The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX
A colorized version of Link's Awakening with new features.
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX is an action-adventure game from 1998, made by Nintendo for the Game Boy Color. It is a colorized version of the 1993 Game Boy game The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening. In it, the hero Link must fight monsters, explore dungeons, and solve puzzles to find a way off Koholint Island. This DX edition adds a dungeon built around color-based puzzles and support for the Game Boy Printer.
Gameplay is shown from a top-down view. Players guide Link, who is stranded on Koholint Island, on a quest to collect the eight Instruments of the Sirens so he can wake the Wind Fish and leave. Progress comes from exploring the open island and completing dungeons, which involve solving puzzles and defeating enemies to earn new items—like the hookshot—that open up new or previously blocked areas. The DX version has fully colorized graphics, but it still works in monochrome on the original Game Boy. It also works with the Game Boy Printer through a photo album feature. Players can visit an in-game Camera Shop, where a photographer appears to take pictures of Link during twelve specific events. These pictures can be viewed in the album or printed as stickers using the Game Boy Printer connected via a Game Link Cable.
A new hidden dungeon, the Color Dungeon, is included. It has puzzles based on color, with color-coded enemies and switches. Finishing it lets the player choose one of two items: the Red Tunic, which boosts attack power, or the Blue Tunic, which reduces damage taken. The DX version also changes the hints given by statues in dungeons to offer more guidance.
Development was led by director Yohinori Tsuchiyama and handled by Nintendo’s Research & Development 2 team, a small group focused on hardware add-ons and software. Takashi Tezuka, who directed the 1993 original, had little involvement, as he was supervising The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time at the time. For the Color Dungeon, Yuichi Ozaki created a music piece based on Koji Kondo’s dungeon theme from the first Legend of Zelda.
An emulated version of Link's Awakening DX came to the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console on June 7, 2011. It got small updates to use 3DS hardware, like a larger display, analog controls with the Circle Pad, and options to suspend, save, and restore gameplay at any time.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Nintendo R&D2
- Publisher
- Nintendo
- Director
- Yohinori Tsuchiyama
- Series
- The Legend of Zelda
- Platforms
- Game Boy Color
- Released
- December 12, 1998 (JP); December 15, 1998 (NA); January 1999 (EU); January 22, 1999 (AU)
- Genre
- Action-adventure
- Modes
- Single-player
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Link's Awakening DX was developed by Nintendo's Research & Development 2 team, a small team dedicated to hardware peripherals and software, under director Yohinori Tsuchiyama. The project had minimal supervision from Takashi Tezuka, director of the 1993 original, who was involved at the time as a supervisor for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. For the Color Dungeon, Yuichi Ozaki created a musical piece based on Koji Kondo's dungeon theme from the original The Legend of Zelda.
The game is played in a top-down perspective, guiding Link through a quest to collect the eight Instruments of the Sirens to awaken the Wind Fish and leave Koholint Island. Players explore an open world island and complete dungeons, solving puzzles and defeating enemies to acquire new items such as a hookshot. The DX version features fully colorised graphics, though it is backward compatible in monochrome with the original Game Boy. It includes a photo album compatible with the Game Boy Printer, accessed through an in-game Camera Shop where a photographer appears to take pictures of Link over twelve events. An additional hidden dungeon, the Color Dungeon, features color-based puzzles including color-coded enemies and switches; completion allows the player to choose between the Red Tunic (increases attack power) or the Blue Tunic (decreases damage taken). The game also modifies hints given by statues in dungeons to provide additional guidance.
Reader's Guide
Upon release, Link's Awakening DX was critically acclaimed, with reviewers commending the game on the strengths of the original title and welcoming the addition of color graphics and new features, though noting the additions were largely insubstantial compared to the original game. Critics generally agreed that the additions were welcomed but minimal in substance, with Electronic Gaming Monthly finding it not too different from the original, and Colin Williamson of Allgame describing the game as a 'paint job' and 'essentially the same game'. The colorisation was praised: Electronic Gaming Monthly described the graphics as 'sharp' and adding 'vibrant life', while Total Game Boy stated the color was a major improvement. The Color Dungeon received mixed reception, with Electronic Gaming Monthly calling it 'lame' and a 'total disappointment', and Paul Davies of Computer & Video Games considering it 'not so amazing'.
Retrospectively, Link's Awakening DX has been cited by critics as one of the best games for the Game Boy and Game Boy Color systems, including by Game Boy Official Magazine, Pocket Games, GamePro, and Nintendo Power. It was re-released on the Nintendo 3DS via the Virtual Console in June 2011, receiving minor updates such as extended display, analog controls with the Circle Pad, and options to suspend, save and restore gameplay at any time. In July 2013, it was offered as a free gift to elite status members of North America Club Nintendo. Another emulated version was released as part of the Nintendo Classics service in February 2023. In December 2023, a fan-made port for PC was released with widescreen, zoom and high-framerate support, but was taken down after a takedown notice from Nintendo on the basis of copyright infringement.
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