GLaD 6: Majora's Mask, Backlogs, WTF Wednesday

On 03/06/2013 at 08:55 PM by Super Step

Skylar Diggins, fine-as-hell Notre Dame women's basketball player, Bruce "The Boss" Springsteen, and drones are your top Bing Images today.

Mad Libz Story: The Skull Kid from Majora's Mask will use cheap drones to spy on and attack U.S. citizens unless they meet his demands for a full-on mask-wearin' Mardis Gras carnival to take place worldwide three days from when he makes his threat.

It'll be up to a ballin' Notre Dame player and her aging white sidekick to save the day in this buddy comedy from the Producer of Air Bud.

Majora's Mask: So yesterday, I found out my N64 does indeed still work, by plugging it into the living room TV. The jumble of wires I retrieved it from in the den/"game room" (not used for that purpose since I went off to college in 2008, too much of a hassle to use it as such now that I'm back, given all the damn wires) kind of made me feel like I had just solved a Zelda puzzle and retrieved my treasure. Sadly, no "discovery" theme song played. It looked a bit too dark on the living room TV, but you need the remote to fix it, and any time that happens, I fuck something up, so I decided to let the game be a little hard to see at times.

Squinting real hard lets you see this mask in the game; that or I should fix my TV's color

Anyway, this is THE game in my backlog I have always wanted to finish, but never could, and yesterday reminded me why: the last five masks I need all involve some kind of planning involving the time mechanic to get.

Now, for years, I've been able to just beat the game where my save file is at, right before the final boss, but I haven't, because the Prima strategy guide I had alerted me to the Fierce Deity mask you get for collecting all twenty masks in the game. Normally, I'm only a completist in that I need to beat the game, but I could care less about heart pieces and the like; in this game however, since I know there's a final mask with an awesome looking Link form, I'd feel like I hadn't really completed the game until I've collected it.

If Link didn't look so damn metal here, I'd have finished this game by now

And when I looked up on GameFAQs and Youtube how to get the final masks, I thought, "oh hey, this doesn't sound so bad," and then inevitably ran into another thing that annoyed me about getting the things.

When I read that all I had to do was stop the thief in North Clock Town and pay some shop owner 500 rupees for the All-Night mask, I initially thought "hey, I have 3128 in the bank, piece of cake" and then after stopping the thief and stopping by the bank was reminded I haven't got the wallet that can carry 500 rupees yet, and I'd have to get it by completing the Ocean Spider House; not knowing where the hell that is, having not played the game in years, I decided to go on to the Couple's Mask.

Dumb idea, because it involves all three days, meaning waiting, even if I play the song that speeds time forward (that I had to look up, cause it's not listed in your inventory). It also meant I didn't get to ... Ikea Canyon (I know that's not its name, but I can't think of its name right now) in time on the third day, throwing the whole long-ass "get guy that was turned into a kid back to his lover" operation off.

Then again, I'm not sure I want to; still not convinced I'm not helping a female sex offender

So hey, Romani's mask is obtained by shooting those farm aliens and such; kind of thought I did that, but probably I failed a bunch. The road to Romani's Ranch is blocked by that boulder, and I vaguely remembered using that skull & crossbones bomb to fix that, but don't remember where to find it, and GameFAQs and Youtube are were getting frustrating at this point, cause I never found myself in the right place for the info I needed, exactly.

I'm going to get the five masks and complete the game, but yesterday wasn't my day in general; after playing it, I realized my invoice was late, and had to send it three times to correct a mistake, and of course Clinger was crying at the top of his cat lungs through all of this while I made a StaffMeUp profile to apply for a PA job I didn't get with Discovery Channel. In conclusion, Majora's Mask is bad luck.

But in all seriousness, I have a love/hate relationship with the game.

I love its dark story, atmosphere, and music, especially the masks and how they're used to progress through the game, not to mention that haunting animation whenever Link puts on one that transforms him.

Fucking Awesome

I hate, loathe and despise that fucking time mechanic. Don't get me wrong, it helps the cool story, and manages to add massive amounts of atmosphere to the game, but I just hate waiting; maybe if they added a song so you could choose what hour it was, as opposed to just going to day or night, it would be better. My favorite number is still three, you'd think I'd love a game that takes place across three days, and I do, but I also hate that mechanic it brings with it.

Not a fan.

What do you guys think of Majora's Mask? Are you like me, and would probably consider it the best Zelda if that time mechanic was changed or removed? Do you like the time mechanic? Do you not care for this game at all?

Speaking of my backlog, it's a lot bigger than I thought; out of 34 games I own I've never completed

1. Castlevania: Order of Ecclessia: didn't realize I needed a certain item to defeat a certain boss, game was hard enough already, got frustrated, quit

2. Donkey Kong 64: Loved it, got close to the end, but never actually finished it; I think I got caught up playing the old NES games in it

3. F-Zero GX: I almost don't want to count it, cause the difficulty is just stupid; I honestly don't even consider it my fault

4. Majora's Mask: see above

5. Pokemon Blue: Got past the Elite Four, but never all the way to the end; haven't played it since middle school

6. Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire: well... honestly, it's not a great game, so might not even count

7. Street Fighter X Mega Man: only got to Vega's stage

8. Spirit Tracks: another Zelda where I stopped just before the final boss.

So a little less than a quarter of my games I have not beaten; guess I'm not as completionist as I thought. Hell, if you count some of the sports titles that I'm not, it's even more incomplete.

Well, no matter, here's some music:

I started a "My Music Timeline" series on 1up where I mentioned Hanson's Mmbop and Garbage Version 2.0 were the first CDs I ever purchased at age eight from CD Warehouse, a place I miss dearly.

Though Mmbop was sold long ago in a garage sale, I've always loved Garbage's music, and didn't find this gem from last year until way too late. Damn good song, and ends my "favorites of 2012" list on Spotify, cause it has that amazing end-of-movie song feel to it.

The way Of Monster's and Men's My Head is An Animal CD was all I asked for Christmas last year, Mumford and Sons' Sigh No More was all I asked for in 2011, and I'm glad I did.

Dust Bowl Dance is the second to last song on the CD, and while it wasn't a single I don't believe, even though they had like five off this one, it was one of my favorites, perfectly conveying rage and despair with energetic and captivating instrumentation.

I came to know this band by reviewing their CD for the college radio station I DJ'd for (ksau.org), and fell in love with them. So atmospheric, catchy and not as well known as they should be; this song is actually my ringtone.

Matt Snee Staff Writer

03/06/2013 at 09:39 PM

you're right: Shadows of the Empire does NOT count. That game sucks.

Super Step Contributing Writer

03/06/2013 at 09:42 PM

Yeah, it pretty much does, especially the jet pack's annoying way of going out on you, but it is fun in parts; mostly the first part, then it just goes downhill. lol

Aboboisdaman

03/06/2013 at 10:17 PM

That time mechanic totally ruined Majora's Mask for me. I couldn't get over it. Give me A Link to the Past over that trash anyday.

03/06/2013 at 10:20 PM

I definitely understand the feeling. I felt exactly the same when I first rented it, and still don't like it, but the dark story and masks won me over.

BrokenH

03/06/2013 at 11:12 PM

Majora's mask is one of the scariest games I ever played and it doesn't even belong to the horror genre. It's sort of the "Apocalypse now" of the Zelda franchise.

03/07/2013 at 07:53 AM

It manages to create a sense of dread through its atmosphere, and it's just a Zelda game! Whoever did the story, art direction, and music, they all deserve a medal. lol

Halochief90

03/07/2013 at 12:55 AM

I don't like the time mechanic in Majora either. Yes, it did a lot of cool stuff with it but that wears off when it gets extremely difficult and stressful after the first dungeon. And it encourages backtracking far too much. It certainly allowed them to make the game just as long with a third the amount of content. Still, great game. If I ever get a Wii I will likely go and download it.

03/07/2013 at 07:55 AM

I think there actually might be as much content as other games, just in a much smaller geographical space, but yeah, I'm not a fan of having to retread my steps when I don't get somewhere right on time, after I already did a bunch of crap. Still great though, yes, despite the time thing.

smartcelt

03/07/2013 at 01:05 AM

Odd thing is,Hanson is still considered a big deal here in Tulsa. It's their home town. I really like that song by The Good Natured. Right up my alley,as I like bands with English female vocalists. I think it all started with Kim Wilde. I'm a big fan of hers to this day. To most she was a one hit wonder. But she had some great albums during the 80's and 90's. I never tried Majora's Mask. My son played it and said it was fantastic. I wonder if it's available in the Wii shop for virtual console. May download it if it is.

03/07/2013 at 07:58 AM

Well, I knew Hanson was still going, and now considered a decent rock band. I do take pride in having the only boy band I liked the one with members that actually played instruments. lol

I haven't really heard much by Kim Wilde, may have to check her out. We share that English female vocalist taste, as I almost put La Roux's "Bulletproof" in that spot.

Cary Woodham

03/07/2013 at 06:46 AM

It's definitely the darkest Zelda game. I never beat it because it came out at the unfortunate time that Banjo-Tooie was released a month later.

03/07/2013 at 07:59 AM

I played Banjo-Kazooie at a friend's, but I had Donkey Kong 64, which to me was better, so I never really felt the need to buy Banjo. All good games, though.

TheMart22

03/07/2013 at 08:47 AM

I purchased a second hand N64 back in 2011 and have Majoras Mask in my backlog. Someday i'll get to it but I have to get through Ocarina of Time first. I'm enjoying OoT but its hard to find the time

03/07/2013 at 09:08 AM

I was a late adopter for both this and OoT, and yeah, it can get hard to find time to sit down and actually play these ... MM is way worse though, because of that time mechanic. lol

I don't have to tell you beating OoT is well worth it.

Surfcaster

03/07/2013 at 08:59 AM

I played all the way through Majora's Mask and I only needed to get one more mask to get the Fierce Deity mask and I got so sick of the time mechanic I just quit, lol. This was years ago when it came out, so I don't remember all the specifics, but I remember whatever mask it was it took all three days and I kept messing something up.

I recently got a copy of it, though. Not sure if I'll play it any time soon, but it's one of those games that nags at me. That and Final Fantasy VIII, which I didn't finish because I missed something along the way and didn't think I could get Squall's final limit break.

03/07/2013 at 09:11 AM

Couple's Mask, most likely; it's the one that always gets me too.

I don't know about FFVIII, seeing as I don't play turn-based RPGs, but I do hate when I don't get that ONE item I need to progress, and it wasn't clear I needed it.

03/07/2013 at 09:58 AM

Couple's Mask, eh? That's probably it, all I remember is that it was poison!

I hate when I miss stuff so much!. What burned me even more was that a friend of mine and I were playing FFVIII at the same time, and it was kind of turning into a competition of who could finish the game most completely and first. It was never a spoken thing, but we'd both compare notes each day and see who was further. The same thing happened with Super Mario 64 and Ocarina of Time.

Anyway, I missed some magazine in a dream sequence that you need to get the final limit break, so I thought I could never get it (although I think I've read you still can). I found out later that he'd been playing with a strategy guide the whole time! So he had it, and I didn't. I just put the game down and never played it again, lol.

03/07/2013 at 01:23 PM

Yeah, without a strategy guide, I would have never gotten the masks I do have in Majora, so I can easily see getting pissed if I was in unspoken competition with someone having that advantage. lol

03/07/2013 at 11:14 AM

i just recently started playing Ocarina Of Time on 3DS. Fantastic game,really enjoy it. Never could get into some of the older Zelda titles,but I think they are all classic games. Oh....I just remembered a couple of female English singers I like that you may have heard of,both fairly well known ladies. Lily Allen and Kate Nash. I think Lily Allen has changed her name since getting married,though. Goldfrapp is another one,I like everything out there by them. Have it all in my iPod.

03/07/2013 at 01:26 PM

I have heard of Lilly Allen, her "Fuck You" song was popular when I was in high school. Kate Nash I've heard of, but I don't really know her music.

Goldfrapp I've never actually heard of, but I'll have to check them out.

03/07/2013 at 01:29 PM

Kate Nash is playing near me in a few weeks time. $10 tickets.... can't beat that! I really like her music

03/07/2013 at 02:10 PM

Bad Religion is coming to the House of Blues in Dallas, and it's only $25, but I can't find anyone to go with me lol

But $10? Just to get in to the Dallas county fair was $15 (and you had to pay for crap once you were in), so I'd love a $10 concert, that's a hell of a good price, especially for a good artist; hell, I'd give a bad artist a chance for that much.

03/07/2013 at 02:13 PM

Yeah for the wife and I with all the fees & taxes came to $28. A steal for sure. I was actually buying tickets for a band called Bloc Party at the same venue and spotted her listed above them

V4Viewtiful

03/07/2013 at 06:58 PM

Wimps Can't Handle the Time

But seriously i found no real problem with the time Mechanic (especially if you knew how to fast forward and slowdown), i thought it was a clever way to add both stress and tention and from my perspective matched the eventual rewards. On a personal level the game benefited from the time frame.

It's honestly my favourite in the series and i say it's the best, in fact think of it this way, if you where fustrated with the time mechanic or unhappy how do you think Link feels? It's rare for a game to intentionally evoke the emotion of a blank canvase

03/07/2013 at 11:49 PM

I'm ... not giving them credit for making me feel as frustrated as the character, that's any game that has a stressful level of difficulty. lol

I understand why people like the time mechanic, and I liked the concept, but for me the execution as far as some of the overlong sidequests was rage-inducing, and I did know how to fast forward and slow down time, but even then I get tired of inputting the notes every time.

I will give it credit in that it did help the story, some of the discussions had with people in the game are downright sombering because of the impending doom, but I just wish they had toned it down in some of these mask-getting sidequests.

PixlBit

GLaD 6: Majora's Mask, Backlogs, WTF Wednesday

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