Ranking Every Zelda Game I’ve Played

Hello dear readers and welcome to Shoot the Rookie! Today I’m looking at a series I’ve written about sporadically but haven’t often focused on in great detail, The Legend of Zelda. Below I’ll be ranking all the games I’ve played in the series, so why not join me to see if my list agrees with yours!

For many Zelda fans this is a very exciting time, with the new game coming out in a matter of days. I myself am very excited about this as I feel it might be a phenomenal game. However, I’m unlikely to play it for quite some time since I have a whole bunch of other games on my radar. Nonetheless, I wanted to do something in the build-up to its release, so I decided to rank each of the other games I’ve played in the series.

Now I haven’t played all that many of them, but I actually love all the Zelda games I’ve played so far. In terms of ranking them it is true that one had to be first and one had to be last, but I believe each of the seven games listed below has something awesome to offer and I’d definitely be willing to replay any of them.

With that said, let’s take a look in reverse order at how I’ve ranked them!

Skyward Sword

Skyward Sword offers some of my favourite things from the Zelda series. Loftwings, the Lumpy Pumpkin and some of the side quests you find around Skyloft are wonderful. The game has many interesting and novel moments and some classy gameplay features. For all that though, it lacks heart and companionship and the world itself feels disjointed to the point it doesn’t really feel like a world at all.

Wind Waker

Full of charm, colour and humour, Wind Waker is a thoroughly lovely game. From Zelda’s swashbuckling disguise, Link masquerading as a seagull and a talking boat, this game takes you on a great voyage. The only thing that has it this low down the list is that there perhaps isn’t enough to do, and whilst the art style is fine, I wouldn’t say that I love it.

Link’s Awakening

Nice compact dungeons full of great puzzles and a couple of really great community hubs mean this game has both content and heart. Add to that a surprisingly deep story, and Link’s Awakening really is a great game even if I found the endless chain of side quests impossible without a guide. I’m so glad they chose to give this game the makeover treatment as without that I probably wouldn’t have played it.

Ocarina of Time

Ocarina of Time serves not only as a template for the Zelda games that followed, but also paved the way for many games outwith the series. It was the first Zelda game I ever experienced and it introduced me to so many now-familiar aspects of the series. It has some great locations and interesting characters, plus unlike some people I actually love Navi and see her as one of the game’s great highlights.

Twilight Princess

On the face of it this shouldn’t be so far up the list. It lacks many of the things I love about the series like friendly communities and silly side quests, but I love the darker vibe of Twilight Princess, and in Midna they created a character who is not only the perfect counterpoint to that daft blonde boy, but also one of my favourite characters from any game.

Breath of the Wild

Although Breath of the Wild was a departure from previous titles in some ways, for me it retained a lot of the things I love about the Zelda series and then added a huge, vibrant, beautiful world. With this game planning to play for 10 more minutes would invariably mean playing for 2 more hours. Exploring places you didn’t expect to find, meeting people you didn’t expect to meet and cooking things you didn’t expect to cook, and a game like that will make it up to the top ranks of any list I make.

Majora’s Mask

Considering how much stuff from Majora’s Mask is taken from Ocarina of Time, it is amazing they managed to make such a different game with it, but for me they not only did that but also managed to make the best Zelda game in the process. Dark, creepy and tense, Majora’s Mask has you constantly on edge. The atmosphere they create in Clock Town, with its layers of intrigue and gossip is incredible.

There are a host of wonderful side quests and a slew of weird conversations that are always just a bit off. Outside of Clock Town, Majora’s Mask has some of my other favourite places from the series, with Ikana Canyon being a real standout. Add to this the iconic figures of the Happy Mask Salesman and Skull Kid, the ever-grinning moon and of course the chiming of those clock bells and you have, in my opinion, the best Zelda game ever made.

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So there we have it! All the Zelda games I’ve played ranked! But what do you think? Do you have a different favourite? I wonder where Tears of the Kingdom will fit in? Let me know all below in comments and don’t forget to join me next time for more video game and anime frolics!

Thanks for reading,

Pix1001 x