A Link to the Past Easier the Second Time?

[THEM]

On my first playthrough of ALttP I died over 170 times. On my next 100% playthrough I died a measly 14 times. That's a big difference. Did any of you achieve similar results?

 

[Ventus]

Actually, ALttP was HARDER the second time. Despite my knowing where to go, I still took about 40 somethin+ deaths. Sad, I know, but I have bad timing in that game.

 

[Croxyndorf]

first playthrough I think my death count was under ten, too long ago to remember. my recent playthrough on the wii was zero in death count cause I pretty much knew the game inside out, though it wasn't a 100% playthrough.

 

[darth_matt195]

on ALttP on my first play through I probably had 100's of deaths...I was 7 playing it. If I play it now (which is quite often, once or twice a year) I very rarely die, the amount of fairies you get makes it hard to truly die!

 

[Krazy4Krash]

I went from about 100 deaths to about 20.
On my more recent playthoughs, all my deaths are in the late dungeons. i.e. Ice Palace, Misery Mire, Turtle Rock and Ganon's Tower.

 

[Zeldafan101]

I died like 20 times on the third dungeons boss that looks like a worm...

 

[Scotts897]

The game is hard until you learn all the tricks to it. After the Dark Palace, the game is designed to be sequence broke. Do Theives' Town and get the Titan's Mitt and then get the sword upgrade. Then do the swamp palace for the hookshot, which you'll need to effectively do the ice palace (the penguins die in one hit to the hookshot and there is a lot of extra walking without the hookshot) where you get the blue tunic. Then I do Misery Mire before Skull Forest because the cane of somaria gives is useful and makes one room of Skull Forest a bit easier. Then it's linear again. Knowing the right tricks allows you to easily get a 000 game.

Also, use strategies like freezing enemies and using the hammer on them to get magic jars. Use magic powder on the fire faeries to get fairies. Always carry medicine on you. You have an inventory with a lot of a tools in them and knowing how to use it is the secret to success at this game!

 

[Djinn]

I believe it was definitely easier the second time around. I knew what to expect from most dungeons, still remembered where many things were and I knew what things to look out for. The first playthrough I fell down a lot of holes, missed quite a few secrets and generally skipped way too many items and rooms because I had no idea that certain walls were passable or certain items would work in those areas. The second time through I was a little more familiar with the various gimmicks of each dungeon and I was a bit bolder with things like venturing off the corners of the map more often because I was just generally more comfortable with things in the game by then. For a lot of people they are a bit more apprehensive on their first playthrough because they have no idea what to expect and everything new can sometimes be shocking. Often leading to even more deaths than normal.

That said, I died a lot when I first played the game. A whole lot. On my second game I do not think I died half as much. Plus it did not take nearly as long to get though the game as well. Probably a week a the most compared to the couple weeks of the first. Of course a lot of that was simply getting lost over and over again and becoming frustrated. I was not aware that the skull forest temple was actually set in three parts and you had to leave to get to another part of it. Or Blind's dungeon where you rescue a maiden first before you fight the boss. I imagine my complete refusal to even attempt to look at a guide causes a lot of these issues but I really only ever start to look at one when I know I am just not getting one step further at all and I view it as a failure to have to do so.

 

[guapo2003]

The second playthrough for any game for me is much easier because I know what to do and I know which enemies to look out for in certain places, so yes it's easier the 2nd time around.

 

[fused_shadows]

It took me almost five years to beat Altp the first time, and only three days the second time.

Easier the Second time: Mostt Definitely

 

[MW7]

The only way a game can be harder the second time is if you make it harder for yourself; otherwise it's easier in almost everyone's experience. Like if you decide to beat ALTTP without bottles for your second playthrough it probably will be harder. It's not impossible for a second playthrough to be harder for someone in of itself but very rare.

For me personally every Zelda game has been easier the second time. ALTTP does retain some difficulty on subsequent playthroughs probably more than most other games in the series because of tough boss battles and the numerous dungeons being maze-like. The 3d game that retained some serious difficulty on subsequent playthroughs in my experience was Majora's Mask. To this day the Great Bay Temple is no walk in the park for me, and Snowhead and Stone Tower Temple are hard for me to memorize. Likewise in ALTTP numerous dungeons are pretty hard no matter how many times I play the game- the Ice Palace and Ganon's Tower still confuse me for instance and others aren't easy either.

 

[Michael1985]

It took me almost five years to beat Altp the first time, and only three days the second time.

Easier the Second time: Mostt Definitely

Three years and almost a thousand deaths for me the first time, and I did end up reqring internet help. Dropped to a hundred or so deaths the second time, which was still an awful lot, but much better.

 

[gimnastic]

In my first playthough, I died about 160 times. I played long time ago, after Wind Waker, Minish Cap and Ocarina. I left the game because I was stuck in the Ganon's Tower, and I returned about 3 years after. Of that 160 deads, only about 2-3 were after the gap. With the experience, all Zeldas became easier, not only re-playing games. After playing a lot of them (MM,FS,FSA,OOA,OOS,TLOZ-2Q missing), I found the new ones very easy, so it's because you are more familiarizated with the games.

 

[S. Mario]

I just finished it last year, and the first time I played through, I got 72 game overs. The second time I played through, I only got around 4. So it's definitely easier the second time.