Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon

Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon
Developer(s)	Animation Magic
Publisher(s)	Philips Media
Release date	October 10, 1993 December 25, 1993
Genre(s)	Action-adventure, platform
Console(s)	Philips CD-i
Mode(s)	Single player

"Wand of Gamelon" redirects here. For information about the item with the same name, see Wand of Gamelon (item).

Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon is a video game released for the Philips CD-i in 1993. It was developed by Animation Magic and published by Philips Media alongside Link: The Faces of Evil. The Wand of Gamelon is very similar to The Faces of Evil in its gameplay, though the player controls Princess Zelda rather than Link. Both games, as well as Zelda's Adventure, are the only The Legend of Zelda games where Nintendo was not involved in the their development.

While both games initially received mixed reviews, they are infamous for their extreme negative reception in contemporary reviews and retrospectives, and they are often considered the worst games in The Legend of Zelda franchise, as well as some of the worst games of all time. The CD-i games were ambiguously disowned from the franchise by Eiji Aonuma.

Plot

Impa comforts Zelda after the Princess worries for her father, King Harkinian

King Harkinian announces his plan to aid Duke Onkled, the ruler of Gamelon, after the island nation falls under attack by Ganon's forces. Zelda is worried for his safety, so the King orders her to send Link for backup in case he does not return from his mission within a month. A month passes without word from the King, so Zelda sends Link to find him.

When he too goes missing, Zelda ventures off to Gamelon (accompanied by the elderly Impa) to find both Link and the King. In the town of Sakado, Impa discovers that King Harkinian was captured and that Link had engaged in a battle, the outcome of which is unclear. As she adventures across the island, Zelda meets many friendly characters and battles with many monsters including Gibdo and Iron Knuckle. Along her travels, Zelda battles the sorcerer Wizzrobe to free Lady Alma, who gives Zelda a canteen that she claims Link gave her in exchange for a kiss.

On reaching Duke Onkled's palace, Domodai Palace, it is revealed that Duke Onkled has betrayed the King and is working for Ganon. Zelda storms the palace, kills Hektan, and saves the imprisoned Lord Kiro who used to work for the King. Kiro reveals the secret entrance to Onkled's chamber, and when they confront him he reveals the entrance to Reesong Palace, where Ganon has taken residence.

Zelda travels to the Shrine of Gamelon to defeat the head-switching chimera Omfak and obtain the Wand needed to defeat Ganon. She also visits Nokani Forest to obtain a magic lantern needed to clear the darkness around Ganon. Finally at Reesong Palace, Zelda fights Ganon, incapacitates him with the Wand, and rescues her father. Back at Hyrule Castle, Duke Onkled is turned over to the King, begging for mercy. He is arrested and punished by the King by scrubbing "all the floors in Hyrule". Although Link's whereabouts are still unknown, a comment by Lady Alma prompts Zelda to throw her mirror against the wall, and as it smashes Link magically materializes, seemingly having been trapped in the mirror.

Gameplay

Zelda exploring one of the opening areas, Kobitan.

The gameplay is very similar to the accompanying title, Link: The Faces of Evil. The player controls Princess Zelda, who must find and defeat Ganon and rescue both King Harkinian and Link to become the heroine of Gamelon. The weapons, a handful of the items, and most of the enemies are the same as in Link: The Faces of Evil, although the trading items, characters, and bosses are different. When the player begins this quest, three areas are initially available, accessible through Impa's map. The player can access each area by moving the on-screen cursor over one on the map and then pressing Button One.

At the beginning of the game, Zelda is only equipped with a sword and shield. The sword is used to attack enemies and to fire deadly power blasts, and the shield can deflect projectile attacks thrown at the player. The shield is automatically lifted when the player is standing still or crouching. Other helpful tools, such as lamp oil (for lighting a lamp), rope (for climbing) and bombs (which can destroy some obstacles) are available for a price at the general store in Sakado. The rubies that the Merchant takes as currency can be obtained by defeating enemies, and are also needed to use certain items.

Like The Faces of Evil, Zelda's health is also measured by Life Hearts. By running out of Life Hearts the first two times, the player is provided with the option to continue from the entrance that Zelda entered the current area from. The player is forced to restart the level if Zelda loses all her Life Hearts a third time.

Characters

Main characters

Name	Description
Princess Zelda	The main protagonist. Seeks to liberate Gamelon from "the evil forces of Ganon" and rescue her father and Link.
Link	The Hero of Hyrule. After a month with no word from King Harkinian, Link makes his way to Gamelon, only to be captured by Ganon as well. Link is revealed to have been sealed within a hand mirror at the end of the game, and shattering said mirror frees him.
Impa	Zelda's caretaker and keeper of the Triforce of Wisdom. While the Triforce does predict the King's safe return, it does not foresee Onkled's treachery, nor is it able to decipher what happened to Link. Impa is awoken in the middle of the night by Zelda to accompany her on her mission to Gamelon. Impa plays the role Gwonam had in Link: The Faces of Evil.
King Harkinian	The King of Hyrule. Implied to be a powerful figure, as Link claims that "Ganon's no match for the King!" He sets sail for Gamelon after a distress call from his ally, Duke Onkled. Onkled, however, turns traitor, and Harkinian is imprisoned by Ganon.
Duke Onkled	The Duke of Gamelon. According to Lord Kiro, "Duke Onkled betrayed the King," which Zelda had suspected. Duke Onkled's treachery seems to be out of fear, as he is portrayed as a cowardly man. He is sentenced to scrubbing every floor in Hyrule at the end of the game.
Ganon	The recurring antagonist of the series. Ganon now wages war against the country of Gamelon in the hopes that Duke Onkled would seek diplomatic aid from King Harkinian. In the end, the cowardly Duke Onkled betrays his ally and allows him to be captured. Ganon is defeated by Zelda using the Wand of Gamelon, which binds him with magical golden chains and drags him into the Book of Koridai.

Supporting characters

Name	Description
Fairy	Fairies that have been captured by the Three Witches. Once freed, they give Zelda a life heart, Fairy Dust, and some Water of Life.
Grimbo	An alchemist who transforms Zelda's glove into a Power Glove after she retrieves some Hanyu Spore.
Harbanno	A Sakado baker who was imprisoned in Tykogi Tower. He gifts Zelda with some of his bread after being freed.
Lady Alma	A noblewoman who Wizzrobe entombed within Shutoy Lake's tower. She met and kissed Link before his capture, and gives Zelda his canteen upon meeting her. It's later revealed that her hand mirror contained the imprisoned Link, which is shattered after Zelda throws it at a wall.
Lika	A rather frightening resident of Sakado; despite her appearance, she helps Zelda by creating the Magic Cloak after the Princess retrieves some Fairy Dust.
Lord Kiro	A nobleman who was with King Harkinian when they were betrayed by Duke Onkled; Kiro in particular was imprisoned by Hektan. He is freed by Zelda in Dodomai Palace and, after telling her about the ordeal, apprehends the Duke and brings him to Harkinian.
Lubonga	The only resident left in Aru Ainu after Gleeok's arrival. She knits a green shroud for Zelda.
Makoto	A starving girl who longs for an Arpagos egg. She hands Zelda a flute upon receiving said egg.
Mayor Cravendish	The mayor of Sakado, who was imprisoned in Tykogi Tower despite his protests that the action was illegal. He was able to conceal a lantern which he later gives to Zelda.
Merchant	A shifty shopkeeper who sells lamp oil, rope, and bombs to Zelda.
Myra	A sorceress who enchants Zelda's shroud with an Arpagos feather. She later hands Zelda an upgraded lantern before the Princess' expedition to Reesong Palace.
Sanda	A water carrier that gives Zelda some Water of Life after jumping over a Gohma-infested pit. She also points out Yokan's entrapment in a nearby fish skull.
Yokan	A fisherman who gets trapped inside a giant fish skull in Ahitaru. After being freed, he moves to Sakado and becomes a blacksmith; there, he increases the power of Zelda's sword.

Enemies and obstacles

Name	Description	In Link: The Faces of Evil?
Arkadai	Alligators that roam the waterways of Gamelon. They are harmless, and Zelda can ride on their back to reach new locations. However, they can temporarily dive underwater.
Armos	Spear-wielding stone warriors that guard Tykogi Tower and Dodomai Palace. They have longer spears than their Link: The Faces of Evil counterpart and, therefore, a larger attack radius.
Arpagos	Pterodactyl-like birds that are commonly seen throughout Gamelon. They come in two sizes, with the smaller ones often seen perching on trees.
Bago-Bago	Flying creatures that emit a trail of smoke behind them. They blow out Zelda's lantern light when they hit her, and are invisible unless she has the Fairy Lantern.
Boar	Wild boars that are running amok in Aru Ainu.
Boon	Flying pests that are seen in multitudes in Ahitaru. They'll continuously attack Zelda instead of flying away.
Bot	Short blue blobs that scuttle around in forests. They will charge towards Zelda when she's on their level.
Boulder	Large stones that block off access to new areas. They can be destroyed by either 10 bombs or a single strike from the Power Glove.
Daira	Yellow alligator men. They can either chase Zelda around or sit in place and throw their axes.
Darknut	Yellow-clad knights that are only found in Gamelon's palaces. They take several hits to kill, and their shields can block projectiles.
Deadite	Flying blue heads with bat-like wings.
Deeler	Giant purple spiders that are found in Gamelon's palaces.
Dodongo	Heavily-armored gray lizards. They are less resilient than their Link: The Faces of Evil counterparts, and can be defeated with any weapon in Zelda's inventory.
Falling debris	Loose rocks and spikes that periodically fall from the ceiling.
Ghini	Ghostly figures that haunt graveyards and shipwrecks. They can have either green or pale skin.
Gleeok	A Gleeok in Dordung Cave has scared off the civilians of Aru Ainu. It attacks by spitting fireballs at Zelda.
Gohma	Crab-like creatures that can only be found in Ahitaru. They take multiple hits to be killed.
Goriya	Blue canines that throw boomerangs, encountered near the end of Zelda's quest.
Head of Gleeok	One of Gleeok's detached heads. It patrols Dordung Cave and Dodomai Palace, and spits fireballs at Zelda.
Jawbee	Flying bat-like creatures with huge mouths, seen in the southwestern areas of Gamelon.
Keese	Large bats that are encountered throughout Gamelon.
Lowder	Giant, short pillbugs that crawl around on the treetops of Washubi Swamp.
Mini-Dragon	Green gargoyle-like enemies that are encountered throughout Gamelon.
Moa	A flying mass of tentacles connected to an open eye. They are only seen in Nokani Forest.
Moblin Spearthrower	Bulldog-like men that are seen throughout Gamelon. They behave similarly to Dairas, but use spears instead of axes.
Octorok	Large red squids that spit rocks at Zelda. They are only seen outside of Tykogi Tower.
Phyrandaii	Wheel-shaped fireballs that roll around the Shrine of Gamelon and Reesong Palace. There is no way to defeat them like their Link: The Faces of Evil counterparts.
Spearfish	Gray sailfish that live in Shutoy Lake.
Skull-topped barrier	Tall brick pillars that have skulls attached to their top in one way or another. A single bomb or Power Glove strike destroys them.
Stalfos	Skeletal warriors that guard the ruined Gobiyan Ship.
Stone statue	Floating stone heads that defend Reesong Palace and shoot fireballs at Zelda.
Vire	A Vire is encountered inside the lone barn in Kobitan. It flings crescent-shaped projectiles at Zelda.
Wall Master (big)	Big purple hands that grab and damage Zelda when she gets close. They cannot be damaged or killed like their Link: The Faces of Evil counterpart.
Wall Master (small)	Small purple hands that punch Zelda when she gets close. They also cannot be damaged.
Zora	Brown creatures that spit stones at Zelda. They live in the waterways of Gamelon.

Bosses

Name	Description
Gibdo	A shambling mummy who resides in Sakado's church. He resurrects the dead buried in the local cemetery, and commands them to enslave the living. He is very strong, being able to defeat Zelda in a single hit. However, he is incredibly weak to Lubonga's Shroud, which unwraps and disintegrates him.
Iron Knuckle	A living suit of armor that rules over Tykogi Tower, and presumably the one who masterminded the imprisonment of Sakado's residents. A single hit from the Power Glove will shatter his armor, leaving nothing but broken metal and a beating life heart.
Three Witches	A coven of witches who have frozen the Fairy Pool's fountain of life and shrouded the area in darkness. The witches throw fireballs that deal a massive amount of damage, though all three of them will die when struck with the sword just once. They disappear in a gust of wind once defeated, freeing the pool's fairies.
Wizzrobe	A green mage who has trapped Lady Alma in Shutoy Lake's tower, burying her under rubble and stones. He uses a disintegration spell attack which instantly kills Zelda upon contact; however, the spell can be deflected towards him with the Reflecting Shield. A single hit from it makes him burst into flames.
Hektan	A wizard that imprisoned Lord Kiro in one of Dodomai Palace's towers. He is very dangerous, teleporting in the blink of an eye and destroying an Armos in a single blast. Despite this, his defenses are very low, as he'll melt into nothing but a beating life heart after a single stab from Zelda's sword.
Omfak	A shape-shifter that guards the Shrine of Gamelon and its wand. He alternates between three distinct forms; a wolf that fires lasers from its eyes, a lion that breathes blistering fire, and a pair of giant lips that can easily eat things. Zelda has to stab him in his "lips" form several times to defeat him.

Items

These are items that can be used from Zelda's inventory:

Item	Description
Bomb	Used to defeat enemies and destroy certain obstacles. Three bombs can be bought at the Sakado store for 20 Rubies. Zelda can hold up to 99 bombs.
Bread	Fresh bread baked by Harbanno. When thrown, flying enemies will dive towards it and eat it right up.
Canteen	Replenishes Zelda's health when used, but must be refilled with Water of Life afterwards.
Fairy Lantern	An upgraded version of the Magic Lantern that makes the flying enemies in Reesong Palace visible and doesn't need lamp oil to function.
Flute	A musical instrument that immobilizes all flying enemies for five seconds. It costs five Rubies to use.
Lantern	Lights up dark areas for around 20 seconds. It requires one unit of lamp oil to use.
Magic Cape	An upgraded version of the Shroud that allows Zelda to jump across larger gaps than she is normally able to. It costs five Rubies to use.
Magic Cloak	The completed cloak allows Zelda to turn invisible and walk past enemies for four seconds. It costs twenty Rubies to use.
Magic Lantern	An upgraded version of the basic Lantern that doubles the time it stays lit from 20 seconds to 40.
Power Glove	Allows Zelda to destroy obstacles and enemies instantly, including certain boulders that require ten bombs instead of one. It costs ten Rubies to use.
Rope	Lets Zelda climb up to specific platforms and ledges. A rope is discarded when successfully used. Three ropes can be bought at the Sakado store for 10 Rubies. Zelda can hold up to 99 ropes.
Shroud	A knitted green shawl that defeats Gibdo in a single shot.
Wand of Gamelon	A powerful wand that is used to ensnare and defeat Ganon.
Water of Life	Restores all of Zelda's hearts, and fills her canteen if it is present and empty. Unlike Link: The Faces of Evil, Water of Life is only given out by friendly characters.

These are items that cannot be used from the inventory. They are the exact same as in Link: The Faces of Evil:

Item	Description
Key	Every key instantly unlocks a nearby door.
Lamp oil	Required to power both the basic Lantern and the Magic Lantern. Three units can be bought at the Sakado store for 5 Rubies. Zelda can hold up to 99 units.
Life Heart	Adds another full heart to Zelda's health meter when collected. Two are obtained by defeating bosses, while one is given out at the Fairy Pool.
Ruby	Rubies are used to purchase items and to use certain items.
Triforce Map	Returns Zelda to the world map when touched with the Smart Sword. Two can be found in nearly every level; the second Triforce Map is at the end and usually unlocks a new area.

There are some items that Zelda must trade with other characters, entirely different from those in Link: The Faces of Evil:

Item	Description
Arpagos Egg	A big, hearty Arpagos egg, which Makoto will gladly trade in exchange for her flute.
Arpagos Feather	A lone feather from an Arpagos nest. Myra needs it to enchant Zelda's shroud.
Cloak	An unfinished cloak made by Lika. She needs some Fairy Dust to make it magical.
Fairy Dust	Some magical dust given to Zelda by the Fairy Pool's fairies. Needed for Lika's cloak.
Hanyu Spore	A royal purple spore exclusive to Hanyu Forest, given to Grimbo so he can make a Power Glove.
Heat Crystal	Dropped by the Gleeok in Dordung Cave upon its death. Yokan uses it to craft the Magic Sword.

Weapons

Just like Link: The Faces of Evil, Zelda can only use a sword and shield as an equipped weapon, which have at least one upgrade.

Item	Description
Magic Sword	An upgraded Power Sword that fires power blasts no matter how much health Zelda has.
Power Sword	An upgraded Smart Sword that fires power blasts when Zelda is at full health.
Reflecting Shield	An upgraded shield that reflects the magical projectiles thrown by Wizzrobe.
Shield	The shield that Zelda starts out with. It can block any projectile as long as they make contact while Zelda stands still.
Smart Sword	The sword that Zelda starts out with. It is used to attack enemies and pick up items, as well as make friendly characters talk.

Locations

Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon takes place entirely on Gamelon, a lush island with several towns, palaces, and forests. A land map is used to travel between certain regions.

Three locations are initially available at the start of the game; Aru Ainu, Kobitan, and Sakado. More locations are unlocked after hitting the Triforce Map at the end of specific stages.

Name	Description
Aru Ainu	A hamlet in Gamelon's northwestern savanna whose citizens have fled (for the most part) after the arrival of a Gleeok.
Kobitan	A farming village north of Sakado that has been overrun by insatiable Moblins and a Vire.
Sakado	A large port town on the island's eastern coast. Inside the town's church, Zelda encounters and fights a Gibdo.
Ahitaru	A barren desert flanked by Kobitan and Sakado. A giant fish skeleton rests on a mountainside, with the fisherman Yokan trapped in the skull.
Washubi Swamp	An Arkadai-infested marsh south of Aru Ainu. At the end of the swamp is a hut belonging to Grimbo.
Hanyu Forest	A forest on Gamelon's south coast that is occupied by many Bots.
Tykogi Tower	A towering prison near Sakado which houses most of the town's inhabitants, including its mayor. Near the end, Zelda fights an Iron Knuckle.
Dordung Cave	The lair of the Gleeok that scared off Aru Ainu's populace, located in Gamelon's western mountain range.
The Fairy Pool	A fairy fountain nestled in a valley near Reesong Palace. It has been taken over by the Three Witches and shrouded in darkness.
Gobiyan Ship	A haunted shipwreck that was scuttled in Gamelon's northern bay.
Shutoy Lake	Gamelon's largest lake is home to an abandoned coastal village and a tall red tower; inside the latter, Zelda does battle with a Wizzrobe.
Dodomai Palace	The large palace where Duke Onkled currently resides. While exploring the manor, Zelda encounters and defeats a aquatic mage named Hektan.
Shrine of Gamelon	A shrine on top of Gamelon's tallest mountain. Zelda has to defeat the chimera Omfak to obtain the shrine's treasure, the Wand of Gamelon.
Nokani Forest	A forest near Shutoy Lake that has trees so tall that the forest floor is often shrouded in darkness.
Reesong Palace	The final area of the game, a red-brick fortress occupied by Ganon. On top of the palace's tallest tower is a cell that King Harkinian is being held in.

Development

Main article: Link: The Faces of Evil#Development

The Wand of Gamelon shares a nearly identical development story to Link: The Faces of Evil, as both games were developed in tandem by Animation Magic and saw a simultaneous release. Together, they were the first Nintendo-licensed games to be released on the Philips CD-i.

With the relatively low budget of approximately $600,000, Wand of Gamelon was given a little over a year for completion — time which would have to be split between the development of Wand of Gamelon and Faces of Evil. It was decided by Animation Magic, the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based development team led by Dale DeSharone, that the two games would be developed in tandem and would share the same graphics engine to more efficiently use the budget.

The voice of Princess Zelda was provided by Bonnie Jean Wilbur and the voice of Link by Jeffrey Rath, while additional voices were provided by Jeffrey Nelson, Mark Berry, Natalie Brown, Karen Grace, Josie McElroy, Marguerite Scott and Paul Wann.

Reception

At the time of its release, contemporary criticism was largely positive. SNES Force magazine described the animated sequences as "breathtaking" and praised the game's high-resolution graphics and "brilliant" use of sound and speech. Highly anticipated by the French video game press, Joystick magazine's development preview of the title highlighted the fact that this would be the first of the Zelda games to feature true voice acting, and described its plot as highly original and the background graphics as a tableaux of great beaut.] The UK-based CDi Magazine rated the game a 75%, describing it as a "reasonably good game" and praising the puzzles and the animation sequences while criticizing its perfunctory plot and poor controls. In 1994, Edge reported that both Faces of Evil and Wand of Gamelon had sold a "respectable number of units", but as CD-i sales began to suffer criticism sharpened and the games were described as low-cost, low-risk ventures that had failed to excite any interest in the platform despite their sales figures.

All three Zelda CD-i titles have garnered a largely negative reception among modern critics, with The Faces of Evil and Wand of Gamelon standing out as the most frequently derided. The magazine Electronic Gaming Monthly ranked Zelda: Wand of Gamelon the sixth worst game of all time, and GameTrailers rated it fifth worst game of all time. The Star Tribune described the game's voice acting as "laughable" and it was also criticized by Zelda Elements as jarring. IGN described the games as "infamous" and "cheesy"; other reviewers called the animated cutscenes "freakish" and "an absolute joke". Wired magazine said that the animation on the first two Zelda games was extremely simple and stilted and that the graphics had several glitches.

Despite the largely negative reception of The Wand of Gamelon, there have been a few positive reviews as well. Both Danny Cowan of 1UP.com and John Szczepaniak praised Faces of Evil and Wand of Gamelon as among the best games on the CD-i. Szczepaniak in particular suggested that several of the gaming magazines that had rated and reviewed Wand of Gamelon and Faces of Evil had engaged in hate campaigns having never even played the game. Cowan's and Szczepaniak's praises drew from the games' detailed, well-drawn in-game backgrounds and "pretty decent" gameplay, although both criticized the controls.

While the audio was thought to be "average", and not up to the usual Zelda quality by some reviewers, this has been contested by others who have described it as diverse and high-quality with an adventurous upbeat tempo blending electric guitar, panpipes, marimbas, and other unusual instruments. In a periodical for Retro Gamer magazine, Szczepaniak identified the natural comparison of the games by reviewers to the quality of games in the rest of the Zelda series as an improper comparison to make and suggested that when reviewed in their own right the games were actually excellent.

Contrary to what were described as "lies perpetuated about [Faces of Evil and Wand of Gamelon]," Retro Gamer described these games as "astoundingly good" and rated them together as number ten in its "Perfect Ten Games" for CD-i. While acknowledging that the games lacked canonicity, the games were praised for exhilarating pacing and superb gameplay design and music. The game's background art was also described as ranging from Gigeresque to Monet-esque.