Daily Debate: Did You Find The Three-Day Mechanic of Majora’s Mask Oppressive?

The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask tends to be one of the more popular games in the franchise. It placed first on our game ranking list this year, many fans regard it highly, and it was recommended to me multiple times before I finally got it and started playing it this month. Many things are commonly praised about the game, such as the darker story and the many complex sidequests. However, one of the main features of the game I’ve seen both complimented and criticized: the three-day mechanic.

Quite a few of the many different events that the game has offer are time-dependent; if you miss what time they occurred at, you’ll have to restart the cycle to catch the event, which can restart your progress in any sidequest or main quest you were attempting to work on. While this can be annoying and put a bit of a damper on the gameplay, it also adds a sense of urgency to the game. A player can’t spend time randomly wandering whenever they feel like it; if they want to complete some of the things the game has to offer, they’ll have to keep an eye on what time it is in the game and manage what they do very carefully.

The opinions on this system vary from person to person. This isn’t really a system with obvious pros and cons to everyone; a person either likes or dislikes the three-day mechanic. So what do you think of it? Did you like the challenge of carefully managing how you spent your time in Majora’s Mask? Or did it hinder your experience of the game? Leave your thoughts and opinions in the comments below!