I recently got the 3DS remake of Majora's Mask.
And since it is one of my favourite Zelda games out there, I decided to analyze it and write down any and all changes I noticed that went beyond better graphics.
Enjoy!
Link changes:
- Deku Link’s spin is now slower.
- Deku Link can now look directly down to better know where the player will land when using a Deku Flower.
- Link’s fancy jumps now trigger under different circumstances (still trying to figure them out).
- Goron Link’s spin now toggles with A, instead of requiring the player to hold the button.
- Goron Link’s punch speed greatly increased. The crater punches left on walls now fades almost immediately.
- Goron Link can no longer use bombs.
- Zora Link’s swimming has been reworked. When swimming normally he no longer does a dolphin kick. His N64 swimming style now only triggers when holding A and R to activate the electric shield. Functionally, swimming is the same, if slightly slower.
- Zora Link sinks and surfaces much faster.
- Zora Link’s combo attacks are slightly faster, with less delay on the kick.
- Boomerang fins seem to fly further.
- Giant Link uses punches, and defends with forearms alone.
- Fierce Deity Link's sword beams no longer penetrate Odolwa's shield. Slightly more useful now that bosses have a stun-with-revealed-weakspot phase.
Item changes:
- Bow aiming now resembles Wind Waker’s, where the tip of your arrow is the arrow’s path.
- Can now equip more than one type of arrow at a time.
- Flame/Ice/Light arrow animation on menu upon selection removed.
- Ice Arrows no longer create platforms on any water surface, they work only on sparkly sections.
Mask changes:
- The Great Fairy’s Mask hair waves noticeably when there are fairies hidden in the room, the particle effect it used to have is now much less visible.
- Garo’s Mask no longer looks like a footman Garo, but like a Garo Master.
- Bomb Mask no longer changes colour when “recharging” after use.
- Kamaro’s Mask no longer makes Gibdos dance.
Gameplay changes:
- Dungeon Maps now also mark the location of found Stray Fairies (Coloured for found but not yet collected this time loop, greyed out for collected).
- Owl statues no longer require being hit by a sword, and now have taken over all saving duties.
- Removal of “Owl Statue” saves. Removal of save-by-Song-of-Time.
- Addition of Quill Statues, which can save the game like an Owl Statue, but the player cannot port to them using Song of Soaring.
- Bomber’s Book has been completely reworked, having added many new functions. It is also given to the player by the Happy Mask Salesman, so the player doesn’t have to go play Hide and Seek twice.
- Song of Double Time no longer limits itself to 6 am or pm, you can skip as much time as you need/want.
NPC Changes:
- The Bombers now hide in different locations.
- The Bombers give tips on events and hidden goodies if the player talks to them.
- Interrupting Sakon’s theft now doesn’t require you to wait until he’s fled for the cutscene to continue.
- Kaepora Gaebora is now at the entrance of the Southern Swamp to teach you the Song of Soaring, instead of on the ledge in front of the Deku Palace.
- One of the chicks to get the Bunny Hood is now at the wooden platform, right next to the entrance to the chick farm.
- Banker now behind the Clock Tower, instead of in West Clock Town.
- Stone Mask soldier now in Pirate Fortress instead of on the Ikana Canyon path. (From gameplay perspective I understand this change. From exploration and discovery perspective I am not ok with this)
- Getting the key to the Stock Pot Inn now requires the player to be a Goron.
- The Goron Elder now isn’t hidden under a giant snowball upon finding him on the Goron Village trail.
- The Goron that sells Powder Kegs in Goron Village now sells them for 20 rupees.
- The Gorman Brothers now have an extra quest to help Gorman the Circus Leader get over his
Enemy Changes:
- Odolwa is now much more defensive. Odolwa’s idle animation no longer sways the sword, so approaching without getting hit with it is easier. Odolwa now has a low-health alternate idle animation. Odolwa’s weak point now is only revealed after a few hits, after which he collapses and reveals a Majora’s Mask-esque eye on the back of his head.
- Goht is slightly smaller. Goht now falls down after the player rams into it enough times. Upon collapsing, a Majora’s Mask-esque eye appears on top which needs to be destroyed to defeat Goht.
- Gyorg now has two phases. First where it swims around the platform, then it knocks down the middle platform. Also now the proud owner of a Majora’s Mask-esque eye inside of its mouth that appears after it receives enough damage.
- Octoroks in the bottom of Ikana Canyon now are blue with sparkles, to show case that they can be frozen and used as platforms.
- Twinmold now behave differently. Blue moves slower and has Majora’s Mask eyes that can be shot. Red moves fast and is much more hostile, having gained the ability to shoot fireballs. Upon shooting Blue on its MM eyes, it grows another eye from its jaws that must be attacked directly to defeat it. After Blue dies, a chest appears holding the Giant’s Mask, and causes Red’s behaviour to change slightly, gaining the ability to summon larvae. Upon receiving a few hits, it is defeated by grabbing it from the tail and tossing it to the ground.
Location Changes:
- Fishing Hole now added next to the Swamp Shooting Gallery, on the path between Termina Field and Southern Swamp.
- Tree that holds a piece of heart at the path between Termina Field and Southern Swamp rotated, so the vines to climb it aren’t facing the wall.
- Woodfall’s temple entrance now has a ledge, so the flower jump from where the temple is raised to the temple itself isn’t a barely-made-it jump (more room for error).
- Slight rearrangement of Southern Clock Town.
- The Deku Palace bridge between the west and east wing now has a big handrail to keep players from falling and losing progress.
- Place where the player meets the Giants is now a light blue tinge, instead of yellow-gold
- The coast of the swamp in front of the Deku Palace now DOESN’T change into a slope after clearing Woodfall. (Previous to clearing Woodfall it has a ledge Link climbs onto, in N64 version it changed into a slope you could walk up)
- Deku Butler race reworked. Some slight area changes, namely the big room with barriers that rise upon proximity now has metal fences that pop from the ground and do not hurt you, as opposed to the fire ones that meant instant death for Deku Link.
- Owl Statue in Mountain Village moved to in front of the Smithy, as opposed to right next to an entrance to the area.
- The Rock Sirloin isn’t on the last part of the chandelier that gets broken anymore.
- Snowhead’s slope to enter now has a huge metal fence at the back.
- Platform in front of the Ocean Lab in Great Bay is less high, no longer requires a dolphin flip to reach.
- Turtle Island that ferries you to the Great Bay Temple has wider palm trees
- Zora Bay now has a fishing hole where Great Fairy used to be, Great Fairy now requires more platforming to reach.
- Enemies that become platforms upon being shot with Ice Arrows now are blue with sparkles.
- Sun switches and sun blocks in Ikana no longer have the creepy grinning sun, they have the eye symbol from switches triggered by arrows.
- Crest to flip the Stone Tower now above the entrance, instead of being hidden behind the cubes at the front
- Cubes at the front of Stone Tower don’t form a line, but are shaped like a V. (This change happened between N64 and NGC port, if I recall correctly)
- Pointing finger at the entrance of Stone Tower not lit up in flames randomly (Seen it extinguished once, yet to figure out why)
- Triforce drawings no longer present at the bottom of floating blocks in front of Stone Tower.
- Giant’s Mask relocated, not attained during temple run but during boss fight.
- The pads that teleport you back to the start of the Goron challenge in the Moon now look like Majora’s Mask’s eyes.
- Zora Challenge reworked. Now several smaller mazes instead.
