The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

1993 · Action-Adventure · Game Boy

Overview

Link's Awakening was developed largely by junior Nintendo staff in their spare time and became one of the finest Zelda games. Set on a mysterious island rather than Hyrule, with no Ganon, no Triforce, and a story involving music and a sleeping whale deity, it was distinctly strange — and distinctly beloved. The island of Koholint was later revealed to be a dream.

Deep Dive

Link's Awakening began as an unofficial Game Boy port of A Link to the Past, developed by junior Nintendo staff member Takashi Tezuka outside official development time. When Nintendo management discovered the project and played it, they directed resources to complete it as an official release. The game's story — in which Link is trapped on an island that turns out to exist only as a dream — was unusually melancholy and sophisticated for a Game Boy game.

Developer Story

Link's Awakening grew out of an after-hours experiment on Game Boy hardware and was directed by Takashi Tezuka. The game launched in Japan in June 1993.

Did You Know?

It began as an after-hours experiment to see whether A Link to the Past could work on the Game Boy, and grew into an official project.
Mario enemies — Goombas, Piranha Plants, a Chain Chomp — turn up in the game, fitting its dreamlike setting.
Link's Awakening was the first Zelda game in which Princess Zelda does not appear — she is not a character in the story at all.
The 2019 Nintendo Switch remake recreated the original with a toy-like art style and added a Chamber Dungeon mode for arranging dungeon rooms.