GAME CLEAR No. 241 -- The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (2019)

2025-07-12 18:39:34 video games game clear zelda nintendo grezzo switch

Why should I care?
Link is so cute in this game. It’s a beautiful and accessible way to play the classic.

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Somewhat contrary to my inclination, despite having not played any version of Link’s Awakening before, I decided to play this remake instead of the old Game Boy classic. I have every expectation that I would have loved it, but since I got the Switch 2, I had new toy syndrome, so I decided to pick this up since it got a Switch 2 performance update. Any performance issues it may have had on the original Switch were completely absent in my Switch 2 experience, so I guess the patch did the trick. Even without the update, though, I’m sure it’d have been a delight. Link’s Awakening really hit the spot for me in my search for a game about a little guy that runs around.

I’m going to assume all my readers know what The Legend of Zelda is, but for anyone who may need a little context, Link’s Awakening was originally for the monochrome Game Boy back in ‘93. It was only the fourth Legend of Zelda game made, and while it was rather different in some ways from its predecessors (no Zelda, no Triforce, etc.), its game loop was pretty familiar to anyone who played Zelda 1 or A Link to the Past. It later was rereleased for Game Boy Color as Link’s Awakening DX, which featured color graphics (obviously), an extra dungeon, and some other features. In 2019, Nintendo saw fit to release it once again on their latest semi-handheld, the Switch.

This 2019 version is more or less a tile-for-tile remake of the original games, including most of the additions of DX. The game takes place on the island of Koholint, where Link finds himself washed ashore after a rough night of sailing. Once he regains consciousness, he is informed that monsters have begun roaming the island since he was found on the beach, and he should probably see about awakening the Wind Fish, who lives in an egg atop the highest peak on the island. These story beats are unchanged since 1993.

The world map, characters, and dungeons also remain the same, but it’s all been beautifully and charmingly remade with 3D graphics and a toy-doll aesthetic style. The cosmetic choice here is an absolute home run and is a delight to look at at all times. I’m very glad to know they made at least one more game with its style in 2024’s The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, which I’m now inclined to pick up sooner rather than later. The new soundtrack arrangements are beautiful as well, making the modern-hardware enhancements of this package simply unimpeachable all told.

Beyond those changes, though, it really does seem to be Link’s Awakening — no more and no less. I haven’t played the originals for more than a few minutes, so I can’t speak to the differences, but that’s certainly my understanding. On the plus side, that also means my judgment of the game is not influenced by nostalgia (at least not for this particular entry).

I spent around 10 hours with it and loved just about every second of it. Perhaps owing to its handheld origins, it has small but enjoyable dungeons that are satisfying to complete and never drag on. Due to its semi-spinoff nature, it also feels like a game unshackled by expectations of adhering to a particular formula. You are told early on that you are occupying and ethereal and dreamlike space, which perhaps explains some of the weirdness. Mario enemies and characters appear often in the game, having, I suppose, slipped into the subconscious of the dream world Link is in.

Much has been made of the game’s “Lynchian” inspirations and aspirations, but I find those links tenuous at best. Yes, Lynch was obsessed with dreams and surrealism, but this game is certainly not nearly as crazy he frequently got. Still, it’s got its weird little towns with weird little people, so I guess that is somewhat Lynchian. I don’t know, I also think it can be a perfectly good game even without it turning my thoughts much to the revered filmmaker.

Most importantly, it just feels great to play. I forgot how fun it could be to run around a little top-down perspective world and swing my sword at my enemies. I haven’t played a 2D Zelda in a minute, and it really is a winning formula. Also, although it lacks some of the hallmarks of some of the other games, that also kind of makes it a great place for anyone with any level of Zelda experience to drop in. A great standalone title.

My complaints are minor, but I do have a couple. First, Link is just too damn slow. I think his walking speed is scaled well for dungeons, with their single-screen rooms, but on the overworld he can feel awfully plodding. It’s not that big of a deal, but it is a mild annoyance that impacts a lot of the runtime of the game, so I can’t leave it unsaid.

Second, the biggest addition to this version of the game is Dampé’s dungeon-building side mode. Dampé is a grave digger familiar to fans of the series, and he has a little shack in this game. Inside, you can tell him tales of the dungeons you’ve been to, and he’ll add all of their rooms to his database (so to speak). You can also find tiles throughout the world to add to this collection. Using these pieces, you can create dungeons of your own to challenge and defeat to earn rewards. It’s really cool! I think most of us probably saw potential for a Zelda Maker after the success of Super Mario Maker, but no such thing has materialized except for this. Unfortunately, the most important piece of such a thing, level sharing, has been relegated to a fucking amiibo functionality. Insane!!! What a weird fumble.

Still, Link’s Awakening is a lovely game. It’s short anyway, so maybe Link’s leisurely walking speed is an attempt to get the player to savor the game. I certainly recommend that you do.

GAME CLEAR No. 241 -- The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (2019)

The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening (2019, Switch)

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