Rank the LOZ Series

[blackmageheart]

Odd that you all go on about Tetra but this did have Shiek where Zelda was a total bad ass who then became a oh no trapped in a prison, clasp hands girly girl again.

This is true, and I thought it not worth mentioning, as I don't like Sheik at all. The difference for me is that Sheik was a disguise for Zelda, while Tetra was an actual person, who the unlocked Zelda replaced.

[BooChocoBoom]

Oof this is a tough topic. I am kinda with Jadely there - I've only finished a handful. So....

1. Link to the Past
2. Ocarina of Time
3. Legend of Zelda
4. Adventure of Link

LTTP - I have also played this over and over and over and over and have every copy they released of it. The music! The story! The graphics! Can't go wrong with this one.
OoT - I honestly really liked it. It was one of the few polygon games I thought they did well. I could actually aim and shoot my arrows, ride my horse, and (with BMH here) fish! I'll be honest, I spent an exhorbitant amount of time riding around on Epona catching Poes. Plus that wonderful, wonderful music. On a side note - I also own all possible releases of this game and it IS pretty spectacular in 3D.
LoZ - A classic but still a real PITA, especially when doing it the second time around (i.e. inputting "Zelda").
AoL - Had me pulling my hair out but the music still sticks with me. One summer my bff and I whipped out the game genie to finally beat this sucker in a day (because you couldn't turn it off or it would lose everything!).

I HAVE actually played most of the others in some way, shape or form but none of them have held my interest long enough to finish them (or I didn't have the system when things came out...like Link's Awakening). Case in point: at the moment I am still largely immersed in Skyrim and Diablo 3 so Skyward Sword sits collecting dust (sorry, Link).

[blackmageheart]

at the moment I am still largely immersed in Skyrim and Diablo 3 so Skyward Sword sits collecting dust (sorry, Link).

Same here. Skyward Sword just got tossed aside for Skyrim, but to be honest I found it kinda dull anyway. I might go back to it some time and see if I can get through it to give it a proper review (I'm only at the start of the first dungeon, so I've a long way to go)!

[Icelandic Hitman]

Odd that you all go on about Tetra but this did have Shiek where Zelda was a total bad ass who then became a oh no trapped in a prison, clasp hands girly girl again.

Ach, that's a good point you bring up. But the radical feminist in me rankles at the fact that Badass Zelda had to pass as male.

She didn't have to be a male to be bad arse, she had to be male to avoid being found and kidnapped.

[RMDC]

Odd that you all go on about Tetra but this did have Shiek where Zelda was a total bad ass who then became a oh no trapped in a prison, clasp hands girly girl again.

Ach, that's a good point you bring up. But the radical feminist in me rankles at the fact that Badass Zelda had to pass as male.

She didn't have to be a male to be bad arse, she had to be male to avoid being found and kidnapped.

They didn't have to write the plot that way, and it wasn't even really a necessity within the plot itself. I just get frustrated at how female characters are forced into a trichotomy of gender extremes: wilting flower, hypersexualized eye candy, or an overdone male-appropriation role. Zelda is a powerful sorcerer and competent swordswoman, and apparently a frightening ninja lady. There was no need for her to fit into any one of the three extremes, let alone two of them.

I loved Zelda in Twilight Princess, where I feel she was least stereotypical and most Zelda. I only wish she'd gotten more screentime.

[blackmageheart]

They didn't have to write the plot that way, and it wasn't even really a necessity within the plot itself. I just get frustrated at how female characters are forced into a trichotomy of gender extremes: wilting flower, hypersexualized eye candy, or an overdone male-appropriation role. Zelda is a powerful sorcerer and competent swordswoman, and apparently a frightening ninja lady. There was no need for her to fit into any one of the three extremes, let alone two of them.

I was going to make this point yesterday, although possibly not as eloquently put, before my pc decided it didn't like what I was doing. Thank you for doing so!

[Icelandic Hitman]

They didn't have to write the plot that way, and it wasn't even really a necessity within the plot itself. I just get frustrated at how female characters are forced into a trichotomy of gender extremes: wilting flower, hypersexualized eye candy, or an overdone male-appropriation role. Zelda is a powerful sorcerer and competent swordswoman, and apparently a frightening ninja lady. There was no need for her to fit into any one of the three extremes, let alone two of them.

I was going to make this point yesterday, although possibly not as eloquently put, before my pc decided it didn't like what I was doing. Thank you for doing so!

TP completely validates your point as she is in hiding and yet just herself.

The Epic plot hole is and I always did wonder this. If Zelda can summon swords, hold him down with magic and make the special weapon that kills him a.) how did she get kidnapped in the first place, b.) why didn't she just kill him then and there. But this is a dangerous path to take, why don't people care you come into their house and smash every pot, steel all their money again and again, why don't they use locks after the first time? Why do beans grow in 5 seconds? Why do people not care if it takes you 3months do something? Who asks you to find chickens when the whole world is going to hell? How do you cut a ghost with a sword? Then if it can move through trees and the ground, why not a glass jar? How does a body of water shallow enough for link to stand in hold a 50ft fish and 300 other fish? Which QA person let the water temple through.

Oot seemed to want to collect the female stereotype set.
The easy Farmers Daughter ( Malon )
The jump everything it sees teenager ( Ruto )
The girl next door ( Saria )
The Body Building butch ( Impa )
The Tough Independent ( Nabooru )
The star eyed finding true love is the only thing to do in the world ( Dancing Couple Girl )
Damsel in Distress ( Cucco Lady )
Evil old Crow ( Granny )
Gold Digger ( Mamamu Yan )
Alt girl who really doesn't care ( Bombachu store owner )
Prostitutes ( The great fairies )

You couldn't make it worse if you tried... oh wait there was the US ad.........

Nintendo are looking for a way to reinvent the series, maybe the next one should be the Real Legend of Zelda staring

[RMDC]

I agree 100% with everything you said.

Which QA person let the water temple through.

[rogueprincess20]

My all time favorite Zelda game is ALttP and my least favorite is Skyward Sword, I didn't even finish it I couldn't get past the controls. If there was a way to not use motion control ( and maybe there is) I would finish it. I don't know if I need a new sensor bar or if the controls are just that horrible but it took me days to get past the beginning flying crap and I think that was just dumb luck.

Links Awakening I always get stuck at the beginning because I'm an idiot. Minish Cap was good. I even liked OoT and Majoras Mask I never finished the last temple. I haven't played Links Adventure on the NES in years but as a kid it drove me nuts. Twilight Princess was pretty good but I have it on the Gamecube and I think if I had it on the Wii I would have probably hated the controls.

[LinkIsMyHomeboy]

1) Ocarina of Time-Despite the fact that the controls were a bit clunky, there are some plot holes, and the water temple is a bitch, this is, and probably always will be, the top of the TLOZ list for me. I found the game to be beautiful (and even more so in the 3DS version) and the storyline was great. I don't get all feminist on the series and say Zelda's role was "oppressed." She's the damsel in distress...she always has been. There are plenty of other games out there with strong female leads who kick ass...Zelda has her place and I prefer her to stay in it.
2) A Link to the Past-VERY close second to OoT. This one will always hold a special place in my heart because it was the first Zelda game that I really got into with the help of my mother. I get along with my parents just fine and love my mother, but we don't have a lot in common. We both like the TLOZ series and while playing ALTTP, if I needed help, I would always go to her. Granted, this was the days before walkthroughs being readily available on the internet, but I still would have asked her for help regardless.
3)Phantom Hourglass-Though I am still an avid "cartoon Link" hater, I didn't let that get in the way of enjoying this game. Yes, playing through the central temple over and over was a bit tedious, but after doing it so many times, I hardly had to think when going back through the levels I had previously done.
4)Skyward Sword-I was very, very against purchasing this game when I found out there wouldn't be any other way to play besides Wii-mote...and then release day came and I drove around to 5 different places to find the special edition with the gold Wii-mote. ::sigh:: But I am really glad I caved. The game is beautiful (albeit, a little glitchy) and I really liked how ethereal everything looked. I was annoyed with having to defeat "The Imprisoned" over and over, but that wasn't unlike doing the dungeon in PH. Flying was a little glitchy and the Wii-mote (even with motion plus) didn't always react right, but it was MUCH better than trying to play Twilight Princess on the Wii.
5)Twilight Princess (GameCube version-couldn't get through Wii version)-This game was just beautiful. I loved the shape-shifter aspect, the fact that this was a more mature game, and Midna is a great character. Nothing much more to say about this one, other than the Wii version frustrated me to no end, so I now own a copy of this game on both Wii and GameCube.
6) Wind Waker-I can appreciate this game for being a little bit more on the silly/fun side. Yes, there are perils and monsters and fighting, but I feel Nintendo wasn't taking themselves too seriously with this one. I did have some issues with the controls on this one from time to time, but nothing that is atypical of Nintendo's usual glitches.
7) Spirit Tracks-I have yet to complete this one, but I'll be damned if I let this one be lower on my list than Majora's Mask. I'm not a huge train fan, so this one is pretty low on my list. I don't like how slow travelling by train is. Or the stupid monster trains that you can't really defeat or outrun.
8) TLOZ, AoL, LA-I lumped all of these together as one because none of the three really stand out above the other two. TLOZ is pretty much impossible to beat (I've only done it twice), AoL kind of has the feel that SMB2 had...kind of like it didn't belong in the series (at least in my opinion). LA-I honestly don't really remember playing the game. I had to Google it to remind me exactly which one it was and I do recall it now, but I shouldn't have to do that if it's a great game.
9) Majora's Mask-bane of my existence as a TLOZ fanatic. I still, to this day, have not beaten that game because, and please pardon my language here, it is a total and complete mind-*! I don't like the 72 hour time constraint thing. I find it very limiting and it makes me feel stupid that I can't figure the damn thing out! Plus, that moon is creepy and I made the mistake of reading the haunted video game urban legend.

There's my opinion on the matter. Take it for what it's worth.