New Zelda game for DS a nice long play

By Nathan Unck

Since 1985, Nintendo has only had one franchised game with more releases than Zelda. That series is Super Mario Bros. This Christmas season, the "Big N" released a brand new 2-D side-scrolling Mario Adventure for the Nintendo Wii that was impossible to find in stores over the past couple of weeks.
However, Nintendo has another "must play" title on the DS. The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks. This is the 15th official entry in the popular series.
In Zelda games, you play a character named Link, or you can name your hero whatever you want in some games, but he is the main hero of the story. In every game Link sets out to save Princess Zelda and their home land of Hyrule from a mysterious evil that shrouds the land. Link must enter dungeons and rough terrain that help flex both your brain muscles, as well as you fingers on the controls.
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, the first entry of the series on the Nintendo DS, was one of the best Zelda games over the past couple of years, and having a sequel to that game for the fans of Zelda is pretty much Nirvana. Instead of a lot of sailing ships like the last game, players receive the Spirit Train to help get Link to his destinations.
This was a totally new concept for Zelda, since the games seem to take place in another world, and an ancient time, but it really works well with the game. Link finds out pretty quickly that a lot of the famous and sacred "Spirit Tracks", are the tracks used to transport people to the different temples of worship around the vast area of the Hyrule Kingdom.
It becomes Link's job to travel to the different sanctuaries in the land to find the missing tracks that will lead him to the temples, where he must defeat a huge monster to be able to restore the tracks to their former glory.
The game play is fairly long and the challenges and dungeons can be tricky, but that is what makes this game so much fun to play. The discovery of what you are supposed to do next is very self-rewarding.
The side quests in the game are entertaining as well. My favorite is when Link receives a Stamp Collectors Book, and as you travel the many different lands and environments, there are stamp stations that let you stamp your book. They are really fun to look for, and the art work on them is neat.
I whole-heartedly recommend this game to anyone who loves a good adventure game or a good puzzle game. If you have never played a Zelda game before, you are missing out, and it would be a real shame for DS owners to pass up this title.
You can purchase The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks anywhere video games are sold for $39.99 It is rated E for Everyone.