Arguably the darkest and most mature Zelda of all, a wistful and twisted rumination on friendship, depression and the myriad of human reactions when faced with impending, inevitable death. A game in which "saving the world" means actually saving the people that inhabit it, and helping them reconnect with one another - that's the true strength of the game, showing how important the connections we have with others are, and how those connections make us human.
Often overshadowed by the mythical, genre-defining Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask is a completely different beast wearing a very similar skin - far from the "epic quest" template its older sibling mostly has, MM opts for a far more intimate, often off-kilter and psychedelic, tone. And the game doesn't chicken out of hitting you 'right in the feels' - one of the most poignant themes of the game ends up being that, no matter how hard you try, you just cannot save everyone. You just try to make the most good you can.

Even though its temples aren't among the greatest of the series (though you might personally disagree) and the 3-day-time-limit is everpresent (though manageable through use of the Song of Inverted Time once you get back your ocarina), gameplay feels like a refined version of OoT - young Link has more items in his arsenal and masks this time are an essential component of the gameplay, from the 'main' ones that transform you into a Deku/Goron/Zora, to other ones who still give some powerup or special power, to some that are purely cosmetic but are relevant to advancing certain sidequests.

Speaking of sidequests - they might be the best in the entire saga. The development of NPCs in this game hadn't been seen in a Zelda game before and some of them have emotional arcs that resonate even today. Shouts out to Anju & Kafei, Romani & Cremia, and the little girl with his father in Ikana Valley, some of the finest and most emotional arcs I've experienced.

All in all, a flawed masterpiece in my eyes, with some of the most mature themes you can find in a Nintendo game.

Great music, slightly disappointing overworld, better version of the incredibly obnoxious repeating dungeon mechanic from PH, absolutely amazing Princess Zelda.

I really appreciated she was a consant companion in this game and she had a perfectly good character arc instead of being "just" a damsel in distress. Plus her interactions with Link were funny as hell.

It's a shame the game basically railroads (pun intended) you from place to place, severely limiting exploration - plus, the "New Land" lore is a bit underwhelming too, considering the possibilities after TWW. It's the closest thing to steampunk and yet it's undercooked and underutilized.

Still, its good parts (music, Princess Zelda) elevate it. I wouldn't say it's a top tier Zelda game, but it's not really bad either.

Great expansion, slightly downer ending (but that's somewhat necessary considering how BG2 starts). The underlying mechanics of the game obviously start to show its age, but it's a good experience considering it was done like... 15 years after Baldur's Gate 2 released, it was a good way of connecting the narrative threads of both games while, at the same time, presenting you with a main quest that's its own thing and features its own climax and resolution, apart from the connective tissue between the games.
All in all, I very much enjoyed it.

It's very fun and addictive, but its story is a ridiculously bad, Power Rangers-tier, narrative. Hell, even PR in Space might have a better narrative than this one.

You might not play Diablo games for the narrative, but they had a certain style and tone it's completely missing here. It's not about being colorful (D2 had plenty of color at times, a veritable rainbow of garish colors when certain attacks were performed), it's about the tone, atmosphere and mood of the game. It's missing all that.

On the other hand - it is quite fun. And attacking feels weighty, crunchy, satisfying. You click click click and monsters go boom. Probably all there is to it.

The narrative crapped on itself so bad it's infuriating only taking that into account.

Of course, it's even more infuriating considering how much it changed throughout development and how different the end product was to the myriad trailers they showed. Even so, the moment-to-moment gameplay wasn't as good as its predecessors - wasn't particularly a fan of the "combat arena" level design.

There's some very memorable characters, however, and that's probably the game's biggest triumph. Until, well, they basically turn one into a f'n monster (figuratively) and the game goes "both sides".

Still, the ending is quite effective and it works beautifully... especially if you disregard the plot of the "Burial at Sea" DLCs. Best to ignore them, even if you'd want to experience the Bioshock 1 fanservice. At least, what happened in those DLCs soured me so bad I wish I'd never played them.

how much it falls during its last part is only a testament to how good it is during its first part.

A triumph in art design and atmosphere - gameplay hasn't aged as well (I think BS2 improved it only in that regard) and the narrative takes a bit of a nosedive right after the climax, but when it's good, it's damn good.

On a personal note, it sparked my love for Art Deco. Only for that I'll always be thankful.

Install the Moguri Mod first, it's almost essential for PC I'd say.

The game itself is a flawed gem, a whimsical meditation on the ephemeral nature of life, the inevitabilty of death and the necessity of finding meaning. Vivi, Dagger and Steiner have top tier arcs. The backgrounds are incredibly beautiful and the music is yet another Uematsu masterwork.

I recommend it knowing it is flawed (some of the characters are lightweights in terms of development; some of their designs are questionable, to say the least; the game's tone might not be what you expect/want after VII and VIII; the battles are slow as hell -which can be fixed in this remaster and even more with the Moguri Mod; how 'Trance' works is half-baked; Tetra Master isn't a very good minigame tbh), because I felt a lot of its better parts are very good indeed. I was able to look past these flaws to discover, and be amazed by, a beautiful labor of love.