Legend of Zelda Rank the Zelda Games from Best to Worst - 2014

[greatbernard]

I'd be interested in seeing your lists as well. Post em up!!

Notes:
- My personal opinion
- I didn't play Spirit Tracks yet, so I'm excluding it for now.
- I didn't complete the Oracles yet. I would probably rank them between LoZ and AoL though.


1. Majora's Mask (2000)

Excellent character driven story and an interesting twist on game mechanics with the clock. Despite being created in such a short time frame, everything in this game felt like it was intricately made.

2. Link's Awakening (1993)

Surreal and super creative. Love the setting and sense of exploration. Story is an unraveling philosophical mystery.

3. A Link to the Past (1991)

Some of the best dungeons in the series and a seamless overworld. A defining chapter of Zelda for sure.

4. A Link Between Worlds (2013)

A true return to form and the best Zelda game in a while. Non-linearity, creative wall portrait concept led to nice puzzles and item renting all made this sequel to ALTTP excellent.

5. Ocarina of Time (1998)

The complex atmospheric dungeons, quality level design, wide array of items all make this one of the most well rounded games in the series. The cutscenes even today are still dramatic and full of weight.

6. The Wind Waker (2003)

Love the art style and atmosphere. Totally changed the mood and personality of Zelda. Dungeons were weak, but the radial overworld was well done. HD version makes sailing a breeze.

8. The Legend of Zelda (1986)

This classic holds up very well. Whereas later Zelda games restricted the player, this one gave you absolute freedom. And its very easy to play in small chunks.

9. Skyward Sword (2011)

If this bloated 50 hour game gutted out the fetch quests and slimmed down to 25 hours, it would have been Muhammad Ali.

9/10. Oracle of Seasons

Loved both games. I don't seem to favor either. Both added some unique twists while staying core to the Zelda formula.

11. The Minish Cap (2005)

Despite being a GBA game, the visuals are gorgeous and the sound is surprisingly high quality. The story/characters/world was brimming with life. The dungeons actually felt like places. But the actual gameplay hasn't evolved much.

12. Spirit Tracks

A big step up from Phantom Hourglass in every way. Tried new things such as a totally new story and Zelda being playable. The backtracking was really tedious, though and while I liked the train concept the overworld was dull.

13. Twilight Princess (2006)

Loved the Twilight concept, but it was underused in favor being an OOT copycat. Great dungeons, meh overworld. And the first half of the game is as slow as molasses.

14. Adventure of Link (1988)

I like how this game is different than other Zelda's. Though the uninspired overworld and brutal difficulty keep it low on my ranking.

15. Phantom Hourglass (2007)

Not a bad game ; just not as good as other Zeldas. Loved the DS functionalities, but the dungeons, story and atmosphere could've all been a bit better.

16. Four Swords Adventure (2004)

Multiplayer is fun, but 4 GBA's in 2014 isn't feasible. Also borrows too much from ALTTP.

17. Four Swords (2002)

Fun puzzles but super short. You can play by yourself but multiplayer isn't feasible.

 

[tmonty17]

I'd be interested in seeing your lists as well. Post em up!!

Notes:
- My personal opinion
- I didn't play Spirit Tracks yet, so I'm excluding it for now.
- I didn't complete the Oracles yet. I would probably rank them between LoZ and AoL though.


1. Majora's Mask (2000)

Excellent character driven story and an interesting twist on game mechanics with the clock. Despite being created in such a short time frame, everything in this game felt like it was intricately made.

2. Link's Awakening (1993)

Surreal and super creative. Love the setting and sense of exploration. Story is an unraveling philosophical mystery.

3. A Link to the Past (1991)

Some of the best dungeons in the series and a seamless overworld. A defining chapter of Zelda for sure.

4. A Link Between Worlds (2013)

A true return to form and the best Zelda game in a while. Non-linearity, creative wall portrait concept led to nice puzzles and item renting all made this sequel to ALTTP excellent.

5. Ocarina of Time (1998)

The complex atmospheric dungeons, quality level design, wide array of items all make this one of the most well rounded games in the series. The cutscenes even today are still dramatic and full of weight.

6. The Minish Cap (2005)

Despite being a GBA game, the visuals are gorgeous and the sound is surprisingly high quality. The minish cloning and shrinking puzzles were nice additions, the story/characters/world was brimming with life. The dungeons actually felt like places.

7. The Wind Waker (2003)

Love the art style and atmosphere. Totally changed the mood and personality of Zelda. Dungeons were weak, but the radial overworld was well done. HD version makes sailing a breeze.

8. The Legend of Zelda (1986)

This classic holds up very well. Whereas later Zelda games restricted the player, this one gave you absolute freedom. And its very easy to play in small chunks.

9. Skyward Sword (2011)

If this bloated 50 hour game gutted out the fetch quests and slimmed down to 25 hours, it would have been Muhammad Ali.

10. Twilight Princess (2006)

Loved the Twilight concept, but it was underused in favor being an OOT copycat. Great dungeons, meh overworld. And the first half of the game is as slow as molasses.

11. Adventure of Link (1988)

I like how this game is different than other Zelda's. Though the uninspired overworld and brutal difficulty keep it low on my ranking.

12. Phantom Hourglass (2007)

Not a bad game ; just not as good as other Zeldas. Loved the DS functionalities, but the dungeons, story and atmosphere could've all been a bit better.

13. Four Swords Adventure (2004)

Multiplayer is fun, but 4 GBA's in 2014 isn't feasible. Also borrows too much from ALTTP.

14. Four Swords (2002)

Fun puzzles but super short. You can play by yourself but multiplayer isn't feasible.

I liked Majoras Mask but it definitely wasn't one of my favorites. I do, however, share with you an appreciation of the 2D top down perspective games as those are some of my favorite in the series with Link to the Past being my all time favorite and Link Between Worlds, Links Awakening, and Minish Cap all being close behind. I'm currently working on the Oracle games and they're a lot of fun.

It would be really hard for me to make a list because my top 10 are all pretty interchangeable.

 

[finalark]

Hopefully this thread won't be a bad idea waiting to happen. I personally enjoy Wind Waker quite a bit, although I like Ocarina of Time, Twilight Princes and Majora's Mask quite a bit too.

You know what? I like all the Zelda games.

 

[greatbernard]

i like all of them too. i love most of them. a lot of my top 10 is interchangable. my #1 isn't really that much better than my #2-5 for example.

also , i beat oracles and spirit tracks, so im gonna update the list

 

[the8thark]

Ok in my opinion they go like this (1 being my favourite):

1. Majora's Mask
2. Zelda 2: Link's Adventure
3. Twilight Princess
4. Hyrule Warriors
5. BS Zelda (SNES)
6. Zelda 1 (NES)
7. Link's Awakening
8. Oracle Of Seasons
9. Oracle of Ages
10. Ocarina of Time
11. Zelda 3: Link to the Past
12. Skyward Sword
13. Spirit Tracks
14. Minish Cap
15. Phantom Hourglass
16. Wind Waker
17. Four Swords
18. A Link Between Worlds
19. Link's Crossbow Training
20. The 3 Tingle games
21. Wand Of Gamelon (and the other two totally **** LoZ CD-i games)

I didn't mention

• Zelda 1 - 2nd quest
• Ocarina of Time Master Quest

As they are not new games, just a harder version of the original game.

I didn't add in games where the LoZ are a part of the game and not all the game like:

• The Smash Bros games
• NintendoLand
• Soul Calibur 2

Simply because they are so different to the actual LoZ games and can't really be compared.

 

[tmonty17]

Ok in my opinion they go like this (1 being my favourite):

1. Majora's Mask
2. Zelda 2: Link's Adventure
3. Twilight Princess
4. Hyrule Warriors
5. BS Zelda (SNES)
6. Zelda 1 (NES)
7. Link's Awakening
8. Oracle Of Seasons
9. Oracle of Ages
10. Ocarina of Time
11. Zelda 3: Link to the Past
12. Skyward Sword
13. Spirit Tracks
14. Minish Cap
15. Phantom Hourglass
16. Wind Waker
17. Four Swords
18. A Link Between Worlds
19. Link's Crossbow Training
20. The 3 Tingle games
21. Wand Of Gamelon (and the other two totally **** LoZ CD-i games)

I didn't mention

• Zelda 1 - 2nd quest
• Ocarina of Time Master Quest

As they are not new games, just a harder version of the original game.

I didn't add in games where the LoZ are a part of the game and not all the game like:

• The Smash Bros games
• NintendoLand
• Soul Calibur 2

Simply because they are so different to the actual LoZ games and can't really be compared.

What is BS Zelda SNES? Also, you really have Link Between Worlds that low?? Man, that was a great game! Lol

 

[the8thark]

What is BS Zelda SNES? Also, you really have Link Between Worlds that low?? Man, that was a great game! Lol

"Translated from BS Zelda no Densetsu, BS The Legend of Zelda was released only in Japan on the Satellaview attachment (BS-X Broadcasting System) for the Super Famicom being the first out of three Zelda games released for the BS-X Broadcasting System"
Basically they are Zelda 1 NES remakes (with better graphics for the SNES. You can get roms of them with the timer frozen so you can play them on an emulator.

There is a 3rd and 4th quest I believe.

A screen shot of it so you can see the graphics differences. And the dungeon maps are different as well.

 

[tmonty17]

"Translated from BS Zelda no Densetsu, BS The Legend of Zelda was released only in Japan on the Satellaview attachment (BS-X Broadcasting System) for the Super Famicom being the first out of three Zelda games released for the BS-X Broadcasting System"
Basically they are Zelda 1 NES remakes (with better graphics for the SNES. You can get roms of them with the timer frozen so you can play them on an emulator.

There is a 3rd and 4th quest I believe.

A screen shot of it so you can see the graphics differences. And the dungeon maps are different as well.

That's really cool! I've played every Zelda game on that list (except for the CD-I games / Spirit Tracks) so I consider myself a really big fan of the series and I've never even heard of that. I'm gonna have to check it out for sure.

 

[Heroine of Winds]

1. Wind Waker
2. The Minish Cap
3. A Link Between Worlds
4. Four Swords Adventures
5. Ocarina of Time
6. A Link to the Past
7. Twilight Princess
8. Oracle of Seasons/Ages
9. Spirit Tracks
10. Majora's Mask
11. Link's Awakening
12. The Legend of Zelda 1
13. Four Swords
14. Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link
15. Skyward Sword
16. Phantom Hourglass

Not including Hyrule Warriors (it's more of a spin-off anyway) & the awful CD-i games, though.

 

[ScoutShellby]

1. Twilight Princess

2. the others

 

[Soupy]

1) Majoras Mask
2) Wind Waker
3) Tie between Skyward Sword and Twilight Princess
4) Minish Cap
5) A Link to the Past
6) Both Oracle games are tied for me
7) Link Between Worlds
8) Ocarina of Time
9) Links Awakening
10) Legend of Zelda
11) Four Swords
12) Phantom Hourglass
13) Spirit Tracks (trains are lame)
14)
15)
16)
17)
18)
19)
20) Adventure of Link

 

[DrXenoPootis]

1) Wind Waker
2) Twilight Princess
3) Skyward Sword
4) Ocarina of Time
5) Link Between Worlds
6) Legend of Zelda
7) Majora's Mask
8) Minish Cap
9) Both Oracles
10) A Link to the Past
11) Four Swords
12) Phantom Hourglass
13) Spirit Tracks
14) Link's Awakening
666) CDI

 

[finalark]

I'd have to play all the games over again back to back if I was to make a best-to-worse list. But a favorites list (which is different from a "best" list) I could probably put together to some capacity. Wind Waker would easily be at the top since its the LoZ I've played the most and its the most nostalgic. Ocarina of Time would probably follow for the same reasons with A Link to the Past close behind it.

I don't know about Twilight Princess, but I imagine it would probably be in the middle or near the bottom. TBH it's a game I like less and less every time I play it, even though I used to valiantly defend it. Majora's Mask would probably be either right above TP or right below it. I never really liked it all that much as a kid but it grew on me as I got older. I'm not entirely sure on where that one sits, though, since it's been so long since I've played it.

At the absolute bottom would be Adventure of Link. I know some people really like that game for one reason for another, but goddamn does it have some of the most obtuse game design I've ever seen. LoZ 1 would be right about it. I don't hate the first LoZ or anything, I'm just kind of indifferent to it.

I'd have to make a completely separate list for handheld games. IMO it's not fair to compare bite-sizes handheld adventures to full blown console experiences.

 

[Planet Cool]

I can only rank the ones I've finished / played enough to have a legitimate opinion. Here's my list, from best to worst:

1. Ocarina of Time
2. The Wind Waker
3. Twilight Princess
4. A Link to the Past
5. Skyward Sword
6. Majora's Mask

I can already tell I'm in for a beating, since I strongly dislike Majora's Mask. It has its moments (I love saving Pamela's father and getting the Gibdo's mask, and playing that song for Gorman as all four races at the Milk Bar, for example, and Anju's grandma's story about the Skull Kid and his friends never fails to bring a manly tear to my eye), but the cons far outweigh the pros and the overall game experience isn't enjoyable to me at all.

 

[greatbernard]

Here's my ranking list in 2015 (and the changes I made to it). I stopped being a hipster and put OOT over MM. MM dropped but it's still a very good game - I have nothing against it. Skyward Sword went up over Link's Awakening. LA's probably the better game from an objective standpoint but it's more fun.

1 - A Link to the Past (+2)
2 - Ocarina of Time (+4)
3 - A Link Between Worlds (+1)
4 - The Wind Waker HD (+2)
5 - Skyward Sword (+4)
6 - Link's Awakening (-4)
7 - Majora's Mask (-6)
8 - Oracle of Ages (+1)
9 - Legend of Zelda (-1)
10 - Oracle of Seasons
11 - The Minish Cap
12 - Twilight Princess (+1)
13 - Phantom Hourglass (+2)
14 - Spirit Tracks (-2)
15 - Adventure of Link (-1)
16 - Four Sword Adventures
17 - Four Swords

 

[Deleted member]

Top 4

1. Ocarina of Time
2. A Link to the Past
3. Wind Waker
4. Zelda NES

Worst

1. Spirit Tracks
2. A Link Between Worlds

 

[Wiley]

**Assume Spoilers***

The title screen and music of OOT still does something to my soul. When I think back on the game it's epic, even though when I play it again I always feel like we hype it just a little heh. It's incredible but it lacks the length I want when you know the run of it. That being said... it moved me so much and that's important, so I reluctantly bandwagon and put it at the top spot. I feel like the series can do better though, and I'm waiting for that. MM I'm putting in the same spot. If the last boss with the deity mask equipped wasn't such a joke it would be the true number 1. Is that fair to judge? Maybe not to you but I want to feel accomplished with the tools available, and the final boss is a key piece to the sense of victory. Demise was pretty cool to fight, twilight Ganon felt awesome... but Majora forms with deity was just z-target, and mash. But other than that, what an incredible run that I'll always love.

1-2 OOT
1-2 MM

3 Skyward Sword
some people may not agree, but the origins aspect of this alone made this feel really epic to me. It added so much weight to the overall run which I personally had a lot of fun with. It was a beautiful setting and set the stage for all the adventures to come in my mind. Adding new characters that shine is harder than you think and they did a great job, even if almost anime-esque story unfolded at times I couldn't argue with the polish and likeability or cringeworthy reaction I got from them. At first glance Ghirahim and Groose made me think I was going to hate the game, but by the end I accepted them for the parts they played goofy or not, and they made me regret early judgement. Getting over motion controls took some time, but was worth it. I kind of rate this at 3 forgetting the motion controls tbh... because they were a let down in truth.
It's fine if you don't agree but I loved this game. The origins of the Master Sword and the result of Evil never ending was enough for me. I'm a big Ganon fan ha. Demise was a little too street fighter villain looking for me, but just knowing he was the starting point of darkness was cool enough, and that final fight was pretty damn fun from what I remember.

4 Link to the past
I will revisit it and perhaps it will sneak higher but for now this is a safe personal spot as one of the first experiences in my ongoing love with the series.

5 Twilight Princess
People love to hate, but this wasn't a bad game. I don't really think the "dark" atmosphere was that dark, it was just a stand out in terms of muddy textures and dull lighting (can't wait to see this rumored HD.) A solid game though, with an awesome Ganon, a wolf form to try something new (though I'm fine not revisiting it again,) and Midna who's an A-list character who deserves further development in the future. The importance is that even though it's really not my favorite, it stuck with me more than most.

Finishing WW since I passed it by before but am finally giving it a go.

Special mention to Awakening, and oracle of seasons.

 

[Tino]

I'm only gonna rank the ones I've played from favorite to least favorite.

1. Skyward Sword
2. The Wind Waker
3. Twilight Princess
4. Ocarina of Time
5. A Link To The Past
6. A Link Between Worlds
7. Majora's Mask
8. Link's Awakening

 

[PKFreeze89]

1. Majora's Mask
2. Link's Awakening
3. Ocarina of Time
4. Twilight Princess
5. Wind Waker
6. Minish Cap
7. A Link to the Past
8. Oracle of Seasons
9. Spirit Tracks
10. A Link Between Worlds
11. Four Swords Adventures
12. Oracle of Ages
13. Phantom Hourglass
14. Four Swords
15. The Legend of Zelda
16. Skyward Sword
17. Zelda II: Adventure of Link

I can't rank Triforce Heroes yet cause I don't have it.

Here's my ranking list in 2015 (and the changes I made to it). I stopped being a hipster and put OOT over MM. MM dropped but it's still a very good game - I have nothing against it. Skyward Sword went up over Link's Awakening. LA's probably the better game from an objective standpoint but it's more fun.

1 - A Link to the Past (+2)
2 - Ocarina of Time (+4)
3 - A Link Between Worlds (+1)
4 - The Wind Waker HD (+2)
5 - Skyward Sword (+4)
6 - Link's Awakening (-4)
7 - Majora's Mask (-6)
8 - Oracle of Ages (+1)
9 - Legend of Zelda (-1)
10 - Oracle of Seasons
11 - The Minish Cap
12 - Twilight Princess (+1)
13 - Phantom Hourglass (+2)
14 - Spirit Tracks (-2)
15 - Adventure of Link (-1)
16 - Four Sword Adventures
17 - Four Swords

Skyward Sword that high and Majora's Mask dropping 6 positions?! bruh

 

[Swamp Sensei]

I mean...

It's hard to rank them.

I like most of them and they each have their own unique positives and negatives.

I will say I probably like Phantom Hourglass and the Oracle games the least though.

My favorites would be Wind Waker, Majora's Mask and Skyward Sword.

 

[PKFreeze89]

I'd have to play all the games over again back to back if I was to make a best-to-worse list. But a favorites list (which is different from a "best" list) I could probably put together to some capacity. Wind Waker would easily be at the top since its the LoZ I've played the most and its the most nostalgic. Ocarina of Time would probably follow for the same reasons with A Link to the Past close behind it.

I don't know about Twilight Princess, but I imagine it would probably be in the middle or near the bottom. TBH it's a game I like less and less every time I play it, even though I used to valiantly defend it. Majora's Mask would probably be either right above TP or right below it. I never really liked it all that much as a kid but it grew on me as I got older. I'm not entirely sure on where that one sits, though, since it's been so long since I've played it.

At the absolute bottom would be Adventure of Link. I know some people really like that game for one reason for another, but goddamn does it have some of the most obtuse game design I've ever seen. LoZ 1 would be right about it. I don't hate the first LoZ or anything, I'm just kind of indifferent to it.

I'd have to make a completely separate list for handheld games. IMO it's not fair to compare bite-sizes handheld adventures to full blown console experiences.

Some of the handheld Zelda games are more challenging and offer a better experience than some 3D titles, like Skyward Sword and even Twilight Princess or OoT

 

[finalark]

Some of the handheld Zelda games are more challenging and offer a better experience than some 3D titles, like Skyward Sword and even Twilight Princess or OoT

/Opinions time: I don't think I've ever played a handheld LoZ game that I'd want to play more than once. Even Oracle of Ages, which was one of my favorites as a kid, I have a hard time getting through.

I honestly just don't find any of the handheld LoZ games to be that invigorating.