Octorok

Octoroks are amphibious octopus-like creatures that launch rocks from their mouths at people. They are largely land dwelling animals, but have been seen residing in water as well. Octoroks are one of the most common type of enemies in The Legend of Zelda series, along with Moblins and Keese. They debuted in the original The Legend of Zelda, and have appeared in almost every Zelda game since, with the sole exception of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.

The Legend of Zelda
In the first  Legend of Zelda Octoroks were creatures that came in shades of red and blue, and shot rocks at Link. Blue Octoroks were more dangerous, on account of the fact that they take two hits to die as opposed to one. They are littered around the more desolate areas, while Moblins patrol the Forest areas, Ghinis haunt the Graveyards, and Tektites infest the Mountains.

Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
The octorocks that appearance in Zelda II remained the same as the last game for the most part, but only some actually move around. Some jump in place, firing as it jumps. As in the first game, there are Blue and Red variants.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
In this game, the visuals improved so their appearance was clearer than The Legend of Zelda's. There is only one shade for the Octoroks in this game. They are much faster than previous Octoroks, and some have the ability to shoot rocks in four directions quickly. Signs made to look similar are in a Shooting Gallery. This was remade on the GBA as The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past and The Four Swords. In the Palace of the Four Swords, there is a dark room with three Golden Octoroks inside.

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
In this game, they remained the same as A Link to the Past's. Like A Link to the Past, they lack a color difference, and only come in one form. There is also a new type of Octorok called the Flying Octorok. It has large bug-like wings, and flies over Link when attacked, much the same way a Stalfos jumps out of harm's way. The best way to defeat one is to force it to jump, and then move and strike it when it lands. As with Stalfos, they won't detect a charged spin attack, giving the player another possibility for defeating them.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
In Ocarina of Time, they took a drastic change to sea-dwelling creatures. They now sit in place, and wait for a while before firing directly at Link. The only way to defeat them is with a long-ranged item or by deflecting their shots back at them. There is a mini-boss in this game called Big Octo, who traps Princess Ruto, and fights with Link by going around a large platform in circles, with a weak spot on his back.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
In this game, they kept Octoroks as sea-dwellers. Like many elements of Majora's Mask, Octoroks and Big Octos were reused from Ocarina of Time. Octoroks are often required to get to various places by freezing them and using them as platforms. There are also two Big Octos guarding caves in the Southern Swamp, and the only way to get rid of them are certain items (such as the Bow & Arrows) and having Koume's boat crash into it as it's going by.

'The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages and Seasons''
Octoroks come in shades of Blue and Red, akin to the original Zelda's style. Blue enemies appear in the Past and during certain seasons, while Red appear in Present time and appear during certain seasons. They look exactly the same as Link's Awakening's Octoroks, because Flagship built these games upon data given to them by Nintendo of LA. In Oracle of Seasons there is one Gold Octorok who appears in Spool Swamp during the Summer.

Octorok Ring
In both games, Link can acquire a magical ring that transforms him into an Octorok. He cannot use any attacks in this form, but he is ignored by other Octoroks, and also cannot be eaten by Like Likes.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker


Three types of Octoroks are seen in The Wind Waker. Some Octoroks lurk around in shallow waters and fire rocks at intruders, hiding whenever someone comes near, while others dwell in the ocean, firing Bombs from their mouth at random travelers. A rare type of Octorok known as a Big Octo appears in certain areas, where Seagulls are circling. They await passing boats and create a whirlpool to suck up the boater and launch them far away. The number of eyes they have vary from four to twelve. They will die once all of their eyes are destroyed. This will also make whatever treasure they were guarding available. The Octorok's Figurine in the Nintendo Gallery states them as winning the "perfect attendance award". The explanation for this statement was that the Octoroks have appeared in every Zelda game to date. This award however is now outdated and lost thanks to octoroks absence in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

The Octorok sprite from The Legend of Zelda appears on Manny's backpack.

The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap
Octoroks once again return to land-dwelling Octoroks in red and blue, with blue being stronger than red. They fire rocks at Link, and through Kinstone fusing, sometimes appear as Golden Octoroks, which leave behind great wealth. The Boss of the Temple of Droplets (the fourth major boss of the game) is Big Octorok.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Breaking their "perfect attendance award" from The Wind Waker, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is the first game in the series to not include Octoroks. Although Octoroks themselves don't appear in Twilight Princess, there are three rooms in the game in which a toad version of them swims around water or lava. These three rooms are the Entrance Room of Goron Mines, where it swims in the lava toward the middle of the pit; the room where there is water in one part and two beamos in another part; and in a secret grotto in the Lake Hylia area.

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
In 'Phantom Hourglass, Octoroks appear both in land and sea. The earth-dwelling octoroks (similar to the ones in the original Zelda) vary, as some alternate direction to shoot, whereas others remain fixed in place. The sea fairing octoroks are almost identical to those of The Wind Waker.

Super Smash Bros. Melee
Octoroks appear as random enemies in Super Smash Bros. Melee, usually found in Boxes and Barrels, in their sea-dwelling form. They fire Rocks at the player, but the Rocks cannot be deflected back at them. The are also found in Adventure Mode, in the Legend of Zelda Adventure Stage. Octoroks have a Trophy as well. This Octorok is modeled after the Ocarina of Time Octorok, although its tentacles were replaced with four legs as in the first The Legend of Zelda.