Is the Zelda series a decent series overall?

[Spirit]

The Zelda series is 17 canon games strong and its a much beloved franchise, there are both classic and revolutionary titles within its game count but there are also some not so hot ones...

With the advent of OoT, the 2D titles took a major back seat and a lot of modern gamers wont have played many of the 2D games at all, leaving the 5 (nearly 6) 3D games as Zelda's bread and butter.

But taken as a whole with the entirety of its canon game count, is the Zelda series a good series?

Have there been more good games than bad?
Or is it simply and okay series?
Or or is it a sub-par series when compared to other video game series despite its revolutionary titles?

 

[mαrkαsscoρ]

having played nearly all the games aside the ds ones,there were only two i didn't enjoy [loz and oracle of seasons]
either way it leaves at least 10+ good to stellar games,so yeah its definitely a good series

 

[Spiritual Mask Salesman]

I think it all comes down to personal opinion really. I'd like to say it's a great series - the truth is there is no such thing as a great series. How does one even define what a great series is? I'd simply say it's a series, it has it's good games and it does have some games that aren't that good, it has it's problems and it has it's perks. It's a series that can be improved, keep in mind though that all game series need improvement so it's not like Zelda is the odd one out.

Going by popularity with the masses I'd say the Zelda series is ok, mediocre when compared to other game series. A common gamer will probably buy a Halo or Call of Duty game and not even notice a Zelda game. Zelda is really just more of an inner circle thing, only the fans take notice to it. On occasion a game like Ocarina of Time will come along and work it's way into popular culture but we haven't seen that from the Zelda series in awhile now. That is why I say it's mediocre.

 

[Kyru]

Well @Spiritual Mask Salesman all games have their flaws, lets be honest nothing is perfect.

But for myself I could say that it's a good series. I own all the games except FSA (hate that I cannot find this game). And I have beaten almost all the ones I own (haven't beaten OoA, ST, LoZ, AoL, FS). I'd say that all the games are very good. They each have their own respective charm and they each have their own respective flaws. For some of the games they are fun but they get very repetitive to the point where I would stop playing and then pick it up and say "nahhhhh." Eventually though I'd buckle down and say "I just have to beat it since I'm this close to the end." That's one of the bigger problems I have with some games.

With other games the issue is they are so good I couldn't put them down. I just keep playing and playing and playing.... and then I haven't slept and I really wanted to savor the game and enjoy it for longer but it was so fun I couldn't help myself.

After getting off track a lil', the series overall is very good. You have to enjoy each game for what it is not worrying about the Timeline. Each game is it's own story, ENJOY each story whether they connect or not.

 

[Dio]

There are 17 Zelda games. Of those 17 I think there are 4 great games 2 good games 2 mediocre games and 9 crappy ones. Overall the series is not good. It is completely inconsistent with its quality and offers more disappointment than joy.

I remember back in the psychology days I learned about investment theory in relationships. It explains why someone might stay in an abusive relationship. They have invested in that relationship, money, property and time. Leaving the relationship can feel as though all that investment has gone to waste even if the current situation is bad.

The same theory can be applied to why I put up with this damn series. I have invested money into it, I have property that I bought specifically that allows me to play it and I have devoted 16 years to being a fan of it. Yet they actually haven't released a game that really satisfies my needs for 9 years. You'd think I would have just left already, but no.

 

[misskitten]

With any series, especially one that has been running as long as this one has and that is as diverse, there are going to be games that appeal to you as a gamer and games that don't. So I don't think it's fair to judge a series as a whole, because it really depends on the individual gamer.

And with most games you could make arguments for and against it. Like take the original Zelda. It's huge, open, impressive for its system, and wowed many gamers when it came out. At the same time you could argue that it's aimless, lacks a proper story, monotonous compared to the other entries in the series, and would bore many gamers who try it out now. I've watched so many top-ten videos (and some top-seventeen ones) lately and I've seen people place pretty much any of the Zelda titles on top and bottom places and everywhere in between. I've seen praise and critisism for pretty much every title in the series.

What I personally think? Most of the games in the series are playable, there are a couple I will not pick up again no matter how briefly I tried them (AoL is the one title I actually hated, and LoZ just didn't appeal to me), there are some I will play on and off, there are some I might replay in the future, and there are some that I definitely will play again and again (about to finish my third playthrough of ALBW for instance). This series has managed to surprise me in a positive way, and some of the games I love the most are games I didn't expect to like (WW and ALBW being two of them), and I think that is the definite sign of a good series, that it can win you over despite how unimpressed you may initially be.

 

[snakeoiltanker]

There has been a lot of really long replies to this, and I'm usually guilty of this as well so to save you all time I will keep it short and sweet before I have a 10 page reply that I could easily give you.

We are all bias here and i see many really honest answers. Over all I would say the series is above average. There are so many amazing title that I return to at least once a year (ALttP, OoT, TP, WW, ALBW, MC), then there are those that are just good and play over again sometimes. The gameboy/handheld games are the best you can get for any handheld on the market (besides the ds titles that is). I thought I would never return to SS, but when I finally did for the second time you will no longer hear say I hate the game as I did before. Once you get past the motion controls, its not so terrible.

So final thought is, Zelda is a great series over all. Above average at the least.

 

[Farore's Chosen]

Decent? No. Excellent? Definitely. It's gotten a bit stale and formulaic, but that's to be expected for a 30 year old series. It has its problems, it has its games that people are torn over or just don't like but every long running franchise has that too. Any game in its series can introduce new gamers to a fantastic world and old gamers whip themselves into a frothing, frenzy of speculation, discussion, displeasure and delight whenever a new title is announced. Of the 13 titles I've played, I've only discovered 1 I was bored with and 2 I can't stand, that aint too shabby.

 

[Iridescence]

I think every series has its flaws, but you'd be hard pressed to find a series that's bigger, more ambitious and more consistently good than Zelda.

 

[ihateghirahim]

Does mario jump?