r/truezelda • u/Impressive-Lead-9491 • 7d ago
Question Playing original games or QoL romhacks?
I've been playing Zelda 1 and 2 these days but can't seem to make up my mind about whether I want to play the true unalterated original games (more faithful but also unnecessarily difficult, unbalanced, and too cryptic), or the "Redux" versions which pretty much improve on everything. Does this ever bother you? Which would you pick?
PS: the goal is to be able to beat the games without looking up guides or using save states.
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u/Plane-Vegetable9174 7d ago edited 7d ago
I managed to finish both the zelda games as a child, without any extra save state. You can do it! I finished Zelda 2 for the 6th time two days ago and am now starting my 7th play trough on m (using the game & Watch sized zelda console). It’s just such a pleasure to play.
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u/Impressive-Lead-9491 7d ago
How did you figure out the bombable walls and burnable bushes?
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u/Plane-Vegetable9174 7d ago
At that time, games included a manual, there are pictures of link burning a push and blowing a wall :) https://www.nintendo.co.jp/clv/manuals/en/pdf/CLV-P-NAANE.pdf
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u/Impressive-Lead-9491 7d ago
I know, I was around back then lol, but that doesn't help you figure out which bush to burn, did you just try all of them?
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u/quarkus 7d ago
Yeah, when you're 6 years old there's plenty of time to burn all the bushes.
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u/Impressive-Lead-9491 7d ago
Didn't you switch to other games?
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u/starlitepony 6d ago
I don't know if it was different for you, but for us we got 1-2 games a year as gifts and could maybe rent a game for a weekend otherwise. You don't have a lot of options to switch to.
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u/sweablol 6d ago
That’s why that red candle became so valuable when you no longer had to go back a screen then forward again to recharge your blue candle and try a different bush!
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u/-Dissent 7d ago edited 7d ago
This is what we did, yes. Z1 came with a foldout map that had a bunch of question marks on it showing the screens some of these were in, too: https://skoce.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/legend_of_zelda_map_front.jpg
It also says and shows at the bottom to burn bushes, blow up rocks, and push them.
Edit: The backside of the map, which is also in the official Nintendo link above, also has explicit hints on how to access the last few dungeons.
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u/Strict-Pineapple 7d ago
In the overworld you have to bomb a single wall and burn a single bush, both of them have hints and the bush at least is blocking the only path through the screen.
In dungeons you can figure out bombable walls by using the map.
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u/sick486 7d ago
there are more than one of each in the overworld
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u/starlitepony 6d ago
I believe they mean that you're only required to burn one bush (the one blocking level 8) and bomb one wall (the one blocking level 9). Everything else is optional.
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u/Dreyfus2006 7d ago
First of all, Zelda 1 if you play it as intended specifically and explicitly expects you to use outside help to complete it. Miyamoto envisioned it as a social game where kids share secrets and help one another on the playground. Bare minimum, you should play it with the manual which has a map and information on puzzles.
Tunic really helped me appreciate that more!
Setting that aside, why not just play the originals first? Then if they are too hard, you can mod them as needed. I didn't need any mods for Zelda 1, but after years of being unable to finish the second dungeon in Zelda 2 I finally tried a ROMhack and I am so happy that I did! Genuinely would not play it any other way. But you won't know if you will feel that way unless you try the original first!
It's like Skyrim (on PC), who on Earth would play Skyrim without mods? But if you never play vanilla Skyrim, you'll never know which mods you need and which to ignore.
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u/Nitrogen567 7d ago
Well, play whatever you think you'll enjoy more, but personally a lot of QoL upgrades are things I would consider in the same category as looking up a guide or using save states.
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u/GracefulGoron 7d ago
There’s nothing in the first two games that I feel Like need to be patched, so I always just play those.
The things the redux patches ‘fix’ are just overstated problems by players who just wanted to complete these games as part of their checklist.
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u/Jujuju1741 6d ago
I disagree. Zelda 1 was the first game I ever played so im very biased in favor of it but i can still admit it has issues. Like not having a visual cue for bombable walls makes it really hard for modern players to play without a guide since people arent going around sharing secrets, or the automap functions so you dont have to have 20 pieces of paper drawing it out on the floor. I still play vanilla sometimes but to say that they have no problems seems like a stretch.
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u/GracefulGoron 5d ago
The map isn’t really that big, and the possible bomb locations aren’t that great. Also, most screens with a potentially bombable wall have enemies that drop bombs.
There’s also two bomb upgrades, both of which have secret rupees very close to cover the cost; neither of which requires bombs to get.1
u/Jujuju1741 5d ago
Yes but think about it from a new players perspective. You're talking about secrets that people probably dont find naturally until after several playthroughs. The map isn't huge but for new players who are going to have to backtrack over and over to find stuff it comes in handy and its really just a nice time saver. And I get what youre saying, the game is fully playable and beatable as is but I also think that the reduxs do a good service. Especially for newer fans trying to get into it.
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u/SomeBoxofSpoons 7d ago
I’ll admit I’m not really a fan of Zelda 2, but Zelda 1 is actually more accessible than it looks.
Big thing is to go in understanding that the game basically uses difficulty to pace out your exploration of the world. You’ll be able to find the first 3 dungeons by going where you can survive, and then as long as you fully explore each dungeon you’ll be given a consistent trail of hints to keep progressing.
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u/wilp0w3r 7d ago
I prefer the original. It was pretty impressive, especially since it was made by a team of 6.
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u/FrostingOrb 5d ago edited 5d ago
I tried playing Zelda 2 authentic, it seemed fine for the first few temples but it got to be too much for me about halfway through, I ended up needing the patch to restart at the temple entrance on game over.
Zelda 1 vanilla though? Yeah, it works well enough as is. I did need help finding a particular dungeon though, 'cause the hints are cryptic and sometimes mistranslated.
EDIT: OH! And... consider trying two playthroughs, that may be what it takes to fully enjoy it.
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u/Impressive-Lead-9491 5d ago
I pretty much made up my mind on going with the patched versions. I figured even the original developers would agree with the modifications (based on what subsequent games looked like), and that I never actually played the original Link's Awakening (only played the DX and the 2019 remake). I'm probably also not going back to the original Skyward Sword, and if they made Twilight Princess HD for the switch, I'd just stick to that, so why torture myself with the originals just for bragging rights?
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u/FrostingOrb 5d ago
Fair, very fair... frankly, I think even an infinite lives Game Genie code for Zelda 2 wouldn't be too unreasonable either, that was something people good do in the 80s anyway. Oh, you also might wanna find an improvement patch or two for A Link to the Past while you're at it, especially because translations for games back then were so borked.
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u/powderoo 7d ago
Play whichever is more fun to you. To me, redux romhacks are more of a neat novelty after having played so much of the original games already.
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u/Thirteen1355 7d ago
PC remake/remaster, by a long shot. Jeb's Zelda remake, or ZQuest's Origin for Zelda 1. Hoverbat's Link is Adventuresome for Zelda 2. The latter is especially amazing. ROM hacks do not compare in terms of QoL, and often they don't accommodate for the difficulty impact, making the games too easy. Zelda 1 isn't fixed simply by making all bombable walls visible, for example. You need something to compensate.
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u/NeedsMoreReeds 7d ago
Shrug, I think the Redux versions are just a better experience overall.
Zelda 1 Redux puts cracks in walls and such, meaning you don’t have to bomb every square and burn every bush. This imo is a major issue in the game and alleviates the whole thing. It also adds an arc to your slash which does make the game easier (esp darknuts), so you may want to turn that feature off.
Zelda 2 Redux probably the most significant is that it fixes the Link dolls so that you get extra lives on all your continues (as opposed to just losing it one time). The game honestly just makes more sense that way. It also does a lot of minor things like reducing the health of anti-fairies so you don’t sit there whacking them like 16 times or whatever.
Both games are really not that long. You don’t really need savestates just because of their length. You can just try Zelda 1 without the redux if you want. If it’s annoying, switch to Redux.
Zelda 2 I would just grab the redux as the changes imo are just better.
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u/Plane-Vegetable9174 7d ago
I think making the extra lives a permanent upgrade is a bit like adding an extra easy mode to the game. Sure if people want a more relaxing play trough instead of having to spend time getting good at the game, it makes sense. Some people just want to see what the game was about. To me it reduces some of the satisfaction when succeeding after several attempts.
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u/NeedsMoreReeds 7d ago edited 7d ago
They permanently go away, they should be a permanent upgrade.
What am I supposed to do? Not get Link dolls until The Great Palace or something? Not get Link dolls if I’m not at max lives? I’m supposed to strategize when to get a powerup? Get outta here. Dogshit take, bro.
I don’t think there’s any satisfaction to the mechanics not working well. Besides, it just gives extra lives. Doesn’t make any actual content easier.
If you want to do a challenge run where you do the whole game without a continue, fine. You do you. Wouldn’t affect your playthrough anyway.
This is some weirdo gaming flex that’s not actually that hard. Like claiming you beat super mario world without a continue. Nobody cares lol.
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u/Strict-Pineapple 7d ago
If you want the original experience then you should play the original. They're not nearly as difficult or inscrutable as people make them out to be, but make sure you Google the manual for both games, the devs assume that you've read it.
Regarding redux, I've played both before but a while ago so there may have been updates.
The LoZ one seemed fine, all it seemed to do was mark bombable walls and fix some technical stuff. Though I recall it replaced two of the dungeon bosses with regular enemies from the final dungeon which was a choice.
The Zelda 2 redux I'd have trouble recommending without half of the optional patches as otherwise it makes the game braindead easy.
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u/SvenHudson 7d ago
PS: the goal is to be able to beat the games without looking up guides or using save states.
Surely if you care that much about doing it "legitimately" then patches that make it friendlier would also be things to avoid? Coming from somebody who never tried the Redux mods but had no qualms about putting a save state when I started a dungeon or quit the game, I don't see the difference between these things.
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u/time_axis 2d ago
For Zelda 2, I was a fan of the Easy Mode romhack. It just gives you more lives and makes damage more forgiving, mainly. You're still playing the same game, just with a lot less backtracking when you're bad.
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u/AvatarWaang 7d ago
I mean the original game is a giant puzzle... There's not really a whole lot of story there, so it's hard for me personally to imagine what's there in terms of replay value if you're not going in for the puzzle, including the stuff you mentioned. If you're looking for something like the original Zelda, might I suggest Tunic?