Who is Better: Mario or Zelda

[klunderbunker]

These two franchises are probably the best known in at least Nintendo if not the whole of video games. Any gamer has played both of these at some point in their lives. Both are icons of the gaming industry and have sold millions of copies of more than a dozen games per series. But which is better?

First we have Mario, the plumber from Italy that does battle with King Koopa/Bowser to save the Princess. This is the quintessential video game. It was the launch title for the NES and Super NES and has become the mascot for Nintendo. Its games are typically very cut and dry, but most definitely entertaining. The stories have gotten better in recent years, but for the most part, they're the bare bones of plot, but the game play more than makes up for it.

On the other hand we have Zelda. I've heard it said that while Mario has the name recognition for Nintendo, but Zelda is the workhorse and I agree wholeheartedly. Zelda games, even dating back to the 8-bit days are just huge. The traditions of multiple weapons, huge dungeons, the puzzles and the in depth plots have satisfied millions of gamers over the years. While Mario games are far more easier to master, Zelda has a much deeper story and variations that can be done with it.

So what is better in the end? The name and star, or the workhorse? I'm sure that most people that respond have played more than one of each of these games, so what do you think is best, and why?

 

[IrishCanadian25]

[youtube]UXQqPj8HzQ[/youtube]

There is no doubt here - it's Legend of Zelda.

The theme song alone was the best stuff EVER. The game play was killer, the game packs were gold. Mario stomped on weird monsters, Link threw a sword. Mario's sequel was used to peddle veggies to kids.

It's a tough call overall, but the world, the gameplay, and the concept of Zelda was slightly superior to that of Mario. But the more I think about it, the closer it be...

 

[a7xoff]

I'm going to have to think about this one for a while before I actually vote. I mean both series have their ups and downs, moreso Mario since there is simply more Mario games, and when they are up it's damn near gaming perfection. Personally I am more into classic platforming as opposed to full blown adventures like Zelda, but on that same page there is no denying the amazingness that is the Zelda series.

As far as game complexity I have to go with Zelda, I mean give me one Zelda game where the world is not massive, espically given the tech. for NES/Gameboy, yet we still had a mass world to play in. Mario 64 kind of brought some of that to us, but the worlds were still rather small, and the game itself wasn't too long.

Musically Zelda is just by far superior

Gameplay though I have to since I like the classic side scroll I have to give to classic Mario games. The simplicity of Mario one would think would get old, but it never did and it simply stemmed from the humble beginnings to the latest side scrolling New Super Mario Brothers. Again I will cast my vote later, cause I really just cannot decide at the moment.

 

[Lee]

Who is better? mario by far.

Which game franchise is better? Now that is one hard question;

Firstly Mario is a platformer, Zelda is basically an RPG, so we have two different genres, but there's three things I want to look at;

1) Enjoyment

Me personally, I enjoy both franchises. On the NES I enjoyed the Mario series more, on the SNES, N64 and GC it was Zelda but on the Wii it was Mario once again.

2) Impact

Everyone knows Mario, not many people know who Link is. From a casual gamer viewpoint Mario wins, but from 'real gamers' they generally love Zelda, that I feel is a problem, Zelda is not an easy access game.

3) Me

This has been hard to choose, but ultimately I am going to go with ...


Mario

The impact this little guy has had on gaming is phenomenal, whilst I enjoy Zelda games more, overall I think as a franchise, Mario is better.

 

[Dragonslayer]

Personally, I've always enjoyed Zelda a lot more; but that is because I generally am more into RPGs/Adventures and that kind of stuff than I enjoy platformers. But that is just the issue here, in my opinion: You just can't really compare the two. I mean, if you were comparing Mario to Sonic, or Crash Bandicoot, or whateve Jump'n'Runs there are out there, OK; but how can you compare an Action-Adventure game to a Platformer? The entire principle of the games is just too inherently different to really stack them up against each other, in my opinion.

Now back to the question at hand... The better franchise in terms of worldwide appeal has to be Mario. It was the Mario-Series that put Nintendo on the map and essentially made an entire industry of video games appealing to a much larger audience than it ever had before. Why? Because with a game such as Mario, you can do nothing wrong. It is a simple principle, but if presented right and balanced well, it can provide hours of entertainment. Mario is basically the Hulk Hogan of video games.

Zelda, on the other hand, is less suitable for the "casual" gamer, as all parts require a lot of time investment, and you also have to do some "thinking" at points. Which of course is great, if you like puzzling in an environment that is primarily action-oriented; however I know many people who enjoy pure puzzle games, but would never touch a Zelda, simply because it is too complicated; or the either want an Action game, OR a puzzle game, but not a combination. With games such as Zelda, you need to be willing to really get into it. You can't just pick it up, play for a few hours and then put it back for a couple of months until you feel like it again the way you could with a Mario-game.

So, to conclude: While for me personally, Zelda is the more appealing type of game, and thus the "better" game - as all parts (especially everything starting with and after A Link To The Past) were tremendous in their own way - but Mario definitely has paved the way more than once for a mainstream gaming audience; first by introducing jump'n'run and basically video games as a whole to an entire new audience; then by being among (if not the?) first Platform game/s to make the Jump to 3D in Super Mario 64, and pulling it off much better than many opposition products, and then once again on the WII revolutionizing the principle of the game itself.

So grudingly, I will have to give the nod to Mario - however for me personally, Zelda will always stand out on top, as it was ALTTP that first got me hooked on the entire genre of Action-Adventure/RPGs, which up until today is the greatest genre for me hands down, and as has been said - Legend of Zelda's main theme is just the greatest game soundtrack ever made. I believe second only to Mario's (for reasons above stated) and the Tetris "A"-Theme, most gamers know this song by heart.

 

[Derf]

Mario is the better of the two. While most Zelda games have been home runs, Mario has had just as many hits, plus dozens of other games, and there are very few games in the mario world that are considered "misses". Mario has just had way more facetime then Link. Hell, there are non video gamers that think "Zelda" is the name of the guy! Everyone knows Mario, no questions asked.

But I see the title says "Who is Better", and I still go with Mario. He's just done more. Link only has the occasional game here and there. While Zelda has the better individual game (OOC) Mario ranks the next few spots between the two.

 

[supersayian]

this is the two best video game franchaises of all time. Mario and Zelda. now im going 50/50
this is just to close to call so im not going to vote here. the sad part is both don't really make any more games. think of how killer the graphics would be with them on the newer systems. they would destroy every video game alive now.

 

[Lee]

The sad part is both don't really make any more games. think of how killer the graphics would be with them on the newer systems. they would destroy every video game alive now.

Super Mario Galaxy
Super Paper Mario
Mario Party 8
Mario and Sonic at the olympic games
Mario Kart Wii
Smash bros. Brawl
The legend of Zelda; Twilight princess
Links crossbow training

That is eight games for the wii (the newest system) that involves Mario and Link. Now considering the Wii hasn't even been out 2 years, that's good going if you ask me. The following two thread could help you out;
http://forums.wrestlezone.com/showthread.php?t=24430
http://forums.wrestlezone.com/showthread.php?t=13919

But as I said before, it's a hard choice, and depending on my mood as to which franchise I choose...we'll see once we get into my top 5 games of all time ey?!

 

[supersayian]

yeah but these will never be the same as the older games. especially Mario. although the Mario party's were great they compare nothing to the originals. Zelda the same when these games first came out they just delievered so much more. now days there are to many good games out there to compete with to sell good. i should have clarified my last post by saying that the older ones. i forgot about the newer ones but they just are not the same to me. although i do like super smash brothers.

 

[The Mark of Zur-En-Arrh]

Ocarina of Time is one of the best games EVER!!!!!!

However, Mario's franchise has so much more variety to it overall. With games like Paper Mario, the countless Mario platform games, and the awesomeness of Mario Kart and now you've got Mario crossovers like Mario and Sonic at the Olympics, whereas Zelda is still Link running around trying to save Princess Zelda/Shiek or whatever name the heroine is using, and that's essentially it.

 

[Shocky]

Zelda, and I'm not sure why Mario gets all of the love it does. Mario, in my opinion, possibly the most over rated franchise in the video game world. I can't think of a Mario game that I enjoyed thoroughly since Super Mario 3. Mario World and Mario 64 get honorable mention, but Mario 3 was the last true great game.

Zelda on the other hand puts out hit after hit for the most part. Ocarina of Time is hands down better then anything Mario could ever hope to be. The original Zelda game was better then any of the NES platform games, and Twilight Princess is much better then anything taht Mario has put out since 1992. Sure there have been some duds like Majora's Mask or Windwakers, but I take that over Sunshine and Paper any day of the week.

 

[Monkey_Mania]

I love Zelda. They have produced way better games throughout the years.

That being said. Mario is better. He is the face of Nintendo. Has produced solid hit after solid hit. Some of the games pale in comparison to Zelda. But not one of the Mario games in my opinion have ever been bad. My favorite is either Mario 3, Mario 64, or Super Mario Sunshine. Which is a very underrated game in my estimation. Zelda has produced the better games. But Mario has more and is plastered all over Nintendo. It has to be Mario...right? Yeah with much reservation I have to go with Mario.