Highlights
- Majora's Mask is a standout entry in the Legend of Zelda franchise, known for its dark and challenging gameplay.
- The boss battles in Majora's Mask are unique and memorable, such as the strange second phase of the Majora's Incarnation fight.
- Each boss battle in the game presents its own challenges and requires different strategies, like using the Deku Mask against Odolwa or growing with the Giant Mask to fight Twinmold.
The Legend of Zelda franchise is filled with notable characters, both ally and foe, among the many other aspects that make the games so memorable. From great puzzles and dungeon designs to the fantastic stories told throughout the games, there is something extra special about a franchise that manages to stay at the very top of the gaming industry for many years.
Majora’s Mask is one of the better-known entries in the Legend of Zelda franchise, and it's also notable for being a particularly dark entry in the series. Majora’s Mask is a slightly shorter game than some others in the series, but it still contains some phenomenal boss battles which helped make it one of the most difficult Zelda games.
7 Majora’s Incarnation
Possibly one of the strangest boss battles in the history of the Legend of Zelda franchise, Majora’s Incarnation is the second part of the final boss battle. Like many other Zelda games, the conclusion of Majora’s Mask contains a number of stages to the final fight, but instead of Ganondorf, Majora’s Mask ends with one of the strangest three-part battles in history.
The second phase is when the mask itself grows arms and legs and turns into a huge, strange creature that moves with surprising speed. Th battle felt unusual but was fascinating. The shock of such a large object moving with such speed was alarming to players, but it was never one of the more difficult fights in this darker entry in the franchise.
6 Odolwa
Unlike most bosses, there are major shifts in the Odolwa boss battle depending upon which version of the game is played. In the original version of Majora’s Mask, Link could use many of his pieces of equipment to do damage, but this was severely restricted in the remake 3DS version of the game, where only the Deku Mask will really work.
Odolwa is a fascinating boss both because of his design and because of the tricky challenge involved in attempting to find an opening to attack. Odolwa produces spiders that will fight and distract Link, all the while having his own extra attacks. This fun boss battle is a great first major fight for Majora’s Mask, prompting players to make sure they’re prepared or else they could have a real struggle early in the game.
5 Twinmold
The fourth boss appearing in Majora’s Mask, Twinmold is another extremely strange fight that is found after the Stone Temple, one of the best temples in the game. Another fight with some strange changes in the remake of Majora’s Mask, Twinmold is a pair of huge bugs that Link can only face off against by using the Giant Mask to enlarge and take the bugs on at their height.
In the original game, Link grows to a larger size, having acquired the mask before the fight, and uses his sword against the bugs. However, the Twinmold fight is changed in the remake, where Link has to get the mask during the fight, and is also forced to use his fists on the bugs after growing, as he doesn’t have enlarged versions of his sword or shield. Arguably some changes for the worse, but this nevertheless remains a fun and different boss battle.
4 Majora’s Mask
The first part of the major three-part final boss fight is against the mask itself before the game’s namesake begins transforming. There is quite a bit of difficulty in this excellent boss fight, as the mask can only be damaged if hit from behind, and finding an opening in which to attack can be extremely tough.
However, the second part of the fight is where the mask starts to set itself apart. The mask summons the remains of the masks of previous bosses from earlier in the game, providing Link with an extra challenge. Link also has to deflect the laser attacks thrown by the mask in an attempt to destroy the other pieces of previous masks.
3 Goht
Despite still being featured early in the game, Goht is one of the most entertaining boss fights seen throughout. The second main boss, found at the end of the Snowhead Temple, Goht’s boss arena is interesting as it is narrow and circular, already setting itself apart from most other boss battles in the franchise.
Goht runs around this track, and Link has to avoid the roll attacks it uses and obstacles dropped. Players can use a variety of methods to try and win this battle, which is a large part of what makes it so fun, as they can try to plant bombs in the path of Goht or fire arrows at him. Whatever way players choose, this will result in one of the longest battles in the game, providing a lot of tension, raised by the fact that players have to defeat him by the end of the first day if they want the gilded sword.
2 Majora’s Wrath
The final part of the boss battle against Majora’s Mask features the wrath that is much more human-like than either of the previous incarnations of the boss. The hardest part of the final boss fights, the Wrath can be frustrating for players, especially after they’re already worn out from the earlier sections of the fight.
Majora’s Wrath recovers quickly from damage, and it is extremely tough to get close enough to deal serious harm in the first place. All of this means that players will be hard-put to take it down. While this makes for a great final piece of the game and a wonderful conclusion to Majora’s Mask, players to this day remember their frustrations with it.
1 Gyorg
The third boss in Majora’s Mask, Gyorg actually received some positive improvements in the remade version of the game, which fans won’t say about many of the boss fights. Gyorg was considered by far the hardest boss in the entire game initially but is a lot more achievable in the remake for the 3DS.
Found after the Great Bay Temple, Gyorg’s boss fight now splits into two parts, above water where Link must use arrows until the eye can be hit, and the second part under the water. This is where the real challenge is, as Zora Link must get mines close enough to Gyorg that they are absorbed when it sucks water in. This makes for one of the most interesting fights in the game, which doesn’t feature one simple gameplay loop like some others.