Since its inception in 1986,The Legend of Zeldahas made dungeons a core part of its identity as a franchise. Dungeons inThe Legend of Zeldaare about as important as maps inCall of Dutyor boss fights inDark Souls.Zeldagames missing good dungeons feel like they’re missing personality. The franchise has been incredibly popular for years and has plenty of games and dungeons to choose from.RELATED:The Legend of Zelda: Every Game, Ranked By How Long They Take To BeatWhileThe Legend of Zeldahas had its fair share of lackluster dungeons, there are plenty of fantastic puzzle-filled domains to choose from. The dungeons of a game usually try to follow a trend set by its story. There are a few entries in the franchise that showcase excellent dungeons and stand as examples to future entries on how to build incredible and dangerous areas for Link to explore.
10The Legend Of Zelda (1986)
The Legend of Zeldamight look plain on the outside, but the game laid the groundwork that would make up the fundamental DNA of the franchise for years to come. Players will need to find keys, bombs,and more itemsto traverse through the many dungeons of the firstZeldagame.
Interestingly, the game is surprisingly open, especially for a title made in the ’80s. Players can tackle dungeons in any order they desire, and Hyrule is free to explore. There is no objective marker and no real set goal in mind. While basic, this game’s dungeons offer everything a fan of classicZeldacould ask for!
9The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons/Ages (2001)
With theOraclegames, Nintendo wanted to utilize the Game Boy Color to its fullest capacity before the system would be replaced. Though theOraclegames are two different titles, they follow a similar storyline and offer completely different dungeons. The games are meant to be played together using the Game Boy Color’s “Game Linking” feature to unlock the full story once completed.
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These games play similarly toThe Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakeningand offer plenty of dungeon variety. Players who picked up both titles were able to get the full experience of dungeons and many people agree that the dungeon variety was a fantastic feature in theOraclegames.
8The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds (2013)
A Link Between Worldsis a sequel to the Super Nintendo classicA Link to the Past. The former takes place in the same Hyrule as the latter and features many of the same dungeons. This isn’t a bad thing though, as the dungeons are freshened up andnew puzzleshave been added. One of the game’s primary new mechanics called “Wall Merging” is used heavily in the redone dungeons.
Players can also choose to tackle the dungeons in the order they want thanks to the item renting system inA Link Between Worlds. Though a bit experimental and divisive among players, item renting allowed more freedom than most traditional linearZeldatitles. Fans ofA Link to the Pastor just good dungeon design, in general, should definitely giveA Link Between Worldsa shot!
7The Legend of Zelda: Minish Cap (2004)
Made during the era of “Toon Link,“Minish Capoffers vibrant and beautiful landscapes. The game uses lots of bright popping colors and the shading/artwork really makes the world come to life. This applies to the game’s dungeons as well.Minish Capproves that dungeons don’t always need to be grungy dark holes in the ground.
Minish Capfeatures a fan-favorite dungeon in the form of the Temple of Droplets. This ice temple has all the same struggles of any ice-based level, and players need to find ways to melt ice blocks containing key items for completing the dungeon. Many fans still love the BGM of the Temple of Droplets to this day and reference it as one of the best dungeons in the game.
6The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures (2004)
ForZeldafans that play the games for the dungeons,Four Sword Adventuresis a must-own. The game is designed differently than many other titles in the series. Players going through the main campaign don’t have a set world to explore and interact with. Instead, they go through a series of stages. Each stage culminates in a “dungeon” but by definition and gameplay, each stage is its own dungeon!
Four Swords Adventuresalso features multiplayer functionality, making it a fantastic dungeon crawler for a group of up to four people. With nearly every stage of the game offering unique puzzles, combat, and music,Four Swords Adventuresreally is the ultimate package for dungeon-lovingZeldafans.
5The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (2011)
Skyward Swordis considered something of the black sheepof theZeldafranchise. Many fans were turned away by the motion controls on the Nintendo Wii and the game’s original game-breaking bug. Many people also felt thatSkyward Swordwas too linear and failed to achieve its own goal of feeling adventurous and new. Despite these flaws,Skyward Swordfeatures some of thebest dungeons inThe Legend of Zeldafranchise.
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From an ancient temple of unknown origins to a mining facility with time-changing crystals, the game takes Link to wildly different locales. Players will face tough foes and incredible boss fights. Every item in Link’s arsenal is required in many parts of the game, giving each dungeon’s unique item more personality. Though the game may have its faults, it cannot be denied thatSkyward Sword’sdungeons perfectly capture the feeling of whatgoodZeldadungeonsshould include.
4The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (1991)
There are certain games that define the consoles they were released on. The SNES was blessed with a superstar lineup of games, and one of these wasThe Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. This game is arguably the most important game in the franchise in terms of trendsetting.A Link to the Pastsolidified the core gameplay and progression that would become the gold standard forZeldagames for years to come.
This game set the standard for three opening dungeons, an important in-game event, several more dungeons (usually in an alternate world), followed by Ganon’sfinal dungeon.This exact formula was used in arguably the most popularZeldagame of all time,Ocarina of Time,and others in the franchise. WhileA Link to the Past’sdungeons might not be anything special on their own, the precedent they set was too important not to be included in any discussion aboutZelda’sdungeons.
3The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask (2000)
ThoughMajora’s Maskonly features four core dungeons, they are some of the bestThe Legend of Zeldahas to offer. Some people might be put off byMajora’s Mask’s timer mechanic, but even these players have probably heard of the Stone Tower Temple. Many fans of the franchise know the Stone Tower Temple by name, and would probably recognize theiconic music of the dungeon.
Every dungeon in the game is brimming with personality and completing them is no easy task.Majora’s Maskdoes very little hand-holding and the dungeons are proof of this. They are tough to complete and sometimes difficult to even get into! Yet,the dungeons ofMajora’s Maskare iconicand force players to use their unique items carefully to solve puzzles and defeat foes.
2The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998)
1998 was a tremendous year for the video game industry. Multiple titles from that year remain on the greatest games of all time lists for both fans and critics. One such title isThe Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. The game is commonly considered to be the best in the series by many fans, and this is in partdue to its excellent dungeons.
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The game’s dungeons are some of the most memorable in the franchise and offer insane variety for the player. The puzzles and combat of each dungeon are fully realized and age wonderfully. New fans of the series could easily pick upOcarina of Timeand enjoy going through the game’s wide selection of dungeons.
1The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (2006)
Twilight Princessoffers a more mature and dark vision of whatThe Legend of Zeldacould be. As such, some of the dungeons in the game feeldarker and more frighteningthan usual for the series. The game features some of thebest dungeons in theZeldafranchiseand each and everyone feels truly unique.
Though some of the boss fights of the game can be underwhelming, the dungeon variance, music, puzzles, and combat are nearly unmatched in the series. What other game allows Link to snowboard to a mansion owned by yetis and have that be the dungeon?
