[REVIEW] Phantom Hourglass - Not that good.

It's a bit of an oldie, but as a mere heathen who is just catching up on the DS library, this is one i went to almost straight away. Zelda games always come with a collective gamer nerdgasm so it's sometimes more difficult to find an objective opinion about such a game, as someone who was never a big Zelda fan, i have such an opinion :D
Watching the official trailer would understandably get anyone wet with anticipation, and yes, the game is fun! There are lots of inventive uses of the DS itself throughout (blowing, screaming like a banshee, closing it etc) which i really appreciated (and would like to see more of)and the gameplay itself is simple but enjoyable (the hammer weapon in particular i enjoyed)The game also shines with it's lush visuals and design, the production is evidently top of the range with this one, the quirkyness really comes across in the cutscenes and animation.
However, with that comes a whole load of 'eh' - The story is trash and long enough to write on the back of a beer mat, the enemies both big and small are easy to kill and use predictable patterns in their attack - dungeons as a whole carry the 'get a new weapon use it to progress' formula that is so persistent throughout the Zelda franchise. While the design is colourful and pretty, there's also not a whole lot of variety, with only a couple of dungeons that really look different. The soundtrack was also pretty average, only the odd track or two doing anything for me.
I'm probably the only person who enjoyed the Temple of the Ocean king (a large dungeon which saw Link return to several times throughout, clasping his trusty hourglass and avoiding huge ass knights) because it presented one of the only challenges throughout the game.

Phantom Hourglass is ideal for portable play, it's friendly, pretty simple and is easy to digest. With that though, ultimately comes a pretty forgettable experience that doesn't stay with me after the initial pleasantries. Zelda fans would probably say 'Great DS game but average Zelda game' - as someone who hasn't played any other Zelda game (that's only half true) i say 'good DS game, nothing more' I sheepishly look forward to Spirit Tracks, or 'let's ride a train instead of a boat and do the same shit again' that releases on the DS in the future.

6/10 - Good for Zelda fans, OK for us normal people.