There’s a reason why Majora’s Mask objectively is the best Zelda game of all time. It’s more complex, dark, touching and interesting than any other title in the series. It’s based on a 3-day loop that can be restarted over and over again. Therefore it’s worth observing characters and routines like Phil Connors did in that movie everybody knows. The player will benefit from this knowledge during the following cycles. The game therefore offers numerous side quests that require knowing the daily schedules of all the wonderful characters that inhabit the world of Termina.
There is a reason why Kafei’s Quest is objectively the best quest in the game. It is more complex, dark, touching and interesting than any of the other quests. It’s based on a 3-day loop that can be restarted over and over again. However, if you want to complete the quest, you’ll have to quickly succeed in a whole lot of complicated actions in a single run. Any mistake halfway through will result in having to do it all again. The city is littered with small clues, which add up to solving the mystery over the course of the game. Thus, the quest can only really be tackled after many hours of playing it vigilantly. . In addition to the extensive preparation, the task becomes more dramatic because it can only be completed very close to the end of the three days and in a very small time frame. After that, the moon falls from the sky and annihilates everything. And then there is the story of it: It is about the deep love between two people, whose wedding plans are foiled by sinister forces. But Link is able to help them just before the cataclysm that destroys everything. When he succeeds, Link leaves the two moments before they will surely die. They are happy. Link is too.
Many years ago, me and my friend Tim realized that not only were we in agreement that Majora’s Mask was the best Zelda game (because it objectively is), but that neither of us had ever completed it. To rectify this flaw, we shut ourselves away for 24 hours, only to realize at the end that we hadn’t done enough side quests and were once again unable to conclude the game. So there was a second attempt, this time with 48 hours and the intention of doing every single side quest and ending the game with 100%. Including Kafei’s Quest.
And then, after years of living with this flaw, a failed 24-hour marathon and many more hours of gameplay, little sleep and a few failed attempts, we were confident that we could finally turn the two ill-fated lovebirds into a happy couple in the face of the apocalypse. So I entered Ikana Canyon where the thief who stole the wedding mask had his hideout. . It was the last thing to do before the final battle. Only a few minutes left until the end of the world. The atmosphere was emotionally charged. In the game and in front of the screen. And in this frame I decided to do something I frequently do in games: I took on the role of director. I tried to add weight to the important scene. Sometimes in games I deliberately walk slowly along a corridor or take another spin through the village I’m about to leave forever. In this case, I thought it was a good idea to keep an appropriate distance from the scene instead of hiding with Kafei at the designated place. I wanted to observe how the last minutes of this long, hard and exciting quest would play out. The thief was indeed approaching the hiding place. All the effort, all the preparation, it had paid off. We were in the right constellation at the right place at the right time.
There is a reason why I am the goofiest video gamer of all time. For I went overboard with my delusions of directing. I was probably not perfectly positioned and wanted to readjust. I took one step too many, fell into the canyon, was washed away by the river and landed in the neighboring swamp region. Maximum distance to the scene. I shouted something along the lines of, “No. No. No. No. No. Oh no. No.” and Tim something similar and in addition, “You idiot. Why are you doing this? You can’t be doing that! You bloody idiot.” And then we probably laughed for some time. Or we cried. In a panic, I tried to teleport back. The door to the hideout had already closed again. The moon crashed down on Link’s head. Everything was dead.
That’ when I knew I wanted to experience many more moments like that. A few years later, Tim and I kicked off our own YouTube channel, which took the Ikana Canyon disaster as a foundational principle, showing us in many similar mishaps. I failed at Kafei’s Quest, but a new passion emerged from my madness.
The Legend of Zelda: Marjoa’s Mask (2000) is indeed the best Zelda of all time, and after its original debut for the Nintendo 64, it was released in a partially improved, partially degraded version for the 3DS (2015). In the end, we beat the game. But without Kafei’s Quest. Maybe it’s time for another marathon.
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