Action role-playing game
An important influence on the action RPG genre was the 1986 action-adventure, "The Legend of Zelda", which served as the template for many future action RPGs. In contrast to previous action RPGs, such as "Dragon Slayer" and "Hydlide," which required the player to bump into enemies in order to attack them, "The Legend of Zelda" featured an attack button that animates a sword swing or projectile attack on the screen. It was also an early example of open-world, nonlinear gameplay, and introduced new features such as battery backup saving. These elements have been used in many action RPGs since.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
In April 2013, during a Nintendo Direct presentation, a new "The Legend of Zelda" game was announced for the 3DS with a late 2013 release date. The game was described by Nintendo as a successor to "A Link to the Past", set within the same world but featuring new mechanics, new dungeons, and an original story. Shortly after the presentation, Nintendo released a gameplay video on the Nintendo eShop. Later in June, at the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2013, the English title for the game was revealed as "The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds". In Japan, the game was titled "The Legend of Zelda: Triforce of the Gods 2". At the Seattle showing of "" concert tour in 2013, "A Link Between Worlds" was playable along with "".
"A Link Between Worlds" released in Europe and North America on November 22, 2013, in Australia the following day, and later in Japan on December 26, 2013. The European version of the game contained a reversible cover sleeve; the inside cover featuring multicoloured art and the outside cover featuring the golden-hued version. Alongside the game's launch, Nintendo released a bundle including a copy of the game and a themed Nintendo 3DS XL with the Triforce logo. In 2015, "A Link Between Worlds" was rereleased under the Nintendo Selects label in Europe, along with five other Nintendo 3DS titles. In early 2015, Nintendo released the original soundtrack for "A Link Between Worlds" on CD in Europe via Club Nintendo. Music from the soundtrack was included in the 2015 concert tour "".