The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is returning with a full-blown remake later this year, and it’s far from the first example of the franchise’s eagerness to revisit its most iconic entries. Ocarina of Time has been remade once before, to start, along with remakes of Majora’s Mask and Link’s Awakening and remasters of The Wind Waker, Twilight Princess, and Skyward Sword.
Somehow, however, A Link to the Past has been comparatively neglected. While the game got a modified port on the Game Boy Advance, nearly 25 years have passed with nothing new beyond eShop releases and Nintendo Switch Online availability. Admittedly, A Link Between Worlds served as a full-blown successor, but the original game has finally received a new comeback from outside Nintendo.
This week, fan developer estebanpdn took to X to highlight their recent 3DS port of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. This port doesn’t just slap the game on the system, instead adding proper dual-screen support to take advantage of the 3DS hardware. It was only tested on the revised New Nintendo 3DS, but estebanpdn has now confirmed in the time since release that it’s proven to run “great” on original 3DS systems as well.
When playing estebanpdn’s version of A Link to the Past, the bottom 3DS screen houses a live map, dungeon map, gear view, item selection, and touch settings. Not only does this make dealing with items and menu navigation more convenient, it also keeps the main view of the game free from any UI clutter, making it arguably the most immersive way to play A Link to the Past yet. The main screen can also display the game in a modified widescreen presentation, stretched version of the original aspect ratio (avoid this one, please), or the original aspect ratio.
Playing the fan port of A Link to the Past on a 3DS will require a hacked system, which, while simple enough to do, probably requires an “at your own risk” disclaimer. Estebanpdn also notes that fans will need a “legally obtained USA, unheadered ROM” of A Link to the Past. The repository for the port doesn’t contain the actual ROM or assets from the game, which would flagrantly defy copyright law regarding game distribution.
Hopefully, Nintendo will take another official look at A Link to the Past soon, as it would be nice to be able to actually purchase a copy on the Nintendo Switch or Switch 2 without requiring a Nintendo Switch Online subscription. For those who have a hacked 3DS on hand, however, the fan alternative might just be the definitive option for one of The Legend of Zelda‘s greatest game.
- Released
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April 13, 1992
- ESRB
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E For Everyone Due To Mild Violence
- Developer(s)
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Nintendo EAD
