Link to the Past was easily my most played SNES game and one of the first titles that comes to mind whenever classic gaming is discussed. After decades of masterpieces, the Zelda series gradually grew formulaic, losing its reputation as the pinnacle of adventure game design. By the early 2010s, the idea of Nintendo releasing a worthy LTTP sequel seemed almost impossible. It turns out that Link may have been worn down, but still had a fairy in his bottle. 2013's Link Between Worlds not only meets the high standard of the 1991 masterpiece, it may even be the best 2D Zelda yet.
The developers obviously played the prequel dozens of times, dreaming since childhood of improving upon both worlds and making them worth revisiting. There are clever touches all throughout, such as the Thief Village cultists masking as missing Dark World NPCs. Death Mountain, previously flowing with lava, has been pounded by a blizzard. Already formidable, Hinoxes give a panic-inducing chase when attacked. While most dungeons are new, Hyrule's familiar Eastern Palace and Hera's Tower are heavily altered.
The game's most notable addition, the wall merging mechanic, satisfyingly jolts your brain as you solve puzzles from a purely horizontal perspective. The new charging meter encourages experimenting with items, without having to fret over draining magic. Equipment being readily available for purchase or rent is less monumentous than earning items within dungeons, but makes a respectable attempt at shaking up the formula while increasing the value of each found rupee. Equipment can be further upgraded by collecting up to 100 lost creatures hidden throughout the Hyrule and Lorule overworlds.
Ryo Nagamatsu knocked it out of the park with arguably the greatest Zelda soundtrack to date, featuring excellent remixes and a unique new track for each of the 8 Lorule dungeons. The classic Dark World theme received a minimalist, yet even more rousing remix led by acoustic guitar and violin. The soundtrack's instrumentation sounds so believable that I was surprised to discover it wasn't entirely pre-recorded. While running at a smooth 60FPS and making clever use of the 3DS' stereoscopic vision, each year the gaudy 3D imitation of LTTP's style ages, while the original's pleasing, more modest sprites remain timeless.
After becoming worryingly derivative and linear by the DS and Wii era, Link Between Worlds boldly brought the series back to it's roots by shaking up core mechanics and restoring player autonomy. Preference will decide whether one favors the cheesy presentation and long-winded dialogues over the less chatty, more hostile mood of the original. The gameplay is faster and less linear, featuring worlds packed with more secrets, mini-dungeons and trickier bosses. Yet by being an obvious throwback, it won't revolutionize player's conceptions like the original did in 1991. Whichever game you find superior between Link Between Worlds and Link To The Past, it's an immense credit to Nintendo that they even managed to raise the debate. You could always suggest that like two mirrored worlds, they both perfectly compliment one another.
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