Intro
Just like all Zelda games the game begins with a cool little into, in the Minish Cap (I might refer to it as MC at some points) the intro is done in stain glass window looking pictures. It describes how long ago when the world was on the verge of being swallowed by shadow the Picori appeared from he sky, with them they brought a sacred sword and a golden light they gave these thing to the Hero of Men. Using the Sword and his courage the warrior drove out the darkness saving the land and people of Hylains enshrined the blade with care through the ages. After this little intro it then shows Zelda who is going over to Link house to have him accompany her to the Picori Festival. After entering Link's home she is greeted by Link's grandfather who is a master swords smith and is making a sword for the winner of the Picori festivals sword compaction. Zelda find Link asleep in his bed (is it just me or is Link almost always sleeping when Zelda games start?) after waking him up she tells him that she wants him to accompany her to the festival. On your way out your grandfather give you (Link) the sword to be delivered to the winner of the compaction. So Link and Zelda Joyfully head off to the festival when they arrive they talk to lots of people and participate in a lot of the events in one event Zelda wins you a small shield which will accompany you for most of the game. After being at the festival for awhile you head to the castle where you give the king the sword that's to be presented to the winner of the contest. Since you already there the King of Hyrule invites you to stay and see the winner. As you watch a mysterious young man in a black cloak comes up he is the winner of the compaction and his name is Vaati. Being the winner he has the privilege to touch the sacred Picori sword said to be the one used ages ago. Vaati has other plans instead when he touches the sword he unleashes what it's keeping hidden away and unleashing a great darkness upon the world. After doing so he is disappointed with the result but he has some fun before he goes he turns the Princess Zelda into stone and damages the ancient blade. The King is in grief the evil maniacal Vatti has caused much damage but he says that with the power of the sword perhaps Zelda can be revived and Vatti can be stopped but the only race that has the ability to repair this blade is the Picori, but only the eye's of the child can see the Picori so the task is put upon the young and courageous Link to save Zelda and repair the blade. Link's first destination is the Minish Woods. Before going to far in the Minish woods he hears a cry for help he goes to the scene and saves a strange creature named Elzo who appears as a bird mixed with a cap the creature is knowledgeable about Hyrule and the Minish and he can allow you to become small so he joins you on your quest. So with the sword crafted by his Grandfather in his Left hand, the shield given to him by Zelda in His right and Elzo perched comfortably on top of his head Link adventure is now just truly beginning.
Plot
As you can probably tell from the intro this has a pretty rich plot. All Zelda games have always had good plots in my opinion and The Minish Cap is no different. Now it's not a Final Fantasy but it's still has a great plot although it does slow down a bit in the middle portion of the game. If your looking for answers to Zelda gaps well then don't look here while the Minish cap does have a good plot it doesn't answer any big questions concerning the Legend as a whole. This game relates to FSA sorry if you consider this a spoiler but it really introduced Vatti and his origin. Overall the Plot is good it's nothing super special but it's better than your average game and it will keep you entertained thought most the game like I said there may be a slow part here and there but overall it delivered.
8.0/10.0
Graphics
If you've played the Four Swords on the GBA version of A Link to the Past you know what to expect. It's about exactly the same as that it seems to be a bit better so their not anything super amazing but they are good their definitely not bad. There are some certain parts that seem a lot better than others like when your walking down a pat and your small and the branches and leaves are over you it looks pretty cool. The best parts I would say is the giant Chu Chu as funny as that sounds it seems to look really good but not to the point where it doesn't fit. It's color and stuff is good it's bright and cheery looking where it should be like in Hyrule town but it's more dark and eerie in dungeons and dark places. Overall I would say their good but nothing super special not the best GBA graphics but not near the worst.
7.0/10.0
Music/Sound
One place that really seemed to blow me away was the Music it sounds great there are some of those familiar and memorable tunes but some great new ones too. The quality of the Music also seems really good especially for a GBA game when you walk into a house it plays the music from Ocarina of Time and it sounds like it's being played right off the Nitendo 64. The Voices are also pretty good although most of them sound recycled where there are a bunch of new songs in The Minish Cap most of the noises seem like they where just borrowed from The Wind Waker. The voices sound good non the less. The sound effects outside of voices are pretty good the sound of you sword being slashed or the sound of the gust jar sound good I don't think many will be disappointed. So for the sound category The Minish cap has done well while it's not a hard area to impress me in it's still nice to hear great music and sound effects.
9.5/10.0
Gameplay
Well we've come to the most important area of any game the Gameplay. And like all Zelda games not only is the Minish Cap fun it's spectacular. If you've played Zelda games you know what to expect puzzles, mini games and huge boss battles. My only complaints would really be the puzzles where kind of easy even the bosses didn't take much to learn how to beat. The game is also a little on the short side I beat it in about a week and I beat it slower than most people. I would say don't get a players guide for me personally don't mind players guides but I would say if you get one for the Minish Cap only buy it for 2 thing the extra stuff (I wish I new some stuff about the game before I beat it there are some things I couldn't get) and the awesome Zelda 05 poster in the back (to be honest that's why I really bought it sure I may use it sometime to get all the extra stuff but the poster was so cool I couldn't resist lol) I didn't use the players guide in fact I hardly even looked at it until I beat it and I think that made it more enjoyable. Back on topic the gameplay here rocks it's fun and while not too hard most of the time there are some mind bogglers and some tough fights (especially near the end) but there is nothing that is too hard to figure out at least for me there wasn't. Even when the game is done there is still a lot to do there are lots of side quests and there are the Kinstones which are actually pretty fun they seem simple enough but I found myself spending like 30 minutes in town just fusing Kinstones when I could be in a dungeon so that's always fun. The Minish cap doesn't fail to impress it's a very fun game I enjoyed every bit of it and I'm still playing it trying to get every last thing done.
9.0/10.0
Final Comments
Too sum it all up I love this game. Ever since the Oracle game Zelda fans have been waiting for a all original handheld Zelda and the wait was well worth it. This game too me is not just the best Handheld Zelda, Not just the best GBA game but I can confidently say that this game is my all time favorite Handheld so far it has everything a Zelda fan wants. Sure it may be a little short but there is a lot to do after beating the main game. I would highly recommend this game to anyone who asked it's a great game. I do wish that they kept the multiplayer original either a new Four Sword game or the same Four Swords from ALTTP was going to be included but it must have been scratched so that's kind of disappointing. Besides that I have no major complaints and this game is a great and worthy addition to the most Legendary gaming franchise of all time The Legend of Zelda.
Overall Score
9.6/10.0
Igneous · Tue Jan 03, 2006 @ 03:10am · 0 Comments