The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is the third main installment of, and the first and only title for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, released in 1991 in Japan and 1992 in the United States. After the side-scrolling and RPG-like gameplay of, was a return to the overhead view and gameplay style of. The game introduced major new items to the series such as the Master Sword, and the concept of two different worlds (Light World and Dark World), which was revisited to an extent in with two separate time periods rather than dark and light worlds. was re-released in 2002, on the Game Boy Advance, sharing a new game called.

The Imprisoning War
One day, a band of evil thieves managed to open the gateway to the Sacred Realm, where the mystical Triforce was hidden. Upon finding the sacred golden relic, the leader of the thieves, Ganondorf, slew his followers and claimed it as his own. Before long, dark power began to flow forth from the Sacred Realm. People were drawn into this darkness, and never heard from again. As a result, the King of Hyrule ordered the seven sages to seal the entrance to the Sacred Realm. A great battle ensued—monsters poured into the Light World from the sacred land and attacked the castle. The Knights of Hyrule defended the sages during the great battle against evil, and, though most of them perished in the struggle, the sages were able to cast their ALttP:, stopping the flow of darkness and trapping the evil king Ganon within. This battle became known as the Imprisoning War.

The Wizard
Once the conflicts against Ganon had ceased, Hyrule entered a time of peace which lasted for centuries, until one day, when unexplained catastrophes began to occur. Pestilence and drought ravaged the land. Thinking the recent disasters plaguing Hyrule were somehow linked to the sages' seal, the king investigated it, but found it to be intact. Desperate for answers, he offered rewards for anyone who could find the source of Hyrule's troubles.

In response, a stranger named Agahnim appeared as if from nowhere and stayed the catastrophes with mighty magic. As a reward, the king gave him a new position as chief adviser to the throne, and the common folk proclaimed him their hero. Once more, peace appeared to have returned to Hyrule. Yet all was not well. Agahnim began to govern Hyrule in place of the king and abuse his political power as he saw fit. Rumors spread saying that Agahnim planned to kill the king and take the crown for himself, and that strange magical experiments were taking place in the castle tower at night. He cast spells on the soldiers and kidnapped the young maidens descended from the seven Wise Men, using their powers in an attempt to break the seal placed on the Sacred Realm.

Link's Quest
The game starts with Link being awakened in the middle of a stormy night by a telepathic plea from Princess Zelda, who tells him that she is being held prisoner in the dungeon of the castle and needs help. Now wide awake, Link finds his uncle with a sword and shield in hand. He tells Link not to leave the house, then sets off for the castle. Link ignores his uncle's warning and follows him, only to arrive at the castle to find him gravely wounded. He gives Link his sword and shield and entrusts him with the fate of Princess Zelda. Link proceeds to rescue Zelda, and the two escape the castle through its sewer system to the sanctuary just north of the castle.

There, the priest tells Link that the only weapon powerful enough to defeat Agahnim was the sacred Master Sword. He then sends him to find the elder, Sahasrahla, who explains that not just anyone could wield the legendary blade, and that a hero must appear from the descendants of the Knights of Hyrule. To prove himself worthy of wielding the Blade of Evil's Bane, Link would need to acquire the three Pendants of Virtue.

After successfully obtaining the pendants and withdrawing the magical sword from its pedestal in the Lost Woods, Zelda calls out to Link yet again, this time warning that soldiers have invaded the sanctuary. Link hurries off to the sanctuary only to find that he was a moment too late, and that the soldiers had already taken Zelda off to Hyrule Castle. Once again, Link hurries to her rescue, and once again arrives too late, as Agahnim was already in the process of sending Princess Zelda to the Dark World to finish his ordeal. Upon completing this ritual, little time was needed before the sages' seal was completely broken. Link goes on to defeat Agahnim, who then also draws him into the Dark World, saying he is not truly defeated, yet.

There, Link is contacted telepathically by Sahasrahla, who tells him that the world he is standing in is actually what was once the Sacred Realm, but it was transformed by Ganon's evil wish to conquer the world to become the Dark World. He then commissions Link with the task of rescuing the 7 imprisoned maidens from the dungeons scattered across the Dark World. Upon freeing them all, Link travels to Ganon's Tower, where the seven maidens use their combined power to dispel the barrier sealing off the entrance. Link proceeds to traverse the tower and then defeat Agahnim a second time, this time killing him for good. Upon his defeat, the spirit of Ganon rises from the body, turns into a bat, and flies off into the Pyramid of Power, where Link and Ganon face off for the final battle. With the power of the Silver Arrows and the Master Sword, Link finally vanquishes Ganon, recovers the Triforce, and by making a wish, reverts the effects of Ganon's evil reign over Hyrule and ultimately restores the land to its former glory.

Commonplace Mechanics
retains various gameplay elements from the original NES game, among them the top-view perspective; Link can collect Rupees once more and use items by assigning them to a button, as well as recovering his life energy with hearts. Returning from is the ability to use Magic to perform spells and to make special items functional, as well as a major interaction with non-playable characters to obtain vital information regarding the quest.

A returning mechanic from both games is the availability of dungeons, which must be conquered in order to archive success in the adventure. Each dungeon has a map and a compass, the former shows the layout of the dungeon in particular and the latter locates the boss's whereabouts; keys must be collected in order to open locked doors, puzzles must be solved to progress, and enemies must be defeated if they are interrupting the exploration. The dungeons are multi-leveled, ranging in number from two to ten, and Big Keys are needed both to open major chests (containing important items that increase Link's inventory and help him progress through his adventure) and to open boss rooms.

Similar to the bombs in The Legend of Zelda and the magic meter in The Adventure of Link, various items in can be upgraded either in capacity or by being turned into more advanced versions. This can be done through completing sidequests or entering certain special places. Optional weapons and items are hidden through Hyrule as well.

Light and Dark World
This game introduces a very important mechanic: The Light World/Dark World dichotomy. Light World is simply normal Hyrule, while Dark World is a twisted, desolate, more dangerous parallel version under Ganon's evil reign that was once the Golden Land. The game has actually two maps of Hyrule, which are related to each other in several ways; for example, by switching from the Dark World to the Light World while standing in an apparently empty dead end, Link can find in the latter world a secret cave or a passage that was otherwise inaccessible, leading to secret prizes. By doing the opposite (switching from the Light World to the Dark World), Link can gain access to new dungeons, which is important to the success of the quest. is praised for cleverly using this gameplay device, which in some ways has been reused in some subsequent Zelda games.

is also the first title to have a more developed storyline, which reflects for the first time the dungeon's different purposes. The first three house the sacred pendants that give Link access to the Master Sword, the fourth has to do with a failed attempt to rescue Princess Zelda, the next seven dungeons house the imprisoned maidens, who (once freed) help Link break the seal of the final dungeon's entrance. This style of story progression was used in various subsequent Zelda games, among them and, although the latter added various twists and subversions to the concept (by adding the Triforce sub-quest, lacking a dungeon for the third pearl, etc.).

Regional Differences
The Japanese version of the game is titled. Nintendo of America changed the name to due to their censorship guidelines discouraged religious content. Nintendo of Europe used the American name. The Japanese name was translated faithfully in the subsequent Chinese and Korean localizations.

Nintendo of America modified meanings in the game's text for the same reason. ALttP: is a priest in the original Japanese version, but a wizard in the international version. The ALttP: was originally. The became the ALttP: and the  became the ALttP:. Nintendo of Europe's localizations follow the American one in naming the Fat Fairy, but are inconsistent with respect to the ALttP: and the ALttP:, sometimes favoring the Japanese meaning and other times the American.

In the Japanese version, the Hylian symbols translated by the ALttP: are Egyptian hieroglyphs. The symbols are jumbled in the American version. In the Eastern Palace, a symbol within a room contains what appears to be the Star of David in the Japanese version, which was changed to a more generic one internationally

Nintendo of America censored the game's text but did not change its religious visuals. The ALttP: retains its church pews and stained glass windows. When Link makes a wish to enter ALttP:, he looks skyward and appears to cross himself before joining his hands together in prayer.

Logo
The North American and European versions of the game both use a new logo for the title screen and box art, designed by the Seattle-based Girvin design firm. This logo has been featured with slight variations in every subsequent game in North American and Europe (identical in Link's Awakening), and in the Japanese versions from  to.

Graphics and Audio
The game made use of the Super NES capabilities to offer more realistic graphics over the NES titles, not only in regards of the areas' textures and colors, but also to add new visual effects, such as the mist and the upper leaves' shadows in Lost Woods, the thunderstorm in the Dark World equivalent of Death Mountain, and so on.

The game's audio retains the overworld tune that debuted in the first Zelda game, although it's only heard while Link is in the Light World; Kakariko Village's theme debuted in this game, Hyrule Castle's background theme, and so as Ganon's theme. Zelda's theme, known as "Zelda's Lullaby" in, also makes its first appearance. The Dark World's themes are different in all regards (overworld, dungeons, etc.), meaning that the overall soundtrack of the game is far more diverse than that of the first two titles in the series.

Setting
Like its predecessors (and, for that matter, most Zelda games), is set in the fictional land of Hyrule; notably, the territory of the land is bigger than in the first game, but smaller than in.

However, a Dark World counterpart is now included and explorable. In the Light World, familiar zones like Lost Woods and Death Mountain are present, while Kakariko Village and Lake Hylia are introduced here. In the Dark World, every location is different in name and presentation; for example, the Lost Woods is replaced by the Skeleton Forest, Kakariko Village is the Village of Outcasts, and the southwestern desert is the Swamp of Evil. The replacements also affect the dungeons which, instead of housing the Pendants of Virtue, hold captive the maidens who were supposed to break the seal protecting Ganon's Tower.

Timeline Placement
According to the chronology of The Legend of Zelda series, is the first title placed in the "Downfall" split timeline. This timeline branch starts with Ganondorf successfully defeating Link in and obtaining the complete Triforce. The seven Sages seal him immediately within the Sacred Realm. Years later, greedy people enter the Dark World seeking the Triforce, turning into monsters and becoming part of Ganon's army. In the war that ensues, the Knights of Hyrule protect the Sages from Ganon's minions, while they cast a seal to close off the entrance to the Dark World. Ages later, when Ganon attempts to escape from the Dark World in order to conquer Hyrule, the events of take place.

According to, the game's immediate sequel is , which is eventually followed by and. The English version of the states that all four games feature the same Link, while the original Japanese lists the Link in  and  as a separate incarnation. Some time after defeating Ganon at the end of, Link leaves Hyrule by boat when he is shipwrecked on Koholint Island, leading to the events of.

During an interview around the release of, Shigeru Miyamoto stated that occurred after.

Zelda.com originally stated that was a sequel to, taking place hundreds of years after the game, though the Link in both games was the same, having returned from Termina and finding that time passed differently between the two worlds.

Sales
was commercially successful, selling 4.61 million copies worldwide, making it the third best selling game in the series (before the release of ).

Reviews
received a near-perfect score of 39/40 from Japanese magazine Famitsu.

Both the Game Boy Advance and the Virtual Console versions of the game gained IGN's and GameSpot's recommendation, with praises in matter of presentation, graphics, sound, gameplay and lasting appeal. Criticism on the GBA version focused on the possibility that Zelda fans, at that time, would complain for the lack of a new game for the handheld console, while the Virtual Console version was recommended only for those who didn't play the game in any of the past releases already.

is one of the highest-ranked games for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and frequently rivals other highly praised Zelda games like and  for being the best in the series. Nintendo Power ranked it second in their list of best The Legend of Zelda games, citing the game's improvements over its NES predecessors. Video Game Canon ranks as one of the best games of all time.

Fan Reception
To this day, remains a major piece of collection for Zelda fans due to its importance in the series and great design. received critical acclaim from fans of the series, currently holding an average user score of 9.5 on GameSpot, as well as a current reader average score of 9.8 at IGN.

Game Boy Advance
was ported for the Game Boy Advance in 2002 as The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past & Four Swords, introducing into the same cartridge, the first multiplayer title of the series. There were numerous alterations to the game, including a more accurate translation, additional shops and enemies, changing Link's voice to that of his child self in Ocarina of Time/Majora's Mask, and the addition of a new dungeon and new quest and attack unlocked only by playing through.

Virtual Console
The original SNES version was also ported to the Wii's Virtual Console on January 22, 2007, and later onto the Wii U Virtual Console on January 30, 2014 and Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console on April 14, 2016. The re-release was virtually unchanged from the original. However, the full, bright screen flashing effect that was used on the title screen, when Agahnim or Vitreous attacks with lightning or when Link uses the Ether Medallion, was toned down significantly, to prevent the effect of.

Satellaview
The game's engine and features were used in the later released service, the Satellaview. In 1997, was released in Japan via the Satellaview. It was presented as a sequel, seemingly like a unique Second Quest for.

itself was also released through the Satellaview; it only has a few minor changes from the original version, such as the save system. Unlike the other Zelda games broadcast over the Satellaview service, it could be downloaded and played at the player's convenience. Officially, the Satellaview port does not have a differentiating title, but fans often refer to the game as BS The Legend of Zelda: Triforce of the Gods, despite this prefix being reserved for -compatible titles.

The games were released exclusively in Japan. However, fans have translated BS The Legend of Zelda: Ancient Stone Tablets to English and compiled a fully playable version in a resurrection project.

Super NES Classic Edition
The Super NES Classic Edition includes as one of the 21 games available.

Series:
is included as part of the Super Nintendo Entertainment System - Nintendo Switch Online software, available to Series: Subscribers, as one of its 20 launch titles.

Legacy
Like its predecessors, introduced many elements that became mainstream for the Zelda franchise, including:


 * is the first game that introduced a different Link, as opposed to and  prior which featured the same Link (according to Hyrule Historia).
 * is also the first game in the series to include multiple, parallel overworlds.
 * The iconic Master Sword debuted in this game, which would become an important and often essential item in Link's quest in almost all later games. Games like and  feature it with a similar function and purpose as in the SNES game.
 * introduces the Sages, who would play similar roles in and.
 * The Dungeons became more thematically distinctive, reflecting different architectures and purposes. Dungeons based on forest, water and ice, for instance, are played for the first time here.
 * This is the first game to have Pieces of Heart, leading to more sidequests.
 * was the first game in the series to use the now-standardized logo in western releases. Japan would later use this standardized logo by the release of.
 * The game introduces Cuccos, as well as the infamous Cucco Revenge Squad, where a flock of Cuccos will attack Link if he attacks one continuously.
 * Kakariko Village and Lake Hylia debut in this title.
 * This is the first Zelda game where a member of Link's family is shown. The only other games that do this are and.
 * The notion of Link freeing Maidens from crystal prisons was reused with Princess Zelda in and SS undefined, and with Din in.
 * This is the first game to give Moblins their pig-like appearance, which would become a series staple after.
 * This is the first game where the seemingly main antagonist is actually just a minion of Ganon.
 * Many recurring musical themes, such as the Fairy Fountain/file select theme, "Zelda's Lullaby", the Hyrule Castle theme, and Ganon's theme, were first introduced in this game.
 * This is the first Zelda game where Link swings his sword horizontally and introduced the Spin Attack.

Trivia

 * With a total of thirteen Dungeons, has more Dungeons than any other official Zelda game (not including Second Quests.) However, Hyrule Castle is technically two Dungeons.
 * The portraits on the walls inside many houses in Kakariko Village, which occasionally dispense Rupees when pulled by Link, appears to be . The theme that plays when soldiers chase Link in the village is actually a remix of the Super Mario Bros. 2 boss theme.
 * In The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past & Four Swords, getting the ALttP: will completely restore ALttP:'s ALttP: and ALttP:.
 * The seventh Dark World Dungeon, Turtle Rock, contains Chain Chomps, an enemy from the Super Mario series.