Of course, this price point could be made more appealing if Nintendo were to balance it out with a ton of value. The N64 lineup onNintendo Switch Onlineis slim right now, but more games are promised to be on the way including the acclaimed classicThe Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask. Often considered to be one of the best in the series as well as one of the best games of all time, adding this N64 masterpiece to the roster is certainly intriguing. However, there may be reason for concern that Switch Online isn’t the best place forMajora’s Mask.
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Ocarina Of Time’s Rough Switch Online Performance
As mentioned above, a number of N64 classics are already available to play on Nintendo Switch Online. Included in this first wave of titles is arguably the best game on the platform,The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Originally released in 1998, the game cemented itself as the benchmark foraction-adventure gamesfor many years to follow and remains an epic experience to this day. Unfortunately, any gamers who have never experienced this iconic title didn’t exactly get to play the best version of it on Switch Online.
The Switch Online version ofOcarina of Timewas plagued with technical issues, including poor performance quality and some odd-looking textures. It isn’t technically unplayable, but these problems do hinder the gameplay and can potentially hurt the experience of an otherwise outstanding video game. Nintendo clearly had issues with setting up streamingN64 titlesthrough this service, and considering how similarMajora’s Maskis in scale, it is worrisome that it would suffer the same terrible fate.
Alternative Options to Play Majora’s Mask
To be fair to Nintendo, video game streaming isn’t completely perfect across the board. Even competitors like Sony withPS Nowexperience some technical issues now and then. But the point remains that for $49.99 a year, such landmark video games likeOcarina of TimeandMajora’s Maskdeserve better, as do the players wanting to enjoy these games again (or for the first time). Nintendo may eventually sort out these issues and make Switch Online a worthwhile place to play this game, but until then, luckily there are other options.
The most obvious one would be to play it on its original console, the Nintendo 64. While newer players may be thrown off at first by the dated graphics andawkward N64 controller, there is still a remarkable adventure to be experienced here. Of course, tracking down a physical copy of the original game may prove to be an expensive venture, but thankfully there was a Nintendo 3DS remake in 2015 that is a fantastic alternative.
Developed by Grezzo, the same team that went on to remakeLink’s Awakening, the3DS version ofMajora’s Maskcould arguably be considered the definitive way to play. The updated visuals complement the timeless art style of the original, while the tweaks made to the time loop mechanic make the game more accessible while still retaining the same level of challenge. The icing on the cake is that the 3DS is also portable, scratching that itch for players who wanted to playMajora’s Maskon the go with the Switch.
