| The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past | |
|---|---|
 Cover art of the original SNES release |
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| Developer(s) | Nintendo
EAD Nintendo R&D2 (GBA version) |
| Publisher(s) | Nintendo |
| Designer(s) | Takashi
Tezuka (Director) Shigeru Miyamoto (Producer) |
| Composer(s) | Kōji Kondō |
| Series | The Legend of Zelda |
| Platform(s) | Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Satellaview, Game Boy Advance, Virtual Console |
| Release date(s) | SNES JP November 21, 1991[1] NA April 13, 1992 EU September 24, 1992 GBA JP March 14, 2003 NA December 2, 2002 EU March 28, 2003 Virtual Console |
| Genre(s) | Action-adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | CERO:
A ESRB: E OFLC: G8+ |
| Media | 8-megabit cartridge |
| System requirements | Wii: 41 blocks + 4 for save |
| Input methods | SNES/SFCS Controller Game Boy Advance/Nintendo DS (lite) GameCube/Classic Controller |
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, known in Japan as Zeruda no Densetsu: Kamigami No Toraifōsu (ゼルダの伝説 神々のトライフォース, lit. "The Legend of Zelda: Triforce of the Gods"), is an action-adventure video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System video game console, and the third installment in The Legend of Zelda series. It was first released in Japan in 1991, and was later released in North America and Europe in 1992. Shigeru Miyamoto and his team were solely responsible for this game's development.
A Link to the Past's plot focuses on Link as he travels on a journey to save Hyrule, defeat Ganon and rescue the seven descendants of the Sages. A Link to the Past uses a top-down perspective similar to that of the original The Legend of Zelda. It added mechanics and concepts to the series that have become commonplace, including multi-level dungeons and new equipment (such as the hookshot and the Pegasus Boots), as well as establishing the concept of an alternate, parallel (and sometimes far more dangerous) world. It was well-received since its release, and has been listed by GameSpot as one of the best installments of the series, as well as one of the greatest games of all time.[3] To date, A Link to the Past has sold more than four million copies,[4] and has been re-released for the Game Boy Advance and the Wii's Virtual Console.
Contents |
Instead of continuing to use the side-scrolling perspective introduced to the series by Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, A Link to the Past reverts to an overhead perspective similar to that of the original. Despite using mechanics and concepts from the original, A Link to the Past introduces new elements and innovations. For instance, arrows are now separate items, as bombs are in the original, instead of using a Rupee to fire an arrow. A Link to the Past also takes concepts from The Adventure of Link, such as the magic meter, which is used by items such as the Lamp. Control of Link is more flexible than in previous games, as he can walk diagonally and can run with the aid of the Pegasus Shoes, an obtainable item. Link's sword attack was improved to swing sideways instead of merely stabbing forward; this gives his sword a broader range and makes combat easier. Link swings his sword as the default attack in future Zelda games, although stabbing is also possible in the later 3D incarnations.[5][6][7][8]
Recurring items and techniques were introduced for the first time in A Link to the Past, such as the Hookshot, the Master Sword, the Spin Attack technique, flute, and the Pegasus Boots. Heart Containers that increase the player's maximum health (hit points) in the earlier two games are present, but many are split into "Pieces of Heart", four of which make up one Heart Container. Most of them are well hidden, adding replay value to the game. All dungeons are multi-level, requiring Link to walk between floors and sometimes fall through holes to land on lower levels.[5][6][7][8]
A Link to the Past is the first appearance of what would subsequently become a major Zelda trademark: the existence of two parallel worlds between which the player travels. The first, called the Light World, is the ordinary Hyrule where Link grew up with his uncle. The second is what was once the Sacred Realm, but became the Dark World when Ganon acquired the Triforce. The Dark World is a corrupted version of Hyrule; the water is a dark, unpleasant green colour, the grass is dead, skulls replace rocks and pots, and trees have faces. People change forms in the Dark World based on their nature; without an item to prevent it (in this case, the Moon Pearl), Link turns into a pink rabbit. Each location in the Light World corresponds to a similar location in the Dark World, usually with a similar physical structure but an opposite nature (e.g. a desert in the Light World corresponds to a swamp in the Dark World, a peaceful village in the Light World corresponds to a dilapidated town of thieves in the Dark World).[5][6][7][8]
Link can travel from the Dark World to the Light World at almost any outside location by using a magic mirror (and back again from the same location using the portal left where he reappears in the Light World). There are also hidden warp locations throughout the Light World. This enables puzzles that exploit structural differences between the Light and Dark Worlds.[5][6][7][8][9]
Players play as Link in A Link to the Past. He is a young boy living with his uncle in a house, south of Hyrule Castle. One night, he is telepathically contacted by Princess Zelda, a descendant of the seven sages who banished Ganon to the Golden Realm, and she pleads for his help rescuing her from the evil wizard, Agahnim. After his uncle fails to return from his own attempt to save Zelda, Link goes to the castle himself, and after escaping with Zelda he begins a quest to stop Agahnim.[5] Link meets other helpful souls during his quest, such as Sahasrahla, a descendant of the sages that forged the Master Sword. Sahasrahla advises Link to find the Master Sword, and also speaks telepathically to Link to guide him through the game's various dungeons.[5][10]
According to the text on the back of the game's packaging (US version), A Link to the Past stars the predecessors of Link and Zelda from the NES games The Legend of Zelda and The Adventure of Link, but is the sequel of the Zelda NES games".[11] This was contradicted by a 1998 interview with Zelda creator Shigeru Miyamoto (English translation), in which he stated: "Ocarina of Time is the first story, then the original The Legend of Zelda, then Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, and finally A Link to the Past."[12] However, this assertion has failed to be widely propagated by Nintendo themselves since it was made, with numerous other official sources (including Nintendo Power magazine) remaining at odds with it.[13]
At the beginning of A Link to the Past, a young boy named Link is awakened by a telepathic message from Princess Zelda, who says that she is locked in the dungeon of Hyrule Castle. As the message closes, Link finds his uncle ready for battle, telling Link to remain in bed. After his uncle leaves, however, Link ignores his uncle's command and follows him to Hyrule Castle. When he arrives, he finds his uncle seriously wounded. Link's uncle tells Link to rescue Princess Zelda from her prison, giving him a sword and shield. After his uncle dies, Link navigates the castle and rescues Zelda from her cell, and the two escape into a secret passage through the sewers that leads to a sanctuary.[14]
Link is told by a man in the sanctuary that Agahnim, a wizard who has usurped the throne, is planning to break a seal made hundreds of years ago by the Seven Sages. The seal was placed to imprison a dark wizard named Ganon in the Dark World, which was once the Sacred Realm before Ganon invaded, obtained the legendary Triforce and used its power to turn the realm into a land of darkness. Agahnim intends to break the seal by sending the descendants of the Seven Sages who made the seal into the Dark World. The only thing that can defeat him is the Master Sword, a sword forged to combat evil. To prove that he is worthy to wield it, Link needs three magic pendants. After retrieving the pendants, Link takes them to the resting place of the Master Sword. As Link draws the sword from its pedestal, Zelda telepathically calls him to the Sanctuary, informing him that soldiers of Hyrule Castle have arrived. Link arrives at the Sanctuary moments after the soldiers have vacated, where he learns from the dying man that Zelda has been taken to Hyrule Castle. Link goes to rescue her but arrives too late; Agahnim sends Zelda to the Dark World. Link then defeats Agahnim in battle but is subsequently also sent to the Dark World.[14]
To save Hyrule, Link is required to rescue the seven descendants of the Seven Sages from dungeons scattered across the Dark World. Once the seven maidens are freed, they use their power to break the barrier around Ganon's Tower, where Link faces Agahnim again. After Link battles Agahnim for a second time, Ganon rises up from Agahnim's body, turns into a bat, and flies away. Link chases him, finally confronting him inside the Pyramid of Power in the Dark World. After a battle resulting in Ganon's demise, Link touches the Triforce and restores Hyrule to how it was before Ganon intervened.[14]
In 1988, development of a new NES Zelda began, but one year later, the project was brought to Nintendo's next console; the Super Famicom in Japan, the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in other regions.[15] (In the early 2000s, a beta cartridge for the NES Zelda III was announced on eBay, but later proved to be a hoax.)[16] Due to the success of previous titles in the series, Nintendo was able to invest a large budget and ample development time and resources into the game's production.[17]
At the time, most SNES game cartridges had 4 Mbit (512 KB) of memory. This game broke the trend by using 8 Mbit (1 MB), allowing the Nintendo development team to create a remarkably expansive world for Link to inhabit.[3] Like Super Mario World, this game used a simple graphic compression method on the SNES by limiting the colour depth of many tiles to eight colours instead of the SNES's native 16-colour tiles. The tiles were decompressed at runtime by adding a leading bit to each pixel's colour index. Memory was also saved by eliminating duplication: The Light World and the Dark World are almost identical, and reverse engineering of the game's ROM contents has revealed that only the differences were saved; otherwise, they would have needed to wait for a 16 Mbit ROM.[3]
The English language localization included changes to the original Japanese game. The most common change was the removal of religious references to conform with Nintendo of America's content guidelines. The most obvious change was made to the subtitle of the game, which was changed from Triforce of the Gods to A Link to the Past. The font used to represent an unreadable language, Hylian, originally had designs of a vulture and an ankh. These designs were based on Egyptian hieroglyphs which carry religious meanings, and they were altered in the English version. The localization also changed plot details included in the instruction manual. The priest Agahnim became a wizard, and his background, which originally implied that he was sent by the gods, was altered to remove any celestial origin.[18]
| The Legend of Zelda: Sound & Drama | |
|---|---|
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| Soundtrack by Kōji Kondō | |
| Released | June 22, 1994 |
| Genre | Video game soundtrack |
| Length | 98 |
The score to A Link to the Past was composed by Kōji Kondō. The overworld theme of The Legend of Zelda ("Hyrule Overture") returns in A Link to the Past, redone in S-SMP style. The theme is also featured in "Light World Overworld" and in "End Credits". A Link to the Past helped to establish the musical core of the Zelda series. While the first game originated the "Hyrule Overture", many recurring motifs of the Zelda scores come from A Link to the Past, including "Zelda's Lullaby" (Princess Zelda's Theme), "Ganondorf's Theme", "Hyrule Castle" (Royal Family Theme), "Kakariko Village" and "Select Screen / Fairy Cave". These themes have been used in subsequent The Legend of Zelda games.[19]
A soundtrack to A Link to the Past, entitled The Legend of Zelda: Sound and Drama, was released in Japan. Disc one is 44 minutes long and features rearranged versions of a selection of the game's themes, along with a bonus drama track. Disc two is 54 minutes of the original arrangements for the game and those of the original NES game, The Legend of Zelda.[20] Music from this game was remixed for Super Smash Bros. Brawl.[21]
A Link to the Past is one of the best-selling SNES games, with 4.61 million units sold worldwide,[4] and has had an exceptionally long stay on Nintendo Power's top games list: when the SNES list was finally retired, A Link to the Past had more than five consecutive years in the number one spot. It was re-released as a Player's Choice title in North America, indicating that it has sold a minimum of one million copies there.[22]
A Link to the Past was critically acclaimed upon release for its graphics and gameplay, and has since been recognized by critics as one of the greatest video games of all time.[23][24] In 2005, IGN editors placed it 11th in its "Top 100 Games",[25] while readers voted it to 5th place.[26] The following year Entertainment Weekly chose it as the best game of all-time.[27] Members of GameFAQs ranked it the 4th best,[28] and readers of Japanese magazine Famitsu ranked it 31st in a 2006 poll.[29] It also placed 3rd in Electronic Gaming Monthly's list,[30] 23rd in GameInformer's,[31] and 3rd in a best 200 Nintendo games list by Nintendo Power.[32] In July 2007, readers of the magazine Edge voted it sixth in a poll of the 100 best games of all time.[33] ScrewAttack placed it 2nd on their list of top 20 Super Nintendo games.[34] It was awarded Best Sequel of 1992 by Electronic Gaming Monthly.[35] The game placed eighth (the second-highest Zelda game on the list) in Official Nintendo Magazine's "100 greatest Nintendo games of all time" list.[36] In 2009, Game Informer put A Link to the Past 12th on their list of "The Top 200 Games of All Time", saying that it "remains a blast today".[37]
The game was reviewed in 1993 in Dragon #198 by Sandy Petersen in the "Eye of the Monitor" column. Petersen gave the game 5 out of 5 stars.[38]
A comic book adaptation of A Link to the Past illustrated by Shotaro Ishinomori was published in Nintendo Power that was serialized for 12 issues from January to December 1992. The comic is a loose adaptation of the original game's story, featuring several plot changes and new characters.[39]
Two other manga were released in Japan: a three-volume manga by
Ataru Cagiva from 1995 to 1996[40]
and a four-volume manga by the duo Akira Himekawa released in 2005,
following the plot of the Game Boy Advance version.[41]
Both follow the game's plot more closely, and the latter introduced
a new character called "Ganty", a thief with a single devil's horn
and a star under her eye.[40][41]
On December 2, 2006 in Japan and January 22, 2007 in America, the game was added to the Wii Shop Channel's Virtual Console. Players can download the game for 800 Wii Points, or US$8. It is nearly identical to the SNES version, with none of the GBA additions or changes, though the Chris Houlihan room has been renamed the Top Secret Room.[42]
The next Zelda title, Link's Awakening was released in 1993 for the Nintendo Game Boy. It retained many of A Link to the Past's gameplay mechanics, including the top-down perspective. After traveling to train abroad, Link is shipwrecked and awakens on an island called Koholint.[43]
A Link to the Past had one more follow-up, though it was only released in Japan. BS Zelda no Densetsu Kodai no Sekiban, often translated as "BS The Legend of Zelda: Ancient Stone Tablets" (or "Stone Tablets of Antiquity"). It was exclusively released for the Super Famicom's Satellaview peripheral and featured a voice broadcast system called SoundLink. The game takes place at around the same time as Link's Awakening since Link is on his journey. The game notably lacks a Link character, and instead the player characters are known as the Heroes of Light. They are actually the male and female Satellaview mascots, which were previously in BS Zelda no Densetsu. Kodai no Sekiban was released in 1997.[44]
Beginning in March 2, 1997 a simple unaltered re-release of the original Japanese version of A Link to the Past was broadcast via Satellaview. The game would be rebroadcast more often than any other Zelda title on the Satellaview, and was the only Zelda title broadcast by St.GIGA after ties with Nintendo were broken in April 1999. Unlike the two other Satellaview Zelda titles, Kamigami no Triforce lacked SoundLink support.[45]
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A Link to the Past was re-released for the Game Boy Advance in 2002 in North America and 2003 in other territories as part of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past/Four Swords[51]. It was developed jointly between Nintendo R&D2 and Flagship, who had developed Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages for the Game Boy Color in 2001. The cartridge contains a port of A Link to the Past and a multiplayer-only game called Four Swords.
The port of A Link to the Past contains minor changes from the original, including the addition of vocal grunts and other sound effects taken from Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask.[50] Four Swords is a multi-player adventure that interacts with the single-player adventure. Accomplishments can be transferred between the two; for example, if the player learns a new sword technique, it is made available in both modes. By completing Four Swords, a new dungeon called the Palace of the Four Sword is unlocked in A Link to the Past.[52][53] Dungeons are randomly generated and are affected by the number of players.[49] If only two players are active, the game ensures that all puzzles generated do not require a third or fourth player to solve.[49]
At the time of its release, Four Swords was considered the oldest tale in the series' timeline.[54] In 2004, it was followed by Four Swords Adventures for the Nintendo GameCube which continued the story and expanded upon the gameplay concepts while including a single-player adventure. The Four Swords prequel The Minish Cap, developed by Flagship for the Game Boy Advance, was released in 2005. A sequel was planned for the Nintendo DS under the working title The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords DS, but was canceled so that Eiji Aonuma could begin development on The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass.
The game received positive reviews[55] and sold over 1.81 million units.[4] IGN praised it for being a faithful conversion of the original, but noted that the audio did not sound as crisp on the Game Boy Advance, and found the frequent sound effects tiresome. The game holds the top spot of Metacritic's all-time high scores for Game Boy Advance games with a score of 95.[47] In 2007, IGN named A Link to the Past & Four Swords the third best Game Boy Advance game of all time.[56][57]
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The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the
Past | Table of Contents | Walkthrough
| The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Developer(s) | Nintendo |
| Publisher(s) | Nintendo |
| Japanese title | ゼルダの伝説 神々のトライフォース (Zeruda no Densetsu Kamigami no Triforce) |
| Designer(s) | Shigeru Miyamoto |
| Release date(s) |
|
| Genre(s) | Action-adventure |
| System(s) | SNES, Satellaview, Nintendo Power (SNES), Game Boy Advance, Wii Virtual Console |
| Players | 1 |
| Rating(s) |
ESRB:
 Everyone |
| Preceded by | Zelda II: The Adventure of Link |
| Followed by | The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening |
| Series | The Legend of Zelda |
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (Zeruda no Densetsu Kamigami no Triforce in Japan, lit. "The Legend of Zelda: Triforce of the Gods") is an action-adventure developed and published by Nintendo for the SNES, and the third installment in The Legend of Zelda series. It was released in Japan on November 21, 1991, in North America on April 13, 1992 and in Europe on November 24, 1992. The project was led by Shigeru Miyamoto and his team.
A Link to the Past used a top-down perspective similar to the original The Legend of Zelda, instead of the side-scrolling format of Zelda II: The Adventure of Link. A Link to the Past expanded on the original's mechanics, introducing gameplay features that have become hallmarks of the Zelda series, such as multi-level dungeons, the Master Sword, the Hookshot, and parallel worlds. It was well-received and is often considered one of the best installments of the series. It sold over four million copies and many critics and fans consider it one of the greatest video games ever made.
In 2002, Capcom ported the game to the Game Boy Advance. The re-release itself had little new, but the cartridge also includes a multiplayer mode titled Four Swords, the first multiplayer title in the series. It also featured 'sleep mode', allowing the handheld to consume minimal power when not being used. The game was later re-released on the Wii Virtual Console in Japan on December 2, 2006, in North America on January 22, 2007, and in Australia on March 23, 2007; as this was the SNES version running under emulation, the changes made by Capcom were not included.
editThe Legend of Zelda series
The Legend of Zelda · The Adventure of Link · A Link to the Past · Link's Awakening (DX) · Ocarina of Time (Master Quest) · Majora's Mask, Oracle of Ages & Seasons · Four Swords · The Wind Waker · Four Swords Adventures · The Minish Cap · Twilight Princess · Phantom Hourglass · Spirit Tracks
Spin-offs: Freshly-Picked Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland · Tingle's Balloon Fight DS · Link's Crossbow Training · Color Changing Tingle's Love Balloon Trip
Other: Link: The Faces of Evil · Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon · Zelda's Adventure · BS The Legend of Zelda · Kodai no Sekiban · Too Much Tingle Pack
| Portal: Action/Adventure |  |
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past at Zeldapedia |
|---|
| The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past | |
 |
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| Developer(s) | Nintendo |
| Publisher(s) | Nintendo |
| Designer(s) | Shigeru Miyamoto |
| Release date | 1992 for SNES, 2002 for GBA |
| Genre | Action/Adventure/RPG |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Age rating(s) | N/A (SNES) ESRB: E (GBA) |
| Platform(s) | SNES, later ported to GBA |
| Media | Cartridge |
| Credits | Soundtrack | Codes | Walkthrough | |
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is officially the third game in the highly regarded Legend of Zelda series. Link returns to original form after the unorthodox side-scrolling Zelda 2 on the SNES, in one of the most critically acclaimed games of all time [1]. The influence of aLttP is so great that it's core gameplay echoes through out the rest of the series, such as the Nintendo 64 classic, Ocarina of Time.
It was released in Japan on November 21, 1991, in North America on April 13, 1992 and in Europe on November 24, 1992. The project was led by Shigeru Miyamoto and his team.
A Link to the Past expanded on the original's mechanics, introducing gameplay features that have become hallmarks of the Zelda series, such as multi-level dungeons, the Master Sword, the Hookshot, and parallel worlds. It was well-received and is often considered one of the best installments of the series. It sold over four million copies and many critics and fans consider it one of the greatest video games ever made.
On December 2, 2002, Nintendo released the Game Boy Advance port of A Link to the Past. The re-release itself had little new, but the cartridge also includes a Capcom-developed multiplayer mode titled Legend of Zelda: Four Swords, the first multiplayer mode in The Legend of Zelda history. The Game Boy Advance version also featured 'sleep mode', allowing the game console to consume minimal power when not being used. A Link to the Past was released on Nintendo's Virtual Console in Japan on December 2, 2006, in North America on January 22, 2007, and in Australia on March 23, 2007.
Contents |
The introduction of A Link to the Past chronicles the Imprisoning War, which occurred many years before the events of the game. It describes Hyrule as a beautiful kingdom surrounded by forests and mountains, and tells of an omnipotent golden power that lies hidden in the Sacred Realm, a place which cannot normally be entered by mortals. However, a dark portal to the Sacred Realm opened, causing many people to quarrel and fight each other. While many men entered the Sacred Realm, none returned. Instead, an evil power began to issue forth from the dark portal. During the main story, it is discovered that the source of the evil power is a lowly thief named Ganondorf, who got his hands on the golden power (a.k.a. the Triforce), turning the Sacred Realm into the Dark World. The king commanded the Seven Sages* to seal the gate to the Sacred Realm. Many knights had perished in the battle to protect the sages from the evil, but eventually, the seal was cast on the portal. The evil ceased to flow, and the portal was sealed. These events eventually became obscured by time, and became legend.
Many years later, a mysterious wizard known as Agahnim appeared as if from nowhere, using his magic to vanquish the King of Hyrule and take over Hyrule Castle. In doing so, he cast a spell on the knights of Hyrule, forcing them to obey him and kidnap seven maidens who descended from the seven sages of legend, intending to use them to break the seal by making them disappear into the Dark World, one by one. He eventually captures six of the maidens, leaving only the final descendant, Princess Zelda. As the game begins, Agahnim has captured Zelda and is planning on sending her to the Dark World to complete the destruction of the seal.
At the beginning of the game, a young boy named Link is awakened by a telepathic message from Princess Zelda, who says that she is locked in the dungeon of Hyrule Castle. As the message closes, Link's uncle (perhaps in response to the same message, but that is unknown) goes to rescue her, telling Link to remain in bed. However, Link ignores his uncle's command, and goes to Hyrule Castle as well, taking a lantern with him. He walks through the rain to find the secret entrance to an underground passage (that comes out in Hyrule Castle courtyard), where he finds his uncle seriously wounded. Link's uncle tells him to rescue Princess Zelda, giving him a sword and shield, and teaching him an ancient sword spin technique that has been passed down through the generations of Link's family. Link navigates the castle and rescues Zelda from her cell. Zelda guides Link to the throne room, where they take a secret passage through a sewer that leads to a sanctuary.
Link is told by a sage that Agahnim is planning to break the seal by sacrificing the seven maidens; the only thing that can defeat him is the Master Sword. He tells Link to visit the house of Sahasrahla, a wise man known to reside in Kakariko Village, marking the location on his map (i.e. the game's overworld map). By the time Link leaves the Sanctuary, the storm and rainclouds have vanished, yielding to clear skies. It also becomes evident that Link is wanted for kidnapping Princess Zelda. Once Link arrives at the wise man's house, he finds only the wise man's wife present, and she tells Link that her husband left the village when Agahnim took control of Hyrule Castle. Link talks to a boy, who tells Link that Sahasrahla is hiding near the Eastern Palace, and marks the exact spot on his map. Link heads east, and arrives at a house where Sahasrahla is staying. Sahasrahla tells Link about the Master Sword, and instructs him to return with the Pendant of Courage from the Eastern Palace.
Link makes his way to the Eastern Palace. There, he solves a variety of puzzles, and eventually finds a Big Key, which unlocks not only the chest containing the Bow, but also the door leading to the lair of the palace's boss. Once he reaches the boss' room, he finds six large, blue statues called Armos Knights, which, sensing the presence of someone in the room, become animate and proceed to engage in battle with Link. After he defeats the Knights, Link takes the Pendant of Courage and exits the palace. He shows the pendant to Sahasrahla, who tells him that the retrieval and taking of the Pendants of Courage, Power, and Wisdom to the Lost Woods will allow Link to draw the Master Sword from its pedestal therein. Before Link leaves, Sahasrahla gives him the Pegasus Boots and tells Link of a helpful item to the east of Lake Hylia. He marks the locations of the other two pendants—one in the Desert Palace, and the other in the Tower of Hera at the top of Death Mountain—and the Master Sword on Link's map.
After more trials like those he faced in the Eastern Palace, Link carries the three pendants to the resting place of the Master Sword in the Lost Woods. Unfortunately, just as Link draws the sword from its pedestal, Zelda contacts him telepathically to call him urgently to Sanctuary because the Hyrule Castle soldiers have just arrived there. Link arrives at Sanctuary moments after the Soldiers have vacated it, where he learns from the dying sage that Zelda has been removed to Hyrule Castle. Link goes to rescue her, but arrives too late; Agahnim sends Zelda to the Dark World. Link defeats Agahnim in battle, but is also sent to the Dark World.
The Dark World is where Ganon has been imprisoned by the elders of the light world and, once he has managed to capture “the maidens of the elders” in crystals (thanks to Agahnim's work), he is also able to harness their power to "break a path through to the light world" where, with the power of the Triforce, he will be able to rule both worlds.
Once in the Dark World, Link finds himself standing atop the Pyramid of Power where Hyrule Castle stands in the Light World (as the two worlds are essentially parallel dimensions). To restore the Sacred Realm (now the Dark World) and save the once-peaceful Hyrule (a.k.a. the Light World), Link must rescue the seven maidens from dungeons scattered across the Dark World, defeat Ganon, and reclaim the Triforce.
Once the maidens have been freed, they use their power to break the barrier around Ganon's Tower, where Link faces reincarnations of the first three bosses: The six Armos Knights, the three Lanmolas (sand worms), and the Moldorm (a giant Worm), and of course, meets Agahnim again. After Link defeats Agahnim the second time, a bat rises up from Agahnim's clothes and flies off, crashing into the Pyramid of Power. As Link arrives at the Pyramid (using the bird he can eventually summon after he obtains the flute), he drops down into the hole made by the bat to find that the bat is none other than the evil Ganon, who can only be slain with the mystical Silver Arrows (reminiscent of the original Legend of Zelda). After Ganon's demise at Link's hands, Link touches the Triforce and is granted the most noble wishes of his heart, among them, the Dark World to return its former glory as the Sacred Realm, peace to return to the Light World, his uncle to be healed, and all to be restored as it was. His quest completed, Link returns the Master Sword to its resting place, hopefully forever.
Instead of building on The Adventure of Link's overhead/side-scrolling hybrid system, A Link to the Past returned to the original formula of exploration and combat taking place in a similar medieval environment from an overhead perspective. The RPG-style leveling system from The Adventure of Link is also omitted: instead the player gains new heart containers (mentioned below) and other new items and equipment throughout the game, thus progressively increasing Link's abilities and strength. However, some elements of the game's magic system are retained. Control of Link is more flexible than in previous games, as he can walk diagonally and can run with the aid of an obtainable item. Link's sword attack was improved to slash sideways instead of merely thrusting forward; this gives his sword a broader range and makes combat easier. Link slashes his sword as the default attack in future Zelda games, although thrusting is also possible in the later 3D incarnations.
Several recurring items and techniques were introduced for the first time in A Link to the Past, such as the Hookshot, the Master Sword, and the Pegasus Shoes. Heart Containers that increase the player's maximum life (hit points) in the earlier two games are present, but many are split into Pieces of Heart, four of which comprise one Heart Container. Most of them are well hidden, adding replay value to the game. Many dungeons are multi-level and require Link to walk between floors, and sometimes fall through holes to land in lower levels.
A Link to the Past is the first appearance of what would subsequently become a major Zelda trademark: the existence of two parallel worlds between which the player travels. The first, called the Light World, is the ordinary Hyrule where Link grew up with his uncle. The second is what was once the Sacred Realm, but became the Dark World when Ganon acquired the Triforce. The Dark World is a corrupted version of Hyrule; the water is a dark, unpleasant color, the grass is dead, skulls replace rocks, and trees have faces. People change forms in the Dark World based on their nature; without an item to prevent it, Link turns into a pink rabbit. Each location in the Light World corresponds to a similar location in the Dark World, usually with a similar physical structure but an opposite nature (e.g. a desert in the Light World corresponds to a swamp in the Dark World).
Link can travel from the Dark World to the Light World at almost any outside location by using a magic mirror (and back again from the same location using the portal left where he reappears in the Light World). There are several other hidden warp locations throughout the Light World. This enables a variety of puzzles that exploit slight differences between the Light and Dark Worlds.
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| The Legend of Zelda series |
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| The Legend of Zelda | Adventure of Link | A Link to the Past | Link's Awakening Ocarina of Time / OOT: Master Quest | Majora's Mask | Oracle of Seasons | Oracle of Ages The Wind Waker | The Minish Cap | Twilight Princess | Phantom Hourglass | Spirit Tracks |
| Spinoff games |
| Four Swords | Four Swords Adventures | Tingle RPG | Tingle's Balloon Fight DS Link's Crossbow Training |
| CD-i games |
| Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon | Link: The Faces of Evil | Zelda's Adventure |
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