"Another adventure at sea..."

About a week and a half ago, I was debating whether it would be worth it or not to import Phantom Hourglass. I assumed that it would be coming out in the states in November or December, and I couldn't wait that long - after all, I didn't want to be spoiled for it. So, I decided to go ahead and import it.

Ironically enough, it was announced that Phantom Hourglass would be coming out on October 1st the very day I got the game. I didn't mind, though. I had it, and that was all that mattered.

I opened the package eagerly, and popped the game into my DS. So began the start of yet another legend...a legend of Zelda.

One of the first things I thought upon seeing the opening cutscene was "Wow, that looks great!" Indeed, the graphics are among the best on the DS. At times, they even look Gamecube-quality...an impressive feat, obviously. Unfortunately, though, some of the closeups look a bit on the cheesy side. Thankfully, you get used to Link's odd-looking face very quickly, which helps to diminish the impact.

The music, however, is a mixed bag. Some of the tracks, such as Lineback's theme, are nothing short of amazing. Others, such as the overworld theme on land, or the dungeon theme, are extremely dull and repetitive. Unfortunately, the bad far outnumber the good, so you'll be stuck with boring background music most of the time.

Prior to the game's release, the controls were a subject of extreme controversy on Internet forums. Many cited Animal Crossing: Wild World as proof why the controls wouldn't work. While I found the stylus controls in said game to work fine, I could see where people were coming from. When the game finally came, I prepared for the worst...only to find that the controls were even better than I possibly could have hoped. There is just a slight learning curve, though; it might take you a little while to figure out how to roll (tap the edge of the screen twice). You simply point where you want Link to move, and he moves in that direction. To execute a sword slash, simply make a small swiping motion. When you get the boomerang, you actually get to draw its path, something that feels great the first few times you do it.

Of course, a game is nothing without gameplay, and Phantom Hourglass has that in abundance. While it's certainly not perfect, you WILL be having fun most of the time. Combat is great when you're not facing the weaker enemies. Some of the larger enemies require strategy to face, and are puzzles within themselves. You will feel like you've accomplished something when you've beaten them for the first time. Even after that, you still feel a distinct sense of pride.

At sea, you're mostly just waiting to get to where you want to go, occasionally lobbing a bomb at an enemy. While it is more action-packed than The Wind Waker, it still is rather dull. Luckily, the sea is smaller this time around, so you don't have to wait as long to get to where you're going. In addition, you eventually find a way to warp around the four sections of the map, so the travel time is cut down.

Puzzles are a mixed bag, but they're mostly good. Dungeons 1, 5, 6, and 7 all have clever puzzles, while dungeons 2, 3, and 4 are decidedly simple and boring. The main dungeon, the Sea King's Temple, doesn't really have puzzles; it's actually a stealth dungeon. This can be a huge pain in the neck, to be honest. For one thing, you only have a limited amount of time outside the safe zones. Even when you're in those zones, you often have to wait for the s l o w moving Phantoms to move by. The Phantoms, if they see you, will attack you, sending you back to the start of the room, and taking 30 seconds off your timer. And, to top it off, they're invincible for most of the game, too.

Despite these problems, I must reiterate that the game IS fun. While dungeons 2, 3, and 4 may have their problems, there are some good puzzles in them amongst all the crap.

However, some of the good dungeons are simply too short, and some of the ideas expressed in them don't have much of a chance to shine. I cleared dungeon 5, for example, in under ten minutes, if I remember correctly. This shouldn't be the case; a dungeon should take at least fifteen minutes. Unfortunately, dungeon 5 isn't the only short dungeon.

The bosses of the dungeons, like the dungeons themselves, are a mixed bag. Some of them are ridiculously obvious, while others will require some creative thinking on your part. Despite this, however, they have great atmosphere, and I enjoyed most of them.

At the very beginning of the game, which picks up where The Wind Waker left off, Link, Tetra, and the rest of the pirates are searching for a ghost ship which has supposedly been terrorizing the waters around those parts. Not two minutes pass before this ship appears before them. Tetra, unafraid of it, hops aboard and disappears from sight as fog encloses the ship. A shriek is heard from her, and Link attempts to come to the rescue...but falls into the water. He washes up on the shores of a mysterious island, where he is woken up by a fairy named Sierra.

The story is quite interesting, but you don't find out what it is until halfway through the game...and then, the whole thing is explained to you. After that, you know exactly what is going on, and there are no more surprises concerning the story itself. Instead, you're surprised by the things that occur. You will be surprised by the last few bosses, I'm sure...unless you were spoiled beforehand.

The characters are all excellent. All of the main characters, with the exception of Lineback (who makes up for it with his awesomeness) have some secret that you could never guess at until it's revealed.

I must also praise Phantom Hourglass for finally having successfully integrated multiplayer into the Zelda series. One player controls Link, while the other controls three Phantoms. Link must grab the Triforce pieces scattered across the area and bring them back to his base, while avoiding the Phantoms. The player controlling the Phantoms must draw a path for them on the map. However, once the path is drawn, they can't change directions until the Phantom has completed its journey. While the person controlling the Phantoms can see where Link is on the map at any time, as long as he isn't in a safe zone, Link can only see the Phantoms when he's holding a Triforce piece. It makes for some interesting strategies, and it is quite enjoyable, though not so much as the single player.

So, phenomenal graphics, mixed music, mostly great gameplay, interesting story and characters, and the first successful multiplayer for this series. That is what makes up this game. I certainly don't regret importing it, but I will definitely be grabbing the English version, if only to understand the nuances of the story. I recommend you do the same, to be honest, although this suggestion may be obsolete by the time you read it. While it's an excellent game, I'm sure that you could appreciate it so much more in English.

Final Verdict: 93/100 (A-)

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 07/06/07