MANILA, Philippines -- Hyrule. Ganondorf. Zelda. Link. Triforce. Epona. Ocarina. Nintendo 3DS. 3DS?

Yes, Virginia – there IS a Santa Claus. His calendar’s a bit off, though – the Nintendo 3DS version of the classic Nintendo 64 release, the Ocarina of Time,  reaches our shores sometime in June of this year.

What’s to expect? Well, three-dimensional effects, of course. This will not be a direct port – the developers are hard at work to update and improve all of their character models and environments, to better display the 3DS capabilities.  I expect to spend a battery’s charge simply galloping about Hyrule with Epona, Link’s steed in Ocarina of Time.

Without exposing too much of the story’s inner workings for those that don’t know the game, here’s the plot, in a nutshell.

Princess Zelda of Hyrule is the scion of a royal family that has guarded the power of the Triforce for generations.  Gannondorf of the Geruda tribe seeks the power of the Triforce, and means to conquer the land of Hyrule, with or without it.

With Zelda’s aid, Link gains access to the Triforce, only to have Gannondorf pursue him, capturing the Triforce for himself.  Link possesses the Master Sword, but is not powerful enough to wield it against Gannondorf, and is frozen in time by the guardians of Hyrule, until he is mature enough to wield its power.

This is the whole rub, and the central theme of the game – the passage of Time.  Link returns as an adult, wielding the Master Sword, only to witness all that has befell Hyrule since Gannondorf’s victory.  Villages deserted, buildings in ruin,  nightmarish creatures abound. The whole effect is striking – Link withdraws the Master Sword from its resting place, and both Link and Hyrule are transformed by the passage of time.   With the mystical power of the Ocarina, Link can change the world about him, even the passage of time, in his quest to free Hyrule from Gannondorf’s clutches.

In addition to revamped graphics, Ocarina of Time will offer additional features – the Master Quest, and the Boss Challenge Mode.  One allows you to replay the main quest at a higher difficulty, with the additional twist of item locations being reversed or mirrored.  Boss Challenge Mode allows you to face individual Bosses in battle, or attempt a gauntlet of all the game’s Bosses, one after the other.  Ouch.

As a game I played on the Nintendo 64, and also on the Gamecube, this is a release I look forward to greatly.  Happily, the passage of time is such that it will all seem new to me when I begin again. Don’t think I ever finished the first game, anyways. At least, I certainly didn’t find everything, and you’re supposed to, right?

I’ve spent some time at www.nintendo3dsblog.com , following artwork from the new game.  For those that are curious about the new look of the game, there are side-by-side screenshots for comparison, with plenty of other news on the game as well.  The prospect of playing as expansive and involved a game as the Ocarina of Time in little morsels on the go is very appealing to me. Nice not to be tethered to the teevee set for hours on end like I used to play.  Give it a look, and see if it works for you.