Ranking (Canon) Zelda Games | 2021
Introduction
Hey there! I’m T. L., welcome to another self-indulgent post in which I reveal my subjective opinions as if you should care! In this one, I’m going to be ranking the canon (that means no CD-I, Hyrule Warriors, or even, sadly, Lampshade of No Real Significance Zelda Games. I originally used Tiermaker for this, which you can see in the video version of this post (linked down below). For this version of the content, I've reorganized it so that the games appear in their actual order. You'll see my least favorite first, then we'll work our way up to my favorite Zelda game out of all of them.
If you'd like to watch the video version of this, you can do so here:
Okay, on to the rankings!
Ranking the Games
I don’t think this is going to be anything I’ll get hate for. This is basically a mini-game if it's a game at all. It's only on this list because it's technically considered canon within the franchise so... here you go, my least favorite of all the Zelda games.
Four Swords Adventures is only slightly better than Four Swords. It wastes Vaati for sure (a villain I really hope to see in a future Zelda game--one that isn’t as meh as the Four Swords games). Adventures does have better overall gameplay and level design than the original Four Swords, and it has a lot more thought put into it, so I'm making a conscious decision to put it above the original Four Swords game.
Are you sensing a pattern, here? All the multiplayer ones are showing up at the bottom of the ranking.
Tri Force Heroes is not necessarily bad... I think it was just okay. This was definitely the better of the multiplayer Zelda games, but I'm honestly not sure by how much. It just didn’t really add anything at all, it feels like an unnecessary title. I’d be delighted to see a multiplayer Zelda game that doesn’t feel so pointless, but who knows if we’ll ever get that. I'm not even sure it can be done.
Prepare your pitchforks.
I do want to preface this by saying that we're now in the games that I actually did enjoy playing. The gap between Tri Force Heroes and Breath of the Wild is a lot wider than it seems from this ranking! But while I did enjoy Breath of the Wild, I have several complaints about it as it pertains to an entry into the Zelda franchise.
Breath of the Wild received absolute critical acclaim and I certainly understand why it received such positive feedback. There is a lot to love about Breath of the Wild. However, ultimately, it just doesn’t have the feeling I expect from a Zelda game. The four main dungeons in the game were dull, their bosses were forgettable, and the final boss was… so easy. When I finished the second phase I fully expected a third, more challenging phase to appear, but it never did.
There’s a lot to love about Breath of the Wild and how it shed some of the expectations that we have of Zelda games, but I feel like it shed too much of what defines a Zelda game. I have my fingers crossed that the sequel will take the original concepts from Breath of the Wild and build them up while also taking from the original Zelda games when it comes to dungeon design, puzzles, challenges, and boss fights. I found Breath of the Wild underwhelming, so it’s… just okay.
Spirit Tracks and Phantom Hourglass are in the same vein, for me; I will say that the train travel in Spirit Tracks wasn’t as much fun as the boat travel in Phantom Hourglass. I liked Phantom more overall, but Spirit Tracks was pretty fun, too. You'll notice I'm putting this above Breath of the Wild, as well. This isn’t a better game all around, but it is a better Zelda game. The dungeon design was great and there’s a lot more of the Zelda feel to this one than there was in Breath of the Wild.
This is kind of a sad place to put this game… there’s so much to love about Phantom Hourglass. I loved the story, the dungeons, everything. Everything, that is, except for the controls. The controls in Phantom were stylus-based and sometimes wouldn’t respond well, especially in those puzzles where you had to draw symbols! Overall, I do like it more than Breath of the Wild and Spirit Tracks, but those controls could border on unbearable.
And speaking of unbearable controls...
Okay, Skyward Sword is… pretty good. I like it. The dungeons are creative, the items were interesting and fun, but… there are some serious problems I’ve got. One is, as was the case with Phantom Hourglass, the controls. The flying controls and swimming controls more than anything else were awful. The flying was meant to be a huge part of this game but it still feels like the controls aren’t even close to perfected. Then there’s the part where you have to collect musical notes while swimming? Absolutely not. Give me a way to skip that nonsense.
Oh, and just as a more minor complaint, the fact that you have to return to the sky, then fly on your bird in a circle, then fall back to the ground to move between statues in an area is a huge oversight. Apparently, it wasn’t even fixed in the Switch version. Was this intentional? It sucks. Please fix it. Whoever is charge of it, if you're reading this, fix the bird statue teleportation please. Maybe then I'll grab the switch remaster.
I’m not really going to compare these two to one another. To be honest I’ve only played them through once. I remember liking the games and finding them to be pretty fun with a lot to offer, particularly when you use one as a sequel with… a password, I think? I think you needed a password to have it recall your save or something like that. I don’t remember. Again, it’s been a while. Overall, these were great Zelda games. They’re in the same vein as the others in this like, such as Link to the Past and Link’s Awakening.
Okay, now we're going to dive into my top ten Zelda Games. We're getting closer to my favorite one!
Top Ten Zelda Games
The Adventure of Link is all around a good game that should have improved on the original and kind of did in some ways. I think this and the original, 1986 game are probably close to tied for me, but I have more respect and appreciation for the original, so that’s going to be just above this one, so Zelda II will be number ten for me. This and Zelda (1986) are probably interchangeable, though, just like Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons are.
The Legend of Zelda, the original Zelda game, was an accomplishment that can still hold its own, today. This game was excellently done. I won’t say that I have an absolute blast while playing it, though it is fun when you’ve got a group of friends sitting down to run through it. However, I have immense respect for what it did and how it progressed the game industry as a whole. This is a great game that deserves its accolades. Without it, we wouldn't have much of what we have--at least, we wouldn't have had it so soon.
#8: A Link to the Past
I really do like A Link to the Past, and it’s a great game, particularly for its time (like most Zelda games, it was ahead of its time and remarkably innovative). There is so much creativity in this game and it was a ton of fun to solve as a kid. This was originally released for the SNES, but I played it on my Game Boy Advance and had a wonderful time. It's still a game I enjoy running through from time to time, as well.
All right, this is tough. I’m rating the original, though I personally had a lot more fun with the remake for Nintendo Switch. The challenge here was deciding whether Link's Awakening is a game I enjoy more than A Link to the Past, and I think that ultimately, I do enjoy it more. Link's Awakening was weird, fun, and memorable.
I actually really enjoyed--no, loved--A Link Between Worlds. I have the special edition black and gold 3DS. There are tons of innovations in this game that are really interesting and fun. Lots of stuff that you can play around with and it’s overall just an excellent experience. I’d say it’s amazing, but I feel like having it essentially presented as a reworked A Link to the Past didn’t work in its favor. I wish that they’d added these concepts to a totally different map instead of creating a slightly better version of A Link to the Past. Ultimately I do enjoy this game more than Link's Awakening and A Link to the Past, but they're all extremely close to one another in terms of appreciation, in my mind.
I truly love Twilight Princess. There are some amazing moments here, the change in graphical style was a risk that I believe paid off, and the dungeons are awesome. The boss fights rock, the environment design is excellent, and the story is pretty well done. It’s a bit dark, too. It absolutely earns its spot in my top five Zelda games, but it's up against some really strong contenders and ultimately falls short of the other games listed after it.
How could you not love Wind Waker? This is a beautiful game. There’s so much to love about it. The graphics are adorable, the story is well done, the big bad reveal was freaking awesome as a kid. I genuinely didn’t know who it would be and the big bad reveal to a young, six or seven-year-old T. L. was unforgettable. All the dungeons are terrific and memorable, too. So much about this game was just amazing and there’s lots of replayability. I also think that this is a good one to show someone who doesn’t normally play video games. It’s awesome, intuitive, and there’s just… I could go on.
How could Ocarina of Time not go in the top three? This game, like many Zelda games, was innovative and powerful. I don’t have any idea how many times I’ve played it. The Master Quest version of the game is also well done, presenting new challenges. Even today, I still have a good time sitting down to play Ocarina of Time.
I imagine this is surprising to see all the way up here. I don't really see this game at the top of many Zelda rankings, and I wonder if that's because people haven't played it as recently as I have. Minish Cap is freaking amazing. If you haven’t had a chance to play it, I definitely recommend finding a way to do so. This game is beautiful, fun, hilarious, and just an all-around great time. Having your hat as your bizarre, snarky companion was a great direction. The tone of this game is excellent and the final fight against Vaati is unforgettable. Vaati is my favorite Big Bad across the entire Zelda franchise and I greatly wish to see him again in a future entry--preferably an entry that isn't terrible (looking at you, Four Swords Adventures).
This one I am distinctly ranking the original because the remake just sucked. Sorry. I did not appreciate the direction they took with the remake. I would have been fine with a new coat of paint instead of the changes they made. So, considering the original… this is easily my favorite of the Zelda games. I don’t even know how many times I’ve beaten it. The story of how it was made--which I really recommend looking up--is also just awesome.
With the use of time, the threat of the moon, the story of Kafei and Anju, this game is just a masterpiece. I love all of it. This is also really dark for a Zelda game and it has spawned a ton of interesting fan theories. So, Majora's Mask is easily my favorite Zelda game. I could go on and on about it for ages. Maybe I'll even make a Majora's Mask appreciation post someday.
Today's not that day, though.
Conclusion
There we go. Zelda games ranked in my subjective opinion. Here's a link you can use to complete the same tier list that I did. What do you think of these ranking placements? Most importantly, what are your favorites and least favorites from the list and how do you feel about where I put those specific ones? I'm especially curious to see if anyone's top five match up with mine! Minish Cap in particular is a game that I rarely see at the top of a Zelda ranking list, so I'd love to hear if there's anyone out there who agrees with this placement. If you're out there, fellow Minish Cap lovers, please show yourselves.
Thanks for taking the time to check out this post! I hope you had fun; if you haven’t played some of the ones that I listed here, now you have a few new games to try out! Seriously, if you haven’t had a chance to play Minish Cap, a game I know several people missed out on, go check it out. It’s awesome. Don’t sleep on it. What are you waiting for? Stop sitting here. Go find a way to play Minish Cap. Seriously. Go. Yeah.
Bye!