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The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, known in Japan as Zelda no Densetsu: Kamigami no Triforce (ゼルダの伝説 神々のトライフォース, Zeruda no Densetsu Kamigami no Toraifōsu?, lit. "The Legend of Zelda: Triforce of the Gods"), is an action-adventure video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System video game console, and is the third installment in The Legend of Zelda series. It was first released in Japan in 1991, and was later released in North America and Europe in 1992. Shigeru Miyamoto and his team were solely responsible for this game's development.

A Link to the Past's plot focuses on Link as he travels on a journey to save Hyrule, defeat Ganon, and rescue the seven descendants of the Sages. A Link to the Past uses a top-down perspective similar to that of the original The Legend of Zelda. It added mechanics and concepts to the series that have become commonplace, including multi-level dungeons and new equipment (such as the hookshot and the Pegasus Boots). It was well-received since its release, and has been listed by GameSpot as one of the best installments of the series.[3] To date, A Link to the Past has sold more than four million copies,[4] and has been re-released for the Game Boy Advance and the Wii's Virtual Console.

Gameplay

Instead of continuing to use the side-scrolling perspective introduced to the series by Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, A Link to the Past reverts to an overhead perspective similar to that of the original. Despite using mechanics and concepts from the original, A Link to the Past introduces new elements and innovations. For instance, although there are whole Heart Containers that are usually obtained after defeating a boss, Link can also collect four Heart Pieces in order to form additional Heart Containers. Arrows are now separately replenishable, as bombs were in the original, instead of using a Rupee to fire an arrow. A Link to the Past also takes concepts from The Adventure of Link, such as the magic meter, which is used by items such as the Lantern. Control of Link is more flexible than in previous games, as he can walk diagonally and can run with the aid of an obtainable item. Link's sword attack was improved to slash sideways instead of merely thrusting forward; this gives his sword a broader range and makes combat easier. Link slashes his sword as the default attack in future Zelda games, although thrusting is also possible in the later 3D incarnations

Recurring items and techniques were introduced for the first time in A Link to the Past, such as the Hookshot, the Master Sword, and the Pegasus Shoes. Heart Containers that increase the player's maximum health (hit points) in the earlier two games are present, but many are split into "Pieces of Heart", four of which comprise one Heart Container. Most of them are well hidden, adding replay value to the game. Many dungeons are multi-level, requiring Link to walk between floors and sometimes fall through holes to land in lower levels.[5][6][7][8]

A Link to the Past is the first appearance of what would subsequently become a major Zelda trademark: the existence of two parallel worlds between which the player travels. The first, called the Light World, is the ordinary Hyrule where Link grew up with his uncle. The second is what was once the Sacred Realm, but became the Dark World when Ganon acquired the Triforce. The Dark World is a corrupted version of Hyrule; the water is a dark, unpleasant color, the grass is dead, skulls replace rocks, and trees have faces. People change forms in the Dark World based on their nature; without an item to prevent it, Link turns into a pink rabbit. Each location in the Light World corresponds to a similar location in the Dark World, usually with a similar physical structure but an opposite nature (e.g. a desert in the Light World corresponds to a swamp in the Dark World).[5][6][7][8]

Link can travel from the Dark World to the Light World at almost any outside location by using a magic mirror (and back again from the same location using the portal left where he reappears in the Light World). There are also hidden warp locations throughout the Light World. This enables puzzles that exploit slight differences between the Light and Dark Worlds

Racking up at #5

1st Zelda came out.... fantastic game.... 2nd Zelda and every other Gameby Zelda games, mediocre. Then comes a link to the past... ill let this game speak for itself