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When I was around 15 years old, my brother (Pannenkoek) and I played The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for the first time, on the Wii virtual console. We never owned it for the Nintendo 64, even though that was our favorite system. For the most part, I played and he watched. Sometimes we did the opposite, though, and sometimes we played separately.
Midway through the game, somewhere in Zora’s Domain, possibly near Jabu Jabu, I came across this small, grey, seemingly translucent, hexagon-shaped patch of ice on the ground. It wasn’t hidden at all, it was out in the open. And it struck me as important because under that seemingly thin sheet of ice appeared to be a vertical, hexagon-shaped tunnel ― just wide enough for Link to fit through. I imagined it led to a heart piece or some other treasure.
I tried using bombs to break the ice, but that didn’t work. So I tried using fire arrows, but that didn’t work either. Later, I tried using Din’s Fire and even walking on it with the iron boots, but still with no success. I figured I’d figure it out later.
We wanted to try to 100% the game, so after we eventually defeated Ganon, we kept exploring the world, trying to find and complete anything optional left to do. We found a couple more things, then less and less, until we reached the point where we couldn’t find anything else. Then we checked online for what we missed ― a couple heart pieces, Big Poes, etc. After collecting those last few things, we finally did and had everything.
At some point it dawned on me, though, that that patch of ice never came into play. And since there was nothing left to be rewarded with, it must not have been important after all. I was kind of disappointed, but I also really like mysterious things like that ― like the sculpture of a star in the courtyard in Super Mario 64.
Years later, when I was around maybe 25, I decided it had been long enough that it would be fun to play through Ocarina of Time again. I remember specifically looking forward to coming across that patch of ice again. It was one of the things from my first playthrough I remember most, since it was the only unsolved mystery. I finally gained access to Zora’s Domain, but I couldn’t find that patch of ice. I figured it must just be later in the game. But eventually I beat the game again and still hadn’t found it. So I went back and searched Zora’s Domain with a fine-tooth comb. This thing I vividly remember just doesn’t exist ― it’s not in the game. I couldn’t believe it.
I asked my friends who’ve played the game about it, and I asked my brother too. None of them knew what I was talking about. I asked my brother if he at least remembers me mentioning it, since he remembered a lot of other details of that first play-through. But he didn’t. Maybe it was a dream. I could have sworn this took place over the span of a week or two, though. If it’s a false memory, it’s the most vivid one I’ve ever had.
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