The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

"The best game ever... I mean it."

PROS: Everything; absolutely everything

CONS: Nothing; absolutely nothing

OK, I thought it was about time that I review what is perhaps the greatest game of all time: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for the Nintendo 64.

Why is this game the best ever? Simply put: everything is amazingly done. I mean it. Everything.

First, let's look at the plot. A young kid named Link, dressed in the green that all Kokiri have to wear, is summoned by the guardian of the Kokiri Forest, The Great Deku Tree. The tree's been cursed by an evil sorcerer named Ganondorf. Although Link successfully breaks the curse, the tree dies and Link gets the Kokiri Emerald from him. Link must retrieve the Ruby and Sapphire (not Pokemon game cartridges, mind you) and the legendary Ocarina of Time in order to open the Door of Time and claim what's inside before Ganondorf does. He and Princess Zelda (who's his age) conspire because no one else will believe them. You know what happens from there. Link gets the gems, yet Ganondorf somehow gets in the Sacred Realm and takes over the world and Link has to kill him. Zelda disappears and Link has to look for her, too. The plot here is pretty good, and all of the characters are well-developed, even the ones that you'll only run into a couple of times (the villagers really aren't, but even some of the shopkeepers and misc. characters are). You'll remember this game for everything, including the characters and story. It's that incredible.

Graphically, this game is incredible for an N64 title. There's a massive land expanse to explore and all of it is rendered amazingly for a game from the 90s. The water looks real, the lava looks deadly, and the trees even have bark. The character animations are wonderfully done and actually feel real, and this is the Nintendo 64! And that leads me to character control. Link controls exceptionally well. You target with Z, A is the action button, the right, left, and down C-buttons are for using items. C-Up lets you look forward, and the R button is for using your shield. The B button is what you use for your sword tactics, and there are a lot of them. By using different combos with the analog stick (often when targeting), you can execute different maneuvers. By locking onto an enemy with Z you can even do a jump attack. Swordplay here can be difficult to master, but you won't have many problems with the controls themselves. It's very well done and will only take a short while for anyone already used to the N64 controller). The combat is excellent here, too. The enemies are pretty smart and can deliver blows at the precise moment you drop your guard. Also, they know that they want you to die, and they'll keep focusing on you until they're dead. Overall, the AI and combat are excellent here.

The music in this game is another high point. Of course, everything in this game is a high point. The music fits appropriately and differs depending on where you are and what time of day it is. Some of these tunes will be stuck in your head for weeks, and there are so many different tunes to make you enjoy them all instead of having to deal with poorly-done tunes that are overused in some pile of crap. This game is the exact opposite of those- all of the tunes are wonderful and they fit in with the atmosphere. There's even an intense theme when you're being attacked, which is nice.

As usual, there are several dungeons here for you to explore. This time, there are ten of them. Yes, I said ten. And that doesn't include smaller ones in side quests. And these dungeons have little in common with each other. You'll need to use your head to get through each of them. There's an underwater temple, a confusing maze beneath the well, a temple in the middle of a volcano, and even the inside of a whale. This game's dungeons are all remarkable, and each contains a useful item which you'll need to use in that specific dungeon. A lot. In addition, you'll need to use other items from other dungeons, too, which adds to the strategy. Each dungeon has enemies exclusive to it, only a few being recycled in other dungeons, and, of course, a gargantuan boss at the end, waiting to kill you. These boss battles are all remarkably done. There is quite a variety, too, from fire-breathing dragons and phantoms to parasitic jellyfish monsters and witches. It's sad that you can't replay these, because they're so amazing that you'll actually want to replay almost all of them. They're that much fun. Of course, you can save before battling the big boss, and then quit to battle him again, but you'll have to backtrack through the dungeon to get to where s/he is.

This makes it pretty clear: you'll want to play this game over and over again. Since it takes a good 20 hours to beat, it's completely worth it. The game isn't easy, but it isn't really hard either. Once you beat it, you know what you're doing, but it's still fun collecting everything. There are several pieces of heart to collect here, and none of them are just sitting there. They often require using items and your head. Several are in plain sight, but require a lot of brain power. Also, there are Gold Skulluta here to kill. If you do, you get a token. If you collect enough tokens, the curse on somebody is broken. This is pretty difficult because you need to find them, kill them, and then retrieve the token. They're often strategically placed so you need specific items to retrieve them.

Link does grow up in this game, and you can travel between his childhood stage and his adult stage. Specific items can only be used by Link when he's a certain age. When you first grow up, you basically have to start over again. This isn't painful, it just adds to the challenge. You do have help from a fairy named Navi. You see, all Kokiri have a fairy partner but Link never got one until he met the Deku Tree. Navi helps you with targeting and gives you her two cents about each enemy. Some of it is helpful in defeating foul creatures. Other times, she has no idea, making you have to find a way to kill the thing yourself. This game has enough mental challenge to keep you busy for a while.

The Hyrule overworld itself is gigantic, too. Luckily, as an adult, you have a horse companion named Epona who'll increase your velocity so backtracking isn't painful. Luckily, there isn't much of it. Not even in the dungeons, which all flow smoothly.

There are several games and puzzles here. Some of them cost rupees (Hyrule's money), others are free. Rupees are easy to find because you can get them from killing things, chopping bushes, and looking in treasure chests. Sometimes there are secret ways to get rupees, too. The puzzles and games are all entertaining, my favorite being in the village. You get to catch Cuckoos (hybrid chickens) and throw them in a pen. You see, their owner, Anju, is allergic to them and she wants you to grab them for her. Some of them are tricky to find, so you have to use the Cuckoos to FLY. This is cool. That part alone made my sister addicted to this game for a month. My SISTER. My sister who spends a lot of time out of the house. She played that part over and over because it was so amazingly done. The rest of the games are good, too. Since the graphics are so incredible, even without the N64 Expansion Pak, they're all pretty easy to figure out. Of course, the actual game isn't that easy.

Everything about this game is incredible. The graphics are amazing. The music is brilliant. The controls are smooth. The story is well done. The game is fun. The game is challenging enough. There are plenty of side quests and puzzles. This is the N64. A game this awesome for the N64? Yes, this is it. Even years after its release, this still is perfection. There's absolutely no reason why you shouldn't own this game. If you don't have a Nintendo 64, finding a console just for this game is completely worth it. That's because this game is perfect. If I could give this an 11 out of 10, I would. But I can't. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is a perfect example of a perfect 10 out of 10.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 08/14/06