Inside the Moon

The Moon Inside are a series of mini-Dungeons found inside the Moon in Majora's Mask.^[1]^[2] The Moon Dungeon are connected by the Grassy Playfield.^[3] It is the location of the final battle between Link and Majora's Mask.

Themes and Navigation[]

The Inside the Moon become accessible once Link and Tatl successfully summon the Four Giants to halt the descent of the Moon. Afterwards, Majora's Mask will discard the Skull Kid's unconscious body and enter the Moon's mouth,^[4] once more driving it down to Termina.^[5] To stop this, Link and Tatl follow the cursed Mask and transport to a serene, hilled landscape known as the Grassy Playfield.

Near a Tree atop a hill in the Grassy Playfield are four Moon Children playing. Each Moon Child bears the remains of Bosses that were plaguing each Giant. When spoken to, they ask Link to play with them in exchange for Masks. If Link complies, he will be teleported to one of the Inside the Moon, depending on which Moon Child was spoken to.

The individual Moon Dungeon are entirely optional, as Link must only speak to the Moon Child that sits beneath the Tree wearing Majora's Mask. If Link has not completed all of the Moon Dungeon, the Moon Child will ask Link to play with him before telling him that his Masks are weak.^[6] However, if Link has given away each of his Masks, the Moon Child will notice and offer to play "good guys against bad guys",^[7] giving Link the Fierce Deity's Mask before initiating the final battle.^[8]

Deku Dungeon[]

The Deku Dungeon is a simple trial that requires Deku Link to skip across spinning platforms containing Deku Flowers and Yellow Deku Flowers while also avoiding spinning, spiked bars. Link can only enter it through giving the Moon Child wearing Odolwa's Remains one Mask. On each side of the Deku Dungeon are Gossip Stones, which speak of the Garo's Mask, Romani's Mask, the Troupe Leader's Mask, the Postman's Hat and the Couple's Mask. On one of the ledges on the right-hand side is a Piece of Heart. The Moon Child at the end asks for one more Mask and in return asks Link whether the people he considers to be friends reciprocate the sentiment.^[9]

Goron Dungeon[]

The Goron Dungeon is a trial that requires Goron Link to race across thin strips of land, only being directed by bouncing off of open Treasure Chests. Link can only enter it through giving the Moon Child wearing Goht's Remains two Masks. Scattered across the Goron Dungeon are Gossip Stones that speak of Kamaro's Mask, the Captain's Hat, the Gibdo Mask, Don Gero's Mask and the Great Fairy Mask. The Moon Child at the end asks for two more Masks and in return questions Link whether the things that make him happy also make others happy.^[10]

Zora Dungeon[]

The Zora Dungeon is a watery maze that requires Zora Link to swim through interconnected tubes to reach a destination. Link can only enter it through giving the Moon Child wearing Gyorg's Remains three Masks. The path to the Moon Child is left, left, right, right. Similarly, the path to the Piece of Heart is left, left, right, left. In the Nintendo 3DS version, the path to the Moon Child is left, right, top and the path to the Piece of Heart is left, right, middle All other paths lead to air pockets with Gossip Stones.

The Gossip Stones in the Zora Dungeon speak of Stone Mask, the Bremen Mask, the Blast Mask, the Giant's Mask and the Mask of Scents. The Moon Child at the end asks for three more Masks and in return posits whether doing the right thing makes everyone happy.^[11]

Link Dungeon[]

The Link Dungeon is a linear set of rooms that require skills usable only by Link's Hylian form. Link can only enter it through giving the Moon Child wearing Twinmold's Remains four Masks. Inside, Link must fight a Dinolfos, a Garo Master, and an Iron Knuckle to progress through each room. The room with the Iron Knuckle yields a Treasure Chest containing Bombchus upon defeat, which are used to destroy the cracked wall hiding an Eyeball Switch, which summons a ladder when hit. The subsequent room also contains a cracked ceiling, which hides a frozen Eyeball Switch, requiring Link to hit it with a Fire Arrow in order to remove the bars protecting the door to the exit. Alternatively, Link can play the "Song of Storms" before the Gossip Stones found in the previous rooms. Doing so will make the ladder appear and will remove the bars from the door without the need to hit the Eyeball Switches.^[12] The last Moon Child asks for four more Masks before asking Link what his true face is.^[13]

Minor Enemies and Traps[]

Dinolfos
Garo Master
Iron Knuckle

Trivia[]

In Majora's Mask 3D, each of the Dungeons has a brief intro cutscene in which the camera briefly shows off the area. In Majora's Mask, these cutscenes (except the cutscene for the Link Dungeon) exist in the game's data, but are unused.^[14]

References

↑ Encyclopedia, Dark Horse Books, pg. 150
↑ "Moon Dungeons
This is the common name for the four mystical dungeons Link explored while inside Termina's Moon: the Deku Dungeon, the Goron Dungeon, the Zora Dungeon and the Link Dungeon." — The Great Hyrule Encyclopedia, Zelda.com (archive), retrieved January 10, 2017.
↑ "The Grassy Playfield
Four masked children prance around the lone tree atop the hill." (The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask — Official Nintendo Player's Guide, Nintendo of America, pg. 107)
↑ "A puppet that can no longer be used is mere garbage. This puppet's role has just ended..." — Majora (Majora's Mask)
↑ "... I shall consume. Consume... Consume everything." — Moon (Majora's Mask)
↑ "Will you play...with me? [Yes] You have only weak masks... So...you'll play?" — Moon Child (Majora's Mask)
↑ "You don't have any masks left, do you? Well, let's do something else. Let's play good guys against bad guys... Yes. Let's play that." — Moon Child (Majora's Mask)
↑ "Are you ready? You're the bad guy. And when you're bad, you just run. That's fine, right? Well... Shall we play?" — Moon Child (Majora's Mask)
↑ "Your friends... What kind of... people are they? I wonder... Do these people... think of you... as a friend?" — Moon Child (Majora's Mask)
↑ "What makes you happy? I wonder...what makes you happy...does it make...others happy, too?" — Moon Child (Majora's Mask)
↑ "The right thing...what is it? I wonder...if you do the right thing...does it make...everybody...happy?" — Moon Child (Majora's Mask)
↑ EmptyGarbageCan, How to Beat Twinmold Child Stage Without Bombchus - The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask Walkthrough, YouTube (Video), published April 5, 2015, retrieved September 7, 2018.
↑ "Your true face... What kind of... face is it? I wonder... The face under the mask... Is that... your true face?" — Moon Child (Majora's Mask)
↑ Pedalpowerluigi, MM: Unused Moon Trial Intros, YouTube (Video), published September 10, 2014, retrieved September 11, 2015.