Majora's Mask

Considered one of the black sheep of the Zelda series (the other being Zelda II), Majora's Mask is one of those few games that tried something new and was criticized for it. Granted that probably most of the negativity came from those who didn't play the game past the first dungeon.

"Strap in for a wild and exciting ride"

First and introduction to Majora's Mask.

Majora's Mask starts out with our favorite green clothed hero wandering through a forest searching for his fairy Navi who left him at the end of Ocarina of Time. He runs into a mischievous mask wearing kid and his two fairies, Tatl and Tael. The next thing Link finds his Ocarina and his horse Epona stolen and gives chase to the kid.


"Skull Kid and his two fairy companions with the Ocarina of Time"

When Link finally catches up he's turned into a small Deku scrub and the kid escapes with Link's Ocarina. The fairy Tatl is separated from the other two and agrees to help Link retrieve his items back. Right when Link is about to enter the town he is greeted by a mask salesman who explains to Link that the skull kid stole a very dark and powerful mask from him, and asks Link to bring it back to him within three days.

That is the major part of Majora's Mask. As you enter the town you find yourself on a time limit. The player is given 72 hours to retrieve the Ocarina and Majora's Mask before the giant moon looming over Termina crashes down on Clock Town.


"I...I shall consume. Consume...Consume everything"

As the clock reaches 0 and the destruction of Termina seems near, Link remembers the Song of Time taught to him by Princess Zelda in Ocarina of Time and finds himself right back to day 1. The mask salesman teaches Link the song of healing, which reverts Link back to his old (errr young) self again.

Failing to retrieve Majora's Mask the first time the player will set out once again to try and retrieve it, and the only way to do that is to stop the moon from falling, that's where the story really begins.

"Swamp. Mountain. Ocean. Canyon. The four who are there, bring them here!"

That's the end of recapping the beginning, onto the review!

Majora's Mask has the darkest story from all the Zelda games, infact when I first played it and watched the angry faced moon in the sky get closer each passing day, I was filled with a sense of urgency and panic that few games to date have accomplished. The atmosphere in the game is absolutely fantastic.

The best thing about Majora's Mask is the people in it. Unlike most games out there where the NPC's just wander around a path and do absolutely nothing, the people of Clock Town really come to life. Everyone you meet will be doing different things in each of the three days. Perhaps on day two you'll talk to a lady and find out that a thief stole something valuable from her right before midnight yesterday. If you travel back to day one you'll be able to stop the thief from stealing her goodies and maybe perhaps earn a reward in return. That's one example of how things really come to life in the game.

Keeping track of all the events that occur on each day would be troublesome if it wasn't for the Bombers Notebook that you receive at the beginning of the game. If you happen to complete the side quest for that specific person then you'll earn a sticker showing you finished it. This game has so many things to do that it might seem overwhelming, and that's a good thing.

Masks also play a large role in the game. Throughout your adventure you'll come across different masks that allow you to do different things. For example the Deku mask will turn Link into a Deku scrub, allowing him to spit bubbles and fly temporarily from flower patches. A rabbit ears mask will allow Link to run around really fast.


"Link turned into a Deku scrub"

The music in this game is absolutely fantastic! From "Song of Healing" to "Oath to Order" the music lends itself to the atmosphere perfectly. On day one in Clock town you'll hear a cheerful tune, on day two you'll hear a sort of 'coming dread' mixed in with the cheerfulness, and on day three the tone of the music turns into panic.


"Clock Town residents prepare for the festival, realising that the moon seems to be getting closer and closer"

Graphics wise I don't think I need to say much. It's a N64 game and it shows, but the design is simply amazing to look at. From Ikana Canyon to the Great Bay and the Stone temple, this game still blows me away.

The gameplay is more refined from Ocarina of Time, and the transformation masks only make it better. You'll find yourself swinging your sword, blocking attacks with your shield, fiering an arrow from your bow while on your horse and swimming underwater thanks to your Zora mask. It's all here, this is Legend of Zelda at it's greatest.

Do yourself a favor and pick up this masterpiece. It's story telling at it's best. For a measly 1000 Wii points you owe it to yourself to have this in your collection.

I have given it a near perfect score. The outdated graphics and it's MIDI music keep it from reaching that 10 but don't let that stop you, this game is as close as it gets to perfect.

Note: I hope my first review for this site isn't too horrible =D and I hope that I've convinced at least one of you out there who has read my review and picked up this fantastic game. Please send me a pm or email (deitylink101@gmail.com) and let me know what you thought of my review and the game itself.

Score: 9.9