I finally played Zelda Ocarina of Time and it doesn't hold up the way people said it would

So I'm 23 and never had a N64 growing up. Everyone in this sub always talks about how Ocarina is the greatest game ever made. I borrowed a friend's old console and copy last weekend. I got like 4 hours in before I gave up. The camera controls made me dizzy, the text moves super slow, and I kept getting stuck on walls. I don't get the hype at all. Is there some trick to enjoying these old 3D games or do they just age badly for people who didn't grow up with them? Curious if anyone else tried a classic for the first time and felt this way.

3 comments

3 Comments

karencampbell13d ago

Oh man, you're saying "the camera controls made me dizzy" and I get where you're coming from, but I'm going to play hard devil's advocate here. Look, the camera in Ocarina of Time is like driving a car with manual transmission for the first time, it feels clunky and weird but there's a reason people still swear by it. You've only put 4 hours in, your mileage may vary but that's barely scratching the surface of the world and story that made people go crazy back in 1998. My honest take is that the controls and slow text are part of the charm, they force you to slow down and actually soak in everything, which is something most modern games don't let you do anymore.

hugos4613d ago

Totally feel you on this. Four hours is barely enough time to get past the first dungeon and figure out why the camera keeps snapping back behind Link. I remember my first time with Ocarina and I almost gave up because the Z-targeting felt so awkward compared to what I was used to. But once you get the hang of it, that camera system actually becomes second nature and makes combat feel way more strategic. The slow text thing I get too, but I found it helped me actually read the dialogue instead of just mashing through it like I do with most modern games. Hope you stick with it a bit longer, but no shame if it's just not your thing either.

samflores13d ago

@karencampbell I get the manual transmission thing but man, my buddy tried Ocarina for the first time last year and he spent like 20 minutes just trying to walk through a doorway because the camera kept flipping around. He gave up and went back to Dark Souls and said that game felt easier by comparison lol. Did you ever force a friend to play a classic and watch them struggle with it?