The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask was the sixth game in the Zelda series and the second released for the Nintendo 64. Though not as popular as its predecessor Ocarina of Time, it still sold briskly after its release in 2000. However, one must take into consideration that the game requires use of the Expansion Pak in order to function whereas its predecessor did not.

Gameplay

The gameplay involved the same dynamic 3D environment as Ocarina of Time, but it was structured differently. The storyline placed the player in an alternate reality called Termina (not in Hyrule as in previous games; with the exception of Link's Awakening) where a mysterious mask-wearing imp, the Skull Kid, had caused multiple problems, not the least of which was the moon due to crash onto the planet in three days. The player lives these three days over and over again using time travel via the "Song of Time" played on the Ocarina of Time, collecting items and knowledge and attempting to prevent this catastrophe.

Story

As in Ocarina of Time, a fairy accompanies Link on his quest. This time it is not Navi, the original fairy, but a new one named Tatl. Tatl and her brother Tael (a paraphrase on the word tattletale) are hench-fairies of the Skull Kid. Having unwillingly become separated from her brother Tatl decides to temporarily join up with Link until they find the Skull Kid and thereby her brother. Tatl functions like Navi did in Ocarina albeit being a tattletale she's more similar to the character Goombario from the contemporary Nintendo 64 RPG Paper Mario than the encyclopaedic Navi.

Places

• Clock Town
• Termina Field
• Woodfall
• Lost Woods
• Deku Palace
• Southern Swamp
• Milk Road
• Romani Ranch
• Snowhead
• Goron Shrine
• Great Bay
• Zora Hall
• Gerudo Lagoon
• Ikana Canyon
• Ikana Ruins
• Ikana Graveyard

Masks

Masks, which had first appeared as a side quest in Ocarina play an important part in Majora's Mask. Masks are a very important part of the game, and there are 24 of them. Many of the masks are necessary in order to progress through the game, though it is not required to collect them all.

Masks were not the only element of Ocarina to reappear; many character models were reused in Majora's Mask. This was justified by the story because Termina is an alternate reality reflecting Hyrule in many surprising ways. For example, both the younger and older versions of Malon from Ocarina appear as sisters living on a farm on Milk Road.

Music

The music was composed by Koji Kondo, with the exception of the boss battle, middle boss battle, and battle music, which was composed by Toru Minegishi.

These are the songs Link learn to play on his ocarina throughout the game:

• Song of Time (C-right, A, C-down, C-right, A, C-down)
• Song of Healing (C-left, C-right, C-down, C-left, C-right, C-down)
• Sonata of Awakening (C-up, C-left, C-up, C-left, A, C-right, A)
• Song of Soaring (C-down, C-left, C-up, C-down, C-Left, C-up)
• Oath to Order (C-right, C-down, A, C-down, C-right, C-up)
• Goron Lullaby (A, C-right, C-left, A, C-right, C-left, C-right, A)
• Epona's Song (C-up, C-left, C-right, C-up, C-left, C-right)
• New Wave Bossa Nova (C-left, C-up, C-left, C-right, C-down, C-left, C-right)
• Song of Storms (A, C-down, C-up, A, C-down, C-up)
• Elegy of Emptiness (C-right, C-left, C-right, C-down, C-right, C-up, C-left)

• Scarecrow Song (you can choose the notes)

These are hidden songs Link can play without actually learning them.

• Song of Double Time (C-right, C-right, A, A, C-down, C-down)
• Inverted Song of Time (C-down, A, C-right, C-down, A, C-right)

Gamecube re-release

In 2003, Nintendo rereleased Majora's Mask on the GameCube as part of The Legend of Zelda: Collector's Edition, a special promotional disc which also contained Ocarina of Time as well as the original two 8-bit NES Zelda games. This disc could be purchased with a new GameCube console, as part of a subscription offer to Nintendo Power magazine, or through Nintendo's official website by buying and registering a certain number of first-party Nintendo games (this offer has now ended).

The game is NOT actually a port in the traditional sense, but rather the ROM of the original game running via an emulator of sorts; this has been proved by the ROM dumping community, who have been able to extract authentic N64-format ROMs from the disc that can even be booted on a real N64. Because it is only emulated (rather than altered for the new console) there are some timing discrepancies between the two consoles, and some of the music sounds inaccurate on the GameCube. Also, several people have complained that the game unexpectedly crashes on the Gamecube occassionally; again, caused by the inaccuracies of Nintendo's emulator.

Majora's Mask in the Manga

According to the manga, which is a different story than that of the game itself, the mask itself was an ancient and dangerous artifact made from the armor of a legendary and evil beast that was danced to exhaustion by a being disguised as a human traveler. According to a legend devised "by the humans themselves," any who obtain the beast's armour gains hold of a giant and terrible power. All who approached it, warriors, men and women alike, even with good intentions, were devoured without remorse. The early Terminian tribes used the mask in their cursed hexing rituals, but when the evils caused by the mask became too much to bear, they sealed it away in darkness forever... so they hoped.

As the mask of the devil, Majora's Mask gained its power from the evil desires that people had in their minds as they were devoured by the beast, or when they cast the hexes when the armor was made into the mask. As it passed from member to member in the tribe it accumulated its power until it was too much to control. The tribe died out, but the mask still rested in darkness. The Happy Mask Salesman went to great lengths to get it, but while travelling in the Lost Woods it was stolen by Skull Kid and his hench-fairies, Tatl and Tael. When the Skull Kid wore it the evil essence trapped within possessed him, beckoning him to Termina, and making him cause harm amongst the townspeople, most notably interfering with the engagement of Anju to Kafei. The most serious problem caused by the mask was that the moon was torn out of its orbit, and was on a collision course with Termina's capital city. The moon would have exterminated all life in a cataclysm of fire had it not been for Link's intervention. With the power of the Fierce Deity's Mask, he destroyed Majora's Mask and saved Termina. The moon was destroyed after these events.

As stated above, while Skull Kid was possessed, he wronged many of the people in Termina. In addition, he sealed his former friends, the Four Giants in the masks of evil deities and sealed them in the temples located in the four compass directions. Link had to free all of them in order to save Termina.

(Please note the manga, though licensed by Nintendo, are not considered official sources of information and are not canonical; any time there is a conflict between the manga and the game, the game is considered to be the more official source.)

Trivia

The North American release of this game (October 25, 2000) almost exactly coincided with Sony's North American release of the PlayStation 2 multimedia system (October 26, 2000).

At the end of the game the Skull Kid says Link 'Smells like the Kokiri kid that taught him that song'. Those familiar with Ocarina of Time will remember that you had to play Saria’s song to a Skull Kid to earn a Heart Piece in the game.

See also

• The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask characters
• Legend of Zelda series