Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (NES) Playthrough

[@NintendoComplete]

Zelda II is one of my favorite NES games. It's totally different from the first Zelda game, but it still manages to hold up just fine under its own merits.

[@jprogman]

In retrospect, I would see this as a spinoff than a continuation of the niw "LoZ" series. I.e. Wario Land (Super Mario Land 3), and Yoshi's Island (Super Mario World 2). If Big N were to make another "Adventure of Link" game, I'd give it a shot.

[@christopherthibeault7502]

"I AM ERROR." YOU SURE ARE, BUDDY! "Ask Error of Ruto about the Palace." Oh, really? "South of King's Grave is a Tunnel." Holy shit....

[@biggsweaty]

Totally agree. Love this game.

[@LITTLE1994]

Not everyone will agree

[@patcahill3724]

I agree

[@mattyice5696]

That music brings me back like 30 years and I love it

[@danalong1237]

Composed by Akito Nakatsuka, who previously did the music and sounds for Excitebike and Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out (the latter of which he composed along with Kenji Yamamoto and Yukio Kaneoka, who previously did the sounds and music for Donkey Kong and Donkey Kong Junior), instead of Koji Kondo.

[@bigduke5902]

@@mattyice5696 Too bad, man, because the Japanese versions is HIGHLY superior! I bet you feel like a real idiot now, huh?!?!?!?

[@rouzah9419]

Zelda II is imo the darkest Zelda game of them all. Nowadays the 3D versions are really fun and colorful, with beautiful landscapes that you just want to explore and enjoy, and with cute, goofy, sometimes likeable or even majestic looking foes. Zelda I was, like the other Zelda games, also more of a "fun" game. Zelda on SNES was a beautiful game at the time. But Zelda II was the darkest and the most serious Zelda game, with it being even scary at times, especially in the dungeons. The graphic style, the music, the atmosphere had a big role in this. The contrast between the relaxing village music and the stress inducing dungeon/castle BGM is something to behold! Zelda I for example had this "round" and "chubby" art style style and also its music was not really scary. In Zelda II the atmosphere in the castles - especially playing as a kid - *really* made the game feel serious and dungeon-like. At times you felt desperate down there. The game style and presentation was designed in a very serious manner. I remember how my mind was blown when i was searching for - i think - an NPC that i needed to find for a quest in a village, and the desperate crazy idea of somehow getting on the rooftops of the houses with closed doors - i think by using the high jump spell - in order to enter the houses via the chimney to find the said hidden NPC, was the actual solution.

[@8trekGaming]

This was great, thank you! Played this around 35 years ago after finishing the first one. I couldn't remember if I ever actually beat the game. It was fun to rediscover what I had long since forgotten. The memories flooding back in, all the way to the very end. What a gift!

[@bryany6565]

Hours of my childhood with my older brother. Very chalenging game once you get into death mountain. Very ambitous game for its time coming of the original.

[@thecowboy2]

"When all else fails, use Fire." Words to live by. 🔥🔥🔥

[@bigduke5902]

@@thecowboy2 "Jump in the hole in the palace if you go" got me through college.

[@TMMQuicksilver]

Nice salacious thumbnail there. "HERO OF HYRULE, HAVING THE HOTS FOR HYLIAN HONEYS?! TONIGHT, ON GANON BROADCASTING!"

[@NintendoComplete]

And gotta love the old ladies. Haggard Hyrulian Hotties, anyone?

[@danalong1237]

“Hero of Hyrule, having the nots for Hylian ladies?! Details next on 27 NewsFirst!”

[@m.beenis8845]

I still love playing this game, despite my friends hating it so much.

[@patcahill3724]

I love that game too, it's not as bad as people say it is imo

[@bigduke5902]

I can't tell you how many things I like BECAUSE my friends hated them

[@Choralone422]

Zelda II takes me back. I got the NES & Zelda 1 for Christmas 87 and played the crap out of both quests for months, finishing it many times. I got Zelda II in the spring of 89 and while I did finish it at least twice, I can't remember now if I played it very much after that. It just didn't have the same spark the original game had for me. I enjoyed the RPG like elements, the difficulty was much higher than the original game and the controls were great. But it always just seemed a little off in some respects. In particular the jankiness in the overworld areas always bugged me. It wasn't until the past few years that I found out why that happened. When the game was converted from the Japanese FDS to a cartridge ROM there was an insane amount of bank switching happening while Link walked around the overworld which caused the hiccups and slowdown. Still, Zelda II is a good game, just for me didn't outshine the original or most of the Zelda games that came after it, especially A Link To The Past which is still my favorite!

[@kissedbypalefirex]

Zelda II is a special game for me, it is a Challege. It was the 1st game i bought completely with my own money, i saved up for it & bought it at k-mart.I've been trying to beat it since i was 10 yrs old & finally managed to when i was 33yrs.

[@user-pm3lu7vw5l]

23 years to finish zelda 2 is an average score i think. I never finished it, my cartridge burn after all my attempts ( green screen of death) in 88/89. Now i'm PTSD when i see just the splash screen.

[@jabro3644]

Thank you for posting this playthrough and great job. Very difficult game. I think it was also quite controversial. One of the things I remember most from playing this game as a kid was the great soundtrack. All the melodies are still in my head to this day.

[@VahanNisanian]

Cont. Not to mention it’s clear there was censorship to avoid religious references. Link is actually calling/praying to God with the flute when he is trying to reveal Temple #6.

[@thecowboy2]

Link also calls/prays to open the Desert Palace in LTTP. Methinks that was a censor job too.

[@CapnLexCrunch]

I played this one right after after finishing the first, and it took me a few hours to really understand how the system worked, but as soon as I was done with the game, I immediately started over again... and then again. Definitely a top 5 NES game for me, as well as for the Zelda series as a whole.

[@JIVETURKEY600]

OMG THE INTRO MUSIC!!!!

[@Penfold8]

You brought me back by killing the spirit bubbles. I used to spend hours leveling up everything to level 8 before I left palace 1. Talk about hard grinding.

[@scottlinux]

Awesome! Thank you for the playthrough, you are knocking games out left and right++

[@volvoguy804]

That last palace was a doozy.

[@NintendoComplete]

You aren't kidding.

[@jeremydavidson1420]

i got to admit i think this game was a underrated gem. besides i would have love more future rpg styled zelda game.

[@micahhurst8986]

I didn’t know you could kill the Flying Skull 💀 Been playing this game off and on my whole life. Crazy! I just went around them. Love the play throughs. Gonna have to dust off my old Nintendo and play. Been a while.

[@spoonshiro]

A different but still wonderful game. Kind of a shame Nintendo never did another Zelda game in this format.

[@supmattboy]

There is an indie game called "Phoenotopia Awakening" which is basically a Zelda-II-like, if you are curious.

[@Nightweaver1]

My mother actually beat this back in the 1990s (can't remember exactly when). At the time I was a teen and I didn't really find it all that impressive, but now that I'm an adult, I can appreciate just how difficult a game this is and how tough it was for her. Rest in peace, mom.

[@jodeboyd8386]

i remember instantly knowing when so young that the blue falling screen would be capable of causing a glitch in the game

[@TheMouseMasterYT]

After watching speedrunners, seeing a guy actually killing enemies and levelling up is refreshing ;p

[@user-pm3lu7vw5l]

my god...the only game i feel sickness and joy at the same time... Greetz from France

[@ChristineMason87]

This was a hell of a game to beat its a shame there was never a second quest like the first one😊

[@coomtothebroom778]

Love this unfairly maligned gem from the 80’s. Like Castlevania 2, it had some issues that could’ve made the experience much better had it had better execution, but it’s a classic nonetheless.

[@RSK412]

Damn NC only 3 hours?! What a legend.

[@JuraIbis]

It wasnt that at the time people thought it was bad game. But it was so different and excruciatingly harder that people keep bad memories of it usually. When you revisit it, its much, much better. Also I never forgave Nintendo for making his sword so small and the lightning shot so short.

[@megabolt5898]

Dude, you knew what you were doin` with that thumbnail...

[@Elias991000]

It's not a bad game that everybody says it is. The grinding is very tedious, but there's an easy way to Lv.up faster, and I was able to find a way to play the game more enjoyable

[@titanferguson80]

Incredible just amazing you beat the game with nothing but your head

[@MbRetroGamer]

very good zelda nes

[@patcahill3724]

"I AM ERROR." I love this game too, like AVGN said, it's not as bad as people say it is.

[@bobobandy9382]

Honestly surprised you hadn't already done these! But glad to see them now. Love the channel. Good inside joke with the thumb, too. I wonder what he's learning in there...

[@huseyinhusnuoguz274]

I love Zelda II: The Adventure of Link.💖🗡️🛡️

[@southcarolinagrizfan1594]

Love this game

[@wildpride1119]

I admit that I wasn't fond of this game when I was a kid until I went back to it at the age of 15. But that was just me overlooking a room in the first palace and not knowing how to effectively eliminate ironknuckle. Discovered how awesome it really was.

[@magoepico]

La miniatura Link visita a las Cariñosas ! XD

[@Dorian_Scott]

It's definitely the "black sheep" of the series, but I still quite enjoy Zelda 2 despite its flaws. Plus, the soundtrack is still catchy as ever.

[@alexh2790]

Growing up, this one seemed as popular, if not more.

[@knuclear200x]

*Nintendo:* i don't like Zelda this way. Let's never do it again. *Philips:*

[@EuSouRCS]

Zelda The Wind Waker: 👀👄👅💥🔥💎🎮💗

[@knuclear200x]

@@EuSouRCS Wind Waker wasn't a side-scroller

[@EuSouRCS]

@@knuclear200x it's a 360 degrees side scroller tho 😀

[@The1upforever]

​@@EuSouRCSthat doesn't make any sense dude

[@rickn4301]

Me too. I don't get the love for it but to each their own. I still like A Link to the Past the best

[@9b8ll]

I also love this game! I dont get the hate either. Sure you can get lost and its hard if you don't know what you are doing. This game is fun. I am shocked that Nintendo has not remade this sequel like, Link's awakening, for example.

[@ash36230]

The NES Zelda's aren't something I've really gave a fair go. I'll have to change that

[@iLuseMy1v1s]

I never got into this game. It looks frustrating getting into fights every 10 seconds walking around. Thanks for the video 👍

[@johanbothun9953]

I think people would find this game easier if they realized they don’t have to do Death Mountain after the first temple (the second temple is available without any prerequisites and it’s easier than Death Mountain.) You can have over half of your levels built up without grinding or fighting on the overworld that way (well, you do need to batter the Bubbles, but just as you encounter them like any other enemy.) It’s like the first Zelda - just read the manual (it has one key piece of info about the hammer that the game doesn’t tell you itself) and be thorough. Being thorough in this - walking on every overworld tile - takes vastly less time than the most menial tasks people spend time doing in modern games. And don’t pick up the 1ups - save them for the end and you’ll have all the breathing room you need for the final temple.

[@TheShamus425]

You beat this in 3 hours?!?! That's pretty damn fast!

[@erikbustamante6831]

Perfect ost Perfect history But the gameplay and the rpg system

[@SomeOrangeCat]

I played this before the first game as a rental.

[@TheAmazingLSB]

According to the recently released Zelda Timeline photos placing BotW and TotK I'm still waiting for a sequel to Zelda II: The Adventure of Link....

[@bigduke5902]

Having grown up with sequels as different ad Mario 2, Zelda 2, and Metroid 2 made kids like I was so much more open minded and willing to accept new ideas. These days gamers can't even handle it when a sequel to a game they think they liked does even a single thing the previous one didn't. There is no reason to do a sequel to a video game unless you have new technology with which to realize the original idea or another original idea.

[@AladdinSane649]

You know what I'm surprised you haven't played yet? Pokemon games.

[@EuSouRCS]

"Zelda 2 is hard" Dragon Buster: 👀👄👅💎🎮🔥💥

[@solarflare9078]

Dragon Buster? More like pinball simulator

[@mnemonichotpocket]

1 in the Link, and 2 in the stink

[@ciwidi]

I didnt Even know you can kill flotting skull !! 😮.

[@ShinjiIkari1]

I prefer the famicom version as the us version has enemies that suck experience and in the Japanese version you can level up what ever you want when you get enough xp instead at certain intervals.

[@dimebagdave77]

Nice..🤘✌️

[@VahanNisanian]

With vastly improved technology, this version is twice the size of its original Japanese. The only downside is the annoying twang. The music in the original Japanese was much better.

[@LITTLE1994]

That's because the Japanese release uses the Famicom Disk System like in the original game.

[@bigduke5902]

When I was 8 years old playing this for first time after finally being able to rent it from my local video store I had no earthly clue there was ever any difference between it and any other version of it let alone being aware that there even was a different version of it. The hindsight of internet trivia might seem like its a great blessing to have in hindsight, but it can't possibly match what it was like to actual be there experiencing things as they were when they were new.

[@user-pm3lu7vw5l]

and what she will mean by hello young fellow...Please let me help you. Come inside. I can restore your life.

[@bigduke5902]

It means she's going to treat Links wounds and give him a place to rest.

[@Hamburger-helper]

It means she wants to jork his peanitz in exchange for healing services rendered

[@JonathanLopez-gb9pk]

I just beat this lol

[@theodorehsu5023]

One aggravating thing is, you don't get experience for killing Moblins (those that look like bulldog enemies) early in the game, and you NEVER get any for killing the "wolf-like" enemies (which I've noticed in playthrough videos); that would have made leveling up not so frustrating, always getting EXP from them since you can't get Rupees.

[@JaredGenesis444]

Great game just not sure if it was fitting for the zelda series

[@DaScareCrow]

Nice

[@góticoesoterico666]

Excelente 🤘🏼

[@RizzySkibidiAmongus]

I just tried this game recently and got stuck thanks for the help bro.

[@dave23024]

Fun fact: Two hours of this is Link killing the glowing skulls.

[@Des_Zee]

I just noticed you don't have a Shinobi 3 Genesis playthrough on your channel. Is that coming soon??

[@kerokerocola99]

Cheeky thumbnail

[@NintendoComplete]

Comfort time!

[@VahanNisanian]

AVGN: Link is a poonhound.

[@norbertovalle7928]

Thank you for not revealing the final boss of the game on your main cover for the video. I hate when KZbinrs do things like that, they’ll feel like the game has been @ for more than 30 years so who cares, but the truth be told; these games have more imagination than most modern game, & it’s a shame when this generation wants to do things like “get to the point” with no appreciation of atmosphere or anything. There’s nothing wrong with walkthroughs or anything like that, just don’t reveal the boss on the intro or cover photo for the video, or at least give a spoiler alert warning, but again thanks, looking forward to watching these videos.

[@NintendoComplete]

No problem! I don't like doing that. I rarely see the reason to aside from spoiling someone else's fun.

[@norbertovalle7928]

@@NintendoComplete thank you for understanding, means a lot

[@LITTLE1994]

The black sheep of the series. I utterly stay away from that title, as it is ridiculously hard and too much like Castlevania. The only thing I like is it at least has good music and the Final Boss being Dark Link, as well as debuting the Triforce of Courage.

[@Dorian_Scott]

I don't think it's that bad. Sure, it's confusing at times and the difficulty is absurd, but at least it's still fun to play.

[@jam2007]

I am error

[@diegomayfield4751]

nice to meet you !