This might as well top the list of games to play before you die, because the other one is a rare N64 title that most people have never heard of. Here's what i have:

Gameplay: Three words: ******** WIN DUDE!!!!! Er... sorry. Legend of Zelda has always been loved for the puzzles, the combat, and the occasional cute busty farm girl. And Twilight Princess brings back to you everything, plus more, and got rid of some of the weaknesses from Wind Waker. Above all, the ability to finish your enemy off with the Ending Blow instead of having to go through a drawn out fight scene because some simple grunts never lower their guard is a welcome change. Also, Link automatically raises his guard while L-targeting, making it easier, but more difficult at the same time because it is a lot more precise. And they dropped the usual "Get the Triforce and save Hyrule plot," and now have much more of a darker tone. The horse riding system, and a the goat herding mini games, are similar to that of another game called Gun, however, it is much more refined in Legend of Zelda (That, and you don't accidentally kill your horse by spurring her too much). The shooting system is much more easier now that the cel-shading has been dropped, and the physic system makes it so that you have to project the arc of your shot in order to make long sniper shots. And if that wasn't enough, they GOT RID OF THE FAIRY! Well... not all of them, but now the Great Fairy is no longer an insane laughing whore, but actually looks like something out of real mythology. And the ability to transform into a wolf adds another dimension of gameplay. This is the addicting beauty that you would expect from Nintendo's finest.

Graphics: Bleeds beauty. That simple. It might not be as cutting edge as the Wii is capable of, or as the 360 and PS3 show off, but it is much more beautiful. The animation, art, scenery, all of it is beautiful, and not just overly realistic or flashy. It was not vanity over some super-powered graphics card that made this game, it was pride, care, and creativity.
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Even if Ilia's breasts are a little too low and the kids still have over sized heads. But one more thing is that there is a lot more sprite variety than you would expect, and it isn't simply palette swaps either. Especially revolving the number of monsters, number of unique sprites for characters, and a lot of them show great care in design. Put that in your pipe and smoke it you Sony bastards!

Plotline: Your first impression is this: Young boy, no experience in fighting, suddenly thrust onto a strange world and must gather the Triforce to stop the fiend Ganondorf. Right? WRONG! Twilight Princess is one of the few Zelda games which has the highest amount of variety (Including that Zelda is a MINOR CHARACTER! Good riddance to her!). It is darker than any earlier Zelda game, which usually involved monsters that only attacked at night, or the townsfolk miraculously escaping. It has some depressing moments, some cheerful moments, and then some moments that are funny and corny. In the end, you do end up saving Zelda's hide and fighting a corrupt man who claims to be a king, and you do get the Master Sword. But you never have to collect Triforce pieces, and instead of constantly remaining virtuous, you must turn to one dark power in order to combat another.
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Oh, and part of a personal obsession of mine, i noticed that it is pretty much the only Zelda game where Link has a girlfriend! And instead of Link being blindly thrust onto the world as an inexperienced little kid, he instead appears to be at least 16 or 17, knows how to use a sword and ride a horse from the get-go, and doesn't have to learn six-note songs in order to advance into a dungeon. While Minda is annoying at times, you will find the imp to be a lot more helpful and a lot less annoying than Navi, Tatl, or The King of Red Lions.

Music: The remix of the old Legend of Zelda songs done with a chorus, band, and expertly conducted, with great action sequences, more of a variety, and more in depth. If anyone thought that God of War had a musical edge over Legend of Zelda, Nintendo has just contradicted you.

Difficulty: Well... so it has some difficult moments, in-depth boss fights, and a real need for strategy to it. It is a real time consumer, but so much fun that you won't mind. But overall, you will find some side missions that are more difficult than the final boss fight.

Overall: Okay, so it is not a PERFECT game, but it is probably the closest thing to one you can find. And the best part is that you don't have to shell out $600 for it. It is better than any games i have played on the PS3, and can allow more of a variety of players than Elder Scrolls (But in the end i relent that Elder Scrolls Oblivion may be a little superior because of the hardware abilities of the XBOX 360). The only game that i like more than this one is a game that i grew up with and have a lot of respect for. Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is THE game that you should play before you kick the bucket.

Final rating: 10/10