Warning: The rest of the article may contain spoilers. Proceed at your own risk!
The towns through which you'll travel play a large part as well, as every one is much more than a simple location with a name. Each has its own personality that makes it feel alive, its inhabitants sharing a mentality unique to its setting. The communities feel like just that – communities, not like aggregates that could be transposed anywhere. The defensive Gorons, the cheery Korikis, the bustling shoppers in the castle market, the mysterious desert folk and more make travelling between villages feel exciting and lifelike. And when Link – spoiler alert – wins the Gorons over, changing them from xenophobic to welcoming and you from an outsider to an honorary member of their tribe, not much can match the feeling of satisfaction. Lon Lon Ranch as well, even with so few characters feels alive, vitalised by the lonely Malon and her father Talon casting a glow of humanity and emotion over it and making winning it back later in life feel important. It's also the original home of your horse, Epona, and your taming and befriending of her strengthens your connection to the animal, the ranch, and the adventure. It never feels like a programmed, artificial experience. Each of the elements has a life of its own, and the entire game is enriched as a result.
As you progress through Hyrule Field toward one of these locations, you're also leaving behind Koriki Forest. Everything about the game's opening – the fear of the outside, the connection to the Deku Tree, the similar dress of its inhabitants as well of their connection with fairies, makes this feel alive, unique and special. It isn't just your starting point but your home – which is why when Link becomes an adult and returns to find it overrun by enemies, this is such a grave offense that propels you on your quest more than a simple directive would.
Ocarina of Time is a game about growing up. The implementation of time's progression was a huge innovation – the ability to move between childhood and adulthood, the passing of the hours from day to night and back again, the difference between what happens during each daily phase and the drastic change of events in Link's future. The venturing forth from the forest to save Hyrule has our Hero of Time become a man, both figuratively and literally. Just seeing the day change into night makes the experience feel more lifelike, and Ocarina did it better and more realistically than it had ever been done before.
Finally, the use of music as an integral tool makes Ocarina of Time feel much closer to the human than the virtual world. Its serenity and humanity makes calling your horse, altering time and more seem like a unique implementation of art and beauty than a code-based gameplay component.
Comments 28
can jump back into it on friday morning cant wait havent played it through since 64 looking forward to it come on you beauty
Is there really any point to this article???
This game had a huge impact on the Zelda series and videogames in general. Every bit of it is amazing to behold. I remember that first time stepping out into Hyrule field and just staring in awe!
I was hooked for months. Only stopping to eat, sleep or go to the bathroom.
@3DSneedsRPGs Lol I agree. But I do appreciate how creative zelda games are (besides Twilight Princess, which stank).
Great article, Zach...
Nice article. Seems a bit like fitting extra meaning to the story rather than it having being a planned part of the initial narrative though. Kid_A vs Zach Kaplan - The Zelda Article Showdown! Live from NintendoLife Arena
Hyrule Field felt really out of place in a Zelda game. The series was better when it was about exploration.
@4
What?! Twilight Princess was amazing! =O
Great article. I like the wording of phrases like,
"he camera sweeping through as Link rides Epona across and the incredible soundtrack plays. Death Mountain looms in the distance, the castle stands on the horizon, and the gamer cultivates a sense of expectancy."
"(Some spoilers, then) ...this is such a grave offense that propels you on your quest more than a simple directive would."
"In the real world, no one is a minor character in their own lives, a feeling that transcends to the population of the game. It pulls it off so well that even a big empty field feels special"
Also, i identified myself in there more than once.
Hm, I know I'm a bit odd on this point, but I was never impressed with the storytelling in OoT, mainly due to the actual text. Compared to the dialogue in other story-heavy games of the series (Majora's Mask, Link's Awakening, Wind Waker, and yes even Twilight Princess) the characters feel stilted and never particularly well written.
I'm sure much of this depends on which Zelda games you played first. My experiences with the original LoZ, and then Link's Awakening years later, were full of mystery and discovery in a way OoT just didn't capture for me. Then Majora's Mask made far more ingenious use of the OoT graphics and engine, so OoT just sort of got left behind as a transition.
However, I will say that OoT has some incredible dungeons, and that alone makes it a great entry in the series.
as soon as i pick up the game which i think comes out tuesday or monday over here im going to play it right away at home after i see the green lantern movie lol then i will keep playing for more then 6 hours or at least till i feel like going to sleep
More TP hate... I can understand if it's not your favorite in the franchise but you should at least recognize that it is a pretty solid adventure game.
@warioswoods: I'd take MM over OoT as well (by a hair). You just can't beat the genius set up. More time travel = better
I have recently been playing this game again on the GC Zelda Collectors Edition and its actually been a few years since I played it, the last time I actually played it is when I got it on my N64, and I have to say I am still awed by it today as I was 15 years ago.
ive been playing MM lately and i have to say its my favorite out of the series. and i think that the bosses are the hardest in that game compared to the rest of the games, OoT comes second. now days all of the bosses are to easy.(i love twilight princess but the bosses were to dang easy)
Thanks for a great article!
Also, as you look at the thumbnails of the screenshots up there, you can see that every thing has it's own color
I could do a thesis about color in Zelda games...
I feel Zelda games in general are very solid and what they do is done well (for the most part). In some ways though it's like pop music. The game appeals to a large audience. I grew up playing Zelda games from the beginning and the world's have been very small and almost claustrophobic. There is also a great deal of linearity to the games. There are some sidequests, heart containers and such, you can play out of order but it requires getting items from temples first.
On the one hand I'd love to see the Zelda mold broken. Introduce more towns, more swords, armor and boots, hidden places and items not required to the completion of the game, maybe some sort of leveling up system, I'd also love to be able to jump on command rather than as a context sensitive button.
On the other hand Twilight Princess had a lot of almost useless items. The slingshot was replaced by the bow early on in the game despite staying in your inventory, other items I rarely used.
While OOT was a great game I was always a bigger fan of Link to the Past. Despite some of the great features 3D brought to the game the world in LTTP was a lot more interesting.
"Is there point to this article?"
Is there a point to waterfalls? Is there a point to poetry? Is there a point to to the endless flow of time? Not every article has to be a news bit. I greatly enjoyed this piece. Nice read Zach.
I feel ashamed for this, but the first Zelda game that I ever played was Phantom Hourglass. It wasn't the worst game ever, but in my view, the worst Zelda title, but I haven't had the chance to play some of them. However, the next one I played was Ocarina of Time. It was the best game that I've ever played. My mom even liked helping me figure out the puzzles and things. She liked It enough that I was able to convince her to buy me Twilight Princess. Ocarina of Time alone has led me to get EVERY selda title after it. I am DEFINITELY getting OoT 3D and Skyward Sword.
Beautiful. I love this game. Welcome back, old friend.
And here's hoping for Majora's Mask 3D some time soon after. And maybe... Wind Waker?
there better be a majora's mask for the 3ds the possibilities... although id rather have a monster hunter game first
Still as great a coming-of-age fantasy epic as it ever was. What makes Ocarina of Time so special is not just the fact that all the individual elements, even the tiniest, least important ones, are executed so well, but also the way they blend together seamlessly.
My brother is playing through this game for the first time, so I get to see the experience firsthand.
I grew up on Zeldas like Wind Waker and The Minish Cap, but I can understand why people find this game so nostalgic.
I grew up on this Zelda game. So I'm not that old. I really enjoy every Zelda game since they are all the same just with different flare and different challenges. Each with its own unique story.
@4 you my friend are right!
Great article, Zach! You managed to capture what the game is truly about. I had a great time playing it for the first time in 2009 (unlike many, it was on the Wii's VC rather than the N64). It's a gorgeous game, though compared to other Zelda entries, I feel that some of the characters were a bit... incomplete. There were many characters that were great at showing their personality, like Malon, Darunia, and that Gerudo commander (forgot her name), but others like Princess Ruto I felt were a bit shallow and not well-written. I guess I have to partially agree with what warioswoods said about the script. And I guess that's why Ocarina of Time is NOT my #1 fav game of all time, though it is among my Top 5 at the very least.
@8 he just ment that twilight princesss was slightly less creative because your in the same place going to the same places youve already been to in ocarina of time. But it WAS different because you did different stuff in the game.
Very well written article, and nice to see this game was as important for others as it was for me
Thanks for all the nice comments everyone. I'm just back from my honeymoon and I'm glad to see people enjoyed the article. Now, off to play in 3D!
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