A Link to the Past Why People Don't Like It That Much?

[StrangeWig]

Well, of course I know each people has it's own opinion, but anyway, I'd like to discuss about LttP. Let's go:


TP is a pretty controversial Zelda game. Some people love it, some people hate it - I'd say it's the worst main Zelda, even though I'm sure I don't HATE it - but I think "LoZ: A Link to the Past" is in a much worse situation.

No, nobody hates LttP, and nobody loves it either. It's in that dire position where it's just not really important to anyone. And I always ask myself why this happens. :hmm:

I mean, this is THE Zelda game that defined all the latter Zelda experiences. It's the one which originated most of the Zelda elements (of course, with the exception of the original) we take for granted nowadays, like heart pieces, the spin attack, Kakariko village, Zelda's Lullaby, the Hookshot, different tunics, the freaking Master Sword itself, and many others. This is the game that shaped the Zelda formula!

LttP, in my eyes, has the most PERFECT gameplay I have ever seen in ANY game in existence. :nod: This thing is a gameplay MONSTER, with a huge variety of itens, dungeons, enemies, level design, and any other thing you can imagine! Playing this thing, I feel that every wall can be bombed, and that under every pile of rocks there's a secret to be found. It's not crazy difficult like AoL, but it's no walk in the park either. The dual world mechanic is a genious idea, one that was sort of used again in OoT. The music is also very good, as it contains my favorite Zelda tune, the "Dark World". It's an epic quest on an epic land. Personally, I'm always divided between OoT and Link to the Past about which is the best.

The only real problem I see with this game, is that the story is really simple (although as epic as ever). But I think that, considering it's a 16bit era game, we can forgive this.

So, in the end, I'd like to invite you guys to play it again (or for the first time, who knows!), and to try to get what I got from this gem. :yes:

 

[Majora's Cat]

I'm sorry, but I'd rather disagree with you saying ALttP is underappreciated. Most Zelda fans happen to love ALttP. Who wouldn't? I would say that A Link to the Past is arguably the greatest 2D Zelda game ever created. It literally perfected the Zelda formula and made it into the sensation it is today. Many hold it to a nealy holy honor. Yes, I must admit that most people do not appreciate as much as they do Ocarina of Time. That woul tend to happen. Think about this - what do you think would be more popular? A 2D game or a new, bigger, better 3D game? I think the answer is so easy to see that many forget what ALttP did for the Zelda series. I will always hold it to be the 2nd most important game in the franchise, but as a game itself, I would call it the 5th best Zelda. It seems only sensible that fans would like the 3D Zeldas better, but a fair amount of people have love for ALttP as well. You're not the only one out there.

 

[athenian200]

It isn't so much that people don't like it. I know I liked it a lot. It's just that it really didn't... stand out.

LoZ was the first Zelda game.
AoL was the black sheep.
LADX was the first Game Boy title, and had a weird, dream-oriented plot.
OoT was the first 3D game.
MM had the 3-day system and transformation.
WW was cel-shaded and ships.
MC had shrinking.
TP was dark and shadowy, with the wolf and Midna.
PH had a customizable boat, sea battles, and the Temple of the Ocean King.
ST had the train and a ghostly Zelda.

So, most of the other games had a gimmick for which they stand out. The ones that don't are:

ALttP
OoX

Those games tend to be swept under the rug, because they largely fall in line with what you'd expect of the Zelda series. There's not a whole lot that stands out about them. They're good games, but they're too "normal," and don't stand out from the pack.

ALttP deserves a lot of credit, though. It was a very good SNES game, and it's still very good if you take the time to get into it and play it again. It's just that it doesn't offer much that you can't get in any other Zelda game.

OoX is another overlooked game. It was released by Capcom, but it was still very good and felt like a Zelda game. It actually felt a lot like ALttP.

 

[Satsy]

I don't think I've ever heard people say they didn't like aLttP, even in comparison to other games in the series. Massive Zelda fans or no. Not saying it doesn't exist, but I guess it's the sort of thing that's brought up in groups I'm not privvy to.

 

[linkman8]

I wouldn't really say it's an underappreciated game, to be honest. The only instance of anyone saying they didn't like it and didn't want to play it, was when I told my siblings they should play it. They said it was too hard and they can't figure out what to do. So maybe it's not as easy to figure out as other Zelda games? That or I've just got lazy siblings.

 

[Majora's Cat]

@ linkman8

I agree with you completely. I feel it is greatly appreciated, just not as much as the 3D Zeldas. It's hard for an older generation SNES game to try and compete with new technology, but ALttP puts up a darn good fight.

 

[MrMosley]

This is kind backwards. Most people that have ever had an interest in the Zelda series will tell you their favorite title is either Ocarina of Time or A Link to the Past. In fact, I know friends of mine that have ALttP on their virtual console and don't even really like Zelda much. Tons of people like ALttP.

 

[PhantomTriforce]

You don't make any sense to me at all. I <3<3<3 ALttP, but I <3<3<3<3<3<3<3 TP.
ALttP isn't unappreciated really, it changed Zelda, and gave it some true value other than just a time-killer (like LoZ and AoL). And I don't understand why you had to bring in your feelings about TP, you do know that it is the 3rd most favorite game from the people in ZD, right?

 

[knowlee]

*ALttP fan here*

I agree with the others by saying I don't get where you're getting at. ALttP is an awesome game and I know that there's a bunch of fans of the game, myself included. It's not underappreciated except maybe by the select few who don't like to play older games because of their graphics. If I had a choice of playing either it or any other game, including other Zelda games, I'd choose ALttP. I love that game that much. I'd even go as far to say that it's my favorite video game out of all video games ever made.

 

[TheGreen]

I'll agree that ALttP did great things for the Zelda series. I like to think of it as the first playable 2D Zelda.
I'll agree that it has great gameplay and set a standard for the rest of the series.
I disagree on the idea that it's better than LA or the Oracle games. I think Nintendo just got better. Just like anyone gets better at anything with practice.
As far as who likes/loves ALttP, I don't know any statistics so I won't comment.

 

[bbevington90]

I don't think it's too underappreciated. It's an amazing SNES game, and Zelda game in general too. It's in my top 5 even. A lot of people like the game.

 

[ZeldafreakCJM]

weird I always thought most people loved the game. Honestly I loved all of it all the way up to that last temple before the pyramid, if you dont have that 1/2 magic thingy you aint goin anywhere but straight back that magic potion store. I do have agree however I often forget about it.

 

[Halo siera 117]

Best game ever. I wish I could end the conversation at that. This game revolutionized almost everything in the series that was made in the first one. I think that this game is almost perfect in every way with one or two flaws. I can't imagine why people don't like this game as much as it should be praised. Just opinion though.

 

[February Eve]

Are you saying people underrate the game, or are you asking why it's not people's favorite? Because those are different questions. I'm working on playing A Link to the Past for the third time right now and there are a lot of things I would praise about it, but I'm in the category of "enjoy it, though other games are my favorite". However, I find it hard to articulate why something is or isn't a favorite to me. It's fun to analyze, and I can often come up with lots of aspects that I love or don't like. But in the end, it's more than just weighing those on the scale and picking the one with the most positives. It's as if I were to meet someone who on paper I should get along with well because we have similar beliefs or hobbies, but there's no chemistry. My favorites for books/games/anything often have a similar undefined connection that just works for me.

Underrating is a different discussion. I'd have to see some of the counterarguments before approaching that angle, though.

 

[DuckNoises]

I only see the game as "unappreciated" by those who haven't played it, which isn't really unappreciated at all, really; although, it would show more appreciation for the game for people to play it. I don't see why anyone wouldn't have as much of an incentive to play it as any other Zelda game, because it's a terrific game, and a terrific Zelda title. It was certainly a benchmark for the series, and is still a benchmark of game design to be looked up to to this day. I won't hear any of that "old games are inferior" rhetoric, because quite frankly, that's bollocks. If people are using that as a reason not to play a game, then they haven't quite yet learned how to appreciate any game, old or new.
But I digress; I think that it's not underrated, or at least not underrated by people who appreciated it. If it's not being appreciated properly for what it was (and what it still is), then it probably isn't being assessed in a legitimate fashion.