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00:00Welcome to Mojo Plays, and today we're counting down our picks for the most frustrating, poorly
00:14designed and outright bad dungeons from the Legend of Zelda franchise.
00:18To be clear, we already have a video of the hardest temples in each game.
00:22This is not the same thing, though there will be some overlap.
00:25We also won't be including any randomly generated dungeons.
00:34Before we get started, we post new videos all week long, so be sure to subscribe to
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00:43Death Mountain, The Legend of Zelda
00:51Before it became associated with the Gorons, Death Mountain was synonymous with its namesake
00:56for Zelda fans.
00:57This absurdly convoluted dungeon is frustrating on a number of levels.
01:01It's filled with the most difficult enemies in the game.
01:04Despite featuring 16 locked doors, there's only 4 keys inside.
01:08So if you didn't get the magical key, you're gonna have a bad time.
01:12Likewise, it's also fairly easy to miss the silver arrows, which are the only thing that
01:16could beat Ganon at the end of it.
01:18Death Mountain's obtuse design makes it not only difficult, but also straight up terrible.
01:30Great Palace, Zelda II The Adventure of Link
01:38The only thing great about this palace is the amount of annoyance it's caused gamers
01:41over the years.
01:43And maybe it's theme music.
01:45Zelda II in general is a miserable experience for many players, and its final dungeon cranks
01:50things up even further.
01:51The Great Palace is not only a veritable maze filled with dead ends, lava, and obnoxious
01:56enemies, but its ending has you face two of the franchise's toughest bosses back to back.
02:02First the Thunderbird, which is basically invincible unless you get the specific spell
02:06that works on it.
02:07Then you have to fight a mirror match against Dark Link.
02:10Granted, your doppelganger is easy to cheese once you know how, but it's hard to stumble
02:14onto it without a guide.
02:21Ice Palace, The Legend of Zelda A Link to the Past
02:30Although the blue mail you acquire in the Ice Palace is nice to have, I mean, who doesn't
02:34love reducing your damage by half?
02:36The rest of the dungeon is an exercise in frustration.
02:39The vast majority of the floor is slippery, which makes something as simple as walking
02:44more difficult.
02:45It's highly likely that you'll slip and fall between floors, leading to plenty of
02:48backtracking through a confusing mess of a dungeon.
02:51Much like shoveling snow or de-icing your stairs, the Ice Palace is less Winter Wonderland
02:57and more of an annoying chore.
03:02Eagle's Tower, The Legend of Zelda Link's Awakening
03:11Although this oft-remade Zelda title is generally pretty easy and fun, Eagle's Tower is arguably
03:16a low point despite how tall it is.
03:18The dungeon's main mechanic revolves around breaking four pillars with a large ball.
03:23Some of the puzzles involving it are genuinely good, but after a while, it can be irritating
03:28to throw the ball over a wall and backtrack through half the dungeon just to pick it up
03:32again.
03:33The dungeon boss is also lackluster.
03:35The evil eagle that gives the tower its name is not defeated with the dungeon's item,
03:39the mirror shield.
03:40Instead, you...attack it with your sword.
03:43Well, grant that the boss fight's presentation is novel, but ultimately, Eagle's Tower simply
03:48doesn't live up to its potential.
03:55Inside Jabu Jabu's Belly, The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time
03:59Yeah, that's right.
04:06Worse than the Water Temple.
04:08Having to swim sojourn in the literal belly of a beast is an annoying slog of an experience.
04:12Whether Jabu Jabu's Belly makes your stomach turn at the gross, fleshy aesthetic or not,
04:18there's no denying how irritating it is to navigate.
04:21Keeping track of which fleshy columns were blocking which hallway is tricky, as is keeping
04:25Princess Ruto, whom you're escorting, from falling down a hole or into water.
04:30You're a Zora!
04:31Why can't you swim?
04:32Not to mention the jellyfish, all of which can stun you with electricity.
04:36Plus, it has one of the most difficult mini-bosses in Zelda history.
04:40Between all the backtracking, annoying enemies, and escort mission, inside Jabu Jabu's Belly
04:45is a tough pill to swallow.
04:53Great Bay Temple, The Legend of Zelda Majora's Mask
05:01Another water dungeon, the Great Bay Temple has a confusing central mechanic involving
05:06redirecting water.
05:07The strong currents throughout can often send you in a direction you didn't want to go,
05:11which leads to more backtracking and more annoyance.
05:14While everything is color-coded to make it easier in theory, in practice, most players
05:19still get lost.
05:20With the three-day time limit in Majora's Mask, there's the added stress of a deadline
05:24if you can't finish in time.
05:26It's a real hassle, particularly if you're looking for all the stray fairies.
05:31The mini-bosses and boss are obnoxious too, with the latter being particularly frustrating.
05:36Our advice?
05:37Use a walkthrough and cheese that stupid fish boss as much as possible.
05:48Jabu Jabu's Belly, The Legend of Zelda Oracle of Ages
05:57Guess who's back?
05:59Why are we still going inside this thing?
06:01The electric enemies that made the inside of Jabu Jabu annoying have returned, but this
06:06version of the dungeon has some new headaches.
06:09Like the Water Temple in Ocarina of Time, you must raise and lower water levels and
06:13navigate with a hookshot, or switch hook.
06:16However, given that it's a 2D Zelda game, figuring out the water levels is even more
06:21difficult.
06:22Chances are you'll be backtracking a lot, and considering you'll be doing so through
06:26spikes and annoying enemies, Jabu Jabu's Belly is once again a dungeon that turns our
06:31stomach.
06:36Sword and Shield Maze, The Legend of Zelda Oracle of Seasons
06:47Mazes are as well-known for their simplicity as rocket science, so not at all.
06:52This particular maze is a fire and ice temple in one.
06:55The frigid shield portion is filled with those oh-so-pesky slippery floors.
06:59Meanwhile, the fiery sword floors are loaded with lava pits and a ton of enemies that will
07:04throw fire at you.
07:05One of these extremes would be bad enough, but both at the same time is truly the worst
07:10of both worlds.
07:11The only thing easier than getting lost in the sword and shield maze is getting frustrated
07:15by the whole experience.
07:22Forsaken Fortress, The Legend of Zelda The Wind Waker
07:33You know what everyone loves?
07:35Mandatory stealth sections.
07:37Clearly someone at Nintendo didn't get the memo, because the first real dungeon in this
07:41game forces Link to give up his newly acquired sword to sneak around in barrels.
07:46The Forsaken Fortress' wide-open, yet somehow confusing design certainly doesn't help.
07:51Nor does the fact that you have to revisit the area a second time later in the game.
07:56Absence doesn't make our hearts grow fonder either.
07:59The second time around has a couple of decent boss fights, but the rest of the layout hasn't
08:03changed enough for it to be any less tedious.
08:05The Forsaken Fortress kills the momentum of the game not once, but twice.
08:10That's enough for us to forsake it entirely.
08:17Cave of No Return, The Legend of Zelda Four Swords Adventures
08:26Even some of the worst dungeons have some good things about them, like their atmosphere,
08:30mechanics, or theme music.
08:32The Cave of No Return isn't especially difficult or frustrating, though the fact that it's
08:36set entirely in darkness is pretty annoying.
08:39No, the Cave of No Return is just boring.
08:43It's an early tutorial dungeon meant to teach you how to control four Links to work together
08:48to solve puzzles.
08:49Beyond that, there's not much to it.
08:51The Zelda franchise has had many introductory dungeons, but the Cave of No Return is one
08:56we'd rather not return to.
09:05Fortress of Winds, The Legend of Zelda The Minish Cap
09:13Can an ancient temple have false advertising?
09:15Because the Fortress of Winds doesn't have any wind in it.
09:18Instead, what we get is a bog-standard dungeon whose central item gimmick involves digging,
09:23which kind of feels like the opposite of wind.
09:26Fortress of Winds is also fairly easy to get lost in, and the many moving portions make
09:30getting through it quickly more difficult.
09:32Even the boss is the same head and two disembodied hands boss we've seen a million times before
09:37in Nintendo games.
09:39While Fortress of Winds isn't the worst dungeon, it simply doesn't do as many new or interesting
09:44things compared to other dungeons in The Minish Cap.
09:52Palace of Twilight, The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess
10:03Linearity in dungeon design is one thing, but the Palace of Twilight is basically two
10:07straight lines.
10:08The majority of this dungeon boils down to retrieving a pair of light orbs from the end
10:13of several long hallways.
10:14The boss fight is something of a letdown too, since Zant, the fake-out Big Bad of the game,
10:20merely repeats the patterns of bosses seen earlier in the game.
10:23Don't get us wrong, the atmosphere and eerie environment of the Palace of Twilight is fantastic,
10:28but when most of the dungeon involves doing the same fetch quest twice in a row, followed
10:33by what's basically a boss rush, the Palace of Twilight just can't stack up to the wild
10:37creativity of the rest of Twilight Princess.
10:51Temple of the Ocean King, The Legend of Zelda Phantom Hourglass
10:58Imagine if Nintendo decided to include all the worst things about temples.
11:02Like forced stealth sections, time limits, and returning multiple times into one temple.
11:08Well, you don't have to imagine, because Temple of the Ocean King is unfortunately
11:12real.
11:13You can only survive so long inside the temple, giving you a strict time limit which is drained
11:17by phantoms.
11:18So, to keep your time, you'll want to avoid phantoms as much as possible.
11:22To beat Phantom Hourglass, you'll have to return to this temple no less than four times,
11:27and having to redo the puzzles becomes a chore after the second.
11:31It's the mark of a terrible temple that this one drags down its entire game.
11:41Tower of Spirits, The Legend of Zelda Spirit Tracks
11:48Another central dungeon like its predecessor, the Tower of Spirits is an improvement in
11:52some ways over Temple of the Ocean King.
11:54For one, you don't need to repeat sections you've already completed.
11:58Being able to possess phantoms is also pretty cool.
12:01However, the Tower of Spirits is a whopping 30 floors long, and its later levels include
12:06some surprisingly complex puzzles that can be frustrating to complete.
12:10By the time we're done with it, we just wish the Tower of Spirits would live up to
12:13the title of its game and make tracks.
12:22Earth Temple, The Legend of Zelda Skyward Sword
12:30Despite often being called a black sheep among Zelda games for its awkward control scheme,
12:35Skyward Sword has some really solid temples.
12:37Arguably the weakest of them is the Earth Temple.
12:40A fire temple by another name, the Earth Temple is extremely short and only has about three
12:45rooms in total.
12:46Rolling around on a boulder is pretty fun, and the boss is a decent challenge.
12:50However, the dungeon item is just bombs, which doesn't change up gameplay that much.
12:55And did anyone else struggle with finding that stupid crack in the wall?
12:59Skyward Sword has some of the most inventive dungeons in Zelda history, so yet another
13:04fire temple just can't hold a candle to the rest.
13:11Dark Palace, The Legend of Zelda A Link Between Worlds
13:21This is one of those love it or hate it temples, and we are not fans.
13:26To be fair, this version of Dark Palace is an improvement over its counterpart from A
13:30Link to the Past.
13:32It makes the lantern, often derided as a useless item, absolutely essential.
13:36Its sporadic use of color and a challenging boss fight are also high points.
13:40However, the ever-present darkness makes everything from puzzles to enemies to finding
13:45your way around that much more difficult.
13:47If Dark Palace was a shot in the dark, then it would definitely be a miss.
13:57Hinox Mine, The Legend of Zelda Triforce Heroes
14:07Finding cart levels can be an exercise in frustration, and this Zelda take on it is
14:11no exception.
14:12Hinox Mine sees your trio of links forced to go round and round on carts.
14:17You open up new paths by throwing bombs and shooting switches with arrows.
14:21Timing is everything, and hitting small targets while in motion isn't the easiest thing
14:25in the world.
14:26If you miss, you'll have to wait for your chance again.
14:29And if you miss more than once, you're going to start hating this dungeon really quick.
14:33Plus, these difficulties are only compounded when you're playing co-op.
14:37A gold mine, this dungeon is not.
14:46Divine Beast Vah Nivoris, The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild
14:55Traditional temples went out the window in Breath of the Wild in favor of Divine Beasts.
15:00While most of them are fairly easy and straightforward, Vah Nivoris has a reputation for frustration.
15:05To progress, you must rotate the cylinder of its body to connect electrical currents.
15:10This isn't exactly the most intuitive puzzle for many, and led to plenty of head-scratching
15:15over how to solve it.
15:16But player's ire only increased when we faced the boss, Thunder Blight Ganon.
15:21Not only is this thing wicked fast, it'll also stun you if you don't have shock-resistant
15:26potions or clothing.
15:27Even if you came prepared, Thunder Blight remains one of the toughest bosses in the game.
15:32Vah Nivoris overall is like desert sand, very irritating.
15:45Fire Temple, The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom
15:48Tragically, Nintendo didn't learn their lesson about minecart levels after Hinox Mine.
15:59Link and his companion, Unibow, are supposed to travel along several mine tracks throughout
16:03this large, open temple to hit several gongs to unlock the way to the boss.
16:08Granted, the boss is straightforward, as it's a fire version of a long-standing spider boss,
16:13but the rest of the temple can be confusing and frustrating to navigate.
16:17Perhaps that's why many people just decide to climb the walls to reach the gongs, or
16:21craft vehicles to bypass the intended routes entirely.
16:25When players find it easier to skip large sections of a temple, maybe it doesn't have
16:29the best design.
16:35Null's Body, The Legend of Zelda Echoes of Wisdom
16:45While the idea of setting a dungeon inside a living being is great in theory, it's rarely
16:50led to a good dungeon.
16:52See Jabu Jabu.
16:53Set within the final villain, Null, Null's body does offer something new by having Link
16:58fight alongside Zelda.
16:59However, fighting is primarily all you do together, as the puzzles aren't very involved
17:04and Link's AI makes us yell at our screams sometimes.
17:08Null itself makes for a decent boss fight, with echoes of the previous bosses returning.
17:12However, Null's Body is an incredibly short dungeon overall.
17:16It feels like they could have done so much more with Link and Zelda working together.
17:20In other words, this temple doesn't make us mad, just disappointed.
17:31Is there a Zelda dungeon from these games you think was worse than our picks?
17:35Be sure to share your most hated dungeons in the comments.
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