Dungeon: Difference between revisions

==History==

===2D Era===

In ''The Legend of Zelda'', the dungeons retained the same format as the rest of the game: the player, as [[Link]], maneuvers each area from a [[Wikipedia:Top-down Perspective|top-down perspective]], facing everything from dead ends to invincible and annoying enemies to complex traps, puzzles, and [[Wikipedia:Maze|maze]]-like passages. The first installment in the ''Zelda'' series is one of but a few in the franchise to feature a special [[Second Quest]] after the challenges of the first one are overcome, or by the player entering "ZELDA" as the file name. In either case, the second quest proves more challenging, offering nine dungeons similar to those in the original quest. However, not only are some of the dungeons' locations mixed up in the second quest, but they are generally more difficult, with a different layout, the items being hidden more carefully and stronger [[:Category:Enemies|enemies]] and bosses introduced sooner. The general layout of [[Hyrule]] remains the same, but the locations of items scattered across the [[Wikipedia:Overworld|overworld]] are also hidden in different places.

''Phantom Hourglass'' and ''Spirit Tracks'' also contain a "master dungeon" ([[Temple of the Ocean King]] and [[Tower of Spirits]]). These master dungeons are rather large, and Link must visit them between regular dungeons to acquire [[Sea Chart]]s and [[Rail Map]]s, which guide him to previously unexplored areas. The Temple of the Ocean King is filled with fog, which limits the amount of time which Link can spend in the dungeon to the amount of sand remaining in the titular [[Phantom Hourglass (Item)|Phantom Hourglass]]. Both dungeons themselves contain [[Phantom]]s, which are enemies that Link cannot defeat until he acquires the [[Phantom Sword]] in Phantom Hourglass. In Spirit Tracks Link has to collect three [[Tears of Light#Spirit Tracks|Tears of Light]], so that Princess Zelda is able possess the suits of armor of a Phantom. The time limit (only in Phantom Hourglass) and the Phantoms are nullified by the various "safe zones" throughout the dungeon.

In the original ''The Legend of Zelda'' game, Link explores '''[[Dungeons in The Legend of Zelda|labyrinths]]''', whose purpose is to guard the fragments of the [[Triforce of Wisdom]], with the final labyrinth being the whereabouts of [[Ganon]] and the [[Triforce of Power]]; these mazes house numerous and powerful enemies, such as knights, apparitions and monsters. Puzzle-wise, they aren't too complex, aside from a few parts where Link has to either move a square rock or trade some item or money to someone. The progress is more based on defeating creatures in order to open locked door or collect keys; something interesting is that creatures used to be bosses in some dungeons may return in later ones, either as bosses again or mid-way opponents, and either as powerful as before or as stronger variations. The dungeons are mostly monochrome, some of them are blue-colored, others are green-colored, yellow-colored or white-colored; in the first quest, the arrangement of their rooms are based on animals or objects they are named after. In the second quest, the first five dungeons resemble letters (E, A, L, D, Z; EALDZ is an anagram for ''Zelda''), the sixth is based on a hat, the following two are spiral-shaped and the last one is similar to its First Quest counterpart, but surprisingly smaller. As a final note, ''The Wind Waker'' features the [[Savage Labyrinth]] as a mini-dungeon.

Most dungeons from ''Ocarina of Time'', all from ''Majora's Mask'' and some from ''The Wind Waker'' and ''Twilight Princess'' are '''[[temple]]s'''. In ''Ocarina of Time'' and ''The Wind Waker'', these temples are built to awaken the chosen Sages who contribute on the defeat of evil, as well as to worship sacred deities. The temples in ''Ocarina of Time'' are, interestingly, the first dungeons where keys (big and small) begin to be used, as the first dungeons lack them; they also can be completed by Adult Link only, and each one revolves puzzle-wise around a gimmick or mechanic related to the theme that's being dealt with (for example, in the [[Water Temple]], Link has to change the level of water in order to make some rooms accessible, in the [[Forest Temple]] he has to modify some corridors in order to find some Poes that stole the main room's lights; and so on). In ''The Wind Waker'', the two temples act in a similar way their OoT counterparts do, the differences are that they cannot be completed by one lone person, and that the chosen Sages pray to give power to the [[Master Sword]], whereas the Sages of the other temples await in the [[Sacred Realm]] to keep Ganon from causing evil. In ''Majora's Mask'', the temples guard the [[Four Giants]] that aid the people of [[Termina]] when disgrace is foreseen.

Besides the aforementiones dungeons, there are also '''[[cavern]]s''' (characterized for having little, if any, artificial architecture within), '''[[Tower (disambiguation)|towers]]''' (large buildings that have a more prominent purpose, such as [[Tower of Hera|guarding a pearl that bring protection to the user from dark influences]], or [[Tower of the Gods|guarding the entrance to the ruins of an ancient kingdom]]), or [[Inside the Deku Tree|organic]] [[Inside Jabu-Jabu's Belly|entities]], among others.

The dungeons in the ''Zelda'' series cover a wide variety of elements, themes and environments; however, the following ones are the most common or the most recurring: