This game was 3 steps away from being perfect.
But, it's still behind Ocarina of Time. Why? I see 3 great flaws in this game.
1) NO PRINCESS ZELDA in this game. This is the first LOZ game that i played, where Princess Zelda didn't make part of the Story! A Zelda game...without Zelda?
2) NO MASTER SWORD! Another great mistake! How could Link defeat evil without the legendary Master Sword, only granted to the hero of the Triforce!
3) NO GANONDORF! If the missing of Princess Zelda and Master Sword weren't enough, they put Ganondorf, the wielder of the Triforce of Power, aside from the story too! Why??? A simple quote from him, a single apparition, a single mentioning linking him to the plot would be enough... but nothing!
Well.... but still, even with these three lacks, i think Majora's Mask is a great game. The graphics, sound and gameplay were as perfect as the Ocarina's. Not to mention that the game is a lot HARDER than Ocarina of Time.
The last little thing that i thought it was a bit annoying, was being obligated to get back in time, all the time. Every time the three days are over, you need to play the ocarina to get back.....and for SEVERAL times, i was still in the middle of some dungeons, meaning that i would replay it all over again. sometimes, this made me give up from the game for some days or weeks, until i felt i had enough patience to play it all over again.
These were the critical failures, in my opinion....the game surpassed the failures with great gameplay, in-game subquests and superb graphics and music. A must-have for all Zelda fans.
From Brazil...
Cristiano Kolling