The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening cover art

Game entry

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

1993 · Action-adventure, Puzzle · Game Boy · Nintendo

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is ranked no. 289 among the best video games of all time by GameForever voters, with an ELO score of 1,757 and 64% of duels won. Its best standing outside the world ranking: no. 4 out of 69 (1993).

World rank

no. 289

ELO score

1,757

Wins

64%

Duels played

116

Join the debate · 12

About The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is the first title in the series to be released on a handheld system and the only Zelda title on the original Game Boy. The gameplay is mostly similar to its predecessor with a top-down perspective, however there are short sections in dungeons where the game switches to a side-scrolling view with platforming elements. For this new adventure, Link must go onto each of the 7 temples to retrieve a musical instrument that will help awaken the Wind Fish. Along the way, he must search the land and uncover hidden treasures and items that will allow him to progress on his journey. Since its release, Link's Awakening has been popular among fans and critics.

ELO progression

Score moved from 1,500 to 1,757 ELO points over the last 170 days.

Head-to-head

Direct record on the most played match-ups.

In the same genre

All Action-adventure games →
  1. 2 Red Dead Redemption 22018 · Action-adventure 1,961
  2. 3 The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild2017 · Action-adventure 1,942
  3. 13 Outer Wilds2019 · Action-adventure 1,917
  4. 17 The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past1991 · Action-adventure 1,907
  5. 20 Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain2015 · Action-adventure 1,900

Keep exploring

Ranking of action-adventure games All-time best Nintendo games All-time best Game Boy games The best 1990s games The best games of 1993 Every The Legend of Zelda game, ranked

Around this spot

The games The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening sits between in the world ranking.

  1. 286 Counter-Strike 1,759
  2. 287 Doom 3 1,758
  3. 288 Soma 1,757
  4. 289 The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening 1,757
  5. 290 Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare 1,756
  6. 291 Deus Ex: Human Revolution 1,756
  7. 292 Gris 1,756

More games from Nintendo

Released in 1993

The standing

Where The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening ranks

The world rank mixes every family of games. Here is where The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening stands in each of the ones it belongs to. Its best standing, all families considered: 4 out of 69 (1993).

Where The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening ranks
Ranking Position Games competing
World ranking 289 5,035
Action-adventure 46 329
1990s 53 659
1993 4 69

The community

The debate

12 comments

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  1. GhostWolf

    No, it does not deserve to sit this low. People keep throwing it against modern RPGs like it's a fair fight, and then act surprised when the vote swings that way. It's a portable Zelda from the Game Boy era, judge it against that.

  2. Phyllis_73

    I played this one summer on a long car trip, passing the Game Boy back and forth with my brother in the backseat. The dungeon puzzles held up fine, though some of the backtracking dragged more than I remembered.

    NovaMaster2

    Detail: I still remember exactly where I was sitting when I beat the last dungeon. That should count for something.

  3. IronRider

    Cada vez que aparece en un duelo pienso lo mismo: tiene una isla que se explora genial, pero tb hay tramos con salto lateral que no envejecieron tan bien, la verdad. No sé si merece el 337 o no, ya ni me esfuerzo en decidirlo.

    Jaime_95

    Uy, esa isla me acompañó todo un verano en el asiento trasero del coche, sin entender ni la mitad de los acertijos y aun así enganchado.

    NeonWarden66

    I was maybe nine, borrowing my cousin's Game Boy for the weekend, and that side-scrolling shift always felt strange to me.

  4. CoopRider2008

    Perdez votre temps à débattre s'il mérite sa place, moi je vote direct à chaque duel, le classement fera bien ce qu'il veut de mes points !

  5. SilentRunner

    ¿Alguien más piensa que la isla se sostiene mejor que muchos mundos abiertos actuales?

    LuckyRider

    Ah, cette île, j'y ai passé des heures allongé par terre dans le salon, la Game Boy à bout de bras, les piles à moitié mortes.

    casas_ander

    La isla convence, o más bien atrapa, aunque el tramo de plataformas lateral corta el ritmo que llevaba antes.

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