Zelda LTTP: East Palace

When I left off last time, I was in Kakariko Village. A boy told me the location of the elder I need to see. So today, I headed east to find him. He told me his name is Sahasrahla (bless you!) and he said I need to find three pendants before I can wield the legendary sword. He asked me if I really wanted to find it. The choices were “yeah” and “of course.”

zlttp-yes of courseI responded with a yes, and he told me I needed to first retrieve the pendant of courage from the East Palace. So I made my way there. And even though I haven’t played A Link to the Past in years, I remember this palace well. I also love the moody, atmospheric music in here.

zlttp-east palaceAfter avoiding an endless stream of bowling balls and defeating wimpy skeletons that fly backwards every time you swing your sword, I acquired the big key. A couple screens later, I used it to open the treasure chest and I got a bow! I like how it tells me I can shoot arrows until I run out.

zlttp-bowI then advanced to the ball room.

zlttp-ball roomAt least, that’s what it should be called. But these are no ordinary balls. They will hit you hard if you run into them, yet they have the magic ability to pass through other balls as if they were ghosts.

Anyway, I continued on to the boss room. You have to defeat these six armored knights that bounce around the room in patterns clearly choreographed by Paula Abdul.

zlttp-six dancing knightsThey dance quite well considering all that armor they’re in, and they’ve obviously been rehearsing for weeks. But Link is able to break up their routine with his sword and arrows (until he runs out). Once five of them are defeated, the last one gets reeeeeeally angry at you and starts stomping around. I think he knows his dancing career is over at this point. Once he’s gone, Link gets a heart piece and the pendant of courage.

I then returned to Sahasaharahalaharalara the elder, who told me I need to recover the other pendants. He also gave the pegasus shoes, which let me run real fast and crash into stuff.

Zelda LTTP - Pegasus ShoesHe also told me that a helpful item is hidden in a cave on the east side of Lake Hylia. I went to check it out and I got a cool ice rod.

Getting the ice rod in Zelda LTTPThat’s all for today, but this Link to the Past will continue in the future. See you next time.

Wario Ware D.I.Y. Showcase

Nintendo recently announced their “elite status” rewards for Club Nintendo members. Gold members can choose a calendar or one of several downloadable games, while platinum members can choose a 3-poster set, a Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask CD soundtrack, or any of the gold rewards. I really would have loved that Majora’s Mask soundtrack, but I was only a gold member this year (mainly due to Pikmin 3 being delayed). I had no interest in the calendar, so I ended up choosing from the downloadable games available. A lot of the games were games I already owned in one form or another, so I ultimately went with Wario Ware: D.I.Y. Showcase for Wii.

wwdiy-leafIf you’re not familiar with Wario Ware games, they’re essentially a collection of mini-games…or micro-games. Each mini-game only lasts a few seconds, but you’re bombarded with many of them, one right after the other. The original Wario Ware, Inc.: Mega Microgames is my favorite Game Boy Advance (GBA) game.

But in addition to the included mini-games, Wario Ware: D.I.Y. Showcase works with the DS version, called Wario Ware D.I.Y.; the DS game lets you create your own mini-games, save them, and upload them. So if you’ve created mini-games on the DS, you can play them on the Wii “Showcase” game. Unfortunately, this D.I.Y. Showcase doesn’t have a mini-game editor itself. Nintendo, of course, wants people to buy both versions of the game. But the good news is that D.I.Y. Showcase can download mini-games that other players have created. But for now, I’m mainly sticking with the built-in games.

wwdiy-catsAs usual in Wario Ware, the goals of the mini-games are wacky and varied. You may have to grab pieces of pizza, toss bombs, drive a car, place candles on a birthday cake, spear a falling leaf, shoot finger rockets up the nostrils of a nose-shaped ship, figure out which cat ate a fish, break out of an egg shell, or sneak up on an octopus.

wwdiy-octopusThere are also some mini-games that include segments based on classic Nintendo games. You may have to shoot the ducks from Duck Hunt, blast Donkey Kong’s barrels before they bowl over Mario, shoot Koopa Troopa with a shell in a Mario Kart race, dodge a punch in a scene from Punch-Out, and so on.

wwdiy-mkFrom what I’ve played so far, the game is fun and enjoyable. It doesn’t seem as addictive as the original Game Boy Advance game though, but it’s still too early for me to give a final verdict. I’ll be playing more of this in the coming weeks, and you can expect a review of the game in the not-too-distant future. Here is a gameplay video of the “Wario Man” stage, which features mini-games that include Wario himself, in one form or another:

Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

As you may know, Nintendo is working on a sequel to The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past for Nintendo 3DS. It’s going to be called A Link Between Worlds, and it’s due to be released this November. With that in mind, I thought this would be a great time to revisit A Link to the Past on SNES. It’s my favorite Zelda game, and I’ve played through it multiple times before. But classics like this are worth playing over and over again, especially when a number of years have passed.

So I started up a new game, with my character named Link, of course. The game has a memorable opening scene, which takes place on a stormy night. Link seemingly receives a telepathic message from Zelda, who is being held as a prisoner in the castle. Link’s uncle, after warning Link not to leave the house, sets off to the castle.

zelda lttp-dont leave houseLink, after collecting all the goodies from the house, also heads off to the castle. After stumbling into a secret entrance, Links finds a passageway to the courtyard. There, he sees his dying uncle, who gives Link his sword and shield, and tells Link to save the princess.

zelda lttp-uncleLink then enters the castle and makes his way down to the dungeon. After defeating a mini-boss, Link rescues Zelda.

zelda lttp-big keyThe pair then make their way to the throne room, where a secret passageway can be opened.

zelda lttp-shelfAfter fighting through dark, rat-filled sewers, Link and Zelda end up at the sanctuary.

Zelda Link to the Past SanctuaryZelda stays at the sanctuary for now, while Link  seeks out the village elder. One interesting thing about A Link to the Past is that Link receives items, such as the boomerang and bombs, very early on. Most later Zelda games have you playing for many hours before you acquire weapons like that.

In Kakariko village, Link finds that not all of the villagers are on his side.

zelda lttp-wanted manBut Link does receive information about the location of the elder. That’s where Link will be heading next.

zelda lttp-elder grandpaTo be continued…

Here is a video showing the beginning of the game, up to the sanctuary: