I personally believe it is difficult to pick favorites as well. My clear leader has been Ocarina of Time for some time now but from that point forward things start to get shaky. Every subsequent installment has excelled in some specific area-Majora's Mask delved into a deeper, more emotional narrative; The Wind Waker bucked the realism trend creating a surprisingly believable and heartwarming cartoon world while incorporating a bold transportation system; The Minish Cap perfected the paragon of 2D gaming that was A Link to the Past; Twilight Princess dabbled in a darker aesthetic; Skyward Sword produced the finest motion controls on the market to date.
It ultimately boils down to what you value most in a Zelda game. Is it the story, the gameplay, the graphics or a mix of all three? One fantastic organization method I observed in a thread this past summer was categorizing Zelda games by tier-Holy Tier, Great Tier, Good Tier, etc.-in order to differentiate the best from the rest and pinpoint what factors allure you most to the series. It's a system I've recently considered using in order to cement my Zelda ranking list.
It ultimately boils down to what you value most in a Zelda game. Is it the story, the gameplay, the graphics or a mix of all three? One fantastic organization method I observed in a thread this past summer was categorizing Zelda games by tier-Holy Tier, Great Tier, Good Tier, etc.-in order to differentiate the best from the rest and pinpoint what factors allure you most to the series. It's a system I've recently considered using in order to cement my Zelda ranking list.