Story: Ocarina of Time closely resembles the story of Link to the Past. A young boy named Link must rescue a princess named Zelda and overcome a great evil known as Ganon(dorf) and save the land of Hyrule. Of course, there is much more to the story than that, but I don't want to spoil it for those who have never played the game before (shame on you!)
Overview: Ocarina of Time was finally released stateside in 1998. Ocarina of Time took three years to develop internally by Nintendo EAD and it featured some of the most realistic graphics available at the time. The previous Zelda games all had an overhead view to them (except for the Adventure of Link) and so people began to become suspicious of how the new Zelda would play since the view was moved to almost first-person. Zelda faithfuls were not disappointed since Ocarina of Time delivered on every level transforming the land of Hyrule into a 3-D utopia. Ocarina of Time revolutionized the videogame industry and continues to stand as the benchmark for all future games even to this day.
Graphics: Put simply, the graphics are incredible. Although today's consoles can create far better graphics, the graphics were insanely beautiful for the time. Ocarina of Time pushed the N64 to new limits as a completely surreal and life-like environment was created. The best parts include the highly animated cinemas, facial expressions, and even the little things in the background like birds and the setting of the sun (one of the nicest touches in the game). Ocarina of Time pleased in every level of detail, truly an amazing experience.
Sound: The sound is incredible. If you're not humming the Overworld theme (which regrettably isn't the original, but still very good), then you're humming the themes from the various songs you learn. As you progress through the game, you learn various songs that have quite surprising effects. These songs are all very well-composed, created by Nintendo's legendary composer Koji Kondo. Truly a masterpiece in the sound department, again Ocarina of Time delivers on every level.
Gameplay: The gameplay is truly revolutionary pioneering the use of a Z-trigger lock-on. This was activated by simply pressing the Z button when you encountered an enemy. Doing this would create a lock-on target around the creature and make it about 90 times easier to fight an enemy in a 3-D world. For one thing, you would never lose sight of the enemy and you could also circle around and attack. Also, the camera that plagued Mario 64 became completely manageable. Press Z to center behind Link, otherwise it goes behind Link, but further away. This allows you to shift the view to any way that you desire. For fighting, the buttons all seem to fall into place and become like second-nature. The inclusion of an Action Button makes it easier to carry out a wide range of commands using only one button! Ingenious! Nintendo is truly a master of their art, and Ocarina of Time one of their finest masterpieces.
Verdict: If you don't own the game, go and hunt night and day for it! This game is worth every penny, every hour, and every moment. The story will draw you into the world of Hyrule and won't let go until you finish the game. Then, you'll probably start all over again. That is the magic of Zelda.
Score: 10/10
