If there is one thing we all love, it’s what we already know. Good old nostalgia, it never gets old. “The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks” puts gamers back into the shoes of one of the most famous characters of all time – Link. Link is back to his old ways, questing to save the beautiful Princess Zelda. In the interest of full disclosure, this was my first venture on the Nintendo DS and my first time playing Zelda since the height of the Nintendo 64’s popularity.

The DS couldn’t have been more enjoyable. “Spirit Tracks” combines some of the unique features of the DS (touch screen, microphone, dual screens) with the classic elements you’d expect from the game (puzzle solving, witty writing and unique locations). As always, you play Link (or the newest relative based on the timeline of the games). The Spirit Tracks, a railroad that connects all the different parts of the Kingdom, disappear. After the queen gets kidnapped and subsequently made into a ghost, it’s up to the newest engineer, you, to come in and save the day. The gameplay consists of beating a section of the Spirit Tower and unlocking the tracks to increasingly difficult sections of the map. Once you travel out to a section and beat it, it restores the tracks back to the tower. When you return, a new part of the tower is open to find the next rail piece.

For newcomers it can be fun trekking back and forth. For veterans the traveling can get monotonous. The puzzles in the game were for the most part simple but still intriguing to solve. It’s nice to see a game that relies more thinking and problem solving than just mashing buttons. While monotonous and frustratingly long at times, the journey between city to city on the Spirit Tracks is for the most part enjoyable. You can get a 360-degree view of the scenery, which is nice when you’re watching out for random things along the track that try to attack you. Another interesting feature is that the ghost of Princess Zelda can inhabit certain characters, phantoms, inside the Spirit Tower. For a first-time DS user like myself, it was fun switching between the two characters to accomplish the goals and solve the puzzles.

To restore the spirit tracks, Link must play his Spirit Flute with the particular leader of each area. Each area requires a different rhythm and a three-to-five note song. With the DS microphone, the player actually has to blow into the microphone to make the flute play.

While this is only a small touch, it’s something that gets the player more involved in the game.

However, Zelda does offer some drawbacks. For someone who is used to the stunning visual displays of the newer consoles, it was an adjustment to seeing the sometimes blocky characters and animation of the DS. Also, it gets frustrating when a relatively simple mission takes at least 10 to 20 minutes as you roll through the kingdom looking for someone to talk to.

Overall, the game was fun and interesting to work through. Personally I would not buy a DS (they run about $120) on the sole strength of this game, but if you already have a DS, “The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks” is something definitely worth checking out.