Ocarina of Time Is It Really the Best Zelda Game Ever?

[Forlong]

Okay, so I read over all your reasons, and found a way to counter them all:
1. All the sidequests had perfect pay-offs. Hunting skulltalas was obviously worth it, with all the accumulative awards and the grand prize being an unlimited supply of rupees. That's one of the best prizes we've ever seen! Hunting the Big Poes was no challenge, I found them all without a guide. The prize was another bottle, and the more bottles the better. Also, people scolded TP for being to linear, but your scolding it for being more open and free.
2. Okay, have you checked all the other games? Here are the facts of OoT: There are 9 dungeons, you have to count the final one. It's also tied with TP for having the most dungeons in the 3D games! It has one of the highest number of dungeons! Also it's tied for second place for having the second most number of dungeons in the entire series.
3. The Final Battle was the most epic of the entire series, others just don't compare. After a battle with the King of Thieves, his tower begins to collapse, so it's a race for your life to get out of there! Finally, when the castle is all destroyed, when you think it's all safe, a mysterious noise is heard. When you go investigate, the foundation is surrounded with a ring of fire. Out of the rubble, Ganondorf appears, and he is still alive! But then, he uses the Triforce of Power, and you the transformation commences. He forms into a large beast of Evil, deadly and destructive. As he knocks a way your sword, you must quickly think of some way to stop him before he ends your life . . .
How is that 'less than stellar?' That's what a real Epic Battle is, and no other games has managed to raise the bar.
That said, I firmly hold on to my belief: It is the best game, a masterpiece, a perfect blend of plot and action, a game that cannot be topped.

1: How is infinite rupees useful at the END OF THE GAME!? Did you even need 5 rupees by that point? Skulltalas are a total pain and your rupees become completely worthless before you even collect a third of them. When I play most Zelda games, I strive to finish all the side quests. Not the case with "Ocarina of Time". The last reward is useless by the time you pull out the Master Sword, so what's the point in getting more than 50? None, that's what! At least "Twilight Princess" has magic armor to expend your rupees, thus requiring you to continue collecting them. What a Zelda game that has a legitimate REASON to keep giving you rupees? What a novel idea.
2: I now release that I made a mistake. It's not the number of dungeons that's the problem, it's lack of substance. The game is just to short and small. I understand that it's limited to the N64 capabilities, but that keeps it from being better than other games (as grating as it may sound). "Link to the Past" had a slew of dungeons, and I expected just as many in "Ocarina of Time". A few people brought up that "Wind Waker" and "Twilight Princess" have about as many dungeons as OoT, so I had to rethink things. The reason I don't have a problem with those games is because they make up with the lack of dungeon substance with substance in the over-world. In LttP and OoT, the over-world only serves as a way to get from one level to the next and a place for all the side quests. Not the case in WW and TP. These games didn't need more dungeons than OoT, because the extensive over-world more than made up for it. They even have over-world bosses.
3: I didn't mean that it was bad, just not as good as others. Ganondorf was a good fight, but he became a wimp once he turned into Ganon. It was far two easy. Fyrus is harder because you can't just lock-on to him, and he's not all that hard. Epic fail. In WW, we get a look into Ganondorf's psych and see that he's going insane. And does Zelda sit on the sidelines and watch you save her? NO! She goes right in there with you to help. Also, Ganon's method changes as the battle progresses. I was far more interested in what was going on because Ganondorf was thinking strategically and kept making himself HARDER to hit. TP also did this grandly. What is the point of making your villain a humaniod, if the final battle is just going to be another monster fight? Ganondorf gets up close and personal with you. I felt a lot more invested in that fight, because it was to MEN fighting.

Honestly, the fanbase has just overblown OoT. Yes, it lade the foundations for all 3D Zelda games, but that isn't grounds for calling it the best. WW and TP improved on what OoT already made great. There is nothing OoT does better than those two games.

 

[Big Octo]

After reading you're above post, I still find your opinion to be off, judging by your arguments. I fully understand why you say what you do, but I think differently. It's best for us to agree to disagree. BTW, what is your favorite title? I bet I'd like it too.

 

[Ventus]

Forlong, if OoT didn't do anything better than TP or TWW, why have they not obtained perfect scores (TP got perfect from Famitsu though that's all I know about)? Surely it would make sense to give the sequels to the best game of all time perfect scores assuming they did better than the best game of all time?

Your point about infinite rupees is nulled by both games you are protecting. Rupees, infinite or not, serve little to no purpose in OoT, TP, or TWW. In OoT they are simply novelties. In TWW, the only time where you actually need them is for Tingle, and that is a forced part of the game that is completely ridiculous (398 x 8, seriously? Just begging for yet ANOTHER boring fetch quest). In TP, the only time where you'd need rupees is to buy bombs IF you need to buy bombs. Forget the Magic Armor, you can complete the entire game without getting touched by the malformed AI, and that's an easier feat done than said! TP is so ridiculous in it's scale that they forgot to program both good AI and a use for rupees. Bombs can be found in almost any dungeon chest (any dungeon previous to Lakebed you cannot), and the uses for said bombs are so far apart and limited that you wouldn't even bother. Rupees are useless in all three games no matter how you look at them.

If you're going to say Ganon was easy (due to his looping no doubt), I could argue the same for both Ganondorf in TWW and Dark Lord in TP. In Wind Waker, it just came down to smashing the B button repeatedly while waiting for the girl to shoot an arrow at your shield. Was that really so hard? In Wind Waker, all you needed to do was back up and wait for him to charge at you, then smash the A button repeatedly (I am NOT kidding or trying to defend OoT here, I speak from experience of playing through Twilight Princess over 10 times). Was THAT really so hard?

 

[Ventus]

Nostalgia makes a game stay good, that's for sure (if you don't understand, look at OoT3D's reviews). The fact that OoT was revolutionary for it's time set the foundation for which each Zelda should have done. TWW and TP and the other 'main' Zelda games up until now haven't utilized the system to the ultimate capacity in the genre with which that Zelda game is made in. There's always something that TWW or TP did wrong that OoT did right, be it quality of sidequests or length of the game or whatever it is that you can so look into. That's the reason why OoT 'is' the best Zelda game ever. People have their own opinions, yes, but sometimes they just go into denial to make it look like object A is worse than object B when it's clear that object A overpowers B in most if not all respects.

 

[guy123]

Some of your points may have some relevance, but not much. The only real problem with Ocarina of Time is that there wasn't any content in between the dungeons. Thje sidequests might have been a little weak, but it had a lot of dungeons for a 3D game, and the final battle in my opinion was only topped by Twilight Princess's. Ocarina of Time was an amazing game, or else it would be considered the "Best video game of all time" by so many people.

 

[Ventus]

I can't agree more with Guy123. It isn't the fact that OoT came first, it's that it does everything it does right. If that wasn't true, OoT3D wouldn't bust out with 9.25/10s frequently!

 

[Garo]

Ocarina of Time isn't the best Zelda game of all time by any means, but it is certainly better than Twilight Princess. Ocarina's story was better in terms of plot and conveyance. Ocarina's sidequests were far more expansive (eg, 100 Gold Skultullas vs. 50 Big Poes; Biggoron's Sword vs... Magic Armor? Ice Arrows vs... nothing?). Ocarina's dungeon design was much better, with items that were utilized outside of the dungeon they were obtained in, and with puzzles having a brilliant simplicity to them, rather than being complex, dungeon-wide puzzles that hinged on a single item that was never used again. Ocarina of Time's final boss was much more epic and impactful, as you've been building up to a confrontation with Ganondorf the entire game - "Alright, Ganondorf, time to pay for what you've done. This is what I've been working toward for seven years." In Twilight Princess, he shows up at the eleventh hour - "Oh, gotta fight this doofus now. Kay."

Twilight Princess stands as the lowest of the 3D Zelda games, with Wind Waker well above it, Ocarina of Time just barely above Wind Waker, and Majora's Mask as the crown jewel.

 

[bobersonsmith]

Here is why Oot is great. It has every element that a great game should have. The music is absolutely wonderful, the game play is fun, there are tons of things to do outside the main quest, the story is deep and interesting, the graphics were amazing when it came out, even if they are dated... but Who Cares. Graphics don't make a game worse unless they hinder game play or it looks too ugly. Honestly I don't care how the game looks as long as it is looks decent, and personally I still think it looks better than any other N64 game I've played (with the exception of Majora's Mask).

And if your saying it is only considered best because it was the first of its kind, look again. Super Mario 64 was the first 3d Mario and its not considered the best (at least not to me and I grew up with both games). And if your also saying people only think it's the best because of nostalgia, that's because it was able to have nostalgia and hold it till today.

Also just because W.W. and T.P might be bigger and have more content doesn't mean they are better. Haven't you ever heard of quality over quantity. Also the final boss battle was great. The music while your were fighting Ganon really set a good,epic mood. If you say it was easy and TP's final boss was better than something is wrong. Everything in T.P. was too easy. Even the final boss was, even though it was long. It was just way too easy. Ocarina might have been a little on the easy side, but at least it had some difficulty. And I'm not saying TP is bad either. In fact i loved it and thought the story was amazing, although I think OoT's story was better because there was more behind it and the characters.

I personally do not like Wind Waker for many reasons, but i still think it is a great game. In fact when I was in 3rd grade and got it i loved it, but i don't really like it any more. Anything is a matter of opinion and you might like something better than something else because it appeals to you more, but that doesn't mean its better for someone else.

And i will never get it when someone says a game hasn't aged well. Will someone please clarify that with me, because in my opinion it doesn't matter how it looks now. I grew up with 3d games and still like older ones from before I was born better than games now with graphics so good you can't tell the difference between the game and real life. Graphics are not the only thing that make a game good.

Also i have friends who didn't grow up with this game who still think it is the best game ever.


p.s. I hope it is easier to read now

 

[OcarinaHero12]

it is the best because it was the first 3d zelda it was a very detailed game and was amazing for a system like the n64 yea tp an ww might be good but there no oot!

 

[Go_Dark_Link]

When you say better games have come out after OoT did isn't a valid argument. The only reason you might think they're better (which I don't) is because the capabilities of the time in which they came out exceeded those of when OoT came out. This just means that you say TP or WW are so great now, in 10 years will we remember either of them? No! Because there will be other new more amazing games that came out. That's another area in which OoT completely is better than other games. Because even if 10 years have passed, the games was and is so amazing, that we still talk about it. If it isn't the best game ever, why is it that even after a decade of it's release, IT HAS ITS OWN FRIGGING FORUM IN ZD, when others you call so much better, like WW and TP, don't?

 

[OcarinaHero12]

it sounds like u just like tp ww and mm just because their ur favorite doesnt mean there the best!

 

[Ventus]

Go_Dark_Link, I think OoT only recently got it's own forum on ZD because of OoT3D though I could be wrong. But that's still saying something.

Erebea, all you're doing is saying how OoT's story is this, or it's characters are that. Where are your arguments for TWW doing any better (or even as good)? I'm sure you have some, but as of now, there are none displayed.
I'll counter your OoT arguments: the story sure wasn't deep, but it was epic. Epic was and still 'is' right as evidenced by game reviewers around the world. Games don't even need to have 'deep' stories whatsoever to be good, and they certainly don't need them to be great (see: Super Mario Galaxy 2, OoT, Call of Duty series, etc).
The characters were presented in a way that neither hindered nor significantly boosted interaction in the game. Everyone either gave out simple, repeatable dialogue (the ability to do much else is stopped by the cartridge size, believe me - the only way to add anymore text is by expanding the cartridge; I've had so much experience playing around with the OoT game file) or gave out the cycled speeches or story-based dialogue (Saria after certain stages in the story, Zelda among other people). Flat they are, but still 'right'. Even though there was a block in the form of Kaepora Gaebora (and Navi), people STILL reference them as a few of the 'good' aspects of OoT.

Where is TWW with all the praise of characters and story? Where is TP with all the praise of characters and story? Neither titles had 'deep' stories, and they certainly did not have any interesting characters.

 

[Forlong]

When you say better games have come out after OoT did isn't a valid argument. The only reason you might think they're better (which I don't) is because the capabilities of the time in which they came out exceeded those of when OoT came out. This just means that you say TP or WW are so great now, in 10 years will we remember either of them? No! Because there will be other new more amazing games that came out. That's another area in which OoT completely is better than other games. Because even if 10 years have passed, the games was and is so amazing, that we still talk about it. If it isn't the best game ever, why is it that even after a decade of it's release, IT HAS ITS OWN FRIGGING FORUM IN ZD, when others you call so much better, like WW and TP, don't?

Oh, well that sure showed me. *sarcasm*

Okay, the praise for "Ocarina of Time" is an in-depth story and memorable characters. How does "Wind Waker" not do both of these several times better? Only two characters went through clear story arcs in OoT: Mido and Zelda. How many characters went through arcs in WW? Tetra, Ganondorf, Makar, Medli, Komali, and probably a few others I'm forgetting. How 'bout plot? There are two arcs in the main plot of OoT: get the Master Sword--Wake the Sages. There are three arcs in WW: Save Aryll--Renew the enchantment on the Master Sword--Defeat Ganondorf. WW did everything OoT did, but better. How is it not a better game?

And remembering it ten years later doesn't make it better than the more recent games. We still remember "Doom", right? Does that mean that it's the best first person shooter ever? No! You have to compare the games as they are, not say "well it's remembered" or "it was revolutionary".

it sounds like u just like tp ww and mm just because their ur favorite doesnt mean there the best!

Funny, because none of those are my favorite Zelda game.

Where is TWW with all the praise of characters and story? Where is TP with all the praise of characters and story? Neither titles had 'deep' stories, and they certainly did not have any interesting characters.

As I pointed out, only two characters in OoT have any real depth to them, maybe three. Whereas WW has dozens of characters that have a great deal of depth. How was the story in OoT "deep"? I think you need an urban dictionary, because you don't seem to know what that means. A deep story is vastly intense and profound. I'm just going to end it there.

 

[MightyGhirahim]

When you say better games have come out after OoT did isn't a valid argument. The only reason you might think they're better (which I don't) is because the capabilities of the time in which they came out exceeded those of when OoT came out. This just means that you say TP or WW are so great now, in 10 years will we remember either of them? No! Because there will be other new more amazing games that came out. That's another area in which OoT completely is better than other games. Because even if 10 years have passed, the games was and is so amazing, that we still talk about it. If it isn't the best game ever, why is it that even after a decade of it's release, IT HAS ITS OWN FRIGGING FORUM IN ZD, when others you call so much better, like WW and TP, don't?

OoT only has its own forum because of the recent release of OoT 3D. I remember when it did not have its own forum, so do not seem all high and mighty D: . You have to admit though, TP and WW were easily better than OoT. TP is the best Zelda so far, the story is absolutely amazing and the graphics are breathless.WW also had a good story, and was EASILY better than OoT. And the reason OoT is remembered is because it started the 3D Zeldas. SS might be remembered the same way! It will also start a new type of zelda. Is now done with rant

 

[Go_Dark_Link]

OoT only has its own forum because of the recent release of OoT 3D.

Right there you have my answer. If OoT wasn't the best game, why did Nintendo chose to remake only that one? Because they are making sure OoT isn't forgotten, for it deserves more than that, it deserves to be remembered for what it is, the best game ever.

TP is the best Zelda so far, the story is absolutely amazing and the graphics are breathless.

OoT's graphics were also breathtaking for its time. Later people will also say, TP's graphics were breathless, for its time. OoT was the peak of game industry when it came out. I'm not saying other games haven't created better graphics and stuff, I'm just saying that OoT has been the only one that has become perfection in its time. It's the only one that reached a height no other game has reached.

SS might be remembered the same way! It will also start a new type of zelda.

I do not deny that SS doesn't look frigging amazing, and that it might come bigger than OoT. But for now, and for the entire past decade, OoT has been Number 1.