If it weren't for the reused assets from Ocarina of Time, you'd hardly know Majora's Mask was made in only a year with how much thought the devs put into everything.
- Some characters in the game will have commentary on every single one of your masks. The sheer amount of alternate dialogue and events here is staggering for a game of its time.
- It's also encouraged to try all sorts of things on the bosses. There are a plethora of ways to engage them outside of what's intended, and you might be surprised by what does and doesn't work. (This is unfortunately dropped in the 3DS remake due to the bosses having their mechanics altered.)
- Normally, to stop Sakon from stealing the bomb bag from the old lady who works at the Bomb Shop, Link simply has to walk up to him and whack him with a sword, causing Sakon to drop the bag and run off. But if the player decides to be practical and shoot him with an arrow instead, the bomb bag will actually explode, killing him instantly.note
- Wear the Captain's Hat during the King Ikana fight. It's a Paper-Thin Disguise at first, before the King recognizes that Link is too short to be Keeta. During the fight immediately before that one, try marching with the Bremen Mask to see the Servants march.
- Go into the Pirate captain's quarters wearing the Stone Mask. Instead of being invisible like you normally would be, you're caught, with the pirates wondering how some kid in a funny mask got all the way up here. There are also a couple of scripted fights in the pirate area where the pirates will comment on your usage of the Stone Mask (if you're wearing it).
- Try using the Song of Healing on a broken sign. The sign magically repairs itself.note You can also use the Song of Storms, once you learn it, to instantly cure the curse inflicted by Blue Bubbles.
- If you want to water a planted bean but don't have water in a bottle, the Song of Storms or the rainfall that occurs on the second day will work just as well (except if you're in a cave).
- Tatl and Tael will have a different conversation before entering the moon a second time on the same save file. The first time, Tatl will be very angry towards Skull Kid while Tael defends him by revealing that it was the mask all along. If you reset time and trigger the scene again, Tatl will interrupt her brother's plea — after all, she's heard this conversation before. Cue a perplexed Tael.
- The guards at the Pirate's Fortress have worse vision at night, but only in the Japanese version.
- As with Ocarina of Time, most items have different effects when used on Gossip Stones. Different Ocarina songs do different things (most commonly give you fairies for playing the Song of Storms), bombs make it rocket into space (and it will stay gone until you go back to the first day), hitting it with a sword makes it tell you the time... etc.
- Due to glitching and exploits, it's possible to get the Goron and Zora masks, as well as access Snowhead, the Pirates' Fortress, and Ikana Canyon before you set foot in any dungeon. The dev team tried to make it impossible to use the Hookshot to cross the river into Ikana Canyon, but it is possible to reach the tree with pixel-perfect positioning or a bomb-boosted jump as Zora Link long before you get the Ice Arrows. If you managed to complete Stone Tower Temple before Great Bay (the place where you get the Ice Arrows), Tatl will panic when you return to Clock Town, saying that there's still more to be done out there.
- Normally, the guards at each exit for Clock Town will stop you if you're Deku Link, let you pass if you're Goron or Zora Link, and then stop you at first you're Hylian Link but then see that you have a sword and let you pass. If you were to somehow leave town through another method, get your sword stolen, then go up to the guards, they will actually have dialogue that changes to reflect this, still let you pass, and will even give you a hint on how to get your sword back. If your sword is at the Mountain Smithy in Snowhead, they will simply ask, "Do you have a sword?" as opposed to the default "...A sword?"
- Despite a good amount of things being buggy or impossible, many things that can occur when you use a glitch to play as Fierce Deity Link anywhere indicate that it's possible the developers knew someone would find a way to use him:
- If you open up a chest with him, the game will not crash and he actually has an animation. Surprisingly, even opening a big chest (which requires very specific steps, but is in fact possible)note gives him a full, finished sequence of him opening it. The 3DS version somewhat omits this feature, though, as small chests are still possible, but trying to open a big one will crash the game.
- If you somehow manage to enter a shop with him, he has his sword sheathed and can't use it, just like normal. As an added bonus, as his sword normally interrupts the animation if you don't press the button fast enough, he can actually swing a bottle regularly due to this, even still keeping it in his hand when idle. This even happens in the 3DS remake despite the fact that actually entering buildings with the mask on is impossible and such a situation would require you to enter first before equipping it.
- Most NPCs will still react to Link as though he was in a different form. The only real exceptions, aside from a small handful, are the ones that crash the game when you talk to them with the mask on. Even some of the ones who make form-specific remarks will still recognize that he is transformed. The girl from the Treasure Chest Shop, who gives you a different entry price depending on what form you're in, even charges you a different fee with the mask on (though this is fixed in the 3DS version, in which she registers you as normal Link).
- When you buy something as Fierce Deity, you can actually see the glowing orbs that emanate from his magic sword in the background of the text screen.
- If you perform the glitch at the entrance to the Pirate's Fortress (possible at the hill right when you get inside it), Link will not only put his hands up when the pirates spot him, but even screams loudly when thrown out.
- If you save at an owl statue with the mask on, the glitch does not reset after loading the save file again; you are still in Fierce Deity form when you get back to the game.
- If a Like-Like sucks you up, your sword actually sticks out of its mouth due to its size.
- You can climb up ladders normally and lift up items you shouldn't be able to, such as pots, plants, and rocks. In the 3DS version, however, he can only climb some ladders - certain ones (such as the one in Southern Swamp leading to the Swamp Tourist Center or the Great Bay ladder near the owl statue) just freeze him in place for a few seconds for some unknown reason.
- The act of jumping across platforms still has the aerial acrobatic animations done by normal and Zora Link programmed.
- Entering the Deku Shrine with the mask on and speaking with the butler still results in him recognizing you. Racing with him is even possible.
- Fierce Deity Link has full drowning animations, despite there being no way to get your head stuck underwater in the only area with water in it that he was programmed for (Gyorg's boss lair.)
- In the 3DS version, glitching into him is not only far easier but has significantly fewer limitations. While you can no longer open doors or big chests, you don't have to enter a body of water to put the Zora Mask on or get yourself killed to revert back - you can now wear any mask over it or simply remove it from the item screen to change back in seconds. While still a bit limited, it feels extremely close to legitimate use.
- The 3DS remake actually has a few unique lines from NPCs if you speak to them with the mask equipped. If you speak to the Bomber guarding the observatory path, he will tell Link that the club is only for kids, and call you "big guy", though this line causes the game to lock itself up. Also, a savvy player from this
forum discovered that popping Jim's balloon in North Clock Town with your bow and then speaking to him with the mask on causes him to respond in a way that doesn't show up in the game otherwise.note Most notably, however, if you speak to the Clock Town gate guards on the final day with the mask on, a new dialogue tree is unveiled in which they ask you if the carnival got canceled, with each of the four giving a slightly different variant to boot. This doesn't happen if you speak to them in any other form, and it is unknown why this was programmed in or what purpose it serves. - Also in 3D, unlike in the original, some have discovered that his sword beams actually do damage to a select handful of enemies and minibosses, most notably Dinolfos, Gekkos, the Gerudo Pirates, and Stalchildren. They even hit Gossip Stones of all things.
- If you play the Oath to Order without freeing all four giants, the ones that you did free will attempt to stop the moon, but fail.
- Normally, Goht's boss battle is only triggered after shooting a fire arrow at the ice covering him. It triggers basically immediately after the arrow is shot. However, if you press the button for any of the four transformation masks right after the arrow hits the ice, you will put on the mask and the default cutscene of Goht initiating the battle will play, except you will be in a different form, complete with a different scream when he runs you over as well.
- Putting a transformation mask on immediately after turning Stone Tower upside down will show the default sequence in your current mask.
- There is a way to get to Ikana without the Ice Arrows by carefully aiming the Hookshot at a specific spot. If you do this, and proceed to continue until you finish Stone Tower Temple, Tatl will warn you that you forgot to "solve the problem at Great Bay" when you travel back in time. Alternatively, no matter how far you skip ahead to complete Stone Tower Temple, Tatl will always chide you for not finishing the earliest dungeon you skipped.
- A Red Potion is needed to revive Komue in the Woods of Mystery, as well as revitalizing Shiro. Some savvy players may attempt to show a Red Potion to Darmani when he requests to heal his sorrows. He will comment that potions won't work on the dead, and hints toward using the Song of Healing instead.
- Despite how unlikely it is for a player to do so, taking off the Goron Mask immediately after throwing the Rock Sirloin to the starving Goron before it lands in front of them will cause them to give a much more generic conversation of gratitude afterward that omits the part where they recognize you as Darmani. The baby Goron does the same thing if you place a Powder Keg in front of the boulder blocking the Goron Racetrack, then change masks before it explodesnote .
- No matter what order you complete the dungeons in, the giants will always have their cutscenes played in the same order. For example, if you skip ahead from Woodfall after getting the bow to complete a later dungeon first, the Oath to Order will still be taught to you by the first giant you free.
- If you skip Woodfall and return to it after beating another dungeon first, the cutscene where Tatl apologizes for the events in the beginning and tells Link he did good in combat is omitted. This would make sense as at that point, she obviously would've seen more.
- It's not supposed to be possible to enter the Deku Shrine without defeating the Woodfall Temple, but you can pull it off by standing on the lilypad, changing to a human, and quickly firing an arrow before it sinks (it requires split-second timing). If you do, the Deku Butler will correctly not be inside and you are unable to access any point past the first room.
- If you choose to relearn the Sonata of Awakening with the Goron and Zora Masks, the monkey will make comments about the drums and guitar. He will still only teach the song to Deku Link, however.
- While the curse on Ikana is so strong that the Song of Healing can't break it, Link can still make the attempt. Sharp will pause for only half a second before rejecting the attempt because of how deep his suffering and hatred runs, and if you play the song for the Poe Collector who has you fight the Poe Sisters, they'll thank you for the attempt but mention the curse runs deeper than that... though because they want to be healed, it lightens their suffering heart and they can't bring themself to charge Link full price for the miniboss, slashing it down to 10 rupees (from 30) for an attempt.
