The Legend of Zelda Box Set: Prima Official Game Guide Hardcover – November 26, 2013

In recent memory, strategy guides have become less of a necessity and more of a collector's item. For every game nowadays there is a guide to accompany it. Sometimes there's a collector's edition guide as well. For collector's these are sometimes a lot of fun. For Zelda fans that enjoy Zelda lore this collection is a fantastic buy. There is a limited number in print and it's simply amazing to behold. It's great packaging and actually has things in there specifically for collectors.Before I begin I want to stress that this review won't be going into the content of each guide. With the exception of the Skyward Sword guide, each of these guides is exactly the same as their standard (and separately released) collector's edition counterpart. The reason Skyward Sword is not the same is because this copy was revised and expanded upon. Aside from that, the other five guides are largely unchanged from their original releases. There are subtle differences but nothing that greatly changes the actual content in the guide.To begin, the guides come packaged in a box that looks like a chest. When you open it up there are six hardbound guides in there. The covers all look very similar. Each one having an embossed Hyrule symbol on them. The covers and the borders are different on each guide. The six guides included are for Twilight Princess, Phantom Hourglass, Spirit Tracks, Ocarina of Time 3D, Skyward Sword and the Windwaker HD. All the guides have gold leaf pages that are shiny when looking at them from the side.There are a couple of things to note about the guides themselves. The first is that it seems just a little strange that the guides themselves are not actually individually shrink wrapped. This seems a little odd. It's not that big of a deal but when you open the packaging they're already loose. Considering each original release came shrink wrapped it's a little strange. Perhaps the thing that some consumers might mind is that none of these guides come with their respective extras. Anything that was considered a bonus for getting the collector's edition guide isn't here. Likewise, when this particular collection was announced, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds simply wasn't planned for the package. So anyone hoping this guide comes with the collection are out of luck. That's no big deal.There are also a couple of things to note here about only a couple of guides. The first and most obvious is the Ocarina of Time 3D guide. Prima NEVER actually released a hardcover edition of this guide. Ever. This is the first time that Ocarina of Time 3D players will get to grab this guide in hardcover. Originally the guide was only in paperback. This makes the collector's value certainly worthwhile as it means that the guide will have much more limited hardcover run than all the other guides here. This boxset is more or less your only chance to get it.The second thing of note is that the Skyward Sword guide included here is NOT the same as the one originally published. It has been revised and expanded. Even the layout is very different from the original guide itself. It has been revised and expanded by over 100 pages. It is almost a completely new guide from the original one that was released. So yes, this one too is a rarity because you won't have much luck finding it outside of this particular box set.There are a couple of subtle differences between some guides and the originals. Most notably is the Ocarina of Time 3D guide. The original guide was around 224 pages and written in three columns. Here it's 288 pages and is written in two columns. It's a lot easier to read and a lot cleaner as a result. Much of the text isn't so cramped. Some moments in the Ocarina of Time 3D guide pop out a lot easier. It just looks better and more organized overall. The Legendary Checklist in the Ocarina of Time Guide is also better looking. The tables are easier to read and easier on the eyes. Likewise, the Legendary Checklist in the Twilight Princess Guide is A LOT easier to read and A LOT less cramped. In the original guide the entire checklist was on a single page with just the location. Here it's expanded to be in a table format, the font is bigger and it now lets you know your first chance to complete it as well as telling you what's required. The Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks guides are virtually unchanged from their initial releases. The Windwaker HD is pretty much the same as well. So for those wondering about whether or not they've changed some things from the original guides, the answer is yes. Quite simply put some of them are a tad easier to read.The set also came with a few bonuses of note. The first and probably most valuable of all, is that you get a certificate of authentication from Eijo Aonuma that is signed and numbered. The second is a laser etched metallic bookmark. For collectors this package is a pretty sweet deal. It's invaluable. The only thing I wish we could've gotten would have been to actually get all the extras the guides themselves actually came with. It is more or less the only thing I feel is missing and keeping it from being a complete package. Part of what made the guides collector's editions aside from the hardcovers was actually getting little bonuses that didn't come with the guide otherwise.Nevertheless, for the fan of Zelda this is a good buy. But let's be clear. If you are buying this, chances are it is probably not to actually utilize the guides themselves. After all, many of the games these guides are for have been out for a while and, truthfully, you could just buy them on their own if you really wanted them for strategy. They are a collector's item. And it is certainly a nice one.

This collection is OUTSTANDING in terms of quality and appearance. Over the years, I have purchased most of these guides and got the additional materials that were included with them (though these were not replicated for the guides in this collection unfortunately). If ever you were looking for a nice collection of books concerning The Legend of Zelda or to aid in completing the games, this set is DEFINITELY for you.PROS:1) Quality: The outer box resembles a treasure chest, the likes of which Link finds all across Hyrule (and many other worlds connected to it). It is a sturdy cardboard coated with a gloss-like finish, and it seems to have a magnetic clasp built in to keep the top closed. On the roof of the top, when opened, is a slot containing a metallic (yes, metallic, not vinyl or cardboard) bookmark that has been beautifully etched by what appears to be laser. It contains the logo of the series on one side and the crest of the Royal Family of Hyrule on the other, making for a very attractive (and unexpectedly greater quality) bookmark. The books themselves all appear to be of slightly better quality than their original prints (which had binding problems and easily tore in some instances).2) Additional Goodies: The most obvious additional item (and most sought after in time I am sure) would be the guide for Ocarina of Time 3D, which is only available through this set (of which only 50,000 exist). I have examined it, and it is a VERY nice guide for the game, and as beautifully put together as its companion guides. Another obvious extra is the metallic bookmark, which is really one of the nicest bookmarks I have seen honestly. Also, something else extra that may be easy to miss is this: some of the materials in this print of the guides have been expanded upon (the number of pages in Skyward Sword's guide has increased by 100 if that tells you anything).3) Collectible Status: The set comes with a certificate of authenticity that includes a stamped number out of 50,000 and with the printed message and signature of Eiji Aonuma. It marks the set as one out of 50,000 which indicates its collectible status and will almost certainly indicate an increase in value as time goes on.4) Packaging: I have NEVER seen such good packaging for any item I have bought online as I have for this one. The box the collection was shipped in is a good middle size containing two foam-like holding pieces that fit onto each end of the chest/box which hold it in place (and suspend it both above the shipping box's bottom and below the shipping box's top) and ensures that the package will not move around inside the shipping box at all during transport. I intend to keep the shipping box and packaging the collection came in to transport it again when I am ready to move. You can definitely rest assured that the collection will not suffer damage during shipping.CONS:1) Lack of Previous Additional Materials: As indicated before, the previous materials included with the previous print of these guides were not included, nor the map from the recently released Wind Waker HD guide. This is a small complaint, as Twilight Princess's guide originally came with a cloth map of Hyrule, the Phantom Hourglass guide came with a vinyl bookmark of its own, and the Spirit Tracks guide originally came with a printed map of Hyrule. While this is a regrettable exclusion, one should also take note that those materials were fairly cheaply made. Hence, you're not missing out on much in that regard.2) Exclusion of ALBW Guide: It is a shame that the makers of the collection did not have the foresight to include the recently released collector's guide for A Link Between Worlds in this collection, and considering they came out basically at the same time they easily could have. This is a minor complaint, as the guide for A Link Between Worlds is of course available for purchase and comes with a collector's lithograph of the primary image from A Link Between Worlds. Still, it would have been nice to have gotten them all together in one fell swoop, though of course this would have increased the size and weight of the package even more than it already is (and trust me, it weighs a good amount).BOTTOM LINE: This is an AWESOME set that will make any collector ecstatic to possess for not only its vast wealth of knowledge concerning the games it covers, but also for its beauty, craftsmanship and quality. If you have not already gotten these guides, I STRONGLY encourage you to pick up this set while you are able to (there are only 50,000 in existence). And if you have already gotten some of these guides as I had, I encourage you to still pick up this set and possibly sell your older copies as I plan to. I plan to keep the extras that came with the previous printings of the guides and sell the guides themselves, as I now have this collection and no longer have any need for them. The mere inclusion of the Ocarina of Time 3D guide (which apparently is not going to be released outside this set according to the publishers) alone should be a pretty good reason to get this collection, and after seeing it in person, I couldn't agree more that it was indeed worth it.

Have wanted this for ages and one day it appeared in my suggestions. Dubiously I clicked the link, expecting it to be very expensive. It wasn't. So I purchased it. As a collector, it's a lovely set to have on the shelf and as a gamer, it provides a great set of guides to a great series of games.

To be honest I had a lot of issues actually getting this product to me in one piece sadly, the first two attempts it arrived to me with broken bottoms of the chest, but Amazon was very helpful in getting it sorted and to me on the last attempt where it arrived in one piece. The books look stunning, the detail into making the books, the gold leaf on the edges of pages the gold emboss on the front cover and spine of the books just make them look all that much more special.It also comes with a metallic bookmark which again looks very beautiful and sturdy to hold.The certificate saying which set out of the only available 50'000 of them just does the finishing touch. This is a must buy for anyone that is a Legend of Zelda fan and you'll be sorry if you miss out your chance!

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A MUST FOR ANY COLLECTIOR OR HARD COREFAN!. Granted these are walk through books for alot of there games but it is a limited edtion and comes with a verifcation to say it is the real deal

The set fully lives up to it's description. Every piece, from the box to the book mark is high quality and beautifully designed. The books are excellent both for reference and just for browsing. I appreciated the extensive packaging as the box arrived in perfect condition. Pre-ordered and well worth the long wait.