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.
LCD games from The Legend of Zelda series
"Zelda" is thought to have pushed the limits of what is possible on the Game & Watch LCD format, though the gameplay is far simpler than the NES original. The game was noted in particular by "Famitsu" as having achieved the excitement and role-playing game-feel of the original series, however the game was criticized for being too easy if the player attained too many power-ups during play. "Retro Gamer" rated it Number 5 in their "Perfect Ten Games" for Game & Watch, noting that "it did capture the feel of the world it was played in."