Majora's Mask

Release Dates

USA JAP EUR AUS
FDS 2/21/1986
NES 7/29/1987 11/27/1987
GBA 11/19/2006 2/14/2009 7/9/2009
Wii 11/19/2006 12/2/2006 12/8/2006 12/7/2006
3DS Spring 2015

Overview

The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask (Japanese: ゼルダの伝説 ムジュラの仮面 Zeruda no Densetsu Mujura no Kamen) is the sixth title in the series and a direct sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. It was released worldwide in 2000 on the Nintendo 64, and rereleased on the Nintendo GameCube in 2003 and 2004 on the compilation The Legend of Zelda: Collector’s Edition, and is set to release on the Virtual Console in Japan in April 2009.

Majora’s Mask runs largely on the same engine on Ocarina of Time, evident by the similar graphics, gameplay and large reusing of character models, but requires a memory Expansion Pak to support the game’s advanced graphics and increased number of on-screen figures. The gameplay largely focuses on masks, an item introduced in Ocarina of Time, as well as a three-day cycle: the player has an in-game time limit of three days (the equivalent to 1.2 hours in real-time) to complete the game, though time can be reset by playing a song on the Ocarina of Time. However, resetting the time limit causes the player to lose all minor items such as rupees, dungeon puzzles to be reset, and all characters the player has met will lose memory of meeting. Major plot advancements, such as acquiring masks and completing dungeons, however, are saved.

Critics highly praised the plot’s recurring theme of time and the more advanced graphics, sparking a large debate as to whether Majora’s Mask is better than Ocarina of Time, widely regarded as the best in the series and of all time. It has also been called by some as the darkest saddest title in the series. Majora’s Mask was also warmly successful commercially, becoming the ninth best selling game in the series.

Prologue

In the land of Hyrule, there echoes a legend. A legend held dearly by the Royal Family that tells of a boy…

A boy who, after battling evil and saving Hyrule, crept away from that land that had made him a legend…

Done with the battles he once waged across time, he embarked on a journey, A secret and personal journey…

A journey in search of a beloved and invaluable friend…

A friend with whom he parted ways when he finally fufilled his heroic destiny and took his place among legends…

comments powered by Disqus