When it comes to masterpieces in The Legend of Zelda series, many people often cite Breath of the Wild, A Link to the Past, and Ocarina of Time. They are certainly amazing, given that many still talk about them even to this day, but I would say there is another that has been criminally overlooked.
It is an entry for the Nintendo DS release in 2007, titled The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass. The game is a direct sequel to Wind Waker, and even though it was on a platform with significantly less power than the GameCube, it still delivered an incredible experience that warrants a remake.
Its world was vast and a joy to explore. To provide a better perspective, it's best to dive into the narrative a little.
This game is a direct sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker, and the first thing we see is Link, along with Tetra and her pirate crew, on a new adventure.
During this, they encounter a Ghost Ship that's allegedly responsible for multiple disappearances, which Tetra boards and is petrified by the malicious entity within. To save her from her fate, Link must venture throughout the world and its open waters to find the temples that would help him defeat the evil. With the help of a fairy named Ciela, a wise old man named Oshus, and a reluctant, self-centered sailor called Lineback, he sets forth on his journey to save his pirate leader.
What Nintendo did with the world of this game is outstanding, to say the least, as it feels vast thanks to the way the different islands are spread out and the large scale of the ocean. It's never a boring time either, as there's always something to look out for, like a pirate ship trying to board yours or spots in the ocean that you can use a salvage arm on to acquire items.
Which brings me to another thing that's so amazing about Phantom Hourglass: the ship you control. Thanks to Linebeck, you have one that you can use to travel the vast open waters. And because of its abilities, such as blasting enemies and obstacles with its cannon or jumping to avoid traps, it offers a unique gameplay style that's fun even among other Zelda games. It also helps that you can customize its different parts to achieve any look you want, adding more things to enjoy.
However, even with all that, the biggest reason the game deserves a remake is its fresh take on puzzles. Given that it was for the Nintendo DS, the game masterfully utilized its features to overcome many obstacles. There are situations where you have to blow out fires to open doors with its microphone, drawing a specific shape on the map with the stylus, and even closing the device itself to copy information from one chart to another. All these were a joy to do, and it would be interesting to see how they could be updated to fit a more modern console.
Great as it was, Phantom Hourglass did have one significant issue: nearly every action was primarily stylus-based. This made Link's control awkward in many instances, but that only further reinforces the point that the game needs a remake. With the right changes, such as sticking to tradition by using thumbsticks for movement and using the Switch 2's Joy-Con mouse feature for the stylus-heavy actions, there's no doubt that The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass would be an even more enjoyable experience than it already is.
Some fans would also argue that the repetitive visits to the Temple of the Ocean King could be reworked to improve the game, as they found it tedious to revisit it multiple times. However, I say it doesn't need to be changed much, at least not significantly, as it was designed to be returned to by the players numerous times. Making huge updates to the temple could potentially affect its fun puzzles and likely ruin them. Besides, there is a semblance of joy in navigating the temple faster with the new abilities gained throughout the adventure, and that feeling is something that shouldn't be lost.
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass possesses all the qualities that make it a masterpiece that even modern gamers can enjoy, and I'm hoping Nintendo sees the potential in giving it a remake. Whether it's on the Switch 2 or even in a future console, it should happen, as the game deserves a second chance.
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