The game franchise that helped launch the adventure genre and was key in putting Nintendo on the map was The Legend Of Zelda. First being launched on the NES in 1987, the Zelda series continues to be a staple in Nintendo's catalog second only to Mario. The adventures of Link have become well known in the gaming community and beloved by many, but, despite their approachable nature, these games can be fairly difficult at times.
While the main quests themselves can be finished with some patience and clever problem solving, the side quests and collectibles prove to be infuriating to many.
The Legend Of Zelda
The original game for the NES is overshadowed by many by the more modern 3D entries in the series. Newer players may be expecting an easier adventure, but that isn't the case. The original game is just as cryptic and challenging as later games, and in some cases more so.
While there aren't as many side quests or collectibles, the game requires players to think as far outside the box as possible to complete the game. Sometimes, it is obvious what players are to do, but other times it is as if the only way to discover what to do next is by a fair amount of luck.
The Legend Of Zelda II: The Adventure Of Link
If there is one mainline Zelda game that has fans split the most, it is the original NES sequel. The game is much different than its predecessor, both in terms of gameplay and content. The original game was presented in a top-down perspective that has become a staple in most 2D Zelda games, while the sequel is mostly a sidescroller with the overworld being the top-down perspective.
The game is infamous for glitches and its overly complicated puzzles. While the original can be beaten with some patience and a keen eye, the sequel seems close to impossible to beat completely without a guide to help players.
The Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker
What makes The Wind Waker so tedious to complete isn't the difficulty, but the massive amount of items to collect and upgrade. The game has a large overworld consisting of using a boat to travel between islands. Each island has its fair share of items to collect, but even more painstaking is finding all of the items hidden in the massive ocean players can explore.
Many take issue with the sailing mechanics in the game, so this, added with the sheer volume of items, makes this game an incredibly frustrating one to 100-percent. The main game is easy enough, so the complete shift in difficulty while trying to beat the game completely is one that only incredibly patient players can hope to conquer.
The Legend Of Zelda: The Minish Cap
A Zelda game released on the Game Boy Advance during the height of the 3D titles' popularity doesn't seem that difficult. Many would even incorrectly assume the portable game is for children while the console games are more mature. The difficulty of The Minish Cap's main quest is nothing too severe.
The tedious task of collecting all of the items and upgrading weapons is where the difficulty lies for this game. Certain tasks take way longer than is necessary and will almost certainly take more than one try on top of that. This game is a beloved one among fans, but that doesn't mean there isn't aggravation hidden behind the cartoony exterior.
The Legend Of Zelda: Oracle Of Seasons/Ages
The Game Boy Color had not one, but two original Zelda games that went hand-in-hand. The games could be played on their own, but they do connect in a way that fans enjoy. What fans do not enjoy as much is how both games are needed to complete the story 100 percent. Both games have more than their fair share of collectibles.
Even if a player finds everything and upgrades their items, the journey is still not finished. They must link the game to the sister game, complete that game and find all of those collectibles. If that wasn't enough, they must then find extra linked collectibles to 100 percent complete. Completing one game is hard enough, but being forced to add another is just too much.
The Legend Of Zelda: The Breath Of The Wild
The largest of the Zelda games would naturally be one of the hardest to 100 percent. Breath Of The Wild is a massive game filled to the brim with content, and, in order to collect every item and upgrade the player toward 100 percent completion, players have to explore practically every inch of this juggernaut of a map.
This is the latest original game in the series, and the announced sequel has some large shoes to fill. Every side quest must be completed, and some of them are much easier said than done. Even finding some of these quests is hard, and then completing them is a whole other story.
The Legend Of Zelda: Majora's Mask
The Zelda games enjoyed a huge resurgence in popularity during the Nintendo 64 era. Ocarina Of Time is still regarded as one of the best games of all time, and the sequel, Majora's Mask, is no exception. What makes the latter game such a pain to 100-percent are the masks the player must collect in order to get the true ending.
There are only twenty masks needed to unlock the Fierce Deity mask, but tracking them all down can be exceedingly difficult. Even collecting all of the masks isn't enough, as the player must also collect a large number of other items. To add to the task, there are also a fair number of side quests to complete. To round it all off, they must also upgrade all of the weapons. After beating the challenging final boss, players can finally sit back and take a long-needed rest from the land of Hyrule.