A year and a half after it released on the Wii U, Hyrule Warriors is still one of the most enjoyable titles on the console as far as I’m concerned. Its Dynasty Warriors inspired take on the hack and slash style that serves as a textbook example of a game that’s easy to pick up and play, combined with its seamless integration of classic Zelda mechanics to break up the persistent repetition issues that games of this nature usually run into, and what we ended up with was one of the most exciting takes on the musou genre we’ve seen in a long time. With that in mind, is it worth playing all over again? Nintendo and Tecmo Koei hope so, with the release of Hyrule Warriors Legends on the Nintendo 3DS. By adding sorely missed characters from The Wind Waker and Majora’s Mask alongside the long awaited female Link with Linkle, will they be enough to breathe new life into a game that was just released a little over a year ago?
If you played the Wii U version, then you should know exactly what you’re getting into with Hyrule Warriors Legends. Split up between Legends Mode, (its fancy word for the story,) and Adventure Mode, (a mission mode with a throwback feel,) the Zelda faithful will be able to choose some of their favorite characters as they fight to save Hyrule from Cia, a dark sorceress who is attempting to bring together the Triforce once again. Featuring a cast that spans the history of the 3D Zelda games with favorites such as Link, Zelda, Impa and Ganandorf, newcomers like Lana present unfamiliar material that doesn’t feel forced within the confines of the story. While the tale itself isn’t much to speak of aside from its interesting take on the whole Triforce legend, constantly playing will help you unlock hidden items, art work, characters and weapons, many of which can change the play style of character completely.
Surprisingly, each character manages to stand out pretty well from the rest of the cast, thanks to their unique abilities and movement styles. While the combo list never grows past mashing light attack until you cut off the combo with a strong attack to cap it off, their varied styles help you take on a variety of scenarios. And while yes, the game still largely consists of hundreds of foot soldiers standing around and doing nothing while you wipe out their ranks, the bosses and generals mix things up thanks to their faithfulness to their Zelda histories. Certain enemies for example, will be susceptible to Link’s tools, such as bombs, arrows and boomerangs. Dodging and attacking at the right time can lead to powerful scripted combos, which are topped only by your super moves that become available when you beat enough foot soldiers for some screen clearing action. Between the standard version and the stronger magic imbued version that makes a completely different attack available, there’s no shortage of options on the battlefield. Even then, certain characters like Zelda can alter their attack types thanks to mechanics that are unique to them, like storing light energy or switching magic elemental types. As far as musou games go, this one is still one that offers some of the most variety out there.
But enough about the old cast, because chances are if you’re playing the 3DS version, you’re doing so because of the new characters being introduced to this version. On that front, Legends is far from a disappointment. Debate on whether or not the Wind Waker cast and the Skull Kid from Majora’s Mask should have been included all along aside, the game is far better off now that they’re in. Seeing the animated expressions of Toon Link, Tetra’s playable debut with her mastery of the cutlass and flintlock pistol, the King of Red Lions seamlessly transform into a ship, (while summoning the ocean for good measure), and Skull Kid smacking people around with faries, the wait is almost worth the price of admission alone, especially for huge fans of the GameCube and N64 classics like myself. The biggest drawback with these characters however, is how long it takes to unlock them. Because despite being the main draw of this re-release, you have to complete most of the game’s story mode in order to get to their new scenarios. If this is your first time playing the game, this isn’t as much of an issue. But if you’re returning from the Wii U version, you’ll find yourself frustrated as you’re forced to play hours worth of content that wasn’t the most exciting to begin with. Only now, it’s your second time through, and you have no choice but to push through it if you want to see the new content. Considering the game links to your Nintendo ID to share purchased DLC, I’m shocked that there was no way for the game to recognize that you’ve played it already, allowing you to access the new characters from the start.
This lack of connectivity extends to the Adventure Mode, which is less of a problem since this mission based mode was the highlight of the console version. Yet, I can’t help but feel bad for the people who sunk hundreds of hours into it the first time, only to have to do it all over again with no extra bonuses. Even still, this mode has quite a few new missions to tackle on top of the huge list of stages that were originally included. Asking players to approach stages in different ways, such as focusing on certain enemies exclusively, or answering trivia questions by defeating certain enemies, adds an extra twist to what would otherwise become monotonous fairly quickly. By introducing special items that unlock more of the map into the mix, and it gives the mode an extra Zelda flair.
Speaking of flair, I would be remiss to ignore Linkle, the newest addition to the Zelda cast. Making her debut after her concept art from the original led to fan outcry to include her, this character who was inspired by the idea of a female version of Link really steals the show. With her moveset taking inspiration from the forgettable Wii accessory pack in, Link’s Crossbow Training, Linkle is so much fun to play as, that she makes me actually want to go back and play that again. Feeling like she was ripped straight out of Devil May Cry, Linkle has some incredibly stylish combos with her twin crossbows, both of which she uses in some incredible ways. Why fight from afar when you can attach a flaming arrow to your foot and kick the crap out of people? In addition to all of the other shared abilities, she can even build up a special meter that lets her shoot a barrage of arrows like a third person shooter, sucking in dozens of enemies all at once. Her awesomeness is further fleshed out by her backstory, where she’s shown as a Cucco caretaker who believes she’s the reincarnation of the hero of legend. When she hears about Cia’s plan, she embraces her apparent destiny and rushes off to the battlefield. Except… She’s so bad with directions, (despite wearing a compass around her neck,) that she goes the wrong way, explaining why she wasn’t in the main story.
Sure, Linkle charmed me to death, but she doesn’t make up for the issues that the game runs into as part of its handheld transition. Aside from forcing you to replay the entire game for people who have finished the Wii U version like I mentioned above, the game also loses its two player co-op feature. Replacing it is the ability to switch between multiple characters on the field on the fly via the touch screen, or creating paths for the AI to walk while you control someone else, but I hate to see the second player option disappear since it was one of the best parts of the original. This new feature comes with its own set of problems, since the CPU has the habit of doing nothing if you don’t set a path for them, and you’ll get a game over if they die. On top of the sudden objective shifts that can lead to a sudden game over that plagued the original still plaguing this version, adding another way to lose that’s mostly outside of your control can be annoying. Other improvements include the Ocarina and Owl Statues, that let you teleport to certain areas on the map instantly, new bosses that require new weapons to defeat, My Fairy Mode, which lets you take faires you find in Adventure Mode and customize them before helping you on the battlefield, and the ability to strengthen yourself and your allies by having them focus on the same boss enemy. But again, without actual multiplayer, this extra feature feels about as empty as the rest, aside from the Ocarina, which makes backtracking seem like less of a chore.
But Hyrule Warriors’ biggest problem is on the technical side, which is a complete disaster if you don’t own a New Nintendo 3DS. The graphics are rough, with visible jaggies all around and occasional slowdown when there are an excessive amount of enemies on screen on the New 3DS. If you haven’t upgraded however, the game is so slow that it sucks the enjoyment out of what is a mostly enjoyable beat em’ up, serving as the first time that old 3DS and 2DS owners are truly getting shafted. At least with Xenoblade Chronicles, (the only New 3DS exclusive as of this writing,) it was a huge game with miles of landscape, and didn’t allow a situation where someone could buy a game that was significantly worse depending on what model you’re using. Despite all of the fun that can be found here, I’ll just come out and say it. If you don’t own a New 3DS, don’t even bother.
The rough transition from console to handheld ultimately makes Hyrule Warriors Legends a very situational purchase. If you’ve played or own the Wii U version, there’s little reason for you to double dip, especially when you can’t carry over your progress and can just download the new characters as DLC. If you don’t own a New 3DS, the technical limitations of the old models makes this game almost impossible to enjoy. But if you own a New 3DS and never played the original, then this musou adaptation of the Nintendo classic is an entertaining hack and slash that is loaded with content to keep you busy. In this very specific scenario, you can add an extra point or two to the score, but despite everything it does right, Legends fails to give a huge chunk of its audience a reason to revisit.
Final Score for New 3DS Owners: 3.5
Everyone Else: 2.5/5