Is there adventure to be had in 'A Link Between Worlds'?

In The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds, the overworld is exactly the same as the one from A Link to the Past – right down to the trees and buildings. Or at least it seems that way from the E3 2013 demo. The demo itself gave people the chance to play outside dungeons for the first time and showed off the 3D range for this top-down adventure.

It makes sense too really, since A Link Between Worlds is a direct sequel to the 1993 Super NES game. If ALTTP is one of your favourite games of all time then you’ll probably want to pick up a 3DS as soon as possible. Other than the 3D graphics the world has been left relatively untouched (expect for the obvious puzzle changes.

In the short time since its original announcement, ALBW has been pondered to consider whether a gamer who knows their way around will find the same thrill as a first timer. The goal of the recent demo’s has been to complete the first dungeon, marked at the eastern edge of an otherwise clouded overworld map. There have been various items implemented to block alternative paths and reduce the playing area. Otherwise it’s located in the same place as the 1992 game.

The videos have shown areas outside of the dungeon near Links house, the ‘blocked’ drawbridge to Hyrule Castle and various encounters with Oktoroks and Moblins.

Interestingly the dungeon itself though has been revamped and the monkey security guard has been disbanded – at least in the demo.

A major part of The Legend of Zelda's appeal, to me, is the sense of wonder and adventure you get from exploring the boundaries of an unfamiliar map. In the original NES game you could wander all around the map and as you got closer to the edges the enemies got harder, often stopping you from making it to the edge of an area - it was worth the risk just to see what was out there though. My biggest worry for this instalment though – what happens when you already know your way around?

Then again, most of the map was obscured in the demos shown - nothing has been shown of the "Dark World," the alternate reality that effectively doubled A Link to the Past's explorable area, which has been confirmed for a return in A Link Between Worlds. It's entirely possible that there are new areas, or that the initial area is just a small part of a much larger map, similar to Zelda II's incorporation of the original The Legend of Zelda's map.

If the overworld in A Link Between Worlds is the same as before then there is still potential for Link's new ability to allow you to explore it in a unique way. For those of you that don’t know - Link can now flatten himself against a wall, turning into a flat, 2D, cartoon-like representation of himself. This 'Toon Link' can only move along walls (where he is safe from enemies). You can use this in the overworld and, when you do, the camera follows you around corners, revealing much of the overworld you cannot see from the classic angle.

It's a nice new feature, but it's not a substitute for a new world map. Nintendo has barely shown us anything in A Link Between Worlds so we'll surely see more before its rapidly approaching release date sometime at the end of 2013. Until then I’ll be worried about the known world, but as with everything Nintendo release, you can expect something remarkable is up their sleeves.