Co-op Mode
The main feature of The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures is the ability to play the main adventure with friends, which requires a Gameboy Advance (or a Gamecube with the Gameboy Player Attachment) connected to the main console (Wii or Gamecube) via the GCN-GBA cable for each player. The original packaging of the game included 1 official Nintendo GCN-GBA cable.
There are 3 modes available in multiplayer: Hyrulean Adventure, Shadow Battle, and Tetra Trackers (the last being exclusive to the Japanese and Korean versions).
Hyrulean Adventure
A common misconception among many people, this mode can also be played by a single player using either the Gamecube controller (with a GBA screen appearing on the TV) or a Gameboy Advance. This mode features the main game with 24 stages across 8 areas and is typically the part of the game that people speedrun.
Differences between Singleplayer and Co-op
Results Screen
After each level, a ranking of all players takes place.
In 2P, each player's Kill & Death counts are considered, and then their gems are painfully slowly counted.
It goes without saying that this is quite the timeloss over Singleplayer.
3P and 4P waste even more time by including a voting part where players vote for the most helpful and evil Link.
Link Collision
Links need more force to be pushed away and can easily block the other player(s).
In general, they are "more dense" or "heavier" compared to Singleplayer.
They are significantly affected by certain items like the Boomerang or the Bow.
Using the Bow with charged shots, you can shoot Links across the screen, even bypassing gaps.
The Boomerang can be used to displace their position, effectively teleporting them large distances.
Zombie upon dying
If one player dies but the other player remains alive, the former turns into a Zombie.
This comes with the full properties that are utilized when releasing Zombie Storage.
See 0:37 timestamp for an application example:
Video
Different Stage / Room Layout
Co-op has different rooms across the game every now and then.
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Exclusive Glitches
Boomerang Clipping
Getting hit by the Boomerang while the Formation Menu is opened, the Links experience acceleration.
When you close the menu, the acceleration turns into instant displacement, teleporting the Link.
Video
Stun Clipping
Pushing a stunned Link while in formation can lead to said Link being clipped into, and under certain conditions, through walls.
This can be done with the Hammer or Pegasus Boots.
Video
Sick Boomerang Action (SBA)
Picking up the other player while the Boomerang would displace their position, the picked up Link enters a "quantum" state.
Most collision with tiles is nullified (ledges have a weird, timer-based respawn property), but at the same time they are also being carried.
If the carried Link dies in this state, their dead body is stuck on the Link who carried them. This can be avoided by dropping (not throwing) the Link after the initial pickup.
There is a lot more to this glitch which will be properly documented in the future (soonTM).
See 0:35 for a demonstration and 0:49 for Sick Pickup Action:
Video
Sick Pickup Action (SPA)
Not really a glitch and more a clever use of the reunite mechanics, you can pick up the other player while reuniting to your other Link.
This is incredibly powerful and can also be used to enter screens in unintentional places.
Combining SPA and SBA revolutionized the Co-op Route at one point and drastically decreased the time of the speedrun.
For a while, it was even part of the 8-3 Singleplayer route, turning it into 1Player-2Controllers.
There is a lot more to this technique which will be properly documented in the future (soonTM).
Sick Teleport Action (STA)
Similar to how the Boomerang can accumulate displacement-distance, this can also be achieved by rolling or just walking against the other player who has their Formation Menu open. If both players have their Menu open in this state, you can easily accumulate distance.
This technique made Co-op extremely broken, since you can apply this basically anywhere as long as both players are next to each other. To get both players to the exit, you simply applied SPA on the other player.
Especially on TAS-Level, it opened up countless new possibilities.
There is a lot more to this technique which will be properly documented in the future (soonTM).
Self Teleport Action (STA - again)
The absolute glitch pinnacle of what this game currently has to offer, taking Sick Teleport Action and reducing it to absolute absurdity by accumulating displacement-distance with the player's other Link. This means both players can apply the displacement on themselves without any further need of anything.
Here is a demonstration what a TAS can do with it:
Video
Shadow Battle
Players can battle each other in 8 (4 light world and 4 dark world) stages. A variety of traps and items give players the opportunity to gain the upper hand against their foes.
Tetra Trackers
Mode exclusive to NTSC-J.
Setup to capture 1 Gameboy Advance (GBA) Screen
To capture one GBA screen, you need a Gamecube (GC) with a Gameboy Player (GBP) attached and a Gamecube-Gameboy Advance (GC-GBA) cable to connect the GC to the main console. This is equivalent to just connecting a GBA, just that now you are able to capture the video output of the GC and can display it on your recording/stream. However, actually seeing it requires a second TV if you don't want to use the preview on the PC's monitor. For obvious reasons you cannot look at your GBA anymore to see it.
One advantage of using a GC is that you can use a GC controller, which makes mashing a lot easier (and controls in general). It is recommended to let Player 1 use the GC controller, as there is text that can only be scrolled by them.
Considering the requirements, it is not necessary to capture Player 2's GBA as well.
List of required equipment:
- Main console (GC or Wii)
- 2 GC-GBA cables
- 1 GBA(SP)
- 1 GC + GBP
- 1 GC controller
- 2 Capture cards
This graphic illustrates the setup
