The Legend of Zelda (1986)

Developer

Nintendo R&D4

Publisher

Nintendo, Playtronic

Platforms

Family Computer Disk System, Nintendo 3DS, Wii, Family Computer, Wii U, Nintendo Entertainment System

Genres

Adventure

Rating

4.0 of 5, 728 player ratings

Main story

about 6.5 hours

Completionist

about 8.0 hours

Where to get it

Nintendo eShop

How it feels

The legendary original Zelda invites free exploration of a dangerous overworld and dungeon-crawling to restore a shattered relic.

classicexplorationadventurefantasynostalgicopen worldpuzzle-heavy

About

The Legend of Zelda is the first title in the Zelda series, it has marked the history of video games particularly for it's game mechanics and universe. The player controls Link and must make his way through the forests, graveyards, plains and deserts of the Otherworld to find the secret entrances to the eight dungeons and try to restore the broken Triforce. Among the game's mechanics, it was the first time we saw a continuous world that could be freely explored, power-ups that permanently enhanced the main character's abilities and a battery save feature that allowed players to keep their progress instead of having to start over. The gameplay balanced action sequences with discovery, secrets and exploration.

Screenshots

More games like this

• Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (1987)
• The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017)
• Classic NES Series: The Legend of Zelda (2004)
• The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds (2013)
• The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past & Four Swords (2002)
• The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX (1998)
• The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (1993)
• The Legend of Zelda: Parallel Worlds (2006)

More by Nintendo

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• The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (2023)
• The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017)
• Super Metroid (1994)
• The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (1991)
• Metroid Prime: Trilogy (2009)
• Donkey Kong Bananza (2025)
• Super Mario World (1990)