Games that Never Were Released in America: Navi Trackers/Tetra's Trackers

When The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures was released in North America in 2004, only two of its original three modes were left intact. Hyrulean Adventure would take the four Links on an adventure to save the land while cooperating and competing with each other, while Shadow Battle had them duke out with each other. Then there was a game alternatively known as Tetra's Trackers and Navi Trackers, which was intended as a stand alone title and was included with the Japanese version of Four Swords Adventures, but not in the US version. What was this game, and why was it left off of the American release? In this first in a potential series of article on games that were not released in the United States, I will tell you more about this lesser-known game in the Zelda series.

Navi Trackers was planned to be a standalone game, as was announced when it made its debut at the 2003 E3 convention, but ultimately became a part of Four Swords Adventures. This is not very surprising considering how limited the game is: it is rather like a mini game, in which up to four players attempt to collect stamps from pirates led by Tetra, the sassy female pirate first seen in The Wind Waker. As with the other games in Four Sword Adventures, a Game Boy Advance system was required for every player, as the bulk of the action took place on the smaller screen. On the television screen, the map screen, time limit, individual player scores, and Tetra herself (presented in the same cel-shaded style as The Wind Waker), would be present. Whoever gained the most stamps within the time limit would be the winner.

In an unusual move for Zelda games, or many other Nintendo games for that matter, Navi Trackers used a substantial amount of voice acting from the characters. Tetra and her crew could actually talk to the players, giving them encouragement and attitude. An even more unusual move was to have Tetra actually identify each individual player by his or her screen name. She could pronounce two-character names with ease, and having comments made directly towards one specific person made him or her feel like they were a part of the action. Giving Link another name is hardly new, as nearly every Zelda game to date has had this option, but having Tetra actually say the person's screen name is a neat move on Nintendo's part.

Unfortunately, it may have also been the reason why Navi Trackers was left off of the US and European versions of the game. Since the voice system could only recognize two-character names, longer names could not be pronounced properly. For whatever reason, Nintendo did not, or could not, change the system for the American release, and instead decided to simply omit the game from Four Swords Adventures. Doing this made a game that already felt less like a normal Zelda title seem even more limited, as it was now merely two-thirds of the game it once was. As of now, Navi Trackers remains a Japanese exclusive, with no plans for a US release, and it probably will never be released on WiiWare unless Nintendo finds a way to implement having one screen for the actual game play and another for Tetra, the map, and everything else.

From what I have heard and seen of Navi Trackers (thanks to videos posted on YouTube), it is just as well it was never released as its own title, as it simply seems like one long mini game and would hardly warrant spending $50 on unless Nintendo offered it for much less than that (not quite a bargin bin price, mind you, but something less than most of their other console games). As for the game itself, it sounds like it could be fun, but like the other games in Four Swords Adventures, it would require people to spend a lot of cash on account that the Game Boy Advance was mandatory for every player just to play the game. On the other hand, the extensive voice acting is something that Nintendo usually eschews, and its inclusion makes this one of the more unique Zelda-related titles. It would have been cool to have Tetra actually say my name as I did my best to gather as many stamps as possible. It is a shame that it could not have been tweaked for American audiences, as it would have been the best feature of a game that otherwise seems to be nothing particularly special.

Navi Trackers is one of a handful of Zelda-related titles not to be released in the United States, mainly because of the voice system's inability to recognize American characters. Had Nintendo altered the system, it would have made our version of Four Swords Adventures more complete, if not much better. For people outside of Japan, about the only way one can see the game in action is by going to YouTube and looking up videos of what happens on the television screen as one plays the game. I feel that Navi Trackers is limited, but with its voice acting system, it seems unique for a Nintendo game. If only we had the chance to try it out for ourselves...