14th September 2005, 8:53 AM
LttP vs LA's size... ... where was that thread where OB1 posted the map size comparisons to try to "end" that argument of ours... I know, LttP is physically larger, but to me it felt small because of the layout (center area with a ring of other areas around it) and the fact that the terrain features are so much bigger (LttP trees are four times larger than LA trees, for instance)...
Oh, and I still don't really like the LttP Link sprite.
Anyway, LA was clearly improved on LttP, I'd say... there is less of the extremely frusterating puzzles with minimal clues (like in LttP when you need to get some item halfway across the map to do something for the next dungeon but it doesn't really tell you what you need or where it is; LA isn't exactly completely clear all the time either by any means, but it's not quite as bad...), the dungeons all have halfway bosses with warps, greatly reducing the huge amount of frusteration LttP has from its very annoying dungeon design of "long linear path which you must follow every time"... makes beating the bosses quite a trial when you need to essentially play through the whole dungeon each time you die, trying this time to get through without being hit ever... yes, the minibosses with warps (and less straight-line path level designs) were good. Oh, the LA dungeons were quite hard, certainly, and the first time that game took me quite a while... but it didn't have as much of that challenge being because of how far it would send you back each time you die (without being able to quickly re-cover any of that ground most of the time). :)
LA also has a less cliche story, too... and also, LA advanced the control scheme. The two item system is a clear advance over LttP's system... as is only displaying the numbers of items for the ones you actually have equipped instead of always having the number of bombs, arrows, etc. on the screen. And the map is better too, with the lines actually showing where the screens are and the fact you can scroll around it and get descriptions of the places... a big advance there, for sure.
That brings up another thing, I really liked how in LA you could go up to items and get descriptions... like when Link walks up to a chest it says something. None of the other Zelda games do that, sadly...
Oh, and I still don't really like the LttP Link sprite.
Anyway, LA was clearly improved on LttP, I'd say... there is less of the extremely frusterating puzzles with minimal clues (like in LttP when you need to get some item halfway across the map to do something for the next dungeon but it doesn't really tell you what you need or where it is; LA isn't exactly completely clear all the time either by any means, but it's not quite as bad...), the dungeons all have halfway bosses with warps, greatly reducing the huge amount of frusteration LttP has from its very annoying dungeon design of "long linear path which you must follow every time"... makes beating the bosses quite a trial when you need to essentially play through the whole dungeon each time you die, trying this time to get through without being hit ever... yes, the minibosses with warps (and less straight-line path level designs) were good. Oh, the LA dungeons were quite hard, certainly, and the first time that game took me quite a while... but it didn't have as much of that challenge being because of how far it would send you back each time you die (without being able to quickly re-cover any of that ground most of the time). :)
LA also has a less cliche story, too... and also, LA advanced the control scheme. The two item system is a clear advance over LttP's system... as is only displaying the numbers of items for the ones you actually have equipped instead of always having the number of bombs, arrows, etc. on the screen. And the map is better too, with the lines actually showing where the screens are and the fact you can scroll around it and get descriptions of the places... a big advance there, for sure.
That brings up another thing, I really liked how in LA you could go up to items and get descriptions... like when Link walks up to a chest it says something. None of the other Zelda games do that, sadly...