A genuine classic comes to the Wii Virtual Console today. The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask has been added at the cost of 1000 Wii Points (GBP 8.50 / EUR 12.00).

Majora's Mask is the N64 sequel to the oft-cited best game ever, Ocarina of Time. However, arriving late in the N64's lifetime and baffling many with its arcane mechanics, it never achieved the same success.

Nonetheless, it is a masterpiece of the surreal, and features some of the most sophisticated and touching storytelling ever seen in the videogame form. Fact.

In the game, young Link is trapped in an apocalyptic videogame Groundhog Day, going through the same 72 hours over and over again as he tries to stop the moon crashing into the earth (and to bring a young couple together for their wedding).

The game's NPCs have stories of their own that unfold over the course of the three days, altering subtly as Link's adventures change the flow of time.

The other novelty in Majora's Mask is the sinister mask seller and his collection of magical masks that allow Link to influence conversations, or change his form.

As our friends at Offworld said: "It's a blueprint of brilliance, an object lesson in how innovative game design and non-linear story telling can combine to create that holy grail of emotionally resonant interaction. Ten years on we're still asking if such things are possible..."

It's the best Zelda game you've never played. Get it.