Difficulty:

Just Right

Time Spent:

20 to 40 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Been there, done that"

The Legend of Zelda is a well respected series, that always manages to produce great games. And this game is no exception, but that doesnt mean it also has a few shortcomings.

For those who have played Phantom Hourglass, I want to first mention that this game is almost identical to this one as far as mechanics and gameplay go. But if you haven't played PH, then I'll explain in more detail. The graphics are similar to the cartoon look thats been in previous installments. It looks great on the DS. Music is alright. Some of it is recycled from PH, but still good for a Zelda game.

The gameplay in this game is a little more limited than PH. In this game, you use a train to travel from area to area. And using the train can be a pain. It moves slow, and there isnt much to do while you travel to a new area. There might be a few enemies or different tracks to take, but overall pretty boring. You use the touch screen to control Link. This can be a little tricky at time, but works better than the D pad, since there is no joystick on the DS.

The story is fairly similar to other Zelda games as well. An evil spirit has risen back to life and is taking over Hyrule. Link must travel to multiple areas and temples to take back Hyrule. Dungeons and areas are very well put together and offer quite the challenge. The last major dungeon was super challenging and time consuming. In reality you might be able to finish this game in 15 hours, but it took me longer, because i really struggled with some of the dungeons. Boss fights are rather fun, but not as challenging.

Even though this game is super similar to PH, and it has its frustrating moments, its still a joy to play. It's a fun new adventure, and its hard to go wrong with a Zelda game. It has plenty of enjoyable moments and challenges to make it worth a purchase and a great addition to your DS library.