Phantom Hourglass
Link’s latest swashbuckling adventure journeys to the DS to try out some new moves.
Your adventure starts where Wind Waker ended. After a quick re-briefing of the ending of the prequel, you start out when Link awakes to find himself washed up on a beach with know idea where he is. The fairy Ciela helps link find her master Oshus, who will help Link much throughout the game. Link eventually teams up with treasure loving Captain Linebeck and sets off to find the elusive ghost ship. But this is not as easy as it sounds. By finding hidden maps in the Temple of the Ocean King, Link can follow the Ghost Ship while landing on various islands to find clues to its whereabouts, and learns that he has to track down the spirits of Courage, Wisdom, and power; and of course, try to find treasure for Linebeck.
Don’t be fooled by the traditional Legend of Zelda plot, this adventure has a whole new feel. The largest and most noticeable change is the use of the touch screen to move Link around as well as use his sword. These controls are surprisingly smooth and easy, and quick stylus dragging across the touch screen to make Link attack is plain awesome. My favorite feature is ship navigation. While on his adventure with Linebeck and Celia, Link often finds himself on Linebeck’s ship. The controls for this are quite easy also, all you do is draw a route for the ship to take, and your off. After acquiring the cannon, you can face off with pirates at see in cannon battles, and blast away boulders that are blocking your ships route.
Possibly the most useful feature is the addition of the top screen map. Think that’s cool? How about making notes on your map? This awesome feature allows you to circle areas you need to come back to, or write down in-game riddles for future reference whenever you desire, and it will be saved until you desire to erase it. This is especially useful in later levels of the game.
The shade cell style graphics are possibly the best yet on the DS, and show off Link’s world and beyond above anyone’s expectations.
Fighting bosses on various islands to acquire the spirits is probably the most exciting part of your journey before you advance to the last levels. The battles require strategy and quick thinking so be prepared.
Phantom Hourglass is a prime example of a classic adventure being revolutionized for the better by the Nintendo DS.
| |
