The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time was released for the N64 in 1998, and it blew the minds of fans everywhere. It was the first fully 3D Zelda game, and players got lost in how big the world was, which is fun to think about now. It remains the highest rated game on Metacritic, with a 99 overall.
No one can deny the cultural significance of Ocarina of timebut should it really be remembered now as the best contribution in the long run The Legend of Zelda series? There are many limitations to the game, even on the GameCube or 3DS versions. In some capacity, there are better Zelda game which does things a little differently and might as well be considered the best of the best in this story series.
The Legend Of Zelda: A Link To The Past
To perfect the formula
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is still one of the easiest games in the series to go back to. It is among the top Zelda games of all time, along with being near the top of the best SNES games of all time as well. It helped to establish Zelda formula that The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time would continue to copy and adjust to fit its 3D design. The game begins with Link having to find three pendants, which then lead to him unlocking the Master Sword. This mission was a false start, as it ultimately led to a larger mission involving seven maidens trapped in crystals.
Only then could players face Ganon, and the coolest thing about this twist was that they were transported to an alternate version of Hyrule. The Dark World made the game feel bigger, cleverly reusing the map and tweaking it just enough to make it feel new. This is an important feature that makes A link to the past better than Ocarina of time. The gameplay is also better because it feels less padded, the visuals look better like a 16-bit game, and the controls feel just as tight, whether players engage with it on the SNES or Switch 2 via emulation. There was very little to fault The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past 1992, and there is just as little to blame today. For anyone who likes this game, they should also check out the 3DS pseudo-sequel, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds.
The Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD
An adventure at sea
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker was the first major GameCube entry in the series. It featured a dramatic art style shift from the N64 games, with cel-shading instead of 3D polygons, which caused an uproar among fans in 2003 who thought the game resembled a children's game. Decades later, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker still holds up visually thanks to this art style, which was a smart choice by Nintendo in hindsight. As good as it looks, its Wii U remaster, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HDis the game that hovers above The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for many reasons.
Both versions are very different from any other entry in the series, thanks in large part to Hyrule being underwater and players having to sail between islands. This gave the illusion of freedom and an open world, although there was little to see without proper navigation. The remaster fixed many issues, such as how navigation worked, how fast players could sail, Link's basic controls, and a later mission that involved finding parts of the Triforce. Even compared to the 3DS version of Ocarina of timethe remaster of The wind watcher feels better to play in terms of its 3D controls, and while it's big and empty, Hyrule's ocean is more inviting. Perhaps the best that fans love The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD is how expressive Link is, and it's all thanks to the amazing art design.
The Legend Of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD
Barks up the right tree
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess was in many ways an even wilder departure for the series than The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. First, it was released on two systems, the GameCube and the Wii, which featured mirrored worlds between the two. Some preferred the Wii version at the time, while others swore by the GameCube release. Anyway, the most amazing thing about the game was Link's transformation into a wolf and a new character, Midna, as his constant companion. As far as Zelda companions go, Midna was far less annoying than Navi, as she served a game purpose and wasn't constantly chastising players/Link for going off the beaten path.
As the wind watcher, but there was a better Wii U version called The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD. The controls were tweaked a bit, but admittedly all three versions still feel great to play. In many ways, the core experience, even with the wolf form, felt like an extended rendering of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Timewhich is what resonated with players in 2006. Without the sub-form of Link from Ocarina of timefans got to experience a fuller and more mature story from start to finish, and maybe that's it Twilight Princess's greatest achievement. If only Switch or Switch 2 players could experience either The wind watcher or Twilight Princess in HD, as both versions are still captured on Wii U.
The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild
The new standard
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild drew one Twilight Princess, since it was released on Wii U and Switch at the same time. Both versions were identical, but the Switch version just loaded a little faster. Today it works even better on Switch 2, which is the best way to play it. This game changed the series forever, like The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time changed the series back in 1998. It took Nintendo nineteen years, but they finally made the next revolutionary leap for 3D Zelda game by giving players a real open world to explore. They didn't have to worry about following a story or going through seven or ten large dungeons. After a brief tutorial, they were set free to follow the story or create their own path through exploration.
It's the best controlling version of Link in a 3D game to date, the visuals are impressive, the combat is challenging and responsive, and the list goes on. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is also a very good one Zelda game, with its expanded skies and underground worlds, plus the invention mechanic, but Breath of the Wild is still the superior and more ground-breaking experience, and doesn't just stand as a better game than Ocarina of timebut maybe the best Zelda games of all time. As Ocarina of time, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild has issues that detract from it, like rain-soaked landscapes that prevent climbing or breakable weapons, but even with these flaws, it's a game that has stayed in players' minds since 2017.
