Link, it's time to wake up.

[Dark Jaguar]

[A Black Falcon]

I watched the Direct stream live, and I'd heard a rumor about there being a new 2d-style Zelda game, but with Nintendo rumors you never know if they're going to be true or not, so I had no idea what to expect here... but as soon as I saw the boat in the intro cutscene I knew what this was. Link's Awakening is of course one of my favorite games, and this looks like a good remake. Based on the trailer though it looks VERY faithful to the original -- everything's exactly as it was in the original game, just with a graphical update. If it is just 'same game, new graphics' I'll be somewhat less interested, because the original is nearly perfect as it is! It doesn't need a remake to be one of the best games ever made, and I doubt this will be better than the original.

I mean, I definitely want to play it, and it's awesome that LA is getting a remake, but I do hope that there's at least something new in it to make me want to play it, given how many times I've played that game before.

Otherwise, the other thing to comment on is the graphics. When I saw that little boat and realized that this was a LA remake, I was really excited for a moment because of how incredible the game is. That cutscene looks fantastic, too! But then the gameplay footage started, and it's got a very brightly colored, cartoony look with a plasticey look to it that reminds me of some modern Mario games (3D World, Captain Toad, and such.). It looks good, and as I said looks totally faithful to the original on a tile basis, but there are two issues. First, the cartoony art style of this remake is pretty different from the look of the original game. Sure it looks great once you get used to it, but it's different, with that toy-like look and not a realistic one. And second, I have always preferred the look of the original B&W version over the color remake that this obviously takes its color inspiration from. I first played the game in greyscale, and I've always preferred that look over the remake even since finally getting a copy of the color version several years ago. When I think of this game at its best I think of its look in grey and I doubt this remake will change that.

That said though, it is pretty nice that Nintendo is remaking the best 2d Zelda game. I hope more people play this fantastic classic...

[Dark Jaguar]

The original game looked cartooney. It was never realistic looking. Due to the limitations of the hardware, everyone in the original game is done in a "chibi sprite" style as was standard at the time. However, perhaps you were looking for the game to more closely resemble the manual and player's guide artwork, in which case I totally understand your misgivings.

Frankly, after A Link Between Worlds, I'm a little disappointed they're going for a straight up remake. It's a good remake, and honestly the art style perfectly captures the cartoonish look of the sprites in the original game, but it seems that all we're getting in terms of an upgrade is 360 degree movement in place of 8 way. Had they redone the game completely, new dungeons puzzles and items set in the same basic outline of a story, perhaps done as a 3D Zelda, we'd have a real reason to invest in it. Link's Awakening is one of my favorites just like you, so to me a reimagining would be a bigger deal than this.

Ok, criticism out of the way, for what it is it looks and sounds amazing, and this is a day one purchase for me.