The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is simply one of the very best games ever created. Lots of reviewers gave this game a perfect score, and some have called it the "Game of the (20th) Century." In Ocarina of Time, you will find a perfect blend of action (fighting enemies), puzzle solving, and exploration. There are literally hundreds of secrets in this game.
You play the game as Link, the hero of the Legend of Zelda series. You will be on a huge quest to save Hyrule from the evil king of thieves, Ganondorf, who is the antagonist of the Zelda series. In order to do this, you will have to travel through time. Besides saving Hyrule, you will come across the many different races of Hyrule. There are the Kokiri, who are forest children that never grow up. They are protected by the Great Deku Tree, who acts as their guardian. Then there are the Gorons. The Gorons live on Death Mountain and love to feast on rocks. You can be sure that you will be helping them during your quest. Also, there are the Zoras. They are fish-like people who live in the water. In Zora's Fountain, there is the Zoras' guardian deity, Lord Jabu Jabu. Not surprisingly, you will have to help out the Zoras during your quest. The last two races are the Hylians and the Gerudo. The Hylians are like regular people, and the most famous you will come across is the Princess of destiny, Zelda. Zelda will give Link much helpful advice during his adventure. Also, you will come across Lon Lon Ranch, where you will find Malon, Talon and Ingo. They raise horses, chickens and cows. After traveling through time, you will meet up with an old friend there who will make your trips across Hyrule Field much more exciting (hint - think Kentucy Derby). The last race you will encounter is the Gerudo tribe. They consist mostly of females, with only one male being born every 100 years. Ganondorf is the one male in their tribe and he is their leader.
Besides the many people that you will meet in Ocarina of Time, there are many enemies in the game. Some are series regulars, such as Octoroks, Moblins, Tektites, Like Likes, Queen Gohma and King Dodongo. Others are new to Zelda, including Deku Scrubs, Deku Babas, Floor Masters, and Stalchilds, to name only a few. What makes battling enemies so fun is the targeting system developed for this game. It's called Z-Targeting, and with it, you can lock onto enemies and strafe around them. This helps you to always keep the enemy within your sights. Z-Targeting makes fighting close combat in 3-D not only feasable, but fun as well. Z-Targeting can also be used to talk to people who are far away.
Zelda also has a lot of exploration and many tricky puzzles. This is what really separates this game from most others. Zelda really rewards you for exploring every inch of land. And, while dungeon crawling, you will find the very best in level design, and many cleverly designed puzzles. Not too many games make you think your way through an area, and require it for you to progress in the game. Zelda challenges both your wits and your intellect. You will usually use the items that you've gained to help you solve puzzles, so keep that in mind.
It's hard to talk about everything that is so great about this game in one little interview. I haven't even mentioned the Ocarina of Time itself, which the game is named after. This is a flute-like instrument that is given to Link during his quest. Link will play songs on the Ocarina to trigger events, as well as to warp to places that he needs to go. Playing the Ocarina is very fun. It makes very pretty tunes. Oh, I've forgotten to mention the great music and sounds that are in this game. All you have to know is that when you're standing outside when it's nighttime, you will hear a lot of things going on, even though it is quiet. Frogs will croak, a wolf will howl, and you will hear crickets in the distance. The music is wonderfully done, with many memorable tracks. It is easy on the ears, to say the least. A quick note on the graphics is that they were great for the time (in 1998), but some of the ground textures are a little blurry. The game looks a lot better on the GameCube versions of Ocarina of Time (Ocarina of Time Master Quest and Legend of Zelda Collector's Edition). The resolution was much improved (up to four times, I believe) for the GameCube. Still, graphics don't make a game, gameplay does, and Ocarina of Time delivers in this aspect. Controlling Link is a breeze, and he'll never do anything you don't want to. There is also an in-game tutorial to help you get used to the controls. You should have no problem.
Finally, I don't think I could recommend a game any more than I do Ocarina of Time. Yes, I am biased as I am a Legend of Zelda fan, but this game is truly remarkable, and I speak from my experience of playing video games since 1985 (on Atari). I've played many games in my life and I can't but admit that this game represents the pinnacle of the industry, it is all that every game aspires to be.
A massive quest, a young boy saving the world against impossible odds, using magic and lots of cool items (boomerang, bow and arrow, bombs, slingshot, etc.), exploring a huge overworld filled with secrets, and solving clever puzzles. You simply cannot go wrong with this game, and I can guarantee that you will have fun playing it. A large number of reviewers who have called this the single greatest game ever created must be on to something...
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