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5[[caption-width-right:350:[[{{Pun}} "Oh, get a grip, Link!"]]]]
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10
11''Ocarina of Time'' marks the series' [[VideoGame3DLeap 3D debut]], which allows for a whole new level of [[NightmareFuel horror]].
12----
13[[foldercontrol]]
14
15[[folder: Storyline]]
16* The very first scene has Link's nightmare of Ganondorf, with his ''very loud'' theme playing as he stares down at Link with an evil grin. Then you hear [[EvilLaugh his laughter]] upon meeting him in person.
17* The Great Deku Tree's death, in which he ''withers''. For better or for worse, it's toned down in the 3DS remake.
18** The resulting loss of protection shows seven years later: When you come back to Kokiri Forest as an adult but before completing the Forest Temple, it's filled with monsters! No wonder [[InUniverse all the Kokiri are huddling in their homes scared out of their minds]]. Fortunately, it gets better after you clear the Forest Temple and the Deku Tree Sprout emerges to purify the forest once again.
19* When Link first meets Zelda, she shows him Ganondorf through a window. At that moment, Ganon looks in Link's direction. Just the fact that the biggest threat in the game knows of your existence so soon in the story is terrifying.
20* If you check the back alley of the Castle Town before you get the Master Sword but after Ganondorf chased after Zelda, you'll also find one of Zelda's royal guard [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWNGI87ptq4 mortally wounded]]. Turns out that Impa ran with Zelda in an impromptu escape, and Ganondorf and his loyal men promptly killed anyone standing in their way. [[KilledOffForReal Then the guard gasps his last breath]] after telling Link to hurry to the Temple of Time, showing the second on-screen death besides the Great Deku Tree as checking him afterwards has Navi remark that "he's not moving anymore." What's worse is that if you come back here at any other time or miss this opportunity, the body's gone but the populace seem none the wiser.
21* Death Mountain's whole "Raining a ''volcano'' on top of you" segment, especially since there's no real build-up to it -- one second, you're leisurely climbing up the mountain, the very next, the sky turns blood-red, the ground shakes, and giant rocks are falling on your head (the section is programmed so rocks will always fall on your head no matter what you do). And if you didn't get the hint earlier and buy a flame-resistant Hylian Shield, you're screwed.
22* The Golden Skulltula. If you're near one, it will always make that horrible scratching noise, [[ParanoiaFuel even if you can't see it]]. ''However'', if you happen to be in just the wrong spot at nightfall, say the ladder in Zora's River, when they come out to hunt... it can [[JumpScare spawn right where you are]] and knock you away. Worse, if you crash into a tree with a Gold Skulltula and jostle it out while unknowingly standing below the area it will land, it can '''pounce on you''' from above!
23** On the plus side, it's NightmareRetardant as well, since outside of some of the aforementioned points [[JumpScare where it can surprise you]], the Gold Skulltulas don't really attack; they just stay in place, waiting for you to slaughter them and collect their carapaces.
24* The final battle. Just when you think Link and Zelda have won, what with Ganondorf getting a NoHoldsBarredBeatdown from Link beforehand and having ''his entire castle come crashing down on him'', you hear a strange noise. Link goes to investigate, only for a ring of fire to surround the area, thus blocking him off from Zelda. Then Ganondorf's mangled, beaten body bursts out of the wreckage of his castle, with an expression of anger so chilling it could send fear into anyone's soul, his eyes lit with a bright, yellow glow, all while panting heavily. [[LetsGetDangerous Then he shows the Triforce of Power glowing on his clenched fist.]] Cue him roaring like a beast and transforming into Ganon, a horrifying, boar-like abomination wreathed in shadows, complete with two absolutely massive blades which alone dwarf Link himself in size. And just before Link can attack, he ''knocks the Master Sword right out of his hand'' and right beyond the ring of fire, [[SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic with an ominous droning theme playing]] during this final, seemingly hopeless battle between good and evil.
25** What makes it even more terrifying is that when Link takes damage during this boss fight, Zelda screams in horror from afar. On top of being sad, it's a grim reminder of just how much is at stake.
26** And ''after'' said NoHoldsBarredBeatdown, Ganondorf actually chokes out his last words ''while [[BloodFromTheMouth coughing up a horrifying amount of blood]]''.[[note]]This is probably why the blood was changed from red to green in later versions of the game, to minimize the shock value.[[/note]]
27[[/folder]]
28[[folder: Bosses and MiniBosses]]
29* [[HumanoidAbomination Dead Hand]] is one of the scariest bosses in the entire Zelda franchise. Fittingly enough, it serves as the boss for the [[SceneryGorn torture chamber/burial ground-themed]] Bottom of the Well. It remains hidden underground until some poor sap ends up being caught by one of the [[WhiteAndRedAndEerieAllOver pale, blood-soaked]] CreepilyLongArms dotted around the chamber in which it resides, after which it emerges from the ground while groaning, and it becomes a race to free Link before the creature can take a bite out of the hero.
30** Think the nightmare is over once you kill it at the Bottom of the Well? Think again, as it shows up later as a mini-boss in the Shadow Temple, guarding the Hover Boots. And heaven forbid if you're playing the Master Quest, as one of the changes it brings to the Shadow Temple is replacing an invisible Floormaster with a ''second Dead Hand'', though this one is missing its hands. Doesn't make it any less spooky, though.
31*** Speaking of the Master Quest, in the remixed water barrier room of [[TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon Ganon's Castle]], there's a lone Dead Hand... [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment hand]] in the room. [[ParanoiaFuel But there's no actual Dead Hand.]] Going in there without this information would likely result in ''incredible'' paranoia as to where the actual Dead Hand is, but no, [[NothingIsScarier it's nowhere to be seen]], and the hand is just there to indicate where a hidden switch is.
32** The main body of the creature itself has the same pale and blood-soaked texture as its many hands, alongside an unnaturally long neck, [[EyeScream seemingly no eyes]], and an overly large set of teeth. For added horror, a [[https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/zelda_gamepedia_en/images/9/90/OoT3D_Dead_Hand_Model.png/revision/latest?cb=20200601165036 closer look at its 3D model]] reveals that the hands on its main body have [[{{Fingore}} pointed bloodied stumps in place of fingers]].
33* The boss of the Shadow Temple, Bongo Bongo. It resembles a dismembered, decapitated giant man with a plated spine hanging down from the ceiling, with severed-looking floating hands and a flowerlike neck stump housing a large alien eyeball. Even if it is just an abstract evil spirit, it definitely evokes the themes of torture and execution in the depths of the temple. Even worse, its body is invisible for most of the fight without the Lens of Truth, and it perpetually beats on the drum that is the boss arena in a spooky ceremonial fashion.
34** Bongo Bongo's... vocal... noise... [[http://noproblo.dayjo.org/ZeldaSounds/OOT/OOT_BongoBongo_Murmur.wav is the single creepiest thing outside of the ReDeads]]. It almost sounds like "I want to die"...
35
36* The very form of Ganon in this game is truly demonic-looking. In the earlier 2D games, Ganon basically looked like a giant Moblin, making him somewhere between a PigMan and a humanoid bulldog. ''This'' incarnation of Ganon is a hulking bipedal abomination with tusks, horns, scales, hooved legs, and a draconic tail, all combining into something menacingly monstrous. Plus, his boss screen title just says '''"GANON"''' without any kind of a subtitle, and even Navi is stumped on how to beat him.
37
38* Gohma's first impression on the player, being not only the first boss, but a giant parasitic insect.
39** The lead-up to the fight is no better. You head into the boss room, the door abruptly slams shut behind you, everything goes dark, and you hear a horrible scraping noise seemingly coming from everywhere. At this point, you're supposed to look up, but plenty of gamers didn't figure that out right away, leading them to spin around trying to find the unseen horror that was about to leap out at them.
40
41* The leadup and aftermath to the fight against Dark Link can be described as surreal horror in boss form. When you first enter, you step into a room with no walls, but rather a long stretch of fog and water as far as the eye can see. Your shadow is seen following you as you walk through the water; however, when you step on the sand surrounding the tree and walk away, your shadow is gone and is now standing under the tree staring right at you with its red eyes. After the fight, Dark Link vanishes with a yell, and it's revealed that the entire room was an illusion. You were standing in a normal empty room the entire time. Furthermore, this battle comes right out of nowhere and is [[BigLippedAlligatorMoment never mentioned again or elaborated on]]. It's disturbing in how subtle it all is -- no jumpscares, no in-your-face creepy imagery, just pure MindScrew all around.
42
43* Volvagia's death: It flies around the Boss room, writhing in pain, and ultimately ''burns off its own flesh'' (or its flesh burns away as a result of Ganondorf's revival spell being broken), revealing its skeleton. ''Creepy!'' The battle itself isn't a picnic, either, considering that Volvagia routinely attempts to ''bring the roof of the Fire Temple down on your head'', something not seen in any other boss battle up to this point.
44* Volvagia itself -- being a huge, fire-breathing dragon with a flaming mane and a reptilian, skull-like head -- is scary enough, but it's said that not only does Ganondorf plan to feed all the peaceful Gorons to it as both a sacrifice and [[MakeAnExampleOfThem a warning to the rest of Hyrule]], but after that, he intended to [[FinalSolution use Volvagia to decimate any regions of the kingdom that still dared to oppose him]]. Ganondorf effectively resurrected a WMD.
45** Then if that wasn't bad enough, Volvagia's head crashes right next to Link, wheezes for a few seconds, before finally burning up and leaving a Heart Container behind. The manga adaptation for the game ramps this up to a FridgeHorror by having Volvagia be [[ShootTheDog a pet dragon Link once had and was forced to slay after Ganondorf turned it into a killer feral beast]]. Those last wheezes are it [[TearJerker mournfully gasping, "Link... Link..."]]
46* Barinade, the boss of [[WombLevel Jabu-Jabu's Belly]], is an extremely loathsome and disturbing creature. It's an [[ShockAndAwe electric]], pulsating anemone-like parasite with obnoxious veins and tentacles all over its body. It hangs in the "ceiling" of Jabu-Jabu's insides, slowly and painfully draining the deity of his LifeEnergy. Thanks to Barinade’s veins, pink coloring, and the way it’s attached to the deity, [[EvilIsVisceral the parasite closely resembles a giant heart or some other kind of organ]], tricking many players into thinking they were fighting Jabu-Jabu’s own innards. Additionally, the parasite surrounds itself with several ElectricJellyfish, which can give Link a nasty shock if he comes too close. The first part of the battle includes cutting off three of Barinade's tentacles to detach it from its host, and while it's completely necessary in order to save Jabu-Jabu, [[NauseaFuel it's quite stomach-turning]], and the severed tentacles drip green sludge afterwards. After that, the creature (whose seemingly only purpose is to stay attached to its host) starts to wildly spin around in the chamber in a nasty way. If you manage to hit and stun it, it will for some reason ''sink deep into the ground'' ([[BodyHorror remember, this is inside a living creature]]). And topping off all this nastiness is its [[SarcasmMode graceful]] death animation; [[FamilyUnfriendlyDeath it develops ulcers all over its body, then explodes into green goo, leaving chunks of flesh on the floor]].
47** The 3DS version adds a little detail to the fight. Far away from the boss room, scattered across Jabu-Jabu's innards, there are three Parasitic Tentacles, colored red, green, and blue, which you have to defeat to progress. You see three parts of these tentacles; the top, the middle, and the base. The invulnerable middles of each tentacle block off a part of the dungeon. The vulnerable ends of the tentacles dangle from the ceilings of three separate rooms; once defeated, their middles wither away. But what of the tentacles' bases? You wouldn't know it in the N64 version, where they're colored the same fleshy pink as Barinade's body... but the bases of each Parasitic Tentacle are the very tentacles that attach Barinade to the ceiling. In the 3DS version, ''they're red, green, and blue.'' Just one little detail changed to let us know that Barinade isn't just sucking the life out of Jabu Jabu from one comfy spot, like an engorged tick; the hideous thing has tunnelled its own hungry flesh through ''kilometers'' of the dying god's insides.
48* King Dodongo's death after its boss battle; it stumbles and falls into the lava pit in the middle of the room and is incinerated, complete with its body visibly twitching as it dies. Part of its charred face and foot are still sticking out of the now-solid floor afterwards, too.
49[[/folder]]
50
51[[folder: Locations and Enemies]]
52* The House of Skulltula in Kakariko Village. Go inside to find yourself in a dark room filled with cobwebs, and then the Skulltulas themselves drop down. They don't hurt you (if you don't hurt them...), but it's revealed that these were ''a normal family cursed into becoming Skulltulas, with no hope of escape unless some brave Hero of Time found time off his quest to collect Gold Skulltula tokens''. [[BodyHorror Parts of their human faces are easily seen]] in the Skulltula, all twisted in some form of agony. If you do decide to [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential attack their back end]], they let out a horrifying, inhumane scream.
53* It's daylight, and you're casually sauntering about Kakariko Graveyard, entering the graves in hope of finding heart pieces. As you enter one, you notice a man huddled at the back of the grotto/grave. And then it gets up and SCREAMS, paralyzing you. Congratulations, you've had your first encounter with ''the [=ReDeads=]''.
54** As if the scream wasn't frightening enough, there's also the creepy sound effect heard when a [=ReDead=] is latched onto Link, made worse by being mixed with his usual grunts of pain when taking damage.
55** Their wholly inhuman moans are just as nightmarish.
56** To say nothing of the official artwork of a [=ReDead=]: A heavily emaciated corpse-like...''[[HumanoidAbomination thing]]'' with a wooden mask bearing teeth and empty eye holes, its arms in what could be charitably described as a "mid-level zombie pose."
57** The [=ReDeads=] are even worse for newcomers to the series because it may not be clear that they don't come back to life after being defeated.
58** As if coming out of the Temple of Time to see what has become of Hyrule wasn't horrifying enough, one of the first things you notice as an adult is that Hyrule Market--formerly a safe place to shop and talk to people--is now home to a ''horde of [=ReDeads=]''. What can make this even ''worse'' is that for players who aren't aware of what's really happened, it could appear that the [=ReDeads=] '''are all that remains of the townspeople!''' Thankfully, this isn't the case as they managed to escape to Kakariko Village, but it's still a terrifying thought!
59*** The state of Hyrule Castle and its adjacent locations. Dark skies. Whistling wind. The lush castle grounds reduced to {{Mordor}}-level desolation. Ganon's Castle hovering over a gigantic lava pit.
60** In this game, the series' recurring Gibdos are essentially the same as [=ReDeads=], except that they are always ready to attack unlike a typical [=ReDead=], which is briefly harmless when others in the same room are defeated. They're also guarding the Lens of Truth.
61*** The Master Quest version of the Spirit Temple packs in a few Gibdos. A particularly notable instance of this is after receiving the Mirror Shield, where the player can unlock a door using a sun switch to get the boss key. There's a Gibdo inside, standing ''right in front of the door''.
62*** The Market also makes it easy to see what they do to a nearby [=ReDead=] corpse after you've defeated it. Ever wonder why [=ReDeads=]' lifeless corpses stay on screen for so long without disappearing?
63* The Bottom of the Well. Hooooooo boy, the Bottom of the Well. Just the ''appearance'' of the area is creepy enough, with the walls and floor looking like exposed innards, complete with a few skeletons scattered about. It certainly doesn't help that the boss of this area is the aforementioned Dead Hand.
64** Also, the fake walls, which are really eerie to pass through, and the fake floors, which can be hard to spot even ''with'' the Lens of Truth. If the Water Temple is the designated [[ThatOneLevel Scrappy Level]], then the Shadow Temple and the Bottom of the Well are the Nightmare Levels. On an added note, the room that you fall into through the fake floors has a poisonous pond in the middle. That's fine and all, but look at the "plants". [[FridgeHorror In reality]], they're arms and hands.
65*** The Master Quest version of the Bottom of the Well is even more nightmarish than the original. In the original, you can grab the Lens and be out of there in five minutes if you know where to go, because the room that has it is right next to the entrance. In the rearranged Master Quest edition, you ''have'' to brave the entire place, and not only that, deal with constant Wallmasters. This includes a Wallmaster and a Floormaster in the '''same room'''.
66** There is one room of nothing but coffins and Gibdos. You have to open all the coffins, which releases several Keese at once who then immediately ''catch on fire'', and to get the key from the room, you have to jump inside a coffin. You'll quickly learn that Gibdos are [=ReDeads=] in disguise. If you are reading this in the dark, good luck sleeping tonight.
67*** In the Master Quest remake, that room ''has no key''. That means that players who remember that room and go in there expecting to be rewarded for fighting the Gibdos get ''nothing''. Oh, and the first Gibdo is ''right in front of the door''. Good luck reacting to that!
68** The Master Quest version of the dungeon also packs in more [=ReDeads=]; they put a [=ReDead=] right next to the entrance ladder to catch out those lacking in patience, and the Lens of Truth now appears right in the middle of a large group of [=ReDeads=]. It's absolutely nerve-wracking to try and get that item, hoping the Sun's Song doesn't run out at the worst possible time...
69** As if the well couldn't get creepy enough, smack in the middle of it there's a large wooden X shape called a saltire with a pool of blood underneath it. It's pretty easy to assume that people were tied to/crucified with this thing.
70*** There's also a fake floor directly underneath this saltire. The details of the Well get worse the longer one thinks about them.
71** The well is said to be in the same place the man with the Eye of Truth's house once stood. One has to wonder what went on in his basement back then, and the origins of the Dead Hand.
72** When you leave the well with the Lens of Truth in hand and return to Kakariko Village as an adult, the village is ''on fire''. Link comes up to Sheik who is looking at the well and tells him to step back, only to be attacked by...''something'' barely visible (in the form of a gray mist). He readies himself to defend against the unknown entity, only for him to get knocked out and the screen [[SmashToBlack cuts to black]].
73* Skulltulas and their variants, which appear as early as the first dungeon, are spiders with a terrifying skull on their backs. Walltulas like to suddenly charge at you if you try to climb past them, while its larger brethren have a knack for [[JumpScare dropping out of nowhere (or being one of the first things you see when you enter a room) onto an unsuspecting Link]].
74** [[FromBadToWorse Even worse]] are Surprise Skulltulas who hide above the ceiling (which not even the Lens of Truth reveal) until you get within range and then reveal themselves. And the Shadow Temple has a hallway with four of them in a row.
75** In the original, Surprise Skulltulas don't appear until the Shadow Temple. In Master Quest, they drop one on you in the freakin' Dodongo's Cavern. Dear ''God''.
76* Normally, when you enter a named location, you see a subtitle indicating the name of the location (e.g., "Hyrule Field", "Kakariko Village", "Bazaar"). However, when you enter the Kakariko Windmill, instead of something like "Windmill", you just get "?" as a subtitle, indicating that something is rather off about the place. There is: It's the exit from the catacombs you race Dampé through, which is treated by the game as part of the same area as the windmill.
77* The secondary (primary) purpose of the Shadow Temple is a tomb/dungeon (torture-chamber kind). One of the first areas is a room lined with holes with skulls inside them. Several rooms have walls and ceilings [[NothingButSkulls made of skulls, including the Dead Hand's chamber, which is a hollowed-out mass grave. Of skulls.]] [[FridgeHorror Studying the details of an unequally disturbing dungeon makes things worse than they already are]].
78** It gets worse in the 3DS remake. The '''original''' graphics of this game tried (and failed) to show the Shadow Temple in AFormYouAreComfortableWith. In the remake, ''each skull has been replaced by a full skeleton!'' Those aren't rooms full of skulls, they're actually rooms full of crushed skeletons.
79** One of the things the skulls say to you if you get close enough is "Shadow Temple... here lies Hyrule's blood-stained history of greed and hatred...", implying that at some point before this game, the Shadow Temple was a very active and grisly dungeon/jail/torture emporium. And considering that the game states that Hyrule was in a state of civil war at the time of Link's birth, said point was probably not too far into the past since Link is only 9-10 years old at the start of the game.
80
81** While jumping off the boat and to a nearby ledge is the right course of action, one of the Player's Guides still makes it frightening by noting that few things are as they seem in the dungeon, implying that there ''could'' be something dangerous or creepy lurking there.
82** In a room after you get off the boat, it's ''surrounded'' by ''Floormasters''. Remember the saltire in the well? There's ''another one'' with a blood-stained floor as well.
83** In the [=3DS=] remake, the day when you play the Shadow Temple and board the ferry will be the day you gain insomnia. You'll see. There are TONS of ghosts floating about the room the ship is going through.
84*** And then the ship starts falling. Not sinking; FALLING. And if you don't manage to find the nearest expanse of ground and jump onto it within three seconds...
85** The worst part about it all? It has a straightforward layout, unlike most of the other dungeons in the game. This on its own wouldn't be so bad, except it goes deeper and deeper into the ground. And the further down you go, the more it feels like you're descending into Hell itself. The final apprach to the boss room reinforces this with a ride on a boat, invoking the "ferry-to-the-underworld" style myths.
86* The Forest Temple. From the dark atmosphere, to the enemies (Skulltula, Wallmasters and Floormasters, Stalfos, the four Poe sisters), to the boss (Phantom Ganon), it's a generally unsettling place. However, most creepy of all is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_G7Haf1aOI the music.]]
87** And around one minute and ten seconds into the track, ''demented laughter starts playing in the background''...
88*** Also unsettling about the musical track is its random shifts in volume; at certain points, its melody suddenly grows very loud, then just as suddenly drops to low volume. It all adds to the discordant feel of the entire dungeon, where everything is out of order.
89** When you first enter the boss room, it appears to be empty. If you try to go back, spikes pop up to box you in the empty arena. Then, surprise! Ganondorf on his horse, coming right at you!
90** Phantom Ganon, who then proceeds to [[TearOffYourFace rip his own face off]]!
91** Paranoia is rampant in the Forest Temple. A lot of veteran players just note "something about it" that specifically makes them want to turn around and make sure nothing is behind them. And most of them will agree it's the threat of being snagged by a Wallmaster.
92** Look at the algae growing up on the walls of the hallways. [[FridgeHorror They have a human shape]]...
93** You're 7–10 and have just bought ''Ocarina of Time''. Ever since your first encounter with the [=ReDeads=], you've been pretty scared, but so far, you still press on. Arriving at the Forest Temple, you enter a room and Navi says "Watch for the ''shadows of monsters'' that hang from the ceiling!" You think to yourself, okay, sure. Then you see a chest on the wall and go to take a closer look, suddenly shivering as an ominous sound starts up, still not noticing the large shadow below you. Then all of a sudden, a massive hand grabs you and carries you off. All you can do is scream your head off along with Link as you are returned to the entrance of the dungeon (presumably dead) minus one heart. Congratulations! You've just encountered your first Wallmaster! [[SarcasmMode Good luck sleeping after that!]]
94** If you are playing ''Master Quest'', the Forest Temple accelerates your first dungeon encounter with the dreaded [=ReDead=] by placing one out of the blue. It's the one enemy that ramps the Forest Temple's scare factor to maximum.
95** The [[https://gamepedia.cursecdn.com/zelda_gamepedia_en/8/8a/OoT_Phantom_Ganon_Artwork.png?version=d202b43c11b768bb2f50aa0f9c59713a official art of Phantom Ganon]] appears to have no lower jaw, but if you look closer, you'll see his mouth is actually sewn shut.
96** There's also some FridgeHorror when you consider what happened beforehand. You come to the Forest Temple as a big, well-armed adult; and with the creepy, dishevelled atmosphere and stronger monsters on top of it being haunted by malevolent spirits, you're probably getting freaked out by it as it is. Meanwhile, Saria entered this place ''as a small, unarmed girl with only the body and strength of a pre-teen'' and her pink Fairy accompanying her. What the hell did ''she'' have to go through to make it as far as she did?
97* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDcQVzu_kc8 The original Fire Temple music.]] The Arabesque chanting combined with the droning noise in the background gives off a very unsettling vibe.
98* [[EvilHand Wallmasters and Floormasters]]. At least [[ExpositionFairy Navi]] gives you a warning about the Wallmasters, but the Floormasters would split into three little bitty Floormasters. If you didn't kill all three fast enough? They would turn back into the one big Floormaster. Oh and hey... let's not even mention the Invisible Floormasters.
99** There are even points in the Spirit Temple (especially Master Quest) where hitting a wrong Sun Switch will release one of those things.
100*** There's a room in the Spirit Temple portion of [[TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon Ganon's Castle]] where you have four Sun Switches. The wrong ones ALL release Wallmasters. Oh, [[SarcasmMode how lovely it is]] to hear the "incorrect" sound effect followed by that horrible rushing wind...
101*** In Master Quest's Spirit Temple, there's a room with Stalfos and Wallmasters. Two at the start and three more that appear if you hit the sun switches. And it's a "kill 'em all" room, meaning you ''have'' to light the fake sun switches. The terrors of lighting a sun switch and knowing what's coming, but still being unprepared for that damn rushing wind sound and ominous shadow is terrifying and will more than likely give you nightmares.
102** It's even creepier with that ominous sound effect that plays whenever one of them is hovering over you, closing in.
103** The game designers were cruel enough to place multiple Wallmasters and Floormasters in the Spirit Temple and Bottom of the Well in the Master Quest version of the game, including ones that come out of nowhere if you push a wrong sun block into the sunlight. The sun blocks in question are often the ones closest to the light, which you'll probably push into the light first, on instinct.
104** In a horrifying case of WhatCouldHaveBeen, screenshots from an earlier version of the game had the Wallmasters look like ''[[https://gamepedia.cursecdn.com/zelda_gamepedia_en/e/e2/OoT_Wallmaster-Floormaster_Concept_Screenshot.png this]]''. Imagine turning a corner and running into that monstrosity.
105** In the 3DS remake, Wallmasters are even ''worse'', having their shadows redesigned from a generic large circle to a hand-shaped shadow. Not only that, but they've been redesigned to look closer to their appearance in earlier versions of the original, seen above. [[SarcasmMode Have fun sleeping tonight]]...
106* [[FanNickname The Invisible Skulltula Cavern]] past Zora's Domain as Adult Link, where Jabu Jabu used to be. You gain access to a hidden cave passage, and enter to find nothing... until you're slapped in the face with invisible monsters.
107** It gets worse. If you visit the Great Fairy Fountain at night, you will listen to the battle music signaling something is close, keeping you on your toes. First-time players, at this point, will likely not have the Silver Gauntlets required to lift the rock that grants access to the Invisible Skulltula Cavern and thus will keep wondering where the foe is from. It is one of the most terrifying instances of the NothingIsScarier tropes.
108* So, after pulling out the Master Sword, Link gets put into a seven-year coma... but while his body has matured, he's still basically a nine-year-old. A nine-year-old who, first thing after leaving the Temple of Time, finds the Town Market in ruins and ''filled with zombies''. Not to mention he has to go through all those temples with equally scary things, like those ''Wallmasters'' and other zombies and freaking ''Dead Hand''. And he experiences all this ''[[FridgeHorror while he is pretty much still a nine-year-old boy]]''. Imagine going through a well full of rotting corpses and dead things while you're nine.
109** The worst part? Link ''is actually in his nine-year-old body'' when he goes through the Well, after having just gone through three temples in his sixteen-year-old body. So he's not only got the mind of a nine-year-old, but the smaller body and diminished strength of one, too.
110** The other enemies found in the Fire Temple, while relatively easy to defeat, don't skimp on the creepiness. The Flare Dancer has an EvilLaugh to match its sentient bomb center, which growls out ''"Uh-OH!"'' if you catch it and expands and explodes upon defeating it. Meanwhile, the Torch Slug's slithering sounds ''identical'' to the Like Likes, and since both are abundant in the temple (especially in the Master Quest version), you're never certain which one will be encountered.
111* That one [=ReDead=] by the door as you escape Ganon's Castle. It's the sole [=ReDead=] in the game which isn't stunned with the Sun's Song (due to use of the Ocarina being disabled because of the recent fight with Ganondorf before the castle started collapsing), and is placed just right so careless people will have to run straight past it. It has the dubious honor of being the very last enemy you face before the final boss.
112* Lake Hylia when the water is drained is creepy. It looks like a giant crater with a little bit of water and a large mound in the middle. It's made even creepier by the fact that as you head towards the center, the overworld music stops playing and it starts storming. Not to mention Lake Hylia is now swarming with Guays and more Blue Tektites than ever before, something that doesn't change even after you complete the Water Temple and refill the lake to its former glory.
113** Picture this: you're in Lake Hylia or Zora's Domain, just swimming along leisurely, and then you get [[JumpScare a faceful of Octorok out of nowhere]]. These pests appear out of nowhere, like little aquatic Skulltulas; and dealing with them in the water isn't helped by the awkward controls for swimming while shielded.
114* The Peahats. When you first approach one during the daytime, they leap out at you and take flight in a manner that's all too reminiscient of an out-of-control helicopter, with its huge whirling blades ripping up the ground as it spirals menacingly toward you. Approaching the things at night is no better, as the way they make an uncomfortably fleshy shift in the ground and spawn miniature versions of themselves when you attack them can easily bring back memories of the facehugger eggs.
115* Normal Keese on their own aren't scary. Flaming Keese are terrifying as Child Link, as these will set your Kokiri Shield on fire, leaving you effectively defenceless until you get a new shield. The game even gives you a text box that's not too dissimilar to a jump scare.
116-->'''Navi''': [[OhCrap Your shield is gone!]]
117** Fire Keese lose a lot of their fear factor as Adult Link, who uses only metal shields and has weapons that can quickly stop them. However, the Ice Cavern has ''Ice'' Keese, who burn with chilly blue flames that freeze Link solid. You have to shake the joystick until Link wrestles free, and the Ice Keese usually come in groups (and often paired with the incredibly bothersome Freezards), so you need to wipe out the lot of them to remove the frustration factor of the mini-dungeon.
118* [[WombLevel Jabu Jabu's Belly]]. You start by feeding Jabu Jabu a fish so he ''swallows you''. And that's just the start. Hitting the walls (read: his insides) doesn't cause the usual sword rebounding effect, but instead your sword completes its animation as you hear a groan and see a little splatter of blue "blood". There are strange holes in the "ground" that take you to unexpected destinations. At one point, you have to sever a couple "Parasitic Tentacles" to advance. Some areas have water... or what we can only hope is water, given where we're in.
119** And it is so much worse in the 3DS version. High-quality graphics show realistic yellow-pink blotchy walls, sphincters for doors, and connective tissue in the hallways. Not to mention the disgusting way Barinade dies; Jabu-Jabu's antibodies tear it a new one. Thank goodness [[GentleGiant the deity is on your side]].
120** Not only do you get sucked in whole, turning around to see the entrance shows his massive teeth have already closed, which to a first-time player (especially a young child), it looks like there's no escape. You're ''stuck'' inside that whale until you finish your mission. Fortunately, it turns out that you can walk out [[ViolationOfCommonSense even though there's no visible opening]].
121* The Stalchildren, creepy [[DemBones skeletons]] of children that spawn nonstop at night when you're Child Link. Destroy enough of them, and a [[GiantMook giant one]] appears! [[NightmareRetardant Slightly mitigated]] because the giant Stalchildren die [[FakeUltimateMook just as easily as their smaller counterparts]], but it can still make you jump if you aren't expecting it.
122** Worse, crossing Hyrule Field to get from Kokiri Forest to Hyrule Castle takes all [[InUniverseGameClock day]], and unless you roll nonstop, the bridge ''will'' retract just before you get to it, leaving you to fend off Stalchildren all night (eventually spawning the aforementioned giant Stalchild) or flee to Gerudo Valley or Zora's River[[labelnote:*]]Going to Kakariko Village or Lon Lon Ranch doesn't work, because time doesn't pass at either of those locations[[/labelnote]] for safety until the sun comes back.
123* Guays and Leevers also have the same "kill enough and a giant one appears" property as Stalchildren do. The former is worse just because you may not realize one has spawned until you see what looks like an enormous, deranged Toucan Sam swooping into view behind you. And guess what? Manipulating the the game's internal clock demonstrates that [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqTz8bI_dS4 the Stalchildren will just keep getting bigger and bigger until the sun comes back up.]]
124** The giant Leever is not meant to be underestimated, either. Instead of a green body and one attempt to hit you in a straight line before burrowing into the sand, this one is purple and can change direction, because it ''relentlessly chases directly after you!''
125* This is the first time we see Like Likes as three-dimensional creatures. The way they move and are textured, the sound they make, coupled with their property of eating special tunics and shields,[[note]]Which if they spit you out into a bottomless pit, can become unrecoverable, forcing you to pay a lot of rupees for new ones[[/note]] makes them so creepy to fight.
126* Ganon's Castle itself is perhaps the creepiest place in the entire game. The music itself is enough to frighten people.
127* For great measure, there is the Royal Family Tomb. After heading into the graveyard to learn the Sun's Song and get the Hookshot from Dampé (whichever you decide to do first), upon entering the crypt, you first have to fight off a slew of Keese, then have to weave around both a team of [=ReDeads=] ''and'' an acidic green pond and learn the song itself in a room filled with skulls and bones of departed royal family members. And since there is only one exit, you have to turn around and face the zombies all over again! Fortunately, the song acts as a tool to freeze them in their place. Also, on both sides of the headstone, there lies the graves of the two composers of the song, Sharp and Flat, but in an [[ContinuityNod eerie nod]] to ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'', their Poe-esque ghosts [[JumpScare pop up]] from their respective graves and ''attack you'' if you decide to read their stones! Even worse, due to the improved graphics, they look much scarier than they were in the previous game!
128* ''Ocarina'' showcases Poes, the spirits of the deceased that [[BarredFromTheAfterlife refuse to pass on]] or let go of their lingering feelings of utter hatred for the world. One can only speculate what caused them to have such malicious ill will for creation and the living.
129* The various Scrub villains seen throughout the game (Deku, Business, and Mad) may startle one due to their appearance and way of attacking; bulb eyes, long trumpet-shaped snouts, shrub-like hair that allows them to hide in the grass, particularly if you get too close, and of course those Deku Nuts they shoot at you (although upon defeating the Business ones, they'll sell you something to avoid further punishment). In one corner of the Lost Woods, there's a grotto that's called the "Forest Stage" in which you can wear one of the masks purchased from the Happy Face Salesman to present to the crowd of Deku Scrubs to get a partially luck-based reaction out of them. The best-case scenarios will net you Rupees and an opportunity to carry more Deku Sticks or Deku Nuts. The worse-case scenario? They'll get angry and mercilessly attack you until you either are killed or leave the area completely.
130* The Lake Hylia Laboratory seems like a normal lab at first. On closer inspection, we see that the Professor's specimens and other animals are this due to SpecialEffectFailure of the crab on his shelf, the giant squid in a tank next to the entrance, and a great white shark residing at the bottom of the pool in the lab (even if it is behind a cage with bars). The 3DS re-release takes it up to eleven by making the shark look more realistic and replaces the giant squid with a (possibly dead or otherwise pickled) Octorok.
131** The Professor himself is a pretty creepy-looking fellow. His pale complexion, skeletal face, and staring eyes makes him resemble a reanimated corpse more than anything. Additionally, his idle animation has him wobble his head and making chewing motions with his mouth, which only adds to the creepiness.
132* Even though Dampé is a good guy who still manages to help you from beyond the grave by giving you the much-needed hookshot, there's something unsettling about his shack. Aside from the inside only being able to be viewed from the audience's POV (and trying to do it from another will set off that horrible "incorrect" beeping noise), it also has the same music as the infamous House of Skulltula and just has a weird vibe to it.
133* On the topic of Dodongo's Cavern, consider the giant Dodongo skull that Link has to bomb in order to complete the dungeon, as well as the ribcage running over the walls and ceiling of the main hub room. Just imagine what it was like back when that thing, quite possibly the single largest creature ever shown in the ''entire Zelda franchise'', was still alive...
134* According to Fado, if an adult gets lost in the Lost Woods, they become a Stalfos, which is almost certainly the fate of the Master Craftman's son. It doesn't help that Fado openly wonders if Link will become one as well, which likely ''would'' have happened if he didn't have Navi to guide him...
135** Fado herself deserves mention. Not only is she a CreepyChild extraordinaire in that scene, the fact that she's so very normal at the beginning of the game before all hell breaks loose makes you wonder what the hell happened to her...
136* Though the shock of it has lessened since ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'', it is still possible to trigger the Happy Mask Salesman's fury and get a flash of RedEyesTakeWarning if you fail to properly compensate him after selling one of his masks. Needless to say, any kid who saw that is likely to turn around and collect his remaining rupees as fast as they can.
137-->'''Happy Mask Salesman:''' ''[[[SlasherSmile eyes erupt in anger without him changing his smile]]]'' WHAT?! You don't have my money?! How dare you! You'd better bring me my money... ''or else!''
138* Moblins appear in pretty much every game of the franchise, but as with the aforementioned Like Likes, they make their first 3D appearance here. These hulking beasts lurk around the corner mazes of the Sacred Forest Meadow, ready to charge at any unsuspecting victim with lightning speed to either knock them down or impale them (hence the spears they carry).[[note]]Even if you so much as peek around the corner and pull away as fast, they'll still attempt to ram you like they're spring-loaded, ready for action.[[/note]] Also of note that they're the only enemy in the game that Navi ''can't'' Z-target. And there's that ''[[HellIsThatNoise awful]]'' roar they bellow out once they spot you and the fact that your powerful Master Sword that's good enough to stop Ganon is '''useless''' against them. Even upon defeating all of them, you still have to face [[GiantMook the biggest one]], who's twice their size, has a massive club that will knock you flying back if it or one of its waves hits you, and whose trembles are so powerful that they [[TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou shake the screen!]] Fortunately, their appearances are limited, only being seen here and in the Adult Link version of the Spirit Temple in ''Master Quest''.
139* Lon Lon Ranch at night as Kid Link is surprisingly creepy. During the daytime, it's quite peaceful, with the horses trotting about and Malon, Talon, and Ingo around for company. But at night, all of them are gone, and you see the crow-like Guays in the sky just chirping about and looking kinda harmless at first... until they start ''swooping down at you and attacking you'' while the anxiety-inducing enemy encounter theme plays.
140* Wolfos, human-sized werebeasts. They spawn out of nowhere and are guaranteed to catch a rookie player off-guard, and their introduction has no warning. A veteran will remember the places they appear. In the normal gameplay, the first one shows up almost immediately in the very first area of the back end of the Lost Woods as an entrance guardian, and two more get in the way of the Forest Temple front door (thankfully, fighting them is optional, so you can dash right past them). And their ''howls'' are so haunting; whether attacking, guarding, retreating, or defeated, they sound so forlorn. You will often find them in groups of two, and Wolfos run around you before trying to rake their claws into you twice (easily countered by shielding yourself), and will raise their arms up if you try brazenly attacking them, forcing you to strike right before they do. Then there's the EliteMook version: White Wolfos, the mini-boss of the Ice Cavern and a surprise spawn in the Gerudo's Training Ground. ''These'' beasts move even faster than regular Wolfos, have menacing red eyes, are very nimble, and wallop the crap out of Link if their slashes connect.
141[[/folder]]
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