With The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time’s Change 2 remake out now, long-time Nintendo followers are in for lots of heat nostalgia. A trek via the misplaced woods, duets with Sheik, a return to the Bombchu Bowling Alley — all of these great moments return in a devoted remake that feels each bit as magical because the Nintendo 64 basic. However with all these great moments comes a painful reunion with one of the vital hated moments in Zelda historical past. Sure, you’ll have to return to the dreaded Water Temple.
Don’t fear! Though the Ocarina of Time remake is cautious to not change an excessive amount of concerning the authentic recreation, it does make some small tweaks to a dungeon that also haunts a era. It’s mercifully simpler to navigate now thanks to a couple minor however good updates that go a great distance.
The Water Temple is essentially the most notorious dungeon within the authentic Ocarina of Time, a lot in order that it has been a little bit of a operating joke for many years now. The gist is that it’s a four-story construction constructed round a central room, and it’s flooded with water. To entry sure areas, you could discover rooms within the dungeon that let you change the water degree all through the temple. Simple sufficient on paper, nevertheless it’s a little bit of a ache in follow. As a result of restricted visible data you get in-game, it requires you to maintain a psychological map of the place every water adjustment level is, in addition to how every of the three ranges will change the format of the dungeon. It’s a headache to maintain every part straight, thus incomes it a repute as a irritating ceremony of passage.
Whereas that construction hasn’t modified a lot within the remake, Nintendo does make it simpler to get via with just a few good selections. That got here on the request of Eiji Aonuma, who directed the unique Ocarina of Time. “I had some overdue homework: I wished to do one thing concerning the Water Temple I created 28 years in the past,” Aonuma stated in a current Nintendo developer interview. “Because it grew to become well-known for its problem within the authentic recreation, I had the workforce make some changes on this model.”
A kind of changes simply comes right down to clearer signposting. Constructing off the dungeon’s Ocarina of Time 3D redesign, the doorways that result in water controls at the moment are clearly marked with symbols exhibiting you precisely how the water degree will change. You not have to recollect which door results in the room that drains the room, or which one will get you to ground two.
On prime of that, every of the routes at the moment are color-coded. You’ll discover variously coloured pipes round every of the three doorways, and people visually lead you to the management room in case you comply with them via the dungeon. As an example, if you enter the path to the room that brings the water to its lowest degree, you’ll discover that some blue pipes sign that you must float to the water’s floor. Observe that trace and also you’ll discover that the pipes result in clearly marked pedestals so that you can play your ocarina on. All of that makes it considerably simpler to recollect precisely the place you could go always.
Arguably, the extra impactful Water Temple change comes from a top-level management determination that simply so occurs to make life simpler within the dungeon. A part of why the Water Temple is such a ache is as a result of you could use just a few key objects all through it. Your ocarina, Iron Boots, Hookshot, and extra all play main roles in fixing puzzles all through the temple. For the reason that authentic recreation solely gave you three merchandise slots to work with, you had been usually left juggling round your merchandise shortcuts in the primary menu. It’s a minor ache level, however one which stands out if you’re consistently swapping objects.
Whereas the Change 2 remake nonetheless has its personal merchandise administration quirks, it properly retains your ocarina mapped to the D-pad always. Your boots get a fast swap button on the down button there too, which means that you just don’t must waste an merchandise slot on the Iron Boots. With these two requirements unlock, you may dedicate your ZR merchandise slot to the Hookshot and solely swap to different objects as wanted with a fast menu on the R button. That call cuts out any want for pause-menu administration, permitting you to maneuver via the dungeon extra fluidly.
For the ‘90s purists, these modifications may sound a bit of sacrilegious. As a lot as gamers declare to hate the Water Temple, that criticism invariably comes with a keenness for a genuinely memorable little bit of irritating design. “Why shouldn’t as we speak’s youths battle via the Water Temple like their elders as soon as did?” chances are you’ll ask. I, for one, welcome the assistance, simply as I assist the concept of as we speak’s college students having their loans canceled though I needed to pay mine off. The brand new visible design tweak makes for some smart signposting that also feels a part of the dungeon’s structure, and the management resolution simply makes it simpler to remain immersed in a well-built dungeon. New generations of gamers needn’t undergo like us outdated Zelda followers as soon as did. Swim free, ye tadpoles.
