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Ganon's Castle,(OoT | TWW)[1] also known as Ganon's Tower,(OoT | TWW)[2][3] is a recurring Dungeon in The Legend of Zelda series.

Overview[]

Ocarina of Time[]

Entrance to Ganon's Castle[]

Ganon's Castle is Ganon's stronghold and replaces Hyrule Castle over the seven years that Link sleeps in suspended animation after he withdraws the Master Sword from its pedestal. Although its exterior can be explored as early as Link becomes the Hero of Time, the dark castle floats over a large lake of magma, rendering it inaccessible until the Six Sages are awakened and create a colorful bridge of light, allowing Link to enter Inside Ganon's Castle.

OoT Rainbow Bridge

Once the Six Sages are awakened, Link is able to enter Ganon's Castle via the Rainbow Bridge

Themes and Navigation[]

Ganonscaaastle

The magical barriers protecting the inner part of Ganon's Castle

Within the tower's center is a giant spindle leading up to the top that is blocked off by a surrounding magic seal. The powerful force field that surrounds the spindle is powered by six barriers that are based on each of the adult Dungeons. Above each of the barriers is the Sage symbol that represents the element. At the end of each room lies the source of the barrier's energy, requiring Light Arrows to destroy them and seemingly freeing the respective Sage inside.

Ordered counterclockwise, the routes are:

  • Forest Barrier: Actually a wind-themed route, it revolves around collection of Silver Rupees over endless pits ventilated by fans, and a fight against Wolfos.
  • Water Barrier: Actually an ice-themed route, it revolves around pushing blocks on a slippery, icy floor and using Blue Fire to melt red ice.
  • Shadow Barrier: It revolves around crossing a prolonged chasm by activating some passages and walking through invisible platforms. The Golden Gauntlets are found in this room.
  • Fire Barrier: It revolves around collecting Silver Rupees across a huge room with lava while avoiding obstacles and enemies. The Golden Gauntlets are required here.
  • Light Barrier: It can only be accessed after the huge boulder blocking it is removed with the Golden Gauntlets, and revolves around exploring various small rooms, each one showing a different puzzle. Notably, the barrier's core is behind a fake wall.
  • Spirit Barrier: It revolves around collecting Silver Rupees while avoiding Blade Traps, a Light Beam puzzle, and the use of rare items like Bombchus and Fire Arrows.

There is a secret room under the bridge that contains various Business Scrubs and fairies, which can become helpful as Link dispels each of the barriers in Ganon's Tower. Once the six barriers have been disintegrated, the magical barrier will disappear, allowing Link to make his way up to the tower.

The way up to the castle's inner sanctum is a long staircase that leads to increasingly more dangerous rooms filled with a pair of Dinolfos, Stalfos, and even Iron Knuckles, which Link must defeat individually to progress up the tower. At the top awaits Ganondorf, the Evil King, who is patiently waiting for Link as he plays his own theme song on an organ while Princess Zelda remains trapped in a crystal above him. After Ganondorf is defeated in a heated battle, he destroys the throne room's ceiling in a fit of rage before falling face down, seemingly dead. The tower then begins to rumble, as the villain purposely intends to ultimately make his entire castle collapse to kill his foes under the rubble via his powerful dark magic, forcing Link and Princess Zelda to escape the tower within a three minute time limit.[4] All of the main doors of the castle have been blocked, and as such, it is up to the princess to use her powers and open up each of the alternate exits. The two take a long path that winds in and out of the castle, fighting enemies and dodging falling debris. Once the duo safely make it out, running for their lives, the castle collapses in front of them, with the tower sinking first followed by the rest into the foundation as well. When the destruction ends, Link and Princess Zelda believe they finally achieved victory. However, their archenemy Ganondorf, still alive, furiously appears among the ruins and transforms himself into his true form, Ganon, using the Triforce of Power. Link must defeat the massive beast once and for all to restore peace to Hyrule.

Master Quest[]

The mini-dungeons corresponding to each temple have been remixed in the Master Quest version of the game. Also, instead of two Beamos there are a Blade Trap, two Green Bubbles, two Armos and an Iron Knuckle in the first room.

  • Forest Barrier: The first room is identical. In the turbine room, there are now more Beamos and also an Armos. The Song of Time must be played several times.
  • Fire Barrier: Most platforms are moving or either rise or sink when Link stands on them. There are two big rocks now, and the Silver Rupees are in places that are difficult to reach.
  • Water Barrier: In the first room, there are several stalactites that fall from the ceiling, and the blue fire is surrounded by a pillar of water. Curiously, there is a lone Dead Hand's hand that is used to "reveal" the location of a switch hidden inside a wall that lowers the pillar of water when hit. In the second room there are three Keese, each one is different. There is a Silver Rupee puzzle and more red ice.
  • Shadow Barrier: There are now some invisible platforms and a Beamos. The Golden Gauntlets are no longer found here, and Fire Arrows are required to solve some puzzles.
  • Spirit Barrier: In the first room, instead of Silver Rupees there are some stone thrones blocking access to a switch. Some Fire Keese and a Torch Slug are found here, and there is an eye on the wall that if shot, makes an Iron Knuckle appear so the thrones can be destroyed. In the second room there are now Green Bubbles, ReDeads and Gibdos. There are several suns, just like in the original version. However, one makes a Wallmaster appear, others make chests with replenishment appear and the last one makes the chest with the Golden Gauntlets appear. The sun required for opening the door is blocked by the Spirit Symbol on the wall and only a small portion of it can be seen.
  • Light Barrier: In the first room, there is a puzzle involving torches that must be lit quickly to make a chest appear over the door. The next room is the same, but instead of having to collect Silver Rupees, it is now required to activate a switch while avoiding the boulder and a Beamos. In the fake barrier room, there are no enemies, but there is a switch that gives access to the last room hidden inside a torch.
Small Keys[]
  • In the original, there are two small keys in the light section.
  • In Master Quest, there are three in the forest, shadow, and spirit sections.
Minor Enemies and Traps[]


The Wind Waker[]

Entrance to Ganon's Tower[]

Ganon's Tower is the last dungeon in The Wind Waker and is located underneath the Great Sea in the now-forgotten land of Hyrule.[5] Link gains access to it after the Master Sword retrieves its full power and the Triforce of Courage is complete. When these two conditions are met and Link goes back to Hyrule Castle to ensure the princess's safety, he realizes that Ganon kidnapped her and fights two high-class Darknut soldiers. Afterward, the Hero of Winds goes outside and breaks the barrier that made Ganon's lair previously inaccessible.

The path to Ganon's Tower is full of enemies such as Peahats, Moblins, and even Darknuts, although they can all be easily avoided. Some chasms have to be crossed with the Hookshot as well.

Themes and Navigation[]

Once inside the tower, Link will find himself in a room with five doors. The main door leading deeper into the tower is initially blocked off by a magic seal. As such, the young hero must explore the areas behind the four remaining doors. Each area is based on one of the four main dungeons, and they all require the extensive use of its respective main dungeon item. In clockwise order, the routes are:

  • Dragon Roost Cavern: It revolves around crossing a large sea of lava. There are several items that are helpful for that purpose, including Deku Leaf, Grappling Hook, and Ice Arrows.
  • Forbidden Woods: It revolves around crossing an endless pit with the help of movable platforms and tongue-shaped elevators.
  • Earth Temple: It revolves around running through a prolonged passage guarded by undead enemies. Occasionally, the young hero must find a way to keep some switches pressed.
  • Wind Temple: It revolves around crossing a wind-operated obstacle while dodging an airborne Wizzrobe. Items like Deku Leaf, Iron Boots and Hookshot are required.

At the end of each mini-dungeon, Link must once again defeat its corresponding boss (rematch) in order to dispel a part of the barrier (respectively, Gohma, Kalle Demos, Jalhalla and Molgera). Once all of the four bosses have been defeated, the seal blocking off the door to the inner part of the dungeon will be broken.

Next is a puzzle room of sorts where Link can both open a quick exit to the Forsaken Fortress and enter a maze where Phantom Ganon confronts him incessantly; in the end, the young hero finds the Light Arrow upgrade, which defeats Phantom Ganon once and for all. This causes the phantom to leave its sword behind that Link must use to bust open a brick wall, leading to a room with a long flight of stairs infested with Moblins and Darknuts. After dispatching each of these enemies with the help of the Light Arrows, Link pushes past a large door and enters an extremely high and wide room where Princess Zelda sleeps on a bed, guarded by Ganondorf. Here, Link fights Puppet Ganon, who transforms into multiple shapes in 3 phases. After victory, Link climbs the room to finally reach the fortress's roof to fight Ganondorf in a final round.

Just like the rest of Hyrule, Ganon's Tower is completely flooded after King Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule makes his wish using the Triforce.

Minor Enemies and Traps[]

Trivia[]

OoT Phantom Ganon painting

The pictures of the Forest Temple's boss room has a silhouette of Ganon's Castle

  • In early development, Ganon's Castle was originally going to be the only setting for Ocarina of Time, with the game structured similarly to Princess Peach's Castle in Super Mario 64, and various different rooms in the castle itself serving as the dungeons. Although the original plot was scrapped in the final release, the Forest Temple has leftover elements, with the dungeon's architecture resembling a castle unlike all other Temples and the six paintings in the boss room where Phantom Ganon comes in and out actually shows Ganon's Castle in the background.
  • When Link enters the tower section of Ganon's Castle and Ganondorf is heard playing his theme song on a pipe organ, the music grows louder as the hero goes higher up toward the throne room.
  • Ganon's Castle in Ocarina of Time 3D has a different design from the original game where it has gargoyle statues on its sides and the overall structure appears more demonic with spikes and closer to a fortress, similar in akin to Bowser's Castle in the Super Mario franchise.
  • The Forest and Water Barriers of Ganon's Castle are the only ones not to stay akin to its temple theme. Instead of having forest and water-type challenges, they instead incorporate wind and ice elements, the water barrier having rooms similar to that of the Ice Cavern. This is due to the developmental version of each temple being wind and ice based respectively.[citation needed]
  • Although Ganon's Castle in Ocarina of Time is also known as "Ganon's Tower", it and the one from the Wind Waker are completely different architectures. Ironically, the Ganon's Tower from A Link to the Past has the Wind Waker counterpart reuse a similar structure.
  • In the original N64 version of Ocarina of Time, colored energizes can be seen flowing on the exterior of the castle during the escape, and in the cutscene where it collapses, they fade out and turn gray.
  • When viewed from the World Map in Four Swords Adventures, the Temple of Darkness resembles the original design for Ganon's Castle.
  • The Forest, Spirit, Shadow, and Fire Barriers had doors with bars in the original and Master Quest.
  • The Water Barrier had doors with bars in the original and one locked door and another door with bars in Master Quest.
  • The Light Barrier had two locked doors and one door with bars in the original and Master Quest.

Nomenclature[]

TMC Forest Minish Artwork Names in other regions TMC Jabber Nut Sprite
LanguageNameMeaning
JapanJapaneseガノン城 (Ganon-jō) (OoT)[6]Gannon/Ganon Castle
This table was generated using translation pages.
To request an addition, please contact a staff member with a reference.

Gallery[]

References

  1. Encyclopedia, Dark Horse Books, pg. 149 (OoT) & 153 (TWW)
  2. "Link...can you hear me? It's Rauru, the Sage. We six will gather our power to create a bridge to the castle where Ganondorf dwells... The castle's keep, which is known as Ganon's Tower, is protected by six evil barriers. Bring down the six barriers and save Princess Zelda!!" — Rauru (Ocarina of Time)
  3. "Long ago, Ganon's Tower was an impenetrable fortress that not even the daring and dauntless Knights of Hyrule could hope to assail." — King of Red Lions (The Wind Waker)
  4. "Link, listen to me! This tower will collapse soon! With his last breath, Ganondorf is trying to crush us in the ruins of the tower! We need to hurry and escape!" — Princess Zelda (Ocarina of Time)
  5. "Long ago, Ganon's Tower was an impenetrable fortress that not even the daring and dauntless Knights of Hyrule could hope to assail." — King of Red Lions (The Wind Waker)
  6. Nintendo Official Guidebook—The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Shogakukan) pg. 155
The Legend of ZeldaThe Adventure of LinkA Link to the PastLink's AwakeningOcarina of TimeMajora's MaskOracle of AgesOracle of SeasonsFour SwordsThe Wind WakerFour Swords AdventuresThe Minish CapTwilight PrincessPhantom HourglassSpirit TracksSkyward SwordA Link Between WorldsTri Force HeroesBreath of the WildTears of the KingdomLink's Crossbow TrainingHyrule Warriors

Breath of the Wild


Main Dungeons

Divine Beast Vah Ruta  · Divine Beast Vah Rudania  · Divine Beast Vah Medoh  · Divine Beast Vah Naboris  · Hyrule Castle  · Final TrialTriforce piece (TCB)

Mini-Dungeons

Trial of the Sword (TMT ) · Yiga Clan Hideout

Ancient Shrines

Akh Va'quot · Bosh Kala · Chaas Qeta · Daag Chokah · Dagah Keek · Dah Kaso · Dah Hesho · Daka Tuss · Dako Tah · Daqa Koh ·
Daqo Chisay · Dila Maag · Dow Na'eh  · Dunba Taag · Gee Ha'rah · Gorae Torr · Ha Dahamar · Hawa Koth · Hia Miu · Hila Rao · Ishto Soh ·
Ja Baij · Jee Noh · Jitan Sa'mi · Joloo Nah · Ka'o Makagh · Kaam Ya'tak · Kah Mael Shrine · Kah Okeo Shrine · Kah Yah Shrine · Kam Urog Shrine · Katah Chuki · Katosa Aug  · Kay Noh · Kaya Wan · Kayra Mah · Ke'nai Shakah · Keeha Yoog · Keh Namut · Kema Kosassa ·
Kema Zoos · Keo Ruug · Ketoh Wawai · Korgu Chideh · Korsh O'hu · Kuh Takkar · Kuhn Sidajj · Lakna Rokee · Lanno Kooh · Maag Halan · Maag No'rah · Maka Rah · Mezza Lo · Mijah Rokee · Mirro Shaz · Misae Suma · Mo'a Keet · Mogg Latan · Monya Toma · Mozo Shenno ·
Muwo Jeem · Myahm Agana · Namika Ozz · Ne'ez Yohma · Noya Neha · Oman Au · Owa Daim · Pumaag Nitae · Qua Raym · Qaza Tokki · Qukah Nata · Raqa Zunzo · Ree Dahee · Rin Oyaa · Ritaag Zumo · Rok Uwog · Rona Kachta · Rota Ooh · Rucco Maag · Saas Ko'sah ·
Sah Dahaj · Sasa Kai · Sha Gehma · Sha Warvo · Shada Naw · Shae Katha · Shae Loya · Shae Mo'sah · Shai Utoh · Shai Yota · Shee Vaneer · Shee Venath · Sheem Dagoze · Sheh Rata · Sho Dantu · Shoda Sah · Shoqa Tatone · Shora Hah · Soh Kofi · Suma Sahma · Ta'loh Naeg ·
Tah Muhl · Tahno O'ah · Tawa Jinn · Tena Ko'sah · Tho Kayu · To Quomo · Toh Yahsa · Toto Sah · Tu Ka'loh · Tutsuwa Nima · Voo Lota ·
Wahgo Katta · Ya Naga · Yah Rin · Zalta Wa · Ze Kahso · Zuna Kai

Ancient Shrines (TCB)

Etsu Korima · Kamia Omuna · Kee Dafunia · Keive Tala · Kiah Toza · Kihiro Moh · Mah Eliya · Noe Rajee · Rinu Honika · Rohta Chigah · Ruvo Korbah · Sato Koda · Sharo Lun · Shira Gomar · Takama Shiri · Yowaka Ita


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