It has been a few years now, so I think you can finally come out and admit it. Regardless of your feelings on the cutesy graphics, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker was a damn awesome game. An intriguing, if not controversial, art design, awesome cel-shaded graphics and the puzzles, discovery and fighting that fans have come to expect from the series were all there in full force, willing to check you into a wall of fun over and over again until you laid unconscious on the floor in a dazed, euphoric pulp. But now it's time to grab your gear and hit the rink again, as Nintendo's newest game, The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass is a direct sequel to the smash Gamecube hit and it misses nary a beat during the system transition. An epic score and unbelievable visuals show just how much untapped power is left in the Nintendo DS, although the new style of gameplay that mixes the classic Zelda formula with new-fangled touch screen controls and accessibility hold it down, keeping it from the high mantle where The Wind Waker resides. But hey - an above average Zelda title is still far above the competition.

Not far removed from the events of Wind Waker, Link, Tetra and her crew take their ship onto the high seas yet again in search of adventure. But before they can get started, a mysterious ship known as the Ghost Ship makes an appearance, tempting Tetra to jump on and investigate. Before anyone else can follow her, the Ghost Ship begins to sail away and so it's up to Link to attempt to save her! Unfortunately he fails in this endeavor and falls into the ocean, waking up on an unknown land and having to start his rescue attempt from scratch.

Your quest from here on out leads you around a small chain of islands as you search for the whereabouts of the Ghost Ship. This leads you to cross paths with a fairy named Ciela, a treasure hungry ship captain named Linebeck and many other eccentric characters. While the story and those within it don't represent a truly original experience, the scribes-in-charge here have proved more than capable of crafting an amusing, enjoyable tale that holds your interest while weaving in and out of commonplace plot devices and cliché character types.

The gameplay, on the other hand, avoids much of those well-trodden trappings, reinventing what we all know as the classic 'Zelda' formula. Just as Twilight Princess forever changed the landscape of the action adventure title on the Wii, Phantom Hourglass will ultimately do the same on the DS. This translates into Link being controlled exclusively with the touch screen - a necessary development choice that may annoy and even alienate a few gamers at first (an opinion that an hour or so of hands-on introductions won't alter). Trust me though - just give it a chance! Here, I'll even prep you for what to expect…

Dragging the stylus across the screen, using Ciela as a visual marker, causes Link to move around the screen, and the further away from Link she is, the faster he moves. Bring Link close to an object he can pick up then simply tap the item to pick it up, and tap anywhere on the screen to cause him to throw it to that location. Draw quick lines across the screen to swipe his sword, tap enemies and objects for a thrust attack and quickly draw circles around our little green hero to unleash his spinning attack. Special items are used in the same manner; the boomerang is no longer a throw in a straight line and catch item - you now draw its complete path start to finish - and in any way you please! Up, down, loop-de-loops - you are only limited by your imagination and an equivalent of fifteen or so in-game feet. Placing bombs or shooting arrows (as well as other point and aim items such as the hammer and grappling hook) work the same on the screen, with Link holding the item and then using them, but now a tap for picking up (for bombs) and a tap on the area you want the item used at is all that is needed to execute these moves.

This sounds pretty simple and self-explanatory, right? I hope so, as it really is that elementary. The learning curve doesn't come from the controls, but rather from getting used to a foreign control scheme and learning how to keep your hand from blocking your view. At first my fingers just rebelled against the change, reverting to pressing the buttons I have grown accustomed to using over the years. The problem is, the d-pad and all the buttons have been regulated into background roles, serving as nothing more than shortcuts to and through the game's menus. The only motion I struggle executing on a consistent basis is the roll, which asks for small circles drawn in quick succession. I ended up having Link spin around in circles much more often than I had him rolling; having the player tap on Link would have been much more effective.

Phantom Hourglass uses these touch controls with effective and entertaining though mostly predictable results. A swift swiping of enemies, lighting torches with a flaming boomerang by drawing the path between torches and keeping notes on your map are all great ways to give the touch screen a proper context. Sailing, a snooze-worthy task in Wind Waker, has been given the touch screen special, as direct control has been removed for a course-drawing control scheme. But very few, if any, of these moments amount to an exclamation of surprise. Much like New Super Mario Bros., Phantom Hourglass feels as if it is just the demonstration of the tools for future sequels and the blueprints of franchise rebirths, rather than a standalone title.

Just as Square-Enix seemed to be getting comfortable with their Nintendo DS presentation crown, Nintendo steps in and shows them, and every other developer for the system, how it should be done. Utilizing hands down the best 3D graphics the system has seen to date, the differences between Wind Waker and Phantom Hourglass visually are fewer than ever could have been imagined. Though textures throughout the game are aren't as crisp and the models aren't as rounded as the Gamecube classic, the fluid animation, character models and environmental effects are just stellar. The cartoonish style of Wind Waker, a style over surface level detail, proves to be the perfect fit for the DS, as all this eye candy has almost no effect on the frame rate at all.

The game loses nary a beat when it comes to the music either, as a wonderful composition of upbeat adventure tunes give the entire game that epic air. Sailing the seas, traversing the lands or slinking through a dungeon, the game always has the perfect song to hand. If you have headphones then be sure to use them to take advantage of the soundtrack - the stereo speakers just don't do the music justice. To go along with that, all of the series' familiar sound effects are in place, from the explosion of bombs and the clink of rupees to the classic treasure chest theme and more.

With a quest that runs around fifteen to twenty hours, plus a few more for side quests, don't be surprised if you are left feeling wanting, especially after the mammoth quest that was Twilight Princess. But when you take in the presentation and the near non-stop entertainment that the game provides, those disappointing feelings may have more to do with the experience blazing right past you, more than it has to do with the actual game being too short. To keep gamers around between bouts with the main game, there is a one-on-one, capture the flag style multiplayer game that is playable in multi-card, single-card and over Nintendo Wi-Fi. One player controls Link as he gathers Tri-Force pieces and takes them to color-coded bases, as the other player, controlling three phantom knights by drawing their paths on the touch screen, attempts to stop them. Catch Link or run out of time and the players swap roles - whoever scores the most points wins. Not the deepest multiplayer, but it can be a blast in bursts.

The Legend of Zelda series has always been known for its grand adventures, both on consoles and handhelds, and Phantom Hourglass does nothing to taint that record. Thankfully, where other Nintendo franchises - such as Yoshi's Island and Super Mario Bros. - took the safer, less ambitious routes in their Nintendo DS debuts, Link wasn't so lucky and instead received the touch-screen-infused, console-sized game that those other franchises still so dearly deserve. Unless you fear change or dislike the action adventure RPG then you should rush out and snap this up, as it's arguably the DS' greatest title so far.

Reviewed by Tony Peters for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).