Nintendo’s cute retro socks are the latest way to play Zelda (again).

Nintendo likes to repackage its nostalgia. A few years ago, it was a classic plug-and-play mini game console, such as NES Classic and SNES Classic. Then Nintendo Switch's subscription service recently added N64 and Genesis games and controllers. Now it is games and watches. The $50 Zelda Game & Watch is a small game gift this holiday season. After playing for a day, I have been fascinated. Just like last year's "Super Mario Game and Watch", all this is to provide a familiar set of games in the new packaging.

Game & Watch is a series of black and white LCD single game handheld devices from the 1980s. I played with them when I was a kid, before the Game Boy, so my personal nostalgia plan is running at speed on these new small handheld devices. These games and their characters reappear in the Game Boy compilation, and even in the Super Smash Bros. Zelda game and watch, just like last year’s Mario version, it is a perfect reproduction of the original game and watch design, but with Color LCD screen and some 8-bit era games. In fact, the Zelda bag is more cost-effective than last year's Mario.

Last year’s Game & Watch followed this year’s Game & Watch. (How many people will there be?)

The Legend of Zelda, The Legend of Zelda II, and Zelda: Link’s Awakening are all included, including the NES Zelda game and the Game Boy Zelda remade for the Switch a few years ago. All games have perfectly mapped controls and allow games to be saved. As a bonus, there used to be a real Game & Watch game (Pest, you swipe back and forth and beat the mole). Link was inserted this time as a role to fight against the mole. The Game Boy game Link's Awakening is played in nostalgic black and white pixels, and it can even switch between the original square aspect ratio and a wider mode that fits the screen.

The box packaging can even be folded into a holder for a handheld device. clever.

As the name suggests, there is a watch on Game & Watch, but it basically just tick the time with the Zelda Dungeon animation. If you want, you can keep this mode and move Link and kill enemies; this is an irritating game mode. There is also a timer, which can also count how many enemies you have killed in the Zelda II theme animation that is running at the same time. I think in a sense, these are also bonus games?

The display quality and audio are very good, better than you expected. Charging the handheld device via USB-C (including data cable) can roughly provide at least four hours of game time. My children have played with Mario in a car and have never had a battery problem. The game will be saved even if the handheld computer is turned off, in case you forget to save it.

All game modes and viewing modes, if you are curious.

However, these Zelda games are much more detailed than Super Mario and have much more text. This brings a disadvantage to playing on such a small device: your eyesight is best and good. I found myself squinting many times, but my children have no problems. (Ah, aging eyes.) Also, if you play with your family and want to pass it on, navigating in the game to call up other game saves can sometimes become very confusing.

Final note: a little Triforce (cute) is lit on the back of the handheld device. The cardboard box is folded back into the display stand. This is a carefully crafted collection bag, and I can't think of a better gift than a Zelda super fan. Yes, you have played these games before, maybe. But you will enjoy the feeling of playing them again in such a compact form. I did it.

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