Spirit Tracks is super unique, and improves on its predecessor in almost every way.
Taking place about a century after Phantom Hourglass, Spirit Tracks follows a new Link and Zelda, in a newly founded version of Hyrule, where the main mode of transportation is trains.
Compared to Phantom Hourglass, this game feels very fresh. It has better dungeons, a more interesting story, and a much more inspired soundtrack than it's predecessor (seriously the soundtrack is so great).
An aspect of this game that is sometimes forgotten is that Zelda herself is your companion, and she is surprisingly one of the best companions in the series. Her character contributes so much to the story, and it's a much stronger narrative than the typical "damsel in distress" storyline that we usually see.
Just like Phantom Hourglass, this game has you revisiting a dungeon multiple times throughout your playthrough. This time it's the "Tower of Spirits". But here's where it differs: there's no time limit, it has more interesting puzzles, and you don't have to repeat any of the floors you've already conquered. It's overall a much more fun and streamlined experience.
The main drawback, sadly, is the overworld exploration. The train gimmick is fun at first, but gets old pretty quick. Even if you're solely doing the main storyline, it forces you to do escort missions a few times, which are super drawn out (the long mission between the ocean and fire temples sucks in particular).
Despite the boring overworld exploration and the padding, Spirit Tracks is still pretty enjoyable, and is a lot more fun to play through than Phantom Hourglass.
Taking place about a century after Phantom Hourglass, Spirit Tracks follows a new Link and Zelda, in a newly founded version of Hyrule, where the main mode of transportation is trains.
Compared to Phantom Hourglass, this game feels very fresh. It has better dungeons, a more interesting story, and a much more inspired soundtrack than it's predecessor (seriously the soundtrack is so great).
An aspect of this game that is sometimes forgotten is that Zelda herself is your companion, and she is surprisingly one of the best companions in the series. Her character contributes so much to the story, and it's a much stronger narrative than the typical "damsel in distress" storyline that we usually see.
Just like Phantom Hourglass, this game has you revisiting a dungeon multiple times throughout your playthrough. This time it's the "Tower of Spirits". But here's where it differs: there's no time limit, it has more interesting puzzles, and you don't have to repeat any of the floors you've already conquered. It's overall a much more fun and streamlined experience.
The main drawback, sadly, is the overworld exploration. The train gimmick is fun at first, but gets old pretty quick. Even if you're solely doing the main storyline, it forces you to do escort missions a few times, which are super drawn out (the long mission between the ocean and fire temples sucks in particular).
Despite the boring overworld exploration and the padding, Spirit Tracks is still pretty enjoyable, and is a lot more fun to play through than Phantom Hourglass.
Reviewed on Mar 15, 2023