I guess I'll throw in brief reviews of the 4 Zeldas I've played this year though it's been a couple months, in the order I played them.
Phantom Hourglass (DS, played on emulator)
I went in with very low expectations, knowing that this was one of the worse rated Zeldas in the series.
Though controls are dumbed down a lot and you control everything with the supposed stylus (no D-Pad possible), in my case point and click with the mouse - it works really well and what they've done with some of the items/physics is borderline genius. Boss fights are very creative - however they're so easy that it's a bit forgettable for the most part. The world is pretty big for a 2D game, many hours of exploring and fun. The side quests aren't as good/interesting though and the main problem with this game for many people is a temple you'll actually have to do over several times, only with small twists, the obstacles/puzzles remain the same. I actually went online and looked if I was missing something, as going through the same rooms and doing the same (long) puzzles didn't seem right, but somehow it was intended (what were they thinking?). The boat traveling isn't awesome but it's still fine and refreshing, I quite liked it and think Wind Waker fans will as well. The music is good but not as memorable as the bigger titles. Puzzles are quite creative and fun to do, but definitely a bit too easy for experienced players. Dungeons are a bit short. Well worth playing for fans of the series. I was actually very positively surprised by this game.
8
Spirit Tracks (DS, played on emulator)
I won't say that much about this game because it's extremely similar to PH in gameplay.
The main story, quests, items and dungeons are fine. The puzzles though are even easier than PH. This has really gotten to a point where they give massive hints to the solutions and at times you'll immediately know what you're supposed to do before you even start doing it. For example in earlier games like Link to the Past or Link's Awakening, hints (if any at all) would be more in a form of cryptic riddles and you could be stuck for hours and suddenly get the "A-ha!". This is no more and it just isn't challenging.
The method of traveling in this game is the worst by far I've ever experienced in a Zelda game. We're basically talking constantly traveling for several minutes, in a linear path where you can't do anything but shoot down randomly appearing enemies and you're just waiting to "get there" with no challenge at all. This was so tedious for me that I actually didn't want to do any side quests at all in this game, which is a first. Again, items/weapons and (except one of the late ones), most fights are really cool in this game as well, though still not very challenging. Music in this game is excellent and has to be mentioned. The overworld theme in Spirit Tracks is possibly my favorite song from just about any video game and it helps the traveling become a lot more enjoyable. I am in the minority of people who definitely prefer Phantom Hourglass over Spirit Tracks though. I think this is a great game for first timers and a must for people who own a DS. I decided to buy this game for my 9 year old nephew and my sister says he loves it.
7.5
The Wind Waker (Gamecube, played on Wii)
I was one of the many who was a bit put off by the "cartoony/childish" graphics when this was released, and not having a GC I didn't get the chance to play it until recently, 10 years after its release.
Well, it was worth postponing the experience because it's a damn awesome game and much better than I ever imagined. It's way more similar to Ocarina of Time than it looks and I'll say you'll almost definitely like it if you liked OoT/MM if you keep an open mind the first few hours. It's obviously more light-hearted and not creepy at all, well except perhaps "The Savage Labyrinth" which is a side quest.
Superb game overall, the sea is HUGE and though I've heard numerous complaints about all the sailing (and needing to change wind direction frequently), I thought it was enjoyable. It's beautiful and very refreshing after having played through Spirit Tracks. There's just a ton to do in this game, there's a massive amount of area to explore and you'll find things to do even in the oddest locations where you won't expect there to be anything. My only complaint about this game would be that there aren't enough dungeons and a significant part of the main quest is repetitive and feels a bit out of place. From what I've heard, 2 whole dungeons were cut from the game due to deadlines and what not (I've also heard they're being put in the HD re-release for Wii U this fall). If you're gonna 100% this without a walkthrough, my guess is 100hours+. I did everything I wanted to and spent about 60 hours. I should mention that this is the easiest Zelda when it comes to fighting, I'd say it's almost hard to die in this game because the enemies do so little damage. I may have died once early on with 3 hearts, but after that, the main quest was a walk in the park when it comes to combat. This takes away a bit of the reward from side questing, now you may get all the heart pieces - the thing is you'll have no use for them whatsoever.
9
Twilight Princess (Wii/GameCube)
I played the GC version of this game on Wii because I'm not a huge fan of motion control plus the runners on twitch recommended it.
So the introduction is a bit slow and it took a couple of hours to get into it, but just wow at what an adventure this turned out to be. It's a big change from Wind Waker in design and general atmosphere, and in my opinion this is near exactly what I think Zelda should be like. I really hope they return to this style in the future, having just briefly looked at Skyward Sword which again introduces a big change (planning to play it this month).
I had heard a lot of negativity about TP as well so I wasn't expecting a ton but I was blown away by how well everything is done. The universe is just so compelling. It's a lot like OoT just even more "mature" and up to date.
I pretty much love everything about this game and I ended up spending about 70 hours on my playthrough, getting everything except one category I didn't find interesting.
I almost wish I was 13 again to experience this game in a more pure way.
Of course, difficulty is again an issue here as with the 3 other games, but I guess we'll just have to get used to easy Zeldas and getting every boss first try (sadly). That said, it's the least easy of these 4 games though it's not saying a lot.
This is right up there with the best Zelda games ever as far as I'm concerned. I hope Skyward Sword is as good and look forward to it, not so much waving the wiimote though
9.5