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The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (ゼルダの伝説 時のオカリナ, Zeruda no Densetsu Toki no Okarina?) is an action-adventure video game developed by Nintendo's Entertainment Analysis and Development division for the Nintendo 64 video game console. It was released in Japan on 21 November 1998, in North America on 23 November 1998, and in Europe on 11 December 1998. Originally developed for the Nintendo 64DD peripheral, the game was instead released on a 32-megabyte cartridge—at the time the largest-capacity cartridge Nintendo had produced. It was re-released on the Nintendo GameCube as part of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time: Master Quest and The Legend of Zelda: Collector's Edition compilations, on the iQue Player in 2003, and on the Virtual Console in 2007.

Ocarina of Time is the fifth game in The Legend of Zelda series, but is set before the first four games.[1] The player controls the series' trademark protagonist, Link, in the land of Hyrule. Link sets out on a quest to stop Ganondorf, King of the Gerudo, from obtaining the Triforce, a sacred relic that grants the wishes of its holder. Link travels through time and navigates several dungeons to awaken sages who have the power to seal Ganondorf. Music plays an important role—to progress, the player learns several songs for Link to play on the Ocarina of Time.

The game received wide critical acclaim and commercial success. The first Zelda game with 3D graphics, it was praised for taking elements of the two-dimensional games and successfully translating them into the third dimension. Despite a November release, it is the best-selling game of 1998[2] and has sold over 7.6 million copies.[3] It received perfect scores from many publications, most notably Famitsu, and has been featured at or near the top of several "greatest games of all time" lists, including those from Electronic Gaming Monthly,[4] Game Trailers,[5] and IGN.[6] In the February 2006 issue of Nintendo Power, it was ranked as the best game to appear on any Nintendo console.[7] In terms of criticism, IGN has expressed complaints about "the framerate and textures and some graphical elements of Ocarina of Time being not as good as those of Banjo-Kazooie," while Game Revolution criticized the game's music for being consisted of "MIDI tracks that range from fair to terrible.[8]

Game Rankings, a review collection site, ranks Ocarina of Time in second place, below Grand Theft Auto IV, on the greatest games ever made list. [9] Metacritic, a similar site, ranks Ocarina as the top-rated game with a critic metascore of 99 out of 100[10]. However, several notable reviews are missing, such as Nintendo Power 's 9.5 out of 10[11], and Computer and Video Games ' 9 out of 10[12]; both of these publications are normally counted on Metacritic's list of included publications.

Gameplay

Ocarina of Time is an action-adventure game with role-playing and puzzle elements. The player controls Link from a third-person perspective in a three-dimensional space. Link primarily fights with a sword and shield; he can also use projectile weapons, bombs, and magic spells.[13] The control scheme introduced techniques such as context-sensitive actions and a targeting system called "Z-targeting"[14][15] In combat, Z-targeting allows the player to have Link focus on an enemy or other object.[16] When using this technique, the camera follows the target and Link constantly faces it. Projectile attacks are automatically directed at the target and do not require manual aiming. Context-sensitive actions allow multiple tasks to be assigned to one button, simplifying the control scheme. The on-screen display shows what will happen when the button is pushed and changes depending on what the character is doing. For example, the same button that causes Link to climb when standing next to a box will have him push the box if he is moving toward it.[15] Much of the game is spent in battle, but some parts require the use of stealth.
The on-screen display shows actions mapped to context-sensitive buttons. Here, the green button controls Link's sword attack, the blue button sheaths Link's sword, and the yellow buttons control secondary weapons.
The on-screen display shows actions mapped to context-sensitive buttons. Here, the green button controls Link's sword attack, the blue button sheaths Link's sword, and the yellow buttons control secondary weapons.

Link gains new abilities by collecting items and weapons found in dungeons or in the overworld. Not all are required—Ocarina of Time has several optional side quests, or minor objectives that the player can choose to complete or ignore. Completing the side quests usually results in rewards, normally in the form of weapons or abilities. In one side quest, Link trades items he cannot use himself among non-player characters. This trading sequence features ten items and ends with Link receiving an item he can use, the two-handed Biggoron Sword, the strongest sword in the game. In another side quest, Link can acquire a horse. This allows him to travel faster, but attacking while riding is restricted to arrows.[17]

Link is given an ocarina near the beginning of the game, which is later replaced by the Ocarina of Time. Throughout the game, Link learns twelve melodies that allow him to solve music-based puzzles and teleport to previously visited locations in the game.[18] The Ocarina of Time is also used to claim the Master Sword in the Temple of Time. When Link takes the sword, he is transported seven years into the future and becomes an adult. Young Link and adult Link have different abilities. For example, only adult Link can use the Fairy Bow, and only young Link can fit through certain small passages. After completing certain tasks, Link can travel freely between the two time periods by replacing and taking the sword.