The Legend of Zelda is a beloved franchise that has been around since 1989 with the release of the original Japanese game The Hyrule Fantasy: Zelda no Densetsu, which was developed and published by Nintendo. Since then, the franchise has expanded exponentially with 29 video games and another in the making, ten mangas, five issues of comics, and an animated series loosely based on The Legend of Zelda and The Adventure of Link.

As the franchise grows, many fans have debated which games were the best and which were the worst. Some prefer the older games played on the NES and N64, while others prefer the newer games that can be played on Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch Lite. While the console preference has some impact on how players view the game, what really makes or breaks Legend of Zelda is the plot and gameplay, which makes these games the top ten. Warning: Contains spoilers

10. Link’s Awakening (1993)

Compared to all the other Legend of Zelda Games, Link’s Awakening deviates from the typical storyline. The game is set outside the kingdom of Hyrule, taking place solely on the isolated Koholint Island, surrounded by a whale-like deity known as the Wind Fish. Alongside the change in location is the change in characters, as everyone has commonly seen throughout the other Legend of Zelda games – like Ganondorf, Impa, and Princess Zelda herself – are completely omitted from the game. The only time players see any familiar characters is when Link battles a nightmare boss, like Ganon, who takes on the form of enemies from Link’s past.

Link’s Awakening follows Link as he travels to other countries to train against future enemies. Along the way, Link’s boat is capsized by a storm, leaving him stranded on Koholint Island. To leave the island, Link has to wake up the Wind Fish using the eight Instruments of the Sirens. While searching for the instruments, Link learns that the island is only a dream world created by the Wind Fish, and waking it up by playing the Ballad of the Wind Fish will wake him up and allow him to leave. 

Despite its beautifully detailed graphics and adorable, pocket-sized-looking characters, Link’s Awakening is number 10 on the list. As an older game, it doesn’t have colored graphics, which would make the playing experience more enjoyable, especially when changing locations and meeting different characters. The characters themselves are another reason this game is last on the list. It’s one of the few games where none of the characters from previous games are shown or even mentioned.

9. The Wind Waker (2002)

While celebrating coming of age, Link sees a giant bird called the Helmaroc King dropping a pirate captain, Tetra, into the forest. Link saves Tetra from monsters, but when he does, the Helmaroc King takes his sister, Aryll. The two go to rescue Aryll, but Ganodorf orders Link to be thrown into the sea by Ganondorf, the incarnation of Ganon. In order to defeat him, Link needs the Master Sword, so he travels beneath the ocean to a castle suspended in time – Hyrule Castle. Link and Tetra – the incarnation of Princess Zelda – fight Ganondorf and turn him to stone before returning to the surface as the castle becomes submerged.

In Wind Waker, the main character is a boy named after the old Link living on Outset Island. After adult Link defeats Ganon and returns to his childhood timeline, Ganon emerges again, but Link does not. This leads to Hyrule Castle being submerged underwater, and the Hylians have to build homes on islands in the Great Sea. Unlike the game listed before, Wind Waker allows characters to see everything in brightly colored images with more cartoonish characters. However, a significant amount of gameplay is spent sailing to the different islands, which can be tedious and boring. Plus, the island is filled with boys who all dress exactly like Link, meaning any one of them could have been the new “Hero of Time” as opposed to the protagonist.

8. Skyward Sword (2011)

After the Goddess Hylia defeated the Demon King’s Demise, the land was so damaged that the people had to live on an outcrop called Skyloft, where they believed the surface below to be a myth. In the present day, while Link and Zelda are flying, a dark tornado brings Zelda below the clouds. The spirit of the Goddess Sword, Fi, draws Link to the sword, where it is revealed he is the hero who will destroy Demise. Link makes it below the clouds and reconnects with Zelda – who is accompanied by Impa – when a self-proclaimed Demon Lord named Ghirahim shows up, announcing his plan to free Demise. To make the Goddess Sword strong enough to defeat Demise, Zelda seals herself inside a crystal, creating the Master Sword. After coming out victorious in the battle against Demise – who is now sealed within the sword – Link drives the weapon into a pedestal within the Sealed Temple. With the threat gone, Zelda and Link stay on the land below Skycroft to establish the Kingdom of Hyrule.

Skyward Sword has some of the best graphics of any Legend of Zelda game, which adds to its appeal. The game is also the only one that takes place mostly in the sky, where Link can fly using a Loftwing. Despite being a good game, its lack of accessibility—it was only on the Wii before the Nintendo Switch came out—puts it lower on the list. 

7. A Link to the Past (1991)

A Link to the Past is an action-adventure game that takes place before the two previous Zelda games. Much like its predecessor, A Link Between Worlds, this game follows the protagonist, Link, as he travels across Hyrule in order to save the descendants of the seven sages from the demon king Ganon. It was also the first game to introduce titular themes like the Master Sword and parallel worlds between the past and present.

The game is played in Hyrule, known as the Light World, and a dark reflection of Hyrule called the Dark World, where Ganon resides in his beat form. In order to free Ganon, an evil wizard named Agahnim kidnaps Zelda and the descendants of the sages, planning to use them in a ritual. Aided by the sage Sahasrahla, Link retrieves the Master Sword to fight Agahnim, but he and Zelda are sent to the Dark World. After rescuing the descendants and Zelda, Link battles Agahnim and the freed Ganon, defeating both. He then uses a wish to free everyone trapped in the Dark World and sends them home before returning the Master Sword.

Like Link’s Awakening, A Link to the Past features older style graphics, only with color this time. As the game listed before it, its usage was limited to the Super NES until re-releasing on different platforms, making it inaccessible for a lot of players. The storyline and gameplay is also too similar to its predecessor, A Link Between Worlds.

6. Twilight Princess (2006)

Unlike most other Legend of Zelda games, Twilight Princess was meant to be exclusive to the GameCube, but developers delayed the release so it could be played on the Wii as well. Despite its limitations in which consoles it can be played on, the game was widely received as one of the greatest video games ever made. It was also the best-selling game in the franchise until the release of Breath of the Wild.

In this game, Link must prevent Hyrule from being taken over by a parallel dimension referred to as the Twilight Realm after the usurper king of Twili, Zant, forces Zelda to surrender. When Link gets pulled into a wall of Twilight, he transforms into a wolf. A woman named Midna helps him find Zelda, who tells him he must revive all the light spirits – one of which returns him to his human form. After an attack from Zant, Zelda informs Link that he must find the Master Sword to defeat him. However, Zant freed a banished Ganondorf, and the two attacked Link and killed Zelda. Link manages to defeat both enemies and returns home to rebuild the destroyed Hyrule Castle. This game ranks higher on the list because it is one of the games in which Link can change forms. However, it is the only game that features a playable wolf rather than an enemy, and this feature is used to increase Link’s senses. It is also one of the few games in which Zelda dies but is revived.