The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass [DS]

That same feeling carries over from item usage and boss battles into the overall labyrinth play this time around. It's fun, we love every second of it, and then it ends abruptly. Dungeons feel shorter and more linear in this Zelda than any before it, all the while having Ciela or ghosts of old adventurers pipe up and rattle off information on something any gamer would instantly know already. Each time you drop to another floor in a dungeon, the majority of that floor is a self-contained puzzle, as well over 90% of the game's labyrinth work doesn't require you to trek across a dungeon entirely to solve major brain-teasing puzzles, instead moving you one room at a time.

If you walk over to a group of four levers, make a note of it and continue on; you'll soon find a tablet or ghost that has only one message for you: 4,2,1,3. If you break open a suspiciously located pot only to find five arrows, pull out your bow, as there's a target somewhere to hit, and the game is just making sure you have what you need to complete the task without backtracking. This formula continues as the game goes on, though it does get a bit harder once you reach the back half of the adventure. If you're expecting anything akin to A Link to the Past, Link's Awakening, or even Minish Cap, however, you'll find you're over-thinking it. Those moments are in there, they just occur at a much smaller rate. The time-based challenges in the Temple of the Ocean King, for example, can be tough as nails, requiring you to not only beat it in a certain amount of time, but also navigate the dungeons around invincible guardians called Phantoms. This final labyrinth is actually an aspect of the game that runs parallel to the rest of the story, so every time you defeat a boss or complete a leg of your journey you'll be called to again traverse a section of the time-based challenge. As our only gripe with this design, there are over ten levels to complete, and only one halfway point throughout the game, which means you'll be replaying sections of the temple every few hours. Each time you enter you'll have new items to use that speed up the previous levels and gain you more time to dive deeper though, so while it can feel like artificially extended gameplay at times, it still serves a purpose. It can become redundant opening the same chests, moving the same force gems, and unlocking the same doors over and over again, however.

But for every gripe we have about Phantom Hourglass, there seems to be numerous praises as well. For starters, the game is truly epic in scope, opening up the world more than we ever anticipated on DS. Sailing is of course back, but without the reliance on wind you can now draw your path and cruise from point A to point B. All the while it feels as though the world is alive, as other boats inhabit the same waters, pirates patrol and attack, enemies pop up and try to sink your ship, merchants cruise the waters acting as mobile item-shops, and a rival pirate lass tracks your ship down for impromptu duels. The main quest comes in shorter than our liking, sitting at 15 hours over four sittings for our play-through, but the amount of side quests raises that amount substantially, as there are tons of uncharted islands, treasure maps that lead to ocean-floor loot, and the occasional mini-games such as archery or cannon-firing that let you cash in rupees for a chance at prizes. To tie it all together there's also a treasure aspect to the game, which allows you to discover and sell off valuables, or unlock 81 different ship pieces to essentially build your own vessel and power it up with like-themed items. There's an immense amount of adventure to be had here.

And as for the overall package you're getting with Phantom Hourglass, it's easy to put aside the gripes of touch-only control or a shorter, easier quest when you take a second to truly appreciate the total package. The visuals are stunning, the music is extremely epic, making great use of DS's sound card to deliver some decent area-specific sound for players using headphones, and a musical score that - while not dethroning the best of the Zelda series - is captivating and memorable. Also included is the multiplayer mode, which delivers a one-on-one battle in single card, multi-card, or Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection mode.

Users can connect with other Phantom Hourglass owners and battle in a Link vs. Phantoms mini-game that works like a game of triforce-stealing capture the flag, and while it's a fun diversion from the main game it doesn't have the standing power or pure addictive nature as Four Swords did. The online portion has a decent amount of depth though, as players keep an overall standing including their wins, losses, and disconnections, and you can battle friends, or go nation/worldwide in two different random battle modes as well. Single card download play offers the same game, but battle stats aren't saved when finished. If battle isn't your thing, you can always stock away treasure or ship parts to trade as well, which is a decent - but somewhat needless - addition.

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