This is the kind of thread a die hard fan like me waits for. I was actually planning to make a thread like this after A Link Between Worlds had been out for a bit. Anyhow...be prepared for a long essay!
1. Ocarina of Time: It's my favorite, do I think it's one of the best games ever? Yup, but that's my opinion. It holds up well, easily accessible since every home console since the N64 has some way of playing it. Feels rewarding and fun, introduced a lot of great ideas, items, and characters to the series, and the obvious one, 3D. It's a fun, complete game an it's still a joy to play today.
2. Twilight Princess: It's practically another Ocarina of Time and Zelda fan service, why wouldn't I like it? The art style is great, the world may be a bit empty, but huge and fun to explore. Has lots of great content, like loads of great dungeons, enemies, items, and side quests. Midna's story really added something to the game's narrative.
3. Majora's Mask: I'm happy this game finally got the attention and love it deserves. I remember when Majora's Mask was considered the black sheep of the Zelda franchise, now it's one of the most loved in the series. The 3 day mechanic is innovative and give the game a unique feel. The npc's all have a story to tell, and usually have an interesting side quest for you. It has a dark and serious tone, yet never loses that Zelda charm.
4. Wind Waker: As a side note, the HD version made an already amazing game even better. An excellent art style(yes I actually liked what I saw when it was first shown off.) Loads of fun side quests, quirky characters, and a big world to explore. Sailing takes a while(unless you have the swift sail), but it never ruined the game for me. It has a lot of heart and charm to it in general you won't find in many games.
5. Skyward Sword: I will admit it has problems, fighting the imprisoned three times is literally torture, and the sky was empty. However, I like the motion controls, I wish there was a left-handed model to give me a 1 to 1 swordplay experience, but I'll let it slide since the controls still worked for me. While there wasn't as much exploration in the game as others, the environments were well done and feel fun to run around in, especially Faron Woods. The story was fairly important to the overall narrative of the franchise, and framed a lot of important details the other games.
6. A Link to the Past: It began the (in)famous Zelda formula, and vastly improved on the original in every way possible. Two great over worlds, lots of secrets, and a great challenge in terms of combat it is my favorite of the 2D Zelda games. The game feels great even today, has lots of things you can do in the game. Introduced lots of items that are still commonplace in the series today. Definitely on of the best games on the SNES.
7. Minish Cap: They went a little overboard with the sidequests and collectibles, and bless them for doing that! Has some importance to the Zelda series as it sets up the Four Sword saga, by giving you a back story to the creation to the aforementioned cloning sword and Vatti. Features awesome characters like Ezlo, and explains where Link got his cap, even if Skyward Sword also did that. Great dungeons and enemies, lots of secrets, great game overall.
8. Link's Awakening: This game bleeds charm like nobody's business! The first Zelda game to take place outside Hyrule, it is very unconventional as far as the series goes. Characters that really pop out despite being little Gameboy sprites with weird dialogue and 4th wall breaking tendencies. Has lots of fun dungeons, great puzzles, and interesting bosses.
9. Oracle of Seasons: This game along with Ages has a lot of the charm(and art assets) of Link's Awakening, yet really distinguishes itself very well. Has excellent dungeons, cool items like the magnetic gloves and roc's cape. Has two very different overworlds like ALttP and Ages, and some cool sidequests thrown in for good measure.
10. Oracle of Ages: Definitely more puzzle and story oriented than Seasons. Ages gives you very challenging dungeons that will make you beg for a strategy guide on your first playthrough. The story is a bit more involved than Seasons, with more integral characters, and there is a sense of urgency along with the narrative.
11. Spirit Tracks: A lot of people will call this one terrible, I respectfully disagree. The train amy be unconventional, but it never not feels like Zelda when you're running around a dungeon fighting enemies and solving puzzles. The dungeons are challenging for the most part, and the Spirit Tower dungeon you have to return to multiple times, puts you in different areas so you don't have to do the same stuff over and over again like Phantom Hourglass.
Zelda as Link's partner works very well, and the Link/Phantom mechanic is well implemented.
12. Adventure of Link: I know lots of people hate this game, but I love it. It's hard, and incredibly unforgiving, but it's beatable, you just have to treat it like an RPG as opposed to a normal Zelda game. The dungeon layouts are challenging labyrinths, the combat is intuitive(and hard) and the boss fights are intense. Once you beat the game, you get a new impression of it, I used to hate it too, but once you sit down and make it your mission to beat it, it's worth the trouble.
13. The Legend of Zelda: The original awesome game. Like Zelda II, it's hard and cryptic like many NES games were. It's still fun to play, and despite feeling stiff, never feels unfair. Being able to challenge any dungeon in any order give the player incredible freedom to decide what to do next.
14. Phantom Hourglass: Another one lots of people seem to hate. Though I still like it a lot, I can understand the complaints. Revisiting the Temple of the Ocean King several times is a dumb idea I won't defend, but I still like the game. The dungeons are nice, not the best. The all touch control scheme is well implemented and easy to master. It's still fun, but a lower tier Zelda game to be sure.
15. Four Swords Adventures: A fun game, but not the best Zelda game. The dungeons, puzzle solving and combat are there, but the feeling of adventure despite being in the title, isn't really there. It's all composed of levels, which isn't really the best structure for Zelda. I call it Zelda's greatest hits, very fun, but you could do better.
16. Four Swords: The only Zelda game I would call meh, or even bad. Of course it was made to be a small add on to the GBA remake of A Link to the Past, so I can't complain too much. It's the bare minimum of what a Zelda game should be, still a little fun, but very dull.
Whoo, that's a long post. Let it be known when I start talking(or typing) about Zelda, it's hard to get me to stop.
