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00:00So, you're finally awake.
00:06It has been quite a long time, Link.
00:10Welcome to MojoPlays, and today we're ranking every Nintendo console solely based on what Zelda games you can play on
00:17them.
00:17A few rules of criteria for this one.
00:20We're only looking at the mainline series.
00:22And to keep things interesting, we aren't including any straight ports, digital re-releases, or subscription services.
00:28However, we are including remasters and remakes, since those tend to at least be a little different from their original
00:35releases.
00:43Now, before we dive in, we publish new content all week long.
00:47So, be sure to subscribe and ring the bell to get notified about our latest videos.
00:53Number 12. Nintendo DS
00:55The Nintendo DS got two dedicated Zelda games, Phantom Hourglass in 2007 and Spirit Tracks in 2009.
01:03These tend to be less liked by a lot of fans due to their more gimmicky touchscreen controls.
01:09And while it's nice to see the story of Toon Link continue, and how it leads to a new Hyrule,
01:14scaling down from Wind Waker to these two obviously comes with certain restrictions.
01:25Phantom Hourglass gets a lot of flack for its repetitive pacing, particularly with the Temple of the Ocean King.
01:32And Spirit Tracks is much more restrictive on exploration with its overworld,
01:36while featuring an awkward microphone gimmick for Link's pan flute.
01:40There's still great stuff here, some pretty fun dungeons, and some strong side characters with Linebeck and Zelda,
01:46but they aren't as fun to play or as impactful as other games in the series.
01:57Number 11. Nintendo Entertainment System
02:00As wrong as it feels to rank something as important as the NES so low on a list,
02:06the two Zelda games it received, groundbreaking as they are, have suffered from the age of time.
02:17At the time of release, The Legend of Zelda was obviously unlike much of anything else.
02:22It was a grand adventure with deadly dungeons to overcome and plenty of secrets to uncover.
02:27Zelda II The Adventure of Link was completely different, with a side-scrolling view, RPG mechanics, and high difficulty,
02:34all of which have made it the definitive black sheep of the series in retrospect.
02:46The history of video games owes a great debt to the NES Zelda games,
02:50but later games would build off them in so many better ways that it's hard to place the NES any
02:55higher.
02:56Number 10. Game Boy
02:58The original Game Boy was a marvel of technology,
03:01and the fact that Nintendo could fit an entire Zelda experience in the palms of your hands
03:06was incredibly impressive at the time.
03:15Link's Awakening remains a fan favorite to this day.
03:19Washed ashore on the strange Koholint Island, Link had to unravel a mystery at its center.
03:24Although smaller than A Link to the Past, the game had surprisingly deep and fun characters,
03:29and introduced many firsts in the series, like the first new setting, a trading quest, and fishing.
03:36With only one Zelda game though, Game Boy Color coming later, the Game Boy can't place higher.
03:42But if you're a fan of Link's Awakening, you know this won't be the last time it shows up.
03:54Number 9. Super Nintendo Entertainment System
03:57Like the Game Boy, the Super Nintendo only has one Zelda game we can really talk about,
04:02which keeps it low on the list.
04:04But what a game it is.
04:13Even today, A Link to the Past holds up incredibly well, as many games on the system still do.
04:19Nintendo took the foundation laid out by the NES original and expanded on it in remarkable ways,
04:24some of which are still felt in the series to this day.
04:27Players were treated to not one, but two worlds full of dungeons, secrets, and treasures.
04:33Much of what the series is known for began here,
04:36from weapons like the Master Sword and Hookshot,
04:38to iconic pieces of music like Zelda's Lullaby.
04:42And once again, don't worry, it'll show up again in a bit.
04:51Number 8. Game Boy Color
05:01With a smaller, more powerful handheld, Nintendo released a new version of Link's Awakening,
05:06which, in addition to now being in color, came with an extra dungeon
05:10and a new photo mode that worked with the Game Boy Printer.
05:13Those changes are big enough for us to not consider DX as a standard port.
05:18Even still, the GBC also has the benefit of the Oracle duology,
05:22which can't be played on the original Game Boy.
05:25Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons were released alongside one another,
05:29yet are set in different lands with different stories.
05:32Developed in partnership with Capcom,
05:34they're two of the harder games in the series, specifically Ages,
05:37but it's undeniably cool how each focuses on entirely different mechanics and characters,
05:42yet connect for an overall plot.
05:53Number 7. Game Boy Advance
05:55The Capcom partnership reached its peak on the Game Boy Advance,
05:59which got a new version of A Link to the Past,
06:02with refreshed visuals, a new side quest, and a new dungeon.
06:10What made it even more unique was the bundled-in Four Swords,
06:14which introduced a new villain and multiplayer to the series.
06:17As great as that was, we also got an entirely new game,
06:20and one of the more underrated entries, the Minish Cap.
06:23They gave Link a fantastic ability to shrink down to explore new areas and solve puzzles,
06:28and expanded greatly on Vaati, making him one of the franchise's best villains.
06:33That's on top of some fantastic visuals, and fan-favorite companion Ezlo, Link's grouchy talking hat.
06:47Number 6. Nintendo Wii
06:50Now we're starting to get to the heavy hitters.
06:53The Wii received two Zelda games, both of which are considered strong points when it comes to storytelling.
07:11A swan song for the GameCube, but a launch title for the Wii,
07:14Twilight Princess introduced us to Midna, still the best companion in the series,
07:19brought new hooks to gameplay like Wolf Link,
07:21and featured small but nice motion touches to certain mechanics.
07:25Skyward Sword, being designed solely for the platform,
07:29leaned much more heavily into motion controls, somewhat to its detriment.
07:33In addition to its controls, its overworld was also a step down from Twilight Princess, as was its companion.
07:40Still, there were highs like its fantastic music, some strong dungeon standouts,
07:45new, highly important lore, and one of the best incarnations of Zelda across the franchise.
07:52Number 5. Nintendo 64
07:55In terms of importance, there's not much about the Zelda games on the Nintendo 64 that hasn't already been said.
08:02Ocarina of Time was, and still is, seen as one of the greatest games of all time,
08:07and a foundational building block of the action-adventure genre.
08:19Majora's Mask takes what Ocarina of Time built, and mixes in deep, sometimes heartbreaking character writing,
08:26and interesting new mechanics for Link through masks.
08:29From the iconic music that tugs on your nostalgia, to the truly great dungeons that we delighted in puzzling through,
08:36this duology marks a special point in the franchise.
08:40The only reason the N64 doesn't place higher is because others have both quality and quantity.
08:54Number 4. GameCube
08:57The GameCube may not have been a commercial high point for Nintendo, but it was for Zelda.
09:02Although the art style was divisive, The Wind Waker was nothing short of an extraordinary game,
09:07with an interesting spin on the world and lore of Zelda, and wonderful characters and music.
09:20The GameCube also got its own version of Ocarina of Time in Master Quest, with far more challenging dungeons.
09:27The multiplayer angle got to continue in Four Swords Adventures, which was an improvement on visuals and gameplay.
09:34And finally, the GameCube also gets points for Twilight Princess, which, with a more standard control scheme,
09:40is the slightly better version over the Wii.
09:43And, as we've already said, that game is fantastic.
09:55Number 3. Nintendo 3DS
09:59Ocarina of Time gets to help out a third system in Nintendo's lineup.
10:03The 3DS version, which also includes Master Quest, featured nice quality of life improvements,
10:08making it the best way to play one of the best games of all time, for now.
10:22Majora's Mask was a bit more mixed.
10:24It also received quality of life improvements, but gave bosses obvious weak spots and made Zora Link's swimming worse.
10:30Still, two of the best games in the series.
10:33On top of that, the 3DS got one of the best top-down Zelda games in A Link Between Worlds.
10:39It was an interesting evolution of classic Zelda, with Link's new painting mechanic tying into puzzle-solving and traversal in
10:46really fun ways.
10:47Funnily enough, its sequel, the multiplayer Triforce Heroes, is far from anyone's favorite, yet gets to rank high this time
10:55around.
11:08Number 2. Wii U
11:10This is probably the only time the Wii U will rank this high on, well, any list, but the fact
11:17remains.
11:17It was a great system for Zelda.
11:28The Wind Waker and Twilight Princess are still considered two of the franchise's highest points.
11:34The HD versions of each game made strong improvements not only to their visuals, but also their gameplay.
11:41Wind Waker HD, completely stunning as it is to look at, also introduced faster sailing and shortened the infamous Triforce
11:49Quest.
11:49Twilight Princess HD came with a new combat challenge dungeon, but was also a step-up in controls.
11:56And both of these are still frequently requested to be ported to Switch.
12:00Beyond this, the Wii U also got Breath of the Wild as a last hurrah, similar to Twilight Princess on
12:06the GameCube.
12:07Did many people play it this way? Of course not, but it still matters here, and it's still one of
12:12the best open-world games ever made.
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12:48Number 1. Nintendo Switch
12:50Even without the benefit of its online collection, it's hard to top the Switch.
12:55Because let's face it, Zelda fans, Nintendo's modern era has been very good to us.
13:00Breath of the Wild helped propel Nintendo's hybrid to ridiculous popularity, with its scope, scale, and possibilities unmatched in the
13:09open-world genre.
13:10It was followed up with Tears of the Kingdom, giving players a whole new bag of exciting tricks to work
13:16with and puzzles to solve.
13:22However, Nintendo didn't forget to water the franchise's roots.
13:26On top of a visual improvement, Skyward Sword HD adapted its motion controls to a more standard control scheme, and
13:33scaled back Fi's frequent interruptions.
13:36The Switch also got a wonderful remake of Link's Awakening, with a delightful diorama art style, which would be reused
13:43for a brand new game in Echoes of Wisdom.
13:46Following Princess Zelda, it focused on summoning copies of objects and creatures to solve puzzles and fight enemies while expanding
13:53on lore in interesting ways.
13:55With the Switch, there's not only high quality, but high variety.
14:05What Nintendo system do you think has the best group of Zelda games?
14:09Share your thoughts in the comments, and we'll see you next time.