ADEPTUS CRITICUS GAME REVIEWS

There are video games, and then there is The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time – A game that defined my childhood and, to this day, one of the greatest experiences I’ve ever had in any form of entertainment.

I still remember Christmas Morning hoping one of my presents would be the game and I was not disappointed, the moment I turned on the Nintendo 64 and picked up that controller I was ready to experience what I already knew to be an amazing game. The opening scene, a haunting melody played on a single Ocarina, set against a vast, moonlight landscape setting the tone for a world like no other. Hyrule wasn’t just a game world it was a living, breathing realm full of adventure.

After nearly 27 years I still remember Kokiri Forest with a young link, I remember finding my first sword in the little maze with a bolder zipping around the place and picking up the wooden shield, I still remember the hairs on the back of my neck and arms standing to attention when entering the great Deku Tree and the excitement of shooting the boss Queen Gohma in the eye.

This game was like no other I had played leaving Kokiri Forest for the first time and entering Hyrule field and making your way to the Castle walls before nightfall or you would be stuck outside fighting off waves of skeleton enemies.  I was mesmerised by the sheer scale of the game and the visuals were out of this world especially when in the Castle Plaza. But the game really came alive when you saw Gannon for the first time you just knew instantly that this evil incarnate.

Pulling the Master Sword from its pedestal in the Temple of Time wasn’t just a plot twist it was a revelation, suddenly you are transported 7 years into the future, and you find that the world has been plunged into darkness, and Hyrule felt both familiar and terrifyingly foreign. Castle Town, once bustling with cheerful NPCs, was not a desolate ruin, haunted by the eerie moans of the ReDeads. The stakes had never felt higher, and my journey felt more personal I wanted to destroy Gannon.

The dungeons were masterful puzzles that tested my wits and courage. From the intricate, water-logged labyrinth of the Water Temple to the hauntingly excellent Shadow Temple with its ominous guillotine and spectral horrors, each challenge pushed me further into the depths of a story I never wanted to end. And let’s not forget getting to face Gannon in the final battle giving him a thrashing like no other which once the credits started to role I felt like a hero and at the same time a little sad that the game had finished but this did not stop me from replaying this work of art several times over the years and each time making me feel like that kid again on Christmas morning.

I am going to leave you all here as I am going to switch on Ocarina of Time again.

I would love to read your thoughts about this game and what memories this game brings back to you.