exceeded my expectations for something so primitive.
the story is the bare minimum, really. defeat Ganon, save Zelda, recover the triforce of wisdom. as with other games of the era, this isn't addressed until the end. not a problem, though.
the puzzle-solving element in this game is minor, since it is surprisingly combat-oriented. the imprecise controls make close combat considerably harder, since you cant get link to stop on a dime and it is hard to turn sharply. the controls are my only real complaint. if your hearts are full, you can shoot a sword beam. it may sound cheap, but it is a much needed luxury. other than that, you have a small yet reliable arsenal of classic weapons, such as the boomerang, bow, and magic rod (also cheap). you might want to save your bombs, though, since you will have to blow open some walls in dungeons. this is a tad frustrating, since bombs aren't abundant and there's no hint as to if a wall can be blown open. this, and navigating through a confusing maze, are the puzzle-solving aspects. other than that, you'll have to kill everything in a room to advance.
the overworld is large, open-ended, and all about exploration. you get tons of freedom. you might encounter dungeons in the wrong order, since the game doesn't throw many obstacles at you, and there's nothing to guide you. you may like this a lot, though. since Hyrule is so empty, save for a few people in underground shops (where they charge you a pretty rupee for their wares), you'll probably wonder why you're saving it. well, you'll have fun, so who cares?
a BIG downfall would be the dungeon theme, which is the same for all of them except the last. it's grating, short, and on a continuous loop. it's all the system could handle, I guess. keep your mute button handy. the overworld theme i can tolerate for a long time. it's the best known song in the Zelda series, and even in its birth, it's great.
after you beat the game (i congratulate those who do), there's a second quest, which is harder, and the dungeons and their locations have been altered, save the first one.
this is a must-play for ANY self-respecting Zelda fan. if you're not a Zelda fan, but patient and have respect for old-school, you'll still love it, I'm sure.