Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming

The Zelda-themed Game & Watch is a collector’s item done right

Giovanni Colantonio
By

If there’s one thing Nintendo loves, it’s reselling its most iconic games in as many ways as possible. Well, depending on the game, that is. While you can’t easily get a beloved classic like Earthbound, you could spend a fortune buying different iterations of Super Mario Bros. Nintendo’s most inventive rerelease came last year when it ported the platformer to a special-edition Game & Watch. At $50, it was a little pricey considering that the game is included with Nintendo Switch Online. Still, it was an irresistibly cute concept for Nintendo history buffs.

Game & Watch: The Legend of Zelda – Announcement Trailer

The company clearly saw potential in the idea, because it has now given The Legend of Zelda the same treatment. The latest Game & Watch recreation contains many of the same features as the Mario edition, but it gives fans a little more for the price tag. Yes, it’s $50 for three old games, but its a more fun way to repackage classics — something the company has struggled with in recent months.

Recommended Videos

Game & Hyah!

Like the Mario edition, the Zelda Game & Watch is a perfect recreation of Nintendo’s oldest handheld gaming device. It features the same button layout and thin, rectangular design as the 80s original. The rubbery buttons and four-direction D-pad are all intact. It has a few modern bells and whistles to it, namely a USB-C port to charge it. Green accents give it some Zelda flair, as does the triforce emblem emblazoned on the back of the device. A lot of care has gone into making sure this doesn’t just feel like an overpriced Tiger Electronics handheld.

Related
A hand holding the Zelda Game & Watch system.

As soon as I powered it on, I was smitten as classic Zelda art lit up the screen. It may be a small device, but it packs quite a few details. When I set the device’s clock, I get to see little scenes from the NES Legend of Zelda play out as the time displays on a dungeon floor. There’s a timer function, which takes place over one of Zelda 2‘s 2D battles. According to Nintendo, players can even unlock Zelda art by meeting secret requirements in games. All of those touches make it more appealing as a collector’s item.

Of course, its more than a $50 clock. The Zelda Game & Watch comes with three games (four if you count a recreation of Vermin where Link hammers Octoroks): The Legend of Zelda, Zelda 2: The Adventures of Link, and The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening.

The standout among the trio is Link’s Awakening, for a few reasons. For one, it’s the one that’s hardest to come by on Switch. You can buy a solid remake of it for full retail, but the Game Boy original can’t be played on modern consoles. It’s also has some extra touches that I appreciate, like multiple language options and the ability to play full-screen or in the old Game Boy square ratio. More importantly, it’s the best game of the bunch and one that feels right at home on a tiny handheld screen. It was designed for the Game Boy, so the text is larger and more legible than Zelda 2, which was made with TVs in mind.

The Zelda Game & Watch sitting in a cardboard stand.

While the NES games are more readily available, there’s one detail that I particularly appreciate. They can either be played in English or the Japanese Famicom version with each one’s differences in tact. That’s an especially nice touch for those who are interested in this more from a historical preservation standpoint. It’s also great that you can have all three games active at the same time without having to close any. Switch from game to game and you’ll pick up right where you left off. These are the kinds of small details that players don’t necessarily get from a service like Switch Online.

Special edition

Nintendo has come under fire in the Switch era for its often bizarre approach to game rereleases. Last year, Super Mario 3D All-Stars was lambasted for an arbitrary limited-time release. The company’s new Switch Online + Expansion Pack service is a recent point of contention, as it offers  ports of classic Nintendo 64 and Sega Genesis games for a fairly high price. That’s left fans frustrated over Nintendo’s tendency to overcharge for low-effort ROMs that they could get for free (even if by dubious means).

The Zelda Game & Watch is a clever workaround. It turns the act of playing a classic game into a tangible experience. It’s the same appeal as buying a special edition of a game like Metroid Dread, except the game and the physical bonuses are one in the same. There’s so much personality in this little device that makes the playing experience a warm delight. You just won’t get that by firing up a port of The Legend of Zelda on Switch Online. Actually owning the games is secondary to the experience built around them.

The Zelda Game & Watch sitting near Zelda amiibo.

For most people, $50 will be a steep price for what’s offered here. It’s essentially a nostalgia toy for gaming history buffs and Zelda super fans. But as a collector’s item, Nintendo has the right idea here. I love that I have three Zelda games in a self-contained, portable museum that’s not tied to aging hardware. And when I’m not playing, it doubles as a charming decoration for my desk or bookshelf, just like my mini SNES. It’s the best of both worlds, even if it’s not a good excuse for why I can’t play Link’s Awakening on my Switch.

The Legend of Zelda special-edition Game & Watch is available now.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Giovanni Colantonio
Giovanni Colantonio
Section Editor, Gaming
Giovanni is a writer and video producer focusing on happenings in the video game industry. He has contributed stories to…
Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom’s shrines are even better than Breath of the Wild’s
Link stands in front of a shrine in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.

As a puzzle game fan, my favorite part of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is its shrines. These mini-dungeons often act as ingenious little puzzle chambers that test my understanding of the game’s abilities and physics. I was thrilled when I loaded up The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and immediately found that the development team kept that idea intact for the sequel. I’d have over 150 new shrines to hunt down, including a handful that were unlocked via navigation puzzles in the open world.

It’s not just the fact that shrines return, though, that got me excited; it’s the fact that they’re even better this time around. That’s thanks in large part to how they interact with the sequel’s crafting systems, serving a larger purpose beyond giving Link some scattered challenges to solve.
Driving permit exams
Tears of the Kingdom’s shrines aren’t much different from Breath of the Wild’s on paper. Each one functions like a Portal test chamber built around a specific gameplay mechanic or theme. One has players solving puzzles using buoyancy physics, while another has them ascending their way to the top of a rotating cube. Even combat-focused shrines have specific gimmicks this time, testing players’ mastery of specific item fusions or environmental interactions.

Read more
With Tears of the Kingdom, Zelda gets the spotlight she’s always deserved
Zelda with the Master Sword in Tears of the Kingdom.

For 37 years, the Legend of Zelda series has held its place as gaming’s most important franchises. It carries the same gravitas as classic literature, with several entries in the series feeling like canonical classics that should be in the syllabus of any video game course. It’s a collection of foundational tales that helped build what an adventure game plays like, but also what a fundamental hero’s journey story looks like in the medium. And of course, standing tall at the center of Zelda’s timeless nature is … Link.

Yes, despite Zelda’s name being the core of the franchise’s branding, the Hylian princess long played second fiddle to the series’ voiceless protagonist. In early games, she was a distressed damsel to be saved. She’d get to show off a bit of her power in later ones, but Link -- the hero of time -- tended to get most of the attention.

Read more
Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom players are terrorizing its cutest characters
A Korok walks in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.

In The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, players are given unlimited freedom to solve puzzles in any way they want. Shrine puzzles, for instance, usually have a developer-intended solution that can be entirely bypassed with clever thinking. However, players are already drunk with power as they find inventive ways to tackle problems ... and that's bad news for Hyrule's Korok population.

As was the case in Breath of the Wild, Koroks are cute little creatures that act as a primary collectible in Tears of the Kingdom. Link must solve small puzzles out in the world to reveal them and get a Korok seed in exchange, which is then used to upgrade his gear slots. In a recurring puzzle, Link finds a Korok who wants to be reunited with a friend off in the distance -- but it can't move due to its gigantic backpack. It's up to Link to move the Korok in any way he can think of.

Read more