The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Nintendo, Zelda (series), Shigeru Miyamoto, Eiji Aonuma, Koji Kondo, Yoshiaki Koizumi, Takashi Tezuka, Yoichi Yamada

Having already played The Legend of Zelda Link's Awakening by the time this started being advertised, this game captured my imagination well before it was released. Early concept art of Link fighting a “realistic”-looking Stalfos suggested a game with way more seriousness and depth than past games, and it more or less delivered on that promise. The Stalfos became a serious duel instead of a wandering enemy to run past.

For a while this was stuck on “best game of all time lists” and while it's not my favorite of all the 3D Zelda games, it certainly gets points for establishing the series remarkably well and has a stronger story arc than most.

Particularly memorable moments for me:

• The canyon you cross on your way into Gerudo Valley with its reversed skybox effect felt way beyond what the N64 should be capable of - and the fact that you can actually fall into it was magic.
• The lens of truth and the way it seems to add another layer to the whole game world (even if there's not that much stuff for it to reveal) created a great illusion of depth - see this idea taken to its incredible extreme in Metroid Prime.
• That first Deku Tree dungeon is such a good showcase for “you have to think in 3D now” - even though 3D puzzles actually happened in Eagle's Tower in Link's Awakening!
• The Forest Temple was super scary as a kid.

David W Collins does a deep-dive into the music of Ocarina of Time:

• The Soundtrack Show, 3 March 2021 (OoT Part 1)
• The Soundtrack Show, 23 March 2021 (OoT Part 2)
• The Soundtrack Show, 18 December 2021 (OoT Part 3)