Released in 2000 for the Nintendo 64, Majora’s Mask is a game that’s infused with horror. But Majora’s Mask’s horror doesn’t revolve around cheap jump scares or forced darkness. Instead, it comes from how people react to the moon crashing into the world of Termina, the issues plaguing each region, the ever present clock that follows Link around every second, and the psychopathic cruelty of Skull Kid.
The Clock
The main mechanic of Majora’s Mask is the clock. The in-game clock counts down 72 in game hours, until the moon crashes into Termina. At first you only have a measly 54 actual minutes for one cycle, but you can find a song that slows down time to a third of the normal length. But even with that time extension, the clock dictates everything you do. What areas to explore, what side quests you can complete, what mini games you can play and fairies you can collect.
The clock serves as a constant source of stress. Will you manage to finish this dungeon before time runs out? Do you have what it takes to save this couple or stop this argument? And you can solve all these problems and bring happiness to these different regions and people. But that’s where the catch comes in. There’s so many side quests and temples and objectives to complete, some of which involve precise timing and planning. You can’t come close to finishing everything in one cycle. So even if you do clean up the toxic water or liberate the cursed spirits, you have to rewind time and go back to the beginning of the cycle. It resets all the progress you made.
It’s a very sobering realization to know that no matter how much you accomplish, it won’t matter in the end because the moon is still going to slam into Termina. It gives more weight to the mission at hand. You won’t get to truly save anyone until you stop Skull Kid, so you need to stop him.
The Lands of Termina
Then there’s the horror that happens in the game’s world itself. The world of Termina is divided into five sections. Clock Town in the center serves as a hub area, surrounded by Termina Field that leads to locations in four cardinal directions. There’s the Southern Swamp, Snowhead Region in the north, Great Bay to the east and Ikana Canyon to the east. And each of these areas has their own problems. The swamp’s water, for example, is toxic due to a curse from the nearby temple. Meanwhile, angry spirits have cursed Ikana Canyon. That’s not even mentioning the side quests, which range from reuniting a married couple to protecting a ranch from aliens.
When you first enter the Great Bay area, you bring a heavily wounded Zora to shore. Unfortunately, he dies from his wounds, and you commemorate his death with a song. Nothing of his body remains except for a face that you can wear as a mask to turn into a Zora yourself. It’s an extremely morbid process that’s only made worse by how, whenever Link gets one of these masks that turns him into a different race, the screen distorts and Link clutches at his face in agony as he lets out terrified screams. It’s real body horror without any gore or a single drop of blood. Terrifying scenes like that happen throughout the game, terrifying both kids and adults alike.
Majora, Skull Kid and The Moon
Finally, we have the main antagonists of the game – Skull Kid and The Moon. At the beginning of the game, Skull Kid stole Majora’s Mask from the Happy Mask Salesman. When he put it on, the mask took control of Skull Kid, possessing him and forcing him to do Majora’s bidding. Skull Kid is the one behind all the natural disasters, including sending the moon into Termina. Possessed Skull Kid is an evil trickster, with no regard for anyone or anything else. The best example of this is when, in the very beginning of the game, Skull Kid steals Link’s ocarina from him. He then forcibly turns him into a Deku scrub in a very terrifying nightmare sequence where dozens of Dekus surround him. Majora’s Mask is terrifying for how it can control anyone, turning them into a monster that obeys Majora’s whims and listens to their worst desires.
The Moon doesn’t have a morality. It’s just been forced to crash into the earth by outside forces. That doesn’t make it any less terrifying, though. The Moon has an actual face, with bulging eyes and an angry, snarling face that shows real teeth. And during The Moon’s march towards the surface, the residents of Termina start panicking. When it gets to the final night, the entire world comes to a halt. People cower inside their houses, or look to each other for comfort. The sky turns blood red, ominous music starts playing, and then the moon slams into the ground. It creates an explosion that destroys everything in sight and sends Link’s helpless body flying to his presumed death. It’s a sobering, depressing moment to see this actual apocalypse play out in front of you, and a grim reminder that if you don’t succeed, an entire planet will die.
The End of the World
At the end of the day, Majora’s Mask is a look into the apocalypse and how that affects player and NPC alike. Termina becomes infested with all kinds of evil, but you can’t solve all of these problems at the same time because otherwise the world will end. Characters freak out and panic over the inevitable apocalypse, and The Moon watches over from the sky as a constant reminder of what’s at stake. Majora’s Mask is a game that lives off of the dread and fear from knowing that nothing will change until you stop Skull Kid and Majora. It’s what makes the game a true masterpiece.
