I liked how
ALttP's main plot was told through talking to a lot of NPCs, like in an RPG,
there weren't a lot of NPCs with random useless information, but each one seemed to shed
new light on the plot as an epic whole. In modern Zelda games it seems you only hear the
plot through the main characters, not-so-significant characters usually only talk about
side theories, such as triumph forks and the sheikah. In
ALttP each character was a part
of the story. Even non-descript shop owners had explanations such as ties to the forest thieves
or horrible dark world disfigurements. The story of the flute-playing boy that turns into a
vegetable was a great statement about the personal impacts on people's lives of the quest
for the golden power, while at the same time it was very touching.
I guess lots of NPC dialogue is common in RPGs, but
ALttP's seemed especially well thought out,
and was concise enough that it didn't get boring. Or so I thought