The adventures of Link continue in The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass. It is the first Zelda game released on the Nintendo DS. This DS exclusive is completely rendered in pretty 3D cel-shading (yes, its spelled cel not cell) and Link is controlled with the stylus.
 

Keeping up with the usual Zelda story, Link is on another quest to save a kidnapped friend. Fellow non-Ninja gamers control Link by dragging the stylus along the screen. Sword slashes are executed by drawing a slashing motion on the touch screen. Perform a circular motion and Link will perform a ‘tornado’ attack on surrounding enemies. By taking advantage of the touch screen capabilities of the DS, combos are easier to string together. The top screen is also put to good use; it serves as a map for easier navigation.
 

Link primarily travels from island to island in a boat captained by an obnoxious fellow named Captain Linebeck. Linebeck’s antics can become annoying and sometimes I wish you could slash him with Link’s sword, throw him overboard and feed him to the sharks. But he does have his funny moments in the game.
 

Link will have to find clues on different islands. The game’s environment is large, so the spaces don’t feel tight and cramped. You can plot the boat’s course by drawing the sailing route with the stylus. One feature I also found helpful was being able to write clues in a diary.
 

The gameplay is characterized by trademark Zelda puzzles. The puzzles are fun, creative and rewarding. At first, I was stumped by some puzzles until I found out how useful Link’s trusty boomerang is.
 

The only downside of this game is that once you’ve completed the first floor of puzzles thrown at you and proceed to die on the second floor while doing puzzles, Link has to start all over again. That means complete the first floor again before advancing to the second. It becomes repetitive fast. But this is only a minor hiccup in an otherwise great game.
 

I’m not gonna lie, its very frustrating solving puzzles you’ve already solved. This repetitive chore caused me to go into Ninja destructive mode and led me to break my DS in half. No worries, Ninja’s are resourceful and I pieced it up again using nothing but gum and small twigs.
 

The boss battles are engaging and inspired. The bosses follow certain patterns but keep things challenging despite the predictability.
 

When I did get bored, I competed with friends via DS connectivity.
 

The visuals are superb and the sound is great. I never found the music repetitive.
 

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass is one of the best games out there for the Nintendo DS. It continues the long line of awesome Zelda games. Definitely a must own for Zelda nuts and action-adventure fans.
 

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The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass Trailer