Developed by Capcom for Nintendo, The Legend of Zelda: Minish Cap is as mighty an adventure as any modern AAA blockbuster. It kept me up till 4:00am when I got to the end of the game. I was fully engaged, needing to see how the story would close out.

This is traditional 2D Zelda, complete with the Hyrule field theme playing as you scour the countryside for arcane objects. The new hook is basically “Honey, I Shrunk the Hero of Time”… you frequently shrivel down to the size of a pea to solve puzzles and outwit bosses. It works, providing new ways to look at familiar settings.

The game is timeless. It’s as compelling now as it was at launch. Perhaps even more compelling today, since you can finally enjoy the game on your TV, either through Nintendo Switch (the game is part of the NSO collection) or through the analogue pocket (with a dock). About half of my play time was on the big screen. For a week, this game grabbed all my attention, even at a time when amazing new games like Baldur’s Gate III and Starfield are dropping left and right.

In the hands of masters, epic games are possible to produce on even the most primitive hardware. You can feel the developers here straining under the heavy weight of making a game in a fabled franchise. And it’s effort well-spent. Capcom’s Flagship team was totally up to the task. Until the end of time, this game will always be fun, it will always look great, and as a chapter in the Zelda saga, it will always be discussed, dissected and debated.