The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is the first 3D open-world game in the Zelda series. Link can travel anywhere and be equipped with weapons and armor found throughout the world to grant him various bonuses. Unlike many games in the series, Breath of the Wild does not impose a specific order in which quests or dungeons must be completed. While the game still has environmental obstacles such as weather effects, inhospitable lands, or powerful enemies, many of them can be overcome using the right method. A lot of critics ranked Breath of the Wild as one of the best video games of all time.
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is the last Zelda game for GameCube, it was highly anticipated by many members of the gaming community and was regarded as finally fulfilling the dreams of those who wanted a much more realistic and mature game than the ones before. The art is similar to the naturalistic style of Ocarina of Time, rather than the cel-shaded look of The Wind Waker. The main adventure takes place in several provinces with dungeons and temples. New to this game is the ability for Link to transform into a Wolf when entering the Twilight. As a wolf, Link can use his senses to solve puzzles and get past obstacles, he can also dig holes to find hearts and rupees. Twilight Princess has received universal acclaim from reviewers and journalists, who cited it as the greatest Zelda game of all time.
The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks is the second Zelda game for the Nintendo DS. The art direction is still cel-shading, but the game have notable changes from Phantom Hourglass with more puzzles and a new mode of transportation by train. You have to draw your route to the next area on the map and then let the train run its course. While the train is moving, caution will be needed to avoid obstacles, animals and enemies on the tracks. In certain dungeons, both Link and Zelda will be playable as they will need to work together to solve puzzles.
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass is the first Zelda game for the Nintendo DS and a direct sequel to The Wind Waker. The art direction is the same cel-shaded style as the Wind Waker but is displayed from a classic top-down perspective. The gameplay is structured similarly to other games in the series and is divided into two major gameplay sections: sailing between islands and exploring the islands and their dungeons on foot. The touch screen is used to make Link move and attack instead of buttons, you can also make notes of secret treasures and items on the map simply by writing them down. The game received critical acclaim from reviewers, who agreed that the game was a worthy sequel to The Wind Waker.
The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap is a top-down action adventure game that tells the origins of the evil Vaati from Four Swords. Like most other titles in the series, The Minish Cap features the fully explorable land of Hyrule, although it can be viewed from the eyes of a human or the eyes of a Minish, a race of tiny people and an alternate form that Link can transform into. Unlike the multiplayer focus of the other games in the series, The Minish Cap retains the original form of exploration and dungeons as seen in A Link to the Past, Oracle of Seasons, and Oracle of Ages, as well as returning characters and game mechanics such as Malon and the Spin Attack. New features include fusing Kinstones and shrinking to the size of a Minish.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is the fifth main installment of The Legend of Zelda series and the first to be released for the Nintendo 64. It was one of the most highly anticipated games of its age, and is listed among the greatest video games ever created by numerous websites and magazines. The gameplay of Ocarina of Time was revolutionary for its time, it has arguably made more of an impact on later games in the series than any of its predecessors even though they had the same cores of exploration, dungeons, puzzles and item usage. Among the gameplay mechanics, one of the most noteworthy is the time-traveling system. The game begins with the player controlling the child Link, but later on an adult Link becomes a playable character as well and each of them has certain unique abilities. Ocarina of Time also introduces the use of music to solve puzzles: as new songs are learned, they can be used to solve puzzles, gain access to new areas and warp to different locations. Dungeon exploration is somewhat more puzzle-oriented than in earlier games but they are not too complex.
Eternal Sonata is a role-playing video game developed by tri-Crescendo and published by Namco Bandai Games. The game is centered on the Polish romantic pianist and composer Frédéric Chopin, who died of tuberculosis at the age of 39. The story envisions a fictional world dreamed by Chopin during his last hours that is influenced by Chopin's life and music, and in which he himself is a playable character, among others. The game's battle system centers on musical elements and character-unique special attacks. Light and darkness play a part in the appearance and abilities of enemies on the battlefield, as well as the types of magic that can be cast. The game features a selection of Chopin's compositions played by pianist Stanislav Bunin, though the original compositions were composed and arranged by Motoi Sakuraba. It is notable for its use of classical piano pieces, educational cutscenes featuring real paintings and photographs (in contrast to the cel-shading graphics of the game) and lush landscape design.
The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons is one of two Zelda titles released for the Game Boy Color, the other being Oracle of Ages. The game retain many gameplay elements from Link's Awakening such as the graphics, audio and top-view perspective. It also features eight dungeons and a large overworld to explore like in the previous games. Oracle of Seasons is said to be more action-oriented than its counterpart being more puzzle-oriented. After completing one of the two games, both can be linked to form a single linear plot with an alternate ending. Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages were often credited as being two of the top games for the Game Boy Color.
The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures is the only console Zelda title to date to incorporate multiplayer elements into its main campaign. Because of its single-player elements, Four Swords Adventures is also the first game in the series to allow a single player to control more than one Link at once, and it utilizes various methods to allow the player to make use of the four Links, such as formations. Also it is the only title to break locations and temples up into succinct, separate stages and levels which can be replayed even after beating them once. The game itself, though an innovation in Zelda gameplay, is heavily inspired by the music, graphics, and locations of A Link to the Past.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is a top-down action game with puzzle-solving elements similar to the original The Legend of Zelda. After the side-scrolling and RPG-like gameplay of Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, the game is a return to the top-down view and gameplay style of the first installment. It introduces major new items to the series such as the Master Sword and the concept of two different worlds, which was revisited to some extent in Ocarina of Time with two distinct time periods rather than dark and light worlds.