The Zelda series had a purple patch between 1991 and 2001 encompassing Lttp, LA, OOT, MM and Oracles where it just absolutely obliterated every other series bar arguably Final Fantasy in that timeframe with quality and consistency. Mario wins the early years by a landslide and I would certainly favour Galaxy 1&2 over recent Zeldas. If we're speaking purely lifetime then it has to be Mario, its had a more consistent distribution of strong titles whereas the Zelda series brand is carried purely on the back of a 10 year period of excellence when the other 10 years of its existence have been good but hardly top tier.
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Smurf, the cream of Sonic fanboyism