The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass Critic Reviews

There are many excellent games on the DS but few masterpieces. This one, though, is a masterpiece. And worth every penny you'll pay for it.

Easy and approachable enough for the DS' vast install base of casual users but rewarding and challenging enough to satisfy the hardest of the hardcore Zelda fans. Somehow, magically, it succeeds on both counts. Phantom Hourglass isn't perfect, but it's one of the best experiences, casual or hardcore, available in gaming today.

Nintendo again shows that it's the master of its own hardware with another sublime entry in the Zelda lineage. If you own a DS then this is an utterly essential purchase - it really is that simple.

It’s not often that a game comes about to justify the purchase, or even the existence of a particular console, but with The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, Nintendo has delivered a game that every DS owner should experience.

If there's an imaginative and genuinely fun way to use the touch-screen this game finds it and exploits it to the fullest.

It is groundbreaking in every sense of the word, and successfully bridges that gap between the hardcore and the casual. A feat that is in no way easy.

For many gamers, this is the Zelda title they've been waiting for on the DS. Even amidst high expectations, Phantom Hourglass passes with flying colors.

20 of the finest gaming hours of the year.

It may not live up to the lofty standards recently displayed in "Twilight Princess", but this adventure is worthy of Zelda canon, and still has enough great stuff going for it to be considered one of the year's best adventures.

All in all, Phantom Hourglass is a successful sequel that improves on everything that its predecessor did right.

Just know that it's the same Zelda you've always known and loved, and that's a good thing.

Phantom Hourglass is still a solid title that fans have expected for a long time, and it does a great job to not only please the fans, but welcome newcomers who want to immerse themselves in this great adventure.

It's not just the best DS game I've ever played, but it's also one of the best games I've ever played, period.

Phantom Hourglass is the perfect adventure, accessible to all ages from the novice adventure to the hardcore Zelda fan.

The best and most complete portable adventure ever. Even if you’re not a fan of the series, you should feel compelled to play it and recognize it as a masterpiece.

Everything you could ever want from a Zelda game and more.

We stand before one of the best games for Nintendo DS, evidence that this isn’t just a platform for mini-games.

It's a game that should be seen from start to finish, if only to witness some of the finest level and puzzle concoctions ever to grace a Zelda game and, without question, the finest single-player experience to grace the DS. Hourglass drips quality and innovation, no DS owner should be without it.

Much like Gears and Halo for the 360, or Metroid Prime 3 and Twilight Princess for the Wii, Phantom Hourglass should be "the" game every DS owner has in their collection.

It’s a spectacular blend of touch-screen combat, brilliant puzzles, and Wind Waker beauty. A can’t-miss adventure – one of Nintendo’s finest, and one of the year’s best.