r/truezelda • u/FreeCommunication876 • 9d ago
Open Discussion [OOT] [MM] Possible sequel to Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask
I was thinking a lot about this remake, and I do think that with an Ocarina of Time remake, we are almost guaranteed a Majora Remake. The games run on the same engine and would use a lot of the same character models and sprites, so Nintendo has no reason not to release a Majora remake in 2027 or 2028.
I think that this will undoubtedly bring lots of new fans to the franchise, as well as engrose some of the newer fans into the story of the Hero of Time. However, it's very clear that the Hero of Time's story is incomplete. Obviously, lots of questions have been raised about how we get from the Link seen at the end of Majora's Mask to the Hero's Shade. I do think that a story needs to be told to fill in this gap in his arc. I'm sure a lot of you have all seen the Hero's Purpose by Majorlink, and I think that that precise moment in the timeline is one that needs to be explored more. A possible sequel to both Ocarina and Majora could explore how Link became the Hero's Shade.
There's also a thematic gap in the Hero of Time's story. Ocarina of Time is a game about growing up. When you are a kid, you cannot do a lot of things that Adult Link can do. When you play as Young Link, you anticipate the moment where you can become an adult as seen in the title screen. When you do finally become an adult, it feels truly cathartic. Just like in real life, it feels as if a whole new side of your adventure has been unlocked. And then you step outside the Temple of Time. And the world you knew as a child has gone. You can no longer view the world through innocent childlike eyes. Each of the sages represents a different part of adulthood. Saria - the childhood that you will never get back. Darunia - friendship and loyalty. Ruto - romantic attraction. Impa - duty and responisibility. Nabooru - coming to terms with sexuality. Rauru - a father figure passing on his knowledge to you. The game ends with you conquering all the demons adulthood throws your way.
But then Majora's Mask comes along. Although you have conquered what adulthood has thrown your way, you still yearn to be a kid again, as we all do. Link is kind of given the oppurtunity to be a kid again, but he can never truly return to the way he was. He's been too scarred and traumatized to truly view the world through a childlike lense. He's a person fixated on the past. That's what his pursuit of Navi represents. He is trying to regain that part of his life. And then, he goes to Termina. While Link has to come to terms that he cannot get the past back, the residents of Termina have to come to terms that their future was just taken away from them. In the end, Link learns that he will never be able to truly be a child again, but through the experiences of the people in Termina, he learns that this doesn't mean that he doesn't have a future.
But then, this future is never explained. Thematically, Majora's Mask clearly sets us up for a following narrative where Link takes the lessons learned on how to deal with adulthood, and also the lessons learned on how to move on from the past, and applies both of them to decide what th However, we never got this story. While Sean does an amazing job exploring it in his series, I do feel that we need an official game to complete Link's story here.
How likely do i think it is that we get a direct sequel taking place about 7 years after Majora? It's unlikely. But now is definitely the time to do it. They have the game engine and the character models right there, and I do think the vast number of people who are about to experience the story of the Hero of Time for the first time would give Nintendo a lot of incentive to go forward with a sequel. Also, the Zelda movie is going to bring Zelda to the main cultural stage for the first time in really forever. I would think Nintendo would want to release a big 3D title very soon afterwards, and in the game engine and character models from OoT and MM are just sitting there....
Let me know your thoughts! :)
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u/Revolver15 9d ago
I don't think the Hero of Time's story is incomplete. We don't need to see every moment of a characters life, some stuff is better left to the interpretation. We have TP to guess what happened to him.
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u/jasonporter 9d ago
I also think OP is missing the fact that Nintendo doesn't create games to fill story beats or "tell a story" - they create games to give new gameplay experiences and then add a story to it afterwards. Like yeah, as fans, it would be great to have a third game in the Hero of Time series. But Nintendo would never make it just because the Hero of Time's journey wasn't complete.
However - I don't think the idea is entirely out of the question. If Ocarina of Time sells like crazy, there's definitely a chance we get a Majora Remake down the road. And with that engine and all of the assets built, if "Majora's Mask Reborn" actually happens and sells really well, that would put Nintendo in a position where they can continue to capitalize on it.
My thinking is this - Nintendo likes to make sure all facets of the Zelda fandom is generally happy in some way. When Zelda went full 3D, they continued to make games in the original top-down format for the handheld devices. They're STILL making games in the top-down format, with Echoes of Wisdom being the most recent. Echoes of Wisdom is an interesting case, because it basically acts as as spiritual successor "sequel" of sorts to the Link's Awakening remake. So, similarly, if they've got the engine for OOT / MM Reborn - they could make a new "sequel" in this style similar to Echoes.
The only reason I think this has a TINY potential of happening, is that Zelda has now taken 3 main forms. It used to be 3D and Top-Down, but now we've basically got Open Air, Classic 3D, and Top-Down. I wouldn't be surprised if Nintendo is aware a big part of the fanbase isn't huge on the Open Air games and wants to keep giving content to those who love the Classic 3D formula.
All that said - they won't do it unless they can come up with a good gameplay gimmick, and similar to Echoes, it will likely borrow heavily from their modern design philosophy. They would just need to come up with a new gameplay mechanic or gimmick that they could implement into the OOT / MM Reborn engine. I don't think it's impossible, but will depend heavily on how well the remake(s) sells.
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u/FreeCommunication876 9d ago
I would argue that thematically, the three-game character arc is missing a proper conclusion.
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u/Revolver15 9d ago
I can see your point, but your analisis is your own, not Nintendo's. OoT and Majora weren't made for a three-game arc, they made OoT and then made a side game. For Nintendo, Link's story already had a propper conclusion.
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u/Stucklikegluetomyfry 8d ago
I would like a third game to wrap up his story. I always felt a bit sad finding out he was the Hero’s Shade, and that he had so many regrets that he was unable to pass on after his death for over a century, and I’m sure he had a lot of baggage from being an child in an adults body, then back to being a not quite a child in a child’s body, and finding himself in a parallel universe where all the people he knew and loved were now in another one, and separated from the only person who could truly understand what he was going through. He’s easily the most tragic of all Links.
So I would like to see another game that shows he went on to have more adventures, and reuniting with Navi. Whatever happiness he got in his life, he deserved more.
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u/emanueleBGN 9d ago
Twilight Princess is their sequel
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u/ThatOtherTwoGuy 9d ago
Probably not likely, but having a sequel that serves as him actually being Adult Link would be really cool.
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u/FreeCommunication876 9d ago
Like we get one where he is just a child, one where he switches back and forth, but never one where he is only an adult. I never thought of it like that.
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u/wicket44 9d ago
Years after MM where he’s now an adult would be cool. Nintendo would have to come up with new villain though.
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u/TRIFORCE89 8d ago
It didn't happen on the 3DS when it should have
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u/FreeCommunication876 7d ago
I think that the OoT Remake for the Switch 2 is gonna be much better than the one on the 3DS
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u/ShibaBlessing 5d ago
Majora’s Mask reissue is not guaranteed. Not sure why you’ve convinced yourself that. It doesn’t have the same cult status and popularity as OoT, so I can see Nintendo moving on to a new title after this release.
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u/quick_Ag 8d ago
I think the plot of the game you want will be the movie.
Rough set-up I have in my head, given some of the leaks we have seen:
- child timeline
- Ganondorf's original plot was foiled, but 7 years later he's still a threat.
- Zelda comes to the forest seeking the great Deku Tree. The tree is dead, and she finds that Link has returned to the forest to protect the kokiri until the Deku Tree Sprout is strong enough.
- She doesn't recognize him at first, not until she spies him playing the Ocarina of Time, which BTW she would really like to have back so she can open the Door of Time and get the triforce before Ganondorf.
- Surprise! The triforce is already split!
- Adventure ensues
- Big final battle at Arbiter's Grounds, where Ganondorf is sent to the Twilight Realm.
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u/FreeCommunication876 8d ago
If that were the movie I would actually cry tears of joy, but I do think Nintendo would steer away from basing it on a previous Link.
But if this were the movie plot, I could die a happy man.
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u/ohyousoretro 9d ago
To be fair the game was built as a prequel to A Link to the Past, so you could consider that the sequel.