Either I'm bad, or some of the puzzles in this game are a bit obtuse. Maybe both.
The gameplay just isn't as fun as it was in the 90s. The combat is rough, which is appropriate, as it's essentially a prototype for every 3D action-adventure to come after it. Still, it's hard to get excited by any of the encounters this game puts in front of you. Many fights boil down to either mindlessly swinging at an enemy or patiently waiting for them to expose their weak spot. Challenges that involve platforming or timing are as much a test of your ability to wrangle the camera as they are of your skill. The puzzles are largely functional, but sometimes feel a bit clunky to engage with. Case in point: I almost got stuck in Ganon's castle looking for a way to set something on fire. I tried shooting an arrow through a torch, but it didn't work. After running around hunting for another option, disappointed that a cool, creative solution didn't work, I eventually looked it up, and a guide suggested using fire arrows (what? I never got those--apparently they're tucked away around the lake somewhere, but I never found much reason to go back there)--or shooting an arrow through that same torch. I had solved the puzzle; it just didn't work the first god-knows-how-many-times I tried, so I went back to painstakingly lining up shots until I eventually got it. At least the 3DS version of this game offers gyro controls to make aiming more manageable, but in this case, it just wasn't clear how my aim was off to begin with. The N64 version of this and Majora's Mask have some of the twitchiest, roughest first-person aiming I've ever used--understandable for such an innovative game, but that doesn't make it any more fun to deal with.
To me, this moment is a microcosm of my whole experience with Ocarina of Time; clever ideas meet clunky execution. Interesting puzzles are let down by "wait, am I doing this right" moments. Exciting bosses give way to combat mechanics that just aren't as fast or responsive as you really want them to be. The overworld strikes an impressive balance between open and dense, but exploring it doesn't always feel as rewarding as it could. The game's world is unforgettable, but the way it signals the right sequence of actions to progress the main quest oscillates between that of a parent holding your hand and that of Bilbo Baggins asking Gollum what's in his pocket. The outline of a great game is here, but it's colored in with the details of a decent one. Plenty of great games have weaker elements, and all masterpieces show their age in one way or another, but for me, Ocarina of Time's worst parts were never unobtrusive enough to be totally subsumed by the good bits.
Still, the atmosphere is undeniably legendary for a reason, and the sound design is some of the best ever. The visuals, even in the N64 version, exude style, making them far more timeless than they have any right to be. The story is so iconic that it feels generic, but all of us who played this game as kids, or even just watched someone else play it, remember it vividly for a reason. Credit where credit is due: Ocarina is very cool, and a little bit fun.
The gameplay just isn't as fun as it was in the 90s. The combat is rough, which is appropriate, as it's essentially a prototype for every 3D action-adventure to come after it. Still, it's hard to get excited by any of the encounters this game puts in front of you. Many fights boil down to either mindlessly swinging at an enemy or patiently waiting for them to expose their weak spot. Challenges that involve platforming or timing are as much a test of your ability to wrangle the camera as they are of your skill. The puzzles are largely functional, but sometimes feel a bit clunky to engage with. Case in point: I almost got stuck in Ganon's castle looking for a way to set something on fire. I tried shooting an arrow through a torch, but it didn't work. After running around hunting for another option, disappointed that a cool, creative solution didn't work, I eventually looked it up, and a guide suggested using fire arrows (what? I never got those--apparently they're tucked away around the lake somewhere, but I never found much reason to go back there)--or shooting an arrow through that same torch. I had solved the puzzle; it just didn't work the first god-knows-how-many-times I tried, so I went back to painstakingly lining up shots until I eventually got it. At least the 3DS version of this game offers gyro controls to make aiming more manageable, but in this case, it just wasn't clear how my aim was off to begin with. The N64 version of this and Majora's Mask have some of the twitchiest, roughest first-person aiming I've ever used--understandable for such an innovative game, but that doesn't make it any more fun to deal with.
To me, this moment is a microcosm of my whole experience with Ocarina of Time; clever ideas meet clunky execution. Interesting puzzles are let down by "wait, am I doing this right" moments. Exciting bosses give way to combat mechanics that just aren't as fast or responsive as you really want them to be. The overworld strikes an impressive balance between open and dense, but exploring it doesn't always feel as rewarding as it could. The game's world is unforgettable, but the way it signals the right sequence of actions to progress the main quest oscillates between that of a parent holding your hand and that of Bilbo Baggins asking Gollum what's in his pocket. The outline of a great game is here, but it's colored in with the details of a decent one. Plenty of great games have weaker elements, and all masterpieces show their age in one way or another, but for me, Ocarina of Time's worst parts were never unobtrusive enough to be totally subsumed by the good bits.
Still, the atmosphere is undeniably legendary for a reason, and the sound design is some of the best ever. The visuals, even in the N64 version, exude style, making them far more timeless than they have any right to be. The story is so iconic that it feels generic, but all of us who played this game as kids, or even just watched someone else play it, remember it vividly for a reason. Credit where credit is due: Ocarina is very cool, and a little bit fun.