Number Nine

(Ethan's List of the Top Ten Games Ever: Yes, His List is Better Than Yours)

And let's continue this list with another unappreciated masterpiece.

Number Nine - The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

Since I don't want to take up the paragraphs below talking about Tingle, I'll get that out of the way now: Tingle is great.
Yes, he's a creepy delusional man who thinks he's a fairy. No, I wouldn't want him to babysit my kids or my dog or even my stuffed animals. But Tingle is so full of personality (no matter how unsettling) that it's impossible to ignore. I think he's an example of what makes the Zelda series great. Notice how stale Twilight Princess felt? That's because the only good character was that blunt, business-savvy super-child.
But moving on.



Like any good Zelda game, Link starts off in a place he doesn't belong (notice this isn't the case in Wind Waker and Twilight Princess?). This immediately connects you to Link and draws you into the dark world and bizarre scenario.

Clock Town is bursting with life. There are doors everywhere and even more characters filling these spaces. And to add to this already incredible dynamic is the fact that almost every character works on a schedule. Now the place you visited earlier in the day is completely different from the evening is completely different from the next day is competely different from the next day. Get the idea?
While some felt that the timeline was restricting, I felt it opened the world up to become a breathing organism that just demanded you know all its parts.

While the dungeons were the worst out of any 3D Zelda game (yes, even worse than Wind Waker), it didn't really matter because the main story almost became the side story. Majora's Mask is about the sidequests. It's about the little stories you discover about Kafei and Romani and The Postman and so many more. Everything is so connected and everything holds a reward. It is a dense, rich world that feels like everything has as much emphasis as everything else.

Speaking of these characters, let's go back to the first point I was making. Because Link doesn't talk, a Zelda game needs incredibly strong characters to give the game (and therefore, Link) a personality. And this game delivers. You have the complex nature of the reactions of Anju and Kafei, you have the muddled intentions of the unsettling Happy Mask Man, you have the proud story of Darmani, the sad Deku butler, the faithful witch sisters. And this is just scratching the surface. Everywhere you turn are new characters waiting to plow you over with their bizarre complexity.

And here's an important part of the games that make this list that Final Fantasy XII didn't get a nod about (with some reason). The music. While Twilight Princess had a good theme and some other occasional moments when the music shone, and Wind Waker had appropriate, well-written music for the setting, Majora's Mask is the last Zelda game to truly have an outstanding soundtrack. To carry the powerful mood the game establishes, the music becomes everything. From Clock Town to Snow Peak, Majora's Mask immerses you.
(can you tell WW and TP won't be making this list?)

Agree with me yet?

Tomorrow's item might just surprise you.

Until then,

_ethan