The 10 BEST Zelda Boss Fight Easter Eggs

10 Best Zelda Boss Fight Easter Eggs

Welcome to MojoPlays, and today we’re looking at our favorite Easter Eggs found in “Zelda” boss fights, ranging from silly jokes to secret ways of defeating them.

Ganon’s Custom Swords

“The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker” (2003)

It’s always a good time when Phantom Ganon shows up. Not just because it’s usually a fun fight, but because he comes with cool Easter Eggs. When he appeared in “Wind Waker,” fans translated the Hylian on his sword to read ‘Zubora Gabora,’ which are the names of the two sword smithies in “Majora’s Mask.” There’s a bigger connection in the fight against the actual villain, though, as his swords read ‘Kotake Koume,’ the twin witches that act as Ganon’s surrogate mothers and who have appeared in several entries. This Easter Egg was carried over to “Tears of the Kingdom” as well. Phantom Ganon’s weapons have the same inscriptions of his mothers’ names.

Bongo Bongo on Ice

“The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time” (1998)

The traditional order of Adult Link’s dungeons in “Ocarina of Time” are Forest, Fire, Water, Shadow, and Spirit. However, you don’t have to do them that way. If you head to the Gerudo area before tackling the Shadow Temple, you can earn the optional Ice Arrows, which will give you a significant edge over the Shadow Temple’s boss, Bongo Bongo. Normally, Link is meant to stun his hands with arrows, causing him to open his eye, the natural weak spot. But if you have the ice arrows early, you can freeze one hand, causing the other to comically thaw it by punching it. Bongo Bongo also opens his eye while trying to break free, essentially letting you skip the first phase.

Link’s Nightmares

“The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening” (1993)

Since the villains of “Link’s Awakening” are literal nightmares, the final boss takes on the form of several enemies during the fight that Link has faced before. Some are obvious, like Aganhim and Ganon from “A Link to the Past.” However, it also transforms into a Zol, a blob-like enemy found in older games, Moldorm, a boss from several games including this one, a Lanmola, another old-school enemy, and its own final form. There are also a couple of ways to make this fight much easier. Using a sleepy toadstool on its first form, the Zol, will knock it out in one hit. And using the Boomerang on its eye during the final phase will do the same, though this was removed for the 2019 remake.

Fun with Ikana

“The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask” (2000)

Ikana Canyon is one of the more interesting locations in “Majora’s Mask,” being home to a kingdom of the dead. Eventually, Link comes face to face with Igos du Ikana, its ruler, and his two minions who challenge him to combat. If Link wears the Captain’s Hat, reminiscent of Ikana’s ally, Captain Keeta, they’ll mistake Link for their friend before realizing he’s way too small to be the real Keeta. Even funnier than Ikana shrieking “Tiny!” is wearing the Bremen Mask. Normally, Link’s ocarina march he performs while wearing it causes small animals to follow him. Humorously, it also works on Ikana’s guards, and briefly opens them up for an attack.

Theme for Dragons

“The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess” (2006)

When it comes to “Zelda,” Nintendo loves a good musical Easter Egg. The fight against Stallord in “Twilight Princess” is a fan favorite thanks to the fantastic use of the dungeon’s item, the Spinner. Notably, Stallord is also a massive, skeletal dragon, hurling giant fireballs at Link during the second phase. The music that plays during this phase is a remixed version of what’s heard in fights against two other fire-breathing behemoths: King Dodongo and Volvagia, both from “Ocarina of Time.” Using the same music for dragon-like creatures was a nice callback. But, funnily enough, the other dragon boss in “Twilight Princess,” Argorok, gets different music, the same that’s heard during the fight against the Water Temple boss, Morpheel.

Distracting Bananas

“The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild” (2017)

One of the silliest things about the Yiga Clan, of which there are a few, is their obsession over Mighty Bananas. As Link sneaks around their hideout in “Breath of the Wild,” dropping the fruit will distract the Blademasters patrolling the area. Interestingly enough, this strategy also works for Monk Maz Koshia, the final boss of the game’s DLC. It’s hilarious seeing him ignore Link to giddily walk over to his favorite fruit mid-battle. Since he’s a Sheikah, and the Yiga defected from them long ago, it both makes sense and gives us a hearty chuckle.

Not Your Average Weapon

Various

This running joke is known by pretty much every fan by now. But that doesn’t stop it from being one of the best boss fight Easter Eggs in the series. In multiple games, Link can use non-combative items to deal with his villains. This began in “A Link to the Past,” where Link could deflect Agahnim’s projectiles with the bug net rather than use the sword. He could use a bottle once again in “Ocarina of Time” to the same effect. During Ganondorf’s final phase in “Twilight Princess,” you can distract him with the fishing rod and quickly swap back to the sword for easy damage. Finally, in “Skyward Sword,” the net can be used to knock back Demise’s electric projectiles.

Mayan Chants

“The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask” (2000)

Nintendo constantly pulls from different cultures, mythologies, and ideologies for aspects of “Zelda.” The first boss in “Majora’s Mask,” Odolwa, borrows from the Mayans. Throughout the fight, Odolwa chants three phrases in Mayan, which some fans have translated. Keep in mind, it can be a bit hard to make out and we’re far from experts in anything Mayan. But what he seems to say is ‘K'iinam took ool,’ which means ‘head will ache and burn,’ ‘Tookik taali,’ which means ‘come burn,’ and ‘A'alik Beora,’ which means ‘dance now.’ Considering he produces a ring of fire and busts a few moves during the battle, it’s fittingly silly. Additionally, his name comes from the Japanese phrase, ‘oduru wa,’ which means ‘I’ll dance.’

Forest Haven Water

“The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker” (2003)

The Forest Haven is such a mystical place in “Wind Waker” that its water has special properties. It’s needed for a side quest where Link helps spread saplings from the Great Deku Tree to create new forests on other islands. But it also has a hidden use that most players didn’t realize for years. Naturally, the same water that revitalizes the Deku Tree’s saplings is completely toxic to Kalle Demos, the boss inside the Forbidden Woods. Normally, Link uses the boomerang to cut its tendrils, which allows him to attack its head once the flower-like bulb opens. However, instead of attacking its head, pouring the Forest Haven water on it kills it immediately.

Landmarks

“The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild” (2017)

Most of us were probably too busy fighting Calamity Ganon to pay much attention to his arena. But it actually holds an incredible Easter Egg. Along the walls are murals of landmarks across Hyrule. More than that, this is a 360 degree representation of the castle’s surroundings. So, for example, the Northern wall depicts the Great Hyrule Forest, itself which is directly North of Hyrule Castle. Since you can’t enter this room without starting the fight or using a glitch, we didn’t notice for a while. These murals are also seen in the final room of the DLC’s Master Sword trials, as Link ascends to power up his blade. But having these images be in the exact direction from where Link stands, even Divine Beasts, is undeniably cool.

Is there a great boss fight Easter Egg we left off? Share it with us in the comments and be sure to subscribe to MojoPlays for more great gaming videos every day!