Despite its shortcomings, you'll still love this game. That's all that really matters, isn't it?
The Bad: ... That can get VERY frustrating later in the game; Focus on fighting doesn't fit a 2 dimentional title...
Zelda began as a 2d series. Imagine the excitement created when Capcom began its work on the first original 2d Zelda title in eight years. Even so, Seasons doesn't quite stack up to games like A Link To The Past.
It's the basic formula we all know and love. Traverse overworld, find dungeon, get cool new item, beat boss, repeat. This is a great formula, and it's part of what makes Zelda so legendary. The problem is in the execution. To this day, I still don't think Capcom can make a kickin Zelda title like Nintendo can. For one, overworld exploration is a pain, and it can get pretty tedious sometimes. The animal riding, in particular, is the worst concept I've ever seen in a Zelda game. Ricky wants me to get his gloves? NO! Screw Ricky! I just want to get to the next dungeon, and kick some dodongo butt! And then there's the Subbrosian world. Good god, it puts me to sleep. You'll dig, dance, and play hide and seek. Ugh.
Dungeons are better. They're genuinely challenging, but sometimes immensely frustrating. The seasons system is folly, and makes it feel like a real chore to even enter a dungeon. If it's spring, and the dungeon's only open in winter, you'll have to go though three animations before you can enter the damn dungeon, and be done with it. Because you change seasons so often, this becomes a drag really fast. The main problem with the dungeons themselves actually has nothing to do with dungeon design. It goes higher up to the basis of the game design, and how it compares to Ages.
Ages is an amazing title that prioritizes puzzles - which is great regardless of whether you're playing in 2d or 3d. Seasons, on the other hand, has battles being the primary focus. You'll enter a lot of rooms, and be expected to swing your sword until its damn near breaking point, and puzzles get the back seat. I'm not saying that all 2d Zelda games are like this, but prioritizing combat in a game that has no target system, an overhead view, and only two buttons available for equiping items is absolute torture. Again, it's Capcom's design of the game that made this so unacceptable. Other games, such as Link To The Past, are amazing in combhat despite 2 dimentional limitations.
Visuals and sound are exceptional for a GBC game. You can tell that the hardware was really pushed. There's some blandness here and there, and some tunes get repetetive, but it could have been so much worse.
The game is, overall, a great game. The review highlighted negative aspects (I tend to do that), but you'll still get A LOT of enjoyment out of this game despite its shortcomings. The dungeons, epic feel, and tough bosses take the rough edges and render them ALMOST obsolete. You'll still love this game, and at the end of the day, that's all that really matters.