MM-3DS My Concern About The Save System

[A Link In Time]

Even before the official announcement of MM 3D, I'd seen many Zelda fans express their grievances about Majora's Mark's "archaic" save system. A lot of people seemed to desire a way to save normally at any time.

My worry is that Nintendo gives in to such complaints and alters a defining feature of the game. The save system in and of itself added a sense of urgency to the adventure. While it may be more convenient to ditch it, especially on a handheld, which people presumably play on for shorter periods of time, Nintendo should instead choose to preserve the legacy of the cult classic.

What are your thoughts?

 

[DarkestLink]

I don't care if they keep the owl statues IF they can improve the system. We save our games to protect our data moreso than to take a break. There's no need to take a break in the middle of a 3 day cycle because they're so short. MM's save system failed to protect you if the game froze or the power went out. Because this is the 3DS this is less of a problem, but it was still fundamentally flawed and, in my opinion, it defeated the purpose of a save system. May as well have kept the 3rd log file because after the game froze on me for the first time and I realized how useless the system was, I never used it again.

 

[Akuhime-sama]

I don't care if they keep the owl statues IF they can improve the system. We save our games to protect our data moreso than to take a break. There's no need to take a break in the middle of a 3 day cycle because they're so short. MM's save system failed to protect you if the game froze or the power went out. Because this is the 3DS this is less of a problem, but it was still fundamentally flawed and, in my opinion, it defeated the purpose of a save system. May as well have kept the 3rd log file because after the game froze on me for the first time and I realized how useless the system was, I never used it again.

So, you're saying the Owl-saves don't really save if the game freezes? hm...
Well, I wouldn't know, because I never used them. As you said, They are kind of rendered useless.

I mean, it wouldn't really make much of a difference if they were like a regular save. I mean, the three day time limit sort of forces you to SAVE save at some point. (by SAVE sav, I mean playing the song of time.) Overall, the save system of MM was a little wacky, but I don't think it would make too much of a difference if they made it more like a regular save. As I said, the 3-day time limit would still force you to do things regardless.

Er- maybe I should be clearer. If you save like- on Day 2, and come back to it, it would be like you never left, never saved. Though, if the power fails or something, you could still come back to it, but you'd be at the same point you were in. The song of time would still make you lose what you obtained and all, so you'd still be playing within the rules, so it really would be like there was no 'save' at all. -Again, it comes to a mute point on if it would effect the major aspect of the game.

So- yeah, the only way I think they could mess it up, is if they made you keep the rupees, lost fairies, and the things you normally would lose, when playing the song of time. Just as long as they keep that aspect to the game and the way it saves, then I don't think it would really do much to it, whatever they did.

 

[Terminus]

Since there's some confusion apparently;

The Owl statues were quicksave points. Once you loaded the state, it would be erased and could not be gone back to.

 

[Akuhime-sama]

Since there's some confusion apparently;

The Owl statues were quicksave points. Once you loaded the state, it would be erased and could not be gone back to.

Seems like they'd only come in handy when you were in the middle of playing, but say- had to leave the house at that exact moment.
Still though- that doesn't happen too often.

 

[ColdRadio]

I never had a problem with the original save system. The owl quicksaves weren't meant as data protection. That's what the Song of Time was for. I appreciated the owl saves for what they were--a respite from the at times punishing three-day cycle.

That said, I don't feel they contributed overmuch to the feel of the game, and I don't feel that modernizing the system would do the game any harm. The three-day cycle would remain intact, and you would still have to play the Song of Time and undo whatever progress you made. So while I wouldn't ask to see the system changed, I won't get upset if it is either.

 

[Mamono101]

I honestly never had a problem with the save system. I did (and still do) have occasional freezing problems but they are few and far between (N64). I think the way the save feature works helped emulate the Groundhog Day scenario that Link finds himself in. And if you did need a break, even when inside a dungeon, there was always an owl statue nearby.

The owl statues clearly tell the player what it does:

You can save your progress and
quit here. When you
reselect your file, my face will
appear by your file name.
This indicates that the next time
you reopen your file, you'll resume
playing at this very place and
time with your current status.
Warning: If you reopen this Owl
File, then reset without saving at
an owl statue, you'll lose the
progress you've saved here...
The next time you open the file,
you'll restart at Day One with the
status you had when you last
saved using The Song of Time.

When you come back to your game, its instructions are also very clear:

If you wish to interrupt your
adventure (game) again, speak
to me, the one that you have
marked to prove your encounter.

The problem is people skip text when they play.

I've never understood where all this confusion comes from. Speak to the owl statue, take a break. Come back from the break and play some more. Want to take another break? Go back to the owl statue.

I don't think the save system needs an overhaul of any kind. With any mechanic in any game, you simply get used to it. So I would definitely like to see it remain intact, the way it is on the N64.

(Quotes are from the MM Text Dump)

 

[misskitten]

I don't know about you guys, but I've certainly had the "oh no, the red light is blinking, where did I put the charger again!?"-scare while playing on my 3DS. Sometimes that has forced me to later replay areas I had already beaten because I didn't have a chance to save in time. On a home console, for the most part, this isn't an issue, but on a handheld, it absolutely can be. You don't always have your charger with you, you forget to check the battery status before you start playing, etc.

I think MM3D needs to at least slightly alter the save system, like making owl statue saves like permanent saves - I mean, you still have the 3 day time limit, and it's not like the statues are everywhere in the game. You would still have to restart areas, but it would soften the blow if you for any reason didn't make it back to a statue as your battery was running out.

 

[Mamono101]

I don't know about you guys, but I've certainly had the "oh no, the red light is blinking, where did I put the charger again!?"-scare while playing on my 3DS. Sometimes that has forced me to later replay areas I had already beaten because I didn't have a chance to save in time. On a home console, for the most part, this isn't an issue, but on a handheld, it absolutely can be. You don't always have your charger with you, you forget to check the battery status before you start playing, etc.

I think MM3D needs to at least slightly alter the save system, like making owl statue saves like permanent saves - I mean, you still have the 3 day time limit, and it's not like the statues are everywhere in the game. You would still have to restart areas, but it would soften the blow if you for any reason didn't make it back to a statue as your battery was running out.

You make a very good case there. The fact that the 3DS is not a home console, should actually be taken into consideration and is something I did not do. I don't think I would have a problem if the owl statues acted like the bird statues in SS. Especially if the reason was something as logical as you've suggested. If it is changed simply to make it easier, I would disagree with the decision purely because I am of the opinion that the interrupted game state is not difficult to properly utilise, though others clearly disagree.

 

[Azure Sage]

I think if they made it so that the owl statues didn't force you to return to the title screen, it should be fine. If you put the system on sleep mode, then that would serve the same purpose as the owl statues did in the N64/GC versions. I mean, there is no way time in the game would pass while the system is in sleep mode. So the "breaks" could be accomplished with just that.

 

[Vaati101]

I haven't got any issues with the saving system, I actually think it works quite well. Whenever I want to end a session, depending on the time of day in the game I'll either warp to a owl statue and save or use the Song of Time. With the sleep mode feature on the 3DS, suspending a gaming session would be more convenient than rushing to a save point, but that feature is more for short term suspension than long term, which is where having both methods would be convenient.

 

[Justac00lguy]

Part of me says yes and part of me says no.

As a person who has had a bad experience with save flaws myself... I had to repeat the Woodfall dungeon 3 times and Snowhead 2 times respectively... part of me wants to say slightly alter the save system to cater to the new players. Then again, I love the slight challenge associated with it. That sense of urgency you get. It is a learning curve, but it makes the game more satisfying when you manage your time correctly.

I guess the question is, does it punish the player? Yeah it does. It's hard, but I feel they may need to.