Post by Fryguy64 on Nov 7, 2011 10:04:06 GMT -5
All this talk of Operation Moonfall, the 25th anniversary of the Zelda series, the symphony orchestra, Skyward Sword, and me finally beating Zelda II has all led me to finally try to beat Majora's Mask.
That's right, you heard me, I have never beaten Majora's Mask before.
In fact, the first time I played I didn't even get to the second temple. The last time I sat down to try and beat it, I beat the second temple but got fatigue collecting the Zora's Eggs. I never got further than that. This is my third big attempt and I have broken through that barrier and am currently up to the third temple.
I have been trying to put my finger on exactly what it is that makes this game so frustrating that I don't want to play through it, while clearly also being so well designed and clever that I feel ashamed that I haven't.
First things first. The game's storyline is emotional. Clock Town and the surrounding overworld feels like a living, breathing place and it's truly excellent. The dungeons feature some really intelligent puzzles that use the third dimension much better than the temples in Ocarina of Time. So it can't be any of those things. In fact, these are all the things that get so regularly cited as reasons this is the best Zelda game, or even the best game ever.
I also know I'm not alone in having never beaten it, while still professing love for it. I think this is partly down to it being the unloved sibling of Ocarina, and people love to support the underdog, but my latest playthrough is highlighting some real issues with the game.
Well, one issue really. Signposting. Zelda games point you roughly where you need to go and give you little hints and tips that you're going the right way. It does this on several levels, for newcomers who have never played a Zelda game before up to the experienced players who simply need to know where to go next. From sound effects to Navi/Tatl flying off to highlight something, to characters strongly hinting what to do next. Zelda games are the masters of giving you all the information without explicitly telling you where to go.
Majora's Mask does this too, and it does it as well as the other Zelda games. However, and this is a biggie, it only does it as well as the other Zelda games, and the big trick to Majora's Mask is it has a time travel system, a time limit and an unusual save system. It is vital that the game gives you the information before sending you away, but it fails to do so for these very key play mechanics.
Owl statues, for example. You need these to save your game partway through a 3-day cycle, as well as to make use of the Song of Soaring to save yourself valuable time. But when you first see one you need to strike it with your sword, and it's very likely you won't have one (as Deku Link). But it also doesn't tell you what it's for or why it's important until after you strike it. So by the time you get your sword, you've probably forgotten all about it and gone off to Woodfall. Halfway there the owl finally gives you the Song of Soaring and explains why they're important. How much time have you put into the game before it explicitly tells you how to save?
Speaking of time, let's talk about the songs of double/half time. The game is virtually unplayable without the song of half time, and so it's possibly one of the most important songs in the game. You aren't taught it, and it isn't added to your playlist. A scarecrow tells you about it (again, before you even have the Ocarina), and doesn't mention the Song of Time by name... The number of people who hate the time limit because they didn't know about this is surprising. Poor plotting of a vital gameplay mechanic.
I never got past the sea snakes until last night. And sure enough it was frustrating. I can get all the Zora Eggs from the pirate fortress, but then you have to get past the signpost maze. The way to do this? Rescue a seahorse. I managed to run straight past the house where it's kept several times, so I looked it up on GameFAQs... again. Fine, so you get through that maze and then you have to fight the sea snakes with limited magic. Fill up on green potion? But I need my bottles for Zora Eggs... You have to return the Zora Eggs to the Great Bay Lab, which I remembered from last time, but it doesn't tell you that... so if you get sidetracked turning into a Zora then you won't know where to take them...
And finally there's the key progress points - the ones that mean you can safely return to Dawn of the First Day without losing progress. The masks, non-replenishable items, new songs and so on each count as the next "safe point"... But this isn't made clear. Sometimes you may find an item and return to Dawn of the First Day and it will have vanished. And yet if your sword/bottle is stolen by the Takkuri on Termina Field, you can return to the first day and they will be back. I'm not sure I've seen any good arguments for losing all your money and replenishable items on returning to the first day. Does it break anything? Not that I can see. Does it mean item farming? Sadly and tediously so! Does it mean a frantic dash back to Clock Town to deposit rupees before the moon hits? Yes... But why when you can just take them out again on the first day?
It's exasperating!
Zelda games point you in the right direction to guide you through the game mechanics and the storyline, slowly revealing their intricacies as you progress. They also give you the freedom to break off and explore, looking for items and sidequests. Majora's Mask makes the mistake of making you explore for things vital to progress. Add to that a time limit and failing to make it clear if you've reached a "safe point" and it's no wonder people don't always make it through.
And it's crushingly sad, because none of this in any way affects the things that are so great about the game. Clock Town, the dungeons, the clever use of the three day cycle... It's all so wonderfully put together, and makes for one of the strongest entries in the series. The personal tragedies, the constant threat of the moon, the eerie atmosphere and the shock of a game that handles death with tenderness make it the strongest in terms of story.
And even these game mechanics are really well planned and cleverly used. But they are weird! They're not like any other Zelda game, and unlike just about every other game, for that matter. With hindsight, you can understand why they are there and why they needed to be there... But that's not the problem. The problem is I shouldn't need to use hindsight to understand why owl statues are important, or which items I can take back to the First Day with me. The game needs to explain, to signpost, to reveal its mechanics so I know they're important when they start being important.
I'm not going to complain about waiting around for things to happen at specific times just yet. That's a separate issue.
Aonuma's got his work cut out if he decides to remake this for 3DS.
That's right, you heard me, I have never beaten Majora's Mask before.
In fact, the first time I played I didn't even get to the second temple. The last time I sat down to try and beat it, I beat the second temple but got fatigue collecting the Zora's Eggs. I never got further than that. This is my third big attempt and I have broken through that barrier and am currently up to the third temple.
I have been trying to put my finger on exactly what it is that makes this game so frustrating that I don't want to play through it, while clearly also being so well designed and clever that I feel ashamed that I haven't.
First things first. The game's storyline is emotional. Clock Town and the surrounding overworld feels like a living, breathing place and it's truly excellent. The dungeons feature some really intelligent puzzles that use the third dimension much better than the temples in Ocarina of Time. So it can't be any of those things. In fact, these are all the things that get so regularly cited as reasons this is the best Zelda game, or even the best game ever.
I also know I'm not alone in having never beaten it, while still professing love for it. I think this is partly down to it being the unloved sibling of Ocarina, and people love to support the underdog, but my latest playthrough is highlighting some real issues with the game.
Well, one issue really. Signposting. Zelda games point you roughly where you need to go and give you little hints and tips that you're going the right way. It does this on several levels, for newcomers who have never played a Zelda game before up to the experienced players who simply need to know where to go next. From sound effects to Navi/Tatl flying off to highlight something, to characters strongly hinting what to do next. Zelda games are the masters of giving you all the information without explicitly telling you where to go.
Majora's Mask does this too, and it does it as well as the other Zelda games. However, and this is a biggie, it only does it as well as the other Zelda games, and the big trick to Majora's Mask is it has a time travel system, a time limit and an unusual save system. It is vital that the game gives you the information before sending you away, but it fails to do so for these very key play mechanics.
Owl statues, for example. You need these to save your game partway through a 3-day cycle, as well as to make use of the Song of Soaring to save yourself valuable time. But when you first see one you need to strike it with your sword, and it's very likely you won't have one (as Deku Link). But it also doesn't tell you what it's for or why it's important until after you strike it. So by the time you get your sword, you've probably forgotten all about it and gone off to Woodfall. Halfway there the owl finally gives you the Song of Soaring and explains why they're important. How much time have you put into the game before it explicitly tells you how to save?
Speaking of time, let's talk about the songs of double/half time. The game is virtually unplayable without the song of half time, and so it's possibly one of the most important songs in the game. You aren't taught it, and it isn't added to your playlist. A scarecrow tells you about it (again, before you even have the Ocarina), and doesn't mention the Song of Time by name... The number of people who hate the time limit because they didn't know about this is surprising. Poor plotting of a vital gameplay mechanic.
I never got past the sea snakes until last night. And sure enough it was frustrating. I can get all the Zora Eggs from the pirate fortress, but then you have to get past the signpost maze. The way to do this? Rescue a seahorse. I managed to run straight past the house where it's kept several times, so I looked it up on GameFAQs... again. Fine, so you get through that maze and then you have to fight the sea snakes with limited magic. Fill up on green potion? But I need my bottles for Zora Eggs... You have to return the Zora Eggs to the Great Bay Lab, which I remembered from last time, but it doesn't tell you that... so if you get sidetracked turning into a Zora then you won't know where to take them...
And finally there's the key progress points - the ones that mean you can safely return to Dawn of the First Day without losing progress. The masks, non-replenishable items, new songs and so on each count as the next "safe point"... But this isn't made clear. Sometimes you may find an item and return to Dawn of the First Day and it will have vanished. And yet if your sword/bottle is stolen by the Takkuri on Termina Field, you can return to the first day and they will be back. I'm not sure I've seen any good arguments for losing all your money and replenishable items on returning to the first day. Does it break anything? Not that I can see. Does it mean item farming? Sadly and tediously so! Does it mean a frantic dash back to Clock Town to deposit rupees before the moon hits? Yes... But why when you can just take them out again on the first day?
It's exasperating!
Zelda games point you in the right direction to guide you through the game mechanics and the storyline, slowly revealing their intricacies as you progress. They also give you the freedom to break off and explore, looking for items and sidequests. Majora's Mask makes the mistake of making you explore for things vital to progress. Add to that a time limit and failing to make it clear if you've reached a "safe point" and it's no wonder people don't always make it through.
And it's crushingly sad, because none of this in any way affects the things that are so great about the game. Clock Town, the dungeons, the clever use of the three day cycle... It's all so wonderfully put together, and makes for one of the strongest entries in the series. The personal tragedies, the constant threat of the moon, the eerie atmosphere and the shock of a game that handles death with tenderness make it the strongest in terms of story.
And even these game mechanics are really well planned and cleverly used. But they are weird! They're not like any other Zelda game, and unlike just about every other game, for that matter. With hindsight, you can understand why they are there and why they needed to be there... But that's not the problem. The problem is I shouldn't need to use hindsight to understand why owl statues are important, or which items I can take back to the First Day with me. The game needs to explain, to signpost, to reveal its mechanics so I know they're important when they start being important.
I'm not going to complain about waiting around for things to happen at specific times just yet. That's a separate issue.
Aonuma's got his work cut out if he decides to remake this for 3DS.