Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass

Genre: Adventure
Developer: Nintendo
Platform: Nintendo DS
Release: 2007
Rating: E

- Graphics -

Considering the history of DS graphics, in which the system started with entirely 2D graphics that gradually included various 3D elements, this game is a big step up. The -entire- game is 3D, probably one of the first on the system to be so. I don't even think there were very many, if any at all, 2D objects in the scenery.

Graphics: 9/10


- Story -

Ehhh, minus points for the main bad guy being a cyclops giant squid, but plus double that for the FIRST character in the series with a dynamic character type: Linebeck! Overall, the story was a bit odd, but it worked out aside from the Bellum thing. The amazing plot twist at the final battle (and the battle itself) is worth playing the entire game for, imo!

Story: 7/10


- Gameplay -

Now here is a Zelda game that uses on thing for almost all of the controls; in fact, I don't believe you actually need to press any buttons except the power button to play (though there are some useful shortcuts). While some of the controls, such as rolling, were a bit cumbersome, it was overall well-done in that regards. The clever inclusion of the microphone for some things, such as deafening a Pols Voice (which btw, we haven't seen since Link's Awakening if I'm recalling correctly; might have been the Oracles) was an interesting bonus.

The game often gets a lot of criticism for the Ocean King's temple, a dungeon which is required to be revisited several times, each time requiring the player to revisit the parts s/he has already finished. I, however, thought this was a wonderful idea; The inclusion of shortcuts accessible with later items and regenerating treasure chests made it actually worth doing multiple times,
and the life-threatening atmosphere made for one of the most desperate-feeling dungeons in the series.

The only thing I disliked was the ship control; Once you set a course, the only way to go off-course was to completely redraw it. This could get very annoying when you were trying to destroy the ice barrier on the island with the Anouki (an all-new Zelda race), or a few boss fights at sea.

Gameplay: 9/10


- Music -

I must say, this is probably one of my favorite Zelda soundtracks, along with Wind Waker and Majora's Mask. So many amazing themes, and not nearly enough attention by the community.

Music: 10/10

Total Score: 9/10

Not available for other systems