I recently did an article showcasing some of the art of Mario 3 for the NES. In doing so it made me think about some of the other 8 bit era art that I loved so much as a child. You see, back then the graphics on most games while not without charm, by today’s standards are the equivalent to hot garbage. Meaning that the cover art for the game and/or the box was very important (and often grossly misleading). In the early days of the system some games would give you all the back story in its booklets with accompanying pictures to immerse yourself into the world of the game before pressing power on the console. After all cutscenes were still a little ways away.

The Legend of Zelda is and always will be one of the greatest and most innovative video games that Nintendo ever released (despite any misgivings you may have about its sequel). The booklets original art had always enamored me as a child and really helped to set the tone for the franchise or at least the two NES games. So if you’ve never seen these before, sit back and enjoy. If your already familiar it’s time to get yourself reacquainted.

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