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Every Zelda game ranked by Metacritic score
- Thread starter janoDX
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It really does. It was my favourite Top Down Zelda until A Link Between Worlds came out
Acquiescence
Member
Christmas Day '06, so about two weeks or so after the Wii launched.
I'm really surprised Link's Awakening scored as low as it did. Game is freaking legendary. Would definitely have placed it above Link Between worlds, but that's because I don't get why so many people thought it was one of the best things ever (don't get me wrong, it was good, but not that good).
Enjoyed it from the start different tastes i guess?
Imo all those scores are justified but the original LoZ, Minish Cap, alttp and Oracle games should be 90.
A Link Between Worlds is legit the best Zelda game since Wind Waker (without counting Breath of the Wild, it's far too early for that).
The music, the overworld, the dungeons, the freedom, the intense action. Incredible game.
I think Link's Awakening is better too, but I'm fine with ALBW being where he is.
I'd put it last. The fact it's even called Zelda is an insult. A case study for why the Wii was gutter trash
I liked them and they felt like Links Awakening but the reason I'm a little hard on them is because the codes never worked for me so I could never get the ultimate ending. They never worked.
Acerac
Banned
You should catch a fish for this cat. You are finished? CATCH ANOTHER ONE.
The beginning of that game was unbearable, I never got through it despite being a huge Zelda fan up til the time of release. Amazing how quickly the game soured my opinion on the series.
Ocarina_117
Banned
Skyward Sword should be third.
On the other side, WW has one of the best stories and a lot of characters to be remembered. That's why even BOTW has some "returning" characters in some form.
Hell, WW was the only Zelda game where Ganon/Ganondorf has a reason to be the bad guy, instead of "MUH TRIFORCE OF POWER, I'M EVIL".
This game was the first on trying "open world" as a game. Even if 80% of the game is sea. The gameplay is one of the strongest on Zeldas by far.
I really like Windwaker and my trio of best Zeldas are: BOTW > WW > Majora's
Can Crusher
Banned
They always get the Nintendo die hards to review these games, from what I see.
Cipher Peon
Banned
My Top 3 are on the bottom 3. Oh well! 
Muffin1611
Banned
Minish Cap was robbed
SunBroDave
Member
Well we can at least agree on BOTW and MM. No question, two of the greatest games I've ever played.
Wind Waker and Mario Sunshine are always lumped together in my head because they were both clearly rushed through development. It's the worst 3D Zelda by quite a bit IMO, even through I love the way it looks, sounds and it's supporting cast (Windfall Island might be the my favourite location in any Zelda game).
Gotdatmoney
Member
Looks about right. Though Minish Cap has to be higher than Phantom Hourglass
You only have to catch one fish for the cat in the Wii U HD rerelease.
Also other small QoL adjustments were made like less spirit bugs to squish for the drops.
Blackleg-sanji1
Banned
Skyward sword,phantom hourglass and wind waker...ehhhh those are some high scores
The issue when ranking Zeldas is that ultimately they focus on different things that may appease different people. I don't know if there is anything like an "objective" best Zelda ever, but all these titles in the top 5 do something that people really like.
Wind Waker may not have had excellent dungeons compared to other games, but its sense of adventure is something I haven't seen any other Zelda grasp (maybe BotW but I haven't played that yet). In this sense, it's understandable many people hold it dearly and it is ranked as it is.
Scores for older games are not representative at all, which is why there's always an asterisk next to them. It's not like Metacritic has access to all the publications from 20 years ago. They can't even use the same scale or weighting system since so many magazines from back in the day don't exist anymore and the way games were reviewed was different. Video games critique has changed a lot over the past few decades.
Still, Zelda I and II at 80+/- is a travesty. As someone pointed out Zelda I was definitely a 100 back then. Such a revolutionary game. Even Adventure of Link was an event.
Also, Wind Waker and Skyward Sword have no business being that high. They're the ones who should be around 80+ at most.
Still, Zelda I and II at 80+/- is a travesty. As someone pointed out Zelda I was definitely a 100 back then. Such a revolutionary game. Even Adventure of Link was an event.
Also, Wind Waker and Skyward Sword have no business being that high. They're the ones who should be around 80+ at most.
While there is, to a large extent, score inflation with regard to Zelda, this phenomenon is not necessarily exclusive. Many established franchises, especially ones which are held to a pedestal, seem to get an easier pass from reviewers. For example, I don't believe that FFXV deserves an 81 on MC, neither does MGSV getting a 93. GTAIV getting a 98 and Skyward Sword getting a 93 are also wrong. But because these are all decade+ long franchises, some reviewers may unconsciously (or not) bypass the flaws thinking that because they were excellent in the past, they are still at the top of their game today. They may also not want to go too much against the popular opinion of these franchises, out of fear of losing credibility amongst certain segments of the gaming populace.
New IP are judged more harshly, which is wrong, and thus brings me to my last point. The original 1986 Zelda is a great game to play even today, with solid controls, a good sense of adventure and lots of secrets to find. There's not many NES games out there that can say that. Shame it "only" got 84.
New IP are judged more harshly, which is wrong, and thus brings me to my last point. The original 1986 Zelda is a great game to play even today, with solid controls, a good sense of adventure and lots of secrets to find. There's not many NES games out there that can say that. Shame it "only" got 84.
Nocturnowl
Member
I'm sitting here and realising that there's not really anything Wind Waker does better than any other 3D Zelda game from the gameplay angle in particular.
It kind of had the sense of adventure point others have brought up but there's this one new entry that just came along and straight up devoured its lunch.
Still good mind you but in an 86 as opposed to 96 way.
It kind of had the sense of adventure point others have brought up but there's this one new entry that just came along and straight up devoured its lunch.
Still good mind you but in an 86 as opposed to 96 way.
BotW deserves to be up there and that's really not something I would have expected to say. That said though some of the high scores just baffle me with Zelda. Skyward Sword, even motion controls aside, is just not that remarkable imo. Other games have better stories, more expansive level design, more dynamic and fluid combat systems, more enemy types, better writing, and so on.
Skyward Sword having a higher score than Bloodborne is perplexing to me. I just don't get it.
Skyward Sword having a higher score than Bloodborne is perplexing to me. I just don't get it.
purseowner
Member
Poor Spirit Tracks. It should swap places with Skyward Sword.
SunBroDave
Member
There are whole swaths of those games that are just straight up not fun to play. Wind Waker has the triforce quest, the overworld, the forsaken fortress, and the last dungeon. Skyward Sword has the intro, the dowsing, the tears of light equivalent, the overworld, the instrument.
To be fair, Twilight Princess is very difficult to return to as well because those wolf sections are so fucking bad and completely ruin the pacing of the first three areas.
Principate
Saint Titanfall
Or maybe the far more logical event is that the vast majority of Critics really enjoy Zelda.
It's always strange the amount of bitterness in terms of opinions Zelda elicits. So critics like the game more than whatever game you personally enjoy so what.
It's pretty much universally considered one of the top three 3D Zeldas?
And list is interesting from a historical perspective but aside from nostalgia and some great dungeon design, BotW is way better than OoT is 2017.
You can shit on SS all you want but don't you fucking dare group WW in with that trash
Why not?
Shit overworld
Simple dungeons and a miserable amount of them
Original ends on a horrible fetch quest to pad a game lacking in content
Wind Waker is far from deserving a 96.
geordiemp
Member
Thats my guess as well, you have a review team and the Nintendo guy always reviews Zelda as they appear every 5-6 years or so, they always gush about prior zeldas in the review and then slap a 10 on.
It would eb fun to get a reviewers opinion who plays COD and not Zelda....and would rate it normally, but I doubt they would bother finishing a game like TP.
SunBroDave
Member
Because it has some of the best side quests and NPCs in any game ever? Some of the best dungeons in the entire series? A completely unique narrative and tone that is pretty unlike any game since? It's also the easiest Zelda to return too thanks to how unique and unlike the other Zeldas it is.
For someone who seems to love Zelda why would you never play what is the consensus greatest Zelda of all time and the closest thing we have to the consensus best game of the past 20 years?
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