For years, The Legend of Zelda franchise has offered gamers some of the most memorable and enjoyable single-player experiences to date. With its growingly popular hero, Link, the Zelda franchise has embarked gamers on a variety of acclaimed adventures, from Link’s 2D outgoing, A Link to the Past, to his third dimensional debut, Ocarina of Time. However, up until two years ago, the franchise remained rooted only in its single-player experience. What changed this was the release of A Link to the Past for Nintendo’s Game Boy Advance in 2002. While the enhanced port featured the famed single-player game, A Link to the Past, it introduced something new to the Zelda formula. Multiplayer.

Four Swords, as it was called in the GBA incarnation of A Link to the Past, had up to four gamers playing through a cooperative – but still competitive – multiplayer version of Zelda. Gamers explored a variety of dungeons together battling enemies, solving puzzles and fighting bosses. However, this adventure was fairly short. It only offered a few hours of gameplay. Nonetheless, it was a success, earning rave reviews. The general feeling was that Zelda multiplayer rocked.

Now, two years later, Nintendo has released its newest Zelda multiplayer game, Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures. However, this time around, things are taking place on the GameCube, although gamers must use their GBAs to play as well. But more importantly, this time around, the use of connectivity adds actual depth to the experience, rather creating a foggy illusion of what is truly excessive complexity.

Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures brings to the table a truly enjoyable – and at times ingenious – multiplayer mode and a mildly entertaining single-player mode. Gamers who can afford to play Four Swords Adventures with all the needed equipment for at least three players are in for a true delight. Nintendo has created, with Four Swords Adventures, the best cooperative experience on the GameCube.

Features

• The first GameCube multiplayer Zelda game
  
• Play through over 20 different levels, filled with challenging and ingenious puzzles
  
• Hook your GBA to your GameCube for the best connectivity experience to date
  
• Single-player mode allows one player to control all four Links thanks to its formation feature
  
• Up to four gamers and play cooperatively through the game’s 20-hour Adventure mode
  
• Requires the use of a GBA and GCN-to-GBA link cable for multiplayer modes
  
• Shadow Battle throws four Links into an arena, for a hectic, addictive and competitive free-for-all
  
• Shoot down gender-confused fairy, Tingle, with bow-and-arrows when he tries to steal players’ gems
  
• The best connectivity experience you can get on this side of the universe
  

For a moment, gamers must forget what they have heard about the infamous GameCube-to-Game Boy Advance connectivity fiasco. The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures makes true use of this feature thought-up by Nintendo. With it, Four Swords Adventures adds a new kind of depth that has never been experienced before. This is connectivity at its best.

Adventures picks up shortly after where the GBA version of Four Swords wraps up. The dark, mysterious Shadow Link has released the evil wind sorcerer, Vaati, from his magical prison. Even worse, Hyrule’s six maidens have been kidnapped, as has the ever-popular Princess Zelda. The young Hero of Time, Link, steps up to the plate to once again save the land of Hyrule. After pulling the legendary Four Sword, Link splits into four. He then sets off to save his land. This simple, recognizable storyline lays the foundation for the title’s main mode, Hyrulean Adventure. But while the storyline is very simple, it actually unfolds much like a full-blown Zelda game. That is because in fact this is a full-blown Zelda game. Unlike Four Swords on the Game Boy Advance, Adventures is lengthy – some 20-hours – and features a storyline that is of nearly the same caliber of past Zelda games.



GBA connectivity at its best

There are two ways gamers can experience Four Swords Adventures. The first is to play through Hyrulean Adventure’s single-player version. When doing so, players can either use a Game Boy Advance or a GameCube controller. The mode still plays nearly identically to that of the multiplayer version of it. In it, players venture around Hyrule via an overhead map. Unfortunately, this is not the traditional method of travel seen in past Zelda titles. There are no enemies here, puzzles or anything like them. This is purely a map in which gamers can choose different areas of Hyrule to visit. Gamers can choose to visit an area from here, and once they clear that area, they will unlock the next area. This works well, but the lack of a traditional hub world is certainly missed.

Within each of these areas are different enemies and puzzles. For example, players will visit Kakariko village in one area, as well as a temple and forest. Each area also consists of towns to explore and dungeons. Furthermore, each has its own boss to battle. The idea behind Four Swords Adventures is that players will clear each area, unlock the next, move on and eventually rescue the area’s kidnapped maiden.