Resurrecting this one from the dead. There's been a lot of talk lately about Zelda and its various incarnations, and earlier this year when I finished it, I did a write-up on it. I've mentioned quite a few times how much I enjoyed this game, but figured I'd post this up for anyone still on the fence about playing it (if any of you are out there
).
Review: THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: THE MINISH CAP (GBA)
I didn't get around to playing this game until April 2005, but for anyone who missed it and is looking for a magical and nostalgic gaming experience, look no further than THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: THE MINISH CAP on the Game Boy Advance. Developed by Capcom for Nintendo, who also handled the incredible ORACLE OF SEASONS/AGES titles on the Game Boy Color, THE MINISH CAP contains some of the best graphics and animation you'll ever see on the GBA platform, wonderfully composed music that will give you goosebumps, and some very entertaining dungeons.
The series introduces some new items and gameplay elements to the series to keep this latest installment fresh. The progression of the game is still very ZELDA-esque (overworld -> dungeon -> new item -> boss fight -> repeat), and the number of dungeons seems to have been reduced from previous installments, but the game still gives the player a lot to do, and many of the overworld areas are just as challenging to figure out as the dungeons themselves.
The most significant addition to the series is the Minish Cap, a "living" hat that Link wears that allows him to shrink down to a fraction of his size (80's kids will be reminded of the book/cartoon THE LITTLES). When shrunk down to this size, Link can enter holes and climb little ladders that can't be accessed when he is at his normal size.
This opens up so many different areas for the player to explore, and the power of the Minish Cap is one of the most memorable moments of the game, when you realize just how vast and explorable the world actually is. You start to look at every nook and cranny of each room, discovering new places to explore, which include tabletops, the rafters inside buildings, lilypads in the water, and cracks in the ground. It's one of those inspired moments of design brilliance that Nintendo so effortlessly invents, and what makes this game such a joy to play.
Kinstone fusing, a new addition to the series, is a system where Link can find various half-pieces of stones that he can pair up with those of non-player characters (NPCs) in the game. When successfully matched, these stones will combine and unlock any number of things in the game that enrich the game's storyline or give Link more powers, items, and life. This system is very addictive, and effectively doubles the length of the game if you decide to seek all of them out.
Some characters possess multiple Kinstones, and unfortunately, you have to physically leave a room/area and come back in to check and see if they do. What this means is that you can't match one Kinstone and immediately check afterwards to see if they have another one to offer. This ends up requiring the player to do a lot of backtracking to see who has more than one, and it's not made clear at the beginning that NPCs can possess multiple Kinstones.
While the majority of Kinstone fusings aren't required to beat the game, 100% completionists will develop a major headache when they realize that they'll have to go through the entire world in its entirely to try and find them all. Compounding this problem is the fact that there are also more Kinstones to be found than NPCs have to offer, which can add to the confusion.
Thankfully, there are characters in the game that let you know how many fusings you have remaining. Additionally, NPCs and areas that have Kinstone fusings to offer display a thought bubble above them when you walk up to them, so the player immediately knows if a fusing is available, eliminating the need to talk to every character in the game over and over again. Once a fusing is complete, the result is marked on your map, so you can rest easy knowing that you'll be able to easily find what you unlocked at your leisure, which is another excellent design touch.
While the dungeons don't approach the brain-busting heights of OCARINA OF TIME (N64) or ORACLE OF AGES (GBC), they are still a decent challenge and extremely fun to play. They're full of secrets and most of them require that you creatively use every item in your arsenal to solve puzzles and defeat enemies/bosses. Capcom and Nintendo have refined this series' trademark effort/reward system to near-perfection, where solving puzzles yields an appropriate prize for your efforts. It's something that Nintendo has mastered, but few companies can adequately duplicate.
One of my few other gripes about the game is that your main enemy of the game, Vaati, isn't seen very often throughout. He makes an appearance once in a while, but you never really get the sense about what he's really doing while you're adventuring throughout the game, nor do you feel like he's much of a threat. By the end, he seems like little more than a generic enemy that doesn't possess much of a personality, although his link to the Minish Cap is significant. It makes you realize what a solid enemy Ganon is in this series. It's almost like playing a Mario game without Bowser, where you feel like something's missing. On the flipside, the rest of the story in the game is very strong, and the NPCs have a lot to talk to you about, which really gives the world a nice, living feel.
Graphically, the ZELDA series has never looked better on a handheld system. Character animation is superb, and there are tons of inspired moments in the game that make you take pause and admire what Capcom's artists have done. One such moment is when you shrink down for the first time. Link falls through a crack in a tree stump, and bounces off of some mushrooms inside the trunk. The mushrooms compress and rebound as Link bounces off each consecutive one, as light pours down from the crack above. When Link emerges from the trunk, he's made out of about 6 pixels, yet possesses just as much personality as he does in normal form. It simply makes you smile, realizing that the artists and animators were able to pull this off and still make the game completely playable.
There are countless other moments of inspired artistry that often have to do with when Link is in his small form, which are better left for the player to discover, rather than me spoiling them here.
Musically, this is also one of the best ZELDA soundtracks you'll ever hear. While a lot of it is based on classic ZELDA themes, the audio engineers have created new melodies and interpretations of those tunes. What results is a soundtrack that feels nostalgic while also sounding completely fresh at the same time. When you hear the initial Princess Zelda theme play in the game's earliest moments, it's difficult not to feel an immediate attachment to this game. They're the type of moments that make you take pause, close your eyes, and enjoy the music's purity.
Sound effects in the game are what you'd expect, and many NPCs emit cute little catchphrases when you talk to them that give them a sense of personality and life. Link has a wide range of nice and clear grunts, screams, and vocalizations as well.
This review only scratches the surface of what THE MINISH CAP has to offer, but rest assured that this is one of the best experiences to be had on the GBA. While this was the only original ZELDA title for the system, it has easily met - and in many cases exceeded - my high expectations paved by its predecessors. It's an instant classic and definitely worthy of the ZELDA name.
Rating: A
