More Four Swords Footage and First Impressions

As you all are certain to know, The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary Edition became available for free on DSi and 3DS systems across Europe, Australia, and North America a few days ago. Now that we’ve had some more time to play it, we’d like to give (and, of course, hear) some more first impressions on the game beyond just the tutorial levels. Read on to see what I think.

In the below gameplay video, you can see clips of the first two levels of the game being played in the new Single Player mode, with pretty good examples of how quickly you can switch between Links and the necessity of doing so.

With my experience in the game, the single player controls took a little getting used to but in the end they worked out well. Before long I was jumping from one link to another as I made my way through the Chambers of Insight tutorial levels. However, I could easily see the gap left where the multiplayer should be. While Single Player works, it slows down the levels a bit since it forces you to switch back and forth constantly. So, to get the true effect of this game, I tracked down someone on my college campus who had the game as well.

As soon as we booted up our games, the gameplay became instantly more fun. The two of us often traded sarcastic comments as we solved puzzles, threw each other across (and into) chasms, and fought over who could kill enemies first. Working both cooperatively while also competing, we had a pretty fun time. In the end I’d say that while the game is certainly playable and enjoyable in Single Player, it would be best to find someone else to play with to get the best experience.

Where actual Zelda gameplay is concerned, this is pretty true to the series. I myself never played the original Four Swords so the levels are completely new to me. While playing through the Forest level I enjoyed the way the puzzles worked and required coordination with your partners; even the enemies require some cooperation to take out, which is a clever use of multiplayer.

So, have you already downloaded your copy of Four Swords? If so, how do you like the single player mode? Have you been able to enjoy any multiplayer yet? And if you don’t have the game yet, do you want to get it while it’s free?