Pretty much every Zelda game since Ocarina of Time on the N64 has had a subtitle hinting at the games’ new play mechanic or main item. This time it’s the Minish Cap that takes center stage. Early in the game Link stumbles across a talking green hat called Ezlo. Wearing this cap allows Link to shrink in size to explore nooks and crannies thought to be empty. Upon doing this Link discovers the existence of the Picori, a race of small elf-like characters that live among us in secret. These friendly folks will help Link on his quest to revive Zelda from a most unfortunate curse and stop the evil Vaati from unleashing a dark power across all of Hyrule.

The Minish Cap plays very similarly to past Zelda games. The overworld is quite large in this game, even bigger when Link shrinks down in size. The cap will have to be used in creative ways to navigate and conquer the dungeons’ puzzles and bosses successfully. Throughout his adventure, Link will find Kinstone pieces, mysterious items said to bring happiness. As Link talks to different characters a thought bubble will appear above some of their heads, indicating they want to fuse a Kinstone piece. If Link has the other half to match, the complete Kinstone does strange and wonderful things. The end result is usually a new treasure chest to open or a new route to explore. These events will appear on the main map so players will always remember where they need to visit to reap their rewards. This process is very unique to the series and adds an element of surprise to the quest, as well as lots of backtracking. Most of the items found are completely optional, oftentimes being extra Rupees or Shells that you can collect and exchange for small figurines.

Plenty of tried and true items make a return appearance in The Minish Cap. Boomerang? Check. Bow & Arrows? Indeed. Bombs? Of course. A few new items really liven up the game and make old puzzles new again. The Gust Jar is once such item. Think of it as the vacuum from Luigi’s Mansion. Link can suck in all sorts of items, enemies, and even dirt & fire to clear paths. Some areas will require him to suck stretchy mushrooms across chasms to launch himself back across. The Gust Jar is used in all sorts of “a-ha!” ways throughout the quest and a worthy addition to the game. Instead of the shovel, Link will acquire Mole Mitts that allow him to dig up soft dirt. In this game there will be entire sections of soft dirt walls that can be obliterated by using these massive claws. There are many more items to be had, but those will reveal themselves at the proper time.

The graphics are reminiscent of The Windwaker in that all of the characters are very colorful animated extremely well. Likewise, Link once again starts the game without his traditional green hat, so his blonde hair haphazardly moves to and fro as he moves about. Each are of the game is extremely detailed. Many gamers may not notice it in the first few hours of the game, but after acquiring the Minish Cap it becomes apparent how much work the developers put into all of the environments. The main town harbors an insane amount of secret areas and passageways that upon first glance look to be natural parts of the environment. Upon shrinking down in size Link can utilize gutters to move up houses, small holes in the walls to go in and out of buildings, normal flower gardens become new areas to explore, and the list goes on. It often becomes a challenge in itself to properly navigate the town as a small character since normal steps and sidewalks block off conventional passageways due to them being higher than grass level. This attention to detail makes the game that more fun to play since secrets seemingly abound around every corner.

The music in The Minish Cap is simply wonderful. Around 70 percent of the music is composed of previous Zelda music, but redone to fit the new game. There are many instances where fans of the Zelda series will smile upon hearing a familiar tune. The main Zelda theme is back, but what’s really cool is each new overworld environment, be it the swamp, or a mountain area will use a few notes from the main theme and create its own unique song. Really the only minor flaw in the music is that the tracks seem overly short and loop too quick.

The Minish Cap is simply a joy to play. There are so many secrets packed into the normal adventure to begin with and when the Kinstone Pieces are fused there’s even more exploring to do. The dungeons are all unique and refreshing without being overly difficult. The game has a major focus on storytelling this time around, with a huge bump in the number of NPC (non-playable characters) to speak with. This game definitely has everything it takes to be a triple “A” game. The Minish Cap is definitely candidate for best portable game of 2005. Don’t pass this one up.