34 Years Later, This 10/10 SNES Classic Has Aged Better Than Most Modern Games

Published Aug 18, 2026, 2:00 PM EDT

Chris is a Gaming Editor at ScreenRant. He has been a professional writer since 2009, and has written for top TV, comics, movie, and video game outlets like Engadget, Polygon, Destructoid, and more. He brings with him an expertise in every game genre, no matter how niche or mainstream.

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The Super Nintendo is a lot like the PS2 in that it had countless games that became marquee staples, holding up the entire gaming industry in the process. You could throw a stone and hit a classic game just by browsing the SNES library.

Even after three decades and change, many of them hold up. Take this particular game, which is widely available on modern platforms but started out on the SNES.

After 34 Years, This Game Has Aged Beautifully

The Zelda series is in a league of its own in many ways, but The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is frequently talked about as one of the best video games of all time, period. There's no qualifier for "Super Nintendo" or "Nintendo" there. It absolutely stands above the crowd of action-adventure games because it has snappy, quick combat, interesting puzzles to solve, and a rich world that's large but not bloated.

Even the premise sounds so quaint now, all these years later: "On a dark and stormy night, young Link embarks on an adventure he – and you – will never forget! Princess Zelda has been taken prisoner and an evil wizard is attempting to unleash Ganon, the king of darkness. Only Link has the courage to save Hyrule! A Link to the Past is the critically-acclaimed Super NES chapter in the Legend of Zelda saga; famous for its atmospheric graphics and sound, ingenious dungeons, and for introducing now-classic items such as the Hookshot, Pegasus Boots and Master Sword."

Even better, the pacing is still timeless. You wake up, go on your adventure, and the tutorial is short, sweet, and to the point. After that, you're plopped into the open world, free to make your own decisions, earn new upgrades and equipment, and even sequence break if you want (going places you aren't "supposed" to go early on, or completing dungeons "out of order").

Is This The Best Zelda Game Of All?

You could make the argument that The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is one of the best games of all time, and potentially the best Zelda entry. Really, at that point, it comes down to whether you prefer 2D or 3D Zelda, and if games like Ocarina of Time edge it out.

For me, Link to the Past is an easy one to return to, especially since I have multiple copies of the Game Boy Advance edition, which came with an extra game: Four Swords. As one of the first-ever Zelda multiplayer romps, this quick-bite game is a blast, and although it was released on DS digitally as a separate title, that system's entire online shop is down for the count.

If you want to try out The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past or relive the glory days of Super Nintendo, you can do so on the SNES, Game Boy Advance, DSi, Wii, Wii U, New Nintendo 3DS, and Switch 1-2 through the Nintendo Classics line. Just know that the older marketplaces are shut down, so you'll have to have the game on your account already.

Released April 13, 1992

ESRB E For Everyone Due To Mild Violence

Developer(s) Nintendo EAD