So I decided to download Majora's Mask and play it for the first time.. I should just quickly give an overview of my Zelda history..
The first Zelda game I ever played was Wind Waker on the GameCube and because it was my first Zelda experience, I feel like that's how a Zelda game should be. When I say that I don't mean Zelda should have Oceans and sailing and cel shading but I feel the atmosphere was done very well in Wind Waker and the NPC's were interesting.. You knew where you had to go next but you could sail off anywhere and find islands and explore and you weren't punished for doing that but you also didn't HAVE to go searching aimlessly.
After that, my next Zelda game was Twilight Princess. This one for me was a departure from the Zelda I knew but it also felt as if this is where the universe really belonged.. Having had the whole flooding story in Wind Waker, it was a nice feeling to be in the legendary land of Hyrule in some parallel time. The story was done well and the character development, especially of Midna was enjoyable but for me, the world wasn't as believable as Wind Waker even with the realistic take on the world.. However I did really enjoy it but it would take a back seat to WW when looking back..
Next I downloaded Ocarina of Time. Having never played it, I had a friend come over and we played through the game together, taking turns (he did the water temple :P ) and finally finishing the game.. I know for a fact that if I had been playing it alone, I'd have turned to a guide.. It really did make you feel like you were lost, like you were a child in a huge world and you had to do everything yourself.. For me, the game felt like a 1998 take on Twilight Princess but it seemed to be more daring, the Lens of Truth was something I found a very interesting addition to the game. Also the entire game seemed to feel more real than Twilight Princess and it felt like it had better pacing.. What I hated though was the framerate.. It took away from the experience a little but I eventually got used to it..
Now I can't say much about Link to the Past because I haven't gotten very far into it as of yet.. So far though it feels like an adventure title much more than OoT, in that you can explore the world without feeling lost and so it's more enjoyable in that sense, however so far I don't think I could place it above any of the 3D Zelda games that I've played including Phantom Hourglass which I thought was a really good portable title but didn't live up to it's prequel..
OK so now I've only just started MM, just finished the first 3 days, however a few things are clear to me already..
The graphics are vastly improved over OoT. I especially like the character models much more now that the faces have outlines and have much more discernable facial features.. Also the frame rate is no longer a problem and the draw distances are clearly improved.
The production values seem to be higher.. The whole first section before you reach Clocktown is very well done.. Skullkid is chilling and the whole situation throws you out of your comfort zone almost instantly..
This title has those big ideas that Zelda needs.. you play the entire first 3 days as a deku shrub! Again this goes back to throwing you out of your comfort zone. You are no longer Link, you don't have sword to fight with but you blow bubbles at enemies.. As soon as you reach Clocktown you don't think to yourself 'OK gotta collect ruppes to buy a shield, to get to the first dungeon and beat that to get my first weapon etc..' what you think is.. Shit I have 3 days to get back the Ocarina and that guys mask.. How long does a day go in this game? Where the fuck am I? Where's this fairy? Shit lets go and explore this place really quickly, I gotta find the fairy.. How do I progress without a sword and shield? I'm a freaking Deku Scrub!'
And the last thing I've noticed is something that I think guarantees my liking of this game.. It feels live the prequel to Wind Waker.. The character models are leaning more to cel shading than the polygonistic realism that OoT went for, the music, oh the music! The music is wonderful, it feels like it belongs in this game but you can also hear thise little Wind Waker-esque sections.. The fact that it's different just like Wind Waker would have been to gamers who stated with OoT or earlier and would hae felt that the sailing got in the way of their dungeons or what ever well youu can tell with MM that it really was the precursor to WW I mean look at the subtitles: MM, WW they're just flipped versions of eachother :P
So as I continue my voyage into the 'Experimental Zelda' I think what I'm going to feel is that Zelda Wii better be to TP what MM was to OoT, something completely different that throws Zelda fans out of their comfort zone while still retaining that same Zelda essence and feel..
