Halloween is right around the corner! As we get ready for the spookiest day of the year by decorating our front lawns and putting the finishing touches on our costumes, I have to ask the question: which Zelda game is the scariest?

Most Zelda games have some horror aspects, from creepy enemies like Redeads, Poes, or Zombie Bokoblins, to entire dungeons which seem meant to give the player chills. This might sound odd, but The Wind Waker ended up being the scariest Zelda game to me when I was young. Redeads and Gibdos from Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask were always kind of spooky to me, but I knew that in those games if I played the Sun’s Song I could freeze them in place, which made them less terrifying. 

Redeads in The Wind Waker can only be stunned by beams of light from the Mirror Shield (or by the Skull Hammer, I was unaware of that back then). The problem is not every room has sunlight to reflect, and there will be a large portion of the dungeon explored without the Mirror Shield handy. The scariest Zelda enemies to me were now a lot harder to deal with, and the Earth Temple is one giant tomb full of them! I would approach those coffin-lined walls with a sense of dread, because I knew there would be Redeads waiting to creep outto grab Link and bite him – a scene that left me feeling unsettled each time their shrieks would petrify poor Link.

This one dungeon was everything about Zelda I was scared of, and it solidified The Wind Waker as the scariest Zelda game of my youth. But which Zelda game is the scariest to you? We’re interested to hear your thoughts in the comments below!

 

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