Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D

Ocarina of Time is one of the best games I’ve ever played! I get so sucked into the story and the spectacular visuals I pay no attention to time. In my mind, I’m like okay, after this part I’ll save and quit, no this part, no, this part. Okay, NOW I’ll quit and then I end up playing for another hour. As a kid, I never understood how anyone could play a video game for hours. Now I can.

I thought, at first, I wasn’t familiar with the original N64 version until I started playing. I reached the Temple of Time and thought, I’ve seen this before. Turns out, I watched my brother play it years ago but even still, I won’t be comparing this Ocarina of Time to the original. I’m still new to the gaming world (I hated video games as a kid, can you believe it?) and this is the first time I’ve discussed a game this way, so bear with me, but, I had to do it because Zelda is pure awesomeness.

Ocarina of Time didn’t have the long narrative at the beginning I’d come to expect from Zelda. The story was interesting and short enough not to be annoying. All the stories were spectacular in 3D especially the one about the 3 goddesses. I’m a big fan of this 3D trend but, I usually turn the 3D off while playing. It gets in the way and it’s not meant to be looked at for a long time and, 3D eats up battery life. But even in 2D, Ocarina of Time is still pretty nice. I turn on the 3D for the back-stories and while running through Hyrule Field. It is great to look at just not when I’m doing something else- like fighting.

I like navigating with the Circle Pad. My only problem is my thumb keeps sliding. The controls are pretty easy to learn. I won’t go into them except to say I have no trouble with them.

The story is very well written- I’m a writer, I had to go there. I keep thinking what a great imagination the designers have. The world building is spectacular. I love the side quests like collecting the cuccos for the lady in Kakariko Village. I made the mistake of hitting one chicken too many times and was pecked to death by a swarm of cuccos. It sucked but it was still hilarious. I love how Zelda has different puzzles requiring you to exercise your brain. For Phantom Hourglass for the DS, I kind of abused the walkthrough, this time, I’m trying to play without it. Navi and the visions of the future help a lot.

Nintendo kept the same story and characters from the original. Why fix something that’s not broken right? I may not be as well versed in the original as others but I love my flashback moments. They make me so happy especially when I hear Zelda’s Lullaby.

Also, I’m not easily startled but I was so into this game I actually jumped at some parts. While running through Hyrule Field for the first time at night, I nearly jumped out of my skin when Stalchildren, skeletal monsters, appeared. They aren’t scary but they seemed to come out of nowhere. And, in Goron City, I used the Bomb Flowers to blow out a series of walls. I got through all of them and nearly chocked because a massive Goron was at the end of the tunnel. I had not expected that either. I took a break because I couldn’t stop coughing or laughing at myself. Speaking of Goron, I was a bit freaked out when Darunia started dancing after Link played him Saria’s Song. His moves were so erratic it was ridiculous and he danced for like forever.

Nintendo has more than made up for their less then satisfying starting lineup for the 3DS. Zelda: Ocarina of Time is what the 3DS was made for. I hope this game is a peek of things to come.