NES Classic: The Ultimate Guide to The Legend Of Zelda

By BlackNES Guy and TBD

Think you have mastered The Legend Of Zelda??? Think again!

It's Dangerous to go alone. Take this....

 

This unofficial guide as over 150 pages of everything you need to know to become the hero that saves Hyrule.

Find every heart piece, secret caves an

• Language: English
• Publisher: BlackNES Guy Books
• Release date: Nov 11, 2017
• ISBN: 9781989120460

Book preview

History

As one of Nintendo’s best-selling games, The Legend of Zelda spawned an extensive franchise across each of the company’s platforms that persists even to this day. The original story is set in the fantasy land of Hyrule and follows a young adventurer named Link on his quest to collect the eight pieces of an artifact known as the Triforce of Wisdom so he can rescue the Princess Zelda from the clutches of the evil Ganon.

The Legend of Zelda was first released on February 21, 1986 on the Famicom Disk System in Japan. Over a year later, it made its way to the United States in cartridge-form on July 29, 1987 and finally to Europe on November 27, 1987. Since that time, The Legend of Zelda has been considered one of the most influential games ever created. It placed first in Game Informer's list of the Top 100 Games of All Time in 2001 and The Top 200 Games of All Time in 2009, fifth in Electronic Gaming Monthly's 200th issue listing The Greatest 200 Videogames of Their Time, seventh in Nintendo Power's list of the 200 Best Nintendo Games Ever, 77th in Official Nintendo Magazine's 100 greatest Nintendo games of all time and 80th among IGN readers' Top 99 Games. GameSpy's Hall of Fame inducted Zelda into its ranks in August 2000 and GameSpy's editors selected it as the tenth best game of all time. Even Guinness World Records has recognized the serie with five world records in Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition, including Highest-Rated Game of All Time and First Game with a Battery Powered Save Feature.

Basic Gameplay

The Legend of Zelda managed to blend aspects of action, adventure, and role-playing into one seamless game. Link makes his way through the various terrains of the overworld and the depths of the nine dungeons on his quest to rescue Princess Zelda while the player observes and controls his movements courtesy of an overhead view. The map itself is broken into individual blocks that take up the full screen and exist as isolated areas completely unaffected by connecting screens. Upon starting the game, Link begins all alone with nothing more than a small shield and three hearts that comprise his overall health pool. There is a cave entrance on the screen, in which is an old man that offers Link a wooden sword along with the historical words, It’s dangerous to go alone! Take this. This is only the first of many encounters with people hidden throughout the world with useful items and hints and sets the tone for the game.

Of course, no adventure is complete without enemies and the fantastical land of Hyrule is filled with them. The overworld is filled with a myriad of creatures that threaten to defeat Link before he can even reach the entrances of each of the nine labyrinths hidden underground. The dungeons are not exactly a safe haven either. Each one is a unique maze of rooms connected by doors, secret passages, and weakened walls that need to be bombed open. Each room is filled with monsters and traps that are more challenging than those found on the surface. Fortunately, the dungeons also contain useful items which Link can add to his arsenal, such as boomerangs, magical artifacts, and even a raft. Each of the first eight dungeons contain a piece of the Triforce of Wisdom, and all eight pieces are needed before the ninth labyrinth where Ganon holds Zelda captive can be accessed.

With few exceptions, there is no real required order for completing the dungeons, so the player is free to explore the world as they please to challenge themselves as much or as little as they’d like. Some dungeons can only be reached with the assistance of items from other dungeons, but tt is entirely possible to reach Ganon without ever obtaining the wooden sword at the beginning.After defeating Ganon and saving the princess, the player has access to a more difficult version of the game, officially referred to as the Second Quest. This version includes new labyrinth locations and maps, different item locations, and more difficult enemies. While the presence of a more difficult replay wasn’t exactly uncommon, finding games that offered entirely revamped levels on the second playthrough was quite rare. In addition to being available any time the game is completed, beginning a new game with the name ZELDA also gives the player instant access to the Second Quest.

Prologue

From the booklet included with the game:

A long, long time ago the World was in an age of Chaos. In the middle of this chaos, in a little kingdom in the land of Hyrule, a legend was being handed down from generation to generation, the legend of the 'Triforce'; golden triangles possessing mystical