Zelda-esque Games - Which are the Best??

There are only so many times that you can replay a game that you have finished. So if your a big fan of a certain game or style of games (in my case - Zelda!) You have to look for similar games elsewhere. So my question is, what are the best games for a Zelda Fan to play? i have a few myself and if you havent played them your missing out!!

Alundra 1 - PS1
This game is similar to ALttP, but a much darker storyline, unlike some games alot of the characters that you interact with die. making the game really draw you in and feel the deaths of your characters friends.

Alundra 2 - PS1
This game is completely UNLIKE the first alundra. in fact there is no similaritys at ALL!!! regardless i still loved this game. its in 3D and instead of being free roaming, your path is set and not very flexible. but if you liked Adventures of Link, u may like this one!

Beyond Good and Evil - Gamecube / Xbox / PS2
the only gamecube rpg to rival Zelda. an absolute beauty of a game. epic, different, and addictive. like OOT, MM, WW or TP?? BUY THIS GAME!

Knights of the old Republic 1+2 - Xbox
I love star wars so these game were a dead cert to get my praise, but i honestly swear that these games are the ONLY games out there that compete with Zelda. if you like the exploring part of Zelda, and take get importance in a compelling storyline then get a copy of these. Gaming Masterpieces.

Jade Empire - Xbox
As above but non-Star Wars. still a classic

Got any yourself? let me know - Any Console!! (yep, even an amstrad cpc 464 game will do)

I don't see how KOTOR and Jade Empire are in any way similar to Zelda, but I still love them.

Zelda fans would probably get into the Ys games and the Seiken Densetsu/Mana series pretty easily. Dark Cloud II is also a good game to recommend.

Dark Cloud was fun. I stopped playing due to my short attention span, though.

I should look into picking that title up again, while I'm waiting for my Wii to become fun.

Are you referring to the first one? Because I had a lot of fun with the second one, but I've had the original for 6 years now and still haven't beat it. The way the dungeons are laid out just really annoys me. I got tired of it after the first one.

Okami.
If I didn't mention it somebody else would have. It's well worth a look and it gets called Zelda-like everywhere.

I remember a Sega game called Soleil, which was almost identical to ALttP. A lot of fun, but I never completed it because I was too stupid as a kid
Hope they release it on the VC

Illusion of Time is a great one (for the snes). I don't know if it really fits, but the golden sun games for gba are I think great for zelda fans.

Anyhow, I don't know any real zelda-esque games except for IoT,

Sander K.

Okami is allot like Zelda, but i dont think it is nearly as good
I just kind of stopped playing it

Fable for Xbox/PC is a ton like Zelda.

You explore stuff, and run around with a sword killing things. There is also a story line.

It has been referred to as a cross between Grand Theft Auto and Zelda, although it has a few RPG characteristics as well, like leveling up (I think). Very decent game, but it is a little hard to get into.

Umm...

The Elder Scrolls games are a lot like zelda, except they are first person instead of 3rd, and have far bigger worlds to explore with better character customization at the expense of basically all the stuff zelda is good at. (Story, innovative gameplay, etc.) They are level based, and have fairly terrible stories, and the gameplay is rather repetitive after you finish a few quest lines.

But if you like Zelda and kotor, you will like this. Elder Scrolls is also a little more replayable than zelda or kotor... But admittedly not as much. (Consists of Arena, Daggerfall, Morrowind and Oblivion. First 2 are dos/windows 95/98, you will probably need an emulator, Arena can be found for free legally, Daggerfall can be found online (through various methods), Morrowind is for Xbox and PC, and oblivion is for Xbox 360, PC, and if for some reason you have one, PS3... Although I do not believe you can get the expansion on PS3.)

Originally Posted by CagedCrado

Fable for Xbox/PC is a ton like Zelda.

You explore stuff, and run around with a sword killing things. There is also a story line.

It has been referred to as a cross between Grand Theft Auto and Zelda, although it has a few RPG characteristics as well, like leveling up (I think). Very decent game, but it is a little hard to get into.

Umm...

The Elder Scrolls games are a lot like zelda, except they are first person instead of 3rd, and have far bigger worlds to explore with better character customization at the expense of basically all the stuff zelda is good at. (Story, innovative gameplay, etc.) They are level based, and have fairly terrible stories, and the gameplay is rather repetitive after you finish a few quest lines.

But if you like Zelda and kotor, you will like this. Elder Scrolls is also a little more replayable than zelda or kotor... But admittedly not as much. (Consists of Arena, Daggerfall, Morrowind and Oblivion. First 2 are dos/windows 95/98, you will probably need an emulator, Arena can be found for free legally, Daggerfall can be found online (through various methods), Morrowind is for Xbox and PC, and oblivion is for Xbox 360, PC, and if for some reason you have one, PS3... Although I do not believe you can get the expansion on PS3.)

I second that.

Elder Scrolls IS awesome. Also, you don't really have to play the previous titles to get into it. Oblivion was my first, and I'm doing just fine.

This game doesn't have the best story, but the NPC's are the best I've ever seen. All of them serve a purpose in the game, and most of them have sidequests. You can have conversations with them, and learn information about other people, about hidden treasures, etc. How you speak to them determines if they like you or dislike you.

If somebody likes you a lot, they may tell you more things, or do something for you. If somebody dislikes you a lot, they may ignore you, run away, or even try to kill you. You can also kill the NPC's. Almost every NPC in the game can be killed. And when they are dead, they are dead forever. They don't magically appear when you come back to their house.

The NPC's also have a daily routine. They won't stay in one spot forever.

Here is what the life of an average NPC is like:
In the morning, George (made up character) gets out of bed. He eats breakfast, and then he sits in a chair and reads a book for a few hours. Then, he puts down the book and takes a walk around town. While walking, he may chat with other residents, and a few guards. Then he walks to the farm to get to work. He works at the farm for 5 hours, and then desides to stop and walks to a friend's house, where he stays and chats for awhile. After that, he goes home and eats dinner. He reads his book for another hour, then goes to bed.

All NPC's have a different routine, and no two characters are alike.

It is good to know the daily routines of different characters so you could use it to your advantage. Say you always go into some guy's house, and there is a weapon that you admire. You want to take it, but the NPC is standing right near it. But, if you know his routine, you know when he leaves. Then you could take it.

The other thing I like about this game is just the size of it. It's almost endless. There are hundreds of sidequests, and the land is like the size of 30 Zelda Tp's, and also has like 8 towns to explore. The land is nowhere near empty, with over a hundred caves and dungeuns to explore that aren't even linked to the main quest.

I can't explain everything you could do in this game, because it would be a 20 page post. All I can say is this: If you like Zelda, you will love this game.

I want all of you to try it. After you play this, you may realize how behind Zelda really is. (I still love Zelda though!) I bought this game over a year ago, and still haven't finished it.

Okami is so much like Zelda. Any Zelda fan would like this game, I even think it's better than Zelda.

Originally Posted by Sy Deville

Knights of the old Republic 1+2 - Xbox
I love star wars so these game were a dead cert to get my praise, but i honestly swear that these games are the ONLY games out there that compete with Zelda. if you like the exploring part of Zelda, and take get importance in a compelling storyline then get a copy of these. Gaming Masterpieces.

Sweet. Someone who loves the KOTOR series as much as I do. They truly are great games. My one qualm with them is that I feel that they don't mesh well as a series. The atmospheres are very different. The first game was the traditional ride in on a white horse and save the galaxy (or enslave the galaxy if you would like), while the second game was so dark and everything seemed so bleak that it did not matter if you were successful or not, everything was going to suck. It will be interesting to see if they make a KOTOR III.

I think Shadow of the Colossus would be a good game to check out. It definitely doesn't control as tight as a Zelda game but it gives you this huge world to explore and doesn't really limit where you can go. Every battle with a colossus is intense and creative and the music in the game is incredible. There isn't a lot of dialogue or cutscenes in the game but it still manages to create a memorable story.