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[RedSwirl]

I'm starting to think this question is at the heart at why almost no one agrees on what needs to happen to the Zelda games, how they need to change, and how they need to stay the same. Every opinion I've read wants to preserve and change different qualities, as if the franchise means something different to almost each and every one of its fans. That's why I think Nintendo will never be able to please the entire Zelda fanbase with one game.

Personally my single biggest reason to play the Zelda games is exploration. I love how each game puts you in a new world map, and every part of it is deliberately designed to elicit a sense of journey and a sense of discovery. Very, VERY few games accomplish this feeling in the same way.

That's why I honestly haven't gotten tired of the traditional Zelda format - because as long as each new game gives me a new world to explore (even if it has the same name), I'll enjoy it just as much. That's why I love the sailing in Wind Waker.

As long as they keep doing that, I could give a damn about how simple the storyline is or how easy the combat is.

By the same token, I probably enjoyed Majora's Mask the least of all the Zelda games I've played. I understand why other people love it, but there was way too much in that game that got in the way of exploring Termina (which itself felt very small). Constantly being under a time limit felt restricting, and having to repeat certain tasks (like carrying the powder keg to the bolder blocking the ranch) after each rewind got annoying fast.

 

[Card Boy]

The puzzles and boss fights.

 

[Seraphinianus]

I don't. I think I do, then I get a few hours in and it's just blahhhh more rupees

except the soup dungeon.

and playing Zelda 1 as a kid

 

[AceBandage]

Style and adventure.
The way the world is laid out is pretty much always great.
I also love how it makes you think about how to progress.

 

[crimzonflame]

It loses its novelty after a few dungeons.

 

[rosaceadude2112]

All the threads.

 

[Amir0x]

Because it's consistently the most marvelous example of linear/guided game design I've ever seen. It's just the right difficulty balance most of the time, just the slightest hint of a challenge on bosses most of the time, superb puzzle and dungeon design, refined and polished controls, splendid art direction and generally a fantastic bang for your buck as they're often full of content. It's the clearest example of conductor development, where ones vision is so intense it makes him a "conductor" and the programmers the instrument of his genius

Zelda is probably the only franchise other than Mother where I STILL get the same feeling of anticipating for games coming out roughly equivalent to when I was a boy of 9.

 

[Like the hat?]

the puzzles
the stories (yeah yeah, shoot me)
the gameplay
the look
and honestly, part of it is the ease.

edit: and how could I forget the music. Consistently some of the best music around in games

 

[Evolved1]

I don't anymore.

 

[-Pyromaniac-]

Because they aren't like other games. Because they aren't like assassins creed 2 and they aren't like Skyrim, and so on.

 

[Poyunch]

For me it's the sense of discovery. I love to find new things and new places and dicking around in the environment to find an interesting new cave is enough for me.

 

[Watch Da Birdie]

I don't mind the "bullet hell" fights of the older games, nor do I mind the inclusion of more complex sword fights in the newer titles, but call me simple but I still love the thrill of getting a new item in a dungeon and then using it to take down the boss. Twilight Princess did a great job with this on every fight (except Fyrus), difficulty excused.

 

[Electivirus]

Dungeon design, exploration, and music for me.

 

[The Technomancer]

Zelda games feel like they stand out and almost become their own genre for me because of the environmental interaction. In the vast majority of action games it feels like the environment might as well be an injection-molded hunk with a complex texture, and a few doors thrown in for good measure. Zelda titles, in contrast, design their puzzles both small and large around interacting with the environment and even causing it to shift. The largest puzzles of all are, of course, the dungeon layouts themselves that often either feature dynamic terrain or involve using your items to traverse obstacles.

I feel this really started with OoT and LA, culminating in some of the fantastic dungeon design in TP

 

[Lopson]

I'm not a fan of Zelda, but I've got to admit, there's just something about Wind Waker... Maybe it was the exploration, or maybe it was the scenery, or Toon Link... I think all of those things just clicked inside me. It was an unforgettable adventure.

 

[Piercedveil]

Because they are a mix of puzzles and adventure. I think that's fun.

 

[Medalion]

Because it's Zelda.

 

[Gravijah]

Because it's Zelda.

Because it's The Legend of Zelda.

 

[Newsboy]

I like the voice acting..........

 

[Anasui Kishibe]

because you can almost touch the incredible care and effort behind them. Because they're charming. Because they are games in which the gameplay itself is the main character, and because they're so incredibly, immutably Nintendo

 

[FutureZombie]

It's so hard to pinpoint. I'd say dungeons, but I actually like the side quests more. I'd say the open world, but it really isn't that open.

I think it's the general atmosphere and epicness. There isn't anything else out there that feels like Zelda. There are plenty of good games, but Zelda is magical.

 

[The Lamonster]

I enjoy the vivid fantasy, the sweeping soundtrack, the action, exploring all the different dungeons with their puzzles and treasures, the RPG lite elements and the mini games.

 

[nincompoop]

1) The dungeons and puzzles
2) The style and atmosphere, and the sense of adventure that the games give

 

[Brobzoid]

Wind Waker for the sailing and the presentation. Link to the Past and Link's Awakening were enjoyable in that 'yay adventure' kinda way, but I don't feel the need to play a ton of games like that so the others in the series just kinda bore me. And I don't much care for the combat in the 3D Zeldas.

 

[Sennorin]

Exploration and interaction.

Which is something TWW and TP partially failed to achieve. What I want from a Zelda-game is meaningful exploration and plenty of interaction that lets me experiment with enemies and the environment. I hope upcoming Zelda-games take a few notes from Xenoblade and Assassin´s Creed here, creating a rich world full of motivating secrets and lots of environmental interaction, aka climbing.

 

[Levyne]

No other games really similar, imo.

 

[Pseudo_Sam]

It's consistently excellent. It rewards curiosity. The music and art are always top tier. It tells a story, but doesn't take itself too seriously. Plus there's the whole nostalgia thing, where just seeing a picture of an unreleased Zelda can make me feel happy.

But most importantly, it always hits the perfect difficulty level. It makes you work, it makes you think, but it isn't a ball buster and it doesn't try to be one. I really appreciate that.

 

[TedNindo]

The exploration and learning to know the world. I wouldn't ever want a Zelda without an explorable overworld. It's part of the fun for me.
Also the puzzles and dungeons. And the overal atmosphere. Zelda shouldn't be fast pased.
It should take me long to go from point A to point B. Or atleast initially and solve it afterwards with warping so it doesn't get tedious. It just makes it feel like a bigger and more real world.
I also loved the sidequests and the sense of having a living town in MM.
TP felt too sterile for me. Couldn't talk to a lot of NPC's and the world just felt more empty.

Also the attention to small details. That maybe nobody would ever notice in their play throughs. The the overal sense of discovering something.

 

[Rocket Punch]

Because it's consistently the most marvelous example of linear/guided game design I've ever seen. It's just the right difficulty balance most of the time, just the slightest hint of a challenge on bosses most of the time, superb puzzle and dungeon design, refined and polished controls, splendid art direction and generally a fantastic bang for your buck as they're often full of content. It's the clearest example of conductor development, where ones vision is so intense it makes him a "conductor" and the programmers the instrument of his genius

Zelda is probably the only franchise other than Mother where I STILL get the same feeling of anticipating for games coming out roughly equivalent to when I was a boy of 9.

Oh Ami... do that again.

 

[TheNatural]

I agree, it's the freedom you get when you play one, for the most part. I like the ambiance parts of the games, going up a mountain before you know you have a dungeon to progress to. Going into an isolated cave or event with one of the side characters to get an item. The music of the little 'duh duh duh duh' when you complete a sidequest in the middle of the night as the crickets and ambience chirps in the background. It's always good shit, which is why almost the only games I can stand anymore are Zelda, Mario, and sandbox games like GTA.

Zelda is not a game design that is mimicked very well, or even that many companies even TRY to really. Yet, Nintendo usually changes up the style of the game wildly from game to game to keep enough new in it to keep it fresh, but still Zelda. There's 5,000 space marine shooters every year, and Zelda is more fresh in its 15th or whatever iteration this year's new game is, than the third version of major shooter franchises that constantly come out.

 

[crazy monkey]

Sense of adventure, difficulty curve, fighting mechanic and feeling like bad ass.

 

[Orayn]

1. Wonderful pacing. I'm rarely bored, and rarely rushed, as I almost always have a good idea of what the next objective is, how to reach it, and how long that will take, in addition to any side-quests I can do in the meantime.

2. Puzzles. Even if the modern ones are a little on the easy side, it just feels so good to be plopped down in a room full of switches, platforms, timers, and enemies, and figure out what combination of items gets me past it to the next one. Sure, contemplating how to move a stone pillar in a way that gets me to the next floor isn't terribly hard, but I find it much more gratifying than the basic gameplay of many other genres.

3. Charm. The worlds are almost always lively and full of interesting characters. The atmosphere is fun, inviting, and makes me want to explore the games even more.

4. Adventure! Zelda games capture the feeling of The Hero's Journey like nothing else.

 

[Chris R]

I enjoyed the challenge and progression the earlier games brought. When OoT/MM/WW came out that changed to exploring the world and finding it's secrets.

Haven't finished TP (didn't like it) so I can't say for the Wii games.

Wish they would get back to being hard again, like LoZ 2nd Quest, but that is never happening

 

[Parallax Scroll]

cause you poke gannon with the sword till he dies

 

[snoopeasystreet]

Exploration and music.

 

[Redd]

The puzzles and boss fights.

This. All I would change is the make the boss fights a little harder.

 

[Community Forum]

One of the reason I enjoy them is because there are actually YEARS separating new releases.

 

[Jzero]

The music is always amazing
and idk there's something about Zelda games that make me love the series.

 

[Anasui Kishibe]

The music is always amazing
and idk there's something about Zelda games that make me love the series.

that something is called Nintendo Magic son

 

[TheNatural]

Also to add on to my post, no one ever mentions the ambiance and shit of just playing a Zelda game, the day/night cycle, and just doing tasks for a simple quest like getting a side item or something dealing with a random character to get it. Like say, the graveyard guy in Ocarina of time, you're out at night with the darkness and the crickets in the background, going to an isolated part of the world, to do a simple task. I've always liked that simple shit for some reason, the atmosphere of a game is a big deal to me.

 

[SilverLunar]

the puzzles
the stories (yeah yeah, shoot me)
the gameplay
the look
and honestly, part of it is the ease.

edit: and how could I forget the music. Consistently some of the best music around in games

Wat, dude, i LOVE Zelda stories, simple yet engaging

 

[KittenMaster]

I enjoyed Zelda 1 for figuring out all there is to it and becoming more knowledgeable. It's also the tale of a boy setting out on a quest on his own.

I enjoyed Zelda 2 for being pretty much the best game ever. Fluid controls and well made challenge. It's also a great expansion to the story especially with Link having proven his worth as a hero.

I enjoyed ALttP and Link's Awakening for the sense of adventure and the former was a good challenge and quite a huge game

Spoiler

with a rather unsettling 2nd world

, while the latter is about Link going on more adventures and a mysterious and surreal world.

Majora's Mask is the only post-OoT game that I've played where I really felt the magic. OoT was ALttP 2.0 and was about

Spoiler

this chosen one destined to save the world

and the world itself was compact and rather limited, and even going though time didn't really change the world much

Spoiler

like it did in ALttP

. Majora's Mask went back to adventuring a brand new world, but with more driven motivation and goals that really made me feel like a hero.

 

[SatelliteOfLove]

Dungeons, music, exploration.

 

[GeekyDad]

...Personally my single biggest reason to play the Zelda games is exploration. ...

If I had to point to one thing, I'd probably say the same, but I think that ties into the whole package -- puzzles, combat, curiosity about what's after that area you can't quite get to yet. Of course, it's also the series' polish. Though not all of the Zelda games have that extreme level of polish I love, my favorite Zeldas do. It's one reason I still have yet to crack past the first couple of hours of Twilight Princess. I don't like the waggle combat, nor the loosey goosey controls and movement. Again, though, if the sense of discovery, reward, ingenuity called upon the player, and ingenious design can encompass "exploration," then I agree.

 

[erpg]

Sliding block puzzles and interesting worlds/revisions of the world that are rarely ever the same.

Exploring is fun, to an extent. Like I mentioned in the other thread, platforming and movement are too slow and very static. Climing a vine? Mind achingly slow. Jumping? Needs to evolve in design from OoT' jump down a distance or forward 3 feet to the next platform.

I gave my Wii away, so I won't be getting Skyward Sword, but I hope they've spruced things up a little.

 

[BY2K]

GAF going into full Skyward Sword hype? A lot of Zelda related threads were created, lately.

 

[fernoca]

All the threads.

Hahahaha.. XD



But yeah.
I mean It's Zelda. Call it nostalgia, blind loyalism, kiddy, whatever.

 

[The Technomancer]

If I had to point to one thing, I'd probably say the same, but I think that ties into the whole package -- puzzles, combat, curiosity about what's after that area you can't quite get to yet. Of course, it's also the series' polish. Though not all of the Zelda games have that extreme level of polish I love, my favorite Zeldas do. It's one reason I still have yet to crack past the first couple of hours of Twilight Princess. I don't like the waggle combat, nor the loosey goosey controls and movement. Again, though, if the sense of discovery, reward, ingenuity called upon the player, and ingenious design can encompass "exploration," then I agree.

You really should push through it sometime. The first few hours are amazingly dull, but by dungeon 3 or so the game picks up dramatically.

 

[Salsa]

The puzzles and boss fights.

first reply got the highlights.

But i just love it, its the epitome of a linear experience for me and they always nail the sense of adventure, something a lot of games fail at. Its hard to pin down because of course there's nostalgia involved at this point, but Zelda is just something special.

 

[IceDoesntHelp]

Dungeons, boss fights, puzzles, story and the art style.