The Guardian ranks The Legend of Zelda series

[-Le Monde-]

Zelda II is my favourite 🤷‍♂️

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It's better than the original that's for sure.
I actually enjoyed it when I played it on the virtual console. By the way, check out the adventure time game on 3ds. Pretty similar to Zelda 2.

 

[Future Gazer]

Swap BotW with TP and it's not a terrible list.

 

[Antony]

There's only four Zelda games I truly love... and here all four are ranked as the top four. List is bang on.

 

[PlayBee]

TP is still overrated here but I'm just glad they put nearly every other 3D Zelda above it.

 

[Hadok]

Skyward has some flaws ,but it's still easily better than Windwaker for me.Levels design,dungeons,bosses,items,everything is better in Skyward Sword for me.

 

[StarPhlox]

This isn't bad at all. My personal list would bring ALBW way up, push Ocarina way down, and show way more respect to Zelda II.

1. Majora's Mask
2. A Link Between Worlds
3. Breath of the Wild
4. Wind Waker
5. A Link to the Past
6. Zelda II
7. Link's Awakening
8. Minish Cap
9. Ocarina of Time
10. Twilight Princess
11. Oracle of Ages and Seasons
12. Legend of Zelda
13. Skyward Sword
14. Four Swords Adventures
15. Spirit Tracks
16. Phantom Hourglass
17. Tri Force Heroes

 

[eXistor]

Zelda II, LA and Skyward Sword are way too low. PH, ST and TFH should always be bottom three.

BoTW is also way too high.

/edit: Eh as long as we're doing personal rankings:

1: Ocarina of Time
2: Link to the Past
3: Link's Awakening
4: Majora's Mask
5: Link Between Worlds
6: Breath of the Wild
7: Skyward Sword
8: Legend of Zelda
9: Adventure of Link
10: Wind Waker
11: Oracle of Ages/Seasons
12: Twilight Princess
13: Minish Cap
14: Four Swords Adventures
15: Spirit Tracks
16: Tri-Force Heroes
17: Phantom Hourglass

 

[Nocturnowl]

Same top 3 contenders as me but in a different order, I can dig it.

However, I will just never ever dig the love that Oracles of Seasons gets, now it's even coasting on the slight better Ages!

 

[fiendcode]

Good list even if Zelda 1, 2 and Link's Awakening are too low, and Wind Waker way too high.

 

[Bazry]

Did they give any of the games above it on this list a lower score?

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At a quick glance, they gave ALBW a 4 Star

 

[The FuzzPig]

I've never understood where the hate for Zelda 2 comes from, from what I can recall up until sometime after 2000, it was regarded as a good game, it sold well and regularly made it into top NES games lists.
Personally I enjoy it more than Zelda 1 out of the two NES games.
And while it does start of hard with a noticable difficulty spike at death mountain, it's not that hard compared to some other NES games. But once you get past that and get the downward stab, the game becomes pretty easy, till the final palace.

 

[Mass Effect]

The DS Zelda games should be dead last.

Other than that, I have no other issues with the list.

 

[Freshmaker]

Hm. My official best Zelda list.


1. Link's Awakening
2. Twilight Princess
3. A Link Between Worlds
4. LInk to the Past
5. Minish Cap
6. Skyward Sword
7. Ocarina of Time
8. Majora's Mask
9. Zelda 1
10. Zelda 2
11. Breath of the Wild (Hate survival mechanics. They shouldn't be in games.)
12. Spirit Tracks
13. Phantom Hourglass

 

[effingvic]

Skyward Sword far too low, TP and LA too low, Majoras Mask too high.

Least they got #1 right.

 

[Lothars]

Breath of the wild is way to high, Links Awakening is to low and Link to the past should be higher but it's not a terrible list.

 

[The Unsent]

Skyward has some flaws ,but it's still easily better than Windwaker for me.Levels design,dungeons,bosses,items,everything is better in Skyward Sword for me.

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I agree. SS has a more satisfying ending as well. In TWW there's a nice scene in Hyrule but there's not much emotional engagement, when you just see two sages waiting on the boat. TWW praise seems more about the art style and the sad underwater battle with Ganon, more than anything else.

 

[DIE BART DIE]

Some observations:

- Zelda 2 deserves to be higher, honestly.

- Skyward Sword should be above Spirit Tracks

- Ages and Seasons are irritatingly always lumped together like Pokemon games, when they're actually very different. Ages should be in the upper half of the list

- Majora's Mask and Wind Waker should be further down

 

[Skyebaron]

The Guardian gave Skyward Sword a 5 Star review when it came out

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Is Mr. The Guardian the only one that reviews there or is there different people with different taste reviewing stuff there? Did the one person that made the list, review the game? If yes, did that person's taste considerably improved cause that game should just be above Spirit Tracks.

Its a fine list. It varies a little from mine. Found it weird that the capcom ones are higher that Link's Awakening.

 

[zMiiChy-]

The CDI games should be above the DS games

 

[mrmickfran]

Wind Waker and Breath of the Wild in the top 5

I'm content

 

[Sheldon]

Tri Force Heroes deserves more respect than it always gets. Not a lot. But a little.

 

[The Unsent]

Tri Force Heroes deserves more respect than it always gets. Not a lot. But a little.

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To be fair, who played it?

 

[AndrewDean84]

Swap 2 and 4, and the list great.

 

[DIE BART DIE]

I'm pretty confident in my list.

1. Breath of the Wild
2. Link's Awakening DX
3. Ocarina of Time
4. A Link to the Past
5. Majora's Mask
6. Oracle of Ages
7. Twilight Princess
8. A Link Between Worlds
9. The Wind Waker
10. Oracle of Seasons
11. The Legend of Zelda
12. Zelda II
13. Skyward Sword
14. The Minish Cap
15. Phantom Hourglass
16. Spirit Tracks

 

[Sheldon]

To be fair, who played it?

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At least two other people that I can attest to from experience.

 

[Deleted member 54073]

If Wind Waker and Ocarina aren't the top 2 then it's a bad list imo.

 

[It’s Time To Go]

Change the positions of 1 and 2 around and that's a good list.

 

[WestEgg]

Since everyone else is doing it (and this is subject to shifting based on my mood).

1. Ocarina of Time
2. Link's Awakening
3. Breath of the Wild
4. Majora's Mask
5. Link to the Past
6. Twilight Princess
7. Skyward Sword
8. Wind Waker
9. A Link Between Worlds
10. Oracle of Ages
11. Minish Cap
12. The Legend of Zelda
13. Adventure of Link
14. Four Swords Adventure
15. Oracle of Seasons
16. Spirit Tracks
17. Phantom Hourglass
18. Tri-Force Heroes

So looks like I'm fairly biased towards 3D Zelda in general, but I'd even consider Tri-Force heroes only disappointing in the context of Zelda and still a perfectly fine game over all.

 

[DIE BART DIE]

I've not played Tri-Force Heroes, but otherwise, Spirit Tracks should be dead last in any list. The nadir of the Zelda series, the antithesis of what a Zelda game should be. It's literally on rails. But even having said that...it's still a fine game and a quality product.

 

[Bathory]

Change Breath Of The Wild position with A Link To The Past and is a perfect top 5.

 

[super etrian odyssey]

always happy to see majora's mask love

my own evil list has skyward sword in the top 5, easy, but i know 90% of zelda lists are gonna place it near the bottom

 

[dlauv]

I think Majora is a bit worse than Ocarina from a gameplay perspective but it has more interesting subject matter. Ocarina or BotW could take the number 1 spot depending how I feel that day. Link's Awakening or A Link to the Past after the former three. The rest is kind of immaterial to me. I haven't played Link Between Worlds yet tho.

 

[Zyrox]

I'd yeet Majora's Mask all the way near the bottom of the list, bump Skyward Sword up a few places, bump BotW down a few places and push OoT to #1 where it belongs. Otherwise the list is alright.

 

[No Depth]

Quite a good list outside of the DS games being too high and Zelda II getting a lot of shade. Is it a bad opinion that the Zelda II on the Switch online service is the best NES game?

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I personally would rank both NES titles way above most on the list. But I'm an 80's brat that gorged on them and have a much more favorable view than those that like played Wind Waker as their first entry...

Though I'd rank LoZ far above 2 still per your q. It's more consistent from beginning to end across both quests, and Zelda 2 stumbles in a number of areas, particularly the farther you progress.

 

[Many]

Awful list

 

[Runner]

Guardian ranks the legend of zelda series

#1: BOTW BECAUSE I'M IN IT
#999: EVERYTHING ELSE

 

[ghibli99]

Just looking at that top 10, you realize how consistently top-notch the series has been. Love each and every one of those!

 

[Budi]

My favorite is still Link to the Past. Mostly I'm happy that Phantom Hourglass didn't end up last on the list!

ALBW should be top 3

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Probably yeah.

 

[Shoe]

I think Twilight Princess was an improvement across the board on Wind Waker, except for Wind Walker's amazing art style. But I do like this list. I might switch around Ocarina for Majora, but that's definitely my top three.

Zelda 2 is also way better than Zelda 1 imo

 

[Rndom Grenadez]

Flip Majora and Link to the Past and that's my list.

 

[hiredhand]

There's no way Twilight Princess is better than Link's Awakening. Link's Awakening is an absolute masterpiece of game design and TP is just bloated and ugly.

 

[Firebrand]

Not as outrageous I expected. I would personally but ALttP at the top, bump down the N64 a few entries, put Oracle of (Ages) at the bottom due to its crappy overworld, and maybe I elevate Minish Cap a bit.

 

[ShaggsMagoo]

It was a good list until it got to the top 5 or 6 then it went completely off the rails.

 

[Mirand]

Top 3 is correct. Skyward Sword near the bottom. Great list.

 

[DIE BART DIE]

Not as outrageous I expected. I would personally but ALttP at the top, bump down the N64 a few entries, put Oracle of (Ages) at the bottom due to its crappy overworld, and maybe I elevate Minish Cap a bit.

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Putting Oracle of Ages at the bottom would be outrageous. It's a top tier Zelda.

 

[The Unsent]

Guardian ranks the legend of zelda series

#1: BOTW BECAUSE I'M IN IT
#999: EVERYTHING ELSE

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Felt so good when I first killed one of these fuckers, and by the end you're shooting then left and right in the castle.

 

[Lobster Roll]

#1 is correct.
#2 through #5 is correct and people can debate on the order of where they specifically fall.
The rest can battle over #6.

 

[Uncle Squingis]

Reviews for SS HD are gonna be real interesting.

 

[sir_crocodile]

wrong thread

 

[HelloItsPulse]

9. Phantom Hourglass
8. Majora's Mask
7. Skyward Sword
6. Ocarina of Time
5. Twilight Princess
4. A Link to the Past
3. A Link Between Worlds
2. Breath of the Wild
1. Wind Waker

Taking out the games I haven't played, Wind Waker is one of the best games ever made, while stuff like Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask just don't hold up for me, and I didn't play them when they released to fully appreciate them. Twilight Princess does get some nostalgia points though, but it doesn't boost it that high. A Link to the Past and A Link Between Worlds are the best 2D Zelda games and are some of the best games on their respective platforms, as Zelda tends to be.