The Darkest Game in the Series
It's safe to say that Majora's Mask is the darkest game in the series. Not even Twilight Princess with its Teen ESRB rating and its full embrace of violence, loss, and abandonment is as dark as Majora's Mask. Most situations in the Zelda series are dark and usually involve someone trying to rule over the land. Majora's Mask is downright bleak as everyone faces an evil spirit that wants nothing but destruction and chaos. Majora essentially outranks Ganon on the evil scale.
Death plays a major role in this game. The three masks Link uses to transform into different beings are created using the souls of those who have passed on. Throughout the game, Link will encounter multiple characters who have met an untimely end and must play the Song of Healing to soothe their spirits and help them move on to the afterlife.
The number of dungeons holds some significance to the theme of death. With the shortest amount in the series, Majora's Mask only has four dungeons. This may be because the number four is sometimes read as "shi" in Japanese which is also the same word for "death". This causes Japanese superstitions to associate the number four with death. The fourth area of the game, Ikana Canyon, is filled with undead creatures such as redeads, gibdos, poes, wall masters and an entire stalfos army. Also, the game even gives players the choice to murder an NPC that robs an old lady.
The constant theme of the end of days is the focal point of the game and what drives the plot. Using the power of Majora's Mask, the Skull Kid is able to pull the Moon out of orbit and sends it toward Termina. If Link is unable to stop the Moon after three days, it obliterates all of Termina. The game doesn't shy away from this reality in any way.
Every place Link visits has a perfect view of the moon hanging in the sky at all hours of the day as a constant reminder of what will happen. What makes its existence even more unsettling is that it appears to be alive and features an angry and menacing face that slowly reveals itself as time progresses. As the Moon draws closer to Termina, the ground will shake, the music becomes more and more frantic and ominous, and people begin to panic all while the land's central clock tower chimes along with the passing of time.
As the world comes to an end, different people handle the situation in different ways. A tough-as-nails sword instructor cowers in fear. The mailman, determined to keep his oath of delivering mail regardless of any situation, continues his rounds to the very end. A woman shares a glass of Chateau Romani milk, which is essentially the game's version of alcohol, with her kid sister to dull her awareness of what is to come. The longest and most difficult sidequest in the entire series revolves around reuniting a couple separated by the Skull Kid with the end result being their unification five minutes before the Moon hits. As each day passes, the citizens of the game's hub city, Clock Town, evacuate in larger and larger masses believing that they will be spared if they do so until the town is deserted.
If for whatever reason Link fails to restart the three day sequence using the Ocarina of Time, the Moon destroys all of Termina. This isn't handled lightly. Link doesn't just fall over and the screen doesn't flash "Game Over". It actually shows a scene of the Moon annihilating Clock Town and Link being killed in the resulting explosion. The screen fades to black and the words "You've met with a terrible fate, haven't you?" appear on the screen as the mask salesman chuckles. This scene is the culmination of all of the dark themes that Majora's Mask presents and showcases the fear and uncertainty people feel involving the end.
The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask is the direct sequel to the landmark Ocarina of Time. It takes place after the events of the previous game in the land of Termina where Link finds himself after an encounter with a extra powerful Skull Kid while searching for his fairy companion, Navi. Termina is essentially an alternate reality counterpart to Hyrule where everybody from Ocarina of Time makes an appearance, but as different people with different names.
When Link arrives after being transformed into a Deku scrub by the Skull Kid, he's informed by a mask salesmen that the Skull Kid is attempting to destroy Termina through the use of a dark, ritual mask known as Majora's Mask. Link discovers that he has three days to gather four guardian giants to stop the destruction of Termina which he can reset at any time with the Ocarina of Time. This plot allows for the designers to explore darker themes that are not usually seen in Zelda games such as death, apocalypse, and how people deal with the end times.
When Link arrives after being transformed into a Deku scrub by the Skull Kid, he's informed by a mask salesmen that the Skull Kid is attempting to destroy Termina through the use of a dark, ritual mask known as Majora's Mask. Link discovers that he has three days to gather four guardian giants to stop the destruction of Termina which he can reset at any time with the Ocarina of Time. This plot allows for the designers to explore darker themes that are not usually seen in Zelda games such as death, apocalypse, and how people deal with the end times.
It's safe to say that Majora's Mask is the darkest game in the series. Not even Twilight Princess with its Teen ESRB rating and its full embrace of violence, loss, and abandonment is as dark as Majora's Mask. Most situations in the Zelda series are dark and usually involve someone trying to rule over the land. Majora's Mask is downright bleak as everyone faces an evil spirit that wants nothing but destruction and chaos. Majora essentially outranks Ganon on the evil scale.
Death plays a major role in this game. The three masks Link uses to transform into different beings are created using the souls of those who have passed on. Throughout the game, Link will encounter multiple characters who have met an untimely end and must play the Song of Healing to soothe their spirits and help them move on to the afterlife.
The number of dungeons holds some significance to the theme of death. With the shortest amount in the series, Majora's Mask only has four dungeons. This may be because the number four is sometimes read as "shi" in Japanese which is also the same word for "death". This causes Japanese superstitions to associate the number four with death. The fourth area of the game, Ikana Canyon, is filled with undead creatures such as redeads, gibdos, poes, wall masters and an entire stalfos army. Also, the game even gives players the choice to murder an NPC that robs an old lady.
The constant theme of the end of days is the focal point of the game and what drives the plot. Using the power of Majora's Mask, the Skull Kid is able to pull the Moon out of orbit and sends it toward Termina. If Link is unable to stop the Moon after three days, it obliterates all of Termina. The game doesn't shy away from this reality in any way.
Every place Link visits has a perfect view of the moon hanging in the sky at all hours of the day as a constant reminder of what will happen. What makes its existence even more unsettling is that it appears to be alive and features an angry and menacing face that slowly reveals itself as time progresses. As the Moon draws closer to Termina, the ground will shake, the music becomes more and more frantic and ominous, and people begin to panic all while the land's central clock tower chimes along with the passing of time.
As the world comes to an end, different people handle the situation in different ways. A tough-as-nails sword instructor cowers in fear. The mailman, determined to keep his oath of delivering mail regardless of any situation, continues his rounds to the very end. A woman shares a glass of Chateau Romani milk, which is essentially the game's version of alcohol, with her kid sister to dull her awareness of what is to come. The longest and most difficult sidequest in the entire series revolves around reuniting a couple separated by the Skull Kid with the end result being their unification five minutes before the Moon hits. As each day passes, the citizens of the game's hub city, Clock Town, evacuate in larger and larger masses believing that they will be spared if they do so until the town is deserted.
If for whatever reason Link fails to restart the three day sequence using the Ocarina of Time, the Moon destroys all of Termina. This isn't handled lightly. Link doesn't just fall over and the screen doesn't flash "Game Over". It actually shows a scene of the Moon annihilating Clock Town and Link being killed in the resulting explosion. The screen fades to black and the words "You've met with a terrible fate, haven't you?" appear on the screen as the mask salesman chuckles. This scene is the culmination of all of the dark themes that Majora's Mask presents and showcases the fear and uncertainty people feel involving the end.
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