The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
is a 1998 action-adventure game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. It was the first Legend of Zelda game with 3D graphics. It was released in Japan and North America in November 1998 and in PAL regions the following month.
Ocarina of Time was developed by Nintendo's Entertainment Analysis & Development division. It was led by five directors, including Eiji Aonuma and Yoshiaki Koizumi, produced by series co-creator Shigeru Miyamoto, and written by Kensuke Tanabe. Series composer Koji Kondo wrote its soundtrack. The player controls Link in the realm of Hyrule on a quest to stop the evil king Ganondorf by traveling through time and navigating dungeons and an overworld. The game introduced features such as a target-lock system and context-sensitive buttons, which have since become common in 3D adventure games. The player must play songs on an ocarina to progress.
Ocarina of Time was acclaimed by critics and consumers, who praised its visuals, sound, gameplay, soundtrack, and writing. It has been ranked by numerous publications as the greatest video game of all time and is the highest-rated game on the review aggregator Metacritic. It was commercially successful, with more than seven million copies sold worldwide. In the United States, it received more than three times more pre-orders than any other game at the time.
A sequel, The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, was released in 2000. Ocarina of Time has been rereleased on every one of Nintendo's home consoles since and on the iQue Player in China. An enhanced version for the Nintendo 3DS, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, was released in 2011. Master Quest, an alternative version including new puzzles and increased difficulty, is included in one of the GameCube releases and the 3D version.
Gameplay
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is a fantasy action-adventure game set in a three-dimensional world with an expansive environment. The game world is mostly rendered in real-time polygonal 3D, while a few areas make use of pre-rendered backgrounds. The player controls series protagonist Link from a third-person perspective. Link primarily fights with a sword and shield but can also use other weapons such as projectiles, bombs, and magic spells. The control scheme introduced techniques such as context-sensitive actions and a targeting system called "Z-targeting", which allows the player to have Link focus on enemies or objects. When using this technique, the camera follows the target and Link constantly faces it. Projectile attacks are automatically directed at the target and do not require manual aiming. Context-sensitive actions allow multiple tasks to be assigned to one button, simplifying the control scheme. The on-screen display shows what will happen when the button is pushed and changes depending on what the character is doing. For example, the button that causes Link to push a box if he is standing next to it will have him climb on the box if the analog stick is pushed toward it. Much of the game is spent exploring and fighting, but some parts require stealth.Link gains abilities by collecting items and weapons found in dungeons or in the overworld, including several optional side quests and minor objectives. Side quests can reward new weapons or abilities. In one side quest, Link trades items with non-player characters in a trading sequence that features ten items and ends with him receiving the two-handed Biggoron Sword, the strongest sword. In another side quest, Link can acquire a horse who allows him to travel faster but restricts him to only attacking with arrows while riding.
Link is given an ocarina near the beginning of the game, which is later replaced by the Ocarina of Time. Link learns twelve melodies that allow him to solve music-based puzzles and teleport to previously visited locations. The Ocarina of Time is also used to claim the Master Sword in the Temple of Time, which causes Link to be transported seven years into the future and become an adult. Young Link and adult Link have different abilities. For example, only adult Link can use the Fairy Bow, and only young Link can fit through certain small passages. After completing certain tasks, Link can travel freely between the two time periods by replacing and taking the sword.
Plot
Setting
Ocarina of Time is set in the fictional kingdom of Hyrule, the setting of most Legend of Zelda games. Hyrule Field serves as the central hub, and is connected to several outlying areas with diverse topography which are home to the races of Hyrule. On the eastern outskirts of Hyrule are the Kokiri, a forest-dwelling race living as children with fairies, and the Zora, fish-like creatures in the middle of a crisis. North is Hyrule Castle and its surrounding town, where the royal family and most Hylians reside, and Kakariko Village and Death Mountain, home of the Gorons, rock-consuming creatures. The secluded western desert belongs to the Gerudo, a population mostly consisting of women who serve the king, a man that is born once every century. Lon Lon Ranch, a ranch renowned for its horses and high-quality milk, sits in the center of Hyrule Field, and Lake Hylia to the south serves as a touristic fishing attraction where the Water Temple resides.Characters
Players control Link, a young boy living in the Kokiri Forest, which is also home to his Kokiri friend Saria and guarded by the Great Deku Tree. Unlike other Kokiri, Link does not have a fairy companion until the Great Deku Tree instructs the fairy Navi to be his guide. Navi is used to contextualize Z-Targeting for the player, and also provides hints and advice. On his quest, Link befriends Malon, daughter of Lon Lon Ranch's owner, Talon; Darunia, the leader of the Gorons; and Ruto, the Zora princess. Link also meets Princess Zelda, who is under the watch of her Sheikah caretaker, Impa, and encounters the King of the Gerudo, Ganondorf. In his adulthood, Link meets Rauru, the Sage of Light, and Nabooru, the de facto leader of the Gerudo in Ganondorf's absence. Along the way, Link is aided by Sheik, a mysterious young Sheikah. Link is also aided by great fairies who give him magical abilities.Story
awakens Link from a nightmare in which he watches a man in black armor pursuing a young girl on horseback, and is brought to the Great Deku Tree, who has been cursed by a "wicked man of the desert". Before dying, the Great Deku Tree gives Link the Spiritual Stone of the Forest and sends him to Hyrule Castle to speak with Hyrule's princess. At the Hyrule Castle garden, Link meets Princess Zelda, who believes Ganondorf, the evil Gerudo king, is seeking the Triforce, a holy relic that gives its holder godlike power. Zelda asks Link to obtain the three Spiritual Stones to enter the Sacred Realm and claim the Triforce before Ganondorf reaches it. Link collects the other two stones: the first from Darunia, leader of the Gorons, and the second from Ruto, princess of the Zoras. Link returns to Hyrule Castle, where he sees Ganondorf pursue Zelda and her caretaker Impa on horseback, like in his nightmare, and unsuccessfully attempts to stop him. Inside the Temple of Time, he uses the Ocarina of Time, a gift from Zelda, and the Spiritual Stones to open a door. There, he finds the Master Sword, but as he pulls it from its pedestal, he is incapacitated. Ganondorf then appears and taunts Link for obtaining the Spiritual Stones for him.Seven years later, an older Link awakens in the Sacred Realm and is met by Rauru, one of the seven Sages who protect the entrance to the Sacred Realm. Rauru explains that the Master Sword was the key to the Sacred Realm, and pulling it allowed Ganondorf to enter the Sacred Realm and claim the Triforce. Link's spirit was then sealed for seven years until he was old enough to wield the Master Sword and defeat Ganondorf, who has since taken over Hyrule. The seven Sages have the ability to imprison Ganondorf in the Sacred Realm, but five are unaware of their identities as Sages. Link is returned to the Temple of Time and meets the mysterious Sheik, who guides him to free five temples from Ganondorf's control and allow their Sages to awaken. Link befriended all five Sages as a child, and by placing the Master Sword back in its pedestal, he is able to freely travel between his childhood and the present. Utilizing this power, Link awakens the five unknown Sages: his childhood friend Saria, the Sage of the Forest Temple; Darunia, the Sage of the Fire Temple; Ruto, the Sage of the Water Temple; Impa, the Sage of the Shadow Temple; and Nabooru, leader of the Gerudo in Ganondorf's absence, the Sage of the Spirit Temple. After the five Sages awaken, Sheik reveals himself to be Zelda in disguise and the seventh Sage. Zelda explains that Ganondorf's heart was unbalanced, causing the Triforce to split into three pieces. Ganondorf acquired only the Triforce of Power, while Zelda received the Triforce of Wisdom and Link the Triforce of Courage.
Ganondorf then magically captures Zelda, imprisoning her in a large crystal and teleporting her to his castle. Intending to use Zelda and Link's pieces of the Triforce to increase his power, he telepathically taunts Link to come rescue her. The other six Sages help Link enter the stronghold, where he frees Zelda after defeating Ganondorf, who destroys the castle in an attempt to kill Link and Zelda. After they escape the collapsing castle, Ganondorf emerges from the rubble and transforms into a boar-like beast named Ganon using the Triforce of Power. He knocks the Master Sword from Link's hand, but with Zelda's aid, Link retrieves the Master Sword and defeats Ganon. The seven Sages seal Ganondorf in the Sacred Realm, but he vows revenge on their descendants using the Triforce of Power. Zelda uses the Ocarina of Time to send Link back to his childhood. Navi departs and young Link meets Zelda in the castle garden once more, where he retains knowledge of Hyrule's fate, preventing its decline.