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[Power Pro]

So recently, a content creator I follow started doing a playthrough of this Zelda II fan made remake on the PC of the 8 bit original, and while at first glance, it doesn't seem like anything special, it's pretty cool especially for people who want classic games with a new twist.

This Zelda 2 remake looks like just a slightly enhanced version of the NES game on the surface, but it has some cool just small touches sprinkled throughout that improve the experience. For example, 1ups increase your permanent stock of lives even after you have to continue. Things like checkpoints are also improved, which was a major failing of the original NES game. The creator of this also added some new areas, and puzzles, as well as introducing heart and magic containers throughout the world to find like many future Zelda games.

This kind of reminded me of when Nintendo did some of the 3D classics on the 3DS where they remade NES games with some modern enhancements, and it just made me think I really wish Nintendo would continue to do stuff like that for more of their classic games. No need to have every game get a huge major big budget remake, but sometimes a small scale remake that maintains the look and feel of the original, while adding some modern touches can really reignite interest in an old classic. Especially if they do some of the things this creator did, and add on to but changing aspects of the game so it all feels new again.

This is not a playthrough I watched, but here's one of the remake just to get a taste of what it looks like, as well as a link to download the game itself.

ZIIAOL by HoverBat

 

[Efren is G.O.A.T.]

I played this version, both 1st and 2nd Quest and it really is awesome. Made me wish for a sequel in that style even more. The OG Dark Souls

 

[Mister Wolf]

MercurySteam with Nintendo's guidance are more than capable of doing a Remake of Zelda 2.

 

[Syphon Filter]

zelda 2 = hardest game ever. the only game i quit lol.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Might be in the minority, but back then when I played Zelda 1 and 2, I thought 2 was 10x better. And a much harder game to boot. Of course watching speedruns makes it look easy as guys plow through the game avoiding and jumping away from enemies, but when you're young and playing a game a traditional way like killing as many baddies you can it was much more challenging than Zelda 1.

 

[March Climber]

Might be in the minority, but back then when I played Zelda 1 and 2, I thought 2 was 10x better. And a much harder game to boot. Of course watching speedruns makes it look easy as guys plow through the game avoiding and jumping away from enemies, but when you're young and playing a game a traditional way like killing as many baddies you can it was much more challenging than Zelda 1.

Zelda 2 is essentially Simon’s Quest but done correctly.

 

[Power Pro]

Zelda 2 is essentially Simon’s Quest but done correctly.

It still kinda suffered from the cryptic bull shit dialogue, but it was still better than Simon's Quest in understanding what it meant.

 

[Sojiro]

Might be in the minority, but back then when I played Zelda 1 and 2, I thought 2 was 10x better. And a much harder game to boot. Of course watching speedruns makes it look easy as guys plow through the game avoiding and jumping away from enemies, but when you're young and playing a game a traditional way like killing as many baddies you can it was much more challenging than Zelda 1.

You are not the only one, I have always liked Zelda II more than the first.

 

[FStubbs]

I remember as a kid, Zelda 2 wasn't a hard game. Ninja Gaiden, now that was hard.

 

[Bloobs]

 

[Moses85]

I love Zelda but there is no way I would play this

 

[fart town usa]

Mike Matei has some wildly entertaining Zelda II streams. Those streams made me see the brilliance in the game. Someday I'd like to try and tackle it.

 

[Sojiro]

Mike Matei has some wildly entertaining Zelda II streams. Those streams made me see the brilliance in the game. Someday I'd like to try and tackle it.

Yeah he has played a fuck ton of rom hacks of the game. A good number of them that are pretty good too, there definitely are a lot of options to dig into after playing through the vanilla game a few times. On another note I enjoy Mike's streams, he reminds me of myself and definitely doesn't give a shit lol.

 

[Morrie’s wig shop]

When this game released, I thought it was one of the best graphical games I’d seen yet….. god the nostalgia for this game is like a fever dream

 

[existensmaximum]

That's the rape of art - like retouching Mona Lisa in Photoshop or something.

 

[bender]

MercurySteam with Nintendo's guidance are more than capable of doing a Remake of Zelda 2.

 

[Hestar69]

zelda 2 is amazing and one of my fav games and game son the NES. Wish nintendo would show more love to the game

 

[Shake Your Rump]

zelda 2 = hardest game ever. the only game i quit lol.

I was 12 when this game released. I actually finished it twice in a row, non-stop, just to see how the game would mark my save file. My only assistance was the game manual. If you think this is the hardest game ever, I am curious what the second hardest game could be.

 

[lestar]

a zelda 2 remake as a metroidvania would be awesome

 

[RoboEight]

Wow this looks incredible I definitely need to check this out. This is what a good enhanced version should look like.

 

[proandrad]

Zelda 2 is so shitty Nintendo won't even bother to try to dmca it.

 

[Thaedolus]

Zelda 2 is so shitty Nintendo won't even bother to try to dmca it.

 

[JohnnyTropics]

Zelda 2 is so shitty Nintendo won't even bother to try to dmca it.

Nah.
When people talk about how video games are shit now, it's because video games aren't like Zelda 2 anymore.

 

[ShadyAcshuns]

They'd need to do more than just remake it, they'd have to basically build a totally new game with more depth and content.

 

[manzo]

I was 8 years old when I got the game and managed to finish it with barely understanding English. The game wasn’t even hard. I never understood why people thought it was hard.

Werewolf - The Last Warrior and Battletoads on the other hand….

 

[sigmaZ]

zelda 2 = hardest game ever. the only game i quit lol.

 

[Caffeine]

zelda 2 = hardest game ever. the only game i quit lol.

i have a strategy guide and i still hate it.

 

[Švejk]

What's this? A Zelda game that actually encourages you to fight with a sword (that doesn't explode after a few swings) and unlocks moves as you progress? An ARPG that you gain XP when you fight? And also takes that XP from you when you take damage making you fight to earn it back??....

Nintendo doesn't have the brains or the guts to make such a game today. THIS game was an actual trail blazer that was a bit too ahead of it's time. As mentioned before, it's the true OG Souls game. Nintendo lost this magic a long time ago.

 

[efyu_lemonardo]

There used to a 3D version of Zelda II playable online somewhere, it was rather nifty.

 

[Dirk Benedict]

There used to a 3D version of Zelda II playable online somewhere, it was rather nifty.

I know what you're talking about!
Here:

 

[Neff]

They ported it as a very early tech demo during the Super Famicom's development. Would love to play it.

There used to a 3D version of Zelda II playable online somewhere, it was rather nifty.

There was also an experimental Super FX chip version of it IIRC. It's a great game and I wish they'd do another Zelda game with its mechanics and style.

 

[IAmRei]

Knew this since few months ago, but havent try it. Willing to try, but i have less time for gaming these days ... Sigh...

If they remake it, it could be 3D.
As far as i know, ninty is using 3D these days.

This is my first zelda btw, and few moment later i got the first, i like them both. This game is infamous though, but i like it.

 

[cireza]

MercurySteam with Nintendo's guidance are more than capable of doing a Remake of Zelda 2.

How about no thanks ? Keep Mercury Steam away from our good games.

zelda 2 = hardest game ever. the only game i quit lol.

Completed it back then, when I was 7

 

[NeoIkaruGAF]

Zelda 2 isn't remotely as hard as dozens of other NES games.
It's hard, yes. Most of the difficulty comes from the very rudimental combat and the somewhat unfair enemy patterns. But the game plays very well, something you can't say for a lot of games from that era, when you had to fight the controls on top of having to deal with ridiculous enemy patterns, especially in those games where enemies would respawn obsessively (looking at you, Ninja Gaiden).

Zelda 2 is a fair game with a handful of infuriating sections. But I beat it many times as a kid.

 

[Davevil]

one of the worst Zelda episode

 

[Knightime_X]

Zelda 2 was the first "souls" game I beat before I hit age 13.

 

[ssringo]

I actually spent quite a bit of time playing this (and the OG back in the day). The OG was definitely rough around the edges but had a lot of great ideas and is where the best Zelda tune (dungeon theme) comes from imo. This enhanced remake fixes a few of those problems and adds some nice content that doesn't feel out of place.

 

[Mr Hyde]

Zelda 2 is a childhood favorite. Played the shit out of it as a kid. I still play it from time to time even as an adult. One of few NES games I can still stomach these days. I remember the feeling when I beat Thunderbird for the first time. All my friends cheering me on. Nobody in our gang had made it so far, so when I finally beat him I was the hero of the day. Then I got my ass kicked by shadow Link and had to redo all of it, lol. Good times. Please Nintendo, remake this gem of a game.

 

[cartman414]

one of the worst Zelda episode

 

[Anthony Soprano]

Most modern companies can't even get straight ports to their official virtual console flavors correct without emulation hitches, inaccurate video and audio, etc.

Wii came out in 2006, so Nintendo has had almost 20 years to make their virtual console releases something more than "hey, here's a savestate with everything unlocked" and they fail to do so. I can't imagine them ever actually putting effort or money into anything other than lawyer and court fees at this point.

 

[AJUMP23]

Game was much harder than the first one, but a lot of fun. Really the Dark Souls of Zelda games.

 

[StereoVsn]

I remember renting this game way back in the day, playing for couple of hours, thinking it was BS and never coming back to it.

Maybe I should give it another shot with some rom hacks.

 

[ManaByte]

 

[DGrayson]

I remember renting this game way back in the day, playing for couple of hours, thinking it was BS and never coming back to it.

Maybe I should give it another shot with some rom hacks.

its honestly a fun and challenging game. once you know your way around and understand leveling up and stuff its not quite as bad.

I remember as a kid my best friend and I finally beat that thunderbird final boss only to get destroyed by teh REAL final boss our mouths were just dropped open with shock.

I eventually beat it years later. Great memories.

 

[tr1p1ex]

Doesn't the online service save state feature help with checkpoints?

 

[Vyse]

I remember renting this game way back in the day, playing for couple of hours, thinking it was BS and never coming back to it.

Same for me. Rented it thinking I could knock it off in a few days. Boy was I wrong.

 

[Ev1L AuRoN]

Man the OST from Zelda II is so great, nostalgia hits hard whenever I hear its tunes.

 

[Danknugz]

everyone hates on zelda II for some reason but i loved it as a kid, that said would rather just play the original ROM.

 

[Chuck Berry]

This was my very first video game rental back when I was 8 and had just gotten an NES

Mindlessly walking back and forth between the villages and forests and desert area not having a fucking clue what I was doing. And loving every minute.

 

[JohnnyTropics]

This was a feature, not a bug.
This, specifically, is what is missing from modern video games.
The mechanic at play here was:
make it as far as you can, and when you reach the outer limits of your comfort zone, play around to learn new strategies for your next play through.
Constantly pushing further, knowing that the "opponent", as it were, is not only the final boss, but the developers themselves and the difficulty scaling.
It introduced actual stakes to game play, which are missing now in single player experiences.

The absence of permadeath--not graphics, not stories, not DEI consultants--is why games all feel the same now.
The antagonists hold exclusive rights to being the "bad" guy, and the only way to make them threatening is via story mechanics, as opposed to gameplay mechanics.
If the last boss in Elden Ring (never played it, don't care if I'm wrong) nuked you and sent you back to the beginning of the entire game, 99.99999% of people would decry it as being insanely unfair. And they wouldn't play it. And that's ok. But there would also be a thriving scene of people trying to beat it with no deaths.

>But people can do no death runs on their own as it is!
Nope. Totally different when the game is ACTUALLY going to hard reset and wipe your progress if you miss a jump.

>But what about feasibility as it relates to sales figures!
I'm sure you're right. It's not feasible to develop a game for 100 million dollars that only appeals to 1% of the market. But I would contend the problem is that games are taking 100 million dollars to develop, in lieu of tightening the experience to fit inside a 2-3 hour window for a heck of a lot less in cost.

There is NOTHING comparable in gaming today to SMB3. You don't know what it means to grip some rectangular, cheap plastic controller with 8 year old sweaty palms, hoping you can make it through Ice World without losing all your powerups, extra lives on 2. You don't know dissapointment til you hear that Mario game over screen music.

It's funny to watch people play, or listen to people talk about a game like Zelda 2, because the way it was ACTUALLY beaten back in the day doesn't lend itself to youtube. Nobody wants to watch someone play through the first 5 dungeons for the 40th time, conserving an extra potion on this go through that will give them the slightest edge 3 hours into the future.

That's the difference--I can play and beat Mario 3 from muscle memory. I have MASTERED that game.

Uncharted 3? I can turn it on, crank the difficulty setting, and play through the same ballroom on a cruise ship for 2 hours until I get to the next checkpoint. I've accomplished nothing, other than mastery overy my own patience. It might be "harder", maybe, than beating Mario 3, in some abstract sense of dexterity and reaction time, but in terms of actual heart racing stakes? It doesn't even hold a candle to Mario 3. To me, that's truly what is meant by "cinematic" game play. Just like a movie: if you press play and sit there, youll make it to the end. Uncharted is not a "game." So few modern games ARE games. Turn it on and go. If you die, you die, and at worst you just have to try again. Endlessly.

This to me is why Elden Ring players, or "souls" players are the ultimate lolcows. They think that they're accomplishing these amazing feats of video game excellence, simply because they're willing to sit in front of the screen and master babbys first feeling of permadeath--but with the bowling alley bumpers up--because they get kicked back 30 seconds and need to try again. It's the permadeath mechanic for people too risk averse to permadeath mechanics.