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Need Help with Barinade and Ocarina in General

Joined
Jan 10, 2019
Hi everyone--first post here, but have owned Ocarina of Time since Christmas 1998.

I still can't get Link to grow up. I've played this game off and on and have typically put it away out of sheer frustration, only to come back anywhere from several months to several years later and maybe get a little tiny bit further.

Twenty years later, I found it while cleaning the closet, sitting in the corner next to a bookcase. Figuring it's been a while, I decided to make it a point to try to beat this game for once.

Yes, my save file has been going for two decades with very little progress. I was 12 when I got the game, now I'm 32. I've grown up but my Link character hasn't. I have exactly one motive for beating it: I am an educator and tell all my students to always finish a project they started. I don't want to be a hypocrite, so I figure I should make good on doing exactly that. It's more or less a peace of mind thing with myself.

I thought maybe I got the wrong strategy guide when I got the game. I had the Prima one. I ordered an official Nintendo one on eBay, only to find it was even more confusing--it just tells a story, nothing about what to do. What a waste of $20! (At least the story was mildly entertaining, even for someone who would rather read economic journals than fantasy).

I've been following the videos from this site on YouTube, and they've been pretty useful so far, but I am absolutely stuck right now. (I'll generally watch it, pause it, try to do it myself, then occasionally rewind the video when I get hopelessly lost or have a camera issue). Here are the major problems I have been having despite using the videos and the Nintendo book:

1A. I can't beat Barinade. I've lost to him about ten times so far. The video makes it look too easy, plus I don't have this fire weapon they have in the video. There don't seem to be any extra hearts anywhere in this board, although the first time I played through the vases had them. Now none of the vases have them and my character just runs out every time. I only have five hearts, which seems to be enough since all of the videos I've seen lose far less than that when fighting him, but I can't seem to get in to him. How do I avoid getting shocked? What is the trick to this guy?

1B. I'll get zapped but can't seem to get inside to hit him. I do have to hit him with the boomerang, right? Can I just use the sword after that? Also, how many hits does it take? I keep hearing a countdown on the videos, but there doesn't seem to be a life meter for him on the screen.

2. When I use the Z button to target, the camera angle changes during the Barinade battle. Sometimes, it will turn completely around. How do I get this to stop? Mario 64 made this really easy as I recall (I don't think I've fired that one up since college), but this was one of my complaints about Zelda from day one. Link will face the complete opposite direction, which is how I keep getting zapped.

3. How finicky is the shield? When I restart the level every few minutes, the guys who shoot the rocks (sorry, not sure of their exact name) keep bludgeoning me. I could get out one of my protractors and measure the angle of reflection, and it looks to be perfect, but they're always a little off. Are there known issues regarding geometry and physics in this game?

4. What is the green bar under the hearts I keep seeing on all the videos? I don't have one on mine.

All I want is to get the third spiritual stone, and I know this is the key to it. Even if I can get Link to grow up and I am unable to beat anything more, I'll at least know I completed one of the big goals of the game (although ideally I'd like to beat it).

FYI: I am using an original Nintendo 64 to play this. I am aware they made this game for other systems, but I have a genuine Nintendo 64 with the stock controller and an original gray cartridge. I believe there were gold ones, not sure if the game is different on those or if things were fixed with camera angles and the like in any updated releases.

FYI #2: My skills at games in general have eroded given my age and infrequency of playing, but my 12 year old niece has beaten the new Zelda for the Wii U and insists I can beat this game.

FYI #3: I am playing on a new-fish flat panel TV. I've heard there are timing issues when switching from a CRT to a flat panel. (I do still have my old 13" CRT lurking around the closet if it would make things easier).
 

Vanessa28

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Barinade can be a pain in the ass but if you know his moves he's actually easy. As soon as you start try to hit the tendons and take them out. Then he starts to swing around. Because the spawn is wide you can get closer to him and stun his lower body with the boomerang. Then hit him. He starts to swing around again and you should avoid being hit. You can try to hit his lower body again but after a while he stops and then you should z-focus on the jellyfish and take them out. If you can't take them all out in one go, just simply wait till he swings around again till he stops. After all jellyfish are taken out, you can hit the lower body more easily. Stun him, hit him a few times. Then he does basically the same thing again, swinging around and the jellyfish are back. So repeat the process, Then he starts to swing around without the jellyfish so all you have to do is z-focus and his the body and stun him, hit him. Repeat this till he's done for. It helps if you take some fairies with you before you start the fight. When you run out of hearts the fairies will revive you
 

Jirohnagi

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Hi everyone--first post here, but have owned Ocarina of Time since Christmas 1998.

I still can't get Link to grow up. I've played this game off and on and have typically put it away out of sheer frustration, only to come back anywhere from several months to several years later and maybe get a little tiny bit further.

Twenty years later, I found it while cleaning the closet, sitting in the corner next to a bookcase. Figuring it's been a while, I decided to make it a point to try to beat this game for once.

Yes, my save file has been going for two decades with very little progress. I was 12 when I got the game, now I'm 32. I've grown up but my Link character hasn't. I have exactly one motive for beating it: I am an educator and tell all my students to always finish a project they started. I don't want to be a hypocrite, so I figure I should make good on doing exactly that. It's more or less a peace of mind thing with myself.

I thought maybe I got the wrong strategy guide when I got the game. I had the Prima one. I ordered an official Nintendo one on eBay, only to find it was even more confusing--it just tells a story, nothing about what to do. What a waste of $20! (At least the story was mildly entertaining, even for someone who would rather read economic journals than fantasy).

I've been following the videos from this site on YouTube, and they've been pretty useful so far, but I am absolutely stuck right now. (I'll generally watch it, pause it, try to do it myself, then occasionally rewind the video when I get hopelessly lost or have a camera issue). Here are the major problems I have been having despite using the videos and the Nintendo book:

1A. I can't beat Barinade. I've lost to him about ten times so far. The video makes it look too easy, plus I don't have this fire weapon they have in the video. There don't seem to be any extra hearts anywhere in this board, although the first time I played through the vases had them. Now none of the vases have them and my character just runs out every time. I only have five hearts, which seems to be enough since all of the videos I've seen lose far less than that when fighting him, but I can't seem to get in to him. How do I avoid getting shocked? What is the trick to this guy?

1B. I'll get zapped but can't seem to get inside to hit him. I do have to hit him with the boomerang, right? Can I just use the sword after that? Also, how many hits does it take? I keep hearing a countdown on the videos, but there doesn't seem to be a life meter for him on the screen.

2. When I use the Z button to target, the camera angle changes during the Barinade battle. Sometimes, it will turn completely around. How do I get this to stop? Mario 64 made this really easy as I recall (I don't think I've fired that one up since college), but this was one of my complaints about Zelda from day one. Link will face the complete opposite direction, which is how I keep getting zapped.

3. How finicky is the shield? When I restart the level every few minutes, the guys who shoot the rocks (sorry, not sure of their exact name) keep bludgeoning me. I could get out one of my protractors and measure the angle of reflection, and it looks to be perfect, but they're always a little off. Are there known issues regarding geometry and physics in this game?

4. What is the green bar under the hearts I keep seeing on all the videos? I don't have one on mine.

All I want is to get the third spiritual stone, and I know this is the key to it. Even if I can get Link to grow up and I am unable to beat anything more, I'll at least know I completed one of the big goals of the game (although ideally I'd like to beat it).

FYI: I am using an original Nintendo 64 to play this. I am aware they made this game for other systems, but I have a genuine Nintendo 64 with the stock controller and an original gray cartridge. I believe there were gold ones, not sure if the game is different on those or if things were fixed with camera angles and the like in any updated releases.

FYI #2: My skills at games in general have eroded given my age and infrequency of playing, but my 12 year old niece has beaten the new Zelda for the Wii U and insists I can beat this game.

FYI #3: I am playing on a new-fish flat panel TV. I've heard there are timing issues when switching from a CRT to a flat panel. (I do still have my old 13" CRT lurking around the closet if it would make things easier).

I'll answer this the same way you've got it going here.

go into options by the way and check if targeting is set to switch or hold. For anything zelda related i'd say switch is better, you just press it once and it locks on

1A. Barinade is a somewhat finicky boss, first phase keep the z-targeting going (z-targeting locks your camera in which ever way link is facing) Boomerang is only really effective when it's fired at a target, in this case face towards barinade and make sure only ONE of the little radars are facing you (easier to avoid) then lock on to the pipes attached to the ceiling (so long as you face towards him they'll lock) then throw the boomerang. Dodging the electric bolts is easy if you see electric particles forming around each radar start moving left or right, it'll miss you. In phase two Barinade becomes mobile, so long as target lock is on you'll be able to follow him around and still keep him in view. throw the boomerang at the boss then at each of the little jellyfish that fall off. Keep doing this til he's fully out of the ground (you can see the root of the boss) When he's in this final phase keep that target lock on him and keep throwing the boomerang eventually you'll stun him, either jump slash (move forward and press A) or use a deku stick on him keep going til he dies.

1B. like i say above if you keep moving while locked on you shouldn't be hit to often, the jellyfish have a defined distance so stay away from them. Attacks only really count when Barinade is fully emerged (you can see the root) and it takes i'd say maybe 6 jump slashs to kill him.

2. Camera angles really depend on which direction link is facing, z-targeting will always force the camera behind link so if links facing forward your camera will be directly behind you.

3. Z-targeting is probably the best bet you have for killing octoroks with their own shots, though you can throw deku nuts to stun them or use the sling shot. Shield aiming is rather annoying and the only times you'll ever see where your aiming at is far later in the spirit temple with a specific shield.

4. That green bar if your magic meter, you can obtain this by climbing to the top of death mountain (don't worry you get a free ride back down from up there) on your way to goron city the road splits the right path takes you to the city and the left up some ramps with boulders (throw bombs faster they flash closer they are to exploding) take the left path and make sure you are not wearing your wooden shield (it'll burn) just run up to the back wall and climb up all the way, the skulltulas will turn purple before they attack (they attack if you move in their eyeline) once at the top blast the wall on the left and enter the fairy fountain play Zelda's lullaby to obtain your magic meter (this can be upgraded by finding another fairy after i believe fire temple) and now for two spells, if you return to hyrule castle grounds and follow the path, not towards the soldiers but to the back wall theres a bombable rock there blast it and enter the fairy fountain play Zelda's Lullaby here to get Din's Fire. This Spell is actually mandatory for entering the Shadow Temple Later on. Farores wind can be gotten from swimming all the way to the back wall of jabu jabu's area in zora's domain. at the back you'll see a silver rock bomb it and a large cave will be revealed play Zelda's Lullaby here for Farores wind - this spell allows you place a warp point in the dungeon and leave (very handy if you need to go and stock up on fairies)

IN general stick with Z-Targeting as it'll mean you can keep track of enemies far easier and shoot them faster, no need to aim ^^.
 
Joined
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OK this leaves me with a few more questions:

1. Is the option somewhere on the menu brought up by pressing start? Hopefully that solves my camera problem; I don't see it happening to the people who make the videos so I'm assuming that's what's needed?

2. Regarding the magic mountain, do I have to go back to it after I finally get past this boss? Is it a bad idea to just go ahead to the time temple or whatever it's called to let Link grow up right away?

3. The game has scolded me a few times for not having a rumble pack. Is that something I need to get?

4. If I Z-target an Oktorock (thanks for the name!), don't I need to repel it with something? The more I think about the shield, the more I realize it's probably not so much a question of geometry as it is a question of the wood it's made of, which is likely warped and would result in imperfect reflections (or at least imperfect compared to the theoretical reflections we teach in high school geometry).

5. Is it possible I just don't have the talent to beat the boss? I seem to always get hit by the electrical zaps (and have had to mute the TV since I'm so tired of Link's exaggerated screaming; trust me, nobody screams like that even if they do get shocked, I have done small electronics repair and have been hit with many shocks).
 

Vanessa28

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Trust me, getting zapped by the boss is NOT uncommon.

The rumble pack is something you can get by collecting gold skulltulas. You need to go to the skulltula house in kakariko village. It's one of the rewards you'll get for collecting a certain amount of skulltulas. Don't pay attention to the game scolding you for not having the rumble pack.

As a child simply use the wooden shield in front of you and you'll dodge the projectiles thrown at you by the octoroks and they get hit by them and die. The hylian shield is too big for you to use to make projectiles bounce off. So the wooden shield is the best. As adult Link simply use the hylian shield to dodge.

No, you don't need talent to beat a boss. You'll need strategy and that's what you lack at right now. But you'll get there eventually and one day will laugh it off.

No you can't go ahead to the Temple of Time. You'll need all three stones to even make the important cutscene happen when you return to Hyrule Castle. There is no other way to make Link grow up besides cheats.
 

Jirohnagi

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OK this leaves me with a few more questions:

1. Is the option somewhere on the menu brought up by pressing start? Hopefully that solves my camera problem; I don't see it happening to the people who make the videos so I'm assuming that's what's needed?

2. Regarding the magic mountain, do I have to go back to it after I finally get past this boss? Is it a bad idea to just go ahead to the time temple or whatever it's called to let Link grow up right away?

3. The game has scolded me a few times for not having a rumble pack. Is that something I need to get?

4. If I Z-target an Oktorock (thanks for the name!), don't I need to repel it with something? The more I think about the shield, the more I realize it's probably not so much a question of geometry as it is a question of the wood it's made of, which is likely warped and would result in imperfect reflections (or at least imperfect compared to the theoretical reflections we teach in high school geometry).

5. Is it possible I just don't have the talent to beat the boss? I seem to always get hit by the electrical zaps (and have had to mute the TV since I'm so tired of Link's exaggerated screaming; trust me, nobody screams like that even if they do get shocked, I have done small electronics repair and have been hit with many shocks).

1. the option for z-targeting is on the main menu screen when you can select file there should be a setting section.

2. you can quite literally obtain magic whenever you please, i'd even go so far as to say don't bother til you return to death mountain as an adult (fire tunic will let you climb the insides of death mountain easy)

3. Rumble pack isn't needed but it is handy as it will let you know where secret holes are (these can require megaton hammer, bombs, song of storms, suns song to open)

4. In terms of shields Kokiri is the lightest and therefore the best for young link as the hylian is too heavy (handy for ascending deadly mountains though) when it comes to those infernal octoroks you can z-target and throw a boomerang at them

5. It's more about gauging your distances, you want to be able to throw the boomerang at the body but be just enough out of range not to get hit by the spinning jellyfish.

I should point out that the jellyfish are on a cycle, they'll speed up and spread out, which is when you wanna back off, then slow down and circle close to the body, thats when you want to stun the body. you'll know you've succeeded cuz the jellyfish will no longer be connected to the boss
 

Dizzi

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theres no working out the angles of throwing the boomerang needed my advice is find the fairies, circle the guy while repeatedly throwing the boomerang when he stops and is kinda shuddering (is that the right word?) slash with sword....
 
Joined
Jan 10, 2019
Thanks everyone for the input!!

I returned to the game tonight, fully expecting to spend hours trying to beat the boss.

Amazingly, I got past him on my first try tonight. For some reason, the vases around the perimeter of the arena were filled with hearts again. Thanks to everyone who had some advice here; I think the biggest issue for me was the controls and becoming better at Z-targeting. I re-read the original instruction manual before I played--yes, the one that comes in the game box (for what it's worth I still have the box for the game along with the other seven Nintendo 64 games I accumulated in my earlier years). Having those hearts really helped since the extra life enabled me to be more aggressive in my approach. Being on the outside of the arena and not going in as much seemed to work against me on the first go-round. That boomerang doesn't have a lot of range after all. It was also nice to finally get another heart container.

My theory on the hearts re-appearing is that I reset the game entirely by having the console off for nearly 24 hours. I know some funny things can happen when games get reset sometimes (including on this one how Link often goes home when he's not in a dungeon).

I guess the biggest question for me now is where to go from here? In reading over that strategy guide I bought, it seems like there is much more that should have been done up to this point, but I did see someone earlier post that I don't necessarily need to get the magic ability from the mountain as a child and that I can do it as an adult. Maybe the other areas are the same way. I'm just ready for Link to grow up after all these years.

(Besides, given when I got the game, shouldn't Link be old enough to rent a car without a co-signer by now?)

The game said to go see Princess Zelda, but is there anything else I should have up to this point? I have two shields (a metal one and the aforementioned wooden one), a bunch of Deku parts, the boomerang, a sword, a few maps, and a pair of bottles. I now have all three spiritual stones: the green one, the red one, and this blue one.

One other question--how important is it to defeat the gold spiders? I had defeated a total of two of them (over 20 years) until two days ago. I think I'm up to 8 now. All of the videos seem to emphasize defeating them, but are they really that important to the quest?

Sorry for all the questions, I'm just glad I stumbled across some folks who are willing to help!!
 

Dizzi

magical internet cat....
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you dont really need to get golden skulltas as you can collect them later, get Eponas song if you want from lon lon ranch....
 

Spiritual Mask Salesman

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I guess the biggest question for me now is where to go from here? In reading over that strategy guide I bought, it seems like there is much more that should have been done up to this point, but I did see someone earlier post that I don't necessarily need to get the magic ability from the mountain as a child and that I can do it as an adult.
No, you get a another magic upgrade as an adult, but you need the upgrade atop Death Mountain too which can only be obtained while Link is a child.

One other question--how important is it to defeat the gold spiders? I had defeated a total of two of them (over 20 years) until two days ago. I think I'm up to 8 now. All of the videos seem to emphasize defeating them, but are they really that important to the quest?
You can get bigger wallets to hold more rupees, but in the end getting all 100 in the game is kind of pointless.
 

Jirohnagi

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No, you get a another magic upgrade as an adult, but you need the upgrade atop Death Mountain too which can only be obtained while Link is a child.


You can get bigger wallets to hold more rupees, but in the end getting all 100 in the game is kind of pointless.

Incorrect that Fairy Fountain is always open my dude.

As for OP bear in mind that NOTHING is locked off in OOT if you choose to go to adulthood. you'll be blocked for a time from becoming a child again but ocmpleting forest temple will allow you to return to childhood.

You can make castle town your next destination, you'll then have "completed" childhood section, you can do as you please until you wanna be an adult.
 

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