Quick TakeArticle at a glance
- The Water Temple in the Ocarina of Time remake keeps its original layout and water-level puzzle, but Iron Boots now map to the D-pad instead of a pause-menu swap.
- The dungeon's reward is the Longshot, found after defeating Dark Link, and the boss is Morpha, fought by yanking it out of the water with the Longshot.
- The remake also replaced several solid walls with lattice structures so you can see into neighboring rooms, which removes a lot of the original's guesswork.
The Water Temple in the Ocarina of Time remake keeps the same layout and water-level puzzle that made it infamous on the Nintendo 64, but the two changes that matter most are both about reducing friction: Iron Boots now map directly to the D-pad instead of forcing a pause-menu trip every time you need to sink or float, and several solid walls were swapped for lattice structures so you can actually see what’s happening in the room next door. The puzzle logic survived. The tedium didn’t.
What Changed in the Remake’s Water Temple
The original N64 version made you open the pause menu, scroll to the Iron Boots, equip them, close the menu, then do the whole thing in reverse to float back up, for a dungeon built entirely around swapping boots mid-puzzle. That’s the single biggest reason an entire generation of players called this the worst dungeon in the series. The remake fixes exactly that: Iron Boots are a D-pad press now, not a menu excursion, as Hardcore Gamer’s walkthrough of the rebuilt dungeon confirms. Nintendo also adjusted difficulty in a few rooms and replaced some fully solid walls with lattice grates, so you can see adjoining rooms and plan a route before committing to a water level change. The dungeon’s actual structure, the central pillar and its three water heights, is untouched. This isn’t a redesign. It’s the same test with the friction sanded off.
Before You Go In
You need the Iron Boots, the Hookshot and a full stock of bombs before entering. Zora’s Lullaby opens access and should already be learned by this point in the story. Bring extra bottles if you have them, the dungeon has several underwater stretches where timing your air matters more than combat ability.
Getting the Boss Key
Head to the central room and use the Longshot (or Hookshot, if you haven’t found the upgrade yet) on the eye switch above the north entrance to lift the gate temporarily. From there, longshot the target on the far side to cross, defeat the Shell Blade guarding the door with a Longshot pull, and open the large chest inside for the Boss Key. The small keys scattered through the temple’s side rooms gate the paths that lead here, so expect some backtracking between water-level changes before this door is even reachable.
Finding the Longshot
The dungeon’s signature item, the Longshot, is behind Dark Link, the shadow duel that most players remember more vividly than the dungeon around it. Beat him, then walk into the room ahead to claim the Longshot, which doubles the Hookshot’s range and makes several of the temple’s remaining puzzles, and the boss fight after it, considerably easier to read. Fixes like this reach a genuinely large audience: Nintendo reported more than 26 million Switch 2 consoles sold worldwide as of November 2026, and this is the console’s highest-reviewed exclusive so far, per our review roundup from November 5, 2026.
The Morpha Boss Fight
Morpha hides inside a tentacle it extends from a water-filled chamber. Stand in a corner and wait for a tentacle to reach for you, then run to a different corner, aim the Longshot at Morpha’s visible nucleus inside the tentacle, and yank it free of the water. Land two or three hits with your sword while it’s exposed and vulnerable, then repeat. The fight is almost entirely about positioning and patience rather than reflexes, since Morpha telegraphs every grab attempt well before it lands, a pattern G2A’s remake-specific Water Temple guide confirms carries over unchanged from the original fight.
Frequently Asked Questions
What changed in the Water Temple for the Ocarina of Time remake?
The dungeon’s layout and water-level puzzle are unchanged, but Iron Boots now map to the D-pad instead of requiring a pause-menu swap, and several solid walls were replaced with lattice structures for better visibility.
What item do you get in the Water Temple?
The Longshot, an upgraded Hookshot with double the range, found in the room after defeating the Dark Link mini-boss.
How do you beat Morpha in the Water Temple?
Wait for Morpha’s tentacle to reach for you from a corner of the room, then use the Longshot to yank its exposed nucleus free of the water and strike it with your sword before it retreats.
What do you need before entering the Water Temple?
The Iron Boots, the Hookshot, a stock of bombs, and Zora’s Lullaby to access the entrance.
Is the Water Temple still the hardest dungeon in the remake?
It’s easier to navigate thanks to faster boot-swapping and better room visibility, but the underlying water-level puzzle that made it notorious is fully intact.
Related: read our Ocarina of Time remake review roundup for how critics scored the full game, and our guide to the remake’s hum-to-play ocarina feature for the rest of the game’s songs and controls.
