A reader has declared The Legend of Zelda the greatest video game franchise of all time, ahead of Grand Theft Auto, in a new Reader's Feature published by GameCentral. The opinion piece, written by reader Onibee, celebrates the recent remake of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, which the writer describes as "amazingly beautiful" and "exactly what I've always wanted."
Ocarina of Time Remake's High Ratings
The remake is currently the highest-rated game of the year on Metacritic, with only GTA 6 yet to be released, and the highest-rated remake of all time, ahead of all the Resident Evil games. The writer notes that this means Ocarina of Time has been considered one of the best games ever made twice, with both the original and the remake.
According to the reader, the series has at least two other games that have also been called the best ever made, including A Link To The Past and Breath Of The Wild, with Tears Of The Kingdom "basically" being one as well, even though it wasn't an entirely new game.
Zelda's Legacy and Sales
Zelda turned 40 this year and is "healthier than ever," according to the reader. The only time it wasn't was during the Twilight Princess/Skyward Sword era, when there were "two only okay games in a row," but that's "literally as low as it's ever gone." The problem then was a lack of innovation, with the games too scared to do anything different from Ocarina of Time.
Breath Of The Wild was the solution to that problem, and it was not only a massive hit with reviewers but also by far the best seller of the series. The reader notes that Zelda has never been that big in terms of sales, with the original Ocarina of Time doing okay but "nowhere near what it should of for how good it was." Breath Of The Wild, helped by being a launch game, changed that, making the series one of Nintendo's biggest sellers.
Comparing Zelda to GTA
The reader acknowledges that GTA is the obvious suggestion for the best franchise, especially with GTA 6 coming up, but argues that as soon as a new one is out, it's very hard to appreciate the previous ones. "People play GTA for the open world and the vibes, not the gameplay, which is consistently mediocre," the reader writes.
The only real contender, according to the reader, is Super Mario, also a Nintendo franchise. "These series have been around for 40+ years now and the consistency and quality and reinvention is just off the charts," they say, adding that something like GTA is "just better graphics each time and nothing else really changes."
The reader concludes by saying they love everything about the Zelda games, including the mix of action, puzzles, and stories, as well as the dungeons, bosses, secrets, and the whole style and tone. "It's always been great and it's clearly going to carry on being great," they write. "GTA can get in the bin as far as I'm concerned."
