How Many Dungeons Should a Zelda Game Have?

[ShadowDiety]

8 does it for me.

 

[Alexananandra]

I liked the amount in twilight princess. I like a lot of dungeons

 

[VikzeLink]

I like the games that doesn't have too many dungeons, but still not too few, so I choose the OOT-like one

 

[link28469]

I'm the only person so far to vote this, but 4-6 is good. As much as I like dungeons, having less of them means having more side-quests like pieces of heart. This was one of the greatest things about Majora's Mask.

 

[Squirrel]

My idea of the perfect number of dungeons is 11 for one plant-based dungeon, one fire-based, one water-based, one technology/metal/electricity-based, one earth/sand-based, one ice-based, one sky/air-based, one time-based (the Temple of Time), one light-based, one darkness/shadow-based, and of course, Hyrule Castle / Ganon's Castle, or something along those lines as the last dungeon.

 

[link28469]

My idea of the perfect number of dungeons is 11 for one plant-based dungeon, one fire-based, one water-based, one technology/metal/electricity-based, one earth/sand-based, one ice-based, one sky/air-based, one time-based (the Temple of Time), one light-based, one darkness/shadow-based, and of course, Hyrule Castle / Ganon's Castle, or something along those lines as the last dungeon.

This is what I liked about TP. It didn't have 2 of any type of dungeon. It had what you mentioned, minus the technology/metal/electricity-based one.

 

[MW7]

I went with 13+, but I have a caveat. I don't think all dungeons should be required to be beaten in order to finish the game and some should be optional challenges with cool rewards. This way the game won't drag on for people. I really like how some Zelda games utilize mini-dungeons and that's a good way to add dungeon areas in smaller doses. Majora's Mask was excellent in this respect with cool areas like the Pirate's Fortress and the Ancient Castle of Ikana. Diversity is a good thing as well- Ocarina of Time is a good example of this. It had three child dungeons that were totally different from the five adult temples. The child dungeons didn't contain any keys so they were like navigating natural locations. The temples all had keys and were more challenging. OOT also had two mini-dungeons tied into the main quest and another (the Gerudo Training Grounds) just as side content. Adding in the final dungeon that's twelve dungeon-like areas.

Going back to my optional dungeon idea there is one good example I can think of from past Zelda games. The Bottom of the Well from Ocarina of Time is very unique in that it's item is practically required on your first playthrough but isn't actually necessary to complete the game. Since the mini-dungeon exists solely for its item and gold skulltulas, the entire mini-dungeon can potentially be skipped. More instances of dungeons or mini-dungeons that contain items that are practically required but not actually required would vastly enhance replay value of games. There could be dungeons later in the game that could have different paths depending on whether or not you completed the optional dungeon.

 

[link28469]

I went with 13+, but I have a caveat. I don't think all dungeons should be required to be beaten in order to finish the game and some should be optional challenges with cool rewards.

MM was this way when you take into account the Skultulla dungeons.

 

[Toki-no-ocarina]

At least 7

 

[The muffin man]

AS MANY AS POSSIBLE!!!!!!

I mean, more dungeons=more zelda? whats not to love?

 

[feraldonkey]

Maybe 13 main dungeons, I would like to see some expansion to the tiny secret areas you find in the game. I hate to bring this up but you know all these random caves you find in Skyrim during quests? Something like that would be fun in Zelda, I remember reading about Miyamoto's adventures as a child. I would love for Nintendo to expand upon that now that they have the technology, instead of the Zelda formula we've had for the past few years. But then again it's just my opinion, anyone is free to argue with me about it.

 

[Awesome]

Yes I want lots of dungeons, but I don't want the dungeons to feel unnecessary, pointless, or similar in any way to other dungeons in the game. So in theory I would want as many dungeons as possible, but I'd rather have them be quality dungeons

 

[bspurka]

8 sounds like a good number, but I just wish boss battles would be more difficult and longer, nothing would be more fun then really battling and struggling to keep alive.

 

[iMadMax]

In my opinion, the more, the better. However they need to be unique dungeons and not be repetive so that the players dont get bored

 

[Garo]

4. Exactly 4.

When there are 8 dungeons, you may get some creative central mechanics to deal with, but due to development restrictions, the dungeons are shorter and those creative mechanics aren't given time to breathe. The reason that Majora's Mask's dungeons are among the best in the series is that they are long enough to allow these central mechanics to work to their full extent rather than ending right when they get interesting. The pillar in Snowhead, the water flow in Great Bay, and the inversion of the Stone Tower - great mechanics that govern the entire dungeon, and their length and polish makes them unmatched in the series' long history.