[ecm name=’gba-zelda’]
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and Four Swords is an action-adventure game co-developed by Nintendo and Capcomand published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance.
The game was released on December 2, 2002, in North America; on March 14, 2003, in Japan; and on March 28, 2003, in Europe and Australia. The cartridge contains a modified port of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (originally released for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System) and an original multiplayer-only game titled The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords, which serves as the 9th installment in The Legend of Zelda video game series.
A remaster of Four Swords was released for a limited time on Nintendo’s DSiWare service as The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary Edition[b] on September 28, 2011, and includes new content, such as a single-player mode and additional areas.
The gameplay of A Link to the Past has changed very little from the original 1991 release; only slight modifications have been made. The game is an overhead adventure game, with the primary means of fighting and defending being a sword and shield. The sword can do a variety of things, including a sword spin, an energy projectile, and a secret technique introduced in the Game Boy Advance version called the Hurricane Spin. Link collects a variety of different equipment throughout his adventure, featuring series mainstay items such as bombs, a bow, the boomerang, and a lamp. It also introduces the Hookshot, the Magic Mirror, and the Pegasus Boots. Link’s health is measured in heart containers, which can be replenished by collecting smaller hearts from enemies and bushes. Link also has a magic meter from which some of his items derive power; for example, the Lamp uses some magic meter to light torches. There are two kinds of area – the overworld and the dungeons. The overworld has varying locations, including buildings that house these several dungeons. These dungeons have a set of objectives and items. Dungeons feature a number of keys, one single big key, a dungeon item, a compass, and a dungeon map. The overworld changes drastically when players enter the Dark World, a distorted alternate version of the original overworld. Players may go back and forth using both the Magic Mirror, which allows access to the Light World from the Dark World, and portals scattered across both worlds.
