The Legend of Zelda Mega Review Part III: Levels 5-8

Continuing on with the Zelda mini-walkthrough, I'll give you a taste of levels 5-8. These dungeons are quite challenging and far more complicated than the previous levels.

So, let's cut to the chase:

• Level 5, "The Lizard"

The 2 ways to enter Level 5

"The Lizard" has some rooms that are not shown on the map

Level 5, aka "The Lizard" is a very challenging dungeon. It is located on screen L1, but it has a twist. You must go 5 screens up from L2 to reach L1. In this level Gibdos are introduced, the mummies that crawl the dungeons. It's a pretty easy enemy, especially if you have the Magical Sword (which you should have by now, if you have followed the steps in the previous posts). Just a couple of stabs and bye-bye, rewarding you, most of the time, richly. Also in this dungeon you'll meet the famous Pols-Voice, the bunny-like monster that is killed by arrows or with many-many sword stabs. The arrow can kill many Pols-Voices at once, if they are in its line of fire. On the japanese version, Pols-Voice is killed by shouting at a microphone that is located on the Famicom controller. Pretty neat for the time, huh?

The Recorder

The key item here is the recorder, "a really mysterious, magical item", according to the manual. It's location is not shown on the map and you get there from the entrance by goind 1 screen up, bomb the wall on the left, 2 screens left and one down. You take the stairs near to the "eye" of the Lizard and go left. Kill the enemies to get the recorder. Also in the previous room, if you bomb the right wall you will find the old man that sells a bigger bomb bag that can hold up to 12 bombs from a mere 100 rupees.

The recorder can teleport Link to the levels he has completed when he is on the Overworld. He can go to the next or previous one by facing south (previous level) or north (next level). Also the recorder heals link from the jixnes put on him by Bubbles, a flashing skull-like enemy.

Digdogger

You will find Dodongo in the  role of mini-boss and the dungeon boss is Digdogger, an eye-like creature. It is invulnerable to all attacks, until Link plays the recorder. Then he shrinks to 1/4 of its original size and only takes 3-4 stabs to kill. Heart container, Triforce piece and ready for Level 6.

• Level 6, "The Dragon"

The two ways to enter Level 6

Level 6 map

Level 6, aka "The Dragon", is where things get serious. Say hello to your new friend Wizzrobe. The most annoying enemy in the game. It's more difficult than Ganon himself (Well, many enemies are more difficult that Ganon, sadly). Level 6 is located on screen C3. It is strongly recommended to buy a red potion before you enter and have a magical shield to defend against the Wizzrobes.

Magic Wand

The new item in this level is the magical wand that allows Link to cast spells (shoot beams). It is as powerful as the white sword, so it makes a good alternative to the sword, if you can't shoot it. It is located 9 screens away from the entrance. You get there by going 1 screen left, 6 screens up, 1 screen right and 1 up.

Gohma

The dungeon is a bit tricky, but I' m sure you can get past it, since you've reached this far. Gleeok serves as the mini-boss in this level and the dungeon boss is Gohma, a spider-like enemy that must be shot in the eye with an arrow to die. Get the container and the Triforce and back to the Overworld.

• Level 7, "The Demon"

Level 7 entrance

"The Demon" is quite challenging and packed with secrets

Level 7, aka "The Demon". Level 7 is the reason why it took me 4 months to beat the game. It took me 2 1/2 months to find it. Of course the old man quotes "There are secrets where fairies don't live", but I just couldn't imagine what to do. It is located on screen C5 and all you have to do is go there and play the recorder for the stairs to appear. I played the recorder because I wanted to go to a previous dungeon and voila! I couldn't believe my eyes.

Red Candle

Bait

Before you enter here make sure you have the bait, because you'll need it to feed a hungry Goriya that goes "Grumble, grumble".  In this dungeon you'll find again the more bombs old man, so have at least 100 rupees with you to get the even bigger bag that holds up to 16 bombs.

The key item is the red candle that allows link to shoot multiple fires in each screen, instead of one on each screen that the blue candle allowed. It is located 1 up, 2 left (bomb on the left), 1 up, 1 right, 2 up, 1 left, 2 up and 2 right (bomb to the right) from the entrance.

Aquamentus

You will find 2 reinforced mini-bosses here: 3 Dodongos and 1 three-headed Digdogger. The dungeon boss is Aquamentus. Wait, what? No, it's not a typo. It is Aquamentus and with the magical sword, is ridiculously easy to beat. Guess that Nintendo ran out of ideas for new bosses. Well, beat the boss, take your heart container and Triforce piece and let's head for the final Triforce shard on Level 8.

• Level 8, "The Lion"

Level 8 entrance

"The Lion" holds the final Triforce piece

Magic Book

Level 8, aka "The Lion", holds the final Triforce piece to complete the Triforce of Wisdom and face Ganon. It's shaped roughly like a lion's head. It's located on screen N7 and to find the entrance you have to use the candle on the tree that blocks the way.

Gleeok

There are two items to get in this dungeon. The first one is the magic book that is used in combination with the magic wand to shoot fire where the wand's beam hits. It is located 2 screen right from the entrance. The other is the magical key that opens every locked door. That's right, bye-bye to key finding and hello to locksmith Link. Enter every locked door just like that. It is located 7 screens up and 1 right from the entrance (bomb where there are no doors).

Magical Key

You will face a collection of mini-bosses, 2 Gohmas and 3 Manhandlas. The dungeon boss is a three-headed Gleeok, again. No comment. Defeat it using your sword, get the container and the final Triforce piece. Next stop: Death Mountain.

On the next post: Level 9, the last dungeon