A review by Rebecca Fleming
NOTE: This post is just a ‘showcase’ for the collectibles that come with the Majora’s Mask 3D Special Edition. The review of the actual game will be posted separately.
After the Ocarina of Time remake came to the Nintendo 3DS, it wasn’t long before fans of the Legend of Zelda series started clamouring for Majora’s Mask to receive the same treatment. For the next couple of years, the occasional rumour that Majora’s Mask was being remade would surface, only to be quashed by Nintendo. Then, in the November 2014 Nintendo Direct, we finally received the news we had been waiting for; that Majora’s Mask was coming to the Nintendo 3DS, and would arrive in early 2015. I remember actually letting out a “SQUEEE!” when I watched the video and I’m sure I’m not the only one.
These special editions were never advertised on the EB Games site (pre-orders were done only in-store), but I’m lucky enough to have a friend who works at EB. She let me know when the special edition of the game was available so I pre-ordered it straight away. Now that I have it (at long last), I’ll talk about that and the goodies it came with.
The first item included in the special edition (and my favourite) is the silver Majora’s Mask pin.
Even the box for this looks classy, with the Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask logo emblazoned in silver on the black box. The pin itself is about 3 cm in diameter, making it large enough to show off all the detail while small enough that it could be worn without looking ridiculous. I don’t know exactly what the pin is made of but it feels solid and of good quality metal of some sort.
Then there’s the steelbook case for the game, which looks so gorgeous I could eat it.
Finally there’s the poster, which also looks pretty cool. It’s on double-sided glossy paper, somewhere between A3 and A2 size, with one side featuring the Skull Kid as he finds the titular Majora’s Mask and the other featuring Fierce Deity Link.
This is the only area I feel the special edition was let down a little; the poster was folded up so it would fit in the box, meaning it is marred by creases. It would be better if they had rolled it up and put it in a tube, but perhaps this wasn’t possible as it would have increased the size of the special edition box and, most likely, the cost as well.
That’s the Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D special edition. The US and the UK got a different special edition to our Australian one. Whereas we got the silver pin in ours, they get a Skull Kid figurine. Many Australians were disappointed with this, however I’m happy enough with the pin; had we got the Skull Kid edition here, it probably would have been out of my price range (any sort of collector’s edition with a figurine is usually really expensive). Still, that figurine did look pretty nice, so it’s a shame I won’t get my hands on one… wait, what?
As it turns out, Nintendo and EB pulled a surprise out of their hats for “top Zelda fans in EB World”. I’m not exactly sure what the criteria for being a top Zelda fan are but it seems to be based on how early you pre-ordered the special edition of the game, how many Nintendo products you buy from EB in general and your EB World level/carrot stash. I suspect the first two are the key factors because at the time of writing I’m only level 2, and I know other people who are level 4 and ordered the limited edition Majora’s Mask 3DS and were not eligible (I do buy a crapload of Nintendo games, though). While it’s pretty generous of Nintendo to give us the figurines when we didn’t know we’d been getting it, it seems to have upset quite a few Zelda fans who weren’t eligible and feel that, for whatever reason, they should have been entitled to one.
Those who were eligible received an email telling them that they would receive one of the extremely rare Skull Kid figurines. Anyone who ordered the game from EB for delivery will receive their figurine via mail within the next few weeks, whereas those who ordered for in-store pick-up will need to check with their store from late next week onwards to pick up their new treasure. If you’re one of the lucky people who received the email, make sure you check regularly with your store to see if the figurine has come in; if you don’t pick it up before February 27, it will be up for grabs for other EB customers. Needless to say, I was pretty stoked to receive the email (I pretty much never get special edition stuff like this), so I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the figure.
Aaaaaand here he is! Got a call from my local EB today to come and pick up, so behold the Skull Kid at last, in all his creepy glory…
The figure is made out of plastic but he feels pretty sturdy and durable (though of course I’ll still be really careful with him) and the amount of detail on him is stunning; the iconic Majora’s Mask looks especially good. At 15 cm tall, he’s pretty short but I think that’s a good thing as it means it won’t be too hard to find somewhere to display him and he won’t take up too much room.
Those who like to keep their collectible figures boxed for display will be disappointed. While the figurines were distributed in nice Majora’s Mask-themed boxes overseas with a hole in the front to see the statue, those in Australia were packaged in a plain white box. It didn’t bother me since I wanted to take him out to display him anyway (though I like collecting merchandise for franchises I love, I also don’t see the point of hiding them away in a cupboard; I want to have it out in the open where I can see it and enjoy it) but I’m sure it will irk some of the more hardcore collectors.
Thus concludes my fan-girl flailing over the Majora’s Mask 3D Special Edition. I’m hoping to put up a review of the actual game some time in the near future, though first I need to try to sort out my Majora’s Mask Limited Edition New 3DS XL. I’ve never had an issue with any Nintendo console before but my new one has a few stuck pixels in the middle of the screen that drive me nuts, so hopefully Nintendo can fix it for me. Until then, if you haven’t already, I strongly urge you to go out and grab a copy of Majora’s Mask 3D. It really is a great game.
