Nintendo has quite a line-up of highly anticipated games coming out in the next couple of months, and by far the one that looks the most unique is The Legend of Zelda: Tri-Force Heroes. As a huge Zelda fan, I knew that I had to get my hands on with this three-player co-op adventure.
Tri-Force Heroes is in many ways a spiritual successor to Four Swords (many of you will remember that game as a free download for the Nintendo DS) and for the most part plays rather similarly. You take control of one of three Links, where you have to work together with two others in order to solve puzzles, slay enemies and progress through. The game also has you paired up with two other allies, for a total of three players at the same time (a bit of an unusual number of players to say the least.)
One thing that really makes Tri-Force Heroes stand out from other Zelda games (including Four Swords) is the fact that the here Links can pick each other up, allowing access to new heights and new tactics for combat. The first boss we encountered needed to be hit from various heights, requiring the three players to work in tandem to defeat it.
I personally had a bit of a problem when playing Tri-Force Heroes in that the 3DS’ smaller screen, and fact that you had to not only keep track of yourself but also what your allies were doing meant that the game felt a little cluttered and disjointed at times. Especially when trying to coordinate to one Link to move out of the way, while hoping that your “tower” of heroes will still be in a good enough spot to attack the enemy. It all got a bit confusing and I’m honestly surprised we managed to get through the level.
Now I can’t be too critical of Tri-Force Heroes, because when I was playing it was with a couple of people that I haven’t met before, and this is absolutely not a game that is designed for that style of play. This is the kind of game that relies on you having open and frequent communication with your two partners. So while I didn’t have too much fun this time around, I can see a lot of potential with Tri-Force Heroes and I am holding out hope that the full version, when played with people I know well, will be an absolute blast.
For the rest of our coverage of the 2015 EB Games Expo, click here.
