Game Discussion of the Week: LoZ Majora's Mask

Excellent game, definitely not for everyone, and that can be said for the entire franchise.

This belongs to the timeline when Link the Hero Of Time dies, it all points out that way. So the game is literally about spirits in the spirit world, and that enhances certain aspects of the game we rarely see in other games.

Twilight Princess wanted to provoke the same feeling with the Okami transformation, but in didn't hit home, at least not in that regard. Majora's Mask was successful at accomplishing that feeling because it was the dimension that caused it, not the Hero.

Normally this would not be the kind of game for me either, but there is something behind Zelda's vibe that traps you in the lore and experience of those games.

I never really got into this one. Ocarina was so amazing, and then the failed 64 DD  Zelda game came out. I was interested at first, but I hated the timing mechanic. I really didn't like the story either. I know stratogustav hates Twilight Princess, but love that one so much more. 

I can see where you're coming from in regards to Majora's Mask, but I'm curious as to what makes you think that for the entire franchise? I've always been of the opinion that Zelda games are very approachable and for everyone (not to sound like that's inherently a bad thing).

Added and pinned.

In my opinion Majora's Mask was the last great Zelda game and overall it's my favorite game in the series as well as one of my favorite games of all time. I don't play it much anymore, but it had a profoundly positive impact on my childhood. Speaking of which, whatever happened to young Link, anyways? He was the protagonist in two console titles, appeared in Melee, and wasn't heard from again until SSB Ultimate was announced last month. There's something magical about playing as a kid in an dark-fantasy/adventure game. I wonder if we'll ever see Link as a child in another Zelda game again? (that abomination known as Toon Link doesn't count)

I'm getting a bit off topic. About the game, quite simply it's just an incredible experience, a powerhouse of artistic imagination. I've never played a game with the same kind of imagination as Majora's Mask. Between the strange/surreal environments and an actually original plot, Majora's Mask puts ever other title in the series to shame when it comes to these aspects. When Majora's Mask came out in 2000, I don't think anybody really knew where the series was going to go. A lot of people (myself included) thought that Majora's Mask marked the beginning of a trend of setting each new title in a new location. Unfortunately these days, the LoZ series is rehashed to shit and all washed up, but back then it was still seen as a promising, well respected series that had potential, and Majora's Mask proved it. The LoZ franchise is kind of in the same boat as The Elder Scrolls is now, with both being past their prime, except whereas Bethesda at least gives us new locations with each new TeS game, the Zelda series is still stuck in Hyrule and has rehashed this setting so much that it's practically a joke by now, as well as its lore.

I think the fresh setting and lore is what really makes Majora's Mask stand alone as the most original game in the series, but it excels in just about every other area as well. The combat is just as good as OoT's, the music is outstanding and very atmospheric, and the transformation masks allow for a completely new gameplay experience. I remember being so in awe when I first swam in the sea at swordfish speed as the Zora. It was just such a radical change for the series, with a noticable touch of dark fantasy. Almost every aspect about Majora's Mask's design is absolutely outstanding, even if the art direction is admittedly a bit too expressionistic for my own taste; I mean, a few of the new character designs looked like something from Wind Waker. I thought OoT's visual design was more impressive TBH, though MM's was far more imaginative, so that balances it out.

I could just go on about this game's design all day. I remember the first time I stepped into the Astral Observatory when playing as a kid and experiencing a feeling of awe and euphoria brought on by the beautiful heavenly music and the sensory overload of colors emminating from every surface of the building. It still ranks as one of my favorite gaming memories, and Majora's Mask has so many moments like this.

If I had to list things I didn't like about the game, I guess one of the things would be my usual complaints about all Zelda games which is how formulaic the flow of the story is. You get a bit of exposition, then you're on the quest to gather a number of different sacred items with minimal story along the way, going from one obligatory temple (usually elemental themed) to the next temple, then the next temple, then the next temple, and so on. As a kid I wasn't bothered by this but when I played through other adventure/RPG games that handled this so much better (namely Oblivion) I began to see the flaws with the storytelling in the Zelda games. I don't understand when all the Zelda games have this presentation with their story rather than going for something less cliched instead. I mean, the Fire Emblem games don't have this problem, and that's also a Nintendo series. I feel as though a lot more thought could be put into the layout of these games' storylines.

(mom just tried to spray me with bleach gonna have to finish this post later)

MeleeMonk - Just remember that in your own apartment, YOU will be the only one in control of the bleach.