Every Mainline Console Zelda Game Ranked

While the original Super Mario Bros on the humble NES remains an enjoyable gaming classic, the first outing of the Legend Of Zelda series shares more in common with the 1986 Metroid than its platforming counterpoint.

A relic from the early days of home console video games, The Legend Of Zelda is a curio every Zelda fan has to try to tackle at least once. Unfortunately, the lack of a world map and inadequate in-game hints, coupled with absolutely nothing to differentiate walls to be bombed or bushes to be burnt to access necessary items, makes The Legend Of Zelda a game best played with a guidebook to hand. Don't feel bad about "cheating" on this one, because without a strategy guide The Legend Of Zelda is difficult to play, and impossible to enjoy.

Still, there's something so appealing about the original Zelda game. An extremely early example of an entirely open world game, discovering dungeons all on your own with no guidance is still a joy, a feeling Nintendo recaptured in their 2017 masterpiece, Breath Of The Wild. In fact, Zelda's latest outing is in many ways an (extremely) updated of the original, the development team even using 1980s sprites to test the physics system in a 2D environment before mapping the more recent game to 3D.

While Zelda has - thankfully - circled back to the open world format for recent entries in the series (A Link Between Worlds was also heavily influenced by elements of the franchise's first game), to call The Legend Of Zelda timeless would be misplaced. With only four sword directions, the game's battle mechanic is arguably clumsier than its obtuse exploration system, leading to too many unfair deaths.

Still, the 1986 title is just begging for a remake. Even today, there are tonnes of great ideas here that the original Legend Of Zelda could prove a fun experience - after a fair bit of spit and polish. Make it happen, Nintendo.