Letters to the Editor

Welcome to the inaugral edition of Letters to the Editor! This section of the Hyrule News exists to provide a forum for Zelda fans to voice their opinions, express their concerns, and gather gameplay advice from me, the humble Editor of Hyrule News.

If you have a burning question regarding Zelda theory (Is the cucco related to the chicken?), Zelda gameplay (How do I find all the cuccos?), Zelda ethics (Is it wrong to stab the cuccos?), or if you just want to voice your opinion (I bet cuccos taste like chicken...), then drop me a line at: editor@zelda64.com.

You can expect to see a new edition of this Q&A; extravaganza about once a week, so check back between Zelda sessions to see if your letter made the cut. I may not have all the answers, but -- who am I kidding, of course I have all the answers! Ha ha ha! Let's take a look at what you had for me this week.

Do you need rupees? Do you have the sun song? If you answered yes to both of those questions, then go to the drawbridge of the Hyrule castle and climb to the top of the chain. At the top, play the sun song to turn to night and raise the drawbridge. Once the drawbridge is up, you can walk along the top of the drawbridge to get a quick 60 rupees. Who do you give the bunny hood to?-- Ben Thiemann

Ed: I didn't know about that rupee trick, but I tried it and it worked! You don't need the Sun Song, though, because the drawbridge will raise eventually when night falls. This trick only works when Link is a kid, but you'll need an adult-size wallet to hold all of your extra rupees. Take out all of the Gold Skulltullas you can to get a wallet upgrade. Since you were nice enough to include an excellent tip with your question, I'd be happy to pass on some information to help you in your new business. You'll find a man running around Hyrule Field who's in the market for a Bunny Hood. He only appears after Jabu Jabu's Belly is conquered, and you'll have a better chance of finding him if you run around the field in a clockwise direction.

I have already been through the first two temples and now am in the water temple. I searched around for keys and stuff and thought I had them all. I raised the water the first time but after playing the game for about eight hours or so and being able to get nowhere I figured out that I in fact forgot to bomb a hole in the floor on th bottom level. I thought that I had tried this earlier and it didn't work but I guess I really didn't try it. Now the water is too high and I can't bomb. The last time I saved it was after the water had been raised the first time. My problem is that I can't get the water to go back down. The only place left that I know of to change the water level is on the third level. If I go to the third level and play the song the water raises to the third level. If I try to play the song again to get the water to go down it doesn't work. I've tried everything that I can think of to get the water back down but I am truly stuck. Can you please help!? Thanks. --Steve

Ed: In my opinion, the Water Temple is the cruelest dungeon in the entire game. Compared to this dungeon, the rest of the areas are a breeze. Before you even think about lowering the water, you must have the Longshot. Since you don't even mention this handy tool in your letter, I'm guessing that you haven't found it yet. Here's what you need to do: after raising the water to the highest level, drop into the water and go left along the wall to enter the locked door. This will put you in the room with moving platforms. Use your regular Hookshot to make your way all the way to the door at the top of these platforms. I don't want to bore you with step by step directions, but in the next room you'll have to use your Hookshot to make your way to another door (raise and lower the water level by hitting the crystal in the middle of the room). In the next room you'll fight a vaguely familiar mini-boss, and your reward is the Longshot. My advice is to explore this room thoroughly. I initially overlooked a very important feature which added about three hours to my total gameplay time. Good luck.

Ok I know in order to get Biggoron's sword you have to complete the trading stuff and I have gotten to the part where King Zora gives me the frog but how am I suppose to get that frog all the way to Lake Hylia without using the Ocarina or using the warp hole underneath the ice in Zora's domain?! Please either put the answer in the faq and let me know to look or email me with the answer. Please. --Lunarblack

Ed: So you want to cover a large distance in a short amount of time, eh? As Ben Kenobi said, "Use the Horse, Luke." If you don't have Epona yet, keep reading...

WHEN I GET TO "LON LON RANCH" I GET ON EPONA AND I DON`T KNOW WHAT TO DO , I DID BOTH JUMPS AND STILL NOTHING HAPPENS, WHAT DO I DO !!?? --Ken Downe

Ed: Calm down. Horses can sense your fear. You're on the right track to horse ownership, but you haven't crossed the finish line yet. Here's the down-low on earning Epona. First, learn Epona's song before you change into an adult. Once you pay Ingo to ride a horse, play Epona's song to bring her to you. Ride Epona until time expires, and then the second time you ride Epona talk to Ingo while you're on the horse. Ingo will challenge you to a race, and if you beat him two times in a row you'll get Epona! There aren't any secrets to beating Ingo, other than practice and patience. Whipping Epona will make her run faster, but it may make you feel guilty.

I have found my way to Lake Hylia and have read the stones to "shoot for the morning light". What am I supposed to shoot and where? All I have are deku seeds. Is this area significant? I have looked everywhere and am getting nowhere!!! --NATASHA

Ed: Every area in Hyrule is significant. Some clues are tough to figure out, but this particular note should be taken quite literally. I don't care how much sword-swinging you do; you're never going to be able to "shoot for the morning light" with puny Deku Seeds. Speaking of Deku Seeds, I despise their larger relatives, Deku Nuts. I can't remember one time in the entire game when they came in handy. Sure, they stun some enemies, but that's a waste of time. Anyway, you won't be able to solve this riddle until you've completed the Water Temple. After that, shoot a more effective weapon at the rising sun. By the way, if you've found anything useful to do with a Deku Nut, let me know.

Ganondorf is no more. Ninty spiders of the curse have been destroyed and more shall die tomorrow. All is well in Hyrule. Now I return to peacefull realm of my friends the Zora only to find it still frozen cold even after the dreadfull curse had been lifted. It is for this reason that I have sought your wisdom. Please answer me this question; Can the ice of Zora's Domain be destroyed and pease returned? --First Knight of the Zora

Ed: I am pleased that you have returned the peas to the Zoras' dinner tables, but nothing you can do will ever melt the glacier they now call home. Once Hyrule enters an industrial era, perhaps pollution will create a Greenhouse effect, resulting in global warming which will eventually melt the ice of Zora's Domain. But then the water would likely be polluted and you'd have to go on a second quest to rid the land of enviromental criminals, with factories taking the place of dungeons. For now, rest easy with the knowledge that the hearts of the Zoras have been unfrozen.

Please clear this up for me. My friends and I can't this story stright! How did Ganon come into the picture? Isn't he dead? In the final battle, once you defeat Ganondorf and you escape from the castle you fight Ganon. Is this Ganondorf in another form like the player's guide says or is it the real Ganon who says when he fights you it'll be harder than his phantom. Also the call Ganondorf's castle Ganon's castle, please define this: Who's Ganondorf's idenity, is he a gerudo or is he Ganon. Who's Ganon idenity? Please write back, this is a burning question in my school! --Daryk and Sarah Macrina

Ed: Hmmm...Good question. I'm curious what our readers have to say about that. Email me with your hypotheses on this matter and I'll post the most enlightening along with my own opinion next week.