Being the third of the official Zelda releases, LttP had many elements from the previous series present in the new game. Unlike Zelda II, though, A Link to the Past returned to the wholly-overhead camera system, dropping the somewhat awkward two-dimensional sidescrolling elements from The Adventure of Link. Link himself was given several crucial upgrades, including the ability to walk diagonally, run, and attack foes without directly facing them.

The most obvious change to the game were its beautiful graphics. Coming from the relatively less-than-stellar NES (at least graphically), Link’s newest SNES adventure was rich, colorful, and extremely well-detailed. Also immediately noticeable was the new audio capabilities of the system, put to the test by world-renowned video game composer Koji Kondo.

Zelda III threw players into the body of young Link, setting out to find his Uncle one rainy night. Having fallen into a dank part of the castle, Link’s uncle gives him a sword and tells him to find young Princess Zelda. Link rescues Zelda, and brings her to a sanctuary via sewers. Once there, Link learns of a plan hatched by the dark wizard Agahnim to release the uber-powerful Ganon into the Light World. Before the title sees conclusion, Link has to find three pendants to acquire the Master Sword, and then free the Seven Sages from various dungeons scattered about the Dark World before facing off with Ganon.

What A Link to the Past mainly brought to the series were magical spells, weapons, items, and themes that have made appearances in basically every game that came afterwards. LttP introduced the hookshot, a grappling hook type weapon used to stun enemies and keep them at bay, bring in distant objects, as well as traverse gaps within the environments. The game also gave a name to Link’s sword – the Master Sword – and that name has stuck throughout the series. Lastly, introduced into A Link to the Past was the concept of different but parallel worlds – the Light and Dark world theme was crucial to the plot of the game. Many puzzles on the overworld environment had to be solved by thinking about and making adjustments to the differences between the Light World and Dark World. This theme comes into play later with The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time, where players can control a young link in a fruitful Hyrule, and an older Link in a war-torn Hyrule, and most obviously Twilight Princess, where Link can traverse the realm of the real and the realm of the Twilight.

The many things that were introduced in A Link to the Past and brought into later games in the series would make up a vast list. Most noteworthy, though, are the ability to change and upgrade Link’s weapons and armor, Link’s spinning sword attack, spells that damage by area of effect, hidden areas inside dungeons and caves found underground, and more. It is also worth noting that Link played an ocarina in A Link to the Past to summon a bird that allowed him to quickly travel about the land. Link’s Ocarina came back directly into Ocarina of Time, and musical elements have played a role in most titles since.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is much more popular and successful than many games featured on Spawn Kill’s Do You Remember, but there are reasons why it belongs. Not only is it an often-overlooked title on an older platform, but it significantly changed the outlook for the rest of the games in the series – a series which to this day influences games across all genres and mediums, and remains one of the most hotly anticipated and financially successful series throughout the world.

Do You Remember is an ongoing effort at Spawn Kill to showcase some of the great and often forgotten titles in gaming history. Be sure to check back every Thursday for the newest edition of Do You Remember.

The Ocarina is one of the iPhone community’s many social applications to gain popularity over a short period of time. It is what you think it is, an ocarina. Although I must stress that it’s not just your Guitar Hero iPhone tapping games like I thought it’d be, simple button pressing which would play a tune to your tapping, but it is all that toy ocarina could have brought you! (Since most of us probably didn’t get to buy it since it required some sort of crazy plastic intelligence we did not yet own at that age.) You actually blow into the phone and hold different flute-like notes down on the screen to create a change in pitch to your tune.

Since it is a social app, it has some pretty fascinating features aside from just playing the instrument. Ocarina allows you to tap on an icon that will bring you to a screen of the globe, in which you can tape on any section of the globe to see and listen in on people playing from all over! I think that’s pretty interesting, and if you want people to not just see you as a “random,” you can set a name to your ocarina and people can see a name when they listen, in case you plan on being the next YouTube hit or performing in front of a live (?) audience one day via your iPhone.

Check it out at Smule’s website. It does cost 99 cents, but it’s very unique and everything you never had. It is one to stand apart from the outpouring of applications lately in the App store.

Also, how fair would I be being to you if I didn’t include a video of this baby in action? Enjoy the Song of Storms from The Legend of Zelda. I was going to put up a video of someone making a fool of themselves, but, hrdrockgrrl’s sweet music making skill could not go unnoticed.