The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

1998 not only brought the Zelda franchise into a new console and three dimensions, but also produced the other major contender for the best Zelda game, and one of the best games ever made, period. Shigeru Miyamoto, the creator, has stated that this is the first game in the chronology and, as such, is the source of the legend for all other Zelda games. Aside from being visually stunning—for the time, and still not too bad today—the elements created in previous games were perfected in this version, other integral bits were added, and all of this was exceptionally adapted to a 3D environment. As one might guess from the title, music, while always important in Zelda games, was brought to the forefront with a variety of catchy tunes that could be played with various effects, ranging from telepathic communication, to instantaneous travel, to summoning a rainstorm, and many more besides. In addition to the visual and auditory beauty, Ocarina of Time is notable for its engaging story, with all the twists it takes, its fleshed out world, and its establishment of the character of Zelda being more than just a girl to be rescued. The history and nature of the Triforce is explained, the origins of Ganon are revealed, and you have a remarkably good time in the process. What more could you ask?

Link is only ten years old on the morning he's awoken by his new companion, Navi, a fairy sent by the Great Deku Tree that protects the Kokiri Forest that he lives in. His elation over having finally obtained his fairy—he's the only Kokiri without one—is quickly squelched by his newly-given mission: save the Great Deku Tree from the curse placed on it by an evil man, then venture into the world of Hyrule to find his destiny. A meeting with the Princess Zelda sets him on a new path, sending the ever-silent Link to the far reaches of the country in an effort to gather the pieces needed to stop the ambitions of the sinister King of the Gerudo tribe, Ganondorf Dragmire. His quest will take him from the safety of his home forest to the fields of Hyrule, the heart of a volcano, the bottom of a lake, the depths of the desert, into the darkest shadows, and through time itself. At least he has Navi along for the ride.

Images:

Young Link explores the world
Link's best friend, Saria
Link meets Zelda for the first time
He learns a song before leaving
Zelda and her nursemaid/bodyguard escape into the night...
...while Link buys them some time against Ganondorf
What seven years can do to a boy...
...or a girl
Pre-game scenery and music
Game opening, including the naming of Link

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

This third incarnation of Zelda is arguably the best. In 1991 (1992 for North America), A Link to the Past took the original formula, added several new elements, shook them up, and presented the world with a dazzling snowglobe of adventure. The inclusion of a more detailed story, the invention of such staples as the Master Sword and the hookshot (quite possibly the coolest item in the history of gaming), and the establishment of a dual-world that has been included in nearly every Zelda game since all go into making this game exciting, memorable, and, most importantly, fun.

Young Link is at home one rainy night when he hears the telepathic voice of Princess Zelda calling for help. His uncle heads out to rescue her, but Link, following behind, soon finds his injured uncle and takes over his mission. The wizard Agahnim is trying to break the seal on the Dark World, where Ganon is imprisoned, using the descendants of the sages who created the seal in the first place. The Master Sword is the only weapon capable of stopping him, and so Link sets out on his multi-part adventure to find the sword, stop Agahnim, save Hyrule, and, as always, save Zelda.

Images:

Smuggling the pricess to safety
A full inventory is a happy inventory
The Light World
The Dark World
Opening movie

The Legend of Zelda

The 1986 release (1987 in North America) of The Legend of Zelda was a revolution in gaming. The open-ended play, enormous map, top-down view, and puzzle-solving elements were vast changes from the common side-scrolling games with a definite goal for every level. This first game sparked a long line of successors, all of which reframe the basic concept in any number of ways, and even a short-lived TV series. The connection between the games appears to be on a loose chronology that's nearly impossible to decipher without outside assistance, but each game can be played independently of the others. The innovation of the Zelda games has always been in the gameplay, rather than the story, yet Link, the silent hero of all the games, is consistently one of the most popular game characters of all time. Also worthy of mention is the memorable music, which can be heard here.

The evil Ganon has stolen the Triforce of Power—one of the three mystic triangles containing untold power—from the kingdom of Hyrule. The princess Zelda, before her capture, fractured the Triforce of Wisdom into eight pieces and hid them throughout the land and sent her nursemaid Impa out in search of a hero to help them. Ganon's minions catch up to her, but fortunately Link happens on the scene, saves her, and begins his quest to reunite the Triforce and save Zelda and Hyrule.

That's all there is to the story, and even that is only mentioned in the instruction booklet, but even twenty plus years later, the game draws back old fans and enraptures new ones alike. Later games have refined and expanded on the theme, but the skeleton of a gaming dynasty was built here.

Images:

Booklet art of Link with his collection of items
A classic screen and a phrase that's entered gaming history
The world of Hyrule (and where to find absolutely everything)
Game opening

Final Fantasy XII

Following the release of FFXI as an online, mulitplayer game, 2006's XII came back to the console with some of the MMORPG elements incorporated. The battle system, rather than being some form of turn-based combat as all previous incarnations had been, was changed to a modified AI system where you can pre-set conditional actions that will happen without you dancing attendance on them, although you may use direct input at will, resulting in a game that, at times, literally plays itself. While this upset a number of people, it also made others very happy by removing the tedium of random combat and levelling by streamlining repetitive actions. Mechanics aside, the story has generated a lot of controversy among fans. Those who like the game enjoy the broad story that deals more with the politics of nations than individuals, the fact that the main playable character is not the central focus of the story, and that there isn't a romance shoehorned into the mix. Those who dislike the game cite the same examples.

A trio of countries used to stand between the empires of Archadia and Rozarria, but the Republic of Landis has been absorbed by Archadia, Nabradia is a ruined wasteland, and Dalmasca is occupied territory. Vaan, a native Dalmascan with a grudge, invades the palace during a banquet to "welcome" the new governor, Lord Vayne of Arcadia. His efforts to steal back something for the people are stymied by a run-in with a sky pirate and his partner who are after the same treasure. Eventually this leads to meeting up with the deposed—and presumed dead—princess of Dalmasca, and the man who supposedly betrayed the country and assassinated the king. The web of deceit is tough to untangle as factions in Archadia play against each other for control, Rozarria is alternately courted and provoked, and Dalmasca and her people are once again caught in the middle.

Images:

Vaan with his friend, Penelo
Balthier, the sky pirate
Fran, his Viera partner
Ashe, princess of Dalmasca
Basch, reputed kingslayer
Vayne Solidor
Al-Cid Margrace of Rozarria makes nice
Opening movie: The fall of Nabradia; Ashe is wedded and widowed
Vayne, the politician
Vaan meets the sky pirates