The Legend of Zelda: Fours Swords Adventures is an all-new four player Zelda game on the GameCube that takes advantage of Nintendo's fabled connectivity feature. Much like Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles before it, Four Swords requires each player to use a Game Boy Advance (GBA) as the controller when playing the multiplayer mode. If playing solo, the player has the choice to use a normal GameCube controller or a GBA. Unlike Crystal Chronicles, Four Swords uses the GBA to the fullest extent, making this game the poster child for connectivity on the Cube.

Four Swords has two very different modes of play. In Hyrulean Adventure, 1 to 4 players embark on an epic quest through 8 worlds to vanquish the evil wind sorcerer Vaati and to rescue the imprisoned maidens, including princess Zelda. This mode is the heart of the game and the one that will keep most gamers busy. Shadow Battle is a multiplayer mode for 2 to 4 players where everyone fights against each other. There are various power-ups and stages to play and it's a fun diversion from the main game. A third mode, Tetra's Trackers was taken out of the U.S. version due to translation issues and a general consensus that the mode wasn't very fun to play.

Most people's time will be sucked away playing Hyrulean Adventure. No matter how many people are playing the game there will always be 4 Links on the playfield. Each player must cooperate with the others to solve puzzles and progress through each level. If only 1 player is playing, then he or she will control all 4 Links. The player can group the Links into 4 different formations to traverse the levels. If only 2 people are playing then each person gets 2 Links to control. Whenever someone enters a section off-screen, such as a house or a cave, the action will take place on that player's GBA. This allows for some intense competition to collect treasures and items since the other players won't know what's going on off-screen unless they follow right behind. Players collect Force Gems found throughout the world. The player with the most Force Gems at the end of the level will win the competition, but nothing is given to the player that wins other than gloating rights. Each Link has a sword and a shield and is capable of holding one additional item. Traditional equipment like the boomerang, bombs, arrows, and more make appearances throughout the different levels. Classic puzzle solving, like pushing blocks or shooting switches with arrows, makes a return, but because the action can take place on both the TV and the GBA there are many instances where the puzzle solving will require new thinking.

There are many instances where teamwork is very necessary to get by obstacles. For example, some rocks require two or more people in order to move them and there are switches that must all be pressed at the same time to open new passages. Then there are those occasions where one person will have an item, like Roc's Feather, whereby he or she will have to carry the other players over a chasm. What's interesting is that although the game relies heavily on team cooperation, intense competition will erupt over the smallest of things. Remember, each player is trying to locate as many Force Gems as possible. Sometimes the easiest way to obtain them is by throwing a teammate into an enemy, thus causing them to lose some gems in the process. Being overly competitive will only hinder progress, however, so perhaps it's a good thing not much is at stake for first place. If there was some elite or rare item rewarded for being the winner there would probably be too much backstabbing and the adventure mode would come to a screeching halt. Still, it's awfully fun to pick on teammates. More than once players were whacked with a hammer or thrown into a lava pit just for the sake of doing so. When more than 2 people play the game there's an added twist upon completing a level. Each player gets to vote on his or her GBA for the player that helped the most and also for the player that should be punished. These votes are tallied and slightly affect the amount of Force Gems each player receives. In close matches these votes can be the deciding factor in determining the winner of the level. Speaking of levels, each world in Four Swords Adventures is comprised of three levels. Upon completing a level, all of the Force Gems and the items that the players have collected are taken away and the next level begins anew. At first this may seem harsh and a bit unfair, but Nintendo no doubt wanted to make the game accessible to everyone at any point in the game. Having characters powered up in some way would deter different players from joining in midway in the game. While it would have been great to have a bit more continuity from level to level, the approach Nintendo took makes sense for the multiplayer aspect. It would have been very cool to see the progression slightly enhanced for the single player mode, but the game still works fine the way it is.

At first glance Four Swords looks like a slightly enhanced A Link to the Past (SNES). Each Link is a small sprite character and the graphics don't appear to be vastly improved. Only after playing the game for a couple hours will the true appeal of these retro graphics take hold. Part of the reason for the simplistic graphical approach was to not have vastly different graphics appear on the GBA when compared to the TV. Nintendo wanted to have consistency between both screens and since the GBA is vastly underpowered when compared to the Cube, this makes sense. That's not to say the game doesn't have some cool effects. Unlike past Zelda games, the overworld map will seamlessly zoom in and out depending on the location of all the players. Hundreds of items and enemies can appear on the screen at once with no slowdown or flickering, which creates some awesome battles in a few of the levels. Little touches, like the clouds casting shadows on the ground as they float overhead, and improved lighting create a solid looking game.

The music and sound effects are ripped straight out of past Zelda games, with a few new remixes thrown in for good measure. The music is still midi format, ala SNES, but it's great to hear the old tunes again. Zelda fans will eat this soundtrack up and love every minute of it. One unique aspect of the game is that the GBA also emits sounds and music depending on the players' locations. If someone is low on hearts the warning beep comes from the GBA, not the Cube. While it would have been great to have had orchestrated remixes in Four Swords, what is present is more than adequate and does the job well.

The big question for most people is whether or not to buy Four Swords Adventures as a solo adventure game. Thankfully, the game is still extremely enjoyable when playing alone. It's actually a bit more difficult at first because it's somewhat cumbersome to control all 4 Link characters. After playing for a bit the different formations become second nature and the game does play well single player. However, the game is designed around the multiplayer format and is best enjoyed with 4 players. The cooperative and competitive elements really make Four Swords stand out as one of the best multiplayer games currently on the market. The level designs are genius and the puzzles will stump even seasoned Zelda fans. Having the Shadow Battle mode included increases the replay value and since the single player and multiplayer adventure mode features slightly different puzzles, the game can be played through twice. Nintendo has shown everyone how to create a connectivity game the right way. If you like Zelda games, you should definitely give Four Swords Adventures a try.