Like with Four Swords, the stages in Four Swords Adventures are discrete: Link shows up at the beginning and teleports out at the end, and moves to the next stage. Each level has three stages, and they’re not randomly generated like in Four Swords. Each stage also has a boss at the end. In addition to Force Gems (which replace rupees), each stage also has a few collectibles: heart containers and a blue bracelet that reduces incoming damage. There are also fairies, which act as resurrection tokens, rather than resurrection costing Force Gems. The fairies carry over between stages, but the heart containers and blue bracelet don’t.
The game was meant to be played with GBAs as controllers, and its control scheme is ported over wholesale to the GameCube controller with the sole exception of movement which is given to the left analog stick rather than the D-Pad. The resulting controls are awkward and take some getting used to. The X and Y buttons are given duplicate functions (X took over for the GBA’s Select button, but so did the D-Pad), Z gains the single-player only (and rather useless, in my experience) ability to close the emulated GBA window, and the rather important functions of grabbing and lifting remain relegated to the R button. The best thing about the GameCube controller’s controls is the C-Stick allowing instant formation change with a single movement, which only serves to make L/Y’s slower formation changes even more redundant.
The first level is the Whereabouts of the Wind, and the first stage Lake Hylia. A voice explains that Vaati’s magic has robbed the Four Sword of some of its power. Not the power to split its wielder into four copies – losing that would mean there’s no game and that can’t be. But to pass through barriers at the end of each level, the sword needs to be powered up by Force Gems – in other words, where Four Swords had the Links gathering rupees to bribe fairies, this ties that mechanic into the story a little better. The one explaining all this to the Links is an incarnation of our old friend Kaepora Gaebora, minus the cool music and “shall I repeat that?” prompts. (And I don't think I ever saw him turn his head all the way upside down.)
After he’s gone, the Links are free to explore. The first house they come to has a retired castle guard who teaches his grandkids how to march in formation. Sounds like a fun grandpa to go visit. Once the Links have demonstrated all the formations for him, he leaves a purple Force Gem (worth 50, so maybe that’s why the kids put up with it). The rest of the stage has a similar tutorial feel without being quite so blatant about it. Over the course of the stage, the Links get equipped with boomerangs and fire rods (which can set entire sections of bushes on fire with one shot – remember, Link, only you can prevent forest fires). Unlike in Four Swords, all the Links share the same item, rather than allowing them to have individual items. That actually kind of limits the sorts of puzzles they can do. They also learn to work as a team to manipulate big objects, and individually for when one Link needs to stand on a switch to let the others bypass an obstacle. (There’s a button, at least in single player, that summons all four Links to the leader, which means that there’s no need to find a way to get the Link who would be left behind through the obstacle he helped them through – just summon and he’s back with the group.)
Halfway through the stage, the Links find Tingle trapped under a rock. Tingle is trying to collect Force Gems because he thinks if he gets enough of them he’ll actually be able to turn into a fairy. And so, if the Links leave Force Gems sitting around too long, Tingle will float in on his balloon and steal them. Sadly, the Links can’t just leave him under the rock – the rock’s blocking the way forward (Tingle, too, before he floats off) – or blow the balloon up, so they’re stuck with him.
When the Links get to 2,000 Force Gems, a short cutscene plays illustrating that their swords are now powered up, and they can shoot sword beams and use the Hurricane Spin technique. The ability to fight in formation when they try to cross a bridge and are attacked by a bunch of soldiers, then they come to the final boss of the level, a Chief Soldier. This guy leaves himself vulnerable to being attacked from the rear after a charge attack; once he’s defeated, he drops a bunch of Force Gems. At the end of the stage, there are four switches that can only be hit with a powered-up sword. Once they’re down, the Force Gems the Links have turn into extra fairies, and the Links move on to the next stage.
Next: The mastermind revealed, or at least strongly hinted at.
