Zelda franchise strategy guide/Locations/Kakariko Village

Kakariko Village (カカリコ村) is a fictional village in the Legend of Zelda series. It first appeared in The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, but it has since reappeared in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures,The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, and remakes thereof. It may have been inspired by various towns in Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, and in turn may have served as the inspiration for such future towns of the series &mdash; Mabe Village, Clock Town, Lynna City, Horon Village, Windfall Island, Hyrule Town, and various minor villages (for example, Symmetry City). Kakariko Village's geographical and historical situation seems to change in each game, and so many fans assert that these villages are not the same, but merely share the same name. However, it retains some signature characteristics throughout all of its appearances. Its background music shares a basic motif (A Link to the Past and Ocarina of Time feature similar arrangements, while Twilight Princess only employs brief quotes of the opening melody), all the roofs of the houses are familiarly colored red, and Cuccos roam the town.

A Link to the Past
In A Link to the Past, protagonist Link first visits Kakariko Village, which is west of Hyrule Castle, north of the Desert of Mystery, south of the Lost Woods, and southwest of Death Mountain Foothills, on the advice of the monk working at the Sanctuary. Hoping to meet with reputed sage Sahasrahla, Link can inquire about the local celebrity throughout the village, though guards are stationed all around (or in the vicinity) to capture Link, accused of abducting Princess Zelda. Sahasrahla's presumed wife, however, informs Link that the wise elder has left for the region around Eastern Palace. Exploring the village anyway is still profitable; many side quests are tied into the village. Later in the game, Link takes the Book of Mudora from the library to the south, though Link is not required to return to the village after clearing the Desert Palace until much later in the game &mdash; before Misery Mire. This is because Link must awaken the bird trapped within the weather vane in the village by playing the Flute (which is given to him by the son of a villager in the Haunted Grove section of the Dark World). Once this bird is awakened, Link can use the Flute to warp about the Light World. Kakariko Village is the third of the eight warp sites.

As stated before, Kakariko Village is south of Lost Woods, which is notorious for the thieves who reside there, and so it's not surprising that one thief, Blind, had a permanent residence in the village. By the time Link sees it, it has been abandoned, though treasures can still be found within. Blind turns out to be boss of the fourth Dark World dungeon, Blind's Hideout (notably, Blind's allegiance to Ganon seems to imply that the Lost Woods thieves are related to the Gerudo, though this is not the case in later games). Blind's Hideout is called "Thieves' Town" in the GBA remake.

The Dark World equivalent of Kakariko Village is the Village of Outcasts, overrun with thieves, gambling establishments, and Moblins. The weather vane has been replaced by a demon statue, and several trees now talk. One shop begins selling Good Bees (called Golden Bees in the remake) if Link shows the merchant there one from the ice cave in northeastern Lake Hylia (Light World). The Good/Golden Bee could be unleashed to attack enemies on the screen.

Ocarina of Time
Kakariko Village of Ocarina of Time is radically different from the village of A Link to the Past. Now located directly at the foot of the Death Mountain, quite distant from the Lost Woods and the Haunted Wasteland (the Ocarina of Time equivalent of the Desert of Mystery), Kakariko Village seems to have been founded recently. Villagers there recall that Impa, Zelda's nursemaid, opened the formerly Sheikah-exclusive village to the poor commoners of Hyrule (presumably not rich enough to live in the Market outside Hyrule Castle). The villagers also claim that long ago, Impa drove out the Gerudos from the Kakariko area. Dominating the landscape is a windmill, which is used to draw water up from the Well of Three Features (Dark! Narrow! Scary!), the source of water for the villagers. Sheikah legend tells that Impa sealed a great evil in the Bottom of the Well. Later, when Link learns the Song of Storms as an adult, playing it can overwork the windmill, making it draw up all the water and in effect dry up the well. Another legend tells that a wise man with an eye that could see the truth lived where the well is located now; thus, playing the Song of Storms opens up the well for exploration as a child to find this Lens of Truth.

In Link's adulthood, the great evil imprisoned in the Well of Three Features escapes, setting fire to the village and beating Link and Sheik considerably before retreating into the Shadow Temple, the entrance to which is found in the Graveyard adjoined to the village. Impa then goes off to imprison the great evil again, but seemingly fails. Link must rescue her by defeating this great evil, which turns out to be an invisible "Phantom Shadow Beast," Bongo Bongo. Link uses the Lens of Truth to see the monster and slash its vulnerable eye. In defeating the monster, Link rescues and awakens Impa as the Sage of the Shadow Temple.

During the seven-year period of turmoil in Hyrule between Link's drawing of the Master Sword and his awakening, many residents of the Market fled to the village to escape persecution. Although not in the game itself, the ReDead trophy in Super Smash Bros. Melee states that no residents of the Market died. Talon, the previous proprietor of Lon Lon Ranch, also runs off to Kakariko Village when Ingo kicks him out. Before Link pulls the Master Sword, it is revealed that Impa wanted the village to be constructed into a "true city," and hired carpenters to do so, however, when Link returns seven long years later, the carpenters are gone and only one building has been made, which becomes the new Hyrule Shooting Gallery.

Four Swords Adventures
Kakariko Village is the setting of a level in The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures. The village is overrun by thieves, and covered in fire. The four Links are required to capture them in order to advance north of the city, to a place where they can summon rain and thus quell the fire started by the antagonist Shadow Link. Here Kakariko Village has no prominent features and is simply a collection of houses with a few residents. A stream outside the city leads the Links to fight a Stalfos, and in so doing recover the Green Royal Jewel. The numerous thieves present could relate to the Village of Outcasts in A Link to the Past, and the vast Cucco population may also relate to the amount of Cuccos present in Kakariko Village in Ocarina of Time. The fact that Kakariko Village is nearer to The Lost Woods may also account for the presence of thieves in the village.

Twilight Princess
In The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Kakariko Village has greatly changed since its last appearance. Instead of having green grass and a surplus of people, it has changed to a barren wasteland inside a canyon. By the time Link reaches the village, its inhabitants have all been killed or turned into twilight creatures, with the exceptions of Renado, the village shaman, his daughter Luda and Barnes, the owner of a bomb shop. The houses that line the path to Death Mountain are uninhabited and in severe disrepair, perhaps due to the attack of the twilight monsters. After Link saves the possessed leader of the Goron tribe, Darbus, Gorons will come down to the village and help Link reach higher areas of the valley by launching him with their backs. It is also revealed through the Zora queen, Rutela, that the graveyard of the village is sacred to the Zora, because it is a place of peace for them. The graveyard is also where most Zoras of royal blood go to be buried.

It is theorized that the Hidden Village is the original Kakariko Village, because not only was it founded by a member of an ancient race who served the royal family (presumably Impa, whose name is similar to that of the lady who lives in the Hidden Village, Impaz), but also because one of the billboards in the village, when translated, reads "Welcome to Old Kakariko". However, the town that is actually named Kakariko Village in this game shares several features with the one from Ocarina of Time, especially the presence of a graveyard and its proximity to Death Mountain.

Trivia

 * The village was renamed "Cocorico" in France to match with the French interpretation of a cock's "Cock-a-doodle-doo", because of the chicken-like Cuccos which are a constant characteristic of the village throughout the series. Other languages usually kept the name "Kakariko".