Nintendo Switch 2 The Legend of Zelda The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time
A happy Zelda weekend to everyone! While many of us are diving into this latest Zelda release, confident and comfortable in our long-standing (or, in my case, more recent) knowledge of how to play Ocarina of Time, the game is actually 28 years old, and there are plenty of people who have never played it, don’t remember it, or weren’t even alive when it first came out. And wow, this is a very different Zelda game from some of the more recent entries!
So I put together a few tips for you all. Hopefully at least a few of them help make your adventure in Hyrule a little smoother this weekend. Enjoy the ride, folks—this one is a true classic:
Actually complete the tutorial
In Kokiri Forest, once you take control of Link for the first time, you can immediately leave your house and follow the path to the left to reach the Know-It-Alls. The characters inside the house will offer some useful tips, while the fellow outside will demonstrate some basic combat moves, including rolling and dodging. He’ll then point you toward a sword, after which you can return and learn how to perform the mighty jump attack (more on that in a moment). These are (almost) all the combat moves you’ll need to know for the entire game, so it’s worth mastering them early on.
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A simpler jump attack
The jump attack is powerful, dealing double the damage of a regular swing. It’s also a bit tricky to pull off, seemingly requiring two button presses instead of just one… on the surface. You can actually perform this move by tilting the control stick forward (while targeting) and simply pressing A. I recommend executing the attack this way, and I recommend using it a lot.
© Nintendo
Don’t just follow everyone’s advice
Everyone in Hyrule wants you to follow the main story path. They are, in fact, very worried you’ll miss it. So you’ll constantly hear NPCs directing you: go to the Great Deku Tree! Go to Hyrule Castle! Well…maybe don’t. At least, not right away. Ocarina of Time has tons of secrets, items, and just generally stuff to do that isn’t on the main path, so don’t feel obligated to stick to it. Even in Kokiri Forest, there are extra items you can obtain early if you just wander around for a while. You also can (and should!) backtrack to areas you’ve previously visited at just about any time!
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Minigames carnival
Once you reach Castle Town, you’ll start to run into minigames. Ocarina of Time has a lot of them, and many are located in shops off the square. In some Zelda games, you don’t really need to do the minigames on offer, and technically that’s true in this one. But I recommend you at least give them a whirl. Some of them have great rewards, like bigger storage bags for certain items, or empty bottles. Don’t be afraid to goof off a little on your adventure!
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Bottles, bottles
Which, speaking of empty bottles, these are by far your most precious resource. Get as many as you can as soon as you can. If someone’s got a bottle for you, drop everything and do what they say. Empty bottles are used to hold all sorts of things: items you need for quests and to unlock secret paths, potions to refill your health, and fairies that can revive you automatically if you die. There are a total of five empty bottles in the game: try to get them all!
You have more than just a sword
It can be tempting to simply hack and slash your way to victory in Ocarina of Time, but some enemies aren’t so easily taken down. If you’re struggling, it’s worth testing out some of your other items against enemies to see which, if any, have an effect. You might be surprised what a well-placed hookshot or boomerang can do, or what you can accomplish with a few Deku Nuts. Many enemies can be stunned, knocked away, or even killed from a distance, with no close combat required.
© Nintendo
Talk to everyone (including Navi)
And yes, Navi can help, too. She can be a bit grating, but her tips on fighting monsters are a huge help.
Look around
Again, this one seems pretty basic, but sometimes you’ll get stuck in a dungeon with no idea how to solve a puzzle to proceed. I cannot emphasize enough how often the answer is simply to look—really look around you. Look for weird symbols on the walls, or bits of floor that look funny. Look for fire, or places to light things on fire. Look for switches, or platforms directly below you that you didn’t notice before. Look at how things connect to one another. Look underwater. Most of the time, if you’re stuck, it’s because you’re not seeing some key element you need to move forward—and often, those things are hidden for a reason.
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Look for glowy symbols
New to the remake of Ocarina of Time are fairy symbols, odd glowing runes you’ll find inscribed on walls or pillars or other out-of-the-way surfaces as you explore. You can use Navi to examine them. They’ll often give you hints about secrets, or other little bonuses, for interacting with them properly. Again, looking around pays off!
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Gold Skulltulas
Finally, gold skulltulas. You won’t necessarily know these are important when you first start the game, but they absolutely are. There are 100 of these in the game total, and you get rewards for reaching certain milestones of collecting them. Many of these rewards are very, very good. You’ll want to listen for a scritchy-scratching noise as you explore, that indicates there’s one nearby. You can also find them by rolling into trees that seem to be shedding their leaves. In towns, you’ll only ever find them at night (in dungeons, they’re around all the time). Grab as many as you can!
Do not attack the Cuccos
The Cuccos are the chickens. Don’t attack them. You can pick them up, carry them around, and throw them. But don’t HIT them.
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