A Link to the Past basically took all of the concepts from the first game, and turbocharged them into one of the best adventure games ever made. The visuals were obviously improved massively thanks to the SNES, but the aesthetic itself was also meticulously crafted to give the entire game a fairytale cartoon look that is absolutely timeless.

The soundtrack introduced classic songs for the series that while the sound design itself is a top notch effort into giving every interaction with an item its own unique feeling. Gameplay is upgraded in every way from the concepts of the first game, with most of the items returning, but adding new ways to interact with the world and the expanded dungeons which themselves build on the concepts used in the first game.

To cap all of this off, the story is a compelling narrative and the world feels way more lived in thanks to the various NPCs wandering the world. Taking all of this and then flipping it on its head mid-game with the time travel twist just expands upon the game even more in a clever way that allows them to reuse assets while still giving you a sense of exploring the world anew.

Quite simply, this is one of the best games of all time, and the best video game to have ever been made at the time of its release.