The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, released in 1998 for the Nintendo 64 has perhaps advanced the medium of video games more than any other single game in history. Just this week, for the first time in over a decade I made it to the end credits of this masterpiece, and after 13 years, it still holds up amazingly well.
Ocarina of Time follows the story of "Link" (or whatever you decided to name him), a small child living within a magical forest of ever-young children. When the godlike Deku tree summons him one morning, Link is quickly swept up in adventure that grows rapidly in scope until the entire fate of Hyrule rests on his shoulders. The story remains epic and sweeping. It has great reveals, and subtle mysteries. While rarely seen, the villian, Ganondorf's presence is always felt in the game through the troubles his actions have caused. While perhaps crude by today's standards, the cinematic sequences do a great job of filling in the mythology and story of the world. While some of the text can get a little too heavy and self-serious for its own good, (Hero of time this, sacred realm that, sacred prophecy after sacred prophecy after sacred prophecy...) the story still does a great job of lending weight to your adventure.
Perhaps the largest innovation Ocarina of Time generated was in its gameplay. Ocarina showed the world how sword fighting should work in the still fairly new world of three dimensional gaming. The game allowed the user to freely move about detailed 3D environments swinging at any enemy within range, or, for added precision, innovated combat with the "Z-Targeting" system. This allowed Link to lock on to an enemy while effectively strafing, blocking, jumping around and otherwise engaging an enemy with more agility and precision. Outside of combat, Link can climb, jump, fall, run, ride horses etc... all with one button due to the context sensitive actions mapped to the A button.
The main story will take Link from Dungeon to Dungeon, solving puzzles, collecting items that allow for further progression and battling larger than life bosses. There are countless things to do off the beaten path however. For one, a large emphasis is put on exploration, and the designers did a great job of rewarding thorough curiosity with life increasing pieces of heart, collectible gold skulltulla tokens and magic spells. With activities ranging from chicken collecting, shooting galleries, swan diving, bombachu bowling, frog delivering, mask selling, horseback archery, horse racing, ocarina playing and a fully realized fishing pond that could have been sold as a game in and of itself, I can assure you that Ocarina of Time has something in it for you.
The graphics, while obviously dated, are charming and Hyrule is well realized. Characters are charming or grotesque, sometimes even charmingly grotesque. Day turns to night, butterflies flutter, particle effects float around in dimly lit forests and every area is visually distinct. Environments range from crystalline caves to molten volcanoes. On the audio front, the sounds effects stand the test of time exceptionally well. Everything from the sounds of Link's feet on different surfaces, to the sound his sword makes when it's being sheathed is spot on. The musical score is classic, and makes you wish it was fully orchestrated instead of limited to the MIDI treatment the times demanded. Many of the tunes are sure to stick with you long after you've turned the system off (Ex: Saria's Song, Song of Storms).
Despite this, time has not left this classic entirely unmarred. Certain small niggling issues do exist that I think will prevent the game from being perfectly timeless. This mostly has to do with conventions that existed then, that have since faded. For example: The concept of "The Scarecrow's Song" is implemented poorly and never explained. While Epona was a blast to ride around Hyrule field 13 years ago, this was mostly due to the fact that we had never had the experience of getting to ride a horse portrayed so well before in a video game. I imagine that young gamers nowadays, when presented with Epona, will be baffled as she serves no real purpose. Also, some of the dungeons hold up better than others. While the Deku Tree, Dodongo's Cavern and The Forest Temple are all impeccably designed, others don't hold up nearly as well- specifically the Shadow Temple. There are also some instances where how you can interact with your environment isn't sufficiently explained and must be discovered through trial and error. Nothing game ruining, but I feel like modern audiences have grown to expect more. Also, fully realized as it may be, there is no getting around the fact that Hyrule can feel a little claustrophobic as it takes very little time to cross the whole of the map.
The concepts that The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time put into place were game changing for this medium. The sense of scale and wonder were revolutionary for its time. It perfected the way combat could work and feel in a 3d environment. Its story set the grounds for how narratives could be told and conveyed. It is almost impossible to find a game that is released today that does not draw some inspiration from this title. It was a work of perfection when it was released 13 years ago, and while time has revealed a few blemishes, it remains a true masterpiece.