
Multiple reports are flooding in today suggesting that copies of The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening are starting to find their way to the public, and potentially through rather suspicious means.
The first (and least suspicious) sighting comes from Chile, where the game appears to be available from a high street retailer. Twitter user @Psyfurius has supposedly picked up a number of copies as seen below.
Next up we have a story from L.A., where Reddit user california_king has also shown off an early copy of the game. Rather than a broken street date, this appears to be a particularly naughty case of unaccounted-for copies being sold on. In replies to the original post, california_king says, "The guy who I bought it from even said he works at a warehouse........ I kinda had a feeling there was some shady stuff going on. My friend get whole box extra mis-shipment at place of employment. 24 extra. He sell me. I get for $25".
"Shady" sounds like an understatement to us.

On top of this, there are also mumblings of copies being sold on Facebook Marketplace for $30 each and yet more early sales taking place at Walmart - which wouldn't be surprising considering the retailer's confusingly brazen attitude towards release dates just lately.
The game's out officially in just three days' time, so you won't have long to wait before you can pick it up via more trustworthy means, but you might want to keep an eye out for things being spoiled online. Of course, with this being a remake of a 26-year-old game, spoilers shouldn't be as much of an issue, but you've been warned regardless!
[source twitter.com, via reddit.com, mynintendonews.com, nintendosoup.com, gonintendo.com]
Comments 62
Gross, not sure who wants to pay AAA prices for a gameboy game.
Shame I'm working 16 hours on Friday and then 5 hours Saturday afternoon. I really want the overtime money though.
@Jokerwolf I can understanding finding it overpriced. But saying it is a gameboy game is just wrong... they remade it completely, and added content. Maybe it isn't worth triple A price, but it's not a gameboy game anymore... I'll wait for reviews to judge and see how much content was added.
@Jokerwolf,
Well, I do. Never played the original, so yeah. I'll pay the full price. Is it going to be the longest game.. Nope. Will it be like 12 to 15 hours of great fun? Oh yeah.
Oh no, I hope the game doesn’t get spoiled...wait...
is this news worthy? it happens every time
I have no problem spending $60 on this gameboy game
These should be renamed to Link's [Early] Awakening.
Would it kill people to wait until Friday?
@Tyranexx
Does it kill anyone to get the game a few days earlier?
I'm eagerly awaiting my Limited Edition pre-order this Friday though, pre-ordered it through Amazon.
@Cyrax77 Yeah I don’t have a least bit of a problem with this. Especially since it seems like a game people are returning to again and again. I’ve gotten more out of some of these Zelda games on the 2nd playthrough
@Jokerwolf
But paying 60 bucks for a 6 hour movie game with 3 hours gameplay is totally alright. 🤷♂️
@MrBlacky I don't, I just cannot fathom why they think it is worth that much when Spyro 1/2/3 and Crash 1/2/3 were remade from the ground up and have far more content for less.
All they added was a few enhancements, a harder difficulty and the create a dungeon thing where it is all rooms that are in the game already. Amiibo functionality is meh at best.
I am a huge Zelda fan and everyone I asked who played the originals agree that it is in no way worth the price.
The only logical explanation I can think of is they had development issues and are trying to recoup the dev costs through the price.
@RupeeClock I pre-ordered the bundle. Should be arriving early next week since I'm cheap when it comes to shipping.
IMO I'd rather get something fairly on or after its release date rather than A. rely on potentially dubious means to get a legit copy, or B. get a game from a retailer that broke a company's trust by breaking a street date just for added sales.
Yes I am playing it now.
There is frame rate issue with this game. It's 60 fps, but it's not stable like 3DS Zelda. I think Nintendo is pushing it too hard, the graphics look really good though, no aliasing at all. The water looks real, lighting is probably the best in any Nintendo games. I think the next Mario Kart will have this type of graphics.
@Jokerwolf I agree and disagree. It's a really good Gameboy game and at least a lot of care went into recreating it. That said, 60 is too steep for me for this. Value-wise its still probably a 8 hour game with no replay value compared to dragon quest 11, which comes out a week later and has literally 20 times the content. And since it's a Nintendo game, Zelda won't go on sale for like 2 years.
Can't wait to play with the most precious iteration of Link to date!
$30 sounds like a miles better offer for a Game Boy remake.
@nintendolie I wonder what some patching would do and if it responds well to overclocking.
@Xansies Even more of a steep proposition where I live, 79.99 which comes to 92 after sales tax, that is a big no no around here lol.
Should be £30 max just like the Crash remaster and that has three games in it.
spoilers run for your LIFE!!! joking.
oh man I pr ordered. so I have to wait through the weekend for mr posty. feels like a year away.
@Seth_Reaver If there's no update patch for this game on launch day, I think I know what those guys at Digital Foundry will say: frame pacing issues, uneven frame rate, etc.
@Jokerwolf Going from flat 2D sprites to the current graphics is a bit more than just an enhancement, to be fair. I’m getting it because I haven’t played it since the original came out, and I never got even halfway through that. So for myself, it’s close enough to a new game that I’m okay with the price. I also am not getting any other games till next year besides Luigi, though.
@HobbitGamer Luigi's Mansion 3 is my only other game this year too.
To be objective though, both Crash and Spyro's 3 titles were remade from the ground up on a new engine, all assets had to be recreated and arguably it was much more work and they charged far less. Even if you do not like Spyro or Crash the amount of work that went into them was clearly a lot.
I actually hope it sells poorly so Nintendo gets the hint that remakes unless they add actual new areas and content are not worth the price of a AAA title.
Why can't I ever luck out like this in my location? Friday is taking forever
Does someone know what Nintendo can do in those cases. Do they penalize the retailer?
@Jokerwolf Oh neat, I hadn't paid much attention to Spyro (and Crash isn't my jam), so I was under an impression it was just prettied up. I've got it on my wish list still. I want to finish Yooka before I start any other platformer/adventure.
@HobbitGamer Ya, they recreated everything from the ground up and Crash was a new custom engine where they meticulously recreated the physics and all the assets in both sets of games. This is why it is important to understand development of games as to not have the wool pulled over your eyes and see that sometimes companies try to pull a fast one.
This is not even news...who even writes abt this
@hakjie11 News, even if they are not that big still should be reported. Its still a Nintendo related event.
Sits patiently waiting by the letter box for postman... ☹️
If you got Zelda before the street date, then you are not allowed to play it till it officially comes out or else I will tell my mom on you.
I do agree with some of you that the price is a bit steep for this and the Spyro/crash comparison is fair, way greater value for less. However I do love this game and it’s art. I won’t feel shorted playing it with all of its charm. Any other company and I’d wait for a price drop but I don’t see this one dropping for awhile, maybe you could get it for $10 cheaper Black Friday. Hmm that’s coning up maybe I can wait that long. Dragon quest will keep me plenty occupied.
@BarefootBowser Breaking a street date doesn't equal ''stolen goods''...
Send me my copy, Walmart!!!
@Colorwatch Eh, I don't think they care, nor do I think they should. A few days early for this game isn't an issue. This is how most small retailers stay alive. I order mine from a small online retailer that sends their games a day or two early. It's the only way they can compete with the big stores.
I don’t understand the complain of the length vs price. Plenty of other games with same length with same price. I completed Astral Chain in 12 hours.... Awakening is closer to 20. Yes you can rush it. But you can do that with most games.
Does this still surprise anyone?
@Jokerwolf I honestly agree with you somewhat, even though I've already committed to buying this game. It's a shining example of what a great Zelda game is, even if they did skimp on the added content.
I would be a lot happier buying this if it at least had a second quest, secret dungeons, or added challenges in it, but I won't feel completely ripped off if it's the same game with prettier graphics either.
That said, it would also be nice if Nintendo committed to DLC for it, even if it's something as small as being able to change the color of your tunic or sword.
I picked up a copy this past Saturday at Walmart. Sadly, This isn’t the game I was expecting. Hate to admit it, but it feels like it was rushed and I’m a bit disappointed. Glad it exists, but it feels like a rushed cash grab with mobile style graphics. I thought it was going to be like link between worlds and have a feeling it may get review bombed simply because it’s an inferior version of the original with mobile style graphics that doesn’t offer anything new. Review sites and YouTube regurgitators will probably praise it but I wish they would have just created a new game. I didn’t realize that Nintendo didn’t even make the game, so the faults should lie with grezzo.
I guess some stores must let customers pick up pre orders early. I must ask if I can get my copy early 🙃
There was a time when Nintendo did not put embargoes on their reviews, but because they do the consequence is, someone letting the cat out of the bag. I'm surprised we don't see more early reviews.
While Zelda does not really need a review, most of us can guess it will get a 9, other games can live or die by reviews.
@ChozoGhost I just hit Wally World. All of the games are $10 lower than msrp. Don't know why, they just are. Have been for quite a while now. I buy the $30 games like Dragons Dogma and Crash Trilogy for $20.
This is why physical is better
Those of you who don't think it's a good price and/or too short, or the wrong frame rate have a simple solution: don't buy it. But please don't imply those of us who are getting it are inferior creatures.
It all subjective anyway.
@Jokerwolf Still just as long if not longer than some of Sony's modern AAA games for $60.
@Prof_Yoshtonics I got Fire Emblem Three Houses for $50 on launch day and they almost sold it to me a couple of days early by accident. I had honestly figured it must've come out that day since I knew it was coming that week.
"My friend get whole box extra mis-shipment at place of employment."
Is that the new "it fell off a truck"?
@Jokerwolf It's gonna be hella better than the average so-called AAA title on PS4/Xbone. Unlike Sony and MS, Nintendo still understands the value of creativity.
watch these fools have their videos get taken down on youtube trying to show gameplay of it and probably get their accounts either suspended or banned.
I've played it for a few hours so far, and yeah, the frame rate takes a hit in places for sure. Its still really good though of course.
Jeez, it's 2019, and still people don't know not to post criminal activity online (the california_king dude is in receipt of stolen property; a misdemeanor in California given the value of the property, but still).
@SortingHat I really think you meant your reply for someone else. Although that was interesting to read.
Spoiler alert: slowdown city
@Seth_Reaver overclocking helps, but not much. a mod that cuts back on the complexity of the on-screen filters might help, though.
To contrast complaints with the FPS issues, it should be said that the controls feel really excellent and are a big improvement over the Game Boy game's controls.
@Jokerwolf it's Nintendo and also the hype that the LoZ series produces, that leads to the pricetag. Unfortunately we live in a greed filled world my friend. None the less, it does look particularly good. I'll wait on a price drop to say, 39.99 or so B4 I buy a copy.
@Tyranexx a lot of places around the world dont really give a rat's a$$ about street dates. Once they receive their shipments, they just sell them. I grew up in Dubai and would get my games sometimes up to 2 weeks before official release date.
None leaked in the UK hopefully!
@Solomon18 there's me waiting for my game to be posted to me and there are already people playing the game early not sure if I should be annoyed or not 😤
@Nerdy_Gameber my order has already been paid for and they are processing it, got a email yesterday but still waiting, 😔
@Heythumb While unfortunately true and common, the whole principle of the thing still bothers me. It ultimately isn't a huge deal, but honesty and trust are very important to me.
@Jokerwolf Wow that is edgy.
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