Zelda II: The Adventure of Link[a] is an action role-playing game developed and published by Nintendo. It is the second installment in the Legend of Zelda series and was released in Japan for the Famicom Disk System on January 14, 1987—less than one year after the Japanese release and seven months before the North American release of the original The Legend of Zelda. Zelda II was released in North America and the PAL region for the Nintendo Entertainment System in late 1988, almost two years after its initial release in Japan.
The Adventure of Link is a direct sequel to the original The Legend of Zelda, again involving the protagonist Link, on a quest to save Princess Zelda, who has fallen under a sleeping spell. The game’s emphasis on side-scrolling and role-playing elements is a significant departure from its predecessor.
The game was a critical and commercial success and introduced elements such as Link’s ”magic meter” and the Dark Link character that would become commonplace in future Zelda games; however, the role-playing elements, such as experience points and limited lives have not been used since in canonical games. The Adventure of Link was followed by A Link to the Past for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1991.
