The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

"You've met with a terrible fate, haven't you?"

- Happy Mask Salesman

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask is the sixth game in the Zelda series and was released on the Nintendo 64 in 2000. Unique among the Zelda series, the game included a 3-day time system (72 hours in total). Majora's Mask is one of the few Zelda games that Ganon (or Ganondorf) does not play any role whatsoever. Princess Zelda is only seen once in a flashback scene.

Majora's Mask is the sequel to the popular first 3D Zelda game,, and uses the same engine, as well as many art resources. Many of the conventions pioneered in Ocarina of Time are present in Majora's Mask, including characters, enemies, and items.

Arrival to a doomed land
Majora's Mask opens with a scene of Link leaving the land of Hyrule on a personal quest. The opening to the game states that he is searching for a beloved and invaluable friend, Navi. His trip is interrupted by the Skull Kid, an imp possessed by evil contained in Majora's Mask, which he wears having stolen it from another traveler (with the help of two fairies, Tatl and Tael). The Skull Kid knocks Link unconscious, making him fall off his horse, and steals the. When Link awakens, the Skull Kid takes off and leads Link on a chase.

When Link eventually catches up with the Skull Kid, he tells Link that he "got rid of" Epona, and uses the dark magic of Majora's Mask to transform Link into a Deku Scrub. He then leaves Link, while Tatl continues to beat the helpless Deku back. Her delay, though, causes her to be separated from her brother and the Skull Kid. She then insists that Link take her with him, so that they can work together to find the Skull Kid and Tael. With limited abilities, Link enters Clock Town where he meets the Happy Mask Salesman. The mask salesman reveals that the Skull Kid stole Majora’s Mask from him and that he can return Link to his human form if he finds the Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask. He warns Link also, though, that he must leave in three days, and Link must retrieve the Mask and the Ocarina by then. Link then sets off in his Deku form, finding himself in the parallel world of Termina.

Link is able to do little around Clock Town, but, with the help of Tatl and the Great Fairy, he manages to find the Skull Kid, hanging around the top of the enormous clock tower from which Clock Town's name is derived. Also in his search, Link hears rumors and whispers of the Moon, which bears a grimacing and ominous face, steadily growing closer to the Town. At midnight on the Final Day before the Mask Salesman's departure, Link is able to reach the top of the clock tower for a face off with the Skull Kid. Upon arriving, Tatl demands that the Skull Kid give back Link's Ocarina. Seemingly not hearing, Tael delivers an enigmatic warning to Tatl. "Swamp. Mountain. Ocean. Canyon. The four who are there, bring them here!"

- Tael

The Skull Kid, in response to Tael's outburst, hits the fairy aside. He then laughs about how even if "they" were to come, they couldn't stop him. He then points Link and Tatl's attention to the hideous moon and challenges them to stop it from falling. With an unearthly shriek, he begins to bring it down completely to the land. Taking advantage of this, Link fires a magic bubble, a skill learned earlier, into the Skull Kid, causing him to drop the Ocarina of Time. On picking it up, memories of his departure from Hyrule flood back to Link. In them, Princess Zelda bids him a sad farewell, and tells him that the Goddess of Time is watching over him. After being snapped out of this reverie by Tatl, Link plays the Song of Time, and is immediately thrown back to the morning that he first entered Clock Town, three days prior.

Link heads back to the Happy Mask Salesman, who teaches him the Song of Healing. Playing this song with the Ocarina of Time returns Link to his regular self, with the only remnants of his time as a Deku being a mask, which he can don to become Deku Link once again. After aiding Link, the Mask Salesman asks that Link uphold his part of the bargain and return the Mask which the Skull Kid stole to the Salesman. Upon learning that Link could not recover the Mask, the Salesman grows furious, berating Link and wildly informing him that the Mask, known as Majora's Mask, is an ancient artifact that possesses an apocalyptic power. He again requests that Link recover the Mask, stating that he believes that Link can do it.

The Four Giants
To stop the Skull Kid, Link and Tatl work on the only clue they have; the four places stated by Tael. Upon venturing into the Southern Swamp, Link finds the area poisoned, apparently due to the disappearance of the Swamp's guardian god. After venturing through the Deku Kingdom and Woodfall Temple, Link faces down the dark being Odolwa. Upon defeating his foe, Link frees an "innocent spirit" from the mask upon the monster. Link and Tatl find themselves facing a sorrowful and powerful giant. Tatl then surmises that the giant was one of the "four" that Tael spoke of.

The two head to Snowhead Mountain, a place that has experienced a longer-than-usual period of winter, to save the next giant. While there, Link heals and takes on the soul of a Goron warrior (who tried to find a way to save his people, but died in the attempt), which enables him to free the Giant from the evil spirit of Snowhead. Link next requires a horse to get to the ocean, and finds that Epona has been found and taken in by the sisters Romani and Cremia at Romani Ranch. However, to recover Epona, Link must arrive on the first day, so that he can find the little girl Romani in a well-enough state to give him back his horse. Link then heads to the cursed Great Bay, where the ocean is in disorder due to calamity at the Temple. Link also finds the near-dead body of a Zora guitarist, and manages to adopt his soul too. By finding the stolen Zora Eggs (belonging to the vocalist of The Indigo-Go's) in a fortress of pirates and a nest of sea snakes, the young hero manages to find the whereabouts of the third Giant and frees him.

Link finally ventures to Ikana Canyon, where he faces down the restless spirits of the dead, so that he might climb Stone Tower and save the last Giant. He then ventures to the clock tower at the end of the Final Day, summoning the Four Giants to stop the Moon. Even though the Giants hold back the Moon, Majora's Mask leaves the Skull Kid, who passed out at the Giants' coming, and rises into the Moon. There, the Mask possesses the Moon and attempts to consume all of Termina. Link follows the Mask inside, finding a surreal field, in which there is a tree and five children. After talking to the child who wears Majora's Mask, Link then proceeds to face the demon down. After a harsh battle, Link destroys the spirit, and the Moon is destroyed.

When Link comes to the "Dawn of a New Day", he learns that the Skull Kid and the Four Giants had once been friends. The Skull Kid also remarks how Link smells like a kid who taught him a song in the forest, clearly implying that this is the same Skull Kid to whom Link taught Saria's Song in Ocarina of Time. The Happy Mask Salesman states that the evil has left Majora's Mask, and then, mysteriously, disappears, bidding Link a fond farewell. Tatl then tells Link that he should get back to his original quest, and the two part ways. The story ends with Link riding off into the forest once more, and Saria's Song echoes about a carving of Link, the Skull Kid, the fairy siblings, and the Four Giants.

Gameplay
The gameplay of Majora's Mask is much the same as that in Ocarina of Time, although new features including the new mask system, items, skills, and more are included. For example, several of the items that Link could only access as an adult, in Ocarina of Time are now available to him throughout the game in the child form (such as the Hookshot or the Bow). Additionally, Link is slightly more acrobatic than he was in previous games, as seen when jumping off of ledges: Link will automatically do flips in the air instead of just a normal jump.

Three day cycle
Arguably one of the major departures from the traditional The Legend of Zelda gameplay, Majora's Mask implements a time system. The time system cycles three days, the time until the destruction of Clock Town by the moon, which is plummeting to earth because of influence from the Skull Kid. With the Ocarina of Time, Link is able to play the Song of Time to reset the cycle and return to the first of these three days as many times as he needs to. Link is the only one affected by the time-travel; other inhabitants live as if nothing has happened. When traveling back in time, Link loses all Rupees, quantities of items (although not the items themselves; e.g. arrows but not the bow, etc.), dungeon progress (dungeon maps, compasses, etc. unless, of course, the dungeon is completed) and most interactions with others (except for his fairy, Tatl, and a few other exceptions).

At the bottom of the screen, a clock is displayed, which keeps track of the time. In the center, the day number is displayed. Surrounding in a semi-circle is a revolving sun or moon (symbolizing day or night). This small icon moves around the clock and shows the hour of the day.

Several more "hardcore" players of the game have found it entertaining to attempt beating all four dungeons and the final boss in a single three day cycle, though it is an extremely difficult task and requires very extensive knowledge of the game.

Masks and transformations
Link appears in his younger form, originally seen in Ocarina of Time, despite using a shield seemingly larger than the deku shield. However, in Majora's Mask, Link does not have the ability to transform into an adult. 24 different masks with different functions and purposes can be found throughout Termina, of which several allow Link to take the form of another race; Deku Scrubs, Gorons, and Zoras. And because the transformation masks are based on deceased characters, the game is one of the few where the player can control characters besides Link. Each mask when used shows a face of agony.

Deku Link is the first transformation Link receives, and is based off the spirit of the long-missing son of the Deku Butler. In Deku form, Link can stun enemies with the spin attack, helpful to leave them defenseless; he can also shoot bubbles to attack aerial foes and to hit certain targets, although their firepower and range are more limited than those of the arrows; usage of Deku Flowers is also possible, and they grant Link the ability to fly temporarily, as well as to release Deku Nuts and use them as bombs. He can also use the Nuts on land, his instrument in this state is a set of Deku Pipes and, although optional, he can confront the boss of the Woodfall Temple, the dungeon where he is the protagonist. The weakness of Deku Link is fire.

Goron Link is the second transformation Link receives, and is based off the spirit of the tragically fallen Goron hero Darmani. In Goron form, Link can curl his body up in a ball to travel faster; in this form, he can perform a ground pound, useful for offense and for puzzle-solving, and can generate magic-based spikes for speed and offensive capabilities. He can also use his powerful punches to attack enemies and to hit hardened targets. Only Goron Link can use Powder Kegs. His instrument in this state is a set of Goron Drums and, although optional, he can confront the boss of the Snowhead Temple, the dungeon where he is the protagonist. The weakness of Goron Link is water; stepping in it will cause Link to sink and take damage.

Zora Link is the third transformation Link receives, and is based off the fallen-in-battle guitarist Mikau. He has multiple abilities (more so than the other two forms), including a stylized combat moveset using his bladed fins which also double as a set of Boomerangs, the capacity to swim incredibly fast, electric barriers that can be generated while swimming or standing, and the ability to freely dive and walk underwater. No item can be used by Zora Link, with the exception of anything that the other forms can. His instrument turns into a Zora Guitar and he is helpful to confront the boss of the Great Bay Temple, the dungeon where he is the protagonist. Both fire and ice are lethal to him.

With the exception of the Giant's Mask, the rest of the masks either give Link new abilities (i.e. the Bomb Mask's instant explosion) or disguise him. After completing the game up to the point before Link fights the final battle against Majora's Mask, it is possible to complete several side dungeons in which Link plays a game of Hide and Seek with a series of children, at the cost of progressively giving up all of the masks collected prior (although they are still available after the game is completed). Finishing this sidequest rewards Link with the Fierce Deity's Mask, which turns him into an adult form with devastating capabilities, but is only allowed during boss fights, Majora's Mask included.

Emphasis on sidequests
Majora's Mask is also a noted game for its many optional (secondary) sidequests throughout the game, which, should the player complete, explore many more sub-plots and stories. These include helping a distraught circus leader, returning a kidnapped Deku Princess to the palace, helping five Great Fairies be restored to power, and, perhaps the most intricate sidequest in any Zelda game, helping an engaged couple reunite moments before the Moon falls on Clock Town. These sidequests are recorded in the Bombers' Notebook. The number of minigames is also higher and more complex in execution than those of Ocarina of Time, and there are more optional or secret areas where extra mini-bosses or Skulltula hunts may be available. Completing sidequests is usually rewarding to the player, as the conclusions to many of them are shown during the end credits, but only if the player has managed to complete that sidequest.

To put this in retrospective, the game currently features the highest amount of Heart Pieces in the series: 52 in total, while is next with 45. Additionally, it features the highest number of Empty Bottles: Six in total. With the exception of SS undefined which features five, all other Zelda games feature up to four.

On the negative side, the emphasis on sidequests also translates into a lower number of dungeons, which is a potential point of criticism for some players.

Game style
Majora's Mask is generally regarded as the darkest entry in the Zelda franchise. The game's storyline contains much heavier themes than those seen in prior games of the series, with somber melodies and a myriad of tragic situations. The player is faced with the knowledge that the world of Termina will be destroyed within three days, and the only means in which to prevent this from occurring is by playing the Ocarina of Time to restart everything from the dawn of the First Day. Majora's Mask goes even further by delving into the emotional and psychological state of Termina's denizens, each of whom responds to the circumstance of their impending doom in an idiosyncratic but realistic manner. Link and Termina's denizens are continually confronted with elements of death, loss, and abandonment over and over and over again as the three-day cycle repeats continuously.

Link must go through this as a living breathing character, being the only one with any awareness of the events that will transpire within each three day cycle. Everyone has their suffering renewed whenever the Song of Time is played, and are entirely oblivious towards everything that happened during the previous 72-hour period. The foreboding atmosphere of world destruction is always present in Majora's Mask, conveyed largely through the game's soundtrack and artwork. Even the world's name "Termina" is derived from the Latin phrase "terminus", originally applied to the Roman God of boundary markers, which roughly translates into English as "boundary, limit". The desire to rescue the world from certain peril serves as an additional motivation for completing the game.

Development
Motivated by the commercial and critical success of Ocarina of Time, Nintendo started plans on a new Zelda game for the Nintendo 64. Originally, however, this new title was going to be a remixed version of the 1998 installment for the Disk drive accesory; when dungeon designer Eiji Aonuma showed complaints to Shigeru Miyamoto about having to develop essentially the same game, the latter then proposed him to create a new installment, but in only one year.

After doing some experiments, the development team implemented the time-based system, so that they could create a more compact and dense game, and which allowed the title to be developed in only 18 months.

As an extra note, the original name of this game was Zelda Gaiden, which means Zelda Side-story. This was changed in the middle of development in order to reinvent the game. Lastly, as noted above, this is the first Zelda game to be fully directed during development by Eiji Aonuma.

Graphics
The graphics are slightly better in Majora's Mask than in Ocarina of Time, possibly due to the necessity of the Nintendo 64's expansion pak (a memory-increasing add-on for the Nintendo 64). As the second Zelda game with 3D graphics, Majora's Mask uses the same engine as its predecessor, and even uses some of the same character models. The vast areas the game features have an improved definition in comparison to those seen in the previous Zelda game, the fog distance is nearly nonexistent, enemies are more detailed and the overall atmosphere is more realistic. Another achievement from the Expansion Pak is that multiple non-playable characters can perform different tasks without impacting on the framerate, bigger level design was possible and many more enemies are present at the same time (most notably in Termina Field, contrasting to the barely populated Hyrule Field from the previous Zelda game).

On the negative side, some locations seem to have blurrier textures and the framerate may sometimes lower; additionally, some parts are less detailed than others, such as the trees prior to the entrance to the Southern Swamp. Also, in comparison to the leap of graphical advancement seen in Ocarina of Time, there are fans who criticize the game for being a "cheap" release using too many of the same stylings as Ocarina, including (as mentioned before) characters, enemies and graphical style; it is advised that Eiji Aonuma, a key developer of the game, actually stated that reusing many aspects of Ocarina of Time allowed his team to program the game in less than two years (this is because Ocarina of Time took no less than four years of development). Regardless of this dispute, other players state that Majora's Mask has aged well, and in overlooking its pointed downfalls, it is an extremely well produced game which brings unique gameplay elements to the series as well as a much darker take on the character of Link, the Hero of Time.

Setting
Termina's world is a parallel dimension to Hyrule's world. There are some characters here that also have counterparts in Hyrule, except for Link, Epona, the entire Kokiri tribe, and (possibly) the Happy Mask Salesman, who are all residents of Hyrule. Skull Kid is confirmed to be from Hyrule because at the end of the game, he says that Link smells like the kid that taught him "that song" in the Lost Woods. Termina consists of five huge lands (or worlds, as said by Anju's grandmother): The central one houses Clock Town, Romani Ranch, and Termina Field, with the latter one not having any apparent major anomaly caused by the Skull Kid, and merely serving as a point of access to the other parts; Clock Town is where the world of entertainment is, featuring important attractions, numerous recreative zones and tourism; it's there where the annual Carnival of Time is celebrated, and it's where Mayor Dotour fulfills his political duties. Romani Ranch is a large rural zone where various animals are taken care of, and milk is produced for its distribution to Clock Town.

As for the other regions in the game, the Southern Swamp is located south, and it's where various monkeys and monsters live, while the Deku tribe practices its monarchy in the Deku Palace; the swamp's waters are poisoned because of the creature living in Woodfall Temple. The Snowhead Mountain is located north, and it's inhabited by the Goron tribe (who puts into practice a patriarchy, not unlike in Hyrule's Death Mountain); the mountain's weather indicates an extremely low temperature because of the creature living in Snowhead Temple. The Great Bay Coast is located west, and it's inhabited by the proud Zora tribe (living in an underwater reef, and known for their artistic linage in the musical department), as well as by pirates (living in a sinister complex, and known for their reputation of hunting treasure at all costs and by all means necessary) and humans (living in the coast itself, and doing miscellaneous activities such as scientific research and fishing); the coast's waters become murky because of the creature living in the Great Bay Temple. Finally, Ikana Canyon lies east, and the whole place is invaded by undead entities because of the creatures living in the Stone Tower Temple. It used to be inhabited by humans before this, but now the only living people found there are Sakon, Pamela and her father.

Japanese Version
The release difference between the Japanese version and the NSTC version was a full six months, the longest release wait among all 3D The Legend of Zelda games so far. Despite this, there aren't too many differences between the two versions. One of them is that the Japanese version has three save slots as opposed to two. Also in the Japanese version, the quicksave feature that allows Link to temporarily save his progess to allow the player to quit the game without losing the current progress is not present; therefore, the owl statues only serve as warp destinations. Instead, the Song of Time is the only form of saving.

Cartridge Versions
In the United States and Canada, the NTSC versions of the game all came in Gold Collector's Edition cartridges; however, in Europe, the PAL version of the game came in Gold, but were not named Collector's Editions. The only PAL "Collector's Edition" of Majora's Mask was released in Australia where it had the Collector's Edition logo and the NTSC cartridges art, but it didn't have the moving hologram effect.

Timeline Placement
The events of Majora's Mask are placed shortly after those of Ocarina of Time, and are considered to be the starting point for what is called the "Child Timeline", which is eventually continued with Twilight Princess and then centuries later. In-game connections between the game and Ocarina of Time are relatively scarce, because of the different setting and story, and include recurring characters like Happy Mask Salesman and Kaepora Gaebora, as well as some of the songs being remembered ("Song of Time", "Epona's Song" and the "Song of Storms"), rather than learned for the first time.

Sales
The game sold approximately 314,000 copies in its first week of sales in Japan, and has sold 3.36 million copies worldwide, fewer than its predecessor (which sold over 7 million copies), likely as a result of its release during the final years of the lifespan of the Nintendo 64, the system the game was launched for, as well as fan skepticism.

Reviews and Awards
In terms of critical reception, response to the game was mostly positive, as reviews were in favor of the game; however, opinions are divided regarding whether it's as good as its predecessor. Edge magazine referred to Majora's Mask as "the oddest, darkest and saddest of all Zelda games". Some feel that Majora's Mask is significantly better than Ocarina of Time in certain areas. Japanese magazine Famitsu awarded the game a high 37/40 score, although the other games in the series scored higher. IGN described Majora's Mask as "The Empire Strikes Back of Nintendo 64. It's the same franchise, but it's more intelligent, darker, and tells a much better storyline". As mentioned above, Majora's Mask was one of the last major titles for the Nintendo 64, and may have suffered in terms of popular interest due to the familiarity of the technology. Nevertheless, GamePro described the game as "living proof that the N64 still has its magic". It has been ranked the 7th-greatest game of all time by Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM) in the Top 100 Games of Time seen in their 100th issue, where Ocarina of Time was ranked the 8th best.

One common criticism is that Majora's Mask is not as accessible as Ocarina of Time. GameSpot, giving Majora's Mask a score of 8.3/10, significantly lower compared to the 10/10 that was given to Ocarina of Time, wrote that some might "find the focus on minigames and side quests tedious and slightly out of place". IGN justified that they didn't give the game a perfect ten (giving instead a still very high 9.9) just because the major innovations were seen in Ocarina of Time. Nintendo Power ranked it eleventh in their list of best The Legend of Zelda games, criticizing the time-based concept while still praising the improved graphics and the transformation concept. Regardless, Game-Revolution wrote that it "takes a little longer to get into this Zelda", but also that "there are moments when the game really hits you with all its intricacies and mysteries, and that makes it all worthwhile".

Fan Reception
The game has also received good reviews from regular fans of the series, including a current reader average of 9.7 on IGN and a current user score of 9.3 in Gamespot, among others; graphics, storyline, challenge, music, gameplay, depth and overall quality are only some of the praised aspects of the game; additionally, it was ranked 42nd on IGN Reader's Choice of the Top 100 Games Ever, where it's cited as one of the most underrated video games in history, but also as one of the best. In autumn of 2010, the game won Game of the Decade (2000-2009) in a contest held on GameFAQs.com, defeating Super Smash Bros. Brawl in the finals after a narrow semifinal victory over Final Fantasy X. In fact, prior to its launch for the Virtual Console, it was the second most requested title, only behind EarthBound, providing that those who didn't play it wanted to do so now. However, some fans also expressed firm complaints, tending to agree that while it's a good game, it pales in comparison to its predecessor. Other elements of criticism included the low number of dungeons and the restrictions of the time limit, as well as the need for an Expansion Pak

The Virtual Console version of the game (see below) received similar praise from critics and fans alike, earning the distinction of being the 300th VC game to be available (The Adventure of Link was the 100th one), and being so after nearly two years since the launch of the other classic Zelda games to the same service.

Ports and Remakes
Majora's Mask has been ported to several other systems since its release.

Collector's Edition
In 2003, Nintendo released a GameCube bundle. This bundle had the main GameCube system as well as Collector's Edition. However, due to poor quality emulation, the game suffers from minor glitches not present in the original Nintendo 64 version, some of which freeze the game entirely. Like the original, this version only allows two game save files (per memory card), even though it would have been possible to have more. Due to the frequent lock-ups this version experiences, it might be useful to use one memory card per game. That is, use save file one as the main game, and use save file two to back up owl statue saves. This way, progress is not completely lost when the game locks up, provided that one remembers to back up frequently.

iQue Player
In 2004, Majora's Mask was translated to (with  text) and ported to the region's exclusive iQue Player. However, the Chinese government halted its production. The government deemed the game's dark undertones violated the country's censorship laws.

Virtual Console
Majora's Mask had also been released for the Virtual Console in both Europe and Australia on April 3, 2009. Japan had also gotten their Virtual Console release since April 7, 2009. The American virtual console release of Majora's Mask was released on May 18th, 2009, which had thus marked the 300th content to be released on the American Virtual Console.

According to a few players who have played Majora's Mask from the PAL Virtual Console, several glitches from Majora's Mask's Collector's Edition version have been present in the Virtual Console release, including freezing, making it possible that the Virtual Console release may be a direct port from the Collector's Edition. However, some players have reported that theirs runs perfectly and smoothly. According to IGN, the NTSC version of the game is glitch-free, and players are encouraged to download it with confidence.

Nintendo 3DS
Eiji Aonuma, producer of the Zelda series, is discussing if he should remake the game for the Nintendo 3DS, taking in consideration the positive reception of Ocarina of Time 3D. Fans began a campaign named "Operation Moonfall" where they convince Nintendo to create the 3D remake. On November 4, 2011, he announced that the remake is already in consideration, but only after the release of the first new installment for the system. On October 11, 2013, he hinted at the possibility of a 3DS remake at the, stating that fans may get an answer as to whether one will be released by playing.

Legacy
Being the second 3D Zelda game on the Nintendo 64, Majora's Mask wasn't as influential as its immediate predecessor, and some of its characteristics haven't been shown again in later installments. However, it still made the following contributions:


 * This is the first game in the series where Tingle and the Postman appear. The latter character, by extension, also marks the first time a mail system is portrayed in the series.
 * The first playable character besides Link, Kafei, is in the game. This idea became fruitful for.
 * Many properties of this game were borrowed by, including a stage, soundtrack, and several trophies.
 * This is the first The Legend of Zelda game where the boss battles can be replayed anytime.
 * The Majora's Mask Creepypasta fan story by Jadusable told of a haunted Majora's Mask cartridge. The story went nearly viral.
 * The limited edition "Jackson Zoraxe" guitars were based on the Guitar of Waves.

Trivia

 * Along with the sword, shield, Ocarina, and Kokiri Tunic, the Stone of Agony is one of the few items that Link preserves from Ocarina of Time. No reference to it is ever made, unlike the other items.
 * This game contained the first non-playable character that could be murdered by Link (with an arrow targeting at the stolen bomb bag).
 * The Player's Guide for Majora's Mask has a lot of erroneous information, suggesting that it was written for an early version of the game which was never released.
 * The Virtual Console version uses fewer blocks than Ocarina of Time, as data compression for VC games had been improved since the release of the 1998 game in the same service. However, Majora's Mask uses three blocks for save data, which is three times the amount of space that uses.
 * Majora's Mask contains the least amount of main dungeons in any Zelda game: 4 in total. In addition, all items obtained in main dungeons pertain to the bow. The first dungeon contains the bow itself, while the other 3 contain the elemental arrows (Fire, Ice, and Light).
 * The impermanent flow of time in the first three-day cycle as Deku Link is 1.66 times faster than normal. When the time is altered to be at this rate during the first cycle, no enemies or NPCs will appear in Termina Field. This cannot be seen normally in gameplay as Link is confined to Clock Town during the first 3 day cycle, which is almost entirely scripted.
 * Majora's Mask is a unique Zelda title in that the majority of the game can be entirely replayed at any time, including the cut scenes, barring the beginning in the mysterious forest.