In Goron City in the Ocarina of Time remake, your main job as young Link is to open Darunia’s room with Zelda’s Lullaby, play him Saria’s Song, and take the Goron’s Bracelet he gives you. The bracelet lets you throw the Bomb Flower that opens Dodongo’s Cavern, the next dungeon, and before you go you can open a shortcut to the Lost Woods and win a Piece of Heart from the city’s spinning urn.
A Gold Skulltula and a bigger bomb bag need bombs of your own, so they wait until you come back from the cavern. These are the same jobs the 1998 Nintendo 64 game and the 2011 3DS version set you; the remake moves them onto new buttons and rebuilds the city’s look (Nintendo’s Japanese Zelda account showed it off in a short clip on September 28). Here is each one in order, then what changes when you return as adult Link.
Getting There
From Kakariko Village, show Zelda’s Letter to the guard at the north gate, climb Death Mountain Trail, and take the left branch where the trail splits. Our Death Mountain guide covers the climb, and our Kakariko Village guide, written for the 1998 game, covers what to pick up on the way through. Our guide to what to do after the Deku Tree has how the story sends you here.
You arrive on the top level. The city drops in rings around a big urn in the middle, and Darunia is at the very bottom. Threads of Time tracks this stretch as Spiritual Stone of Fire if you lose track.
Darunia and Saria’s Song
- Go down to the bottom floor and find the closed door on the north side.
- Stand on the Triforce mark, press left on the D-pad for the ocarina, and play Zelda’s Lullaby: Y, X, A, Y, X, A.
- Talk to Darunia. The Goron leader is in a foul mood and will not help until something lifts it.
- Play him Saria’s Song: R, A, Y, R, A, Y.
Those are the inputs on the Normal ocarina layout. No Saria’s Song yet? That is normal, because Impa sends you to Death Mountain first, and the shortcut below is the quickest way from here to Saria.
The Goron’s Bracelet
The song wins Darunia over, and he hands you the Goron’s Bracelet and asks you to deal with the trouble in Dodongo’s Cavern; the Goron’s Ruby is his reward once you do. The bracelet lets young Link pull up, carry and throw Bomb Flowers. The fuse starts as soon as you lift one, so throw it quickly. Our Goron Bracelet guide has the scene in more detail.
The Shortcut to the Lost Woods
On the level just above the bottom floor, a tunnel blocked by boulders, with two torches beside it and Bomb Flowers in the passage, leads into the Lost Woods. With the bracelet, throw a Bomb Flower at the boulders. Without it, light a Deku Stick at the lit torches at Darunia’s room, carry it up, light the two torches by the tunnel, then touch the stick to a Bomb Flower and back away.
From the tunnel, left, left, straight, left, right reaches Saria in the Sacred Forest Meadow. Our Goron City shortcut guide has the route both ways, and our Lost Woods guide maps the rest.
The Gold Skulltula
Young Link’s Gold Skulltula is in the boulder maze on the city’s west side: bomb through the rocks to the back and break the crate the spider is hiding in. It needs bombs from the Bomb Bag in Dodongo’s Cavern, so note the spot for later. The city’s second token, high around the central platform, is adult Link’s and needs the Hookshot. Our Gold Skulltula guide lists them all.
The Heart Piece in the Spinning Urn
- Put Deku Sticks on ZR. Hold R for the quick-select bar, as our quick swap guide explains.
- Light one at the lit torches at Darunia’s room.
- Light the unlit torches on the bottom floor. A stick burns down quickly, so relight it whenever it goes out. With every torch lit, the big urn starts spinning.
- Drop an explosive into it from a level above. A Bomb Flower works if your aim is good, and a bomb from your bag is easier. Keep going until the Piece of Heart comes out.
Our Heart Piece guide lists it with the rest.
Deku Sticks and Bomb Flowers
- Deku Sticks carry flame from a lit torch for a short while, enough to light another torch or set off a Bomb Flower before you have the bracelet. The Kokiri Shop sells them for 10 rupees each, as our Deku Shield guide notes, so bring spares.
- Bomb Flowers start their fuse when you lift one, and fire sets them off too. The fuse runs longer than a bag bomb’s.
- The Goron Shop is on the bottom floor behind a rock wall. Set a Bomb Flower against the wall to open it; it sells you bombs once you own a Bomb Bag.
The Way to Dodongo’s Cavern
- Leave by the top exit and turn right onto the ledge overlooking Death Mountain Trail.
- Pull up the Bomb Flower by the fence.
- Throw it over the fence onto the sealed cave mouth below. The blast opens Dodongo’s Cavern.
Our King Dodongo guide covers the boss, and since Fire Keese inside burn a wooden shield, our Hylian Shield guide is worth reading first.
Come Back With Bombs
With the Bomb Bag from the cavern, two prizes open up: the maze’s Gold Skulltula, and the Bigger Bomb Bag. A big Goron rolls laps of the city in the child era; stop him with a bomb and talk to him for a bag that holds 30 bombs instead of 20, which adult Link keeps too. Our bomb guide covers all three bags.
Goron City as Adult Link
- Link the Goron and the Goron Tunic. One level down from the top entrance, a Goron rolls around the walkway. Set off a bomb close to him, then talk to him: he is Darunia’s son, named Link after you, and he gives you the heat-proof Goron Tunic. Our Goron Tunic guide has the timing tips.
- The Fire Temple. Pull the statue in Darunia’s room to reach Death Mountain Crater, cross the bridge with the Hookshot, and Sheik teaches you the Bolero of Fire. The Megaton Hammer is the temple’s prize and Volvagia its boss.
- The second Gold Skulltula is high around the central platform. Bring the Hookshot.
- The Giant’s Knife. Medigoron, a huge Goron in the city, sells a two-handed sword that breaks after a few swings. Work toward the Biggoron Sword instead, which does not break.
Every remake guide is on our Zelda hub.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do you do in Goron City in the Ocarina of Time remake? Open Darunia’s room on the bottom floor with Zelda’s Lullaby, play him Saria’s Song for the Goron’s Bracelet, then throw a Bomb Flower onto the cave mouth outside the top exit to open Dodongo’s Cavern.
Where is Darunia? Behind the closed door on the north side of the bottom floor. Play Zelda’s Lullaby on the Triforce mark to open it.
What song does Darunia want? Saria’s Song (R, A, Y, R, A, Y), which Saria teaches in the Sacred Forest Meadow past the Lost Woods.
How do you get the Piece of Heart in Goron City? Light the unlit torches on the bottom floor with a Deku Stick so the big urn spins, then drop a bomb or Bomb Flower into it from a level above until the Piece of Heart comes out.
Where is the Gold Skulltula in Goron City? Young Link’s is in a crate at the back of the boulder maze on the west side, and it needs bombs. Adult Link’s is high around the central platform and needs the Hookshot.
What do you do in Goron City as adult Link? Stop Link the Goron with a bomb for the Goron Tunic, then pull the statue in Darunia’s room to reach Death Mountain Crater and the Fire Temple.