Zelda: Oracle of Seasons

Two very unique games came out May 14, 2001, The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons and The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages. These two closely linked games were the seventh and eighth games released in The Legend of Zelda series. Released for the Game Boy Color on the same day, either game can be played first, but by using passcodes and the Game Link Cable, there are many things that can be transferred to either game causing different scenarios, quests, and a few other differences than if you were playing both games individually without linking them or using the codes. This allows for hours of play and a great linking story, making for a lot of new adventurous quests.

The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons

Link, the legendary hero of Hyrule, from The Legend of Zelda series, arrives in Holodrum and so do the evil forces. After watching a beautiful woman dance, Onix, the General of Darkness appears and kidnaps her. But, she was not just some beautiful woman; she was Din, the Oracle of Seasons. Onix's plan is to use her power to throw Holodrum into chaos by controlling the seasons and messing up the natural order of things. Onix imprisons Din in a crystal and places her in the Temple of Seasons. As the Holodrum begins to fall apart, it is up to Link to save the day!

Din's attendant, Impa, informs Link to speak to the Maku Tree in Horon Village. There, he is told that he must collect the eight Essences of Nature and gain the power to control the seasons. Link's quest is to travel across the land of Holodrum with the Rod of Seasons, altering the land as he needs to, to complete his quest. The Maku Tree is very helpful and Link must converse with him often to find out where to go next. Along the way, Link meets a vast array of characters that help him on his quest and give him many side quests to complete. Most notable are: Ricky, the boxing kangaroo; Moosh, the blue polar bear with itty bitty wings; and Dimitri, the misunderstood Dodongo (type of enemy that is a dinosaur). With their help, Link can cross water, fly over un-jumpable gaps in the land, and jump atop the highest hills.

There are hours of game play involved in any Legend of Zelda game and this one is no exception. This action-adventure has eight dungeons with their own puzzles and dizzying maps, plus the fact that the dungeons are mostly hidden makes for some frustrating questing and some series thought to be put into the game. There are two maps to explore in the Oracle of Seasons. The hidden land of the Subrosian race has their own problems and they want Link to help solve them. They allow for some fun time though, which is needed after some of the frustration that comes with trying to figure out some of the quests.

Because The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages were released on the Game Boy Color, the graphics are quite stunning. Even when Link hops up on the stumps and swings his Rod of Seasons to change the Season, Holodrum changes beautifully and Link still looks vibrant.

Hours of more fun wait by linking the game and codes with The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages. I recommend playing Oracle of Seasons first. The game is slightly less difficult and like most players, once you beat something on the first difficulty, why not step it up to the next level? If that's how you are, then play Seasons and then continue Link's story by playing Ages.

One of the characters that is essential to linking the games is Farore, the Oracle of Secrets. She keeps your codes and secrets, so that when you need to remember them, they are there. She makes linking the two games much simplier than just writting them down in a notebook and then forgetting where you put that notebook and then when you do find it, finding which code you need. Although, sometimes its easier to just write them down, because Farore is not always at your disposal when you need her, making the good idea seem a little less good. But, for the most part it was a good idea by the designers.

Overall, The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons is an excellent game.

I give the game a 9 out of 10.