first Zelda game I've ever beaten

and it was awesome.

And I didn't even have to use a guide until the near-end of the game.

Although the art style, and combat was pretty great, there were too many flaws for me to keep playing. I made it about halfway through the game but eventually just felt like I was doing the same thing over and over. Go get the feather to get the ribbon to get the key etc. There wasn't much of a feeling of progression and the dungeons weren't super interesting. I didn't feel like I was saving the world or anything. The nail in the coffin was horrible performance on the switch. The game blurred the top and bottom of the screen and there was bad lag whenever entering a new area.

First 2D Zelda game, overall very enjoyable from start to finish. The puzzles are interesting, Zelda game so soundtracks goes hard, I'm glad that the writing is kinda basic and I didn't really connect with any character (except a lil bit for Marin and I fucking hate the Trendy Game shopkeeper) or else the ending would broke me, I really like the Metroid-ish type of progression here although sometime it can get confusing (the old man on the phone was so clutch for me). The bosses are definitely not too hard but finding a way to damage them is pretty tricky (especially the last one).
Really short too so wouldn't hurt giving it a go if you are looking for some simple feel good fun gameplay.

While I think this game is pretty alright across the board in terms of gameplay, with some hiccups in overall dungeon design that annoyed me by the end, it's entirely bolstered by its unique and pretty dark premise. Is it "heroic" to end this world, even if its a dream? Are you the hero here? While Link's Awakening is for all intents and purposes a pretty standard 2D Zelda fare with a relatively small world to explore, knowing that you're striving to eventually bring it to an end is a really interesting concept. Just a good Zelda!