THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: PHANTOM HOURGLASS REVIEW (+ HOMEBREW CHALLENGE)

 

It’s been a few months that I started replaying the DS sequel of Wind Waker on the side, while of course I was trying to complete the Main Quest of Age of Calamity.

I mostly played it while I was on the road, having my 3DS in my backpack, spending some hours before I go to sleep on weekdays and at last, yesterday I refinished The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass with a little hombrew challenge so I’d make it more interesting (you can read it after the review).

Now let’s get into my review about the things I liked and the things that I would change.

 

First about the things that I liked about the game:

1. The gameplay with the stylus is really innovative and you can get used to it after some time. Sure it can be tiring at some points, but I really enjoyed playing the game back then and today.

2. The touch screen gives you more possibilities, like taking notes on the map about where to go, how to solve a puzzle etc. I love that the game was built around that.

3. The dungeons are really polished and fit this new gameplay perfectly. The progression of dungeon difficulty is perfect for you to get used to this new controls.

4. The exploration of this part of Great Sea with Linebeck’s ship feels amazing. With new islands, treasure, nice sea battles and of course… FISHING!

5. The characters are really interesting and you can feel the connection with them. I really cared about Ciela, Linebeck, Oshus and of course Tetra. These are some Zelda characters done right.

6. There are great side-quests and mini games all around Great Sea that can provide you with treasures, upgrades and heart containers. Really you can spend so many hours on the sea just looking for side-quests, new islands, mini games and of course treasure.

7. Every boss battle is amazing. The use of the Dungeon item plus the stylus controls, really create a unique experience.

8. The end of the game - I won’t spoil it - is amazing. One of the best endings of the series. I won’t say more.

 

Now the things that I would/could change:

1. Well, first one is a given…. The Ocean King’s Temple is repetitive, boring and dreadful for all the wrong reasons. The only thing I hated after finishing a dungeon, was that I had to go back there….

2. I didn’t like the fact that the Phantom Sword - the only sword upgrade of the game - is provided at the last hours of the game. I mean, you have to go through the final dungeon, with the same sword and shield you went through the first one. I think that’s the only Zelda game that does that.

3. I know this may be just a small thing, but I don’t like the fact it’s always daytime. I would love some night time on the sea.

4. Even though Joelene’s ark is kind of interesting, it got boring really soon and I was trying to avoid her for most of the time.

 

In conclusion, is Phantom Hourglass a good game? Well it is one of the most underrated games I can tell you that. Yes, it has a unique play-style which is hard to get used to it and yes it has some problems BUT it really is a good game that anyone can enjoy. Although it surely lacks compared to its prequel, Wind Waker.

 

At the end of the game my Quest Log was looking like:

16 Hearts

1 Death

Sword: Phantom Sword

Shield: Wooden Shield

Items: Boomerang, Bombs, Bow, Bombchus, Grappling Hook, Hammer, Shovel, Purple Potion

Upgrades: Giant Bomb Bag, Giant Quiver, Giant Bombchu Bag

Ship Upgrades: Canon, Gale Slate, Fishing Rod, Salvage Arm

Spirit Fairies: Leaf Lv2, Neri Lv2, Ciela Lv2

Pure Metals: Crimsonine, Azunine, Aquanine

Phantom Hourglass Sand: 22:00

Rupees: 2.443

 

Homebew Hero’s Challenge for Phantom Hourglass

If you are like me and you want to upgrade the difficulty of a Zelda game you have finished multiple times in the past, you can try my Homebrew Challenges.

In my playthrough Phantom Hourglass, I was under the Hero’s Challenge Rules, that I created myself.

The rule is really simple:

You can heal yourself only by using potions, obtaining heart containers or picking up healing hearts in safe zones (villages-houses). Otherwise you just have to endure the damage you take.

Give it a try. It can be really challenging.