Why I feel Ocarina of Time is considered the best Zelda by the mainstream

(tl;dr incoming)

When OoT came out, it was heralded as one of the best games ever, a legacy that would live on for decades, creating a reputation that overshadowed every sequel that followed.

Looking back, many gamers today often wonder why OoT is considered the "best" when more recent iterations of the Zelda franchise have improved on the design and mechanics of its predessesor. I'd love to hear your theories as well, but here I will present mine.

My hypothesis is a simple one. OoT is pure, concentrated "Zelda".

Think about OoT's formula for a moment. The game opens up with admittedly long text scrolling cutscene, but after this, there is always the option to progress the story at your own pace. You can dawdle in Kokiri Forest, or you can grab your sword and shield and go straight for the first dungeon. Once you're out of the Forest, you can explore Lon Lon Ranch or Kakariko, or go straight for Castle Town. There's a constant balance of being able to continue with the action, or to relax and explore at your leisure.

And all throughout the game, there are no forced gimmicks on the player. Now, one could argue that the time travel mechanic is a gimmick, but I would counter-argue that the time travel mechanic doesn't at any time change the fundamental hack-and-slash adventure gameplay of Zelda. Think about this:

Majora's Mask, while a great game in its own right, forces a time limit on the player. Lots of parts of the game have to be done at a certain time, and a number of things have to be re-done if it's not done correctly. Not only that, there is a long intro segment where the player is forced to play as "Scrub Link", not a very popular form.

Wind Waker pushes sailing on the player, which artificially inflates the time it takes to get anywhere, slowing down the pace of the game. Also, exploration is heavily restricted. A player might stumble across the Ice Island or Fire Island, for instance, only to be confused as to why they can't enter them. Only later in the game will they learn that these are tied to the story, and can only be accessed after a certain event.

Twilight Princess TRIES to step back into OoT's formula, but missteps in it's Wolf gameplay. Most of Link's abilities are lost in this form, which is forced on the player for a good while. The insect hunts, which would make a decent side-quest in any other game, are instead required to advance the plot.

Skyward Sword is possibly the closest to the "Zelda Concentrate" the series has been in a while, but still forces a number of unpopular mini games and detours on the player. Collecting note fish, for example. Or the rematches with a certain boss fight. Or the redux of insect collecting from Twilight Princess.

When you look at the flow of Ocarina Time and compare, the entire game is consistent in one style of gameplay. For those who want to take a break from the hack-and-slash exploring, there ARE alternatives, but these are almost always optional. (The one thing that must be done at some point is getting Epona. However, even with that, there's the caveat that the player doesn't need to get Epona until they plan on heading into the desert, which is towards the end game anyway.)

Ocarina of Time has its flaws, sure. Every game does, and every game that's been around for 15 years are going to see at least SOME of its mechanics and features outdated. But even with these flaws and aging mechanics, Ocarina of Time is a solid game that presents a consistent, undiluted adventure experience to the player.

And that's my two cents. :P

PS: OoT isn't my personal favorite Zelda. Mine is Majora's Mask.

OoT is my favorite because its the best ;).

Of course graphics have gotten better and certain mechanics have evolved a bit, such as TP's horseback sword fights, running and swinging, and so on. None of this has been HUGE improvements that make OoT feel old, but they are nice additions no doubt.

other than that, OoT remains the best. It has the most memorable adventure as a whole, between the catchy tunes used for many things, memorable characters, interesting dungeons and bosses, and fun sidequests and exploration. The game is just epic at every point and even when you are out doing your own thing. MM is close and I can understand someone picking it over OoT, but WW has issues with sailing and its world design, TP has issues with its lack of stuff to do in the world and empty feel, and SS has so many issues with many things, such as filler, and lack of exploration.

even the time travel element is important because it lets the story be told through the environments. a major part of the story's weight is exploring both time periods to feel how they are different.

very few big games have that level of cohesion and the only 3D zelda game to come close is wind waker.

It pushed the boundaries for what a game could do and is still a masterpiece today. I can go back and play that and have a great time, only downside is that the N64 controller is God awful. That hasn't aged well at all, I have no idea how I managed to play on that so much when I was a kid.

I will never forget the first time I set foot on Hyrule field, it was such an amazing experience. Ahh....the nostalgia!

OOT is Zelda to me. Its amazing.

My favorite would probably be A Link to the Past, but OoT is a close second. I grew up with the original Zeldas and I was probably 12 or so when A Link to the Past came out, very nostalgic. No one can deny the accomplishment of Oot though.

I think the reason is that it showed you can successfully have a 3D iteration of a 2D series and have it be great. I personally think OoT was outdone by both MM and WW but it's still an amazing game.