Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is an early 1990s role-playing adventure game where the player controls Link to rescue Princess Zelda. The game has pixelated graphics and limited color, but detailed sprites. Gameplay involves moving Link in four directions to defeat enemies like soldiers in the castle using a sword and magic. While the soundtrack is repetitive, the character development of Link and Zelda and story-driven gameplay make it enjoyable for retro game fans.

1. Legend of Zelda - A Link to the Past
Game
- What is the game?
As the title shows, it's a game of Legend of Zelda franchise, with such a massive popularity, that
also a lot of non-gamers know something about it. The subtitle below suggests that this game in
particular occurs in the past, like some sort of a back story (at least in my opinion). It was
produced in early 90s by a Japanese Nintendo game company. A Link to the Past is also one of
the first LoZ games, which are definitely successful, because of continuously expanding series.
- What type of game it is?
It is an old Role Playing adventure game settled in a fantasy world of horrific pixel monsters,
immoral evil rulers and princess-kidnapping society. Classic.
- What do you do in the game?
We play as a young elven boy named Link. The story starts when he's fast asleep and has a
mental call of Zelda. She tells him to rescue her from the lowest part in the dungeon. After the

2. message Link wakes up. Then we are able to pick up a lamp, go outside and destroy the mother
nature's children in hope we will obtain some green gems hidden in these poor bushes.
Every now and then we get a message of princess ordering us to hurry up and sneak into the
castle. We do so (as it is the only one available destination in this moment) without wondering
“how the hell the fearsome wizard doesn't notice us entering there”and “why didn’t Zelda chose
anyone else who’s stronger, smarter and more handsome than me”.
In the sewers we encounter our dad, who before told us not to leave home. He gives us a silver
bee sting and useless plate, so we can irritate guardians and monkey around thinking we are so
cool and awesome.
As we progress further into the story, there are more ferocious monsters awaiting for our flesh.
Therefore we have to remember that real heroes do not allow any beast to make their innards
become outards. At the very end of slaughter and princess rescue we may happily enjoy the
fame (until the next game where we it’s likely everyone has forgotten us).
Research
- The look of the game
Pixelated simplicity and limited range of colours. There is very little sidescrolling as we walk. We
just walk onto the edge of a screen to arrive on another part of the map. Backgrounds contain
mostly greens and browns, which gives a lively feeling to the game. Characters appear tiny and
cute, though it doesn't mean I'm not scared of some of them. Even as being an old game,

3. sprites of buildings and landscape are seem to be detailed. I enjoy the basic animations of smal
details such as flowers and rain.
The graphics cannot be obviously compared with games nowadays, but we have to remember
that visuals aren't the most important part of a game and it doesn't need to look overly realistic
to please the eye.
- Mechanics of the game
As in every old-school pixel RPG, there are only four possible ways of moving, respectively -
North, South, East and West. In the version playable on computer I used only few buttons on a
keyboard: arrows (of course), A (for magic power/additional weapon and skip texts), Z (for
fighting with a sword), X (for picking and throwing pots and bushes) and S (to see the map).
It creates an impression to be so trivial and super-easy for advanced gamers, making them not
willing to play anymore. In practice however, it’s more complicated when, for example, you want
to approach a boss, and we have to develop a strategy.
- Enemies
As far as I have played through the game, the only enemies ecountered were soldiers in the
castle. They appeared in different colours, which I believe classified them onto easy-to-kill
(green armour), a-little-bit-tougher (blue armour) and oh-I-think-I'm-scared (the first 'boss' in
dark armour, guarding Zelda in the prison). There sure are other guardians and more
challenging enemies to battle. When the princess was rescued, she also mentioned the wizard
(in case we forgot him while asleep), who owned the castle and kidnapped her.
- Enemy mechanics
The enemies were wandering mindlessly on castle corridors in the same four-direction possible
order, just like me. What I noticed, most of the time they gave an impression to not notice me at
all, sometimes even when I was next to them stabbing with my shamefully small stick called a
sword. However, when they did somehow notice me, the animation showed their mad
expressions and soldiers ran fast to get me. Fighting with them was easy, but what annoyed me
was a fact that when accidentally I stepped on one, I received damage as well (as if they had
spikes all over them).
- Characters development

4. It’s probably the most crucial part of any game. People look at them first for the final judgment
whether to play this or abandon before even buying a game. And I have to admit they did a
pretty good job with characters of Legend of Zelda.
Link
The very first non-human hero. He has a girlish look (as the fact of being an elf), but we can’t
see this cuteness due to several tiny squares he’s made of. And don’t be misleaded by his
fragile body (and hair dyed hot pink), he’s a hero and fought with thousands of beasts before
many of us were born. With his Santa’s elf costume and mighty stick he’s unbeatable. Beware!
(I would also remind that majority of people who don’t play games very often think that his name
is Zelda)
Zelda
Every young hero story must to have a beautiful princess, who’s only fate is to be kidnapped
and then rescued at very end. However in this case we came for her just at the beginning,
though I was too scared to survive for the next turn of events. Who knows if she had been
kidnapped again?
Wizard Agahnim
A villain plays probably the most important role ever. It is he, who triggered all events and
caused Link to awake as hero and be so popular and loved by everyone (except monsters…
poor creatures). In my opinion an elf owes a ‘thank you’ for him, even as he doesn’t perceive it
in this point of view. Every of you owe that to him, and every other villain; without them we
wouldn’t have games and protagonists at all.
Link’s Father (?)

5. Okay, he is only a background character, though he has his own few seconds of fame. Who’s
dad would be so forgiving of denying his orders of staying at home and not leaving it until the
day time? Instead applying a sort of punishment he gave Link dangerous weapons and let him
fight with dangerous enemies… right, I think it is a punishment (overly) enough.
- World

6. The world on a map seems to be small and narrow, which is true, due to limited memory space.
It gives an impression of being too square-ish; it's normal for the games made that time,
although it suits well to the four-way mechanics (and you don’t want to imagine the frustration
and difficulties if the world would be round). On the map above we can see the castle and a little
below it our house. There is also one and only town and few more houses settled.
Nowadays it wouldn't be acceptable to design strangely angular forests, mountains and lakes.
This game however has it’s own charm and looks really interesting, so we don’t bother much
about these issues, also all the locations are unique, none of them is a copy of another.
For me the whole thing looks like an alternative, creative eco version of a computer microchip
(just look at those rectangular straight patches).
- Music and soundtrack
The soundtrack was probably the worst aspect in this game. Consecutive squawks of techno
ancestors could easily cause me an instant headache (if played too loudly). It created a
monotonous feel which made me bored at the very first stage of the story. I understand the
limits they have faced in the earliest computer-made sounds, but it’s just not my cup of tea.

7. Evaluation
- Evaluate what you found?
I found that this game would be suitable for retro game lovers and people who enjoy completing
quests and slowly approaching to the final boss after defeating all those minions. The narrative
is what drives this game and what people find most interesting about it. Originality is what
characterises the games on the first consoles.
This particular game has developed through the years and is currently played on the modern
day consoles. I think the overall design was very good, though because of the limited memory,
the backgrounds look very similar. This meant that the longer time you spend playing the game,
the more repetitive and lifeless it feels.
- Look at what you saw and played and evaluate it.
I have saw and played enough to judge this particular game. I enjoyed it a bit, mostly the
graphics and easy to follow storyline. I personally like the character design. It’s really character
driven; you can see the characters develop more, especially Link who started as nobody and
becomes a hero.
What I would change is music. I found it to be very repetitive and tedious and there seems to be
no point when there was silence. Apart of the rain there seems to be no natural sounds; this felt
robotic and unrealistic. I must confess I like it, and if I wouldn’t have the overwhelming fear of
competing with pixelated monsters I could play the whole game. Old games give me the
melancholic impression of early creativity and are sure original.