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Okay, we get it - multiplayer is a grillion times better than single player in Four Swords Adventures. Fine. BUT - one thing you guys NEVER mention in these things is whether or not you need ALL FOUR PLAYERS for successful multiplayer. Can you play with just TWO people? Three? I can always find one or two mopes with GBAs to come over and play a game, but three other players can be a dicey proposition.

MJ responds: You're in luck. You can enjoy Four Swords Adventures in one, two, three, and four player varieties -- and the experience is essentially unchanged. How's this work? Well, the dungeon layout is the same regardless of the amount of people playing. The only difference is that certain bonuses and puzzles are altered for the single player version.

Four Swords navigates around the four player requirement by assigning the extra Links (those not directly controlled) to human players. They'll follow their human counterparts until they're instructed to fall into formation. The basics can be found here. With two players, each player will have an additional Link. With three players, only one person will have to deal with a parasitic Link. This allows you to complete four player puzzles without four physical players.

Of course, the extra Link-less player can always "steal" a Link from their friends if they're feeling lonely.

Hi, I know this is kind of a weird question but I'm just curious. How much of the GBA version of Four Swords is included in the GCN game? Like, are there some parts (such as exact levels and stages) of the GBA version that is present in FSA or is this GCN game just a new game straight up(besides the gameplay, of course)? I'm just wondering because I was thinking of getting A Link to the Past for the GBA because of Four Swords, but if the exact version is also found in the GCN game, then I might pass it.

MJ responds: While Four Swords Adventures' concept is based on the GBA game, they are completely different experiences. The story and dungeon elements will feel familiar to Zelda fans, but that's because Adventures builds off of previous Zelda games. The only element that really connects the GCN experience to the GBA game is that it is multiplayer Zelda. For a full break down of the differences between versions, check out Four Swords: Sword-to-Sword.

You rated Four Swords way too high. That game is the most blatant use of the connectivity gimmick. Also, you said the multiplayer of FF:CC was excellent, and the single player was not so good. You said the same thing about fourswords, yet you gave Four Swords a higher score. I smell the obvious Zelda fanboyism. I don't really like FF:CC, but your reviews contradict each other, and Four Swords is not an 8.7. If anything, it shouldn't be any higher than 7.0. Its a 2-D game which shouts laziness, and no matter how fun it is, its can never be more than what the other games have been. You gave it a higher score than most GBA games, which are designed to be 2-D. Any GC game which isn't 3-D, belongs on the GBA, otherwise, its a steaming pile of crap. Nintendo needs to get a hold of themselves, and you need to get someone who isn't a Zelda fanboy to review Zelda games.

MJ responds: While the worth of a game all boils down to an individual's opinion -- you've clearly stated yours -- all editors that have had anything to do with IGNcube (Cory, Fran, Matt, Mary Jane, and Peer) believe that Four Swords Adventures is the best use of connectivity on the market. The concept is a little hard to grasp if you haven't played the game, but Adventures' use of gameplay aids in multiplayer play. It allows one player to explore a dungeon or talk to NPCs without interfering with the other three players. The difference between Four Swords and Crystal Chronicles is that FFCC used the GBAs solely for item management. While it kept the gameplay screen free of cluttered menus, it didn't really add anything to gameplay.

And, Four Swords scored higher than FFCC for one major reason -- we thought it was a lot more fun. Everyone that has the peripheral requirements should at least give Four Swords a chance. It's one of the best multiplayer games currently on GameCube.

Hi, I was just reading some of the mail section and one of them said something about a "Revolution"? is that the new Nintendo Console coming out or something? Thanks

MJ responds: Revolution is the codename for Nintendo's next system, which was revealed during Nintendo's Pre-E3 Media Briefing. Nintendo believes that Revolution will give developers a reason to innovate once again. Apparently, Nintendo's DS philosophy will be merged with a console. Next generation will certainly be interesting.

So, VJ2 looks great, and co-op looks cool, but since there are 2 characters, why is there only one health meter and one vfx meter? How do you think this works?

MJ responds: We had a chance to talk with Viewtiful Joe 2's Producer Atsushi Inaba at E3. But, he wouldn't discuss VJ2's cooperative mode. While skirting around the topic, we did learn that the VFX powers would affect both players. The only way to explain the single health and VFX meters shown in these new screens is that players will share them. How far cooperation will go in cooperative mode -- such as whether both players will have to activate a VFX power simultaneously is unknown. Hopefully, we'll have more VJ2 news soon.

Im not completely positive but im pretty sure before e3 nintendo said they were gonna reveal animal crossing 2 for gamecube at e3... what ever happened to that? i f'ing loved the first animal crossing and they said the second one was gonna utilize the power of the gamecube and have really good graphics and whatnot... so yeah i was wondering if you guys heard anything about that.

MJ responds: We don't rightly recall any rumors concerning Animal Crossing 2 rumors prior to E3. All I remember is pining for an online mode in our Waiting For Other Players... article. We imagine that any pre-E3/post-E3 Animal Crossing rumblings refer to Animal Crossing DS. Learn more about the online enabled AC at our sister site IGN Game Boy.