The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

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 to itself, the game included a 3-day time system (72 hours in total). Along with this, Majora's Mask is one of the few Zelda games where Ganon or Ganondorf does not make an appearance, not to mention Princess Zelda who is only seen once in a flashback.

Majora's Mask is the sequel to the popular first 3D Zelda game, Ocarina of Time. Many of the conventions pioneered in Ocarina of Time are present in Majora's Mask, such as characters, enemies, and items.

Story


Majora's Mask opens with a scene of Link travelling from Hyrule, on a personal quest. Although it is never stated ingame, it is commonly accepted that he was searching for his fairy, Navi. His trip is interrupted by the Skull Kid and his two fairies, Tael and Tatl. The Skull Kid, with the help of the fairies, knocks Link off his horse and steals the Ocarina of Time. When Link awakens, the Skull Kid takes off and leads Link on wild chase.

Link follows the Skull Kid and finds himself turned into a Deku Scrub by the dark magic of Majora's Mask, covering the Skull Kid's face. With limited abilities, he enters Clock Tower where he meets the Happy Mask Salesman. The mask salesman says that he can return Link to his human form if he finds and obtains the Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask.

Attempting to steal the ocarina and the mask, Link discovers that the Skull Kid has pulled the moon from its orbit and it will crash destructively into the land of Termina in three days.

Graphics
The gameplay of Majora's Mask is much the same as that in Ocarina of Time, although new features, items, skills, and more are included. The graphics are slightly better than OoT. As the second Zelda game with 3D graphics, Majora's Mask uses the same engine as its predecessor. The game takes place in a land called Termina, which consists of four main parts: Clock Town in the center, the Southern Swamp to the south, the Snowhead mountains to the north, Great Bay to the west, and Ikana Canyon to the east.

Time System
Majora's Mask implements a time system, cycling three days, the time until the moon's destruction. 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.

Masks and Transformations
Link appears in his younger form, the same Link as in Ocarina of Time. However, in Majora's Mask, Link loses the ability to transform into an adult. To complement the name of the game, 24 masks can be found around Termina, of which several allow Link to take the form of another race; Deku Scrubs, Gorons, Zoras, and a powerful adult version of Link, Fierce Deity Link. The rest of the masks either give Link new abilities (such as explosive techniques) or disguise him.

Game Style
Majora's Mask is known as the darkest of the series, altough the game producers say that Twilight Princess will give it a run for it's money. This is visible even in the game's trailer, which featured screams of horror and agony as the real moon destroyed a city. The owl at Woodfall tells that the Deku are a doomed civilization. In several spots in the game, bad omens are evident. Majora can be interpreted as the devil of the Zelda universe. The chant of the Giants is a sad one, played by a pipe organ in a sad melody. The main tune, instead of the perky Saria's Song, is reversed to create the Song of Healing, another depressing melody. Heroes die in many instances.