After The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was given, as a wonderful gift, to the world, Nintendo was faced with a huge problem. I can see them sitting there at a conference table, faces buried in their hands, trying to figure out exactly how they’re going to top their previous effort. This is the how The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask was born. While topping Ocarina of Time seems almost impossible, giving it their best effort, they created one of the most unique and risky titles in the series to date.

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Some video game series tend to fall into a comfortable pattern. As long as innovation still occurs and the things that make them great are improved upon, the games stay largely the same. When a developer has the guts to step out of their comfort zone, the rewards can often far outweigh the risks if it’s done right. While a lot of games in the Legend of Zelda series are very similar to the formula laid out by A Link to the Past, there are a few that stand out as games that dared to be different. With The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, the first fully motion-controlled title in the series coming soon, I wanted to honor some of the others that went against the grain. Today, I’m going to start by talking a little about The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass.

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While eagerly awaiting Star Fox 64 3D on my 3DS, having thoroughly beaten Ocarina of Time 3D, I’ve gotten the chance to dig a bit more into the virtual console on the system.  Believe it or not, the very first gaming console, portable or otherwise, that I ever owned was Nintendo’s own Game Boy.  The classics are slipping in and the opportunity to play these beloved portable games is one I would advise you not to miss.

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For the last couple of years, Nintendo has started their E3 press conferences with my personal favorite first-party series The Legend of Zelda.  This year, there was a lot to talk about in terms of the Zelda franchise.  Not only did Ocarina of Time 3D come out just a few days ago, but we have downloadable titles for the 3DS and an orchestra touring the world playing music from the games.  The most exciting thing there for me though, was the updated look at The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword.  What last year was little more than a Zelda-themed tech demo, now feels a lot more like a fully fleshed out game complete with a story.

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A new Legend of Zelda game has been a long time coming.  So much that when the trailer started running at the beginning of the press event, I was excited, but not all that surprised.  It was thrilling to see one of my childhood heroes, Shigeru Miyamoto, burst from behind a screen to demo the newest game in one of my favorite series of all time.  Other than the trouble with Deku Baba, the plant monster, the live demo was very exciting to see all the new bits that would be populating Link and Zelda’s new adventure.

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