All Capcom Legend of Zelda Games in Chronological Order

Published: September 23, 2024 by Matt Karoglou | Leave a comment

Throughout the long history of The Legend of Zelda franchise, only one other developer has been given the reins to the series from Nintendo. That developer is, of course, Capcom, whose legendary run of handheld Zelda titles rank among some of the best 2D entries in the franchise. More than just Capcom itself, though, central to the Capcom/Nintendo-developed Legend of Zelda games is director Hidemaro Fujibayashi. Like series luminaries Shigeru Miyamoto and Eiji Aonuma, Fujibayashi acts as the driving visionary behind the Zelda series’ Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance eras. And, just like the distinct feel of the Miyamoto-led Zelda games versus the more modern Aonuma era, Fujibayashi and Capcom’s Zelda games have a unique place in the franchise.

Taking the cumulative experience of a team of veteran developers across multiple legendary companies, the studio Flagship (comprised of developers from Nintendo, Sega, and Capcom) would kick things off with the duo of Oracle games, with Fujibayashi at the helm. Following those titles rousing success, Fujibayashi and Capcom would help port the greatest 2D game in the series, A Link to the Past, to the Game Boy Advance. At the same time, Fujibayashi and his team at Capcom had already begun work on a brand-new, original Zelda game for the GBA. That title, The Minish Cap, would end up being the final Capcom-Nintendo collaboration in the Zelda series. Fittingly, it also stands as one of the best (and most overlooked) Zelda games.

The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages

Release Date — February 27, 2001
Publisher — Nintendo
Developer — Flagship
Director — Hidemaro Fujibayashi
Review Aggregate Score — 92% (Universal Acclaim)
Total Sales — 3.99 million units (together with Oracle of Seasons)
Platform(s) — Game Boy Color

Taking inspiration from the success of the Pokemon games with Red and Blue (and, later, Yellow), Nintendo and Capcom would form a strategic partnership for the Zelda series to follow suit. Outsourcing the project to the team at Flagship (who had previously worked on several survival horror titles as a support studio to Capcom), the partnership would bear fruit in the form of two fantastic Legend of Zelda games: Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons. Each game maintains the same classic Zelda gameplay that should feel familiar to anyone who has played A Link to the Past or Link’s Awakening, but the two games each feature a specific focus. Where Seasons is more focused on combat and traversal, Ages is distinctly the more puzzle-oriented of the two.

The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons

Release Date — February 27, 2001
Publisher — Nintendo
Developer — Flagship
Director — Hidemaro Fujibayashi
Review Aggregate Score — 91% (Universal Acclaim)
Total Sales — 3.99 million units (together with Oracle of Ages)
Platform(s) — Game Boy Color

Along with Oracle of Ages, the partnership between Nintendo and Capcom would also result in the phenomenal Oracle of Seasons. The two games were designed to be playable in any order, meaning players could pick up one and enjoy it without needing the other. That said, the Oracle games make use of an interesting password and linking system that allows progress from one title to carry over to the other. Depending on which game players experience first, they can take their complete file over to the other Oracle game and play through its main story. Following the main critical path, a new, true final dungeon awaits players along with some more powerful equipment to tackle the daunting challenges within.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and Four Swords

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past gameplay and cover — ©CheatCC

Release Date — December 2, 2002
Publisher — Nintendo
Developer — Nintendo R&D2, Capcom
Director — Yoichi Yamada, Hidemaro Fujibayashi
Review Aggregate Score — 95% (Universal Acclaim)
Total Sales — 2.82 million units
Platform(s) — Game Boy Advance

The Game Boy Color era would prove to be surprisingly short-lived thanks to Nintendo’s release of the Game Boy Advance in 2001. Of course, with two of the most successful Game Boy Color titles being the Oracle games, it follows that the launch of the GBA would coincide with more handheld Zelda entries from Nintendo and Capcom. Though Fujibayashi and his team would begin development on The Minish Cap in 2001, the team would pause production to assist Nintendo with porting what’s arguably the greatest Zelda game to the Game Boy Advance: 1992’s The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. Not only would Capcom assist with the port to Nintendo’s new hardware, but the team would also develop the first multiplayer-centric Zelda game with Four Swords. As a whole package, few GBA games are as necessary as the LttP and Four Swords cart.

The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap

Release Date — November 4, 2004
Publisher — Nintendo
Developer — Capcom, Flagship
Director — Hidemaro Fujibayashi
Review Aggregate Score — 89% (Generally Favorable)
Total Sales — 1.76 million units
Platform(s) — Game Boy Advance

The final collaboration between Nintendo and Capcom on the Zelda franchise is also potentially the best game to come from the partnership. Releasing on November 4, 2004, The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap takes elements from across the series’ 2D entries to deliver one of the most inventive and original games in the franchise. Using the power of the titular artifact, Link can shrink down to the size of the diminutive Minish people, which completely recontextualizes the way players interact with the world and solve puzzles. Additionally, The Minish Cap marks an important piece of the overarching Zelda timeline, serving as the prequel story of sorts to the events that take place in Four Swords and Four Swords Adventures.