Legend Of Zelda vol 1: Ocarina of Time back

THE LEGEND OF ZELDA is based on the series of computer games starring gutsy young Link wandering around fantastical landscapes like a young, blonde Robin Hood, solving riddles, acquiring items, battling brutes and rescuing the put-upon of the day.

PHANTOM OF THE HOURGLASS is the one I'm most familiar with since my ex-house monkey, Ossian Hawkes, spent well over a month of his life (and mine) twiddling his thumbs and bashing buttons in front of the lounge TV, propelling our pint-sized protagonist across the ocean waves from island to island - sword, shield and boomerang in hand - avoiding water spouts, combining items and crawling through tunnels in search of The Sand Of Time in order to fill his hourglass and free his former Captain and love interest Tetra from the elusive, fog-shrouded Ghost Ship. But Ossian soon discovered that his trusty treasure map had distinct limitations and actually began mapping the massive world for himself in an exercise book which was almost enough to make me play the game afterwards (I expended 50-odd pages each sketching elements of Riven and Myst to help me navigate, decipher and virtually will my way through those games). Still tempted.

I've often wondered why series like these sell so well given that they lack the interactivity of the originals. Maybe it's the recognition factor, a comicbook comfort blanket, reliving your greatest hits on paper. Or perhaps they're read as a walkthrough for those playing the games, or a catch-up for those only embarking on the very latest episodes. They certainly won't take you a month, and will save hours of occasionally fruitless meandering, double-backing and reloads.