Daily Debate: Is the Four Swords Manga a Good Substitute for the Games?
Posted on March 19 2024 by Heather Beard
The Legend of Zelda boasts a number of titles under its belt across many generations of consoles. I personally have been lucky to have played and had access to a lot of older titles, like The Wind Waker on the GameCube and Twilight Princess on the Wii/Wii U. And there are other classic Zelda titles that I never played when they first came around that have since made their way to Nintendo Switch Online, like the Oracle games and The Minish Cap. However, there are still a lot of Zelda games that are not easily accessible, so I’ve had to resort to absorbing their stories in other formats, as has been the case with Four Swords and its manga adaptation.
As we are celebrating Four Swords this week, which is an older game that many have not played or have lost access to, I think it’s a good idea to consider whether or not the Zelda manga adaptations, such as the one for Four Swords, are good substitutes for the games they’re based on.
As of writing, nine Zelda titles have been adapted into a manga by artist duo Akira Himekawa, the most recent being Twilight Princess. As an avid reader of books and manga, I knew one of my best chances to learn some of the Zelda stories that I couldn’t play through would be to read the manga. I recently finished reading the manga adaptation of Four Swords and really enjoyed it! It honestly made me a bit disappointed that I couldn’t pick up the game for the first time and give it a go. The story and artwork were great, and I finished the book feeling like I got a grasp for what Four Swords was about. Is the manga a good substitute for the game though?
If we are talking solely about the story of Four Swords, I’m going to say yes, it’s a great substitute. The Legend of Zelda is one of those series that is awesome to play for the gameplay and puzzles, but at the end of the day, in my opinion, we remember the story the most. The Four Swords manga presented the story in such a way that I felt like, if I never get the chance to play the game, I will know and understand the story fully. Through the manga, I feel like I got to connect with the story in a way that I don’t always get to do while playing a video game. I absorbed the story all at once, instead of in bits and pieces. I will admit though, I would love to see what the dungeons in Four Swords look and play like, so maybe someday we’ll see Four Swords on Nintendo Switch Online.
What are your thoughts though? Do you think the Four Swords manga is a good substitute for the games? What about the other Zelda manga? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Hi I’m Heather! I’m Senior Editor and Art Director at Zelda Dungeon and I’ve been a member of the ZD team since 2019. I am a graphic designer, artist, and nerdy mom to an awesome little boy. When my nose isn’t in a book, working on my novel or watching anime you can find me curled up with my cats Mandy-Lynn and Daisy Mae.
