One of the most iconic franchises in the business, Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda, celebrates its 25th anniversary today. This is the day that the original Zelda went on sale in Japan, kickstarting a series that would sell 59 million units worldwide.
There have been seventeen games in total, with this year seeing the release of Ocarina of Time on the 3DS and Skyward Sword on the Wii.
It's strange how a series can be so repetitive and yet feel so fresh. There's a certain magic to Zelda that I don't think any other series has managed to bottle quite so successfully. Each new Zelda game feels like reacquainting with an old friend, albeit one who's done something with their hair that you can't quite work out.
So, happy birthday, Zelda! Please let us know which Zelda game was your favorite (has to be Wind Waker for me!).
Jim Sterling serves as reviews editor for Destructoid.com, head of the Podtoid podcast, and produces a number of news stories, original features, one-of-a-kind videos. With his passionate argumentative style, controversial opinions, harsh delivery, and dedication to brutal honesty Sterling is a name that you can't help but recognize.
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Contest:
8:20 AM on 02.21.2011
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2)Majora's Mask
3)Wind Waker
4)Oracle of Seasons
5)Link to the Past
OoT sucks ass.
Link to the Past
O yea.
ocarina
wind waker
majora.
Link to the Past
Majora's Mask
Twilight Princess
Wind Waker
Link's Awakening
Wand of Gamelon
Oracle Games
Spirit Tracks
Minish Cap
--Now for the ones that aren't so fun anymore--
Phantom Hourglass
Zelda 2
Zelda 1
HOWEVER, OoT is my favorite, because it really cemented Zelda right FIRST.
It was the first Zelda to truly feel "epic" in scale (Link to the Past and Link's Awakening were excellent, but felt more like a "retro adventure").
OoT never gets the credit it deserves because it was surpassed on a gameplay level by Majora's Mask, which is a shame, because many of those people weren't born when OoT came out. Spoiler - it was the shit.
So any word out of Nintendo on what they are doing to celebrate?
When I was five, my father brought it home one night. Usually, a kid needs to BEG for a video game, but he bought this without even telling me beforehand, which was weird.
I remember looking at the instruction manual and staring at all the artwork. I remember being blown away by the fact that, no there's no "Level 1", but actual landmarks with actual NAMES and stories. The map that came with it got me excited to see everything, because it didn't feel like a "video game" but an actual world that existed inside my TV set. That night, I asked my dad if I could be a "drawer" when I grew up, and he said "maybe". From that night onwards, all I've ever wanted to be was an illustrator.
If I hadn't played that game, I don't know if I'd want to be an artist. Maybe I'd go to a different college and meet TOTALLY different people. I learned some very important lessons at my school, and it's weird to think that years 5-23 could have been completely different had I not played it.
Plus, strictly from a game perspective, LttP never does any repeats. You only light all of the torches in a room once, hold down a switch with a statue once, etc., all of which were NEVER done in the first two games. When I see the new games, you're just doing all of the old puzzles again.
Majora's Mask gets a close second for fully fleshing out its world and the backstories of damn near every NPC. It's one dense game.
I also think highly of Wind Waker, Minish Cap and Spirit Tracks.
2. Windwaker
3. Legend of Zelda
4. Link's Awakening
COME AT ME BROS!
Oracle of Ages for me. God, I loved that game.
My favorite Zelda will probably always be Wind Waker purely based on style and the fact that it was the first Zelda I ever felt truly compelled to finish and when I did I was in awe. Link's Awakening and A Link to the Past come pretty damn close. The original and it's sequel trails behind.
I'm playing through both Oracles games right now actually and while they have noticable flaws they're still really satisfying. Also, I still don't see the big deal with OoT. I don't know if I don't have the nostalgia goggles or what. More power to it's fanbase but I think there are far superior Zelda titles. And I just literally can not beat Majora's Mask. That game man...that game.
Congrats Zelda, I'll be there when you turn 50.
Also:
"It's strange how a series can be so repetitive and yet feel so fresh. There's a certain magic to Zelda that I don't think any other series has managed to bottle quite so successfully. Each new Zelda game feels like reacquainting with an old friend, albeit one who's done something with their hair that you can't quite work out."
This may very well be the most accurate description of the series I've seen. Well said, Jim.
Of the 3D titles, Twilight Princess is my one and only favorite.
I also had a lot of fun with Link's Crossbow Training.
Oot
Majora's Mask
Twilight Princess
Anyone who says different is an Octorok, plain and simple.
2. Ocarina of Time
3. Majora's Mask
4. Twilight Princess
5. Wind Waker
6. Master Quest
7. Legend of Zelda
8. Zelda II: Link's Adventure
The handhelds were great too.
1. Link's Awakening
2. Minish Cap
3. Oracle of Seasons/Ages
4. Phantom Hourglass
5. Spirit Tracks
Zelda fanboy since 1991! 20 years of amazing games. Not ONE addition do I rate under a 9/10 (except for the original Zelda and Zelda II but those are still enjoyable even today in my opinion).
Sure it's not that amazing now, but it's still a very good game. It was just even better when it first came out.
LTTP made me a Zelda fan. Hands down my favorite Zelda game of all time. I can complete that game in my mind. I must have searched every single fucking square of that game. Gotten every weapon/item/upgrade/heart/secret cave/etc.
I still remember finally figuring out that you were meant to take that purple chest to the silent man just south of your house, near the desert dungeon. I lost my shit when he was all "OH HEY BRO LET ME OPEN THAT CHEST FOR YOU".
Ahhhhh so many amazing memories.
LTTP
Windwaker
Majoras Mask
Links Awakening
OoT
Happy Birthday Zelda :) I am happy you are still going strong.
Ocarina of Time can die in a hole though.
2) Wind Waker
3) Ocarina of Time
4) Link's Awakening
5) Twilight Princess
So many great Zelda games....Still one of my top 3 series of all time.
Wind Waker
Ocarina of Time
I love this series so damn much! (as evidenced by my avatar. There's a Triforce there. Just trust me.)
2D: A Link to the Past, 2nd place: Phantom Hourglass
3D: Twilight Princess, 2nd place: Ocarina of Time
My favorite game is Link to the Past hands down. The game never feels old no matter how much I play it.
Loved Link to the Past, but not more than I did Oracle of Ages/Seasons.
1)Ocarina of Time
2)Majoras Mask
3)Wind Waker
4)A Link to the Past
5)Oracle of Seasons/
Also can we please get an awsome 25th Anniversary box like we did for Mario.
link to the past is also special...but given it's the same style of game as minish cap it's lost some of its appeal. damn i forgot about minish cap...i should play that RIGHT NOW.
2. Ocarina of Time
3. Wind Waker
4. Phantom Hourglass
5. Link to the Past
The Zelda genre has been so utterly life changing for me, and I wish with all my heart it will live for another 25 years to.
I wish I actually owned a Gamecube so I could play it again.
Unfortunately, I've never had the chance to play Ocarina of Time.
Wind Waker is my favorite 3D Zelda game though. I really hope Skyward Sword finds a way to really capture Zelda in 3D, like Wind Waker did.
Jayson619 doesn't give a shit about Zelda, because its not made by Sony.
2. Ocarina of Time
3. Windwaker
I'll have to agree with you there Jim. Wind Waker for president. I just love that game so much. :)
Majoras Mask, Links Awakening, Minish Cap, Link to the Past and Ocarina of Time share a joint 2nd place on my list. The other ones are all in 3rd and 4th place.