Ocarina of Time Beginner Tips: Item Order, Child vs Adult and Sticking Points

These tips cover the parts of Ocarina of Time that are the same in every version: the two time periods, the order you pick up key items, and the spots where first-time players most often lose an evening. Nothing here depends on version differences. For those, see Remake vs N64 vs 3DS.

What is the difference between child and adult Link?

The game is split in two. As a child, Link gathers the three Spiritual Stones. He then draws the Master Sword in the Temple of Time and wakes up seven years later as an adult. From that point you can switch eras whenever you like: put the sword back in its pedestal to return to childhood, and draw it again to grow up.

Some puzzles need both eras. The Spirit Temple is the clearest example: you enter it as a child and finish it as an adult.

In what order do you get the key items?

Main items arrive in a fixed order because each dungeon needs something from the one before. This is the order most players follow. Our full walkthrough goes through each dungeon.

1. Buy the Deku Shield and find the Kokiri Sword. You need both before Mido lets you reach the Great Deku Tree. The shield costs 40 Rupees in the Kokiri Shop, and the sword is hidden past a small hole at the back of Kokiri Forest.
2. Get the Fairy Slingshot inside the Deku Tree. It is the first ranged weapon and only child Link can use it.
3. Get the Goron’s Bracelet from Darunia. Play Saria’s Song for him in Goron City. The bracelet lets you pick up Bomb Flowers.
4. Find the Bomb Bag in Dodongo’s Cavern. From here you can blow open cracked walls anywhere.
5. Win the Silver Scale in Zora’s Domain. Collect all five Rupees in the diving game to dive deeper.
6. Get the Boomerang inside Jabu-Jabu’s Belly. Child only, and it stuns most enemies at a distance.
7. Draw the Master Sword. With all three Spiritual Stones, open the Door of Time and become adult Link.
8. Win the Hookshot in the Kakariko graveyard. Pull back the grave with flowers and race the gravekeeper’s ghost. You need it to reach the Forest Temple.
9. Get the Fairy Bow in the Forest Temple. Later dungeons assume you have it.
10. Collect the Goron Tunic, then the Megaton Hammer. A young Goron in Goron City gives adult Link the heat-proof tunic, and the hammer is inside the Fire Temple.
11. Get the Iron Boots in the Ice Cavern and the Zora Tunic from King Zora. The Ice Cavern sits where Jabu-Jabu used to be. Thaw King Zora with Blue Fire to receive the tunic, which lets you breathe underwater.
12. Get the Longshot in the Water Temple. It appears after you beat Dark Link and reaches much farther than the Hookshot.
13. Return to childhood for the Lens of Truth. Child Link finds it at the Bottom of the Well, and the Shadow Temple needs it.
14. Get the Hover Boots in the Shadow Temple. They let you float over gaps for a moment.
15. Collect the Silver Gauntlets and Mirror Shield in the Spirit Temple. Child Link finds the gauntlets but can only wear them as an adult, and adult Link takes the Mirror Shield.

Where do new players get stuck most often?

The Hookshot. Many players draw the Master Sword and then wander, because the next step is not obvious. Go to the Kakariko Village graveyard as an adult and race the ghost in the grave with flowers in front of it. The Forest Temple needs the Hookshot.

The Ice Cavern. You cannot get through it without the Hookshot. It holds the Iron Boots, and the Water Temple cannot be entered without them.

The Water Temple. It is widely seen as the hardest dungeon, and the 3DS version even made it slightly easier. Wear the Zora Tunic, keep the Iron Boots ready, and look for the Triforce symbols on the walls. Playing Zelda’s Lullaby at a symbol changes the water level. If you are stuck, change the water level first. Details are in the Water Temple walkthrough.

Losing the Deku Shield. It is made of wood and burns if it touches fire. Buy another in the Kokiri Shop before you head somewhere fiery.

Getting Epona. Learn Epona’s Song from Malon at Lon Lon Ranch while you are a child. After you draw the Master Sword, bring at least 60 Rupees back to the ranch to win her. Once she is yours, you can call her in Hyrule Field, Lake Hylia, Gerudo Valley and Gerudo’s Fortress.

What shortcuts and rewards help early on?

The wallet rewards are worth chasing early, since they raise how many Rupees you can carry. Full lists are in the Gold Skulltula guide and the Heart Piece checklist.

Will these tips work in the Switch 2 remake?

Press coverage of the September 8 Direct says the remake broadly keeps the original structure, so the item order above should still be a good plan. Nintendo has not confirmed that item locations or puzzle solutions are unchanged. New jumping, a free camera and faster item swaps may also make some of these sticking points easier. See every confirmed new feature for what has been announced.