The Legend of Zelda Collector's Edition

"A must have for Zelda fans."

The Legend of Zelda series is one of the best in the history of video games. This series has produced some of the most innovative and some of the best ever. I have been in love with these games since my childhood and throughout my teenage years. Now four of the games in the series are on one great disc. The Legend of Zelda Collector's Edition contains four of the games from the series as well as other features such as a retrospective of the Zelda series up to The Wind Waker, a 20-minute demo of The Wind Waker, and a trailer of the same game. But what matters are the games. Does this collection deliver?

The Legend of Zelda:
The 1987 original innovated video games in a big way. This was the first game that had players exploring and finding the next goal on their own, instead of players getting from point A to point B. In this game, a young warrior by the name of Link. Link must find eight triforce pieces and rescue the princess of Hyrule, Zelda, from the grasp of Ganon. This was also the first game that has a progress-save feature. Many players had trouble finding the dungeons, much less in order. Secrets were also hard to find.

Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link:
This game strays away from what made the predecessor successful. Although you still had the bird's eye view of the overworld, much of the game was a side-scroller. Also adding to the difference from its predecessor is a leveling-up system and a magic system. The feature was a pain because when you save your game or die, you lose you experience points (you still get to keep your level). This is hell when your required point count to get to the next level is high. The controls are loose, which is not a good thing. The Adventure of Link is highly difficult and will require a lot of skill to play through.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time:
A fitting choice for this collection. Arguably one of the best games ever, Ocarina of Time had depth, innovation, incredible scenery, and a hell of a story. This is also the game that introduced players to Adult Link. In this instant classic, the great Deku Tree calls upon Link to break a curse. Link later finds out that a Gerudo by the name of Ganondorf is after the Sacred Realm, which houses the triforce. Link will travel across hills, lands, seas, and even through time. The game's story lasts seven years. Hyrule field is vast. The ocarinas not only have special powers, but can teleport you to different locations. Link now has three different arrow types. Speaking of weapons, Link can only use certain weapons depending on his age. Everything about this game is wonderful and is a great addition to this collection.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask:
In this Zelda gaiden (Japanese for side-story), Link goes on a search for a lost friend when he is ambushed by a Skull Kid wearing...Majora's Mask, a mask with evil powers. Link then pursues the skull kid to Termina, a town that will be crushed by the moon in 72 hours (three days). Link must use his ocarina to manipulate time and find four spirits that will counter the moon and the Skull Kid's power. This game has great graphics and control, but falls flat on length, especially when compared with its predecessor. This game seems rushed and the time feature just increases the repetition factor.

WARNING: This game has been badly transferred from the N64 to the GCN. The audio is noticeably awful, especially during the transitions. The fram-rate is choppy in almost every location. The biggest pain is when the game freezes. That happened to me twice. That happens at random, so be sure to save when you get the opportunity.

The following categories applies to the games in whole:

Graphics:
The visuals are directly transferred from their original versions to give the collection a vintage look. However, I would have liked to see a GCN version of Ocarina of Time. The frame-rate in Majora's Mask is choppy, which makes the timing of moves a difficult task.

Control:
I would use the D-Pad to control Link in The Legend of Zelda and The Adventure of Link. The controls overall are great, but I would like tighter control of the hero in Zelda 2.

Game Design:
The Legend of Zelda and Ocarina of Time had overall great design and will keep you playing. The Adventure of Link could have had a better leveling system and Majora"s Mask is very short. Majora"s Mask may freeze up as a result of its bad transferring job.

Audio:
The Legend of Zelda, The Adventure of Link, and Ocarina of Time have great audio which takes full advantage of their respective systems' capabilities. The bad transferring job in Majora's Mask is the reason behind the audio irregularities.

Overall:
This is a great collection overall. With games like The Legend of Zelda and Ocarina of Time, this compilation is an instant classic already. In fact, you can play the entire Zelda series with this disc and the Game Boy Player on the GameCube alone. A great collection and a must-have for any Zelda fan

Score: 9 out of 10.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 03/09/07