The fact that one of the most iconic parts of Majora's Mask, maybe even of the entire franchise, was designed around the fear of North Korean missiles while at a wedding is one hell of an amazing origin story.
As it happens, the Taepodong-1 missiles were probably never intended to be used as surface-to-surface weapons, but were a test platform for multi-stage missile tech. Its first use, which started the "crisis" in Japan being referred to, was actually an attempt to launch a satellite into orbit. But evidently the missile malfunctioned, and passed over Japan at an altitude of over 200km before crashing East of Japan in the ocean, with some parts landing only 40km away. This spooked the Japanese people pretty good, but even that was probably not entirely intentional on the part of North Korea
Atari's Missile Command was born out of the cold war fears. The "Game Over" screen originally just said "The End", but was deemed too scary or something like that. The designer of the game actually had nightmares while creating it...
Honestly one of the strongest lines written in a game. A fantastic opener for Majora's Mask, but even deeper considering the previous adventure leading up to it.
The decisions they made within the one year deadline are totally genius, they really knew what would work and what wouldn’t work. Even though they scrapped a bunch of stuff, less is more in my opinion. As a writer, it’s really important to constantly read your own writing and ask yourself “Why is this in here?” It’s like they knew there would never ever be another game quite like it again, so they went all out with it. Massive props to the developers.
I don't think they really knew what would work and what wouldn't, they just tried the best they could. When you're given such a short deadline, there isn't any time to go back and rework more engraned aspects of the game, because of this they likely had to roll with what they had at many points when they would have preferred to rework or entirely remove them. What that results in is a product that almost goes against the instincts of the people making it, but when the people making it are literally the biggest geniuses of the industry (Yoshiaki Koizumi especially) you get an experimental masterpiece like Majora's Mask.
"You've met with a terrible fate, haven't you?" I love that the game's most iconic line was really just an overworked developer venting their frustrations.
Come on give them some credit, things can exist for more than just one reason, that line just has a lot of meaning both in the game’s world and outside it, our art is inspired by our lives, he used his frustrations as a constructive force, put his real feelings in a way that complimented the game’s themes, and gave us one of the most iconic lines in the series
@@potatoboy6094 How is this taking credit away? You realize that them being overworked is in the real world, right? And that the games world is a result of this crunch? You can't have Majora's Mask without the suffering the devs went through, and it's weird to try and paint pointing that out as "discrediting".
Japanese work environments are something else. It is hard to imagine working off the clock and not get paid for numerous days just to finish a project.
@@RobotacularRoBob except this level of disgusting crunch was only necessary to get the game over the finish line because of the impossibly short timeframe they were given to complete the game. It's not a labour of love, its abusing employees.
It really is a testament to the Majora's team's skill that they accidentally built layers of sub-themes and intrigue while crunching for an entire year.
Mario Odyssey quite a bit of that weirdness. The finale even takes place on the moon. Bowser's Fury as well. But yeah, I'd like to see him on Zelda as well.
@@Sordatos If you're problem with botw was an open world where the characters deliver the same dialogue they always have then you arnet even equipped for an argument. The sheikh retcon was significantly more detrimental to the series than an open world with npcs.
The star thing is such a neat little detail. Like it doesn't really do anything, but it's cool that it's genuinely personalized to your own save file. They didn't _have to_ include it, but they did anyway.
The banker does NOT ignore time mechanics. He stamps Link's deposit information on his hand and when Link travels through time the stamp comes with him. The banker sees Link's Stamp thinking he had actually deposited before, not knowing in this timeline he hasn't. Edit: 4:25
One counter point is that I don't think the banker ever re-stamps Link. Whenever you go to him he always says that he "remembers" you, even when using the various forms.
@@Mastergengar He *does* stamp you again though - he updates your stamp every time your bank balance changes. He doesn't give you an introductory stamp again because you already have one, and him saying "I remember you" to faces he's never seen before only strengthens the interpretation that he doesn't actually recognize you, but is pretending to be familiar while only looking at your stamp.
@Just Plain Mat That can be a valid counterpoint, I've also heard that doesn't apply very well because Bankers of that style usually keep up a friendly front in order to keep business. For the stamping, probably an oversight by the developers
@Normal, does he update the stamp? I must have forgotten then, thank you. I'm definitely torn now between which narrative I like more. Having an omniscient banker who knows you across time, or Link being the thief racking up huge amounts of money and robbing him blind during each time cycle. 😂
For a little bit of cultural context on why Cremia is better liked in Japan, Japan has always been very much about fitting in and not "rocking the boat." So much so that it is pretty looked down upon to talk about problems going on. They think that people should just persevere through it all with a brave face, as it "can't be helped." This is why the field of mental health is still not regulated at all there; it's not even used much. Thus, it really makes sense that likely most people there in general would like Cremia better, as Anju "rocks the boat," while Cremia perseveres through her problems with a brave face.
So that's why so many Anime and Japanese games have the characters say "It can't be helped". They say it so much it's almost a catchphrase at this point.
Also because it seems that Anju can't cook very well, unless grandma is just being mean to her. There's something she has that Cremia doesn't, and Kafei saw it. If I was a dude, I would go with a farm girl.
Right, like, why wouldn’t he become an adult again? I just figured they didn’t trouble themselves making a new adult model for a few seconds of the credits sequence
Koizumi is so under appreciated, all these extra details and features throughout the years for us fans. Definitely can’t wait for other projects he’s involved in.
Yeah, I hope we get to see him in future directs from time to time again aswell. From these stories it feels like he is a really great anthisesis to Miyamoto with their ideas often going in completely different directions. I'm honestly surprised that the first time I heard this man exists was with the switch's release
@@GabePuratekuta they should give him the reigns on Paper Mario, then. Miyamoto's interference ruined that series and someone who cares about storytelling needs to step in and fix it.
Koizumi flying shit under Miyamotos radar is very fun to imagine, sneaking around trying to slide in character backstories and lore without being spotted.
Fun? In what world is having to hide your creative work from your boss "fun"? The risk was that if Miyamoto saw it, he'd make them change it. Idk, sound extremely nerve racking to me, not fun in any way.
"Hey! Koizumi, I saw you trying to get into my-- wait, who put a whole-ass fishing game in here?!" I'm glad passionate devs who knew better found ways to override some of Miyamoto's stupid decisions.
Anju only had Kafei, and he was gone, and to me was the motional rock for her. Cremia had to stay stoic for her sister, since she couldn't afford to be distracted with a love life. I think they're both strong women in their own ways, for different reasons.
@@tiacool7978 Yeah, Anju's grandmother was kinda of a dick to her. She feigned dementia to not eat Anju's food and to downgrade her time and time again.
Just to clear some misconceptions: Anju still had her mother and grandmother, also she was friends with Cremia. She's by no means alone or lonely, but it doesn't detract from what she's been going through. Imagine your significant other seemingly bailing out on you for no apparent reason just a few days short of your wedding that coincides with an apocalyptic event...
I do kinda love how MM seems to have been a bunch of incredibly stressed people being like 'ok I'm just gonna do my own weird thing' and somehow it turned out really great
@@Gadget-Walkmen It turned out like that directly because of it! Under all this pressure, they tapped into a bizarre creative place of nightmares and aliens. All that shit never would made it in if they had a second to think about it
@L don’t know if that’s true as we shouldn’t promote the idea that pressuring staff with super tight deadlines is how you make fantastic games. That’s bad staff treatment right there. Who knows what it could have been like if they had 3 years, probably a whole like better even more hopefully. Not at all lesser in ANY way.
I remember as a kid being disappointed with only 4 main dungeons, but the replay value is better than Ocarina of time imo. No one gets all 20 masks on their first run.
@@tdestroyer4780 I did! Of course I used a guide for one of the side quests but other than that I figured it out all on my own. Some of those are damn obscure I tell you.
@@tdestroyer4780 I actually quite enjoy only having 4 main dungeons. Ocarina of time can just feel like a dungeon checklist at times and I think the masks really helped make the dunegons unique and fun. Plus, I don't think I can take the stress of another 4 time-limited dungeons.
As a former videogame magazine writer/journalist, I really appreciate your research work. It's reassuring we still have passionnate people trying their best and work thorough.
I already knew that Koizumi had done some of my favorite games/moments in franchises, but now learning that he basically did them behind Miyamoto's back makes me like the guy even more.
I love Majora's Mask a lot and hearing developer stories makes it seem like the game really was lightning in a bottle. It changed so much during development, imagine how different it would be if they were given an extra couple of months to work on the game.
Damn :( It’s sad but heartwarming how much of the developers’ heart and struggle went into making the game. I now appreciate the game even more profoundly than I did before learning just how much effort and sacrifice it really took to make. Thank you for this fantastic piece and a personal thank you to every single one of the developers (even if they never see this comment)!
Kozumi is a pretty passionate storyteller and it shows. He needs to be in Zelda projects more often. Surely he knows his work and theming is why MM is regarded as one of the better 3D Zeldas?
@@BenGroff-ik4zj kinad like Miyamoto was never really in touch with the series past the NES days and Aonuma.. is hard to read, rly I think he does what he gets told rather from Miyamoto himself, which holds back his own ideals. Unless BotW was his own ideal then please get us back Koizumi for the franchise that has lost it's way after Skyward Sword D:
Damn, Miyamoto hittin em with the crunch time and then these guys are at a wedding thinking to themselves "bro, this is content right here, write this down" lmao
Present day Miyamoto is more or less like this, several interviews mention how stressful it is to tip toe around his very strict restrictions, especially when dealing with Mario. One of the most recent victims of this kerfuffle was the Paper Mario series, and only until very recently have they seemed to have reigned in some control without angering their main senior.
Because that's pretty much whatt everyone says about him. Dude used to take smoke breaks in the one room where they shoved the two English speaking employees like some kind of sitcom character
Seriously my favorite Zelda game to this day. As for the 'unanswered' question about Kafei returning to normal, idk I thought it felt pretty obvious that he did. Since the wedding cutscene is from his POV for a little bit. That and I would imagine the curse would be lifted when Majora was defeated.
How I imagine it went: 1: "We should show Kafei is no longer cursed in the credits" 2: "Dude, I can't make a new model for that, the game is shipping in a week."
@@Minty_Meeo Yeah I don't think it should be considered a mystery, it's pretty obvious he changed back. If they had more time to work on the game I'm sure they would've made an adult Kafei model, or maybe they wanted to keep his true appearance a mystery for whatever reason.
@@domesticus2958 They had sketched an adult design for him during developement, they probably never had time to make a model and animate it, so making the wedding scene in his POV (in which shows he's adult as he's taller than Anju) was a clever way to do that.
I never thought about Cremias hug as an adult joke, I always thought about it as a more... _motherly_ hug. It's honestly heartwarming because Links mother died early in his life back in OoT so this is the first time he experiences something like this.
I saw it more as just a hug, the developers didn't have to add pervy referenced dialogue, at least it's not canon since you don't have to do the quest more than once after getting the mask when doing it.
... That's what it is. His face going into her chest was an error, and they joked about how young boys would be happy to be in that position. It was never at any point intended to be adult in anyway. Simply a hug of gratitude.
@@SakuraAvalon Did you hear what they said? What the interviewer said? That it was any boy's dream? You'd have to be playing naive to pretend not to understand what they meant. I'll grant that the dialogue in-game itself could be interpreted in a non-sexual way, but in reality it's just a sort of 90s video game moment of a formerly common variety, even in Nintendo games
@@RenSako i disagree heavily on the whole not needing anymore twilight princesses lmfao. Easily a top 3 zelda game imo. I do wish they’d do more zelda games similar to minish cap tho
@@RenSako I had no idea that MM 3DS had any changes to it other than graphics when i first picked it up. I hadent played MM since like 2004 so it had been a good 15 years. I kept thinking things felt off and wrong until finally relaizing that major changes had occured, and it was just such a bummer. They took what was the most unique zelda game and just fucked with it to streamline it. Why does every boss need an eye to hit? Just why? How come deku links movement was butchered? Zora link cant even swim right! Its the only zelda purchase ive ever made that ive wanted to return.
Knowing all this, and how much of a time constraint they had to finish the game, the quotes they put in in frustration, really makes majoras mask even darker. Lol a game about time and how the moon will crash down in 3 days. I love it even more now, a game created from stress and pain. Really appreciate it for what it is and the hard work that went into it.
@@islandboy9381 I have the impression Miyamoto made that on purpose. He knew the devs couldn't complete a new zelda game in 1 year. He originally gave that deadline because Eiji Aonuma didn't wanted to work in URA Zelda, and Miyamoto said that if Aonuma managed to pull a new Zelda game in 1 year, he wouldn't need to work on URA Zelda. Prolly he expected people to give up completely and ask to change projects eventually. I guess in one of the parallel timelines of the multiverse, there's one where we don't have Majora's Mask.
@@Adaruvideos I mean yea he was expecting it not happening, but once that wasn't the case and most of the team left URA for Majora you would atleast expect him to delay and thus give a little bit more breathing room for the devs cause by then its becoming a full Zelda product that can't just fail, it's a miracle the the game didn't come out in a really buggy or something like that. It also makes me think of another timeline where Majora had potentially even more content added to it if it got delayed to a normal development time.
@@islandboy9381 The game did come with a good handful of bugs and glitches, some of them even left over from the original OOT code, like the bomb hover glitch, infinite sword glitch, bottle glitch, and the new 4th day glitch (this last one was patched in later versions of the game, I believe.). MM is a really good game but just like Pokémon's 1st generation, it can be argued its almost held together by glue, spit and a little bit of praying.
I never saw Cremia’s hug as sexual or anything. I thought of it as the only source of affection Link ever had at all. Remember, this is still technically the Link that had his childhood robbed from him and forced to fight a grownup’s battle. I thought the hug was something cute.
I prefer not sexualising that scene. Though the devs were having fun, it’s a little gross I think. The idea that it’s the only time Link gets affection (and not in a lascivious way) is extremely bittersweet. I don’t like making that scene so shallow by making it suggestive.
What really helped them out what reusing models from OOT, especially character models. Even so, it is an absolutely fantastic game for what it managed to accomplish in such a short period of time.
Seeing Young Link's model and Hylian Shield from Ocarina of Time in Majora's Mask at 0:35 is incredibly cursed. His model looks out of place compared to his higher quality counterpart in Majora's Mask.
I’m glad they updated Young Link’s model in MM, he looks better there with the added side hair, strap belt over the shoulder, more hair textures, and soles under his boots
What’s funny is people remember Cremia’s hug as a well deserved hug for Link. A young boy who’s childhood was stolen by fate, then put back into the body of a boy. Link needed that hug. Not even Zelda gave him a hug. Poor kid deserved that hug.
It released only on gold carts, the difference between regular and limited being the lenticular sticker. The grey cart was a demo (not for resale sticker), and I've heard stories of people getting a grey cart replacement when sending theirs to Nintendo for some issue
I rarely got new games as a kid, so I would often replay or wander around in games like Majora for fun. Replaying the Ranch's quests and Kafei's quest because they were fun to do. So hearing, "most Zelda fans would never see," is interesting to me because I recall getting the Cremia's hug reward a lot. To the point where I thought since you got the mask, she had nothing left to give you BUT a hug. I remember for a long time thinking it was silly that Cremia only gave you a hug after getting the mask, and that maybe the reward going forward could have been milk or enough rupees for Chateau Romani. Until one year when I was going through it again she gave me a gold rupee. I tried replicating it, but each time she would only give a hug. It was rare for me when she gave a gold rupee. I'm not sure what the code is, or if there's a certain flag that when triggered gives you one or the other reward, but the gold rupee was the rare one for me. I also prefer Cremia over Anju
Wait thats huge! It was koizumi's game design what made majora's memorable to me all along?! id try to look further into what he has worked on. Edit: IMAMURA PUT THE FACE ON THE MOON??!!?! id look into that too
Holy shit, I was just watching a streamer play MM and he did Cremia's sequence twice because chat told him about the boobie hug. And I remember thinking- it was probably easier to animate it that way than for her to bend down or do a more complex motion. Never expected to hear a confirmation about that! As someone who is endlessly fascinated by MM as the amazing piece of art it is, I love having such well researched videos collecting trivia and development details to watch- it really gives the game's tone a deeper perspective, knowing what the developers were going through to make it in time.
I have an immense amount of respect for Miyamoto, but I must admit that it's good that he doesn't always get his way. I love Koizumi's writing and quest ideas, so it would have been a crime to never have gotten his ideas made!
This was an amazing video and fills out the universe so much. Thank you so much for the hard work! Would you consider posting the translations of the magazines for us? I'm really curious about everything else!
Even if it wasn't intentional or a metaphor for "Link being dead" I still really enjoy the symbolism of the different sections of Termina representing the different stages of grief. Majora's Mask feels like a game so steeped in misery, both in its story and (probably inspired by) its development, that having key parts of each area centered around the concept of grief works on a narrative and metaphorical level.
The game opens with you getting lost in the woods, knocked out, and then falling down a rabbit hole with a bunch of abstract colors and images like Alice in Wonderland, before sending you over bottomless pits and into a dreamlike space where the door shuts behind you and you emerge... in the middle of a city. Was everything or much of what came before that just underground, beneath Clock Town? Speaking of Clock Town, it and all of Termina is a place inexplicably populated by the same character models from the previous game in some sort of upside-down world. Somehow, that fact never comes up at all, not even regarding apparently obvious connections such as between Malon and Cremia/Romani. I don't know if Link has to be _dead_ (that might kinda contradict his shade's presence in Twilight Princess), but the game is definitely not just in the next kingdom over from Hyrule. The player gets the feeling the entire game that somehow only Termina will be destroyed by the moon, yet apparently just leaving the place isn't an option for most of the people we see. Why can't they escape? For that matter, how did Link even get there to begin with? There's definitely something going on in Termina
@@chompythebeast The dreamlike comparisons are valid, but I don't know how intentional they are. From a Doylist perspective the reused character models were purely economical for development, but I believe in-universe Termina is supposed to represent a parallel dimension/alternate universe. The hole in the forest is probably some kind of wormhole between dimensions, which is why it isn't just a kingdom adjacent to Hyrule. There's more reason to assume Termina represents an alternate world instead of just an asset flip, because there's certain characters like Darmani whose model was created entirely new, though he's clearly supposed to be some alternate version of Darunia, or Toto who's like a counterpart to King Zora. This might just be my crackpot theory, but I think Kafei himself is supposed to be Link's counterpart. His similarities may partly be due to him having to share a rig with Link (as he is playable briefly), but I think it's mighty suspicious that not only is his sidequest arguably the most significant in MM, but that he also had a forced child-adult transformation, something in common with Link in OoT (though in Kafei's case, the other way around). In this respect Kafei is similar to the purple-haired Ravio from A Link Between Worlds, who is Link's Lorulean counterpart.
You're mixing two theories, the "Link is Dead" one is MatPat being dumb, the "stages of grief" one is Link grieving the loss of Navi. And yes, Termina is not an underground land, but another dimension, as stated in a lot of official media.
@@domesticus2958 Interesting interpretation about Kafei. Of course I agree with your assessment regarding the reuse of assets in a 1 year dev cycle and how it is justified with the alternate dimension angle, that's always been essentially my understanding as well. But Kafei as Link's parallel is a cool idea, again, even if the creators didn't really intend it. But just like the strong Alice in Wonderland opening, perhaps indeed that thought _did_ cross their minds. In both cases, this kinda points out how authorial intent is not the end-all of literary analysis. Really, I think the reason the "Is Link Dead?" theory gets so much discussion is because it was a lot of people's introduction to "Death of the Author" type of analysis, which most people usually balk at at first. It was also probably helped along by people watching the vid who hadn't played the game in several years going "oh wow that's right!" without remembering all the counter-evidence the game also provides, but that's sorta beside the present point
Holy cow I read the trivia thing about the musical influence of Majora maybe twenty years ago somewhere on the internet but then wasn't able to find any source for this info when I looked at it afterwards. I'm so glad someone resurrected that trivia ❤
These DYKG videos they've been putting out recently are so cool, full of really obscure info about pretty old games, they make me wonder how much more info there could be out there about old games that hasn't been found yet, this one in particular also made me want to play Zelda Majora's Mask again, it's been a while since I played it and it's one of my favorite Zelda games, maybe even my favorite.
There was a ton of genuinely surprising info in this video. Yet another reminder why I love this show! It makes me love my beloved games even more! And KingK did a freakin great job here too 🙏🏾
It's incredible how much new information has come up about this work of art. It feels like decades of mysteries and untold backstory have finally been revealed to me. Thanks for doing this video.
This is one of these episodes of DYKG that makes me appreciate just how much work goes into these videos. Majora's Mask has been around for over 20 years, and trivia and theories about the game have been popping up for just as long. And yet, today I learned some new facts about the game that I'd never even considered before. This was a really deep dive. So, anyway. Thank you for all of the work, DYKG team. (I'll try to find somewhere to share this video, even though I'm not exactly on social media these days.)
I was NOT expecting to learn that Majora's Mask drew inspiration from Space Battleship Yamato (A.K.A Star Blazers). I LOVED that show when I was little
That explains why the mask dealer is made after miyamoto, he just presents himself, gives Link an objective with a seemingly impossible deadline and then just stands there inpaciently waiting for you to finish it at the given time or everything is gone. They were proyecting their experience as Nintendo developers of the late 90's. 😂
I can't believe that the Giant's mask just doubles Link's model size. I knew they weren't going to turn him into a giant, but I expected more than twice as tall.
It actually goes more in depth than that- it teleports Link to a different area suuuper high up with smaller Twinmolds who share HP with the bigger two. This is why using the mask anywhere else crashes the game, there's no ground that high up anywhere else, and nothing else is changed to fit 2x Link, and the game is also probably frantically searching for Twinmold upon use of it.
@@jesselindsey9760 I learned a lot about OoT and MM from the Randomizers, I just get this info secondhand from others though. Usually the discord servers but also Zfg
Didn't want to say it under the Ura Zelda video but I'll say it here: I'm glad to have not gotten Ura if it meant we got Majora's Mask instead. Even after all this time it truly is a unique and evocative entry in Nintendo's catalogue that is irreplaceable. Although that being said, I feel for the team who worked on it on such a tight and strict deadline.
With Majora's Mask being so rushed with so many things changed last minute, things being unplanned, going "wrong", etc, I realise how many planets had to be aligned perfectly in order to create this amazing game that we know and love today. Majora's Mask would not be the same without all these things and it's one of my all time favourite games. The team did a great job!
It's a shame Koizumi was kept away from Zelda so much, because honestly I prefer his style in most of the games that he's worked on. Link's Awakening is still my favorite 2D Zelda game. It seems to me that Koizumi is really good at bringing these other side characters to life, even if the overall story is unorthodox, and it's something you notice in the parts of games that he's worked on.
Things like this really put me at ease, all the pieces of history that are not hidden and yet are still not known, all this enriching information hiding in plain sight, it’s good to know I can learn new things about something I thought I knew
I don't think even Mat assumed his interpretation was the exact concept the game's makers had in their minds. And the devs didn't really debunk it either merely by saying that wasn't their deliberate intent. Only a certain form of criticism is satisfied solely with authorial intent: 'Death of the Author' is a far more engaging means of interpreting any piece of art, especially considering that art exists in the interaction between the viewer and the viewed, not simply in the viewed itself
@@chompythebeast Maybe at first, but MatPat gets REALLY defensive whenever people seriously critique his theories (despite, or perhaps because, he plays them off like they’re just silly harmless fan-theorising).
I’ve never seen anyone point this out and I figured why not here: The milk bar theme sounds remarkably like the blondie song “11:59”. The chord progression is identical, and the main melody of the milk sounds just like the keyboard solo.
Wait, the "Tree on a Grassy Hill high in the Sky" iconography scene is from Space Battleship Yamato?!? I've been wondering for a long time where this reference came from, thank you! (Its iconic in the sense of quite a few anime and games use it, look at Xenoblade Chronicles 2, or Sword Art Online: Alicization, both have it. I know there are others but I can't think of them off the top of my head)
It's super interesting that we constantly praise Aonuma for the weirdness in Majora. But it's been Koizumi all along that actually needs the praise and the actual god damn visionary.
So unbelievably beautiful I can't put it into words. A team of programmers putting every ounce of energy into such a beautiful masterpiece that would influence generations to come. It's almost poetic, like it was their destiny to provide these stories from another space and time. Sometimes I wonder if all these experiences and stories are just destiny and the struggle to make them is just humans riding the wave of life pushing out more energy into the universe.
i still can't believe stuff like "this was known in japan since forever but was only discovered in the west last week, 21 years later". how little do the japanese community interact with "the west" (and vice versa) for something like this to even be possible in such a connected world?
Regarding the legitimacy of fan theories and what something "actually means," it's always fascinating to see fans come up with alternate meanings for an artist's work that operate on a larger scale - like Majora's Mask being a big metaphor for the stages of grief... or having the entire game take place in a dream. I appreciate the devs being like, "that's not what we meant, but we appreciate people thinking about the game in this way." I sometimes feel that the artist needs an audience to tell them what their work really means... as though they're working with ideas so big that the best they can do is tell a story and let everyone figure out more comprehensive meanings.
Keep in mind that games back then were very, very often made in around only a year! Games with super long dev cycles like Ocarina were quite the exception!
I always knew Links Awakening and Majora’s Mask shared very large similarities in its change of settings and tone, so this video is definitely right up my alley.
The coolest theory I've read about Majora's Mask is called "The Stone Tower: Why Termina was Doomed". It might be far fetched in some points, but things fit so well it's hard not to believe some of it wasn't intentional.
I swear I keep hearing alternating interpretations of the hug from Cremia being a rare moment of a sort of motherly intimacy that Link never had in his childhood or it's just boobs make Link happy.
The fact that one of the most iconic parts of Majora's Mask, maybe even of the entire franchise, was designed around the fear of North Korean missiles while at a wedding is one hell of an amazing origin story.
As it happens, the Taepodong-1 missiles were probably never intended to be used as surface-to-surface weapons, but were a test platform for multi-stage missile tech. Its first use, which started the "crisis" in Japan being referred to, was actually an attempt to launch a satellite into orbit. But evidently the missile malfunctioned, and passed over Japan at an altitude of over 200km before crashing East of Japan in the ocean, with some parts landing only 40km away. This spooked the Japanese people pretty good, but even that was probably not entirely intentional on the part of North Korea
Atari's Missile Command was born out of the cold war fears. The "Game Over" screen originally just said "The End", but was deemed too scary or something like that. The designer of the game actually had nightmares while creating it...
Wouldn't be the first time they feared missiles from North Korea, Kim Jong-un also caused a country wide panic.
@@matthewrease2376 iiii is
Ppl who call things "iconic" seem brain washed or just stupid.
Damn, I didn't know that "You've met with a terrible fate, haven't you?" came from such a place of genuine emotion.
and ironically one of the most well known creepypastas from back in the day
Honestly one of the strongest lines written in a game.
A fantastic opener for Majora's Mask, but even deeper considering the previous adventure leading up to it.
the staff put themselves on Link's shoes when the Happy Mask Salesman shakes them very angry.
It sounds a lot better than, "Your boss is an asshole, isn't he?"
It makes the sentence hits even harder, it's incredible that it has this origin.
The decisions they made within the one year deadline are totally genius, they really knew what would work and what wouldn’t work. Even though they scrapped a bunch of stuff, less is more in my opinion. As a writer, it’s really important to constantly read your own writing and ask yourself “Why is this in here?”
It’s like they knew there would never ever be another game quite like it again, so they went all out with it. Massive props to the developers.
I don't think they really knew what would work and what wouldn't, they just tried the best they could. When you're given such a short deadline, there isn't any time to go back and rework more engraned aspects of the game, because of this they likely had to roll with what they had at many points when they would have preferred to rework or entirely remove them. What that results in is a product that almost goes against the instincts of the people making it, but when the people making it are literally the biggest geniuses of the industry (Yoshiaki Koizumi especially) you get an experimental masterpiece like Majora's Mask.
"You've met with a terrible fate, haven't you?"
I love that the game's most iconic line was really just an overworked developer venting their frustrations.
Come on give them some credit, things can exist for more than just one reason, that line just has a lot of meaning both in the game’s world and outside it, our art is inspired by our lives, he used his frustrations as a constructive force, put his real feelings in a way that complimented the game’s themes, and gave us one of the most iconic lines in the series
And it's most iconic image, the moon, came from a trolled and tilted employee.
It was a cry for help
@@potatoboy6094
How is this taking credit away? You realize that them being overworked is in the real world, right? And that the games world is a result of this crunch? You can't have Majora's Mask without the suffering the devs went through, and it's weird to try and paint pointing that out as "discrediting".
Japanese work environments are something else. It is hard to imagine working off the clock and not get paid for numerous days just to finish a project.
If you do what you love for a living, you never have to work a day in your life.
Honestly this just sounds like “programmer” culture
As an American I can say I would never do that. Gotta pay me boss
@@RobotacularRoBob we have a different definition of fun
@@RobotacularRoBob except this level of disgusting crunch was only necessary to get the game over the finish line because of the impossibly short timeframe they were given to complete the game. It's not a labour of love, its abusing employees.
It really is a testament to the Majora's team's skill that they accidentally built layers of sub-themes and intrigue while crunching for an entire year.
You know what they say: write what you know
@@KaminoKatie It's why the villagers actually _feel_ like real people with their dialogue.
I hope Koizumi gets to add more of his weirdness to future games. I definitely liked "his" games the most.
Mario Odyssey quite a bit of that weirdness. The finale even takes place on the moon. Bowser's Fury as well. But yeah, I'd like to see him on Zelda as well.
I just want Miyamoto to retire, and for Nintendo's workers to unionize lol.
Nah, the series has taken an irreversible course towards botW, an open world inhabited by one line characters that don't matter at all
Yeah. Miyamoto's games are good, but feel kind of "samey." Koizumi always seemed more willing to take risks.
@@Sordatos If you're problem with botw was an open world where the characters deliver the same dialogue they always have then you arnet even equipped for an argument. The sheikh retcon was significantly more detrimental to the series than an open world with npcs.
The star thing is such a neat little detail. Like it doesn't really do anything, but it's cool that it's genuinely personalized to your own save file. They didn't _have to_ include it, but they did anyway.
If they didn't then we've probably could've gotten two almost finished Great Fairy cutscenes.
@@Othillde Maybe. I don't know if the code to personalize star patterns is big enough to almost replace two cutscenes.
@@Othillde They already had some of those cutscenes though. They were cut to free up space.
The banker does NOT ignore time mechanics. He stamps Link's deposit information on his hand and when Link travels through time the stamp comes with him. The banker sees Link's Stamp thinking he had actually deposited before, not knowing in this timeline he hasn't.
Edit: 4:25
One counter point is that I don't think the banker ever re-stamps Link. Whenever you go to him he always says that he "remembers" you, even when using the various forms.
@@Mastergengar He *does* stamp you again though - he updates your stamp every time your bank balance changes. He doesn't give you an introductory stamp again because you already have one, and him saying "I remember you" to faces he's never seen before only strengthens the interpretation that he doesn't actually recognize you, but is pretending to be familiar while only looking at your stamp.
@Just Plain Mat That can be a valid counterpoint, I've also heard that doesn't apply very well because Bankers of that style usually keep up a friendly front in order to keep business. For the stamping, probably an oversight by the developers
Thank you! I always found it funny how Link was withdrawing money out the bank that technically wasn't his.
@Normal, does he update the stamp? I must have forgotten then, thank you. I'm definitely torn now between which narrative I like more. Having an omniscient banker who knows you across time, or Link being the thief racking up huge amounts of money and robbing him blind during each time cycle. 😂
For a little bit of cultural context on why Cremia is better liked in Japan, Japan has always been very much about fitting in and not "rocking the boat." So much so that it is pretty looked down upon to talk about problems going on. They think that people should just persevere through it all with a brave face, as it "can't be helped." This is why the field of mental health is still not regulated at all there; it's not even used much. Thus, it really makes sense that likely most people there in general would like Cremia better, as Anju "rocks the boat," while Cremia perseveres through her problems with a brave face.
@@Othillde I certainly can't disagree. Sometimes people need help, and they shouldn't be prevented from getting the help they need.
So that's why so many Anime and Japanese games have the characters say "It can't be helped". They say it so much it's almost a catchphrase at this point.
Also because it seems that Anju can't cook very well, unless grandma is just being mean to her. There's something she has that Cremia doesn't, and Kafei saw it. If I was a dude, I would go with a farm girl.
Anju is also spoken for. Cremia is just a nice farm girl
Would also explain why Japan has such a high suicide rate. Pretty sad their society essentially has a "tough it out" mentality.
The first person camera from Kafei’s perspective being at eye level with Anju in the ending makes me think he became an adult again.
Ikr! I hate it when the writers release uncertain statements when the evidence is before you. That's just needlessly transparent of them.
Right, like, why wouldn’t he become an adult again? I just figured they didn’t trouble themselves making a new adult model for a few seconds of the credits sequence
Koizumi is so under appreciated, all these extra details and features throughout the years for us fans. Definitely can’t wait for other projects he’s involved in.
Yeah, I hope we get to see him in future directs from time to time again aswell. From these stories it feels like he is a really great anthisesis to Miyamoto with their ideas often going in completely different directions. I'm honestly surprised that the first time I heard this man exists was with the switch's release
@@Cleoli2 Same, I had no idea who he was until the Switch reveal event in 2017.
He’s Miyamoto’s successor and he directed Super Mario Odyssey. He’s pretty valued.
@@Cleoli2 Of course he's the antithesis of Miyamoto. He wants to make Mario games with a story.
@@GabePuratekuta they should give him the reigns on Paper Mario, then. Miyamoto's interference ruined that series and someone who cares about storytelling needs to step in and fix it.
Koizumi flying shit under Miyamotos radar is very fun to imagine, sneaking around trying to slide in character backstories and lore without being spotted.
A true hero of (our) time.
Fun? In what world is having to hide your creative work from your boss "fun"? The risk was that if Miyamoto saw it, he'd make them change it. Idk, sound extremely nerve racking to me, not fun in any way.
"Hey! Koizumi, I saw you trying to get into my-- wait, who put a whole-ass fishing game in here?!" I'm glad passionate devs who knew better found ways to override some of Miyamoto's stupid decisions.
Anju only had Kafei, and he was gone, and to me was the motional rock for her. Cremia had to stay stoic for her sister, since she couldn't afford to be distracted with a love life. I think they're both strong women in their own ways, for different reasons.
Anju had her grandmother.
@@VantaCube But didn't her grandmother dislike her? Or am I misremembering. I don't think she liked the grandmother.
@@tiacool7978 Yeah, Anju's grandmother was kinda of a dick to her. She feigned dementia to not eat Anju's food and to downgrade her time and time again.
Anju kept hope for her love. Cremia needed to be both parent and a sister to be strong.
Just to clear some misconceptions:
Anju still had her mother and grandmother, also she was friends with Cremia. She's by no means alone or lonely, but it doesn't detract from what she's been going through.
Imagine your significant other seemingly bailing out on you for no apparent reason just a few days short of your wedding that coincides with an apocalyptic event...
Team Cremia all day, dude. No doubt.
🤝
extremely underrated
Anjus quest was annoying and tedious. Cremia all day.
absolutely, no doubt!
Agreed. But I suspect Cremia is Team Anju, if you know what I mean. 😏
Miyamoto: "You crossed the line, you're forbidden from doing plots ever again."
Koizumi: *does it again anyway* 😎
Miyamoto: Stop making cursed, weird Zelda games!
Koizumi: You know what? I’m going to start making cursed, weird Zelda games even harder!
@@BenGroff-ik4zj those weir Zelda games are the most beloved by fans
That’s how I operate at work 😂
I can’t get into trouble if I do a good job 😜
I do kinda love how MM seems to have been a bunch of incredibly stressed people being like 'ok I'm just gonna do my own weird thing' and somehow it turned out really great
Wow, the making of this game was insanely chaotic. Super crazy.
And it's shocking on how fantastic it ended up being despite the workload.
@@Gadget-Walkmen It turned out like that directly because of it! Under all this pressure, they tapped into a bizarre creative place of nightmares and aliens. All that shit never would made it in if they had a second to think about it
@@ViewbobTrue don't know entirely about that but i'll just say something good came out of all the madness.
@L don’t know if that’s true as we shouldn’t promote the idea that pressuring staff with super tight deadlines is how you make fantastic games. That’s bad staff treatment right there. Who knows what it could have been like if they had 3 years, probably a whole like better even more hopefully. Not at all lesser in ANY way.
it match's the game
They had the shortest time possible for a Zelda game and made one of the absolute best ones out of it. Thank you for this masterpiece.
I remember as a kid being disappointed with only 4 main dungeons, but the replay value is better than Ocarina of time imo. No one gets all 20 masks on their first run.
@@tdestroyer4780 I did! Of course I used a guide for one of the side quests but other than that I figured it out all on my own. Some of those are damn obscure I tell you.
@@tdestroyer4780 I remember as a kid farming rupees to the bank, resetting, and never getting entrance to the second dungeon.
THE absolute best one
@@tdestroyer4780 I actually quite enjoy only having 4 main dungeons. Ocarina of time can just feel like a dungeon checklist at times and I think the masks really helped make the dunegons unique and fun. Plus, I don't think I can take the stress of another 4 time-limited dungeons.
developers: "Adult Link mask would have been useless so we scrapped it"
mask that lets you dance like an idiot: "Am I a joke to you"
What else are you supposed to do while waiting for the clock tower to open?
@@RenSako Then you'll wish you had it.
@@uberculex Play a tune that makes a dog follow you around?
do not diss on my man kamaro and his beautiful dance moves
I love parading around leading the chickens.
As a former videogame magazine writer/journalist, I really appreciate your research work. It's reassuring we still have passionnate people trying their best and work thorough.
Thanks Ben :)
Men were at a wedding going"write that down!" Like SpongeBob
"Yo check his hair, someone get a reference picture!"
I already knew that Koizumi had done some of my favorite games/moments in franchises, but now learning that he basically did them behind Miyamoto's back makes me like the guy even more.
I love Majora's Mask a lot and hearing developer stories makes it seem like the game really was lightning in a bottle. It changed so much during development, imagine how different it would be if they were given an extra couple of months to work on the game.
It's the Crash Twinsanity of the Zelda series
@@KaminoKatie or the fawwout new vegas.
Damn :( It’s sad but heartwarming how much of the developers’ heart and struggle went into making the game. I now appreciate the game even more profoundly than I did before learning just how much effort and sacrifice it really took to make. Thank you for this fantastic piece and a personal thank you to every single one of the developers (even if they never see this comment)!
I'm starting to feel the same way about a lot of anime studios I've loved. The work is brutal.
Nearly started crying xD didn't even belongs to my childhood
It's really cool that the game about not having enough time was literally made on a super short time limit
Kozumi is a pretty passionate storyteller and it shows. He needs to be in Zelda projects more often. Surely he knows his work and theming is why MM is regarded as one of the better 3D Zeldas?
The best Zelda games are the ones where Koizumi are involved (in my opinion). They are the most story-driven & dark.
@@BenGroff-ik4zj kinad like Miyamoto was never really in touch with the series past the NES days and Aonuma.. is hard to read, rly I think he does what he gets told rather from Miyamoto himself, which holds back his own ideals. Unless BotW was his own ideal then please get us back Koizumi for the franchise that has lost it's way after Skyward Sword D:
@@Evilriku13 I love BOTW, but it’s isn’t my favorite in the series. I don’t think it lost it’s “way”, I just prefer the Koizumi-influenced stuff.
@@Evilriku13 Looks like Koizumi is the better story teller and Aonuma the better level/Dungeon/world designer.
To bad that the series is now basically in charge of Fujibashi, who honestly is taking the series in a very different direction
Damn, Miyamoto hittin em with the crunch time and then these guys are at a wedding thinking to themselves "bro, this is content right here, write this down" lmao
lmfao
It's weird to play Majora's Mask today and think that this was what "rushed" games used to look like.
Why do I imagine Miyamoto to be one of those people who are legitimate geniuses but an absolute nightmare to work with
Present day Miyamoto is more or less like this, several interviews mention how stressful it is to tip toe around his very strict restrictions, especially when dealing with Mario. One of the most recent victims of this kerfuffle was the Paper Mario series, and only until very recently have they seemed to have reigned in some control without angering their main senior.
@@josefarias5216 shiggy word is law in nintendo HQ... and i like it. 😁
When you first learn that the Happy Mask Salesman is Shigeru Miyamoto:
Mind = Blown
Because that's pretty much whatt everyone says about him. Dude used to take smoke breaks in the one room where they shoved the two English speaking employees like some kind of sitcom character
@@josefarias5216 He had no involvement with PaperMario!!!! Stop with the lies!!
Seriously my favorite Zelda game to this day.
As for the 'unanswered' question about Kafei returning to normal, idk I thought it felt pretty obvious that he did. Since the wedding cutscene is from his POV for a little bit. That and I would imagine the curse would be lifted when Majora was defeated.
How I imagine it went:
1: "We should show Kafei is no longer cursed in the credits"
2: "Dude, I can't make a new model for that, the game is shipping in a week."
@@Minty_Meeo Yeah I don't think it should be considered a mystery, it's pretty obvious he changed back. If they had more time to work on the game I'm sure they would've made an adult Kafei model, or maybe they wanted to keep his true appearance a mystery for whatever reason.
@@domesticus2958 They had sketched an adult design for him during developement, they probably never had time to make a model and animate it, so making the wedding scene in his POV (in which shows he's adult as he's taller than Anju) was a clever way to do that.
I never thought about Cremias hug as an adult joke, I always thought about it as a more... _motherly_ hug. It's honestly heartwarming because Links mother died early in his life back in OoT so this is the first time he experiences something like this.
I saw it more as just a hug, the developers didn't have to add pervy referenced dialogue, at least it's not canon since you don't have to do the quest more than once after getting the mask when doing it.
... That's what it is. His face going into her chest was an error, and they joked about how young boys would be happy to be in that position.
It was never at any point intended to be adult in anyway. Simply a hug of gratitude.
ya thats how link prob would have took it too. bein a pure heart n all. but our world is pervy so... tibbies give the fuzzies. 😆😁
well, technically the only game Link is pure of heart in is Skyward Sword, but i get your point!
@@SakuraAvalon Did you hear what they said? What the interviewer said? That it was any boy's dream? You'd have to be playing naive to pretend not to understand what they meant. I'll grant that the dialogue in-game itself could be interpreted in a non-sexual way, but in reality it's just a sort of 90s video game moment of a formerly common variety, even in Nintendo games
This game would've been absolutely insane if they had been given an extra year to make it
I felt that it would've been a GameCube launch title if that happened
@@RenSako thanks for the essay. to each their own. I still think they should've
@@RenSako i disagree heavily on the whole not needing anymore twilight princesses lmfao. Easily a top 3 zelda game imo. I do wish they’d do more zelda games similar to minish cap tho
@@RenSako I had no idea that MM 3DS had any changes to it other than graphics when i first picked it up. I hadent played MM since like 2004 so it had been a good 15 years. I kept thinking things felt off and wrong until finally relaizing that major changes had occured, and it was just such a bummer. They took what was the most unique zelda game and just fucked with it to streamline it. Why does every boss need an eye to hit? Just why? How come deku links movement was butchered? Zora link cant even swim right! Its the only zelda purchase ive ever made that ive wanted to return.
MM3D took three times as long to make as MM64 and ended up much worse.
Never made the connection that Koizumi had a heavy influence on my 2 favorite Zelda games. Glad it happened!
Knowing all this, and how much of a time constraint they had to finish the game, the quotes they put in in frustration, really makes majoras mask even darker. Lol a game about time and how the moon will crash down in 3 days. I love it even more now, a game created from stress and pain. Really appreciate it for what it is and the hard work that went into it.
I respect and appreciate all the hard work put in, but honestly that 1 year deadline is pardon my french: fokin ridicolously abusive
@@islandboy9381 I have the impression Miyamoto made that on purpose. He knew the devs couldn't complete a new zelda game in 1 year. He originally gave that deadline because Eiji Aonuma didn't wanted to work in URA Zelda, and Miyamoto said that if Aonuma managed to pull a new Zelda game in 1 year, he wouldn't need to work on URA Zelda. Prolly he expected people to give up completely and ask to change projects eventually.
I guess in one of the parallel timelines of the multiverse, there's one where we don't have Majora's Mask.
@@Adaruvideos I mean yea he was expecting it not happening, but once that wasn't the case and most of the team left URA for Majora you would atleast expect him to delay and thus give a little bit more breathing room for the devs cause by then its becoming a full Zelda product that can't just fail, it's a miracle the the game didn't come out in a really buggy or something like that. It also makes me think of another timeline where Majora had potentially even more content added to it if it got delayed to a normal development time.
@@islandboy9381 The game did come with a good handful of bugs and glitches, some of them even left over from the original OOT code, like the bomb hover glitch, infinite sword glitch, bottle glitch, and the new 4th day glitch (this last one was patched in later versions of the game, I believe.). MM is a really good game but just like Pokémon's 1st generation, it can be argued its almost held together by glue, spit and a little bit of praying.
I never saw Cremia’s hug as sexual or anything. I thought of it as the only source of affection Link ever had at all. Remember, this is still technically the Link that had his childhood robbed from him and forced to fight a grownup’s battle. I thought the hug was something cute.
Same. I never thought about it that way until this video
What about Saria?
It was both at the same time.
I prefer not sexualising that scene. Though the devs were having fun, it’s a little gross I think.
The idea that it’s the only time Link gets affection (and not in a lascivious way) is extremely bittersweet. I don’t like making that scene so shallow by making it suggestive.
Yall are so full of crap it isn't even funny.
Majora's Mask is by far my favorite Zelda game. It's such an amazing game for so little dev time.
What really helped them out what reusing models from OOT, especially character models.
Even so, it is an absolutely fantastic game for what it managed to accomplish in such a short period of time.
Seeing Young Link's model and Hylian Shield from Ocarina of Time in Majora's Mask at 0:35 is incredibly cursed. His model looks out of place compared to his higher quality counterpart in Majora's Mask.
I’m glad they updated Young Link’s model in MM, he looks better there with the added side hair, strap belt over the shoulder, more hair textures, and soles under his boots
What’s funny is people remember Cremia’s hug as a well deserved hug for Link. A young boy who’s childhood was stolen by fate, then put back into the body of a boy. Link needed that hug. Not even Zelda gave him a hug. Poor kid deserved that hug.
Man the development stories behind this are wild
My copy back in the day was gold with a lenticular sticker, I've never seen a gray cart
It released only on gold carts, the difference between regular and limited being the lenticular sticker. The grey cart was a demo (not for resale sticker), and I've heard stories of people getting a grey cart replacement when sending theirs to Nintendo for some issue
I rarely got new games as a kid, so I would often replay or wander around in games like Majora for fun. Replaying the Ranch's quests and Kafei's quest because they were fun to do. So hearing, "most Zelda fans would never see," is interesting to me because I recall getting the Cremia's hug reward a lot. To the point where I thought since you got the mask, she had nothing left to give you BUT a hug. I remember for a long time thinking it was silly that Cremia only gave you a hug after getting the mask, and that maybe the reward going forward could have been milk or enough rupees for Chateau Romani. Until one year when I was going through it again she gave me a gold rupee. I tried replicating it, but each time she would only give a hug. It was rare for me when she gave a gold rupee. I'm not sure what the code is, or if there's a certain flag that when triggered gives you one or the other reward, but the gold rupee was the rare one for me.
I also prefer Cremia over Anju
Wait thats huge! It was koizumi's game design what made majora's memorable to me all along?! id try to look further into what he has worked on.
Edit: IMAMURA PUT THE FACE ON THE MOON??!!?! id look into that too
He also made Tingle. Which kind of detracts from everything else he's ever done.
Holy shit, I was just watching a streamer play MM and he did Cremia's sequence twice because chat told him about the boobie hug. And I remember thinking- it was probably easier to animate it that way than for her to bend down or do a more complex motion. Never expected to hear a confirmation about that!
As someone who is endlessly fascinated by MM as the amazing piece of art it is, I love having such well researched videos collecting trivia and development details to watch- it really gives the game's tone a deeper perspective, knowing what the developers were going through to make it in time.
I have an immense amount of respect for Miyamoto, but I must admit that it's good that he doesn't always get his way. I love Koizumi's writing and quest ideas, so it would have been a crime to never have gotten his ideas made!
The second I think I know everything about the game or that I can’t love it anymore I learn more and love it even more 😂
The game that never stops giving, years later n we are still finding secrets 😩 this is why i love the Zelda series, fantastic job on the video guys!!
This was an amazing video and fills out the universe so much. Thank you so much for the hard work! Would you consider posting the translations of the magazines for us? I'm really curious about everything else!
Even if it wasn't intentional or a metaphor for "Link being dead" I still really enjoy the symbolism of the different sections of Termina representing the different stages of grief. Majora's Mask feels like a game so steeped in misery, both in its story and (probably inspired by) its development, that having key parts of each area centered around the concept of grief works on a narrative and metaphorical level.
The game opens with you getting lost in the woods, knocked out, and then falling down a rabbit hole with a bunch of abstract colors and images like Alice in Wonderland, before sending you over bottomless pits and into a dreamlike space where the door shuts behind you and you emerge... in the middle of a city. Was everything or much of what came before that just underground, beneath Clock Town? Speaking of Clock Town, it and all of Termina is a place inexplicably populated by the same character models from the previous game in some sort of upside-down world. Somehow, that fact never comes up at all, not even regarding apparently obvious connections such as between Malon and Cremia/Romani.
I don't know if Link has to be _dead_ (that might kinda contradict his shade's presence in Twilight Princess), but the game is definitely not just in the next kingdom over from Hyrule. The player gets the feeling the entire game that somehow only Termina will be destroyed by the moon, yet apparently just leaving the place isn't an option for most of the people we see. Why can't they escape? For that matter, how did Link even get there to begin with?
There's definitely something going on in Termina
@@chompythebeast The dreamlike comparisons are valid, but I don't know how intentional they are. From a Doylist perspective the reused character models were purely economical for development, but I believe in-universe Termina is supposed to represent a parallel dimension/alternate universe. The hole in the forest is probably some kind of wormhole between dimensions, which is why it isn't just a kingdom adjacent to Hyrule. There's more reason to assume Termina represents an alternate world instead of just an asset flip, because there's certain characters like Darmani whose model was created entirely new, though he's clearly supposed to be some alternate version of Darunia, or Toto who's like a counterpart to King Zora.
This might just be my crackpot theory, but I think Kafei himself is supposed to be Link's counterpart. His similarities may partly be due to him having to share a rig with Link (as he is playable briefly), but I think it's mighty suspicious that not only is his sidequest arguably the most significant in MM, but that he also had a forced child-adult transformation, something in common with Link in OoT (though in Kafei's case, the other way around). In this respect Kafei is similar to the purple-haired Ravio from A Link Between Worlds, who is Link's Lorulean counterpart.
You're mixing two theories, the "Link is Dead" one is MatPat being dumb, the "stages of grief" one is Link grieving the loss of Navi.
And yes, Termina is not an underground land, but another dimension, as stated in a lot of official media.
@@domesticus2958 Interesting interpretation about Kafei. Of course I agree with your assessment regarding the reuse of assets in a 1 year dev cycle and how it is justified with the alternate dimension angle, that's always been essentially my understanding as well. But Kafei as Link's parallel is a cool idea, again, even if the creators didn't really intend it. But just like the strong Alice in Wonderland opening, perhaps indeed that thought _did_ cross their minds.
In both cases, this kinda points out how authorial intent is not the end-all of literary analysis. Really, I think the reason the "Is Link Dead?" theory gets so much discussion is because it was a lot of people's introduction to "Death of the Author" type of analysis, which most people usually balk at at first. It was also probably helped along by people watching the vid who hadn't played the game in several years going "oh wow that's right!" without remembering all the counter-evidence the game also provides, but that's sorta beside the present point
@@Mari_Izu actually thought Termina is just another country close to Hyrule that Link traveled to accidently.
Holy cow I read the trivia thing about the musical influence of Majora maybe twenty years ago somewhere on the internet but then wasn't able to find any source for this info when I looked at it afterwards. I'm so glad someone resurrected that trivia ❤
These DYKG videos they've been putting out recently are so cool, full of really obscure info about pretty old games, they make me wonder how much more info there could be out there about old games that hasn't been found yet, this one in particular also made me want to play Zelda Majora's Mask again, it's been a while since I played it and it's one of my favorite Zelda games, maybe even my favorite.
There was a ton of genuinely surprising info in this video. Yet another reminder why I love this show! It makes me love my beloved games even more! And KingK did a freakin great job here too 🙏🏾
Anju and Cremia are both great, but Cremia is a badass farm girl. And that checks enough boxes for me.
It's incredible how much new information has come up about this work of art. It feels like decades of mysteries and untold backstory have finally been revealed to me. Thanks for doing this video.
Not sure why DYKG didn't but his name in the title but the VO's channel, King K, has some great retrospective. His Zelda series is a gem.
This is one of these episodes of DYKG that makes me appreciate just how much work goes into these videos. Majora's Mask has been around for over 20 years, and trivia and theories about the game have been popping up for just as long. And yet, today I learned some new facts about the game that I'd never even considered before. This was a really deep dive.
So, anyway. Thank you for all of the work, DYKG team. (I'll try to find somewhere to share this video, even though I'm not exactly on social media these days.)
Well, this a wonderful late Christmas gift! Thank you for more data about one of my favorite games!
I was NOT expecting to learn that Majora's Mask drew inspiration from Space Battleship Yamato (A.K.A Star Blazers). I LOVED that show when I was little
That explains why the mask dealer is made after miyamoto, he just presents himself, gives Link an objective with a seemingly impossible deadline and then just stands there inpaciently waiting for you to finish it at the given time or everything is gone. They were proyecting their experience as Nintendo developers of the late 90's. 😂
I'll never get tired of learning more about majora's mask. It'll forever be my favorite zelda game, next to the oracle games.
I can't believe that the Giant's mask just doubles Link's model size. I knew they weren't going to turn him into a giant, but I expected more than twice as tall.
It actually goes more in depth than that- it teleports Link to a different area suuuper high up with smaller Twinmolds who share HP with the bigger two. This is why using the mask anywhere else crashes the game, there's no ground that high up anywhere else, and nothing else is changed to fit 2x Link, and the game is also probably frantically searching for Twinmold upon use of it.
Skorns are littles worms!
@@jongameaddict That's so cool. This game is trickier than I thought!
@@jesselindsey9760 I learned a lot about OoT and MM from the Randomizers, I just get this info secondhand from others though. Usually the discord servers but also Zfg
Didn't want to say it under the Ura Zelda video but I'll say it here: I'm glad to have not gotten Ura if it meant we got Majora's Mask instead. Even after all this time it truly is a unique and evocative entry in Nintendo's catalogue that is irreplaceable. Although that being said, I feel for the team who worked on it on such a tight and strict deadline.
With Majora's Mask being so rushed with so many things changed last minute, things being unplanned, going "wrong", etc, I realise how many planets had to be aligned perfectly in order to create this amazing game that we know and love today. Majora's Mask would not be the same without all these things and it's one of my all time favourite games. The team did a great job!
And is was the Crash Twinsanity of the Zelda series
It's a shame Koizumi was kept away from Zelda so much, because honestly I prefer his style in most of the games that he's worked on. Link's Awakening is still my favorite 2D Zelda game.
It seems to me that Koizumi is really good at bringing these other side characters to life, even if the overall story is unorthodox, and it's something you notice in the parts of games that he's worked on.
Things like this really put me at ease, all the pieces of history that are not hidden and yet are still not known, all this enriching information hiding in plain sight, it’s good to know I can learn new things about something I thought I knew
I've never payed attention to the stars in Majora's Mask, welp, finally a excuse to replay my favorite Zelda game...
Also, Cremia best girl
16:25 Few things as satisfying as devs giving MatPat a sound debunking.
I don't think even Mat assumed his interpretation was the exact concept the game's makers had in their minds. And the devs didn't really debunk it either merely by saying that wasn't their deliberate intent. Only a certain form of criticism is satisfied solely with authorial intent: 'Death of the Author' is a far more engaging means of interpreting any piece of art, especially considering that art exists in the interaction between the viewer and the viewed, not simply in the viewed itself
@@chompythebeast Maybe at first, but MatPat gets REALLY defensive whenever people seriously critique his theories (despite, or perhaps because, he plays them off like they’re just silly harmless fan-theorising).
Being an adult now, I feel the struggle the developers were going through. But they still managed to make the game great and I really respect that.
Cremia all the way. No contest.
I’ve never seen anyone point this out and I figured why not here:
The milk bar theme sounds remarkably like the blondie song “11:59”. The chord progression is identical, and the main melody of the milk sounds just like the keyboard solo.
Heck yeah Blondie Fan & Zelda Fan. It’s 11:59 and I want to stay alive!!!
Not even close what are you on about.
@@danebrennand wait past the intro of the song. It’s literally the same chord progression
Wait, the "Tree on a Grassy Hill high in the Sky" iconography scene is from Space Battleship Yamato?!?
I've been wondering for a long time where this reference came from, thank you!
(Its iconic in the sense of quite a few anime and games use it, look at Xenoblade Chronicles 2, or Sword Art Online: Alicization, both have it. I know there are others but I can't think of them off the top of my head)
It's super interesting that we constantly praise Aonuma for the weirdness in Majora. But it's been Koizumi all along that actually needs the praise and the actual god damn visionary.
Like a director's cut of MM would've been amazing
You tell me this guy was only allowed to work on two side quests in all of Ocarina of time, and they were the only two good ones?
He’s the best
That’s crazy about the origin of one of the most memorable lines in the game.
Every detail i learn about MM just makes me love it more, thank you
So unbelievably beautiful I can't put it into words. A team of programmers putting every ounce of energy into such a beautiful masterpiece that would influence generations to come. It's almost poetic, like it was their destiny to provide these stories from another space and time. Sometimes I wonder if all these experiences and stories are just destiny and the struggle to make them is just humans riding the wave of life pushing out more energy into the universe.
But I wonder how Majora's Mask could've been if given more time in the pot
The fact of this man wins a copyright sue againts nintendo, is more than awesome, it's OUTSTANDING.
i still can't believe stuff like "this was known in japan since forever but was only discovered in the west last week, 21 years later". how little do the japanese community interact with "the west" (and vice versa) for something like this to even be possible in such a connected world?
The stars being based off your file name is so cool. I LOVE little things like that in games.
King K on DYKG!? Love it!
Yeah it caught me offguard. Nice to hear someone I sub to finally.
Regarding the legitimacy of fan theories and what something "actually means," it's always fascinating to see fans come up with alternate meanings for an artist's work that operate on a larger scale - like Majora's Mask being a big metaphor for the stages of grief... or having the entire game take place in a dream. I appreciate the devs being like, "that's not what we meant, but we appreciate people thinking about the game in this way." I sometimes feel that the artist needs an audience to tell them what their work really means... as though they're working with ideas so big that the best they can do is tell a story and let everyone figure out more comprehensive meanings.
Yes, I dont suck, my copy was unbeatable
👀 same
me when my bomber code was 54312 and I couldn't guess it by brute force
Clearly the stars were not in position for you
It's like Weirdshot glitches in OoT randomizers, you got a rare star pattern that caused progress to be impossible
I love the details about how MM was kinda a rushed, cobbled together thing, but it turned out being amazing
The first game I ever played on my brother's old N64 when I was about 3 or 4 it will forever be my favorite game
Keep in mind that games back then were very, very often made in around only a year! Games with super long dev cycles like Ocarina were quite the exception!
This feels like sm64 all over again, I saw so much stuff about that
Really interesting info I've literally never heard anywhere else before. Thanks for the deep dive!
So happy to hear KingK in DYKG, idk if this is his first time, but at least its the first time I hear him here, love the guy!
I always knew Links Awakening and Majora’s Mask shared very large similarities in its change of settings and tone, so this video is definitely right up my alley.
The coolest theory I've read about Majora's Mask is called "The Stone Tower: Why Termina was Doomed".
It might be far fetched in some points, but things fit so well it's hard not to believe some of it wasn't intentional.
I swear I keep hearing alternating interpretations of the hug from Cremia being a rare moment of a sort of motherly intimacy that Link never had in his childhood or it's just boobs make Link happy.
Well, here it seems the real answer is a bit of both. They wanted the intimacy angle, messed up and said "screw it, add in a suggestive joke"
Adult Link's powers included paying taxes and having to wake up at 5am.
Did You Know Gaming: "Majora's Mask is kind of the black sheep of the series."
Adventure of Link: *exists*
Oh, I see you stirring up Majora’s Mask nostalgia right before New Year…and I am putty in your hands
Lmao how did I watch the whole video not realizing KingK was the narrator.
Koizumi really is a big Twin Peaks fan, huh? Both MM and Link's Awakening have that warm yet unsettling vibe to them.
I imagine that Cremia would eventually meet her real true love one day, perhaps someone who looks like Link, lol.
Wow i actually love this video. Thank you so much for making this one. I actually learned a lot from this from my favorite game
huh didn't knew about the cremia hug, thats adorable
I wonder if Robin Williams knew the Jumanji movie had an influence on his favorite gaming franchise
You probably already knew this, but in case you didn't. Robin Williams named his daughter Zelda Williams, after the game. He was a big fan apparently.
I turned on this video to hear KING K??? Hell yeah!