Castlevania (1986)

 

Castlevania produced by Konami was a gothic styled platformer in which the player controls Simon Belmont on his quest to slay Dracula.  The game played like a traditional platformer sidescroller that was very common for the Nintendo.  Basically you navigate through Dracula's castle with your trusty whip the Vampire Killer.  Along with your whip you can get other throwing items such as a knife,axe,holy water, a watch that stops time, and cross that acts like a boomerang.  This game used hearts for ammo of your sub weapns listed above, which was very strange becuase games at the time typically made hearts a way to get back health.  If you wanted the heal you had to hit the walls with your whip and inside one of the bricks you would find a Pork Chop and thus replenish some of your health.

Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time (1998)

The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time is sweet.  There is just nothing else to say about it, as one of my personal favorite games, lets just say that it wasted a lot of my childhood.  Released in 1998 as the 5th game in the series it was the first Zelda game to have 3D graphics and boasted the z trigger targeting system.  Once again you play as link on a quest to save Hyrule from Ganondorf the king of the Gerudos.  For this quest you need to get the mastersword from the temple of time, first you need to get three spiritual stones, then you get the Ocarina of Time from Princess Zelda herself.   Once you have done this you will get the sword and travel into time and become an adult version of yourself.  Upon doing so you will need to free the sages from Ganondorf one dungeon at a time.  Finally you confront the man himself and save the day once again.  Ocarina of Time has recieved several awards including the Grand Prize of Interactive Art. This game has also been called the best videogame of all time and the best Zelda game of all time, and who could forget the famous battle against your shadow self, you can't because this game is just so awsome.

Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (1991)

Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is the third Zelda game created by Shigeru Miyamoto.  when the bar was lowered for the second game this one shot the bar through the roof.  In other words the game far exceeded any expectations and erased any doubts you had about this game.  Many fans think this is the first in the series while others think it is just a prequel to the first one and Ocarina of Time is a prequel to this game :( WTF. The timeling makes no sense!!!!!!! Anyway the gameplay is now back to the original gameplay, the overworld is the same as the battle screen and the experience points have been dropped.So onto the plot .In this game you are at first tasked with saving the Princess Zelda, which surprisingly is at the very beginning of the game, then you need to gather the 3 pendents to get the master sword.  Then you need to rescue the 7 maidens and get the crystals. THEN you need to defeat Ganon and the evil wizard Agahnim.  Finally saving the world of Hyrule until the next game. 

Want More Zelda?

http://www.zelda.com/universe/?ref

Zelda II: Adventure of Link (1987)

Zelda II: Adventure of Link.  Lets just say that it radiates awesomeness.  Also produced by Shigeru Miyamoto, the man who created the first Zelda game.  This is the only direct sequel to the first game which has sparked heated debates with Zelda fans everywhere is to just how the timeline goes.  Once again you need to gather the triforce pieces and save the princess who in this game is in a deep sleep.  Then you must confront the Thunderbird instead of Ganon.  Zelda II was a different change of pace from its predecessor, in this quest you were in control of Link in a side scrolling manner, but the overworld map is the same, except to get into combat little black blobs had to touch you and then you fight monsters or dodge little cottenballs.  Also did i mention that there was experience points?  There is and as you level up you can choose to upgrade your magic or health, and sometimes your attack level.  This game has been regarded as the "odd man out" of the Zelda series.  As for my personal opinion i think it is freaking awesome :P

Here is some footage of Zelda II

The Legend of Zelda (1986)

The Legend of Zelda released in 1986 was designed by Japanese game designers Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka.  The story behind the game is that Shigeru Miyamoto when he was a boy in Kyoto he would go and explore the forests and rivers near his home.  He even explored a cave with the help of a lantern. This game was the first to allow the players to save without the use of a password which was very innovatinve at the time.  After entering your name you embark on an epic quest to save the Princess Zelda and obtain the triforce so that you may slay the evil Gerudo, Ganon. The Legend of Zelda featured challenging puzzles, an epic adventure, a captivating story, and exploration that tested even the most grizzled of gamers. This game also featured a second quest, if you type in ZELDA as your name the dungeons will be different, the monsters will be harder, and item location is different.  This game has set the stage for videogames and has been elevated to almost a cult.    

The First Article

This is the GRAND OPENING of my blog dedicated to retro gaming and all its glory
RETRO HEAVEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  For my first article i would like to check out the legendary Legend of Zelda series (the retro games of course).