The thing I loved about MM was that, for me, the puzzles were more interesting. I liked trying to make everything happen in one day. It was sort of like groundhogs day the video game.
For anyone who liked A Link to the Past the best, you might want to check out A Link Between Worlds for the DS. It’s very similar to Link to the Past, it feels like a “What if there was a true sequel to LttP that came out a year later, for the SNES”. Total nostalgia cash in, and I didn’t mind.
For more opinions, check out the Zelda Timeline 2.0 (parody of the nonsensical official Zelda Timeline).
A Link to the Past is my fav. Massive mechanical improvements compared to the first two and every Zelda after was highly derivative of its structure, especially the double world gimmick and dungeon and item layouts. Plus you can beat it in a single sitting. Ocarina of Time deserves props for the 3D transition, which could have been a disaster, but it also introduced a lot of stuff I don’t particularly care for.
Generally, I prefer the top down 2D titles instead of the 3D counterparts, because:
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The action is faster and less clunky, since there’s no need for “realisitc” swing animations or movement speed.
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For whatever reason, Nintendo makes them more difficult. Enemy attacks actually hurt and you might have to pay attention to dodge them compared to the 3D ones.
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Much less story bloat, no five minute cutscenes or sweeping camera pans.
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Gets to the point right away, no huge tutorials or intro sections. Twilight Princess being the worst offender, takes like 45 minutes to get to the actual game.
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The world design is focused and compact, so it doesn’t take several minutes to cross a field on a horse and other nonsense like that. The 3D versions are dragged down by filler in general, like they’re trying to find excuses to make the gamer longer and “epic,” whether it’s Wind Waker’s ridiculous ocean or the obnoxious flying hub in Skyward.
The 3D titles are better for atmosphere (e.g. Majora’s Mask) and sometimes characters. Midna was probably my favorite NPC of the whole series. She’s just so snarky and condescending, whereas everyone else in the series tends to kiss Link’s boots.
Link to the Past is my favourite, though I’ve only played Legend of Zelda, Zelda II, Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time, Majora’s Mask and Link Between Worlds.
Link Between Worlds was a lot of fun, but I wish the hero mode had been selectable from the start. The normal difficulty was a little too easy, and I wasn’t interested in a second playthrough after finishing it. Maybe some day.
As someone who has only really played Zelda, Zelda II and A Link to the Past, my vote without question goes to the latter. In fact, A Link to the Past is my favorite video game I’ve ever played.
By popular acclamation, it’s Ocarina of Time. I haven’t played it or several others in the series so I’m not a reliable source on the subject.