Level Up: Megaman 5

Of all the times I’ve featured Capcom, and of course *Capcom time* here on the show, it’s surprising that I haven’t featured Megaman, one of their most popular series (challenged by Street Fighter and Resident Evil of course). The game play in it is great, and considering I have the Anniversary collection that came out in 2004, I can review a lot of his games. So, it only makes sense to start with the first one. ... buuut for no reason what-so-ever, I’m going to review Megaman 5 today.

I gotta start off by saying the music in the entire Megaman series ranges from good to amazing and is pretty much well received by all the critics. So, each time I review a game from the main Megaman series, I’m going to try to make a medley (try being the key word here). To comment on the music from Megaman 5 specifically, it’s generally pretty good. It may not be the greatest music (standing unnoticed at some points), but you should still be audibly satisfied.

I also can’t critique Megaman 5 too much on the graphics, because they also remain pretty good and standard throughout the series. Where I can critique Megaman 5 is with its design choices. See, ever since Megaman 3, there have been some gradual changes to make the game’s look a little too “kid friendly”. In Megaman 5 however, they seemed to go overboard with it. Some backgrounds look more like playground rides with vibrant colors, made worse by the NES’ limitation. The Robot Masters also seem a little messed up: Waveman, Crashman and Napalmman have a somewhat bloated look to them. There are also a few other design choices I don’t really approve of, but I think you get the point. I’m not saying they’re bad or will hurt your eyes or anything like that, just that it seems some of it could use more work, or maybe they just couldn’t achieve what they were really trying to do.

Now is when I have to address the real issue with Megaman 5: it is stagnant. See, all the previous additions to the Megaman series brought something new to the table (I’ll address each case when I review the appropriate game). Megaman 5, however, presented a game with nothing new to its game mechanics. (You can say Beat was added, but since he’s a secret weapon, I wouldn’t count it.) You might not call that a bad thing, since Capcom already established so much, but by this point you’d expected something more. There’s a little tweaking here and there, but nothing spectacular.

This wouldn’t be so bad if the rest of the game didn’t feel phoned in either, but sadly it does. I’m not just talking about the odd robot masters or the lame odd graphics, but the level design seems also phoned it. Granted, I shouldn’t complain too much since you do get interesting elements, like reversing the gravity in Gravityman’s level and things like that, but the ones that don’t go all out feel hollow. To use an appropriate simile, it feels like a sequel to a movie you like; you know they couldn’t quite reproduce the feeling of the first one, but some of it is there, and it’s still nice they tried I guess.

Despite the plot not having anything to do with game, I feel obliged to talk about it, partially cause it’s THERE and partially cause I still need to fill in time. But it does present an interesting twist. This time, it isn’t Dr.Wily that appears with 8 robot masters to cause general mayhem; it’s Protoman! Of course this is quite uncharacteristic of him, especially considering how he’s helped the Blue Bomber in the past. I’ll now activate another SPOILER ALARM to tell you that it ends up not being Protoman, and that it IS Dr.Wily behind it all along. The problem I have though isn’t that it now returns us to the standard; it’s that the SAME twist is used in Megaman 4. *Spoiler alarm goes off again* what? Oh, looks like I ruined two games for you, sorry. Like I said, it doesn’t matter, because it can be skipped just as easily. All of this just to repeat my point that Megaman 5 is just doing what its predecessors did.

Megaman 5 is still a very good game, because it’s still a Megaman man game. It looks good, sounds good, plays good and about what is expected. The problem is just that though; when a game does “what is expected” it means nothing about it stands out. Megaman 5 feels phoned in, like it was following some kind of guide and didn’t have as much thought or heart put into it. It also stagnated the series for two games adding almost nothing new. I wouldn’t tell you to stay away from this game, but definitely check out other Megaman games before it and, if you want to skip it, I wouldn’t hold it against you. I give Megaman 5 originally for the Nintendo Entertainment System 7 levels out of 10.

Level Up: DJ Hero

(Originally intended to be posted January 8th)

First off, sorry about not making an episode last week, and sorry about my presence today; I have an explanation for both of those. See, last week was New Years, and me and some friends decided to get together for some drinks. One thing led to another and… well the party only ended 36 hours ago. Seriously, it was wild; we ate 42 large pizzas total, had a jello swimming contest and Jack made over 100 dollars returning the empties. I think there were monkey’s there too, but I don’t remember. Anyways, at one point, part of the party was around the TV playing a video game, and I need to bring you a review anyways, so might as well review it. DJ Hero, for X-Box 360, PS3 or Wii as I have it.

Alright, I’m not in the mood to beat around the bush today, to I’ll just be up front: this is a game published by Activision, and by now, you should know my thoughts on what that company is able to produce. This shouldn’t come as much of surprise though since it carries the “Hero” title, much like the famous “Guitar Hero” series that they became the publishers of. (As a matter of fact, there is a mode where a guitarist can play along to certain songs in DJ Hero.) The game play between that series and DJ Hero is quite similar: play music by hitting coloured buttons when they hit the target zone. However, there are many game play mechanics that would obviously have to change between the two series. First off, the turn table requires scratching: this is when you hold a button and move the platter up and/or down to make the desired sound (the prompt for this is a long section of the corresponding colors or arrows going either up or down). Next we have the fadder. Each song in DJ Hero is actually two songs mixed in one. To switch from playing both “records” to only one, you’ll use the fader bar (prompt represent when a row takes a sudden side step). Just move the bar to corresponding side or to the middle when needed so the mix continues rocking.

The rest of the difference may not matter as much, but some were necessary and others just cool. For example, instead of activating Star Power by tilting the controller, you have euphoria, activated by hitting a button that turns red when available. You’ll also be given the ability to rewind the songs at certain points. All you have to do is spin the platter backwards and it’ll spin the tracks and… spinning… Whoa, wait a second *barfs* Ok, sorry there, I’m good. Anyways, this gives you the chance to hit notes a second time and is a great way to assure you get the highest score possible. Finally, you also have free style zones, where you can press the red button to play selected sound effects (when the middle row becomes wider) or turn the effects knob to warp the sound of which ever track is glowing at the time. They may not be that useful for points, but if you learn to use it the right way… it just sounds cool.

Of course the make or break aspect of any of these music based rhythm games is naturally the music. Here’s my thoughts on this song selection; unlike games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero, where you can hear the songs already on a CD or on the Radio, the mixes in DJ Hero are entirely original and you won’t get them elsewhere. And I have to admit this: I love Mashups. My theory on Mashups is that, if you like one song in the mix, a decent enough DJ would be able to make you enjoy it even more mixed (and they got some awesome DJ’s to make the songs in this game). For you not to like most of the mixes in this game, you would have to not like most of the songs used for them (which is bad news for you if you don’t like “Hollaback Girl” or any Daft Punk). All and all, I think the sound track for this game is great, and like Battle of the Bands, I think it’s worth getting this game alone.

All in all, I really enjoyed DJ Hero: though it is far from a perfect game. The graphics are a little weird (even though you won’t be looking at them anyways) even when compared to the way Guitar Hero has presented itself; it tries to be too “club” or something. Also, the whole concept might seem pointless to some people, since it’s just adding another peripheral game into the market. Speaking of the peripheral, the cost of getting it might also off put some potential buying costing about 100 buck Canadian for the game and a deck. But, as I’ve said, it’s the music that counts, and I love the mashups. Furthermore, the button layout on the platter makes me feel like I’m playing an arcade style game in some songs, so it still fun as a game. I give DJ Hero for the Nintendo Wii 9 levels out of 10.

Level Up: Popeye

Once again, Valentine’s Day quickly approaches. And as you scramble to find a gift for that special person in your life, just remember, video game characters have probably done a lot more for their lady love or gentlemen caller. This year’s example is once again lifted from a licensed story, but not one that’s commonly talked about now a day, similar to Felix the Cat. I’m not saying it’s obscure, because these characters rest in the back of all our minds. I think everyone listening knows who I mean when I talk about Popeye the Sailor Man. This is Popeye for the Nintendo Entertainment System.

The story is of course as classic as Popeye himself, though has no meat on it so to say… kind of like Olive Oyl. As usual (for her), she seems to have gotten herself into trouble: this time it seems Brutus has become infatuated with her and decided to keep her from Popeye. Oh, wait, there’s a mistake here on the page, it says his name is Brutus; it should be Bluto. *Producer: whispers* Wait, he’s called Brutus in this game? *Producer: yeah* But that doesn’t make sense, from what I gather he was only really called Brutus for a short time in the 60’s. I have no idea why they would call him that in this game, but I guess his sprite does meet the fatter, less muscular look given to “Brutus”. Anyways, sorry for getting distracted by a name difference, but that is actually more interesting then the plot that can easily be described as “Popeye saving Olive Oyl”. Let’s move on from both now.

Originally having been released for the arcade, this game is a very typical “arcade game”, meaning that most of the game will happen on one, fixed-camera screen until the level is done and the true goal is just to rack up as many points as possible. To save Olive Oyl, you have to collect the hearts/music notes/letters that she lets fall until you’ve gathered enough to move to the next round (the higher up you collect the falling object, the more points you earn). Brutus is constantly moving around each level and if he touches you (or hits you with a bottle) you lose a life. (Be careful, because he can jump up or down a floor, unlike Popeye, who needs to use the stairs). Your only real defense is your fists, which can take out the Sea Hag’s bouncing skulls and the bottles, but aren’t so useful against the big Brutus. But as always, Popeye has his trusty Spinach to help him! There is one can per level, and when you grab it, you can temporarily take Brutus out of the picture. Again, there’s not a whole lot of depth to the game play, but it is good classic fun. There’s no flaw in it, because for everything that hinders Popeye, something else seems to help him, and it all becomes part of the challenge. I enjoyed playing this game.

Originally I was going to end the review here and pair it up with another video game, since this is all I really have to say. But while researching this game, I found out something interesting. Did you know that if it weren’t for Popeye, Nintendo’s mascot Mario might not exist? Popeye was originally developed and released by Nintendo for the Arcades around 1982. Turns out, however, that the original Donkey Kong game, released in 81, was supposed to have a Popeye license. Due to complications revolving around the copyright laws, Nintendo wasn’t sure if they would be able to use the characters though. Instead of just scrapping the entire game, they decided to just replace the characters with original designs: Mario taking Popeye’s place, Donkey Kong for Bluto/Brutus and Pauline for Olive Oyl (and might I suggest that the hammer replaces spinach?). It really makes sense the more you think about it. As you probably all know by this point, THAT game was a smash success, and the demand for another similar game was very much alive at the time. After having properly obtained the licensing, this game was then released. This explains why the general look is similar, has sort of the same feel and many of the sound effects are reused. So, Popeye cause Donkey Kong and Mario to exist and the Donkey Kong video game caused the Popeye video game to be made. The rest is history.

I enjoyed the Popeye video game, and it has its place in history, but I have a hard time recommending it, generally because it hasn’t aged well. There’s next to no plot (nothing new for arcade games though). The graphics are well detailed at some points, like being able to see Popeye’s tattoo, but the backgrounds are jokes, with the boat one looking like it was drawn by a 4 year old. The music is slightly bland, and has it’s off key moments. Finally the game play, though fun in its style, is repetitive and pointless since it doesn’t save the scores on this port. If you like old arcade games (such as Donkey Kong or Pac-man), do yourself a favor and play this, but as a general recommendation, I can’t give it as high of a score as I want to. I give Popeye for NES 7.5 levels out of 10.

Level Up: Halo: Combat Evolved

Well, it’s that time of the year again: the holiday season. And with “Weird Al” playing in the background, I can’t help but think of two things; game gifts and constant slaughter. So, how about this time I combine the two? Now, granted this game wasn’t given to me as a gift during the holidays, it was still a gift. Plus I think the title more the makes it appropriate for a review at this time of the year. That’s right, I am reviewing the somewhat considered classic, Halo: Combat Evolved for the X-Box.

I need to start with the story, and, I know that it has gotten a lot more complicated with the recent additions, but I am going to review it as my interpretation of how THIS GAME presents it. You pretty much start off in the middle of an ongoing war between the humans and a race called the Covenant in the 26^th century. The Covenant followed the human marines and attack them while near an unknown ring like structure in space. The humans decide to “wake up” Master Chief (the player character) since he’s kind of a trump card after being one of the few surviving members of an earlier battle a few decades ago. With stuff not going quite as well as the Humans would have liked, Master Chief is asked to take Cortana, an artificially Intelligence presented as a human female hologram, so that they don’t get a hold of the information she contains. After fighting them off, Master Chief then gets into an escape pod and lands on the mysterious ring (with oddly earth-like landscape) This is of course the giant ring known as Halo.

I am going to stop now for two reasons. Partially cause if I go any further, I think I would be ruining it for some people, and I found the plot twists to still be well kept secrets, so who am I to ruin them? Secondly, I want to talk about how well the plot is presented. It’s pacing is spectacular; repeated levels of “you need to kill the covenant” may start off exciting, but I can imagine lose their substance after a while. In Halo however, just as you may tire of it, BAM, something happens and the game has your attention again. Also, the suspense of the game can just be killer after one of these twists. It can really suck you in a go along with it in a very “I know something’s going to happen, but I don’t know what or when” fashion. Finally, the game has a way of guiding you that just seems natural. More on that in a minute. To wrap up the story; if you thought this game was just about shooting anything that moves, you’d be very surprised.

The game play is a joy. I know the multiplayer is probably the aspect most people are familiar with, but I kinda follow the Yhatzee ideology that “it’s the single played that counts.” Though, to touch on the subject, it is fun, and the system link that this game presents was revolutionary at the time.

Anyways, the controls play smoothly. As usual for first person shooters now, the analog sticks move your character and change your view, which makes seeing your enemies to gun them down easy. The right trigger button fires your gun, which comes naturally, since it’s relatively the same action to fire a gun. All the other buttons (which I won’t get into individually) also do something nessecary and they are very well placed. It easily becomes a second nature; even if you haven’t played Halo: Combat Evolved in a while, you can still pretty much just pick it up and you’ll remember how to play. Also, I have to mention that this was pretty much THE first game to correctly utilise and popularize regenerating shields.

The levels are also great. Remember how I said that the game seems to guide you in a way that feels natural? It’s like that for the game play too. Despite most of the maps seeming very large and open, I was aware that there was pretty much a path I had to follow, and rarely was it that I went off adventuring fruitlessly. Honestly, I think that might be my favourite thing about this.

I could still go on for a while, but I need to wrap this up to get to my eggnog. The game is fun; it plays well, works well and was designed well. The story is captivating, immersive and suspenseful. The music is amazing, perfectly fitting every moment it comes in and uses silence to its advantage (I still cower a bit when I hear the hunter’s theme). Finally, the graphics are great considering this was a one of the first games for the console. I honestly don’t think I have anything bad to say about this game; it sucks you in and makes you enjoy the ride, and even though you’re the one driving, it’s telling you the path without you knowing it. I hate having to do this so soon after my Majora’s Mask review, and knowing there are other games in the Halo series every says “improved” on it, but Bungie Studios and Microsoft Games presented me with something great that started a phenomenon. I give Halo: Combat Evolved 10 levels out of 10.

Level Up: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (Genesis)

Let me tell you another story of my gaming childhood. If you were around in the fourth console generation era, then you would know that the Power Rangers were very popular back then. Unsurprisingly, they had a few games based on them. There was one I remember playing for the Super Nintendo that was pretty good, and all my friends seemed to like it too. However, it was rented and I didn’t have the ability to purchase it at the time. Flash forward over a decade later when I decide to finally get a Sega Genesis with opportunity to get a game by the same title for just 4$ at the same time. Thinking it was the same game, I couldn’t pass it up. It wasn’t the same game. At all. This is Mighty Morphin Power Rangers FOR THE SEGA GENESIS!

Now, the plot is where I’m going to go easy on this game, because if I run my mouth off too much, someone will say the Power Rangers are why it fails. The basic story line of the arcade mode is that Rita Repulsa is trying to destroy the Power Rangers by sending monsters after them. That’s alright, but my problem is the way it’s presented: it’s far too quickly paced; a monster comes, you beat it, Rita makes it grow, you beat it, next. This especially annoys me when you fight the Green Ranger, because that story had a lot to offer, but all that is never even TOUCHED on. Also, the way it’s presented is terrible; everyone in (what I am graciously calling) the cut-scenes looks like they’re cardboard and most of the scenes are reused to an annoying amount. And remember, this is me going easy on this game.

You know how normally, when I review 2D fighters, I say how I don’t like them, yet every time I’ve reviewed them, it’s been alright? Well, this is an example of one that I don’t like, and I think it illustrates why. First off, there is nothing original about this one: characters are all licenced from the Power Rangers while the fighting system is as basic as you can get. It’s pretty much just cut and pasted from the standard Fighting game format where all you have to do is “insert characters here” and make up some random button combinations for moves. The second problem with the game play is that everything seems to be slow. Moving your character feels stiff and I think there’s a delay in the button response. It definitely takes away from the fact that this is based on a show known for karate action. I actually think I can win more battles by tossing the controller around, then trying to play.

If you’re thinking the last redeemable aspect of this game might be its audio/visuals, then you’re sadly mistaking. As I’ve already mentioned, the cut scenes look like they are made with cardboard. Adding to that, any image taken from the show looks like it had a layer of feces smeared on it. The game made sprites suck too. The Power Rangers look… inhuman, like they’re flat or missing detail. The monsters, however, have the opposite problem: they are overly detailed, which clashes with the rangers (mind the pun). The Megazord also clashes since it’s done in a cartoon style, which is honestly the best looking sprite in the game (except for a tiny sword). Also; the cut-scenes, game over screen an actual game all look like they’re from completely different sources. At least pick ONE crappy look and stick with it!

The sound isn’t at all better either. Everything seems somewhat Atari quality. The voices should have been left out since it’s obvious they couldn’t be properly converted. Each note of the music tends to ring out with its own mix of mediocrity and disappointment. None of it makes me want to fight harder: it makes me want to turn off the volume. The worst offense is what they did to the theme song. Remember how awesome this was: *theme song plays*? Right, listen to this crap: *Genesis version plays*. It’s despicable.

Right, let me just finish this now, cause I don’t want to talk about this game much longer. The story is uninspired and rushed, the look is consistent only in crappiness, the sound is broken, the controls are stiff and the AI is cheap. God, even the game label art is horrible; off centered, poorly chosen and boring. (You really should look it up and see how bad it is.) A game like Xiaolin Showdown can be boring and unoriginal, but get a pass if it’s not flawed, because that’s what separates a good game from a bad game to me. This is flawed. I think if I had played this game instead of the SNES one as a kid, I would have given up on the Power Rangers long before Turbo. Congratulations Banpresto, you’re the developers of the first game I give a failing score to. I give Mighty Morphin Power Rangers for the Sega Genesis 4 levels out of 10.

Level Up: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game

I don’t know why, but when it comes to the subject of the Ninja Turtles, I always think they work better as video game characters. Yes, I know they were originally comic book characters and popularised by a TV show, but whenever I think of my earliest enjoyment of the 4 brothers, I always tend to go back to the NES games. Think about it, these are giant reptiles’ fighting robots, what about that doesn’t SCREAM video game? The popularity of the TMNT has died down since the 80’s and early 90’s, and so has their appearance in video games, but one of the games I still hear people bring up today is Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Listen and you’ll see there’s a good reason why.

Now, I’m going to get this out of the way right now: yes this is called an arcade game when it is really a console game. The explanation is simple: it’s a port. The arcade game was just originally called Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, but a game by that title already existed on the NES’s library. Despite liking it as a 6 year old, I now see that it is a flawed game (mostly thanks to the AVGN), which would explain why they decided to port this much better game. Looking at the screenshots (since I never played the original arcade machine), I can notice just a few differences between the versions. One is a severely downgraded look (16 bit to 8 bit it appears) which is to be expected and luckily handled well. The second is that the arcade version allowed for 4 played, while you can only play 2 on the NES port. Disappointing yes, but what are you going to do with the Four Score only coming out in that same year? However, not all changes between the versions are downgrades: upon doing a little research, I found out that there are actually MORE levels in the NES port. There are other changes, but most of them just don’t matter. So, if you’re like me and aren’t bothered too much about the downed graphics or the two missing turtles on screen, then this might be one of those ports that’s more fun than the original.

In true typical Ninja Turtles fashion, the main focus of the game is a “Stop/Defeat Shredder plot” with of course the need to save April at one point. To do this, you need to beat up wave after wave of Foot soldiers coming at you, by far the most common enemy. You also do have some Mouser Unit and other random robots, not to mention the boss battles, which feature known turtle rivals such as Bebop, Rocksteady, Baxter Stockman and others, so don’t think it’ll get too boring. Even the Foot Soldiers themselves aren’t that dull since they come in noticeably different colors and have different abilities: some wield weapons while others can jump or have better endurance. All this to say “Don’t think you’ll get bored by the beating up of enemies”.

As a matter of fact, the way you beat them up is pretty fun on its own. Unlike other typical brawlers like Streets of Rage, when the Turtles jump in this game, they FLY! This helps with the combos, which includes ones that may make the game a little too easy, but might be useful for someone just looking to beat the game. Anyways, the combat system is otherwise basic: you can move in 8 different directions while you simply try to punch the surrounding bad guys out before they do it to you. If all of this still isn’t enough to keep you satisfied, then maybe the level designs will: they’re full of things that could take your life away (such as mines, holes you can fall down or giant balls that can knock you over) that will need your attention. And there is also a skateboarding level, and that’s pretty cool in itself.

Like I said when I started, this game is a classic. On the surface, its music is kicking, the graphics are “ok” and there’s generally nothing to complain about. Playing the game itself is just a joy: easy game play that’s always familiar, but with enough of a challenge to keep it interesting. It also has a really smooth style and is well paced. But… there’s just something missing, and I think its variety: you still fight a lot off Foot Soldiers (who are easily dispatched) and most of the levels are just areas around New York, which is a little bland. That might not be the whole problem, which I can’t really put my finger on otherwise, but it could be a factor. Anyways, this game is great; if you haven’t played it, I am ashamed of you, but seriously, go find a copy (it’s apparently coming to the Wii Virtual console soon too). I give Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 for the Nintendo Entertainment System 9 Levels out of 10.

Level Up: Majora's Mask

First, gonna say, I don't know what's up with the previous post, but I can't delete it. However, it's just image and text, so it's not hurting anyone. I'll just leave it. Anyways, here's the review that wasn't posted last week cause of it.

When I did my review of The Legend of Zelda: The Phantom Hourglass, I felt as if I was being a little unfair to the series. The point I was trying to make was that every game that Zelda touches isn’t automatically great, and some should just be considered on their own. The reason I felt bad though was because I was using an already beat down game to make that point, which made me feel like I was picking on the series for doing ONE bad thing. To make up for it, I am going to review a Zelda game that truly does stand on its own, The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask for the Nintendo 64.

Coming off the success of Ocarina of Time (the game all future Zelda titles would be compared to) Majora’s mask was trying to continue on Link’s adventure, but I would consider this more of a spin-off, since so much is different. You start off as young Link travelling on Epona looking for unnamed friend (it’s hinted to be Navi, who doesn’t appear in this game, but this plot point never comes up again anyways). During his search, Link gets knocked out and knocked off Epona by a skull kid wearing an odd mask. Waking up and realising that his magical ocarina has been stolen from, Link chases after the Skull kid only to fall down a hole. The Skull Kid laughs at Link and uses the mask’s power to turn Link into a Deku shrub. (Yeah, crap has already hit the fan.) The Skull kid then escapes, but leaves behind Talt, who reluctantly becomes Link’s fairy for this game. Link loses the Skull Kid, but meets up with Traveling Happy Mask Salesman. He informs our transmuted protagonist that he can help him out, but needs the Ocarina and would like the mask the Skull Kid had on (which was stolen from him) back. Link is given 3 days to complete this task.

I am now going to stop here, even though I could go on forever about the little details in this game’s story. It has a lot of depth and cool happenings in it. However, part of the fun of the game is experiencing it all first hand. Besides, this is where the game actually begins, and I think that’s a fair reason to move onto the game play.

If you haven’t guessed it already from our “No Ganon, no Zelda, no Hyrule” plot, this game is anything but typical for the series, and there are two Big curve balls to the game play: a time cycle and the masks. It has the normal Zelda adventuring elements, but these are the points WORTH mentioning.

I’ll start with the masks. I already told you that Young Link gets turned into a Deku, but eventually the Happy Mask Salesman helps him out by turning Link’s Deku form into a mask, allowing Link to transform back into one whenever he wants. There are a total of 3 transformation masks that Link will be able to use at any time: Zora, Goron and the already mentioned Deku. As you would imagine, each one has its own use (example: Zora has limitless swim ability and will never drown). There are other types of masks and they all do something special (mostly obtained during or relating to side quests), but these 3 are the real game play element; you’ll always be using them. And rolling around as a Goron is so fun it’s worth mentioning.

The 3 day cycle, though not as fun, is something that was just inspired. Majora’s Mask has a clock in the game that works on 3 (not real time) days. At the end of the third day, it’s game over. However, after you get back your Ocarina, you can go back to the start of the first day. The truly inspired thing is that this game is full of events, and some of them just happen at certain times. For example, there’s an alien abduction scene (once again, far from typical Zelda) and it only ever happens during the night of the second day. You should eventually become impressed by how much time specific stuff is happening in this game outside of the actual adventuring. Restarting the 3 day cycle, however, will undo some events, such as paths you unblocked or people you helped. While this can seem like a headache (especially since its how you save) I think it helps with the replay value of this game: you can redo any dungeon you would like at any time.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask is an awesome game not afraid to take risks. Yet, it’s also quite similar to Ocarina of time without being a direct sequel by making references to some of the bit characters seen before and giving it more depth (the Happy Mask Salesman for example). Some may critic it for being short (4 real levels, plus the intro and outro) but the side quests should keep you busy for a while. This game is just all around enjoyable: from the natural feeling setting, to the fun game play, to the creepy pasta story and cut-scenes. Seriously, what can you hate about a game with a gold cartridge? Especially one that lets you roll around as a Goron! I give the Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 10 levels out of 10.