 1-9ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
|
|  | | Title: | The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap |
| Release: | UK 10-01-2005 | | NORDIC 10-01-2005 | | US 10-01-2005 |
| |
|
 | | To stop Vaati, you'll have to gather the four sacred elements--earth, water, fire, and wind--and
infuse an ancient broken blade with their essences. The quest for these four elements provides
the impetus to seek out and plumb the depths of four ancient temples, each of which is a massive,
complicated dungeon in the classic Zelda style. Multiple floors, a unique item in each one, a boss
at the end--it's pretty standard stuff. There are a couple of nonelemental dungeons to pad the
lineup, and all six are chock-full of devilish puzzles and fearsome enemies (many of which return
from previous Zeldas). None of the dungeons are too hard--if you've played Zelda games before,
you'll generally know how to approach the puzzles, even if you have to think about them for a
while--but each one gives you a nice sense of satisfaction when you finish it.
The items you'll pick up to aid your adventure are a mix of Zelda mainstays and new, interestingly
designed tools. In addition to the standard bombs, boomerang, bow and arrow, and so on, you'll find
items like the gust jar, which can suck enemies in or blow puffs of air out; Pocci's cane, which
shoots a bolt of energy that can flip enemies and items upside down; and Roc's cape, which lets
you jump and even fly for short distances. As you'd expect, the level designers have found all
sorts of ways to integrate the many items into the game's puzzles, and you'll find uses for each
and every one of them right up to the final climactic battle.
The game does an excellent job of making you feel like a thumb-size Link in a great big world.
Another interesting new mechanic that harks back to last year's Four Swords Adventures allows
you to create identical copies of Link using glowing tiles on the floor. These copies will
attack when you attack and maintain their formation based on which tiles you activated them on,
and again this mechanic is used extensively in some of the game's puzzles to create some
interesting brainteasers. Finally, you'll gain a bunch of extra sword-combat abilities if you
seek out the appropriate trainers, who will teach you how to perform a downward thrust, a
rolling stab, a spin attack, and so on. Some of these simply come in handy while fighting the
game's tougher enemies, while others are actually used in a few of the puzzles. All the variety
definitely spices things up.
| | |
 | |  |
|
|
