Zelda’s most underrated game is 15 years old, and we need a remake on Switch 2
Listen, we know what you’re going to say, the pan flute still haunts your nightmares. But even with that dastardly tune ruining your run in the final dungeon, Zelda: Spirit Tracks still remains one of the most enjoyable Nintendo DS games in the series. With an absolutely gorgeous soundtrack, the dual-screen boss fights, and the fact you can drive a train at will, it all serves to remind us that Spirit Tracks is a cult classic for a good reason.
Zelda: Spirit Tracks was like an amalgamation of Majora’s Mask and Phantom Hourglass, with puzzles that were tough but didn’t make us want to launch our DS across the room, sidequests that never felt boring, and the added bonus of finally seeing both Link and Zelda fight together on two screens. And despite the train tracks, the game never felt closed-in or too linear because it let you explore at will without the need for a plan or route. With how massive open-world action games tend to be nowadays, it’s nice to remember our roots, and Zelda: Spirit Tracks gave us that much sought-after freedom all the way back when in the late ‘00s.
Sure, it’s no Breath of the Wild, but it pays to look back with a nostalgic eye because we wouldn’t have the Zelda games we know and love today without the originals. Spirit Tracks pushed the boundaries of what the Nintendo DS was capable of and utilized absolutely everything the system had to offer, from the touchpad to the microphone, and even the sleep mode. There are plenty of gameplay elements that could only find a home on that specific console but this ingenuity boxed it in, and when Spirit Tracks first appeared, many die-hard Zelda fans were quick to dismiss it.
But Spirit Tracks came with arguably some of the best boss battles in the entire franchise, like Fraaz the Snow Temple boss and Cragma, the cycloptic lump of molten lava in the Fire Temple. They were tough, and rightly so, but they were oh so much fun to go against.
Even just the lead-up to the final boss, where every gameplay element was lovingly woven together, from riding the train, using Phantom Zelda, playing the Spirit Pipes, and then using the dual screen of the DS to control both Link and Zelda, it’s still obvious even today that there was a lot of love that went into the game. Just look at the reaction to Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom where you can play as the lady herself again – Spirit Tracks got it right even back then.
It might not have received the same amount of love upon release, but 15 years down the line and we still want to ride the train around Hyrule and laugh at Zelda freaking out about her body being possessed. Sure, Nintendo leaned heavily into the DS gimmicks, making it near-impossible to even entertain the possibility of a port, but sometimes classics are best kept in their rightful homes. Go on, go dig your DS out of storage and give it a go again. We promise it’s not as bad as you remember.
If you’re looking back with a fond eye and wondering what the best Zelda games are, then we’ve got a list of all the Zelda games in order if you really want to take a trip – or a train ride – down memory lane. We’re still wondering where the Zelda Twilight Princess Switch port is, but we can keep you in the know with all the information on a new Zelda game.
