If someone wants a JRPG that has great combat, a great story, and doesn't take their entire lives to play, I would point them to this game. It's incredible just how much enjoyment one can obtain from this game just by playing in the short bursts of the story arcs. It never feels like you're wasting your time and I absolutely love that.

Easily one of my favorite games of all time, and definitely my favorite JRPG of all time, with others at a close second. It has something to do with the completeness of the combat mechanics in addition to the overall worldbuilding and the story itself. I love that the antagonist, Lavos, isn't necessarily an evil person, more a driving force akin to fate. This bad ending will happen no matter what, unless the party does everything in their power to prevent it. It can be done at any time and with any group of people, but without action, nothing will change. The story in conjunction with the time travel is absolutely perfectly melded together in such a way that makes for a game that doesn't take forever to get through while still having plenty of content, interesting battles and a bunch of story beats that are excellent. The music is also superb and Yasunori Mitsuda's best work is on this game, for sure.

Planning to replay this one in the not too faraway times.

Rating: [96]

One of the all time great RPGS. Won't get into graphics too much since games in general from this time period don't have the best models/textures & so on. Starts off strong & keeps the momentum going pretty much all the way to the end. Only really takes 10-15 min to get into the action with the first dungeon, and from there you jump right into the world of Hyrule. The variety of dungeons & available weapons to use keeps things interesting, no place really feels like a retread or chore to get through. Compared to future Zelda titles with ambitious overworlds & narratives, this feels much tighter. Great story, music, gameplay, & just a well rounded experience.

What do I need to say? This one is a masterpiece. An instant classic. An inspiration to game developers for years to come. Ocarina of Time took the Zelda franchise into a 3D world and immediately took games into an entirely new direction.

Having recently replayed it (with an original controller!), I still believe it holds up among today’s standards. Past the blocky character animations, this is a near perfect Zelda game: Classic dungeons, engaging side-characters, and unforgettable boss battles weave this into my favorite game of all time. Yes, a solid 20% of that is nostalgia speaking, but I can guarantee if you are a fan of Zelda, you must absolutely play this in any way possible. It is the apex of the series and cemented a new path for itself and games as a medium.

I already love Banjo-Kazooie. It's not really nostalgia, maybe a bit, but I do think it's pretty fun the whole way through, with some clear flaws. Tooie fixes every problem the first has, and expands on it in so many ways it's kind of hard to believe.

Tooie is a very ambitious game. Everything about it feels bigger, which is impressive considering it's smaller if anything: only 8 main worlds as opposed to 9, the sizes of which are comparable to the worlds from Kazooie. The overworld looks bigger because it's out in the open - in reality I think the actual traversable parts are smaller, and there's less to do with the removal of the witch switches from the worlds. But through pure world design they've managed to make a world that feels more grandiose, and at every point until the end it really felt like anything could come next.

The fast travel systems are great and are a welcome addition. I think this is part of why it feels so much bigger - it takes under a minute to walk across most levels, but when you can warp there instantly you feel like you're skipping a lot. And to be fair, in a game where exploration is a focal point, the saved time adds up.

I don't think this game is flawless but every complaint I have is a nitpick. It's hard to find your way around in the FPS areas, but there aren't that many of them and there isn't much to do in them. The Hailfire Peaks transformation is annoying to control (especially if you have health regen), but its usage is pretty limited so you don't have to deal with it for long. Ultimately these nitpicks don't matter because this game is packed entirely full of creative ideas that all work well to some extent. Fantastic sequel, fantastic in its own right. I can't wait until the next time I get to replay it.