Ocarina of Time does feature moments that are emotionally charged and interpretively open, such as those ambiguous moments in the Biggoron Sword sidequest with the punk kid and his distorted family relationships. I think those are moments when the developers briefly chip through the layer of archetypes that defines OoT and expose the humanity underneath.
Majora's Mask simply takes that subversion and builds an entire world around it, which makes it all the more fitting as a sequel. The land of Hyrule is a place bound by rules, by types, by order, by fate, by an almost unflinching belief in the prospect of hope and justice. It is a world favored by the gods. Termina, by contrast, is a land where law is distorted, rules are clung to or broken as necessary, fate is a mockery of one's will, and the belief in hope and justice is simply a divider between the old and the young. It is a world forgotten by the gods.
For me, MM is the most beautifully bittersweet experience for many reasons, but largely because of how Link himself is characterized. It is ironic that Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword try to "characterize" Link as a person beyond his status as an avatar, and yet those Links are puppets in comparison to the much less emotive Hero of Time. He brings with him into Termina the rules of Hyrule: the pursuit of justice, the display of courage, the belief that good triumphs over evil, the idea that one's deities will still the plane of existence. In his world, his traits are commendable, entering into legend because such a society must crystallize and recognize such values in order to persist (and of course they perish when he disappears).
So when he enters Termina, he is an archetype; and though he experienced life as an adult in Hyrule, it is Termina that allows him to become an adult. But it is also a world that is too scared, too jaded, too self-consumed to believe in what Link represents. Hence the masks, a way to take on a form that is comfortable to others, though they also deny Link his recognition. And therein lies his ultimate test as a "hero": to hold unwaveringly to his values despite the world's complete ignorance of him in the end.
He enters and leaves Termina alone, brimming with memories that no one else can feel, or even believe. Meanwhile, the people of Termina continue with their lives, perhaps retaining some change from the ripples in time, but never knowing that their salvation depended on some young boy who fought their fear for them, and with no discernible benefit to himself. And for daring to exercise his power - a power granted to him by his gods - over a world that the gods saw fit to abandon, he is forgotten even by Hyrule, left to wander in obscurity without the friend he went looking for or the friends he had found. Without saying a word, he is an incredibly realized character, mature beyond age and courageous to a fault.
As much as I yearn for a Zelda game in Majora's Mask "style," I wonder forlornly if such a request is even reasonable. Majora's Mask, amidst any kinks and irks with its dungeons or controls, manages to synergize its gameplay and scenario so well that it almost seems like lightning in a bottle. I think Nintendo has the talent, but given the multiple missed opportunities in Skyward Sword, I worry that they lack the vision.
