10 Best Things to Do After Beating Zelda: The Ocarina of Time

Even after beating the base game, Zelda: The Ocarina of Time still has a lot to offer for those who aren’t ready to say goodbye to the world of Hyrule. Often considered one of the best games of all time, the action and adventure of the first-ever 3D Zelda title have inspired many titles since its release. Even after Ganon’s defeat, there are still many activities you can pursue.

You will explore many regions of Hyrule, meet tons of characters, and fight a variety of dangerous enemies along your journey. With time travel as a main mechanic, there are interesting ways in which you interact with the cultures of places in the game. As you attempt to defeat the evil Gandondorf, you’ll discover many aspects of the world that are worth investigating further when the credits roll.

10 Collect Every Heart Piece

Maximize Link’s Total Health

Around 36 Heart Pieces and several Heart Containers found throughout Ocarina of Time can extend your total number of hearts for Link. Collecting 4 Heart pieces from different places in Hyrule can give Link an extra heart, making them some of the most valuable items to obtain in the game. Having more life makes Link much stronger against any enemy, even the toughest bosses you’ve come across.

Heart Pieces are sometimes handed out as a reward for completing side quests, so make sure to talk to every NPC you can find in Hyrule. Exploring hidden caves, fishing, or just helping out those who ask for help are all great ways to earn a Heart Piece or Container during your travels. Even if you receive a useless item for Link in Ocarina of Time from this optional content, it will still put you closer to completing the game 100%.

9 Find Every Gold Skulltula

Track Down Hidden Collectibles

Early in your adventure, you will reach a place in Ocarina of Time called the House of Skulltula in Kakariko Village. One of the longest quests you can take on in this area is for Link to explore the world and collect 100 Gold Skulltula items scattered throughout the world. Most of these collectible items are hidden, but you can receive rare rewards for gathering a certain number of them and bringing them back to the House.

Every time you bring back 10 Gold Skulltula, you will be rewarded up to 50 total items collected over time. Then, you will earn another reward for collecting all 100 of these rare items, but the process will take quite a while to finish. Some of the items gifted to Link in Ocarina of Time for completing this task are an Adult Wallet, the Stone of Agony, a Giant Wallet, and even a Heart Piece eventually.

8 Complete The Biggoron Sword Quest

Obtain The Strongest Sword In The Game

You may be surprised to learn that Link’s strongest weapon in Ocarina of Time is not the Master Sword, but rather an item called the Biggoron Sword. Despite this weapon’s strength, you may not encounter it on your first adventure through the game. This is because the Biggoron Sword is only given as a reward for a side mission with a lot of different steps you have to complete under specific circumstances.

The best sword in Ocarina of Time can only be obtained when you unfreeze King Zora as Adult Link after you have saved Epona and picked up the Fairy Bow. This allows you to travel to the top of Death Mountain and speak to a giant Goron, who asks you to do some smaller fetch quests. Finishing these mundane tasks will eventually give you a chance to earn the blade, which should become your default weapon going forward.

7 Upgrade Every Item Container

Hold Special Tools In Your Inventory

Some of your best resources, like Bombs, Deku Seeds, and Arrows can only be held in limited supply during your adventures through Ocarina of Time. Multiple upgrades exist for each of the containers for these items, allowing you to hold more materials if you enhance them. For example, getting a larger Bomb Bag lets you carry more Bombs to destroy obstacles in the world.

Item Containers are not the only things you can upgrade throughout your journey. The Double Defense upgrade and enhancement to your Magic Meter are also worth getting for extra protection to your health and more uses of magic respectfully.

Increasing the carrying capacity for important items makes it easier to use the materials to complete other tasks in Hyrule. You may have to spend quite a few Rupees to get the first upgrades for these items, but other improvements may be gifted by completing optional goals. As you can see in the above video by YouTube creator Adventures in Boredom, you have to talk to the right NPCs to learn how to enhance certain items.

6 Plant And Grow All Magic Beans

Reach New Areas In The World

Magic Beans are recurring items you may find during your adventures that can be planted and grown to give Link alternate paths to otherwise unreachable locations. There are 10 Magic Beans in Ocarina of Time that you can purchase for Rupees from the Bean Seller NPC at Zora’s River. However, each Bean you buy costs more than the last at this shop, making it an expensive task to get all 10.

These items can be planted in 10 distinct patches of Soft Soil scattered in specific locations in the game across multiple regions. One of the easiest things to miss for this task is to learn the “Scarecrow’s Song” to access some Soft Soil spots in Ocarina of Time. Playing the Song of Storms in a Soft Soil area causes the Magic Beans to grow and give Link a platform that travels to secret locations.

5 Finish Every Side Quest

Help Solve Each Character’s Problems

Some side quests can be easily missed as you try to pay attention to the main story of Ocarina of Time and focus on defeating Ganondorf. Try to go around to every region and talk to NPCs you haven’t interacted with yet to see if you can pick up new side quests, whether they are small or large in scale. All side quests you complete have a reward attached to them, making each mission a worthwhile pursuit along your journey.

4 Get The Highest Score In Every Mini-Game

Master Each Game For Better Rewards

Mini-games are a large part of the game, giving you item rewards if you can accumulate high enough scores in different tasks. Some, like Horesback Archery, challenge your mastery of Link’s combat skills, while others may challenge your patience instead. The above video by YouTube creator RetroArchive details all the various mini-games in Ocarina of Time and what you need to do to succeed in each of them.

One of the most detailed mini-games you can participate in is Fishing, where you can catch a variety of fish as both Young and Adult Link. The Hylian Loach is one of the rarest fish you can catch and is considered a creature you have to capture at least once to fully 100% Ocarina of Time. Take your time to learn every mini-game and try to achieve the highest score possible to test the limits of your familiarity with the game’s systems.

3 Discover The Locations Of All Hidden Chests

Leave No Stone Unturned

Chests are all over Ocarina of Time, in hard-to-reach locations or sometimes hidden in plain sight. You need to find every treasure chest in the game to obtain all the collectibles possible, but it can be hard to track down all the containers when their locations aren’t shown on your map. You need to use Bombs to destroy parts of the environment to reveal areas with chests that would ordinarily be hidden from view.

According to a video by YouTube creator 100 Percent Zelda, there are 33 Hidden Grottos that could contain chests that you should track down first. These locations don’t always have treasure, but they do serve as additional content that counts toward the game’s 100% completion. Trace your steps from your journey to find destructible walls or other breakable objects in Ocarina of Time that may help you pursue this goal.

2 Replay The Final Battle

Defeat Ganondorf Stronger Than Ever

Beating the final boss may play the final cutscene and credits signaling the end of the game, but you have an opportunity to fight Ganondorf again. Ocarina of Time automatically saves your game right before Link’s last battle and loads it when you continue to play after the last screen. This gives you another chance to go around the world and finish tasks to 100% of the game, then fight Ganondorf again even stronger.

1 Play Another Zelda Game

Check Out How The Series Has Progressed

Plenty of follow-up games in the Legend of Zelda series have been made since Ocarina of Time‘s release, with each having drastic changes in familiar gameplay. The clearest example of this is Breath of the Wild and its sequel, Tears of the Kingdom, which sees Link awaken in a massive open world. Other titles like Skyward Sword and Twilight Princess offer unique perspectives on the classic series that you could also enjoy.

Remakes of older Legend of Zelda titles are another way for you to start a new adventure. Link’s Awakening, released in 2019, takes one of the 2D adventures and remasters it with modern flair and refined visual updates within a fresh art style. No matter what you choose to play, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time will always remain a classic that holds up as one of the most important titles to exist in gaming history.

Source: Adventures in Boredom/YouTube, RetroArchive/YouTube, 100 Percent Zelda/YouTube