Nintendo has disclosed new information about The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D for 3DS following the Nintendo Direct earlier this week. The announcement showcased some of the many improvements to their great cult classic, and we’re going to dive into what some of those improvements are.
The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D is a bizarre adventure that departs from the classic formula to bring us a creepy and dark experience that knows how to leave an impression. Link managed lose himself in the Lost Woods while looking for his friend, Navi, after the events of Ocarina of Time 3D, and landed himself in the middle of Termina. Shortly after arriving, it becomes apparent rather quickly that the moon is falling and you only have three days to stop it.
How will you manage to stop the moon?
It’s easy to see why this game has such a huge cult following if you’ve ever played it. The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask is downright creepy, and casts a constant shadow of dread over the entire game. As you explore Termina and prod into the affairs of its inhabitants, it really jerks at your heart. The people here are desperate and clinging on to the hope that maybe the moon will just vanish.
Revisiting Majora’s Mask today really shows its age, and I can’t help but marvel at the fact that it is over 15 years old. If you ask me, this game was way ahead of its time. Thankfully, as with any remake, Nintendo gets the chance to polish the game and send it back out with improvements. We already know a few of the new features in Majora’s Mask 3D, such as the new fishing mechanic and more precise controls.
Redesigned Bomber’s Notebook
Shortly after successfully joining the “Bomber’s Secret Society of Justice” in Clock Town, Link gains access to the Bomber’s Notebook, which functions as a quest log of sorts. In Majora’s Mask, the Bomber’s Notebook looked like a regular 3-day planner with stickers to organize your events and figure out what time everybody’s life happens at. Unfortunately, this design was confusing and didn’t provide the player with nearly enough information to be helpful. Because of this, some of the side quests were often confusing and hard to keep track of.
In Majora’s Mask 3D, the Bomber’s Notebook has been completely redesigned to more closely resemble a quest log. There are tabs for ongoing missions, completed side quests, and rumors that may lead to or hint at lore points. Poking around in everybody else’s business has never been easier. It even comes with an alarm to update the player on their impending doom.
New Save Options to Compliment Portable Caming
In Majora’s Mask, the only way to save your game was either to reset time or make a ‘temporary’ save at one of the owl statues. With the release of Majora’s Mask 3D, many new owl and feather statues pop up all over Termina to allow the player to save and hop off of their portable adventure at any given time.
Additionally, traveling back in time no longer saves your game, so you must remember to make a stop by one of the statues before quiting.
Hourly Time Skipping
The Ocarina of Time is an invaluable tool that Link carries on his adventures in Majora’s Mask 3D. In the original game, when Link played the Song of Double Time, the game would skip forward to the next increment of 12 hours. Now, when you whip out your ocarina and play your goddess-imbued song, the game gives you the option to skip to any hour within the current day.
Boss Changes
Remember when Nintendo came out saying that they changed the way you defeat one of the bosses? They made a quick reveal during the Nintendo Direct and showed off Oswald presenting some new moves. He now hosts a giant eye on the top of his head.
Besides that, boss battles have seen general improvements–by making it more difficult to simply exploit weaknesses in their attack pattern.
And Finally…
There are two fishing poles in The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D. These fishing poles can catch 10 different types of fish each. So set up your fishing pole and kick back. The moon will give you one extra night to fish up that large fish you’ve been trying to get. No really, it will. Just one more night.
