Heyhey, vizzians! Green here with another thready about Zelda! This is a very special one. Why, you may ask? Well, it's Zelda's 30th anniversary today! Wooo~! Isn't it awesome? 30 years ago today, the very first Zelda game, titled the Legend of Zelda, launched on the NES. The series then became a huge hit, thanks to OOT, and other titles. So, what do you vizzians think about the franchise? Do you like it or not? Explain! I personally it's my favorite video game franchise ever. Mario is so close, tho. Thank you, Shiggy, for bringing us in awesome series !

Oh, and feel free to close this thread if another one already exists.

*looks at title* Dude! Never tell a woman's age!! D: lol

Yeah, I consider myself a...er... Tentative fan (if there is such a thing) of the series. Some instalments have been some of the best games of all time, while others I simply couldn't enjoy at all. It's hit big or miss big for me, though more often than not it misses, still it hits enough that I follow the series to an extent.

To me the best entries are (in this order)
1. Twilight Princess (GameCube version)
2. The Legend of Zelda (NES)
3. Minish Cap

Honestly, don't hate me for this Vizzed, but I didn't find OoT to be that engaging, but it wasn't bad. The only other ones I've played were Majora's Mask (only about five or ten minutes), Wind Waker (all but final boss I think. Quit from boredom of triforce search), and Adventure of Link (Hope I got the name right. Wasn't crazy about this one simply because it, like many NES games, gave you little to no idea about where to go next. Otherwise it was decent enough. Never finished it).

The thing is, I feel as though the series is it's own worst enemy and biggest fault. It has an immense amount of potential, but it feels too safe inside of it's current confines of Zelda convention to abandon the comfort zone and expand to meet it's full potential. The upcoming title looks like it stands a chance of finally breaking free and growing into what it always could have been. An open world Zelda is long overdue, and it should prove an amazing experience. I think I'll even buy a Wii U for that one, unless it's announced for NX as well.

I'm not really much of a fan of the Zelda games (particularly the 3D ones; yes, this DOES include Wind Waker, Twilight Princess, and Ocarina of Time), but there are a few that I can enjoy time and time again to this day...

1. The Legend of Zelda II: The Adventure of Link - I mostly enjoy this one for its differences from the norm, the same reason most people seem to hate on this title. While the notorious difficulty spike on Death Mountain is inexcusable, most of the rest of the game is actually really tame and never really feels that off. The only moments I would even complain about having to figure out for yourself (and I still think bombing a random wall in the first one is more cryptic) was when you had to play a whistle while in the middle of three rocks to access the penultimate dungeon, and to use the jackhammer to cut down trees (what.).
2. The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds - This game does so many things right, that it'd be frustrating to not see another game take this sort of approach again. A literal successor to A Link to the Past (even using the exact same map of Hyrule), this game had an extremely cool and versatile mechanic, very fluid and fun battling (although it still falls victim to the whole "the boss is weak to the item you've used throughout the dungeon" cliché), and exploration that never at one point felt tedious or boring (I'm talking to you, Wind Waker and Skyward Sword).
3. The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap - I love this game. This was one of the first Legend of Zelda games I ever played, and I still find it just as fun to this day. While the exploration using the gimmick of the game (shrinking) was very limited due to your being confined to pretty small areas, and just the overall execution of the gimmick feeling a little short-handed due to hardware (I'd love to see a remake of THIS title), the entire game is just so enjoyable. The bosses throughout were well-designed, the exploration was slightly tedious at times but made up for it with its rewards, and most of its story flows very nicely, with no tremendous curveballs thrown at you throughout. It's a solid game from start to finish, and I am happy to call it my favorite in the series.

I kind of have to agree with Eirinn in saying that the series is its biggest enemy, but its constant similarity and consistency is also its biggest asset. It's because of its similarity as to why it continuously shoots out such fun and enjoyable games, regardless of how similar each addition might be in general gameplay. While they should be taking more risks, the few risks the series has taken have not been seen in very positive lights (take the very first example, The Adventure of Link, for example). The fanbase wants consistency over change, and I can't say I necessarily outright disagree with that.

Zelda has been a huge part of my life over the past 30 years, and really started my love for RPG/Adventure games from that moment on. Crazy that it's been so long.

One thing that the few posts in here didn't mention was the fact that this game is one of THE MOST influential franchises in the history of gaming. Just to list all of the things that Zelda did first and really made POPULAR would be a book entry. TL/DR tirade.

My favorite Zelda games are thus.

Zelda (NES) a great game with some of the best music of the early NES titles. Where would we be without this game? Not enough credit is given for how great of a game this really is.

Zelda A Link to the Past - The best most pure Zelda title in my opinion. What Zelda should be.

Zelda OoT - An amazing 3D zelda entry, nomatter it's faults. Sure it's overhyped at times, but that doesn't mean it's not one of the best games on the N64, because it' is.

Zelda A Link Between Worlds - Was fun and great for fans of ALttP like me. The only issue I had is that it was too easy.

Happy late birthday LoZ!