The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time introduced a targeting system that simplified 3D combat.

Koji Kondo, who has been described as the " greatest legend in the video game audio industry " because of his work for Nintendo, has composed much of the music for the series, although the last game for which he was solely responsible for the composition of the soundtrack was The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

In Ocarina of Time, playing instruments is a core part of the game, the player needing to play the instrument through the use of the game controller to succeed.

Ocarina of Time is " of the first contemporary non-dance title to feature music-making as part of its gameplay ", using music as a heuristic device and requiring the player to utilise songs to progress in the game — a game mechanic that is also present in Majora's Mask and, in different forms, The Wind Waker, Oracle of Ages, Spirit Tracks, Twilight Princess, and Skyward Sword.

Much of the backstory of the creation of Hyrule was revealed in the games A Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time, The Wind Waker, Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword.

Zelda also appears under various other aliases and alter egos, including Sheik ( in Ocarina of Time ) and Tetra ( in The Wind Waker and Phantom Hourglass ).

In Wind Waker and Twilight Princess, he wore robes with the above description, but in Ocarina of Time, he wore a tight fitting tunic and pants.

After another hiatus, the series made the transition to 3D with Ocarina of Time for the Nintendo 64, which was released in November 1998.

It includes a previously unreleased 64DD expansion known as Ura Zelda in Japan and Ocarina of Time Master Quest in North America.

Ocarina of Time was included as part of Collector's Edition for the GameCube in 2003.

In 2011, Nintendo released a new version of the game in 3D for the Nintendo 3DS titled The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D.

While Majora's Mask retains the graphical style of Ocarina of Time, it is also a departure, particularly in its atmosphere.

Following the release of The Wind Waker came The Legend of Zelda: Collector's Edition, which included the original The Legend of Zelda, Zelda II, Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, and a demo of The Wind Waker.

In addition, Nintendo celebrated the 25th anniversary of The Legend of Zelda game by releasing a Zelda game for all its current consoles in 2011: Link's Awakening in the 3DS's Virtual Console on June 7, Ocarina of Time 3D for the 3DS on mid-June, Four Swords Anniversary Edition on September 28, 2011 to February 20, 2012 as a free DSiWare download and Skyward Sword for the Wii, which was released on November 18, 2011 in Europe, November 20, 2011 in the United States and November 24, 2011 in Australia.

Another title is The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Ura, intended to be an upgraded remake of Ocarina of Time for the Nintendo 64DD.

Prior to the release of The Wind Waker, a bonus disc called The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Master Quest was released, containing a port of Ocarina of Time and a GameCube-modified version of Ocarina of Time Ura.

Ocarina of Times follow-up, Majora's Mask, was released in April 2000.

Ocarina of Time was so well received that sales increased for real ocarinas.

A novel based on Ocarina of Time was released in 1999 written by Jason R. Rich and published by Sybex Inc. under their Pathways to Adventure series.

It was written by Tracey West and was set shortly after the events of Ocarina of Time.

It contains several pieces of concept art from the series's conception to the release of Skyward Sword in 2011, multiple essays about the production of the games, and for the first time ever in Zelda history, the series's timeline was included in the book, confirming fan theories about a split in the timeline, as well as a third split, asking what would happen if Link was defeated in the final battle with Ganon in Ocarina of Time.

In Ocarina of Time there was a single blue cucco that was used in a trading sequence.

It was developed simultaneously with The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, but as Ocarina of Time was released more than two years later, some puzzles were taken from that game for Super Mario 64.

In 1998, the ocarina was featured in the Nintendo 64 video game The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, attracting a marked increase in interest and a dramatic rise in sales.

The series has also been parodied, including an episode of The Powerpuff Girls which features the Mayor of Townsville playing a spoof of Ocarina of Time, and a season 3 episode of Robot Chicken, in which a skit based on The Legend of Zelda references aspects of the series, including the existence of multiple Links, Triforce, Rupees and rescuing Princess Zelda.

In addition, manga have been created based on the many of the series ' games, including A Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, the Oracle series, Four Swords Adventures, The Minish Cap and Phantom Hourglass.

This same texture would reappear in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time on a plaque in Dodongo's Cavern.

The gameplay of Majora's Mask expands on that of Ocarina of Time ; it retains the concept of dungeon puzzles and ocarina songs, and introduces character transformations and the restriction of a three-day cycle.

Link can return to 6: 00 am on the first day by playing the " Song of Time " on the Ocarina of Time.

While riding through the Lost Woods of Hyrule on his horse Epona, the masked Skull Kid and his fairy accomplices Tatl and Tael ambush Link and steal both Epona and the powerful musical instrument, the Ocarina of Time.

Ura Zelda became Ocarina of Time Master Quest outside Japan, and was released on a bonus disc for the GameCube given to those who pre-ordered The Wind Waker in the US and bundled with the GameCube game in Europe.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask runs on an upgraded version of the engine used in Ocarina of Time and requires the use of the 4 MB Expansion Pak.

Until the Nintendo 64 era, Kondo would usually write all compositions for a game, ending with The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time as the last score he worked alone on.

The series broke away from the top-down style again in 1998 when Ocarina of Time was released on the Nintendo 64, with 3D graphics.

Other series elements originated by Link's Awakening include fishing, and learning special songs on an ocarina ; the latter mechanic is central to the next Zelda game released, Ocarina of Time.

The existence of multiple Links is made obvious on many occasions in the games ; for example, the introduction sequence of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker refers to an ancient, legendary champion who is identical in appearance to Link, and directly mentions the " Hero of Time " ( a title given to Link in Ocarina of Time ) as a historical entity.

In Melee, he uses a bow as well as the Zelda items featured in Super Smash Bros .. Also playable in the game, as a secret unlockable character, is " Young Link ", based on the Ocarina of Time version of Link as a child.

There have been manga based on The Legend of Zelda, Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, Oracle of Ages, Oracle of Seasons, Four Swords Adventures, A Link to the Past and The Minish Cap.

The gameplay mechanics themselves closely mirror those of Ocarina of Time, as Fox is on foot for most of the game and pilots his Arwing only to reach another piece of the planet.

Fox cannot jump unless he runs off the edge of an object or a cliff, and can roll after landing on the ground, in the same fashion as Link leaps off edges in Ocarina of Time.

Viz Media is currently planning to publish English translations of Himekawa's Zelda manga in North America, beginning with their adaptation of The Ocarina of Time, which was published on October 2008.

* Epheremelda: Link's fairy guide and companion who has a crush on Link, foreshadowing Navi from Ocarina of Time.