\'A Link to the Past, despite the praise it gets, is severely outdated in my opinion. Even more than Ocarina of Time, it feels like a case of \"you had to be there\", since the characters, plot, setting, dialogue, etc. are quite primitive compared to modern Zelda games, making it a bit hard for me to get immersed in.\'
So? Do Mario games need a solid plot to be fun? Does Sonic need any real reason or searing pathos to kick the snot out of Eggman? Do we really need to get into the oh-so deep psyches of Dr.Wily and Megaman? A game doesn\'t need a lick of real plot or character to be a blast, and it\'s no different with the early Zelda games. When people say they can\'t get into the early Zelda games (AKA Zelda 1 through Ocarina,) because the plot and characters aren\'t that great, I just have to ask them why they don\'t have a problem getting into other series like Mario or Sonic that often have even less reliance on plot. Do the early Zelda games have much in the way of enjoyable story or characters? Hell no. But are they fun games? Hell yes. And with these sorts of games, that should be all that matters.
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A Link to the New Fans
A Link to the Past, despite the praise it gets, is severely outdated in my opinion. Even more than Ocarina of Time, it feels like a case of "you had to be there", since the characters, plot, setting, dialogue, etc. are quite primitive compared to modern Zelda games, making it a bit hard for me to get immersed in. That said, the game and its world have their charm, and ALttP did many things right that became standards for the whole Zelda series.
And what better way to recapture that "you had to be there" feeling than updating ALttP for the current generation? A Link Between Worlds takes everything that its predecessor did right and updates everything else to the high standards of modern Zelda games, making for a possibly perfect handheld experience that revives ALttP's dying excitement and vibrancy for a new audience.
Exploration is the best aspect of the game, by far. Whereas exploration in most Zelda games can get kinda tedious due to the lack of options and the sheer size of the overworld, ALBW makes it exciting right from the get-go by introducing item rentals and a warp system very early on. The puzzle rooms and dungeons are perfectly designed, with a sense of coherency and thought to every secret and every puzzle. The music is also one of the best soundtracks I've listened to, by taking ALttP's beloved soundtrack and remixing the tracks with a near-orchestral quality while adding some new ones (including some from later games). And while the game is light on plot to put more emphasis on the gameplay, the writers did the best with what little plot they were given, by introducing complex and tragic themes and characters in line with the 3D Zelda games.
Overall, ALBW feels like a lot of love was put into it; rather than going for the sheer scale and ambition of most major Zelda games, it instead serves as a love letter to one of the most beloved and influential games in the series. It's a real treat for any Zelda fan, whether or not they grew up with ALttP. Highly recommended.