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Best/Your favourite pre-BotW 3D Zelda?

What’s your favourite traditional 3D/pre-BotW Zelda?

  • Ocarina of Time

    Votes: 87 28.4%

  • Majora’s Mask

    Votes: 74 24.2%

  • Wind Waker

    Votes: 80 26.1%

  • Twilight Princess

    Votes: 48 15.7%

  • Skyward Sword

    Votes: 17 5.6%
  • Total voters
    306
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Rivenblade

Rivenblade

Member
Nov 1, 2017
37,123
By popular demand. :) Curious to see the results and to read the reasons. Looks like BotW is the one the majority of people would vote for best 3D Zelda overall, so I created this since BotW is so different from what came before, and to include Majora's Mask.

Like I said in the other thread, I've only played and finished OoT and SS (playing TP now), so I won't be voting.
 
mindsale

mindsale

Member
Oct 29, 2017
5,911
Wind Waker, easily. Skyward Sword has the best dungeons but the worst everything else.
 
MC_Leon6494

MC_Leon6494

Member
Sep 7, 2018
501
Wind Waker but that's purely aesthetic. I don't like how pre-BotW 3D Zelda plays. Particularly N64 and their frustrating camera work // all of them and the weird auto jumping
 
Mekanos

Mekanos

▲ Legend ▲
Member
Oct 17, 2018
44,169
Majora's Mask is my favorite Zelda overall and in my top 10. There's a lot of complaints you could lobby at MM, but being generic ain't one of them. Such an incredible experience and the type of game I wish Nintendo would make more of.
 
Tyaren

Tyaren

Character Artist
Verified
Oct 25, 2017
24,771
Wait...Twilight Princess leads right now? O: It is my favorite Zelda for sure, but I thought it was mostly disliked here?
 
Dice

Dice

Member
Oct 25, 2017
22,320
Canada
mindsale said:
Wind Waker, easily. Skyward Sword has the best dungeons but the worst everything else.
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I'm always happy when people can admit the good and the bad in one swoop and still recon it some merit . yay!

Twlight Princess. I love almost all the dungeons, the items you get are a lot of fun , and it's probably the most true and thorough vision of Hyrule (hotter take: it does OoT's ideas better).

RPthhiu.jpg

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I love these Wolf sequences where you seem to be in some spiritual version of the world and you see major game landmarks from 'above the heavens' :P
And forreal, Midna is the only REAL good companion in this series.

Windwaker is a close second. I don't know why. Probably atmosphere too; it's expressive, beautiful, and the unique art style is beautifully worked into the game's identity. ...But it's really not the dungeons that bring me in (they're bland and easy); and exploring isn't really all that satisying the more I think about it. They could have pushed this so much. Still:

nightstalker962 said:
I fucking adore Wind Waker, that's the Zelda I always go back to.
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yeah, me too. I love just sailing around and taking this game at my own pace by randomly picking it up from time to time.

Majora's Mask is really good, my favorite in some aspects with its unique change of setting and its fantastic magic mask gameplay gimmick. But I think it's the hardest for me to get into.... it's just a constantly stressful game to play.

Special Shout Out: The Quality of Life improvements in all of the recent ports/re-releases make Zelda some of the greatest port experiences ever.
 
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StraySheep

StraySheep

Member
Oct 26, 2017
8,284
It really bums me out that people put BotW above all these games.

I said WW but it could really go to any one of them.
 
New Fang

New Fang

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
5,542
Ocarina will always be the king for me. It did so many things right. I truly hope it gets a port to Switch one day.
 
upandaway

upandaway

Member
Oct 25, 2017
463
I'd say my ranking is

Ocarina of Time
Majora's Mask
Twilight Princess
Wind Waker

Haven't played Skyward Sword because it perfectly embodies everything I could hate in an action adventure game. I did watch some gameplay and can safely say it would be last.

OoT is an incredible package and Majora's Mask is a really fresh take on it which I consider one of the most cohesive and fleshed out vibes in a video game (would put it next to stuff like Chrono Trigger in that aspect). Twilight Princess is nice but had a huge number of flaws that hurt my experience. Wind Waker is complete style over substance to me, the difficulty is braindead and the dungeons are half baked. I enjoyed it but wouldn't put it close to the rest.
 
Mekanos

Mekanos

▲ Legend ▲
Member
Oct 17, 2018
44,169
upandaway said:
Wind Waker is complete style over substance to me, the difficulty is braindead and the dungeons are half baked. I enjoyed it but wouldn't put it close to the rest.
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This is my feeling as well, I have never understood the reverence for Wind Waker. The story and art style are excellent, but the actual game design feels underwhelming. I haven't played the HD version and I understand it carries a lot of QOL changes, but overall I feel the game gets a pass on things it shouldn't.
 

Deleted member 33533

Banned
Nov 17, 2017
12,864
Twilight Princess is my favorite. Not a popular opinion here but it has my favorite art style of the Zelda games. All the characters felt fully realized as did the world. It has the best dungeons by far. The combat improves upon the OoT/MM/WW style with great item use and hidden skills. The music is some of the best Zelda has to offer and it does a great job at incorporating a leitmotif throughout. It has a great story with amazing supporting characters and awesome Zelda set pieces. From alien vibes, to medieval fantasy to sumo to the Old West, TP just has this awesome style to it. No other Zelda felt as much if a grand adventure as this one. Also Midna. Just Midna.

People say it's a rehash of OoT but I think it does what OoT better than OoT and adds a bunch of even greater ideas that come into their own which give the game an identity all its own.



Dice said:
I'm always happy when people can admit the good and the bad in one swoop and still recon it some merit . yay!

Twlight Princess. Love the dungeons, it's probably the most true and thorough vision of Hyrule, and the dungeons are great (hotter take: it does OoT's ideas better).

RPthhiu.jpg

9SkjStU.jpg


I love these Wolf sequences where you seem to be in some spiritual version of the world and you see major game landmarks from 'above the heavens' :P
And forreal, Midna is the only REAL good companion in this series.
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Midna truly is the only food companion and damn is she great.
 
JayBee

JayBee

Alt-account
Banned
Dec 6, 2018
1,332
It's really tough for me. I'm one of the few that thought skyward sword was a very special experience. Ocarina of time still one of the goats too. I'll go with skyward sword anyway. Loved it
 

SkyOdin

Member
Apr 21, 2018
2,680
Put me in the minority that adores Skyward Sword. Yes it has flaws, but it has a lot of great elements. It has a great cast of characters, some great dungeons, and the best boss fights in the franchise. I think it is under appreciated.
 
dreams

dreams

Member
Oct 25, 2017
1,796
I do not get the love for Wind Waker. Maybe you had to have the nostalgia for it? I found it very tedious. I wouldn't replay it, even though I've replayed the others endlessly. For me it is:

MM
OOT
TP (although TP is almost on the same level for me as OOT. It just loses points for those few waggle gimmicky areas in the game that were super tedious)
WW

I haven't actually played SS yet. Hopefully it gets remastered at some point for Switch or whatever newer console.
 
StarErik

StarErik

Member
Oct 27, 2017
457
The Wind Waker, for sure. It's my favorite game of all time. The world, the characters, the music. It's all amazing.
 
Hieroph

Hieroph

Member
Oct 28, 2017
8,995
Dice said:
Twlight Princess. Love the dungeons, it's probably the most true and thorough vision of Hyrule, and the dungeons are great (hotter take: it does OoT's ideas better).

RPthhiu.jpg

9SkjStU.jpg


I love these Wolf sequences where you seem to be in some spiritual version of the world and you see major game landmarks from 'above the heavens' :P
And forreal, Midna is the only REAL good companion in this series.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

Yeah, Twilight Princess is basically the definitive version of Hyrule for me. I hope that one day we will still get an even "bigger, better (and prettier)" Zelda game with the vision of Twilight Princess. Maybe something with the clever self-referencing of Link Between Worlds, but for 3D Zeldas.
 
Captain of Outer Space

Captain of Outer Space

Come Sale Away With Me
Member
Oct 28, 2017
11,347
Though I haven't played Skyward Sword, my favorite on the list is Wind Waker and I probably would say I didn't enjoy much of the others. I've played the 3DS ports of Ocarina and Majora's Mask and they're fine for a while, but they don't have the impact on me as they did for many others when they originally came out. Twilight Princess was the game that made it clear to me that they had to rethink the Zelda game from the ground up because TP had some major issues because they had to stick to the formula or else people would be unhappy with it. Wind Waker was my first Zelda game and having the open world structure was an amazing feeling to have with lots of islands and an open sea to explore, though it didn't make the most of that setting/design because it was rushed out too early. Going to a very restricted TP after that was not the way I wanted Nintendo to go and it made for a lackluster game.
 
404LinkNotFound

404LinkNotFound

Member
Oct 27, 2017
8,600
The Windwaker
It was an amazing game that blew my 12 year old mind when i played it. It has its flaws but its heights outclass all of its lows

So to rank
1) Windwaker
Pros: Amazing arstyle, combat was fun,great exploration, great story,best ganondorf
Cons: Sailing takes too long, Trifroce quest, Dungeons are a bit simple
2)Twilight Princess
Pros: Amazing Dungeons, Combat was fun, I like the epic blockbuster scope it had, Story was enjoyable till the fumbled ending
Cons: Meh Artsyle, tear sections too long, Early bosses are meh, fumbled ending
3) Skyward Sword
Pros: Motion controlled sword swinging is amazing, amazing dungeons,great story,best Villain
Cons: bad pacing,Mixed feelings on the segmented overworld, Fi is too verbose
4)Marjora's Mask
Pros: great story, masked gameplay is cool, great villain, amazing atmosphere
Cons: Dungeons werent enjoyable for me outside the first one and while this is personal ,the timed mechanic really made me anxious and i couldnt explore in peace with that timer ticking down.
5)Ocarina of time
Pros: The dungeons are fun for the most part and so is the gameplay
Cons: The story is a bit basic but i know its an early 3D game so i forgive it. The Water temple and Jabuu Jabbu's belly sucks.

Dice said:
I'm always happy when people can admit the good and the bad in one swoop and still recon it some merit . yay!

Twlight Princess. Love the dungeons, it's probably the most true and thorough vision of Hyrule, and the dungeons are great (hotter take: it does OoT's ideas better).

RPthhiu.jpg

9SkjStU.jpg


I love these Wolf sequences where you seem to be in some spiritual version of the world and you see major game landmarks from 'above the heavens' :P
And forreal, Midna is the only REAL good companion in this series.

.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Yea I think TP's dungeons are way better than OOT. (for me TP and SS have the best Dungeons in the series)
My only flaws are the ending storywise is meh (gameplay wise its amazing).,The bosses for the first 3 dungeons are lackluster,the artsyle is too muted and the tear sections drag too long (luckily they are only in the beginning of the game)
 
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Deleted member 18021

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 27, 2017
4,000
Wind Waker has flaws up the wazoo, but damn if I don't love it regardless. I loved the seafaring aspect and the atmosphere. Still my favorite 3D Zelda, BotW is towards the bottom.

Link's Awakening is the best Zelda overall, though.
 
badboy78660

badboy78660

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,737
Loved Wind Walker—it was my first modernish Zelda (after Ocarina I'd Time), especially it's art style. Had a decent time with Twilight as well, specifically the dungeons (didn't care much for the rest of it).
 

Deleted member 35071

User requested account closure
Banned
Dec 1, 2017
1,656
OoT was fave of all time
WInd Waker HD fave of recent
Twilight Princess fave dungeons

but yeh. BOTW is just fave in general now
 
StarPhlox

StarPhlox

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,385
Wisconsin
All of them are good! I'm going to include BOTW in the ranking anyways:

  1. Majora's Mask - still the most haunting and fascinating world that Nintendo ever created, Zelda or no
  2. Breath of the Wild - a wonderful new standard that I loved through and through
  3. Wind Waker - unbelievably charming, the HD version sorted out its biggest problems, dungeons still lacking
  4. Ocarina of Time - important for the time, but not amazing to go back to today
  5. Skyward Sword - points for originality and the best version of Princess Zelda, still far too much filler
  6. Twilight Princess - redundant, but really good dungeons
 
Enduin

Enduin

You look 40
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Oct 25, 2017
11,485
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Majora hands down, though it's really a combined effort of OoT and then MM that really make them both so special.
 

Deleted member 4247

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
8,896
TP is the best one, but OoT is my nostalgic favorite.

And BotW is just leagues better than all of them. A revolution for the series, no going back now.
 
Castor Archer

Castor Archer

Member
Jan 8, 2019
2,298
SkyOdin said:
Put me in the minority that adores Skyward Sword. Yes it has flaws, but it has a lot of great elements. It has a great cast of characters, some great dungeons, and the best boss fights in the franchise. I think it is under appreciated.
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Same, plus the music is incredible and the art style is great. There's dozens of us! Literally dozens!
 
KillstealWolf

KillstealWolf

One Winged Slayer
Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
16,093
1. Twilight Princess
2. Ocarina of Time
3. Majora's Mask
4. Wind Waker
5. Skyward Sword

7. Breath of the Wild.

Yes, I'm confident whatever 3D Zelda comes next, I'll like it more than Breath of the Wild.
 
Mauricio_Magus

Mauricio_Magus

Member
Oct 25, 2017
13,016
Majora's Mask is one of the best games of all time, period.

It's also a great example of how to tell a mature story, maybe the best one in the medium, I love it so much.
 
sleepnaught

sleepnaught

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
4,538
Wind Waker, the music and art style are incredible, still holds up.

Sooooo much nostalgia from this




Must confess, I never played the N64 titles. I hope to play them if and when they ever make it over to Switch.
 
unicornKnight

unicornKnight

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Member
Oct 27, 2017
13,189
Athens, Greece
Majora's Mask was very stressful and has some pretty low lows. It had great moments and I understand the love it gets but in the end as a whole experience I put it below OoT and Wind Waker.
Twilight Princess had great dungeons and some very atmpospheric moments but the wolf parts were so simplistic and underused, and after getting rid of all the twilight realms early in the game it felt like it was just a sequence of dungeons. Definitely the weakest for me.
WW and TP were like the total opposites. One had way better overworld, the other had way better dungeons. In the end I'm more fond of the Wind Waker exploration even it had its weak moments.
Haven't played Skyward Sword and don't plan to until we get the inevitable HD version.

So it's OoT, WW, MM, TP for me.
 
ASaiyan

ASaiyan

Member
Oct 25, 2017
7,228
Wind Waker is the only Zelda I've played all the way through more than once.
200.gif

Never gets old.
 
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