"A Link To The Past" is my favorite Zelda game. It seemed to have everything a game needed. Lots of items, enemies, TWO worlds, side items and other smaller quests, memorable bosses. The music to the game definitely suits its greatness. Hyrule Castle, The Dark World, Turned Into A Rabbit, The Church, The Lost Woods, the opening theme with the story... and lots of other tracks really suck you in.

After that would probably be Zelda 1, for many of the reasons mentioned above. TWO separate quests made this game something great to something more. A game has to start somewhere, and the first one laid tons of groundwork that is still used today and in many other games.

Ocarina would probably be next for me. I never finished it, but it was the first 3D outing of the game and it did a great job with it. It was a small world you were in compared to other games and future Zeldas. The music of Gerudo Valley is one of the game's stand out tracks. The Ocarina songs were great, The Lost Woods, and Windmill Hut also stand out to me. This is a Zelda I've never finished and I don't know quite why.

Finally, I'll add in a 4th game. Yes, everyone divides things into fours, stop asking. Anyway, this is for Zelda II: The Adventures of Link. The side scrolling thing definitely needed to be tried once. It added a new element for sure with the way the game was presented. A first look at how well known enemies would, and should, look in 3D and how you fight them. This one wasn't as complex as other Zelda games, and it's not TOO hard once you've been at it awhile, but it's very rewarded to beat. The Final Temple and regular Palace music stands out to me as great music tracks from this game.