What criticism did the original Legend of Zelda get?

Zelda II? Hard? King of...

Anyway, maybe they could try this for a Nintendo [3]DS title.

Yuck. No thanks. AoL was NOT fun, and the reason why was due entirely to the sidescrolling style. Give me an overhead zelda over a sidescroller any day of the week.

Besides, CDi did this with Wand of Gamelon and Faces of Evil . . . sidescrolling zelda had it's day in the [s]sun[/s] clouds and languished. Never again!

I'm pretty sure Nintendo could think of a great way to re-create a side-scrolling Zelda into something better than AoL given Wiiware, etc.

Agreed! Zelda II had some of the best combat styles to date in the series, and that was only possible because of its sidescrolling elements, like ducking and jump stabbing to get past the enemy's shield/defences. So I'd love to see that style return...

...just not for Zelda Wii. Or a 'main' release. But a WiiWare/3DS/inbetween game would be a brilliant opportunity!

Well I think that's possible for good side-scrolling Zelda game. It could even restore some of the difficuly that some of us seasoned players have been missing.
Also, just to throw in another moddern example of a good side-scrolling game: Trine.

I defintely want to see a new side-scrolling Zelda game for the 3DS.

Yes, sidescrolling does deserve another chance. I think Zelda II had very fun combat that wasn't topped until TP brought the learning of combat techniques to 3D. All I can say against Zelda II was that it suffered under some idiotic design choices. (You can only go into doors while someone else is holding them open? What?) But these things wouldn't fly nowadays, so I see a new sidescroller entering the scene as a great idea. Though, it would indeed be wise to do as people have said, and expiriment on Wiiware or an "in-between" game first.

Side-scrolling? Sorry, not really interested.

It's the 3d exploration that's always attracted me to Zelda, without that there's just no interest.

@talonmalon333
I totally agree and it may be great.

It just wouldn't really fit into the zelda series to date though, because imagine seeing a trailer for another sidescrolling zelda game. Wouldn't that feel a little odd?

I wouldn't like a full blown, all out side scrolling Zelda, like Zelda II was, but I think it would be a pretty good idea to include small portions of side scrolling, maybe involving a few items like the bow.

Not to get off topic, but what if the magic system in Zelda II (all the spells, I mean, not level ups) was integrated into Zelda Wii? Like, you could have fire, ice and thunder bombs, cast fire spells and earth spells, stuff like that.

I think it would be a goodthing to try. Switching up any formula keeps a game series fresh. Thats why im more excited than usual for zelda wii. but as for side scrolling it would be best on a handheld platform.

P.S.- Bastian, i get what your saying but please dont bring up cd-i. its pretty much understood that we dont talk about those "things". there not even real zelda games. "cd-i" should be a curse word. enough said.

I would be open to the idea of side scrolling in a DS Zelda game, but not the console Zelda's. I just think side scrolling restricts to much of what Zelda can offer. Especially in a big console release.

@Axapez
That was just what I was thinking when recently playing Zelda 2! I think itd be great!

Whoever doesn't like Zelda II is probably bad at it.

Why can't I bring up cd-i? They are sidescrolling Zeldas with pretty graphics. They may not have been developed by Nintendo, but they do exist. And I've played one. And hated it.

My point is that AoL and the cd-i games are sidescrolling Zeldas and we all unanimously dislike them, right? Why would we want to see the series go backwards to its darkest day?

An inverse example: the third Ys game was a sidescroller. The first two were overhead style. But like Zelda team they decided to try sidescrolling. It was awful. Thankfully, that game has since been remade into an overhead ARPG.

I'd love to see AoL follow suit. It would be awesome to have AoL as a new overhead style game.

ADVENTURE OF LINK IS AN AMAZING GAME STFU

This is a good idea; putting side-scrolling mechanics back into Zelda. Nice job!

You're seriously saying the CD-i's sucked due to the fact that they were sidescrollers? No, they suffered from horrible design flaws (only can open inventory when crouching, pick up rupees by stabbing, bad collision detection, poor integration of lantern use etc.)They are not valid arguments against integration of sidescrolling gameplay, they are arguments against horribly sloppy programming and untalented designers.

I'm not saying that the ONLY reason whey the CD-i games sucked was because they were side scrollers, but I am saying that it is a factor. Yes, all of the other design flaws you listed are factors as well. But let's look at AoL: it suffers from none of those specific design flaws, yet it royally bites. (This is coming from someone who bought and played it when it first game out and has beaten it at least three times.)

What is good about AoL? The story/backstory, the sense of a huge overworld. What sucks about it? The dungeons and the towns. Why do the dungeons and towns suck? Because they're sidescrolling.

Anyway, what everyone seems to be forgetting here is that LA and FSA (and I think the Oracle games?) all feature sidescrolling at specific times. And while it's . . . okay (MUCH better than the version depicted in AoL) it's still odd feeling for a Zelda game.

Hate to say it but I strongly disagree. Side scrolling and zelda dont really mix. AoL was good but the side-scrolling didnt add anything to the game and it definitely took away from the combat.

Oops! Completely ignore my comment at the top. When describing Zelda II's difficulty, I accidentally said "King of". However I meant to say "Kind of". By that I mean the game really isn't that hard.

I would also like to take back what I said about a 2D Zelda game. I think it shouldn't be done either way.

If done right, it could be quite an interesting and good game. So I say yes. Probably more for a handheld or WiiWare though.

Maybe something like a mix of the game mechanics NSMBWii and Brawl have would work. I could see using the Clawshot, Bow and whatnot in some of the levels in that style.

@ AShadowLink:
You think that everyone who hates a game sucks at it, don't you? Then you suck at Final Fantasy XIII.

I see A LOT of people complaining about side scrolling, and saying that was why "AoL" sucked.

Ahem: Side Scrolling wasn't the reason, it was the clunky controls. Really, the towns sucked in AoL? At least it had towns, something The Legend of Zelda did not. So to say something sucks that we have never seen before and has become a staple since is pretty funny. The towns were small, but fine. You met Error, got to sleep with chicks to regain health. Overall, the towns themselves, for when the game came out, were actually brilliant. Some of the first of their kind in gaming.

When it comes to the dungeons... how was sidescrolling bad? The only downfall was the clunky and limited controls in these areas, but it actually worked out just fine.

Let me say this: TAoL is one of my favorite games in the series because it was bold, very bold, and it worked. Maybe others hated it because they kept dieing all the time, but that because the game is hard as hell. I LOVE hard games. There are some annoyances, but there are always some in every game. TAoL was brilliant, it just wasn't a game that was going to have mass appeal.

I have seen several games come out since TAoL that did a similar style and people loved it. There is no reason Zelda can't do it again. \

People always seem to want Zelda to change, but any time a change is suggested or occurs in the series I just see people bitch about it. It's Zelda folks, enjoy it. I like seeing the changes, and I am always fine with going back to the roots to make those changes.

The reason I don't think side scrolling would work too well with Zelda doesn't have to do with Zelda II. I loved that game.

Though on second thought, maybe side scrolling would work for a WiiWare game, mostly if it just had side scrolling sections like Zelda II, rather than the entire game.

I'd rather have a new top down view Zelda on the Wii similar to LoZ, ALTTP, LA, and the Oracles.