Forest Temple

Author: Efrain Silva

The Forest Temple, seen in The Legend of Zelda : Ocarina of Time, is the dungeon that follows the last one seen in this video game...that of Lord Jabu - Jabu’s Belly. In this astounding dungeon, Link is now no longer a child and must face his fears as a true grown - up with sword and shield….both of which are bigger than they used to be, by the way. Link has grown, and so have his uniform and weapons, it seems. Now, it’s time to put on the big boy pants and fight the fight that he doesn’t want to fight...but knows that he has to. 

Saria

It seems his friend Saria, a beautiful girl whom he knew since they were children, is gone, missing somewhere inside the Forest Temple. And since Link has already managed to not give in through the worst of 3 dungeons prior, even as a kid, he is not set on surrendering any time soon. He now knows what he has to do, even though his pants are shaking and boots are quaking at the thought of it...but, eh, what could go wrong? He’s been through worse ---- or has he? That is the question...

But perhaps the hardest part is getting there as Link now needs to navigate his way through the Lost Woods correctly, of which he keeps getting lost easily in, before even making it to a giant maze that will lead to the entrance of the Forest Temple. On the way, he fights off some massive wolves that appear to spring out of nowhere, not to mention some giants with spears. But surely, he makes it through and gets inside the temple...

And things do not get easier from that point forward. Forget about it. On several occasions, Link is striked at, jumped on, grabbed and picked up, tossed, shot at, hurled and so much more. This new dungeon presents added layers of challenge that others have failed to offer, but that’s a good thing; walls turn into floors, floors turn back into walls, entire rooms get shifted sideways or upside down, and there’s even hand creatures lurking about on the roof of certain rooms...which drop down and pick Link up, taking him back to where he came from and making him have to “start all over again”...ah, bummer. 

Forest Temple: Dark and Scary

There’s dark, menacing carpets and even scarier pictures with frames in several of the rooms in what appears to be this abandoned mansion or castle structure. It’s also a dark forest at the same time, and eery music plays all throughout it; if you own any version of the game, you may fall in love with the dark, scary themes that present themselves here, especially if you’re into scarier gaming dungeons and monsters. The Forest Temple also contains outside courtyard areas within it, all of which Link must use his ingenuity to get through; he’ll employ his new hookshot weapon to transport himself, by a quick shot, to new heights and areas. 

ReDeads are new to this dungeon also, and Link has never met them before in his life except in what was left of castle town; he likely would not have even known they existed in the first place. ReDeads are basically like zombies of the apocalypse --- that’s possibly the very best way to picture them in your mind, except they are a lot more life - life and can even slow you down so that they can jump on you while sucking the life out of you. They’re not fun to deal with...especially if you get up too close to them; doing so will prevent you, as the player, from being able to move away from them or use any of your controls….until they have at least jumped on you and started sucking some of your life dry. 

Move your controls rapidly in order to stop them from further doing so, slashing and striking with sword motions as well, until they die by the sword. Such will be their fate if you are persistent. You can do it! You’ll also find Green Bubbles in this dungeon, making their first appearance in the game, too; these guys are basically just flying skeleton heads that let off a green flame wherever they go.

They are as harmful to you as they are scary, so watch out. There’s also the Blue Bubbles, which are the same but instead carry about a dark blue or purple flame. Both of these ghastly, bubble - type villains can fall by your sword. But once again, don’t let them come too close to you. They can bite you, and their fire can hurt you, too --- don’t say you weren’t warned.

Stalfos

Stalfos are also new foes here, and these guys are sort of like the basic skeletons Link had to face when in his child form; yet these guys are like their adult forms and carry armor of their own, not to mention swords. It seems that, as Link has aged, so have they, and they do mean business. Guard yourself. 

Yet as you pick up skill and progress through the Forest Temple, Link gets closer and closer to his goal of finding Saria and ultimately getting to the heart of the matter….saving Hyrule from evil. Anyways, more opponents arise, this time named Amy, Beth and Joelle; these evil ghost - spirit sisters, also known as Poes in the land, will make every final attempt to prevent courageous Link from making it through to the dungeon’s main assailant, Phantom Ganon.

Forest Temple Boss: Phantom Ganon

Once Link defeats them and meets Phantom Ganon face to face, the fight is on. Link then has to guess which portrait, out of many planted inside the room, Phantom Ganon will emerge from….shooting him as he comes out, by using his newly - acquired bow. As Link correctly guesses, and shoots him, then later deflecting his shots and sword - striking him, Phantom Ganon succumbs. Link has now made his way through the Forest Temple, and his friend Saria has been rescued from all her enemies….. 

Learn more here: Forest Temple - OOT.