BS Zelda

In Japan in 1995, Nintendo released a satellite modem for the Super Famicon (the Japanese name for the Super Nintendo) which was called the Satellaview. The system allowed players to receive a satellite signal and walk around a virtual town as a male or female character, with houses scattered around which allowed the player to play specific games. These games were only available for a limited time in Japan.

Three Zelda titles were released over the Satellaview: BS The Legend of Zelda, BS The Legend of Zelda: Ancient Stone Tablets, and BS The Legend of Zelda: Triforce of the Gods. The BS prefix in the titles stands for "Broadcast Satellite".

The games were broadcast once a week in parts, and could only be played for one hour at a time. Once the weeks during which the game was played had expired, the games were never playable again...until today! People have dumped ROMs of the games and patched them with English translations since their broadcast in the early 90s. With this, it has become possible to play the games with a SNES emulator.

For more information about where you can play these games, visit the The BS Zelda Homepage.

BS The Legend of Zelda

This game is essentially a remake of the original The Legend of Zelda, but with a few differences due to the Satellaview system. The first difference is the graphics. It's The Legend of Zelda, but with Super Nintendo graphics. The second difference is the Overworld and the dungeons. The Overworld was half the size, although the screens that remained looked the same as the original game, while all of the dungeons themselves were different.

The game had to be played in one sitting, as it was only available for one hour a week. The game was divided into 4 chapters, with one chapter released per week. In addition, there were random occurrences which were related to the time, such as the ability to shoot sword beams when not at full health. A second map, like a second quest for the game, was released over 4 weeks in early 1996.

One of the biggest changes was the fact that Link was absent from the game! Instead, players could choose their gender, and would be represented by either the male or female Satellaview mascot.

BS The Legend of Zelda: Ancient Stone Tablets

Ancient Stone Tablets was a sequel to A Link to the Past of sorts. The objective of the game is to find eight ancient stone tablets, which contain a secret from the goddesses that will help to destroy Ganon. You travel through the same world as in A Link to the Past, and after collecting the tablets, travel to Death Mountain to collect the bow and silver arrows, and then enter the Dark World for the final showdown with Ganon.

The game was released over four weeks, with new sections of the Overworld being released each week, and two dungeons made available in each section. Each week, the game was only playable for one hour.

Like in BS The Legend of Zelda, the player did not play as Link but either the male or female Satellaview mascot, who in this game is known as The Hero of Light.

BS The Legend of Zelda: Triforce of the Gods

Triforce of the Gods was a re-release of A Link to the Past. The game was identical, apart from the time limit, the same as the one in the other two BS Zelda games. Additionally, the player does not play as Link but either the male or female Satellaview mascot.