The Legend of Zelda: Oracle Of Seasons

2025-08-05
Last week I visited the Nintendo store in SF. Walking around and seeing big statues of Mario, Link, and Pikmin was a trip but the thing that stuck me the most was just seeing these two little girls absolutely locked the fuck in watching someone play Mario Kart World on a big projection screen. It’s a reminder that as a child you can find a sense of wonder in just about anything but also a reminder that Nintendo is able to cultivate that wonder with their vibrant and colorful worlds better than almost anyone. It's a feeling I'm always chasing and replaying the Oracles of games brought me right back.

The first thing that inspires wonder is how gorgeous the games are. Crispy, colorful sprite art that on an Analogue Pocket screen makes a grown man want to weep. There's charm for days with great music and rideable animal companions. (I was a Dimitri fan as a kid but now I'm Team Moosh for sure.) With all of this effusive charm, even if you were to ignore all the actual gameplay, exploring Holodrum and Labrynna is such a treat.

But why would you? Ages focuses on puzzles and Seasons focuses on combat but they're both exceptionally breezy and fun affairs. Compared to Link to the Past the pacing feels far, far better with smaller, denser world maps that always have you know where to go next. Pair that with the much more immediately intuitive fun of switching between Past/Present and Spring/Summer/Fall/Winter vs the boring Light/Dark World switch and it feels like a clear winner. You're spending your time doing all the right things: bouncing between dungeons, acquiring new items, and meeting new characters.

The coolest part for me is still the interconnectivity. This was the era of 2 separate copies of the same game with small changes popularized by Pokemon. Here you not only have two whole games, but playing both adds extra dialogue, characters, and a final chapter to the games. Characters in one world know characters from the other world and if you finish Ages first people know you're the hero of Labrynna when you come to Holodrum. Ah and the extended trading sequence that goes back and forth between the two games being the only way to get the Master Sword is perfect.

There's a reason the Oracles games are my favorite 2D Zeldas and coming back 20 year later I'm happy to report it ain't just nostalgia.

PS: It figures the first Zelda I’d really get into as a kid was the one made by Capcom devs. Not only that but the director would go on to direct Tears of the Kingdom, an absolute Top 5 All Time game for me.