Alright, so this is the GBA port of Zelda II—you know, the black sheep of the series. It’s weirdly different from the first game, with side-scrolling combat and RPG-style leveling. At first, I wasn’t sure about the shift, but once you get into it, there’s something oddly satisfying about grinding for XP and hunting down those hidden palaces.

Hyrule feels bigger here, but also way more cryptic. You’ll stumble into towns where NPCs drop vague hints (or straight-up nonsense), and some dungeons are brutal if you don’t have the right spells. The combat’s clunky by today’s standards, but nailing a perfect downward stab on a Darknut never gets old.

Honestly, it’s not the Zelda game I’d recommend first, but if you’re into retro challenges or just want to see where the series took its weirdest detour, it’s worth a play. Just don’t expect it to hold your hand.