Scary lore details Ocarina of Time is hidden behind its family-friendly aesthetic

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time The Switch 2 makes its long-awaited return in the form of a remake, taking us back to a version of Hyrule that's far scarier than its reputation suggests. Perhaps due to the existence of an even-dark , Tends to be remembered as “classic”. A family-friendly adventure, but the game's lore is filled with details that are pure nightmare fuel.

4 Zelda Games Better Than Ocarina of Time (In Certain Areas)

Isn't there a better Zelda experience than Ocarina when it came out nearly three decades ago? These games beg to differ.

Make no mistake about it, With a little modification it could easily be turned into a horror story, which explores grief, death and trauma. While the tragic story of the Hero of Time ends in the later games, Link's journey to Hell begins in Ocarina of Time, where he develops scars that take generations to heal.

Hyrule's history of state-sanctioned torture

The bloody legacy of the royal family

While Ganondorf's coup naturally frames him as the big bad, the royal family of Hyrule was by no means a noble family that created a fairy-tale utopia where all lived in harmony and peace. No, they built and maintained their kingdom by violence and blood, specifically appointing a sheikhah as the guardian of the crown who acted as a secret police. During and after the civil war that predates the events of the play, the royal family used torture and execution to maintain control.

Collected here is Hyaru's bloody history of greed and hatred. – Voices in the Shadow Temple

The Shadow Temple and the bottom of the well serve as remnants of these functions, and their structures illustrate that they are not traditional dungeons or tombs. The blood-soaked Shadow Temple contains guillotines and torture racks, everything needed to keep prisoners comfortable. The bottom of the well can be even scarier; Beneath Kakari's village is a sealed maze with chains, pits, and zombies (redeads). At the bottom of the well is a tomb where the royal family was supposed to be buried.

Princess Zelda and the King of Hyrule represent divine authority and pure goodness, but their thrones are fully funded and protected by these underground slaughterhouses. As a child, Zelda was protected from this reality, but that changed when she became a Sheikah warrior and took on the Sheik persona.

Speaking of the shadow temple and the bottom of the well…

Make your perfect top ten manifest one at a time.


Make your perfect top ten manifest one at a time.

Dead Hand is a pure eldritch nightmare

Ocarina of Time is a real body horror monster

The Bottom of the Well in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
The Bottom of the Well in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Ocarina of Time Earned an “E for Everyone” rating from the ESRB, and may be the only E-rated game with enemies fused with physical horror and psychological manipulation.

Along with traditional fantasy monsters like skeletons and giant spiders, Hyrule is also home to Dead Hands, creatures that wouldn't look out of place. blood borne silent hill. Found at the bottom of the Shadow Temple and Well, this amorphous entity has bloated, rotting flesh and white hands sprouting from the ground. Everything about Dead Hand screams that it shouldn't exist in this world, and that goes beyond just its beauty.

In order to reveal its main body, Link must let one of the monster's hands grab him by the throat, leaving him defenseless. After that, Dead Hand slowly walks towards the captured 10-year-old, while Link (and the player) frantically tries to escape.

The true knowledge behind Dead Hands has never been revealed, but every possible theory is dark as hell. The most likely is that it represents all the victims who were tortured and buried, which explains why it is only found in two places.

The dire post-apocalyptic fate of Castle Town

Ocarina of Time is a zombie game

As a child, Link enjoyed his life in Castle Town, especially the market. He loved bright colors, blue skies, upbeat music, dancing couples, laughing villagers, and vendors. place defined by safety and community; the very thing Link sought to protect.

After drawing the Master Sword and jumping forward seven years, Link exits the Temple of Time and finds himself in a tragic post-apocalyptic hellscape that once filled its streets with happiness. The once lively market square was reduced to ruins by Gandendorf, leaving not even an echo of the life that once existed there. A few survivors escaped to Kakari's village, but the key word is “few”. Even if we didn't actively see a mountain of corpses, most of the people in Castle Town must have been brutally killed.

Although not explicitly stated, the Redids may be the animated corpses of the villagers, implying that Hyrule is effectively a zombie wasteland.

-The-best-Zelda-villain-of-all-time-isnt-ganon

Best Zelda Villain of All Time (Not Ganon)

No one can deny the impact Ganon had on the Zelda franchise, but there is a better villain.

The Lost Woods is a cruel, cruel place

Once you're in, you can never leave

  • Image is from Skull Kid Majora's Mask.

A main of The Legend of Zelda suffrage, Ocarina of TimeThe Lost Woods may seem somewhat whimsical at first glance, especially because of its upbeat music and relatively bright green scenery. However, the myths surrounding this place are absolutely terrifying and, importantly, seem real. Legend has it that adults lost in the woods turn into Stalfos, while children become Skull Kids.

Getting lost is not starvation but a magical metamorphosis, and the Lost Woods especially strives to ensure that travelers don't lose their way. It's almost malicious.

Now, the Stalfos that Link fights aren't confirmed to be 100% lost souls, but that would definitely be more interesting than a normal skeleton. The Skull Kids are even more tragic, as they are children who lose their minds and childhood, becoming alien beings who see adults as a threat.

Ocarina of Time's Happy Ending is pretty dark

Let's make one thing clear: OoT Link is not a traditional fantasy hero who rescues a princess and lives happily ever after. No, he is a weapon wielded by destiny and left to rot by history. Before the start of the game, he was orphaned during the Hylian Civil War, leaving him an outcast among the Kokiri.

Each Kokiri gets an angel, but they only introduce Link to Navi when they send him on a suicide mission and put the fate of the world behind him. Link is a child soldier who must take on impossible responsibilities that the adults of Hyrule cannot carry. The Master Sword time-jump robs him of his adolescent link, turning him into a 10-year-old in an adult's body.

Ultimately, Link saves Hyrule and is sent back in time by Zelda so he can live his childhood, a positive ending. However, Link remembers everything he's been through, and he's the only one who knows about his heroics (and the sacrifices he made to achieve them). The people he saves treat him as a stranger, and history remembers him as a nobody, isolating Link as he needs help dealing with his PTSD.

in Twilight PrincessThat version of Link meets Hero's Shade, a Stalfos, who is the Hero of Time (aka, OoT link). Burdened with the remorse of oblivion for not being remembered as a hero, Link's soul decayed and became a manifestation of his unresolved trauma.


The Legend of Zelda_ Ocarina of Time Tag Page Cover Art

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

systems

issued

November 21, 1998

ESRB

E10+ For everyone 10+: Animated blood, fantasy violence, suggestive themes

developer(s)

Nintendo

publisher(s)

Nintendo

Engine

Zelda 64 Engine


Leave a Comment