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What aspects of the Legend of Zelda franchise deters some gamers from enjoying it or beating it?

hwarang

hwarang

Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,452
I never could get into this super popular franchise. I tried Phantom Hourglass and the whole dungeon / puzzle aspect just got old fast. I don't honestly know the appeal of this. Yes Phantom Hourglass was the entry point for me to seriously try out the franchise.

the-legend-of-zelda-phantom-hourglass-ocean-king-temple.jpg


Granted I haven't tried Ocarina of Time or BOTW.
 
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entremet

entremet

You wouldn't toast a NES cartridge
Member
Oct 26, 2017
60,137
PH is one of the worse entries in the series.

I'd recommend the NES entries over it.

For newcomers, BOTW is probably the best, followed by Link's Awakening 2019.
 
Bard

Bard

Avenger
Oct 25, 2017
12,462
Honestly I'm not really sure. I think maybe it's the setting. It doesn't interest me all that much. I like Sci-Fi much more, while I enjoy High Fantasy stuff I can never summon more than lukewarm indifference towards Zelda games. I've beaten Ocarina just because of the absurd amount of hype around it. I thought it was ok.
 
sredgrin

sredgrin

Attempted to circumvent ban with alt account
Banned
Oct 27, 2017
12,276
That's like basing your opinion off Final Fantasy by playing Type 0
 
Vibed

Vibed

Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
1,506
PH is probably the single worst game in the series. Plus, other Zeldas put emphasis on different things.
 
Soap

Soap

Member
Oct 27, 2017
15,188
This is going to sound really shallow, but I kind of hate the text bubbles. It is time Zelda has good voice acting throughout.
 
a916

a916

Member
Oct 25, 2017
8,837
The dungeon puzzles got me and that epic sense of adventure from like OOT.

But to answer OP, what would deter me? The lack of voice, the presentation of the story seems woefully behind, they finally got rid of the hand holding (which I guess is presentation of the game) but it (presentation) still has a bit to go.
 
MaverickHunterAsh

MaverickHunterAsh

Good Vibes Gaming
Verified
Oct 24, 2017
1,395
Los Angeles, CA.
Phantom Hourglass is probably the worst one you could play, so don't use that as a reference point for the rest of the series.

Try A Link to the Past, Link's Awakening, The Wind Waker, Ocarina of Time, or Breath of the Wild and then see how you feel.
 
.exe

.exe

Member
Oct 25, 2017
22,239
Serif

Serif

The Fallen
Oct 27, 2017
3,794
Phantom Hourglass is probably the worst - i.e. I think it's good, but it's probably the least good. I'm fond of it because it was my first Zelda on my first console and I was 9. But as everyone else says, it's not a good reference point. Even Spirit Tracks is better.
 
Stef

Stef

Member
Oct 28, 2017
5,410
Rome, Italy, Planet Earth
What usually breaks my immersion with Zelda games is the lack of cities.

You usually get small towns and villages with a bunch of people and that's it.

Even an open world game like Breath of the Wild does not contain cities.
 
Gnorman

Gnorman

Banned
Jan 14, 2018
2,945
I like stats in my rpg's. I know it sounds minor but it's a big huge reason for me. I like to level up and make choices about my character build.
 
MC_Leon6494

MC_Leon6494

Member
Sep 7, 2018
501
3D games not letting me jump on command (besides botw) is a cardinal sin that I could never move past. The furthest I pushed myself to play one of them was like 2 or 3 dungeons in Wind Waker
 

Paperchampion23

Member
Feb 5, 2018
2,944
This is how I feel with Majora's Mask. For some reason. It's the ONLY Zelda I can't bring myself to play fully. I know how good it is, I just personally don't like it or it's structure
 
Khanimus

Khanimus

Avenger
Oct 25, 2017
40,212
Greater Vancouver
hwarang said:
damn is it really? what 3 games should I try then?
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BOTW
OOT
Wind Waker

Also most of the 2D entries range from well-regarded to outright classics, like Link to the Past, Link Between Worlds, etc. The DS games are probably among the most maligned.

Majora's Mask is amazing, but is pretty wildly different in alot of its structural philosophies, and hugely benefits from some familiarity with OOT.
 
ReyVGM

ReyVGM

Author - NES Endings Compendium
Verified
Oct 26, 2017
5,438
You played pretty much one of the worst Zelda games. Try a better one.
 
Magnus

Magnus

Member
Oct 25, 2017
8,372
BOTW specifically deterred me primarily b/c of how open, and empty/vacant the game was (and the durability system was a close second). Ironically, this is one of the things that drove most people to enjoy it. It's just not what I look for in games.

But broadly speaking, what's annoyed me a lot about Zelda is the character design aesthetic: the mopey/dopey visual and audio design a lot of NPCs share and have had that was established in OoT and has carried forward through pretty much every 3D entry. The non-vocal gasps/utterances they make, the weird, off-kilter eyes/faces that kind of blend super-deformed/chibi with something more realistic...it just...makes me a bit nauseated.

It's an unappealing aesthetic for me, overall. I don't want to be around or interacting with these characters.
 
eXistor

eXistor

Member
Oct 27, 2017
12,303
PH is the worst Zelda there is imo, closely followed by Spirit Tracks. The rest are leagues better than either one of those. Those two are literally the only games in the entire series I couldn't even finish once, I just got bored at around 70%. Seriously, even relatively weaker Zelda's like Wind Waker and Twilight Princess are a lot of fun and borderline great games let alone he true classics like OoT, LttP, LA, and MM. Hell, even the NES games (which ERA hates probably because they "aged" badly which is such a bullshit excuse that gets thrown around here too much) are super-fun today.

Just pick any game in the series outside of ST and you should be fine, unless for some weird reason you have a working CDi and the three knock-off Zelda's for that.
 
Castor Archer

Castor Archer

Member
Jan 8, 2019
2,299
Just go straight to Breath of the Wild. People get turned off the 2D games because they're more combat focused (with really simplistic combat) and the 3D Zeldas can honestly be a bit of a slog.

Breath of the Wild has a constant stream of bite-sized puzzle rooms that you'll find as you explore a vast open world, there's always something interesting to find, the combat is interesting, and there's so many systems always interacting with each other that keeps the game fresh.
 
Big G

Big G

Member
Oct 27, 2017
4,605
That's not too surprising, as you played the worst one. Phantom Hourglass is the one Zelda game I will never, ever revisit again under any circumstances.

For 2D Zelda, I would recommend starting with A Link Between Worlds or Link's Awakening. Just about every Zelda game has some sort of gameplay gimmick, and they are hit or miss depending on the game, but Link's Awakening really doesn't. It's pure, unfiltered Zelda gameplay and design with nothing getting in the way of that. And a lot of people will recommend Link to the Past, and it's a classic game and you can't go wrong with it. But ALBW is the best that 2D Zelda has been, and I feel it surpasses ALttP across the board.

For classic 3D Zelda, Ocarina of Time is still as good as it gets (and I personally feel it's still the best overall game in the series). Majora's Mask is also amazing, but it's a very different thing and not everyone is going to dig it. And then 3D Zelda went downhill after that and became very inconsistent. Ocarina is one of two games (along with Resident Evil 4) that I would argue is objectively one of the 10 best games ever and would have to be on such a list.

And then Breath of the Wild obviously. It's a big change for the series, but a very necessary one.
 
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Deleted member 7883

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
2,387
Is Phantom Hourglass the first Zelda you played? You may want to try again with a more traditional—dare I say beloved—Zelda game. A Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time 3D, or Breath of the Wild would be solid starting points. Personally I'd say start with Link to the Past. Then play Ocarina of Time or Wind Waker... or Twilight Princess if you really want to be a wolf lol. Or play Link to the Past after choosing one of those.

The main difference between this and other Zeldas was the recurring central dungeon. It really doesn't work well in Phantom Hourglass. I haven't played it since launch but it just felt like doing the same annoying stealth mission again and again, but I had to do it more each time. Then there's the touchscreen only shit the game had. Then there was the ship upgrade mechanics.

It's fine if the series isn't for you, but I really think Phantom Hourglass does a poor job of showcasing what makes this series so special
 
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Nigel Tufnel

Nigel Tufnel

Member
Mar 5, 2019
3,151
Ocarina of Time and BOTW are two of my favorite games of all time. Its hard for me to find fault with them.


We didn't have video games in my home until the Nintendo 64 , so I did not grow up on 2d games and by the time I revisited them I had been playing 3d games for years, so I find some of the conventions of 2d game design annoying and struggle to hold those games in the same regard, though I have played ALTTP and Links Awakening and I thought both were pretty fun and obviously well made.

EDIT:

Can't believe I forgot Windwaker here- I loved that game too.
 
GuessMyUserName

GuessMyUserName

Avenger
Oct 27, 2017
5,176
Toronto
hwarang said:
damn is it really? what 3 games should I try then?
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Well you already named two obvious ones, though I wouldn't call BotW representative of the series either (in a good way) but OoT certainly would be. Majora's Mask is a fav, but again it takes a different direction than most the series.

Skyward Sword can be divisive so that's a gamble to start, but Twilight Princess and Wind Waker can be fair introductions of the 3D series.

Under the 2D games you can pretty well go for anything since LttP..... except for Phantom Hourglass.
 
OP
OP
hwarang

hwarang

Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,452
Noise said:
Is Phantom Hourglass the first Zelda you played? You may want to try again with a more traditional—dare I say beloved—Zelda game. A Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time (it's aged less gracefully than LttP), or Breath of the Wild would be solid starting points. Personally I'd say start with Link to the Past. Then play Ocarina of Time or Wind Waker... or Twilight Princess if you really want to be a wolf lol. Or play Link to the Past after choosing one of those.

The main difference between this and other Zeldas was the recurring central dungeon. It really doesn't work well in Phantom Hourglass. I haven't played it since launch but it just felt like doing the same annoying stealth mission again and again, but I had to do it more each time. Then there's the touchscreen only shit the game had. Then there was the ship upgrade mechanics.

It's fine if the series isn't for you, but I really think Phantom Hourglass does a poor job of showcasing what makes this series so special
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Yeah I remember constantly visiting a dungeon and doing stealth shit. Like shit got really old.
 
Mekanos

Mekanos

▲ Legend ▲
Member
Oct 17, 2018
44,175
I play and enjoy the Zelda series regularly but I find the puzzle solving to be a drag at times. Not always because it's hard, just because solving puzzle after puzzle gets tedious. I like how BOTW had them bite-sized, a lot more managable for me. The exploration, sense of adventure, story and combat are usually more what I'm into.

And yeah, Phantom Hourglass sucks. It's one of those games I forget I actually played to the end.
 
Another

Another

Banned
Oct 23, 2019
1,684
Portugal
I for one love the series but it often fails to captivate me for reasons I don't even understand. I just don't feel compelled to play, I have to be in a very specific mood to actively want to play Zelda... that said I'd played every game in the series to completion except Oracle of Seasons, Skyward Sword, Spirit Tracks and BOTW so I really can't tell you what it is that I find unappealing most of the time as when I do want to play one I go through it with a voracious appetite.
 
Post Reply

Post Reply

Member
Aug 1, 2018
4,511
Phantom Hourglass' terrible control scheme kept a lot of people (even fans of the series) from enjoying and beating it.
 
Combichristoffersen

Combichristoffersen

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
12,756
MysteryM said:
Yep that sums up my thoughts too BoTW was so sparse to play, despite beating it I really don't recommend it.
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It's not really a bad game as much as it's just barren and empty and the game does a piss poor job at telling you what it wants you to do or where to go. I get what the designers and devs were getting at with dropping you in a huge sandbox to let you play around, and I don't mind it when games like Just Cause kinda do the same thing. But the extremely barren story in BotW just meant most of the time you had no idea what to do.
 
justiceiro

justiceiro

Banned
Oct 30, 2017
6,664
My sister hate spiders, so games with skultulas brake her. That's why I didn't recommended twilight princess for her.
 

Deleted member 1839

User requested account closure
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Oct 25, 2017
11,625
I'd probably enjoy BOTW a lot more of the combat was fun. Then again 3D Zeldas or titles similar to them have never been my thing.

2D Zeldas on the other hand is where it's at.
 
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