It's hard to find anything wrong with it even in the most frustrating moments.
The Bad: Poor pacing late in the game; emphasis on sidequest and minigames mar the experience...
There was Seasons, then there is ages. While seasons was, in my opinion, a great game... It is NOTHING compared to this time traveling adventure. Jeez... maybe Link should stick to time? I mean, all the other themes (OCEAN???) never play out as well as time travel.
Anyway, we're talking about classic Zelda fare, here. Dungeons, puzzles, items, bosses, exploration, we all know the drill already. The series refuses to evolve, but somehow remains incredibly entertaining. If it aint broke, don't fix it.
A few features make it stand out. While Seasons had subrosia and different seasons as alternate worlds, ages instead uses two different time periods akin to Ocarina of Time. You'll travel through time to solve puzzles, and enter dungeons. The game is more puzzle based than Seasons, which is very good for a 2d Zelda title. An overload of fighting is frustrating enough in 2d Zelda games without it being so done to death.
A few areas of the game are a huge pain. One of them is the island where Link must find his way into the third dungeon through a series of item trading. The other is the Jabu Jabu Arc, which is needlessly frustrating. Also, late game pacing gets a little erratic. I was pissed when I found out that dungeons five and six were so close together in proximity, and I hated completing frustrating minigames in order to reach these temples. There are also occasions where time travel can be a little on the confusing side, and you'll go "Oh, DUH!" after finally figuring out that you were just traveling through time at the wrong place. It's too bad, because they could have easily fized this by only letting you travel through time in certain areas, much like the stumps in Seasons, and Minish Cap.
Besides these issues, this game is easily the best of the GBC games. Yes, even better than Link's Awakening. The visuals are great, the tunes are repetetive, yet catchy, and overworld exploration is a joy this time around. With no lame Subbrosian world, or constant Season changing and endless 2d battles, this game is basically Seasons minus all of the rough edges. It's the definition of a great 2d Zelda title, second only to A Link To The Past, and should not be missed.
- Josh Sumara