Zelda II: The Adventure of Link

is a video game for the Nintendo Entertainment System, and the second title in the Legend of Zelda series of games. It was originally released in Japan on the Famicom Disk System, remarkably less than a year after the release of it's predecessor, but just as its predecessor was, was converted to the regular NES cartridge format when released in the US and other countries. In order to retain the game saving feature that the Famicom Disk System provided, battery-backed memory was built in the NES cartridge. It was re-released on the Game Boy Advance in 2004 as part of the Classic NES Series.

Emboldened by the massive, widespread success of the original Legend of Zelda, Nintendo envisioned a radically different gameplay engine when the time for a sequel came around. Zelda II: The Adventure of Link was born shortly thereafter, setting off debates that continue to this day. Zelda II carries far more RPG-style elements than other titles in the series, and perhaps because of this many players are left disappointed by Nintendo’s second installment, who believe that it does not live up to the first game’s success. Even so, successful elements of Zelda II, such as the expanded role of the NPCs, sword techniques, etc., continued to be used in the later games.

This time, Link is off on a quest to awaken Princess Zelda, who was put into an enchanted sleep long ago. Link’s only chance of reviving her is retrieving the Triforce of Courage from the Great Palace. To do this he must unravel the “binding force” that protects the Great Palace by placing six crystals in other palaces around Hyrule. This crystal theme reappears in later Zelda games. It is an element that many latter-day RPGs seem to share. At the same time, Ganon's underlings are working to obtain the blood of Ganon's killer, Link, in order to revive their boss. They do this in two ways: by fighting Link and killing him outside the palaces, or by stealing Link's body if he gets killed in the palace, since the palace enemies are not Ganon's underlings. This is why when Link loses all his lives in either case, Ganon returns.

Gameplay

Zelda II resembled the original very little; rather than the top-down view of the previous title, Zelda II featured side-scrolling areas within a larger world map. The game also incorporated a strategic combat system and more role-playing game elements, including an experience system, magic spells, and more interaction with non-player characters.

Experience

In this installment of the series, Link gains experience to upgrade his attack, magic and life levels by defeating enemies (another gameplay feature more common to other RPGs than to the Zelda series). He can raise these areas all the way to level 8. Raising a Life level will decrease the damage Link takes each time he is hit, while raising a magic level will decrease the cost of spells, and raising an attack level will strengthen his blows. During his journey, Link can also find heart containers and magic containers that increase the amount of life/magic he can have at any given time. Although the Heart Container theme appears in other Zelda games, including the original, Zelda II is the only game in the series that allows Link to build levels.

Like many other RPGs, Zelda II allows the player to fight weaker enemies to raise levels before tackling more difficult challenges, or (with great patience) to raise Link’s levels very high early on and breeze through the rest of the game. Most other games in the Zelda series provide players with only limited means to raise their abilities, and only at certain points during gameplay. Unlike most other experience systems for RPGs, Link can lose experience by being touched by certain enemies (though he won't lose a level, his experience counter will be decreased by small amounts each time he is touched).

Overworld and Side-View

The second Zelda also welcomes players to a two-mode world. The Overworld mode, once home to all battles, labyrinths, graveyards, etc., now serves simply as a means to get from one place to another. Whenever Link arrives at a place that can be explored, the game switches to a side view mode. The Palaces and towns are all viewed in this new way, giving Link the opportunity to access his sword and his magic, since the Overworld mode doesn’t allow him to. Likewise, if Link strays from the road of the Overworld, wandering into forests, deserts and swamps, black enemy symbols chase him across the screen. If outrunning them proves too much a challenge, then a battle ensues, and the side screen mode comes into use again. Even though the fighting is still action-oriented, not menu-based like later RPGs, the difference in battle mode and traveling mode is very characteristic of later RPGs, and is yet another point of contention.

Some gamers have noted the resemblance between the area south of Death Mountain in Zelda II and the Overworld of the original game. Specifics include the placement of the graveyard, the forests, river, and the reappearance of Spectacle Rock, down to the cave which Link had created in the previous game. The implication is that, since this area is a rather small corner of Zelda II’s Overworld, this game has a much larger scope than its predecessor.

Combat system

Of the entire series, this Zelda installment is also distinguished for its relatively complex and strategic-minded combat system. It utilizes an expansive manual method of offensive and defensive techniques that include alternating between different positions which are standing (while neutral or running) and crouching, for defending high and low attacks respectively. Each combat encounter is a guaranteed struggle even against the weakest of opponents because there has to be switching from high and low attacks while keeping an eye on the opponent's next attack orientation. At times the AI of an opponent would cause it to guard only one direction to force the player to open up so it could get a free attack. For example, an Iron Knuckle or Dark Nut would guard high while releasing a high attack and if the player attacked him low, the player would surely get hit because he was not guarding high on time for there to be a recovery of the player's low attack.

This gives the game a great deal of strategic gameplay since an enemy such as a Scrub or Tough has the chance of being victorious in beating the player, especialy if attacking from both sides. This is quite different from the rest of the series where button-smashing and shield blocking are relied-upon combat maneuvers (holding up a shield, the player would remain impenetrable to his direct opponent.) Zelda II is arguably known as the toughest Zelda in its combat system due to these offensive and defensive capabilities.

Palaces

Along the path of Link’s journey are the seven Palaces: large, labyrinthine areas which feature enemies more difficult than those found in the Overworld, each of which contain a special item and a guardian at the very end. After defeating these guardians, Link embeds a crystal into a special statue, weakening the binding force that prevents him from accessing the seventh and final Great Palace.

Parapa Palace – The first palace Link visits. Contains the candle treasure. The palace's guardian is a tall knight called Horsehead Knight.

Midoro Palace – The second palace Link enters. Contains the handy glove treasure. The palace's guardian is a knight called Helmethead.

Graveyard Palace – The third palace. Contains the raft treasure. The palace's guardian is a powerful Iron Knuckle called Rebonack.

Island Palace – The fourth palace. Contains the boot treature. The palace's guradian is a spellcaster named Carock.

Water Palace – The fifth palace. Contains the recorder treasure. The palace's guardian is a monstrous giant named Gooma, who wields a ball and chain.

Hidden Palace – The sixth palace. Contains the cross treasure. The guardian is a massive dragon called Barba.

The Great Palace – The final palace. Although it doesn’t contain a treasure, it compensates by having two guardians as well as the “Binding Force” which can only be lifted by placing the six crystals into the statues of each palace. The first is a massive phoenix-like monster called Thunderbird. The final guardian is a shadow version of Link himself, usually refered to as "Shadow Link," or "Dark Link."

Treasures

Items like the raft, candle, magical key, and the recorder make a comeback, but other favorites are noticeably missing. In addition, these items are not actively used in combat and exploration such as in other Zelda games, but either enhance Link’s abilities in some way or allow him greater access to areas on the Overworld.

Candle - Allows Link to see in dark caverns and in the Valley of Death
Hammer - Destroys roadblocks and chops down trees
Handy Glove - Enables Link to break certain stones with his sword
Raft - Used to sail between the Western and Eastern continents of the Overworld
Boots - Allows Link to walk over certain bodies of water in the Overworld
Recorder - Used to destroy the Ghoma, the river devil
Cross - Allows Link to see moas, which are usually invisible
Magical Key - Can unlock any door (unlimited use item)

Spells

In place of actively-used items, “The Adventure of Link” features spells for Link to use during action scenes. Each spell is learned from a wise man, each one in a different town. Before they teach Link their spells, he has to complete sidequests like retrieving lost trophies or bottles of medicine. The shield spell is the exception to this rule.

Shield - Learned in Rauru and is received immediately. Changes Link’s clothing color palette to red-brown and reduces the damage Link takes by half.
Jump - Learned in Ruto. Allows Link to jump much higher and slightly further.
Life - Learned in the water town, Saria. Converts at least 50 units of magic power to 48 units (3 full blocks ) of life.
Fairy - Learned in the harbor town, Mido. Changes Link into a fairy, allowing him to fly over lava pools and through small passages.
Fire - Learned in Nabooru. Replaces Link’s sword beam with 1 (attack level 1 to 3) or 2 (attack level 4 to 8) fireballs without the requirement of being at full health, allowing Link to kill enemies that can’t be killed with the sword.
Reflect - Learned in Darunia. Strengthens Link’s shield, granting it the ability to deflect axes, clubs, and fireballs, and reflect magical spells back at the caster.
Spell - Learned in New Kasuto. Turns weaker enemies into bots and opens the secret entrance at the end of the town.
Thunder - Learned in the deserted old Kasuto. Inflicts 2 sword strikes on attack level 8 of damage to on-screen enemies and breaks the invulnerability spell of Thunderbird.

Towns

Zelda II was the first in the series to feature towns. Here Link can refill his life and magic meters, and talk to the locals for advice. (In some towns, however, certain locals are enemies in disguise. One town is deserted.)

In addition, each town offers Link a chance to gain a magic spell or a sword technique, provided he completes a small favor. In this way, Link learns magic that allows him to jump higher, morph into a fairy to fly through keyholes in palaces, and refill his life, among other things. Swordsmen will also teach him sword techniques like the upward and downward thrust, which are vital to defeating certain enemies and also obtaining certain items. The role of these non-player characters (NPCs) in Link’s quest took the traditional RPG form; the role of the NPCs in the original Zelda was far smaller. The role of the NPCs continuted to grow in true RPG tradition: it is especially noticeable in N64’s Ocarina of Time that NPCs are vital to Link’s quest.

Town names

Longtime fans might notice that the first six towns bear the names of important characters from Ocarina of Time. Since the latter game takes place before Zelda II, the implication is that the towns are named after those people. Kasuto’s namesake is unknown.

Story

Zelda II is seen by some as Nintendo’s take on the tale of Sleeping Beauty ^*.
Shortly after the events of The Legend of Zelda, near Link’s 16th birthday, he notices a strange mark on the back of his left hand. He seeks out Impa, and she tells him the “Legend of Zelda”. Long ago, the King of Hyrule ruled the land of Hyrule with a son and daughter. When the king died, the Triforce should have passed onto the Prince. However, he could only inherit the Triforce in part, and thus sought the remaining pieces. When he learned that Zelda knew of their location, he questioned her. She refused, and so the Prince sent his wizard to question her. When he failed, the wizard became furious and cast a sleeping spell on Princess Zelda. The wizard fell dead, but the Prince was left grieving. He had Zelda moved to a room in the North Castle and laid her on a bed hung with rich curtains with a red rose in her hand, and hoped that one day, she would awaken and return to life. To ensure this event was never forgotten, the Prince ordered all females born to the royal family from that point on to be named Zelda.
Impa also gives Link an old chest containing six crystals and an old message that claims that the restoration of the crystals to the six palaces in Hyrule will open the path to the Triforce of Courage. Taking the crystals, Link sets out to restore them to their places, defeating powerful palace guardians and learning magic spells to aid him as he seeks to find the Triforce of Courage and break the enchantment on the sleeping Zelda.

Legacy

Though Zelda II is seen by many fans as the “misfit” of the Zelda games, it has developed a loyal fanbase, and many elements of the game have remained in the series. For instance, NPCs were present in the original Zelda, but their role was rather limited. All Zelda games since Zelda II prominently feature a variety of NPCs, who play a pivotal role in Link’s quests. In the original game, keys would work in any dungeon, and could even be purchased in shops. Starting in Zelda II, though keys may still be used in any dungeon, there are only enough keys in each palace to open that palace’s doors, and using keys from one dungeon in another may cause the player to run out of keys. This problem can be overcome either through the use of the Fairy spell (which allows Link to pass through locked doors if he has no keys) or the use of the Magic Key, which unlocks an unlimited number of doors. The use of metered magic and spells has also carried over into modern Zelda games. The Adventure of Link version of Stalfos, which makes use of defense techniques, seems to be the basis of later incarnations of the enemy (as opposed to the earlier Legend of Zelda version, which simply walked blindly around dungeons, making no attempts to defend themselves or evade attack). One enemy, Barba, seems to have been the inspiration for Volvagia in Ocarina of Time. Dark Link also appears in Ocarina of Time, and a similar Link clone called Shadow Link appears in Four Swords Adventures. The idea of a hammer used to destroy path obstructions was first introduced in Adventure of Link, and was seen in later Zelda games such as A Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time and The Wind Waker.

Trivia

Zelda II: The Adventure of Link is the only English-language title in the series published by Nintendo not to include “The Legend of Zelda”. This was a change from its FDS version, which retained it.
This is also the only Zelda game to feature “lives” counting down to game over and, therefore, the only game in the series to include 1-ups. The rest of the games went game over the moment Link's hearts become all white and he had no fairy in a bottle.
Characters in the 1989 film The Wizard play Zelda II: The Adventure of Link.
One character in the game has become especially popular with the Zelda fanbase for the perceived absurdity of his initial line of dialogue. Inside a house within the town of Ruto, a male NPC will simply exclaim “I AM ERROR” when spoken to upon the player's meeting him for the first time. Another NPC will later tell the player to speak with Error "ASK ERROR OF RUTO ABOUT THE PALACE", after which Error will deliver further dialogue "SOUTH OF THE PALACE IS A TUNNEL", proving that Error is indeed his name, and that this is not merely a mistake. It is possible however that Error’s name was originally “Errol” (as in Errol Flynn), but due to the letters “R” and “L” being allophones in Japanese, the programmers mistyped the name as “Error”.
The Palace theme is possibly one of the most recognizable songs of the whole game and has grown quite a fan following over the years. In fact, the song was so popular that it was remade exclusively for Super Smash Bros. Melee, in which it's usually played in the Hyrule Temple stage. A CD was released by Nintendo with the song.
A fan-favorite is one of the tips an NPC gives you in a town. “If all else fails, use fire.” The humorous statement has become very popular.
This is the only Zelda game in which Link appears to have any lines. Not including his speech bubbles in the instruction manual, he will remark "I found a mirror under the table" when said mirror is found. Some also believe that the line "Want to get some water?" upon approaching a certain fountain is also being spoken by Link.
The game was very loosely adapted for an episode of The Game Master. Horsehead, Ironknuckle, and Ganon all make appearances on his episode.
The sages in Ocarina of Time are named after every town except Mido and Kasuto.
In the Collector's Edition and the Classic NES Series versions of this game, the screen does not flash red and white when Link dies. Rather, it just turns all red with a black outline of Link, probably due to the fact that some players might have seizures when viewing rapidly flashing colors on a TV. Since Nintendo had been recently sued due to that fact, the game had been edited to remove the flashing.

External links

The Adventure of Link official site
Zelda II wiki guide at StrategyWiki (previously hosted by Wikibooks)
Zelda II at The NES Files
Speed Demos Archive - Speedruns

The Legend of Zelda games | NES games | Platform games | 1987 computer and video games | 1988 computer and video games

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