Best of the Zelda Series (by Austin D. and Carl B.)
September 20th, 2010, by Austin D. and Carl B. - The Legend of Zelda franchise has been around for over 20 years. It was created by Shigeru Miyamoto and released for the Famicom Disk System on February 21, 1986, under the title Zelda no Densetsu: The Hyrule Fantasy. A year and five months later it was finally released in the United Stated for the Nintendo Entertainment System, selling over six million units. There have been fifteen installments in the series, with the newest being Spirit Tracks and the first Wii exclusive Zelda -- Skyward Sword -- releasing next year. While all installments generally received high praise, which are the best ones?
Austin D.'s Take
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
The Wind Waker was truly a great game to behold for anyone that's a fan of the series or action-adventure genre. The first noticeable change over the other titles is its use of a cartoon-like artistic style and cel-shaded graphics. While some tried to downplay the visuals, they were beautiful and spawned several other games featuring this artistry. The Wind Waker features a unique storyline that ties heavily with the events of Ocarina of Time. Also notable is the use of a large open map that helps with the adventurous aspect of the title and has many islands that host subquests, ships with extra items, and treasure to find.
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
Phantom Hourglass is the first game to feature the use of the Nintendo DS' touch screen, and along with the use of the dual screens of the handheld, proved to be rather interesting in how the controls were set up; this allowed for a good amount of maneuverability that was needed to overcome several of the challenges that the dungeons of Phantom Hourglass posed. One such use is the ability to draw the path for the Boomerang to follow. While certainly not the most all-around difficult title in the series, Phantom Hourglass did present a formidable challenge in the Temple of the Ocean King. We are also introduced to the franchise's first implementation of online multiplayer.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Ocarina of Time was the first Zelda game to feature the use of a fully 3D engine, similar to that of Super Mario 64, when Nintendo could have taken the easy road and made a 3D top-down Zelda title (think 3D Dot Game Hereoes). This revolution has allowed for the adaptation of a fantastic targeting system that allowed players to strafe around an enemy during combat. This targeting system was ground-breaking at the time and allowed for the addition of many new challenges not seen before in a Zelda title. A large open map has allowed for the inclusion of several side objectives that are both fun and exciting. The concept of multiple realms returned in Ocarina of Time in the form of time travel; once players reach a certain point they can travek seven years into the future.
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Unveiled at E3 2004, Twilight Princess has a far more dark and mature art stlye than any game in the series, apart from Majora's Mask. This entry also features the inclusion of several special attacks, similar to the ones present in the Wind Waker, and made combat with enemies that much more enjoyable. As with other games in the series, Twilight Princess features a host of new side quests for players to experience and enjoy. The storyline featured a darker plot centered around an evil race known as the Twili. As with several other games in the series, Twilight Princess also makes use of a different realms concept.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
A Link to the Past is the third game in the franchise. It has many new mechanics and equipment in it not found in the previous games, such as the Hookshot and Pegasus Boots. It features the introduction of a different realms concept which has since been seen in titles such as Ocarina of Time and Twilight Princess. The game also sees the reintroduction of the top down style of graphics with beautiful visuals and artistic style thanks to the power of the SNES. A Link to the Past makes great use of a large open map that is host to a plethora of side activities and adventures that everyone can enjoy. With more than four million copies sold, A Link to the Past is a staple of the series which every fan should play.
Carl B.'s Take
For the most part, I agree with the article Austin put together. A Link to the Past certainly deserves the number one spot; it's a timeless classic that never seems to get old for me. Personal bias aside, Ocarina of Time is easily the greatest game in the series, taking into account the revolution between the older, top-down Zelda games and the N64 masterpiece. If Ocarina of Time never came into creation we might not have the type of 3D action-adventure games we have today -- Prince of Persia, Assassin's Creed, etc. As a huge Zelda fan, my top games in the storied franchise look like this:
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
Back when Nintendo's Gameboy hit the world by storm with popular titles such as Tetris and Pokemon, gamers and journalists alike didn't quite view it as a serious gaming platform. Determined to prove the nay-sayers wrong, Nintendo created one of the greatest handheld titles of all time: The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening. Zelda's handheld debut was a direct sequel to A Link to the Past story-wise, as Link finds himself ship-wrecked on the shore of Koholint Island. Link's Awakening shows homage to several other Nintendo franchises, most notably Super Mario, as Goombas make appearances, along with Yoshi in the form of a plush doll. Other than the A Link to the Past-like top-down gameplay, the best part of Link's Awakening is the wacky, "trippy" world, story telling, and events that take place, mostly due to the entire game being a dream of Link's.
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
At Nintendo's Spaceworld 2000 event the Big N showed off a concept for what a Zelda game would look like on their next-generation console at the time, the GameCube. The short trailer showed off a realistic Link in a heated sword battle with Ganondorf -- fans everywhere were hoping to see the concept fully fleshed out into an epic and dark title. Much to dismay of fans and media at the time, Nintendo showed off the cartoony, cel-shaded The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker at Spaceworld 2001. The game was initially met with harsh criticism, until journalists and gamers got their hands on the game themselves. The visual style in The Wind Waker is absolutely gorgeous, with the world being completely cel-shaded, not a single hitch in the frame rate, and an excellent sound track to top it off.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
The five year gap of no Zelda title after Link's Awakening led to the highest rated game of all time, and probably one of the most revolutionary games Nintendo -- or any developer -- has created. Like Super Mario 64 before it, Ocarina of Time sported a fully 3D world and outstanding visuals during the N64 era. What set Ocarina of Time apart from every other game was the Z-targeting system that allowed players to circle around enemies without losing their sight of them, something that many developers had trouble with in these early ages of 3D programming.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
After Zelda II: The Adventure of Link -- often considered the black sheep of the Zelda series -- there was a long layoff of no Zelda, until the Super NES hit the market. With the powerful 16-bit home console, Nintendo went back to the top-down perspective of the first game. While the basic overworld wasn't as large as the first game's, it was far more interactive and full of life. The title also introduced the Light and Dark world, a concept that has been seen in many other Zelda games and even in Metroid Prime 2: Echoes.
The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
Majora's Mask is by far the darkest, symbolically deep, and creative Zelda game to date. It uses the same engine as Ocarina of Time and even uses recycled character models, but the overall visual product is much more polished and artisticially directed than its prequel. Majora's Mask also features the most side quests in any Zelda game -- both prior to its release and up through Spirit Tracks -- with the use of the Bomber's Notebook. Sidequests aren't useless adventures either, as the reward for completing them often give players a mask that houses a unique special ability. Masks in general are the headlining gameplay mechanic in Majora's Mask. Most of the masks in the game grant optional special abilities, such as the Bunny Hood that increases Link's running speed while worn, but the race masks present the big changes. There's the Deku Mask, Goron Mask, Zora Mask, and Giant's Mask that turn Link into their name sake, each with a special set of abilities and attacks to solve puzzles and defeat enemies.
What are your top Zelda games?
