Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask: A look at the future of gaming through the past

If you played Nintendo 64, you've always had that moment where you're going over your old stuff and you find that beautiful system. You hook it up, and its like you're 6 again. You start playing the same games you played as a kid but you see them in a whole new light. They're all too familiar but all too new. I think that's the secret brilliance of not only Nintendo games, but any game that was a childhood favorite.

Its kind of a shame that kids these days are really into Call of Duty and Halo. A worrisome trend in video games now is the amount of pre teen kids playing these violent war first person shooters. Other people could talk all day about the psychological effects and harms of exposing these kids to so much violence but I'm thinking it from a different route.

As much as I have enjoyed the Campaigns of Halo and Call of Duty, the fact that I'm calling them Campaigns instead of Story modes is a telling piece of evidence in itself. These kids aren't playing these video games for the story, they're playing it for the online multiplayer. If they are playing the story, I don't think they understand it the way I do. That isn't a condescending remark, its just a fact. As you get older you understand stories in different ways. That's why kids are exposed to fairy tales and simplistic stories early on. I would be very surprised if a 7 year old can understand the historic significance of Cherynobl, from Call of Duty Modern Warfare, or the religious implications of the Covenant and the Halo rings. To be fair there may be a couple of adult gamers who don't understand that themselves, but the point still stands.

Again this is not to say these games are bad, they're just not for kids. If you let your 7 year old play these games, I probably don't think too highly of you as a person.

Anyway, (this post took a turn I was not expecting it to) so if you're an adult you've probably felt the feeling you had as a kid. And what I've noticed over the past year is that a lot of people are pulling out an old gem from the 64 era and catching their tune to it.

Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask is a very odd video game. I thought that when I was a kid and I think it now. That being said, I love it.

Majora's Mask was made a year after the critically acclaimed Ocarina of Time. (one of my favorite video games of all time). It took the engine of Ocarina of Time, kept most of the character models and made a new story. It takes place after Ocarina of Time and Link is looking for his old fairy friend Navi. He goes looking for her in the Lost Woods and is attacked by a Skull Kid bearing the mask of Majora. Link follows him into a world called Termina that the Skull Kid has created mischief all over and its up to Link to set it all right. All of this done in a span of three days. In three days the moon that is on a path towards Termina will crash killing everyone. The unique feature of the game is the three day mechanics and the ability to jump back in time to the beginning of those three days and redo multiple parts of the game.

Though this sounds brilliant, this was one of the biggest complaints of the game when it was first released. Gamers just couldn't really adjust to the three day mechanic and it caused frustration when the game would require waiting around for specific events to happen at specific times. If you missed it, you'd have to play the song of time and return to the beginning of the three days.

While this was incredibly challenging and sometimes discouraging as a kid, playing it as an adult has given me new challenges and I actually really enjoy the gameplay.

And I don't think I'm alone in this sentiment. There have been so many youtube videos, reviews, and other mediums praising this game and remembering it as a hidden gem of the 64 years. This has sparked theories of the game and thought provoking analysis of the game and its connection to the Legend of Zelda universe.

This is my favorite of them

So what makes Majora's Mask so good. Well if you watch the video above, it connects to the 5 stages of grief. Lots of the scenarios within the game really have relatable aspects to grief and loss in real life. 

But the game is so different from its much more successful predecessor. Why?

Well in Ocarina of Time, Link is tasked to go to Hyrule and find "the princess of Destiny" he's then tasked to save the world. Do all these things and save the world. It's incredibly fairy tale like. The villain is incredibly evil and the good guys are incredibly good. 

Now I have talked about these types of characters before criticizing them, but here it works. It's all about the world where they appear in. Would it be interesting to see upbringing of Gannondorf? Maybe, but sometimes you just need a knight in shining armor facing off against the ultimate evil. Also, its a video game. As much as we love character development, there's not much in it. Unless you're playing a game like Mass Effect where you decide the morality and personality of your character, or a game like The Last of Us that are almost movies themselves you don't really need that much of a character development. And playing that character is almost development in itself. But I'll get back to story in video games again later.

So how does Majora's Mask differ?

Though Link still remains a voiceless vehicle, more for the observation of the player rather than an actual character (#1 reason why they should never make a Legend of Zelda movie) Many of the other characters in the game have a lot of complex emotions. They're afraid of dying, they feel loss over the people they have lost. While those characters appeared in The Ocarina of Time, the dark atmosphere of the game just seemed to underline those emotions and how they affected me as a player. 

Also, the main villain, the Skull Kid is actually not that bad of a character. It's revealed that the Skull Kid was just a mischievous prankster who stole Majora's Mask not knowing the consequences. Consequences of it being a mask with incredibly dark power that ultimately possesses him and causes him to create not just mischief, but complete chaos in the land of Termina. 

While Majora's Mask still gives you that feeling of a Hero going through an elaborate quest to rid the world of evil, like good fairytales do, Majora's Mask has an interesting edge to it. It's kind of an Empire Strikes Back sort of game where the dark atmosphere and creepiness can often overcome gamers. Especially younger ones. I know I was. While Ocarina of Time had its dark moments, it still felt like a classic fairy tale. Majora's Mask is a little different. It's a little bit more personal and although Link is still The Hero of Time, the focus isn't so much on his quest to develop into that Hero, but to the suffering and darkness he is overcoming. 

I plan to update this post after I replay the game again but my analysis still stands. 

So how does this connect to what I was talking about before?

Well how do these two games differ? Halo and Call of Duty, although they may have elements of adventure in their story lines, they are stories of war. In order to complete the game, you have to watch your ammo, take cover, and don't get shot. 

That's not to say Legend of Zelda isn't violent. But in order to get to the end of the temple, its not as simple as slicing up a bunch of bad guys. There are puzzles and dialogue you need to have. Story actually needs to take place, not the action. And I think that's what made it such a great game for me as a kid. While I loved to fight goblins and dragons between me and the princess, there was more to it. I needed to platform jump, I unlock puzzles that would reveal chests, chests that had keys in them, keys that would open a door and lead to more puzzles and obstacles for me to overcome. It taught problem solving skills not easily solved by a Spartan Laser. 

Now back to what I mentioned before about Mass Effect or The Last of Us, or even Skyrim. These are all very story heavy games. You're not just a guy running around with a gun, you have to solve people's problems and do some critical thinking while playing these games. And Skyrim is a fantasy game that could be fairy tale like. Why then would this not be good for young gamers to play. 

Your answer is on the rating on the cover of the game. The large M is there for a very distinct reason. These games deal with very mature content. I think its a disservice to play Mass Effect without understanding the lore behind it and the political themes and motivations within the game. But is that why kids under 15 play Mass Effect? The Last of Us deals with a very personal relationship between a father and his daughter in the zombie apocalypse. Raising very serious ethical questions. Short answer for this, would you let you 8 year old kid watch the Walking Dead? Even if you do, do they understand it? Do they understand the ethical dilemmas these characters find themselves in, or are they fascinated by the action in that show. And Skyrim, what's wrong with having my kid play Skryim. Very similar answer to the previous examples, you have to ask yourself, does your kid understand the story, what exactly is going on when you meet an incredible variety of characters. Do they understand the quests they're going on or are they just getting from point A to point B and killing everything in their path? 

I feel as though I'm insulting the intelligence of children in this post but I don't think there's anything childish about starting off with games like Legend of Zelda and Mario. 

Is it necessary to expose kids to ethical dilemmas brought up in Mass Effect when they may not understand it. And if they do understand the choice, do they understand the consequences. In a way, Mature video games should be held to a similar standard of committing an actual crime. 

Does an 8 year old understand the implications of the Call of Duty mission "No Russian"? If they don't understand why that mission is controversial, they shouldn't be playing Call of Duty and you shouldn't be buying it for them. 

Now I don't know if kids these days are going to end up violent maniacs, I am personally of the belief that video games do not cause violent behavior. But I am a little bothered by the idea that more and more kids are growing up playing Call of Duty rather than playing Zelda. The richness of the environment Zelda provides, the quests you encounter, the whimsicalness of the entire world just makes the games a perfect beginning for upcoming gamers. At younger ages, the dungeons challenge you more and most importantly, the stories are just a little bit better. You can argue the story of Halo is a more in depth story rather than the fairy tale land of Hyrule and Termina but in the end, you're just a faceless guy running around shooting aliens. 

If you disagree, please let me know. I actually want to hear if someone disagrees with this. This post turned more about a new generation of gamers rather than a Majora's Mask Review. Again, I must state, I don't think Halo, Call of Duty, Last of Us, Mass Effect, or Skyrim are bad games. I just think they're meant for mature audiences and not audiences that don't understand it. 

Leave a comment below and let me know what you think. 

I leave you with this. Not totally related but related enough that it's funny