Every Mainline Console Zelda Game Ranked

11. The Adventure Of Link

The second entry in the Legend Of Zelda franchise was a huge side step from the original formula, with Nintendo changing almost everything in the game's follow up.

Instead of producing another top-down adventure title, Zelda II: The Adventure Of Link was more of a side-scrolling RPG. Though the top-down perspective was maintained for the overworld (which was more of a hub of individual villages and points of interest, rather than a landscape that could be fully explored in its own right), battles took place in side-scrolling sections, relying more on players' reflexes and the use of Magic Spells than the relatively basic combat of the original game.

Though Zelda II is a very obtuse and strange entry in the franchise, the influences of Adventure Of Link on later titles expand further than many fans realise. The introduction of villages and habitable locations, NPCs who do more than just provide ambiguous hints (teasing Zelda's trademark humour), and a sort of Magic metre (albeit in a very different format than fans have come to know and love) were all introduced here. The game's RPG elements were even revisited, in a refined way, by more recent entries into the franchise, such as Skyward Sword and Breath Of The Wild.

Though The Adventure Of Link has aged horrendously, it's strange to think that without it, fans might never have been introduced to iconic locations like Kakariko Village.