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| Editorials - Link to the Past
vs Ocarina of Time |
Any true Zelda gamers read this. It is
long but worth reading. It is about my recordings of Zelda: A Link to the Past is compared
to Zelda: Ocarina of Time.
First of all, let's start with A Link to the Past. Came out in 1996. I got it when I
bought my SNES, it came bundled up with it. At age 10, I was a very good gamer (not to
brag). I guess for my age, I was above average. Anyways, the night I plugged in my SNES
for the first time I was quickly absorbed into the rich gameplay and storyline of A Link
to the Past. I loved the way that Mr. Miyamoto set up the opening scene so that you read
about the battle of Hylians and such. The music went along really well. Then, when I first
saw the actual game screen, when Link was in his house, it was raining and thundering, and
his uncle told him to stay home. I was dazzled by the great sound effects and visuals. It
was only 1996 back then, so 16-bit graphics were up-to-date. When I went outside and
eventually got to the castle, into the hole, I met my (or Link's) uncle. When I got my
sword, I was like, YES!!! I thought it was "totally cool". And it was. By the
end of the castle level, I was totally immersed into the game. Glued to the controller. I
was so into the game, that the next morning, when I had school, I told my parents I felt
sick, even though I wasn't, just to play Zelda all day.
Zelda: A Link to the Past was very hard. It took me at age 10 to beat the game in two
months. I believe I had every item, but I was missing two or three hearts due to heart
pieces. I went on to beat the game several times later. Each time, getting better, until
finally I could beat the game in about 3 or 4 days with all items and hearts.
I had mastered the game. With no strategy guide, nor internet hype, I had mastered the
game. I even broke it, by playing it too much, and eventually sold it (how could I ever
have done that I don't know) along with my SNES and other games I had like DKC. Then I
bought my N64 with the money I got for selling my SNES. Now I look back at Zelda: A Link
to the Past. The gameplay was awesome. All the secrets to find were incredable. Blowing up
secret rocks to find caves, finding all the medallions, getting all the heart pieces.
Beating all those hard, LONG (Remember the were LONG, I will discuss it later) levels. I
was obcessed with the game. The storyline was so immersive that I practically could have
done a book report on it. I loved the triforce. I loved the ending sequence, when you saw
the whole Hyrule world change back to normal, Kakariko village mostly. The whole story and
game just gave it a nostalgic feeling. I hope I have let you know how much I liked that
game.
Now for Ocarina of Time. I knew that I would have to get it the day it came out because I
loved the SNES Zelda so much. So on the 25th of November (It didn't come until the 25th),
I bought the game for exactly $59 at Hollywood Video because every store was sold out and
no one even thought of buying it at a rental store. The sad thing is, that I didn't listen
to the hype from magazines, the internet, nor from friends, until about the beginning of
this November. Like most other games, I followed the Hype from announcement to release
date. But with Z64, I didn't. So unfortunately I don't have a gold cartridge and I regret
it.
Anyways, when I plugged in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for the first time, I
expected what I saw for A Link to the Past, only in better detail. Nope. I saw a Link
riding his horse. It was cool, and I liked it. I wasn't disappointed persay, but
indifferent. When I saw the first text of the game, I immediately missed the sounds of the
text from A Link to the Past or even the Gameboy version of Zelda. Throughout the course
of the game, I never found the enthusiasm that A Link to the Past had until Gannondorf. I
also thought that the game was much. much shorter. Yes, it may be in full 3d worlds, but
from one end of Hyrule to the other, I think that Z64 is smaller. But don't get me wrong,
I'm glad Miyamoto used the 256 meg cart mostly for graphics. It improved the visual
display of the game. Hyrule Field is beutiful when you're riding your horse in a sunset.
And when I first entered the market I was amazed at the rendered screen as you look at
link from a bird's eye view.
In Ocarina of Time, there is much, much more to do that in A Link to the Past. Skulltulas
to collect. Races, games, masks. It's fun. A link to the past was deprived of this. It
relied mostly on the dungeons. Every time I got a new item (e.g. Hookshot), or went
to a new place (e.g. Kakariko Village) I thought and compared it to A link to the past.
Everything was better about these things, except size. This is the basis of my thesis.
Size. In Z64, you have less items to collect, and you can only use have of the a time, as
a kid and as an adult. What I'm trying to say is that A Link to the past was bigger. Not
more things to do, but the Hyrule world was bigger. I beat Z64 in one week, compared to
two months for a link to the past. Ocarina of Time lacked this. It also lacked story. I
wish that Ocarina of Time had more story.
I'm sure that many things I have said can be argued upon, but this is my thesis, my
opinion. I still like Z64 Better than any video game I have played so far, but it lacked
things that predecessors had.
Thanks for reading this.
-Ralek |
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