Ganondorf is the legendary villain from The Legend of Zelda. He’s been featured in so many video games, and he rivals Bowser as maybe the greatest recurring villain in any video game franchise, specifically those from Nintendo. That makes him quite popular amongst gamers, but there are still things that people might not know. The Zelda lore can be confusing and convoluted, and it can even contradict itself, leaving some parts of what it means for characters fuzzy. Still, there’s plenty we do know about the Demon King.
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10. He’s not the only Demise incarnation
In Skyward Sword, the big bad was Demise, who revealed that a curse on Hyrule meant that some version of Demise’s hatred would return all the time, which explains why Ganondorf returns after dying and in different forms. It is often thought that he’s the only Demise incarnation, but he’s not. Demise mentions incarnations (plural) of his hatred, which means there is more than one. So while Ganondorf is certainly the primary incarnation, he’s far from the only one.
9. Ganondorf was gone for a very long time
Ganondorf was the secret main villain of 2006’s The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. He was guiding Zant to get himself out of the Twilight Realm, and the final showdown is between Link and Ganondorf. After that, Ganondorf would go on a surprising and perhaps unnoticed hiatus. He did not return until 2023’s Tears of the Kingdom, with Calamity Ganon being a slightly different enemy in Breath of the Wild. The new games that came out during that span, including Skyward Sword and A Link Between Worlds, are some of the few that feature different final bosses.
8. Ganondorf creates his own theme
Several characters play their own music in The Legend of Zelda. Link plays songs on the Ocarina, as does Princess Zelda. Few characters play their own themes, though Ganondorf is one of them. In Ocarina of Time, the Demon King plays his own theme on an organ while waiting for Link and the final faceoff. In Twilight Princess, that seems to be the case as Link progresses through Hyrule Castle, the theme switches to Ganondorf’s playing once again. Midna, Ghirahim, and Yuga all create their own themes, too, but they hum. Ganondorf is the only one to play his.
7. He was supposed to appear in the Oracle games
There aren’t a lot of video games in this franchise that don’t feature Ganondorf in some capacity, but Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages are two (or one) examples. They feature Onox or Veran, two villains that have otherwise not been used very much. However, the original concept for the game included Ganondorf, who had a unique design for these games but never made it into the final product. It was allegedly supposed to be the design for his phantom.
6. Ganondorf originally had Demise’s infamous speech
Demise’s speech after being defeated by Link in Skyward Sword is iconic for a few reasons, but chief among them is that it officially explains why Ganondorf, Zelda, and Link keep having conflicts seemingly across time and maybe even space. Originally, this speech belonged to Ganondorf in Twilight Princess. He reassured Link and Zelda after his defeat that it is pre-ordained by the gods that their bloodlines will continue to fight, and that their conflict does not end there. It was ultimately changed and then rehashed for Demise.
5. He might not be purely evil
Based on a mountain of evidence from almost all the games in the series, Ganondorf is pure evil. He is evil incarnate, as he keeps coming back because of his hatred for Link and Zelda. However, Ocarina of Time script director Toru Osawa indicated that the character was a lot like Raoh from Fist of the North Star, indicating that Ganondorf has some good traits despite being painfully evil.
4. Ganondorf transforms into Ganon in all but two appearances
Multi-phase boss fights are nothing new to The Legend of Zelda. When Link faces off with Ganondorf, he usually has to withstand a few different phases and forms. Ganondorf can transform into Ganon, and he does so in every single boss fight except for two. Ganon is his true form, but he does not make it to that form in either The Wind Waker or Tears of the Kingdom, with the latter featuring a transformation, but into the Demon Dragon instead of Ganon.
3. He’s unbelievably tall
Most Hylians and other characters in The Legend of Zelda are pretty short, but not Ganondorf. Everyone knows he’s tall, but just how tall might surprise you. The Hyrule Historia details that he is just under 7’7″, but other games have him taller than that. In both Ocarina of Time and Tears of the Kingdom, he appears to be even taller, genuinely towering over Link and other characters. A First 4 Figures replica from Twilight Princess is 23 inches tall, and it was supposed to be an accurate representation of his height on a smaller scale.
2. He has one weird weakness in Tears of the Kingdom
The most recent game to include Ganondorf as the final boss was Tears of the Kingdom, and it gave him a random, weird weakness. Typically, Link uses the Master Sword to defeat Ganondorf because it packs the most punch. But actually, the Gibdo Claymore can deliver the most damage with the right gear. It can hit Ganondorf for 178 damage, thus defeating even his powerful second phase in just a few hits. The sword does break easily, but it’s weirdly powerful against the Demon King.
1. His size comes from his Gerudo heritage
Ganondorf is the only male Gerudo out there, which is accurate to the lore of the Zelda games. He is the prophesied King of the Gerudo, but that’s also why he’s so big and powerful. Gerudo women are bigger than average women, especially in Hyrule. It makes sense that Ganondorf would then be bigger and more powerful than average men, especially Hylians. He doesn’t need the Tri Force of Power to be strong; he gets organic power from being Gerudo.
Did you know any of this about the legendary villain Ganondorf? Let us know in the comments below!
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