The durable and incredibly popular Legend Of Zelda gaming franchise just celebrated its 30th birthday back in February. The fantasy series and its questing, green-clad hero, Link, have been robbing players of productivity and quality time with loved ones since the first title in the series debuted way back in 1986 when home gaming was still, for all intents and purposes, in its formative stages. Yes, there were home entertainment systems dating back to the 1970s, but Zelda represented a quantum leap forward in terms of storytelling and myth-building. This milestone, naturally, has not gone unnoticed by devotees and diehards. Perhaps the most impressive tribute to Zelda’s pearl anniversary comes in the form of The Legend Of Zelda: 30 Year Tribute, a three-dimensional remake of the original game by Scott Lininger and Mike Magee.
Though still a little glitchy at times and limited to the first three dungeons, 30 Year Tribute is free of charge and can be played on any web browser, making it a tempting time-waster for bored, nostalgic Zelda fanatics. According to Uproxx, however, the unauthorized game’s future looks bleak. “Nintendo’s legal team falling on this like a squad of Darknuts is probably only a matter of time,” writes Dan Seitz. For veteran Nintendo addicts, playing 30 Year Tribute will be like coming home again. This new version mimics the blocky, multi-dimensional look of Minecraft, but the game play is straight out of 1986. The controls are exactly as fans remember them. At the bottom left is the familiar D-pad. At the bottom right are three simple buttons: Start, B, and A. Yes, B still comes before A in the Nintendo-verse. Fans are advised to play it while they still can.