I've been replaying Zelda games in order, just finished Twilight Princess, but I'm in no hurry to do The Phantom Hourglass.

[Uzumaki Goku]

Because, yup. That is the next game on the list.... I only played through this game once and remember finding it to be very weak..... Not to mention I don't know it by heart like I do Ocarina of Time or Twilight Princess. If I remember correctly, it's gotta be the weakest Zelda ever. (I was not a fan of going into one dungeon every now and then and progress a little further each time)

 

[Vimes]

I lost my cart while traveling and my first thought was "good riddance."

I'm still gonna play it on Wii U VC later, because being a zelda fan is a special kind of self-imposed suffering, up there with star wars.

 

[SigSig]

I love Zelda. I really do. But I couldn't even finish the first Phantom Hourglass Dungeon.

 

[sir_crocodile]

the DS ones aren't that good

Spirit Tracks had some good ideas and potential, but in the end they're the weakest nintendo-made zelda games

 

[Arrrammis]

I think I finished Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks at some point, but the only thing I remember is the bad drawing registration for the hourglass temple. Those are the main Zelda titles I don't want to play again, just not a good time.

 

[Tavernade]

I made a big list of everything in my backlog to work through and I think I purposefully forgot about both of those, even though I recall being fairly close to the end of Phantom Hourglass.

They were just not what a lot of us wanted out of a portable Zelda game, especially since Awakening and the Oracle games were so good.

 

[JaseMath]

PH is an abjectly terrible Zelda, and a bad game in general.

 

[Ryuelli]

Phantom Hourglass is pretty forgettable, but it also has my favorite "puzzle" in the entire series.

 

[Fuzzy]

I'd forgive revisiting the dungeon if I didn't hate the touch controls so much. At least it did have that one inventive puzzle where you had to "stamp" the map. I felt so stupid about how long it took me to figure that one out.

 

[808s & Villainy]

I must be the only person who liked Phantom Hourglass. A lot. The only thing I didn't like were the controls for rolling

 

[The Doctor]

Yeah, probably my less liked Zelda. No one will judge you if you decide to skip it, OP

 

[Mekanos]

I played through all of Phantom Hourglass but damn if I could tell you a thing about it.

 

[crienne]

Phantom Hourglass is pretty forgettable, but it also has my favorite "puzzle" in the entire series.

Click to shrink...

The stamp one?

 

[Deleted member 59109]

I'll only play those games if they remove the touch controls.

 

[Kupo Kupopo]

I must be the only person who liked Phantom Hourglass. A lot. The only thing I didn't like were the controls for rolling

Click to shrink...

no, you're not the only one...

really didn't like spirit tracks, but enjoyed & replayed phantom hourglass. game has a number of neat, unique touches...

 

[Vimes]

I really can't get over that they announced this game after I was disappointed by Twilight Princess, and my thought was "finally, the sequel to Wind Waker I always wanted."

This franchise was so cursed for long while.

 

[xxracerxx]

So skip it and move on.

 

[Nabbit]

I must be the only person who liked Phantom Hourglass. A lot. The only thing I didn't like were the controls for rolling

Click to shrink...

Nope, you're not alone. I played the game for the first time in 2015 and I enjoyed it a ton. The touch controls work really well, I enjoyed revisiting the main temple with new moves and equipment to progress further and more efficiently in it, the game looks great for a DS game, the characters and story were charming. The music was very enjoyable. The sidequests were a lot of fun and I really enjoyed exploring the world and its interesting and creative settings. I liked the dungeons and overworld puzzles too. Haven't played Spirit Tracks yet but looking forward to it. (FWIW I've played tons of other Zelda games, my faves are Skyward, LBW and Majora's Mask but I basically really like or love all of them.)

 

[Sub Boss]

Because, yup. That is the next game on the list.... I only played through this game once and remember finding it to be very weak..... Not to mention I don't know it by heart like I do Ocarina of Time or Twilight Princess. If I remember correctly, it's gotta be the weakest Zelda ever. (I was not a fan of going into one dungeon every now and then and progress a little further each time)

Click to shrink...

Phantom Hourglass is shit
However, i recommend its sequel Spirit Tracks its better on every way

 

[mordecaii83]

OP, it's ok to skip games you don't enjoy.

 

[Uzumaki Goku]

Yeah, probably my less liked Zelda. No one will judge you if you decide to skip it, OP

Click to shrink...

I'm doing videos on every Zelda. The thing about being a reviewer is sometimes you have to do things you don't want to do.

 

[GamerJM]

Phantom Hourglass has some neat ideas but Temple of the Ocean King is incredibly annoying as someone who hates both stealth and time limits, and a lot of the puzzles felt kind of gimmicky. It's the second worst Zelda I've played, and not a very good game, but simultaneously I like some of what it did. The touch controls weren't a replacement for traditional ones but they were a neat experiment.

I never played Spirit Tracks. I've always considered it in the back of my mind but I watched a YouTube video a year or so ago that detailed all of the problems with the train traversal and that made me reconsider any thoughts I had of touching it any time soon. Legitimately the Zelda game I care the least about ever playing.

 

[Diarrhea Day-Lewis]

I think the one dungeon mechanic isn't great but i didn't hate it in 2007 like so many did. I thought the game looked amazing for a DS game and loved the Wind Waker sequel vibe. I thought the boss fight where

Spoiler: PH Boss Spoiler

where you used both screens to fight the boss by looking at the spider's first person POV

was absolutely amazing. I really miss dual screen gaming, wish 3DS had continued that spirit but the majority of games, especially Nintendo's (outside of KI) ignored it.

 

[Luigi87]

The Legend of Zelda is my favourite series in any media.

Zelda II aside, which I have mixed thoughts on, Phantom Hourglass is at the bottom of my list of the traditional Zelda games. There's really no reason to force yourself through it knowing you won't enjoy it.

 

[Opa-Opa]

It's a fucking awesome game.
Spirit tracks too.

Some ultra classic itens in Zelda for exemple have never been (past and future) as much fun as in these games (boomerang, bombchu and others).

 

[SquirrelSr]

The solution to a particular puzzle is literally to close your DS.

The game has a lot of creative ideas bogged down by forcing you to return to a singular hub over and over. The boat is not fun. But I still found it enjoyable.

 

[Deleted member 59109]

I really can't get over that they announced this game after I was disappointed by Twilight Princess, and my thought was "finally, the sequel to Wind Waker I always wanted."

This franchise was so cursed for long while.

Click to shrink...

2006-2011 I think the series was struggling to know what it really wanted to be.

 

[sir_crocodile]

2006-2011 I think the series was struggling to know what it really wanted to be.

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Nintendo's output in the GC/Wii era was pretty variable all round. Was only with the Wii U they came back to the reliable hitmaker they used to be. I think with the GC they were too rushed and the Wii/DS too pressured to come up with motion/touch options.

 

[Tuck]

The DS games are garbage and PT actively spits on the ending of wind Waker. Best to skip.

 

[Rotobit]

Phantom Hourglass is probably my least favorite Zelda game, Spirit Tracks was a vast improvement in every way (except the panpipes). Never understood the folks who hold the opposite opinion.

Honestly the only thing you need to "replay" from PH is Linebeck's theme

 

[onpoint]

Disliked PH. Hated ST. Just skip these. You don't need to play them.

 

[Deleted member 59109]

Nintendo's output in the GC/Wii era was pretty variable all round. Was only with the Wii U they came back to the reliable hitmaker they used to be. I think with the GC they were too rushed and the Wii/DS too pressured to come up with motion/touch options.

Click to shrink...

Idk, WW is still maybe my favorite in the series, I just wish they hadn't rushed it. I have issues with BotW but at least it seems like they have direction now compared to the Wii era. Both WW and BotW I feel they're genuinely trying to do something new/go in a creative direction. TP is arguably the least creative game in the series imo and SS sometimes feels like they didn't really know what they wanted to do.

 

[sir_crocodile]

Idk, WW is still maybe my favorite in the series, I just wish they hadn't rushed it.

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I agree lol, that's why I said the GC era was because they were rushed. Sunshine and WW suffered from this the most.

I really wish with WW:HD they'd added the extra dungeons. I know they said they'd already used the ideas elsewhere, but they could have come up with new ones. I always wanted a world below dungeon in the frozen time...

 

[Efejota]

Nintendo's output in the GC/Wii era was pretty variable all round. Was only with the Wii U they came back to the reliable hitmaker they used to be. I think with the GC they were too rushed and the Wii/DS too pressured to come up with motion/touch options.

Click to shrink...

I never understood why they didn't try with another original Zelda on the 3ds, not counting TFH. Maybe they were too busy with Botw and the other 2 remasters they were doing at the time, but I'd have loved if they made something akin to the Capcom games with a bigger scope. Maybe next time, hopefully.

 

[Deleted member 59109]

I agree lol, that's why I said the GC era was because they were rushed. Sunshine and WW suffered from this the most.

I really wish with WW:HD they'd added the extra dungeons. I know they said they'd already used the ideas elsewhere, but they could have come up with new ones. I always wanted a world below dungeon in the frozen time...

Click to shrink...

More dungeons instead of the triforce shard quest would have been great. I sometimes wonder if those fire/ice cave areas were meant to be larger also.

 

[Ryuelli]

The stamp one?

Click to shrink...

It's been so long since I've played it that I forgot the context, but maybe? The one where you needed to literally close the DS to solve it.

 

[hiredhand]

I actually prefered Phantom Hourglass to Twilight Princess. There is just so much boring filling in TP for you to slog through to get to the memorable parts.

I liked that with Phantom Hourglass, they tried something different instead of just trying to recreate an older title. Even the central temple didn't bother me that much. Also I by far prefer the aesthetic of PH to the dreary mess that is TP.

One thing that bothered me about both of the titles is that they were just way too easy.

 

[PAFenix]

The fact that you strike with the stylus (and do you walk with it too?) really turned me off both of those. Thank goodness A Link Between Worlds dropped that gimmick and let the game control with the D-pad and fight with buttons proper.

 

[JangleLuke]

I played Phantom Hourglass a couple of years ago, and I'm glad I did, because holy hell is the Temple of the Ocean King's crappiness way overstated.

I thought the game did a fine enough job at letting you minimize traversal through areas you've already finished, with newer items and the gained confidence in the adventure.

It makes me a bit sad that some people consider the DS games the "black sheep" of the franchise, because I think they're pretty good.
(and Spirit Tracks has the best Zelda)

Also Linebeck is my favorite side character in the whole series. He should have gotten a spinoff series like Tingle Dammit.

 

[Kaitos]

Spirit Tracks I remember being... fine? Serviceable? Okay? "Spirits of Good" was always so stupid funny.

But Phantom Hourglass is baaaaad.

 

[learning]

temple of ocean king was trash, no respect for player's time

kept me from completing an otherwise good game

 

[crienne]

It's been so long since I've played it that I forgot the context, but maybe? The one where you needed to literally close the DS to solve it.

Click to shrink...

Yep, that's it. I totally looked it up and felt like an idiot that i couldn't figure that out on my own.

 

[Munch Pokeballs]

I will say Phantom hourglass had the neatest puzzle I'd encountered with the two screen map puzzle. That really stumped me.

 

[rahji]

I still remember playing the game on an emulator doing the "one puzzle". I was still stumped when reading the solution.
It is ok to skip it. It is a good game but no masterpiece.

 

[Budi]

I must be the only person who liked Phantom Hourglass. A lot. The only thing I didn't like were the controls for rolling

Click to shrink...

Oh wow, I also thought I was the only one! I really don't understand the disdain towards PH from many Zelda fans. Admittedly it's been a while, but I do remember liking the game a lot. Though I'm no Zelda super fan, I abandon most of them before finishing anyway.

 

[Dinskugga]

PH is pretty good. the one thing i hate about it. Its the damn awful The Temple of the Ocean King. sooo bad!
the same for Spirit Tracks. The game is pretty good then it have a temple like PH. Tower Of Spirits

 

[EnglandPrevails]

I ended up enjoying Phantom Hourglass after awhile but man, Spirit Tracks is no good and I found myself unable to finish it. I think those games are best skipped.

 

[Opa-Opa]

How a game despised by many here got a 90 in metacritic and already in an age with many review outlets (no 4 critics metacritic here), I'll always wonder... and please don't answer with Belda.

Personally I think it deserves the big 9. It's so ingenious A LOT of times.