I’m a sucker for weird video game news, and this is by far the strangest thing I’ve encountered in months. An indie game developer has ported the awful CD-i Zelda titles to the old school Game Boy.
Many people might not be aware of this, but thanks to a contractual fiasco involving a disc add-on for the Super Nintendo that never saw the light of day, Philips managed to get its hands on the rights to make Zelda titles for its ill-fated CD-i console. It’s worth noting that this is where the mythical Nintendo PlayStation also came from.
The three titles that came out of this legal loophole, including Faces of Evil, Wand of Gamelon and Zelda’s Adventure, are widely regarded as awful, borderline unplayable and not even close to being worthy of the Zelda name. Still, I’ve always had a morbid curiosity about the titles, even if they’re non-canon in the Zelda franchise, terrible, and Nintendo pretends they don’t exist.
Proud to release a complete port of Zelda's Adventure for the Game Boy.
Zelda's forgotten CDi game is now available to download!https://t.co/LOsk0DjrbS
Made with @GBStudioDev. Music composed by @beatscribemusic.@gbs_central, @DouggernaughtTV, @thedopster #gameboy #Zelda pic.twitter.com/fLQ5NvgAzO
— John Lay (@johnlay_) April 29, 2023
It seems John Lay, an indie game developer, is just as fascinated by the CD-i Zelda games as me. Lay recently released a Game Boy port of Zelda’s Adventure, the third and final CD-i Zelda game, on Itch.io. A side-by-side comparison between the original and the remake shows how Lay took the CD-i title and applied Link’s Awakening-like Game Boy visuals and gameplay (check it out above). After spending a few minutes with the game, it really does feel like a lost Game Boy Zelda title.
“Zelda’s Adventure looked interesting and I thought it would be fun to play on a portable system. I chose the Game Boy because of the existing Zelda games on the system,” said Lay on the game’s page. “The game sticks to the aesthetics of Link’s Awakening, but also incorporates some features from Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons.”
Unlike other Zelda titles, in Zelda’s Adventure, players take control of Princess Zelda as she journey’s to the world of Tolemac to save Link from Ganon.
“The evil Ganon has captured the young hero Link. Only Princess Zelda can rescue him. Her journey will be difficult, filled with many challenges and mysteries. Armed only with the advice of the wise court astronomer Gaspra, and the guidance of Shurmak, Zelda must set out on her journey deep into the uncharted southeastern region of Hyrule, known as Tolemac,” reads the game’s description on Lay’s website.
Zelda’s Adventure is playable directly on Lay’s Itch.io page, or you can download the remake’s ROM (a small donation is encouraged).
Image credit: Itch.io (screenshot)
