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The Legend Of Zelda : Majora's Mask 3D review

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    The Legend Of Zelda : Majora's Mask 3D review

    First of all, a confession.
    The N64 version is my favourite in the series, and as such, probably my favourite game of all time.

    I resisted replaying the Gamecube port on both GC and Wii, as it seemed a bit clunky, and held out hope that they would do a OoT style 3DS conversion.

    To say I was looking forward to this, is a bit of an understatement.

    I've also bought a 'New' 3DS along side this (which i'll get to later).


    First impressions:

    It looks fabulous.
    The detail, colour and framerate all seem improved over my memories of the N64 version. As I recall, the hardware groaned a little under the weight of Termina back then, but no such issues this time round. It's as smooth as a baby's bum.
    The improved 3D of the New 3DS has meant that, after having it turned off entirely for the last couple of years, I now have the slider set to max on all of my games. It really does make a huge difference, as it auto-adjusts very quickly, if you fidget around a lot (like me).

    It sounds great.
    While the Clock Town theme will, in all probability, get on your tits eventually, the Zelda themes are as catchy as ever. I'm not sure if Nintendo have improved the audio hardware in the 'New' 3DS, but going from my old 3DSXL, the sound seems punchier, and definitely louder.

    It plays like a dream.
    I put it on yesterday, with every intention of just doing the first 72 hour cycle, but ended up collecting a few masks and songs, and getting up to the start of the first swamp dungeon.

    When I heard that Nintendo were tweaking the difficulty, I was a little concerned. The challenge of the original was set significantly higher than OoT, especially if you wanted to 100% it, but the concessions I've come into contact with so far are only minor, and generally make the experience more pleasurable.

    Saving at any time is something gamers just expect these days, so I can understand the logic of adding that feature.

    The new Bomber's Handbook also helps a bit, although I find it a little tricky to navigate.

    There's a section before the start of the first dungeon proper, where you have to float above the palace grounds as a Deku.
    I'm pretty sure the difficulty of this section has been tweaked, as I remember getting quite frustrated trying to land on moving flowers so early in the game.

    Camera controls are mapped to the new 'C' stick, this seems a little unresponsive, but that might just be me not being used to the little nub stick. Besides, i've not needed them, the camera is generally spot-on, and a quick tap of 'L' drops it behind Link anyway.

    More to come, as I progress!
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    #2
    I have played up until the end of the first dungeon. Unlike you, my memories weren't as fond. Not that they were bad, they weren't. I just remember this not being as charming as OoT and not as smooth to play. I remember being frustrated at times running out of time and having to do stuff over and I remember being a bit more lost in general. And yet I remember it being one of the most interesting Zeldas and one which was very rewarding which is why I have been so keen to play it again.

    And now the 3DS version...

    It looks incredible. So vibrant, so clear and just beautiful. It sounds excellent too on my ye olde Old 3DS XL. An amazing polish up for this version and it's clear a lot of love went into it.

    And the game? Well it's almost overwhelming in the amount of info and seeming possibilities it gives you in Clock Town at the start, even while sealing you in. There is lots going on here. The new notebook turns out to be wonderful though and it's really easy to navigate. The town is so full of personality and it seems like a living place, which is great. Getting out of town, the only one issue I have had is that there is so much going on in town that it's sometimes hard to know if there is something you should have done first. Most Zelda games are simple in their linearity, even with the options to explore. You can be sure when you get to a dungeon that you'll have everything you need and anything new will be provided in the dungeon.

    In this one, I got stuck in the first dungeon and became convinced I needed another item. Spent a whole 3-day cycle in Clock Town trying to figure out how to get it. Couldn't figure it out so went back to the dungeon and it turned out I just missed some stairs which were right in front of me the whole time. Nothing wrong with the dungeon or design at all, just a side effect of the sheer amount of things going on.

    But that is what is making it really enjoyable for me this time around. There is so much to see and find before your three days are up.

    The atmosphere is incredible. Very melancholy which is so different to most Zeldas. It's like the Morrissey of Zelda games. So I'm loving it.

    Just one small gameplay complaint so far -

    a woman has me looking for a guy and I knew instantly where he was and yet have to go through more steps before the game will allow me to do anything about that. A hint of Phoenix Wright there.

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      #3
      I feel sad when I fix something and everyone is happy and then I have to go back three days and it's back to the way it was.

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        #4
        Sounds like everyday at work for me.

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          #5
          Again we visit this Wonderfull world and the new machine is as expected and a step in the right direction. Zelda will always deliver what's expected. Love it.

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            #6
            Finished this on Tuesday, apart from acquiring that very last mask. I was disappointed by the repetitiveness and mild tedium after the first dungeon - something I'd forgotten from my playthrough in 2000 - and almost gave up, but I'm glad I didn't. The repetitiveness becomes part of the game's soul: people you've solved complex tasks for don't know who you are when you reset time; guards won't let you out of the town, deku scrubs still cling to their patch of land. It's a brilliant concept which grows on you the longer you play. Listening to the Dawn of the First Day music for the 50th time feels heart-breaking.

            That aside, there's just so much to do in the game. The four dungeons (which doesn't seem like many) seem almost incidental. This is a Zelda game more than any other about the characters who inhabit it, and there's a streak of dark melancholy which elevates it above most others. I've really, really enjoyed visiting that world again - and I'll probably go back to get the last few heart pieces and that damn mask...

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              #7
              Finished the third dungeon and, unlike the first two, very little appears to have changed. I found that one pretty tough actually, just from the point of view of collecting the fairies. Ran the time right up to the end of the last day looking for the last few.

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                #8
                It was tough. I struggled with the boss too, until

                I realised that walking on the sea-bed instead of swimming made it much easier.

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                  #9
                  Yeah, that last phase of the boss took me ages on the first go. Had real trouble with the timing. Seemed easy when I went straight there after a rewind to first day and yet I'm not sure I learned the trick - just seemed to get lucky the second time.

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                    #10
                    I'm enjoying this but the more I play it the more I realise it's actually pretty low down in my ranking of favourite Zeldas...

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                      #11
                      Finished the first dungeon and the game is great in so many ways but the time limit irks me. It ruins a game based on exploration and discovery.

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                        #12
                        Only this Zelda isn't based on exploration and discovery, it's based around the final three days' events in Termina.

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                          #13
                          Completely stuck in the stone temple and determined not to resort to looking it up. I may be wandering around for some time.

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                            #14
                            Pretty cool easter egg, not sure if it was in the original?

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                              #15
                              Seems I'm destined to spend most of the rest of this game in the stone temple. Made some progress and just have one fairy to get but still can't find my way to the end. I've been here a long time.

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