The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (ゼルダの伝説　大地の汽笛 Zeruda no Densetsu Daichi no Kiteki,? lit. "The Legend of Zelda: (Train) Whistle of the Earth" ..) is the second Zelda game for the Nintendo DS, revealed by Satoru Iwata in Game Developer's Conference on March 25, 2009. It uses the same cel-shaded layout and game-play interface as Phantom Hourglass. The opening scene of the trailer features Link conducting a train, which takes place of the boat in Phantom Hourglass, most likely coinciding with the name of the game (Spirit Tracks). The game has also been confirmed to take place about a century after the events of Phantom Hourglass.

There has been some debate over whether the game would work only on the DSi or on all Nintendo DS iterations. However Nintendo.com has confirmed that Spirit Tracks will be playable on all installments of the Nintendo DS, including the original DS and the DS Lite. There was also some discussion if Spirit Tracks would be a DSi enchanced cartridge, which would unlock more content if played on a Nintendo DSi, however the Official Nintendo Magazine's website had confirmed in their Spirit Tracks Q & A that Spirit Tracks won't have DSi enchancements.

Story
As the new day dawns, a young apprentice named Link makes his way to his train engineer certification ceremony at Hyrule Castle.

''During the ceremony, the lovely Princess Zelda takes him aside and passes him a secret note with directions to her private quarters. Link slips past the guards to her room where Zelda tells him the terrible news that the spirit tracks are disappearing! The princess asks Link to help her evade the castle guards and take her to the Tower of Spirits to meet the wise woman Anjean.''

''The plucky pair make it to Link's train, but are apprehended en route by some rogue characters who attack Zelda and carry away her body! Luckily, her spirit manages to escape and she accompanies Link to the Tower where Anjean reveals the terrible truth that the Demon King is breaking free of his prison and may soon plague the land again.''

''Can Link find and restore the spirit tracks in time to stop this happening? Can he reconnect Zelda with her earthly body? Only time and true courage will tell…''

Plot
Following the events of Phantom Hourglass, Link, Tetra, and the other pirates come across a new land that is ruled over by an evil tyrant known as Malladus. They defeated the king, and sealed him away by chaining him to the four corners of the land, and renamed the land as Hyrule. Long after, the chains used to imprison Malladus became known as the Spirit Tracks, which are used for transportation by train. A hundred years later, in Hyrule Castle, Princess Zelda is seen handing Link a diploma to honor him as the Royal Engineer. At the same time however, Zelda also slips Link a personal message stating that she has been suspicious of Chancellor Cole. Link sneaks Zelda out of the castle and meets up with Alfonzo, his master who trained him into being a Royal Engineer. He helps Link and Zelda escape the castle and get on a train, when suddenly, the tracks disappear resulting the train to crash. Chancellor Cole then confronts the three: taking down Alfonzo, Link, and even Zelda. Chancellor Cole takes away her body, yet Zelda's spirit appears after Link reawakens in Hyrule Castle, where only Link can see her. Zelda's spirit helps Link throughout the game, as Cole wants to use Zelda's body to revive Malladus.

Enemies

 * Yellow Chuchus
 * River zoras, along with a new, red, fire breathing variant
 * Octoroks
 * A strange, one eyed ghost-like creature which throws skulls identical to the heads of Phantom Hourglass's Stalfos

Pre-Release Reception
The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks received the "Best Handheld Game" award at Gamescom 2009. The game was also selected by IGN as their "Best of Gamescom 2009" winner for the Nintendo DS.