Octorok

The Octorok is perhaps as much part of the Legend of Zelda as Link or Zelda, having appeared in every Zelda game except Twilight Princess. It's an octopus-like creature that shoots rocks from its snout. In the 2D Zelda games, they seem to have adapted to living on land, and can generally be killed with one or two hits from the sword. That makes them "normal enemies".

The Legend of Zelda
Octoroks are found almost everywhere in Hyrule, though they primarily inhabit the forest. They tend to travel in groups, and provide Link with his first combat opportunities of the game. They walk around in random directions shooting rocks. If you have your shield, no worries as long as you're facing the rock-spewing enemy. They come in red and blue varieties, the blue being the stronger of the two.

Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
Octoroks of Link's second adventure are quite different. While still found in groups practicing rock-shooting with Link as their target, they are now sedentary creatures that jump. The Octorok can be found only in caves and marshes, the latter of which provides a motile version that creeps up on Link under the cover of tall grass.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
In A Link to the Past, Octoroks act much like they did in the original Legend of Zelda, however, they now have the added ability to suddenly stop and spew rocks in all four cardinal directions without warning.

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
Octoroks in Links Awakening lose their added offensive punch from A Link to the Past, but they gain a related form- Winged Octoroks. Otherwise, they act pretty much the same as they always have, moving around the screen and spewing rocks at Link.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Octoroks made their 3-D debut in Ocarina of Time along with many other classic enemies. Although they still spit rocks, they now appeared as water creatures. Perhaps they evolved during the time interval between the Zelda 64 games and the later Legend of Zelda's (chronologically). They had a much different form and were purple rather than red. They could be killed in a number of ways, the most common being using your shield to reflect the rocks they spit at you back at them. However, they can be killed with any projectile as well. Octoroks were once supposed to walk on land like the original octoroks of the 2-D games until the idea was scrapped for the octorok design that has stayed for all 3-D games.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
In Majora's Mask, octoroks are identical to those found in Ocarina of Time. But in Termina, shooting an ice arrow at them freezes them into a solid platform. This is an essential skill to learn in order to complete the Great Bay Temple as well as to reach the upper valley of Ikana Canyon.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
In The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, Octoroks take an all new squid-like form that shoot rocks at you, as always. They seem to take from the Ocarina of Time version, but more with many physical differences. When out in the ocean, there are Big Octos, these creatures shoot bombs at you instead of their normal rocks. However, if you are going at a good speed, their attacks pose little to no threat.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures
In Four Swords Adventures, the Octorok came in three versions. The red one, which was the original. There was also the purple one which stood still for a few seconds until launching four stones at a row, right towards Link. The blue one was even more tricky. It shot at all four directions at the same time, and required 16 hits before actually getting killed.

The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap
In The Minish Cap they appear in three forms: Blue, Red, and Gold. The blue ones are tougher then the red ones, but the gold are the toughest and can only be found by fusing kinstones.

Quote from The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap Octorok figurine: "Appears in various areas. There are red and blue ones. They've appeared in every Zelda game to date. They spit rocks, so be careful."

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Twilight Princess is the very first game in the series in which Octoroks are totally absent; the monsters that were thought to be octoroks in other locations are an entirely different species known as toadpolis. Although toadpolis act similarly to octoroks, they resemble developing tadpoles and they actually swim underneath the surface of the water. They are only found in a few place and there are smaller ones and larger ones.

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
In Phantom Hourglass, Octoroks go back to their original form, despite the game being a direct sequel to WW(in which they were very different). The game actually presents them in a 3d version of this form for the very first time. In the game, they come only in their Red versions, but are more of a hazard than ever because of their rapid rock spitting. Yet, the WW Octoroks still appear in the game as a common enemy while navigating the Great Sea. These look almost exactly like the ones from WW but are so different from the ones found on land you wouldn't think to associate the two. These Octoroks circle your ship and will shoot bombs rather than rocks. Hitting them with the cannon will kill in one hit.

Super Smash Bros Series
Octoroks appear as enemies in the second level of Adventure mode in Super Smash Bros. Melee. They can, but rarely, be found in other modes in boxes. It is unknown whether Octoroks will appear in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, but they are likely to appear as an enemy, Assist Trophy, or both.