The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time featured the most imposing version of series villain Ganon so far in the Forest Temple’s Phantom Ganon boss.
One of the many things that The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time did laudably right was featuring the most imposing version of traditional series villain Ganon so far in its Forest Temple boss, Phantom Ganon. Ganon may not be as iconic, at least in modern Zelda, as his human (specifically Gerudo) form Ganondorf, but this may be partly due to his monstrous and beastly nature resulting in him not possessing one consistent design. Individual Ganons are, therefore, likely to be a Zelda fan’s favorite more than the idea of the character overall – and it’s impossible to blame them if their pick is Ocarina’s Phantom Ganon.
There are a few overall design conventions that any iteration of Ganon is almost guaranteed to reflect. He resembles a humanoid boar in the original Legend of Zelda on the NES (and now Nintendo Switch) and would do so again in most subsequent appearances, though his porcine features are lesser in the initial form of his Ocarina final boss appearance and his original manifestation Demise, which are more ogre-like.
While his Phantom Ganon incarnations in Ocarina and The Wind Waker wear horned headpieces evocative of the shape of other Ganons’ tusks, they deviate most strongly from expectations for the character, and the former is incredibly striking for it. While Wind Waker‘s Phantom Ganon is a relatively plain shadowy figure, Ocarina‘s take on the boss dons a mask like a warped, snarling skull plus spiked black armor he shares with his horse, along with his blazing orange eyes. Where the horns on the helm of the phantom Link and friends face in Wind Waker give it the look of headgear operatically associated with Vikings, those protruding from Ocarina‘s mask lend the villain a visage as evocative of a demon as a specter. Phantom Ganon’s fiendish and frightening appearance allows him to succeed as the perfect boss for the ghost-filled, twisted Forest Temple in which he appears.
Ocarina of Time Features Zelda’s Scariest Take On Ganon
While nowhere near as difficult to fight, players are likely to find that he makes an even stronger impression than the previously mentioned version of Ganon Link faces at the game’s climax. While Ganon still cuts an imposing figure as an endgame boss (and among the best Legend of Zelda boss battles to actually play), he’s still faithful enough to formulas that he and his fight are liable to linger in the mind less distinctively than they could.
Long-running franchises have their traditions, but while they’re fun to follow and watch evolve, they’re bound to wear out their welcome without at least occasional twists. Breath of the Wild deviated from design norms expected of Ganon in its ways. However, the series hit a point of perfection back in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time with Phantom Ganon’s recognizable vibe yet unique appearance that it could stand to look back to in the future.