LogFAQs > #961737270

2. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (SNES, 1991)
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/user_image/4/7/7/AAN44mAACzj1.jpg

I know that I mentioned this in at least the Boxing writeup, if not more, but my parents were already casual gamers by the first time that I played a video game. My mom owned an Atari 2600, with it more than a dozen games, including Space Invaders that she paid $90 for in the early 80s. The first video games that I ever received were from my uncle when he gave me a SNES in 1993. It was bundled with Super Mario All-Stars and he also gave me ALttP. Thats four of my Top 50 games there, so that basically will never be topped. Unlike the Super Mario games, my parents got involved with Link to the Past.

There were three save files, so I occupied one, my sister another, and then my parents shared one. Now I will preface this by saying my sister and parents never beat it, and I didnt until the late 90s or early 00s, but playing ALttP was basically a family affair. We would sit and watch someone play and pay close attention as to glean any useful info/tips. My dad is a talented artist, and he made this beautiful map of Hyrule and the Dark World, color and all, that doubled as a bit of a legend as he included info on where to find major items and such. I still have it, but I dont feel like going through the tub of SNES stuff, so you have to take my word for it. I distinctly remember that there was one item that was never included in the map because none of us found it (until I did around the time I actually beat it), and that was the Cane of Byrna.

Part of the reason why we never beat it/spent so much time together on it was actually because our cartridge was slightly defective, for lack of a better word. Unlike my other SNES games, it had a tendency to lose all save files. It was obviously a bummer when that would happen, but with it being so high here, I was obviously glad to do it all over again. There is probably no game that I have started more files for than this. Were talking dozens upon dozens of times (which also includes the less problematic ports that I have bought/played over time). One thing about the save files though is that the vast majority of games that I played dont have a save file name feature, the LoZ series is the only one that I stick to the same formula. It was my dads idea that I name my character after me as well as the age I was when I started. I have done this each and every time, and with me still not getting around to playing Breath of the Wild despite owning it for nearly four years, I will make sure to continue the tradition.

I should probably talk about the game at least a smidge? Of the many Atari games of my parents that I played was Adventure. It was probably the most unique experience of all their Atari games, and having not played an NES to realize the origins of LoZ were clearly inspired by it, I was blown away by virtually everything ALttP offered. Two large explorable worlds chock-full of secrets, a bevy of cool items and weapons, and amazing dungeons full of engaging, sometimes layered puzzles and excellent boss fights. The whole package was so astounding and became the basis (dungeons, bosses, world) that I judged all Zelda games on.

In that regard, it might be a shame that I began with ALttP, because it completely blows the rest of the series out of the water. While I considered Four Swords Adventures and Links Awakening, this is the only game from the series on my list. In a forgettable ranking topic of Nintendo series that I did many years ago, The Legend of Zelda I want to say placed around 15th, so even with my #2 game of all-time, that goes to show you how I have largely felt about the rest of the series (3D games bring it down).

If theres a single video game that Ive played that is close to flawless, it might be this. This was just a masterpiece, and I wont hear anything to the contrary.