The Legend of Zelda 3D by MauiGames

The Legend of Zelda is my favorite game ever. Not in a nostalgic, rose-colored glasses kind of way. I try to play it at least once a year and I enjoy it every single time. After nearly forty years the original gold cart holds up in a way that most modern games with ten times the budget don't come close to matching.

So, when I was looking to switch things up, scoping out randomizers, ROM hacks, the usual rabbit holes, I stumbled onto something different: a full 3D port of the original game built from scratch in Godot Engine by a solo developer named MauiGames. Not the Doom engine port you might have seen. This one was developed ground up, rendered in a unique 3D sprite visual style.

I loaded it up expecting a mess. Something half-finished. A proof of concept at best.

Then...I was floored.

You're on the ground in Hyrule, following Link as he swings his sword and rolls through the adventure, with the ability to target specific enemies that makes sword beams feel almost like a third-person shooter. It's almost 100% faithful to the original in terms of layout, enemies, music, and feel. The sound effects play exactly as they would on the NES.

Side note: The original Legend of Zelda was the first game of its kind: an open world exploration adventure that trusted players to figure out almost everything themselves. No tutorial. No waypoints. No handholding.

There are some bugs here and there. The first sword has a slightly short reach and you'll take damage on swings that should connect before finding the range. Once you get the White Sword it smooths out considerably. Once you get the Master Sword it's practically cheating. Swings go farther, range widens, and you'll start walking into screens with reckless abandon. The power curve feels right. I died several times with the red sword, as it should be.

The only enemies that really have me problems were Zoras are overpowered, the Patra, and the orange Wizzrobe is still the most annoying thing in Hyrule.

The new mechanics added for the 3D format are mostly welcome. Roll, spin attack, lock on, and slash all feel natural. Parrying I never fully adapted to, and forces you to freeze in place which created some friction in heavier encounters. But crucially, none of the new mechanics are mandatory. You can ignore the parry entirely and play it like it's 1987 if that's your preference.

There are also extra playable characters hidden behind specific save file names as Easter eggs for fans of the wider Zelda canon. A small thing that signals exactly what kind of developer made this. Someone who knows the lore, loves it, and wanted to reward people who do too.

My only real frustration was after completing the first quest and raising the Triforce over Ganon's smoldering ashes, I went about loading up the Second Quest. It isn't there yet. The original game had a hidden second dungeon map that essentially doubled the content. MauiGames hasn't built it. Can't complain though, what is finished is awesome.

It's nuts a solo developer built this in their spare time. For free. In a game engine they probably taught themselves. And it's one of the most genuinely joyful gaming experiences I've had this year, bugs included.

Go find it. Grab it. Play it. And do it soon, before Nintendo's obliterates it from existence.