The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time vs The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild - Which is the better game?

[Hardensoul]

They are both good in their own way.

BoTW brought me back , in a big way. Almost felt like first time I played OoT. OoT formula to Skyward sword had gotten really stale. I didn't even play Skyward Sword!

For me BotW was/is a breath of fresh air.

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

To be honest I want Elden Ring, but Zelda. Ie with BotWs lively world and settlements instead of a world that's pretty much dead or in the process of dying, but Elden Rings dungeons and mini dungeons incorporated into it, with the sheer enemy variety, abilities, skills, weapons, gear and upgrades you can obtain and find in that game instead of another fucking korok seed or shrine.

I don't think Tears of the Kingdom will be that. Maybe. I think Nintendo will double down on some parts of Breath of the Wild, maybe improve or overhaul some aspects of it. There were rumors they were taking influence from Red Dead Redemption 2, though I think Elden Ring will also have their attention while creating TotK. Then again, the recent teaser showed 7 symbols that could indicate Tears will have at least 7 major dungeons which would be very nice indeed.

Sometimes I hate being right as all of Tears of the Kingdom was a sidegrade at best to BotW, nothing was a complete absolute upgrade over BotW bar the cool cave systems.

 

[Spiders]

Never loved Ocarina. Thought it was a big step down from LttP at the time, and I think it's the weakest of the 3D games (or maybe Skyward Sword).
I love Breath of the Wild. Other games scratch the Zelda 1-3 itch better now, but it does adventure much better IMO than the earlier 3D games which felt very prescribed and handholdy.

To be honest I want Elden Ring, but Zelda. Ie with BotWs lively world and settlements instead of a world that's pretty much dead or in the process of dying, but Elden Rings dungeons and mini dungeons incorporated into it, with the sheer enemy variety, abilities, skills, weapons, gear and upgrades you can obtain and find in that game instead of another fucking korok seed or shrine.

It's funny… everything I loved about Zelda then is Elden Ring now. Don't know if I need a Link skin though. The enemies in Zelda 1 were terrifying to me. Now they're just cute/cool. The horror + mystery is gone… perhaps never there, just I was 6 years old lol.

edit: feel like I got necro-bump-rolled hahaha

 

[Zeta Dragoon]

Never loved Ocarina. Thought it was a big step down from LttP at the time, and I think it's the weakest of the 3D games (or maybe Skyward Sword).
I love Breath of the Wild. Other games scratch the Zelda 1-3 itch better now, but it does adventure much better IMO than the earlier 3D games which felt very prescribed and handholdy.



It's funny… everything I loved about Zelda then is Elden Ring now. Don't know if I need a Link skin though. The enemies in Zelda 1 were terrifying to me. Now they're just cute/cool. The horror + mystery is gone… perhaps never there, just I was 6 years old lol.

edit: feel like I got necro-bump-rolled hahaha

Elden Ring does not have lively settlments, towns and cities. Its a dead/dying world. That is my major issue with Soul and Soul like games.

 

[Yawnson]

Don't even understand the love for Oot when it was new, the muted story, graphics and sound were disappointing even when it was new. Was super disappointed when I got to a dungeon as a kid and it played that mood music instead of stuff like the amazing dungeon themes in LttP.

Also hated the art style, yes, it has a lot to do with the N64 limitations, but it felt like such a downgrade.

It also had a lot of content that felt pointless, who cares for another heart piece or the ability to carry more gear I never use.

MM had the mask, better story lines, more rewarding side quest and better music variety, yet they kept going back to the Post formula till BotW which finally got rid of boring foundation that oot started

 

[Franky Family]

Was super disappointed when I got to a dungeon as a kid and it played that mood music instead of stuff like the amazing dungeon themes in LttP.

Man... You were disappointed with the music? I never even knew there was anyone out there who could dislike it. Kojo Kondo put out extraordinary work for both OOT and MM

 

[Torrent of Pork]

Of the 'traditional' 3D Zelda's Wind Waker is objectively the best, but I absolutely love the direction BotW/TotK took. Just needs a little more active storytelling for an open world setup.

All that being said Ocarina set the standard for 3rd person action-adventure, can't disrespect the OG.

 

[Epic Nemesis]

This is the video game equivalent of "which of your children do you like more"

Impossible to answer. Both are fantastic for such different reasons and so far apart from each other that you can't really make a side by side comparison. You can also make the argument that both games aren't even the "best" Zelda on their respective hardware.

Both hit me with the "Woa, this game is unlike anything I've played before it" feeling stronger than any other game. The only other games that came close to that feeling was Mario 64 and Ultima Online.

 

[LtGoose]

Weapon degradation is a chit mechanic.

 

[Torrent of Pork]

Weapon degradation is a chit mechanic.

Being perfectly honest here, both of those games smacked you upside the head with so many weapons that I had a stockpile of them ready to go for 'real shit' moments within 5 hours.

I do not consider myself a particularly skilled gamer.

 

[Asmonius]

Ocarina of Time isn't my favorite 3D Zelda, but it nails the series' formula translating to 3D as well as any of the sequels since then. It also has one of my favorite stories in the series, even though that's rarely been the series' strength. BOTW has some very interesting mechanical changes (climbing, gliding, dynamic weather), but breakable weapons and moving away from traditional dungeons makes it a one and done for me. Also was a really miserable collect-a-thon if you're looking to 100% everything.

 

[Yawnson]

Man... You were disappointed with the music? I never even knew there was anyone out there who could dislike it. Kojo Kondo put out extraordinary work for both OOT and MM

I remember hating the denehnehnehnehnehneh every time there was an enemy as much as much as the wah wah in New Super Mario Bros, it was such a negative change for me going to this from the bombastic music in LttP

 

[Epic Nemesis]

Man... You were disappointed with the music? I never even knew there was anyone out there who could dislike it. Kojo Kondo put out extraordinary work for both OOT and MM

The music was fantastic, but some of the music is unlistenable. Like the fucking forest temple, fuck that music. (Doesn't help that I always get stuck in that one for hours whenever I replay it.)

 

[Spiders]

Man... You were disappointed with the music? I never even knew there was anyone out there who could dislike it. Kojo Kondo put out extraordinary work for both OOT and MM

I think it's the jump from LTTP's dungeon bangers to OoT's …ambient tracks? They're good but honestly I'm listening to them now and I don't remember them. No "Overworld" theme in OoT too was such a bummer.









VS

 

[Hardensoul]

Being perfectly honest here, both of those games smacked you upside the head with so many weapons that I had a stockpile of them ready to go for 'real shit' moments within 5 hours.

I do not consider myself a particularly skilled gamer.

My maxed out inventory is full of the White/Gold Lynel weapons and shields!! I love farming them!

Weapons/Shields respawn after blood moons. If you remember the spots just go there and some are unattended!

 

[Torrent of Pork]

My maxed out inventory is full of the White/Gold Lynel weapons and shields!! I love farming them!

Weapons/Shields respawn after blood moons. If you remember the spots just go there and some are unattended!

Perhaps I'm just a moron who drunkenly stumbled into the correct way to play the game, but low-level Moblins got the sticks & rusted swords, Lionels got the good shit. I never felt that there was a 'meta' to these games, when I got my ass kicked I pulled out the shit I was saving for a motherfucker that decided to step up.

 

[Hardensoul]

Perhaps I'm just a moron who drunkenly stumbled into the correct way to play the game, but low-level Moblins got the sticks & rusted swords, Lionels got the good shit. I never felt that there was a 'meta' to these games, when I got my ass kicked I pulled out the shit I was saving for a motherfucker that decided to step up.

If you kill enough enemies the change from red-blue all way to white. Gold I think is only in Botw hero mode. With weapons from them getting stronger and stronger with more durability!

It's why I don't have much on an issue with durability weapons. TotK got better with fusing, making durability even less of concern.

 

[Franky Family]

Of the 'traditional' 3D Zelda's Wind Waker is objectively the best, but I absolutely love the direction BotW/TotK took. Just needs a little more active storytelling for an open world setup.

All that being said Ocarina set the standard for 3rd person action-adventure, can't disrespect the OG.

I love TWW but I can't put it above OOT or MM. It's the best seafaring game ever created for my money's worth. People always give it a hard time because there were tons of treasures to find at sea that didn't net them the winning lotto ticket amount that they wanted every time they found something. I found it more realistic that all these chests had a modest amount of treasure. But there should have been like an item or two to find under the sea to make it more worthwhile. Rupees and Heart Pieces were fine for me but some required more. The search and being at sea was great in the KoRL

Dungeons in TWW were pretty unique, but kind of a mixed bag for me considering how epic and surreal some of the Temples in OOT and MM could be at times. The core characters in TWW could have also been stronger imo. Like the sages for the dungeons in TWW, it felt like they were pretty bland and forgettable in all honesty. Half made a minor impression, the other half of the sages made little to no impression

 

[Torrent of Pork]

I love TWW but I can't put it above OOT or MM. It's the best seafaring game ever created for my money's worth. People always give it a hard time because there were tons of treasures to find at sea that didn't net them the winning lotto ticket amount that they wanted every time they found something. I found it more realistic that all these chests had a modest amount of treasure. But there should have been like an item or two to find under the sea to make it more worthwhile. Rupees and Heart Pieces were fine for me but some required more. The search and being at sea was great in the KoRL

Dungeons in TWW were pretty unique, but kind of a mixed bag for me considering how epic and surreal some of the Temples in OOT and MM could be at times. The core characters in TWW could have also been stronger imo. Like the sages for the dungeons in TWW, it felt like they were pretty bland and forgettable in all honesty. Half made a minor impression, the other half of the sages made little to no impression

Understand that I only consider WW above Ocarina, because IMO the people the people that made Ocarina refined their craft. I respect the fuck out of OoT for what it is, and I was there on launch hard enough to have my grandparents hide the cart after they woke up to find me still playing at 5am. Wind Waker took everything from OoT, and made it better.

 

[WhatIsThis?]

OOT for me.

BotW is damn good too but man, the emotional intelligence on display with OOT is truly incredible. When I play that game I just feel it in my bones, so many small details that I noticed as a kid, but they stand out 10-fold as an adult, and that in itself is what the game is all about. Just a truly timeless game.

That being said, Twilight Princess is the GOAT Zelda for me.

 

[Spiders]

I love TWW but I can't put it above OOT or MM. It's the best seafaring game ever created for my money's worth. People always give it a hard time because there were tons of treasures to find at sea that didn't net them the winning lotto ticket amount that they wanted every time they found something. I found it more realistic that all these chests had a modest amount of treasure. But there should have been like an item or two to find under the sea to make it more worthwhile. Rupees and Heart Pieces were fine for me but some required more. The search and being at sea was great in the KoRL

Dungeons in TWW were pretty unique, but kind of a mixed bag for me considering how epic and surreal some of the Temples in OOT and MM could be at times. The core characters in TWW could have also been stronger imo. Like the sages for the dungeons in TWW, it felt like they were pretty bland and forgettable in all honesty. Half made a minor impression, the other half of the sages made little to no impression

Two more solid dungeons I'd put it as the best 3D classic Zelda.

 

[Franky Family]

Two more solid dungeons I'd put it as the best 3D classic Zelda.

I used to hate on The Wind Waker's dungeons kind of harshly in the past and I still don't think they're the best, but artistically many of them are pretty cool. The first dungeon is a classic. Great level, nice area and the Rito tribe is introduced, excellent item gained, and the boss concept as well as dungeon design were paired perfectly imo. Valoo is a great character as well. The dungeons could have been a bit more epic imo, but looking back the atmosphere was on point most of the time. To this day, I am still impressed with how unique some of the Zelda dungeons theme music were from OOT to TWW (1998-2003)

 

[Saruhashi]

Ocarina for me.

Over time I just prefer a more focused game with clear objectives and progression.

The whole package makes Ocarina a replayable experience that I have enjoyed a few times over the years. I love that kind of weird creepy janky fantasy style.

Breath of the Wild is really the kind of game I would play for a long time but would only play through once. Even the thought of a remaster on Switch 2 makes me feel like I'd never want to play it ALL again.

BotW is an excellent game but the size and unfocused nature of everything excludes it from being an all time replayable classic.

Ocarina has that charm of being a replayable classic game.