stolen back into the word of darkness.

After collecting three special talismans from the World of Light, Link can move back and forth between the worlds of Light and Darkness to recover the eight pieces of the Triforce. After he retrieves them, a final showdown takes place in the Dark Pyramid. There Link must fight and defeat the wizard Agahnim and Ganon himself.

Link's Awakening (1993)

The fourth game, Lin's Awakening, packed all the excitement of the Super NES game into a pocket-sized Gameboy edition. With gameplay strinkinglysimilar to its predecessor, Link's Awakening took things a step furhter, allowing Link to combine the effects of two items at once.

Taking place just after events in A Link to the Past, Link's Awakening was the first true sepuel in the series. During a mission to hone his skills, out hero shipwreks on Koholin Island. Marlin, an island local, rescues him, and Link sets forth to fulfill his destiny and awaken the Wind Fish.

Amazing Fact

Although many players have upgraded to a more high quality systems, like the Nintendo 64, it's interesting to note that both Link's Awakening and Link to the Past remain the most popular titles in Nintendo Paower's "Player's Pulse" section.