Although Majora's Mask lacks some of the finesse of its predecessor, it's an excellent sequel that isn't to be missed.
User Rating: 9 | Zelda no Densetsu: Majora no Kamen (w/Memory Pack) N64
How do you make a sequel to a title that is considered by many to be the greatest game of all time? Is it possible to match it with the perfection of its predecessor? Well, Nintendo has answered that question with the highly anticipated sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. A game that follows closely in its footsteps; The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask. The story begins several months after the conclusion of Ocarina of Time. Link has left the land of Hyrule in search of new adventure. As he rides through a dense forest, he is incapacitated by a masked being known as the Skull Kid, who steals Link’s horse and his ocarina as well. While pursuing the Skull Kid, he ends up in a world called Termina; where the moon is slowly falling above the village of Clock Town, and its impact will cause an apocalyptic event, destroying the entire world. Upon meeting a familiar character, Link learns that the event has been caused by the Skull Kid himself, as well as a bevy of other problems that plague the world. And once again, Link is called upon to save the world once more. The core gameplay is nearly identical to Ocarina of Time; your items are used by the left, right, and down C buttons. The A button controls your actions, and the B button is used for your primary weapon. However, certain major tweaks have been made. Link is given only a short 72 hours to stop the falling moon, and each hour in the game lasts about a minute. Obviously, it is not possible to complete the game in just over an hour. That’s where the Ocarina comes in. If you play a certain tune on it, you can warp back to the start of day one. There is a catch though; after returning to day one, you lose all of your money, as well as non-essential items, like bombs, arrows, etc. Also, all of your progress in dungeons will be reset unless you already cleared them. So, you must use this ability wisely. There are four main dungeons in the game, one in each compass direction, which seems a bit short for a Zelda game…and it is. But, there are several smaller dungeons and quests that you must complete before proceeding to the main dungeon. The problem is that you are not informed very often on where you are supposed to go. Link’s fairy will just tell you the direction of the next temple and then you’re pretty much on your own. So you’ll constantly be asking yourself where you are and what you have to do next. But once you know exactly what to do, the game isn’t so difficult, and you’re guaranteed to have fun. Another important aspect of Majora’s Mask is the mask collecting. There are 24 masks in all and each mask does something different. For example, the bunny hood will let you run faster, while the stone mask turns you invisible to most enemies. There are also three transformation masks that give you a whole new set of abilities. The Goron Mask turns you into a Goron and you can roll, stomp and punch, while the Zora Mask lets you walk underwater, and swim faster. There is also the Deku Mask which lets you pop out of flowers and shoot bubbles. The use of masks is essential to solving puzzles and progressing in the game, even though finding many of them are optional. Another optional portion of the game is to help solve people’s problems that the Skull Kid is responsible for. There are many people with troubles scattered about the land, and solving their problems earns you respect and items. Your helpings are recorded in a special notebook that is one of the most important items in the game. Although these are optional, they manage to squeeze out some more value to the game’s somewhat shorter length. Graphically, Majora’s Mask is beautiful. The expansion pack that is required bumps the textures up a notch, but there is hardly a difference from its predecessor. Sound wise, the game is also wonderful. Most of the soundtracks and Ocarina tunes are reused, and there are some new tracks that sound incredible. The voice work still mainly consists of familiar gasps and yelps as well as some new sound effects that sound just as good. Although Majora’s Mask has changed since its predecessor, the game is still fantastic and just as much fun to play. If you can get past the confusion of what you need to do or where to go, you will find that Majora’s Mask is more than just a sequel; it’s another step in the path that is quite possibly the greatest gaming series of all time. 
