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I always avoided the guard because, if I don't talk to him, he won't die.

The guard “tried” to stop Ganondorf’s men from chasing Zelda and Impa. When you see Zelda and Impa fleeing, only Ganondorf is in pursuit. That’s the only guard in the history of Hyrule that did his job AND did it successfully.

He wasn't a mistake. He's the only guard who tried to stop Ganondorf.

It can easily be explained by him being an actual, loyal guard, and the other ones are "Ganondorf's men". That also explains why he is alone in an alley.

He's probably there to guide people who can't seem to figure out the next step. Like he's on the opposite side of the Temple of Time. It's the game telling you, "Wrong way, doofus".

UNLESS.... All the overly cheerful townspeople ARE Gannondorf's men, which is why he hid down the alley.

Theory: what if the dying guard was the last one loyal to the king...

Most of the other guards were being controlled by Ganondorf. That's how he managed the attack without raising suspension from the towns people. The dieing guard was hiding from all the others, hoping to see you and pass on the message.

20 years later, having played and beaten this game numerous times and watching tons of speedruns, 100% playthroughs, and ROM hacks... and I've never known about this guard. What a mindfuck.

Ganondorf gave him such a Uppercut, he flew all the way to the back alley

He's placed there to direct players in case they wanted to go to the back alley, he lets them not get distracted and makes them head to the temple... It's a good way to make sure the emotional momentum from the earlier scene is carried through to the player entering the temple

I just realized the soldier who gives you the stone mask in majoras mask is the termina equivalent of this guy

Let's keep in mind that this game maxed the storage capacity of the cartridge, and there is probably a lot that could not be included.

The attack scenario honestly sounds cool, too bad it wasn't in the game.

10:10 “this town is full of nothing but Ganondorf’s underlings!” Ganons evil must’ve corrupted the soldiers of hyrule. The dying soldier must’ve not been affected somehow.

Gannondorf prepared for his attack by having the town gates closed, knowing it would slow down anyone who tried to escape. When fighting broke out in the castle, this guard moved to help the princess. Gathering Impa and Zelda, he leads them through a secret passageway from within the castle to an inaccessible side section of the town. Realizing they were being followed, he gives Impa and Zelda his horse that was stationed nearby and tells them to flee the town while he stands back and slows their pursuers. Realizing that the princess slipped through his fingers, Gannondorf rushes straight through the town to try and catch them. Zelda and Impa make it out, only just out of sight of Gannondorf. Gannondorf would have caught up to them, but he encounters Link on the way out, which slows him down enough for Zelda to successfully escape. Link enters, only to find the gate keeper oblivious to what happened. From his point of view, he opened the gate for Impa and Zelda to leave, and then a single other horse rushes out a minute later. Perhaps he had a message for the princess and was trying to catch up before her day trip. There's no indication that anything was wrong, so he assumes the best. Link then goes into to town, and people are talking about the rush of the 2 horses that just went by. Link finds the dying guard in the alleyway. He successfully fought off those who were chasing Impa and Zelda, but was fatally injured in the process. Knowing how dire the situation was, he tells Link what he overheard while he was leading Zelda to safety, only to then pass on.

That guys the bravest person there, he literally fought off a bunch of Ganondorf’s men and still talks to Link like he’s had a scratch. On the verge of death and saying “Tis but a scratch”. He knows he’s gonna die and he’s dying a hero, literally he should be at least getting a special location or a gravesite for him somewhere. He’s a goddamn unit of a man

Eh, I headcanon it as this: Ganondorf's men had infiltrated the Hyrulean guards. This guy was basically one of the few who were still loyal to the Hyrulean royal family. When Ganondorf staged his coup, this guy found himself outnumbered by traitors. He managed to stall them so that Impa could escape with young Zelda, maybe by fighting to open the castle gate so they could rush though and closed it behind them to keep the traitors inside. But Ganondorf and his horse got through before the gate could close. The guard was wounded. Maybe by an arrow. Maybe he was run over by Ganondorf's horse as he sped through the gate. (Having died this way in BotW, I can totally see someone being mortally wounded this way...) As he made his way to the town, he realised that if the other guards were traitors, who else could be? He realised that couldn't trust anybody. That anyone could be yet another of Ganondorf's people. So, he slipped into the alleyway to rest and figure out what to do. No-one in Castle Town saw him, as they were still reeling from the horses running through so quickly. But he quickly realises that his wounds are more serious than he thought, and he's going to die in that alleyway alone. However, Link finds him, and he quickly tells him what had happened, forgetting in his rush to mention not to trust anyone. As he slips away, he's merely grateful that at least someone was there for him at the end.

I always kind of assumed that this guard fought in the battle at the castle, and then tried to pursue Ganondorf as he chased after Zelda. Ganondorf doesn't need to have fought through Castle Town on his way to the Castle -- it's likely he was already there. We previously saw him in the throne room, and we know he was there on an ostensibly democratic mission to to the King of Hyrule. I would assume he was probably staying in the castle as an honored guest, prior to his attack. So the battle took place at the castle, the King was killed, the Princess fled, and Ganondorf pursued them. The guard, gravely wounded, followed Ganondorf as far as he could, but collapsed in the alley. The other guards aren't making a big deal of it the events in the castle because either 1.) they aren't all aware of it, or 2.) they're trying not to cause a panic. The other townsfolk may not even be aware of the dying guard in the alleyway. Hell, Ganondorf is a master of dark magics. How do we know all of the guards in the town and at the castle are not, at this point, illusions created by Ganondorf, or his soldiers in disguise.

It always made me upset as a kid that he was dying alone and the townspeople went about their business as if nothing happened. When I played as an adult, I realized how all too real this outcome was. A lone soldier who gave his all to protect what he held dear in his heart knowing he failed, and the ignorant townspeople who just watched and became redeads.

I always interpreted this as the guard took out all ganons men by himself, keeping the town unaffected.

Impa and Zelda were hiding in the alley with the guard. Zelda informed the guard of the ocarina, temple of time, and the forest boy. Ganondorf searches the alley, and sees Impa and Zelda start to flee. The guard stands in Ganon's way, and Ganondorf lightning bolts him aside and charges full speed ahead.

Plot twist- Ganondorf placed a spell on the town making everyone not remember the events of Ganondorf’s men chasing the princess out of the town.

We can see it from Lore's point of view: All Hyrule guards are currently Gannondorf men in disguise impersonating the guards or the guards now work for him. In this case the alley guard can easily be the last loyal guard and due to the proximity it can even be the guard at the town gate. From a mechanical point of view, its an indicator that you have chosen the wrong path and indicates that you should go to the Temple of time.

"He's not moving anymore..." Goddanm that's sinister

I love Ocarina of Time and I had no idea about this dying guard. It's like he exists like a final precursor to Link becoming an adult. Link's not a child anymore, and it's up to him to save the world.

I remember when Im still a child and played this game, I meet with that guard but I thought he didn't die, I thought he is just drunk and passed out😂😂

Remember in twilight princess there was a secret passage in a similar alleyway to the castle so they might have exited the castle through a secret passage and the people who saw the comotion didnt really pay attention

He must be connected to Shiro the invisible guard from Majora’s Mask! “I'm shocked. You're the first person who's ever spoken to me. I've been here for many years, waving my arms around and asking for help, but everyone ignores me and passes me by. It's 'cause I'm about as impressive as a stone, right? ...I'm used to it, though.” - Shiro IMO Shiro was based on this guard that most never even got to meet before he died.

I always thought he was some sort of time traveler when I was a kid. Sent back in time to deliver his dying message.

"Ganondorf's men..." The guard mentions Ganondorf's men. When have we ever seen Ganondorf have MEN serving him? That's an interesting mystery right there...

I like the idea that the attack on the castle was an internal affair, Ganondorf using gerudo soldiers disguised as Hyian soldiers to have an internal coup. This would explain why the damage in town is minimal and the other guards are seemingly oblivious to the carnage is going on because the guards on the outside of the castle have no idea that there was an internal coup.

To me it was always like this: most of the Hyrule castle guards were actually working for Ganondorf and the ones that were loyal to the royal family were killed during the invasion and he was the only one that managed to escaped to try and find Link and warn him since Zelda always talked about him. Also him being in the alleyway was cause he didnt know who he could trust and him hiding there in Hope's of Link finding him.This is why none of the townspeople saw any of Ganondorfs men head towards the castle since they were already there.

"I know.... I know how to beat the running man. You have to... have to....." *dies*

I found him on my first playthrough back when I bought my game on release day. That part hit me hard inside, and harder as Navi spoke "He isn't moving anymore..." Brought me tears then, and still today. It was one of the first sequences that showed you this was not going to be a colorful game as the prior games in the series, and showed how serious this part of the timeline was going to become, and only got darker as people, friends made along the way, and even spirits like the Great Deku Tree, all died - some even before our very eyes while others hinted at their untimely deaths to later become the Sages. Even as Sages, Link lost many friends in this game he made and made you want to really kick Ganon's a$$ for what he caused in those seven long years. This series is my favorite still, and has special meaning to me for many reasons, some even more special. All I'll type for the most special reason for this series to be very dear to me is just this: Rin

I replay this game once every couple of years. Had a nostalgic trip when I lived in Japan from 2015-2018. After my 20 year anniversary play through, I couldn’t believe I missed this guy in the back alley all these years. It was like finding the last secret in your favorite game, and realizing it was an actual in game death startled me.

Personally. He could have been another gate guard, that Zelda yelled as they past about the 'forest boy' then as Ganondorf ran past got hit or ran over trying to stop him, and wounded, crawled to where he thought hed be safe but no one saw him go down that ally, and he died of internal bleeding later on.

This is kinda spooky when you think about it. A guard at the gate not knowing about what just happened and everyone still going about their everyday lives. Yikes... 😖

As I kid I actually watched my uncle and older brother try to figure this out. They tried a lot of different things to get another response from the guard, or from anyone about what just took place with Zelda.

This guy’s videos remind me of having to fill out the word count in an essay.

It is pretty strange that Ganondorf "and his men" were mentioned, but only Ganondorf fled the castle pursuing Zelda...it is curious indeed.

The whole town and some of the soldiers were betraying the royal family! Link didn't realize that because the game gave us the perspective of a child!!! He didn't notice everyone was faking it! He managed to pass through alive to the temple of time because Ganondorf wanted him to open the gate of time so he could steal the triforce, and gave everyone orders to not touch Link.

I remember finding the dying gaurd as a kid and since me and my grandpa were playing it together, my grandpa wasn't one for exploring very much unless there was a visible clue that something was there (like a cracked area against a wall or the sound of a gold skulltula scratching around nearby). So, I was the first one between us to find that guard all because my grandpa would always go straight for the temple of time instead of just exploring around the marketplace and back alley.

I would guess that advancing the timeline and having castle town in a semi ruinous state or war like state would complicate side quest and games as a child. Anything you didnt do as a child up to that point would be inaccessible. i.e heart pieces, the happy mask salesman, bombchu alley and so on. The events were probably left out and just a few dialogue changes. But essentially time is at a standstill. I would have liked to replay it years later and be motivated to get those items before zelda has to flee.

Either he died or he had one too many drinks

Don’t worry, he’s not dead, he just fainted! What do you mean he can’t be healed at a pokemon center?

I have played this game countless times over the years and never talked to this guard. This is so interesting.

Having grown up originally playing Zeldas 1 and 2 on the NES, I always thought that it was meant to hint that the townsfolk were now fakes - specifically, the shape shifting Ache bats from Zelda II. As an adult now I’m sure this wasn’t the case but I still think it’s creepy enough of an idea that it’s now my headcanon each time I play through.

The key to all of this may be the line "I tried to stop Ganondorf's MEN from chasing them". The Gerudo tribe is comprised of only women with one male (in this case Ganondorf) being born every 100 years. Now to procure the tribe from becoming extinct, I believe the the gossip stone outside the ToT sheds some light this. "They say that Gerudo sometimes come to Hyrule Castle Town to look for boyfriends." I believe that the same men they are fraternizing with to produce offspring could also be swayed to serve the "King of Thieves". This means that the seemingly normal guards discovered after Zelda and Impa's exodus may have played a "Hydra/Shield" move when, as the dying guard stated, "Ganondorf betrayed our King". There may have been quite a few guards loyal to the royal family that perished, we were just fortunate enough to meet one that made it out of the castle before he passed.

At first, I thought this video was fake, a made up myth to fool the viewer. (Seriously, why would there be a guard in that random area to give Link such an obvious message?) -And the animation that followed looked too surreal to be real...right? Well I tried out my own copy of Oh+carina of time and played up to that point. Now imagine my shock to find this guy who I had missed every single time I played through the game.

Another possible outcome is that Gannons men could have been sleeper cells type thing. Undercover guards. Maybe all the guards in the castle now are gannons men who discreetly took over the castle to avoid panic from the townsfolk

Honestly an interesting watch, but the most I got out of this was that there's a zelda manga for me to read

You can jump to about 2:50 or further. Looong intro and advertising.

Actually him being in the 3d version is easier to explain, as they never actually tried fixing most of the mistakes and bugs as to not lose the original feeling of the game

I figured that Impa took a secret way out of the castle that lead to the alleyway. The guard fought Gannon in the alleyway an the guard at the gate said what he did to keep the townsfolk from panicking.

What I find really interesting is how he knows that Zelda was waiting for a boy from the forest. Did Zelda tell all of the other guards about Link or was it just this guard? If she had told the other guards, they would have had a bigger reaction when they saw Link. Also, the way he says “I’ve finally met you” implies that he was actually eager to meet Link. It is also interesting how he actually tells Link to go to the temple of time. None of the other guards even mention this. Why was this guard the only one who was supportive? Maybe he had another role in the game, which is why Ganondorf targeted him instead of the other guards.

Let's all take a moment to realize how this guy ends every sentence

As a kid, it was especially creepy to watch a guard die in front of you as the cheerful Castle Town theme looms overhead. I remembering encountering this and being truly scared of Ganondorf for the first time. Did anyone else find the guard on their first playthrough like I did?

My guess is that it might explain that small corner of Hyrule field to the left of Castle Town. It's possible that there might have been plans for a hidden path into Castle Town similar to how you got into and out of the castle in A Link to the Past.

That anxiety you talked about in the beginning is something I got like *crazy* from Majora's mask. Great game though! I couldn't quite get over my fear enough back then, in the days before I really knew how to find all the info online even though it was there, to figure out how to get things under control and be able to replay the timeline faster and then get to do other things. I always just freaked out and struggled to get the moon's tear and thought I had to go back to the tower or something.

The secret is his name. He existed in the castle and the back alley. He's obviously Schrödinger and the paradox ends when he dies.

I agree, this is probably some sort of story line change that was made partway through development; possibly you may have had to talk this guard originally before you can actually meet Zelda herself and receive the Ocarina of Time, or there was some sort rescue operation where you fight Ganondorf's men either at the castle or town before Zelda and Impa make their escape, AND THEN you meet this Guard...

I remember reading a statement somewhere around when the 3ds remake first came out saying the remake struggled to keep the general feel of *everything* the same as the original game. This went so deep as to maintain glitches that were present in the most up to date N64 version of the game. It's not much of a stretch to imagine they kept that guard in there just in case a few players did find him and went back to find him again just like they would a popular glitch. Also, assuming your theory of a potential third state is true (I'm inclined to believe it tbh) I can imagine there being a midway point in development where they are working on puzzles that cross the timelines and realizing it could be problematic if Castle Town is destroyed before the player has a chance to finish like the Mask quest for example. It would make a lot of sense if they started off trying to make the coup a dark and brutal affair that decimates the town, only to double back on it later down the line.

The animation of it dying reminds me of majoras mask its dark has some disturbing feature yatta yatta,I played this a long time ago when I was little before school little ran into the dying gaurd saw it die and I had to sleep with my parents for a week cause my little brain told me "we all will die and can't escape it" my brain could get darker back then but it was still kinda traumatizing for me

I don’t think he was there by mistake. I think it was expertly done, to have this wounded soldier who is about to die, in a town where the people are completely aloof and unaware as to what REALLY just happened. Zelda says that Ganondorf swears allegiance to the King. The townspeople seem quite oblivious and wrapped up in their own lives, and only Zelda and Link are truly suspicious about Ganondorf. So it stands to reason that the townspeople may not suspect much. The lone soldier may have been one of the few who suspected Ganondorf. For all we know, the betrayal could have taken place without a whole bunch of battling and it could have been something more low key and sneaky. Maybe only Impa and this soldier knew what was going on. Impa escaped with Zelda but the soldier may have hung back to fight off Ganondorf while she made a getaway. If so, he obviously sustained fatal wounds. As for him ending up in the alleyway, perhaps there’s some sort of passage from the castle to the town through there, and he collapsed before he could warn anyone or get help. Either way, the placement of the guard in the alleyway makes this interaction more eerie, considering how isolated, mysterious, and spooky this area ALREADY is during the gameplay. Mixing in this event against the cheery, blissfully unaware atmosphere of the town makes for some excellent juxtaposition. Mistake or not, I find him to be a cool plot device which definitely gives you a sense of foreboding.

is nobody going to talk about the part where he says "Gandorf" 3:25

Theory: The guard could have chased after Ganondorf taking out his men and the guards who stayed hid the bodies.Meaning Ganondorf wounded the guard who tried to save Zelda.The guard would have hidden so the townsfolk wouldn't freak out.

I remember seeing this guard when I was playing through as a kid. I didn't think much of it and thought he had just passed out after being hit by a horse, and also figured the horse chase might have gone through that alley as well. Then I forgot about it

The standing soldiers betrayed the king by supporting Ganondorf! The Town people are the rebels celebrating!! The door guard saw everything and said nothing!!! The dying guard went to the alley through the town square and nobody helped him!!! This was a very sinister betrayal of the royal family! With everyone trying to keep the appearances! Link was actually in danger walking by these people, but they let him through because Ganondorf was waiting for him to open the door of time!!!

Maybe in majora’s mask he’s the guy who gives you the stone mask. If no one noticed him here, it’s no wonder he wasn’t noticed as a spirit.

His name is Sir Harlan. He was one of the inner chamber guards protecting His Majesty The King of Hyrule when Ganondorf sieged the castle from inside and out. A secret company of the royal elite guards, Sheikah warriors, came to aid that night. Sir Harlan was sent to alert the other Shadows that they needed reinforcements, but he was badly injured before he could even make it out of town. It’s sad... one avoided blow could have prevented 7 years of war and evil... Good thing the Hero of Time was able to defeat it in the end so that it never started...

since time travel is already a fact in Ocarina Of Time, and even more so in Majora's Mask, maybe the discrepancies such as the different weather, the castle door being raised, and the guard in the back alley, are actually in different timelines , but Link freely and unknowingly crosses between these timelines during the beginning of the game

I've played this game on N64, GameCube, Wii, and 3DS and im only finding out about this now?!?!

Ocarina of Time is like Final Fantasy VII, it changed a lot of times over development but little tidbits remain from previous stages. It's like the Texas sign in Tifa's bar, 7th Heaven.

Oh gosh, that dying guard is very unsettling, like something pulled from Majora's Mask

The "ghost of the guard" is a real thing, but it only happens if you become an adult and go back to being a kid and return to the alley without ever having talked to the guard at all. The game seems to spawn him in the alley right after the cutscene of Zelda fleeing is finished, but he doesn't get removed until the first time the player walks back there, so if you never spoke to him and try to go to the alley after having already become an adult, you can see him for a single frame before the game removes him.

"you've met a terrible fate, haven't you?"

I like my idea about it: All the other guards sided with Ganondorf, except for that one guard, which is why the others beat him to death in the back ally, away from prying eyes. Though they didn't do a good job of it, as he was able to relay a message to Link.

OoT is one of the first games I ever played and one I revisited countless times since a chils. Done so many 100% runs of it and explored so much. I've never seen this... I'm utterly shocked

I just started replaying this on my 3DS and just found this as well. I've played it so many times growing up and I've never seen it or heard of it. Sorta glad I never saw it as a kid because it was a bit dark. I really appreciate this breakdown of the scene and your theory of it, so incredibly strange

The dying guard was the guard in the guardhouse. He was mortally wounded trying to allow Zelda to escape. He then dragged his mortally wounded body into the alley to die, away from all the townspeople. Seven years after his death, he becomes a ghost and obsessed with collecting the Poes of Hyrule for some reason. He then becomes the creepy guy who buys the big Poes from you and eventually gives you the bottle. The empty bottle is the thing he was supposed to give you, not the Ocarina of Time but he died before he could.

The REAL mystery of the Hyrule guards: Why aren't they wearing pants?

I'm only just now seeing this, but- This actually makes me pretty sad that there *wasn't* a bigger sequence at that point in the game involving Hyrule Castle and stuff. I think it would have been *awesome* if there were a great big climax to the child section of the game. Of course, I kind of get why they decided it was easier not to bother with such a climax. it would have probably affected the whole "going back in time" aspect quite a bit if they'd wanted to keep everything making sense.

I've another theory that occured to me while watching this video. Ganondorf's siege on the castle was actually a smash bros style battle and he Warlock punched this guard all the way up to that ally.

I played this game over 15 years ago and this is the first time I have seen this guard and it gave me goose bumps. Like this is a total Easter egg, an unsettling Easter egg, for me. Thank you for showing me something new.

I know what happened, Ganondorf used the memory wipe from Men in Black on the whole town, and that guard was yote all the way from the castle through Ganondorf's Warlock Punch.

I remember encountering that guard as a kid, I just assumed he was put there to give more direction as to how to continue the game

Hot take: The guard is a time traveler from a doomed timeline.

Theory: its the guard that threw a bomb at you from the window.

I've had this game since Christmas of 1998. This is me just finding out about this NPC.

May parents bought this game for me when it first came out over 20 years ago. I must have spend hundreds of hours playing it. I'm 36 years old now, and THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I'M SEEING THIS?!

I think the guard is there to give a hint for someone who may have missed the "ocarina of time" like, they saved in between seeing the cut scene and not picking up the ocarina from the moat.

All the knights were corrupted. The only outlier was the one who managed to help impa and Zelda escape castle town

I really love how it takes 4 minutes for you to start talking about the topic.

yeah, there are a lot of hidden secrets in the game. The knight was one of my favorites. Majora of Mask used a lot of sidequest and events that could have been missed the first time. That is why is best to try different routes every time you replay a game. I always wonder why none of the soldiers notices what happen after the attack.

At first when you started hinting at the alternate events, I was beginning to suspect maybe a midway series of events: that maybe the guard was intended to be there, but as an easter egg for exploring players. Like maybe the story was gonna turn out that Ganondorf's men were actually there the whole time, but posing as Hyrule guards. It would explain why he was able to not only take over the castle so quick, but also just chase Inpa & Zelda out the gate all willy nilly. It would also explain why the guards act like nothing is amiss, yet that one guard decides to hide in a back alley. Although, that theory hits a brick wall with the fact that they let the gate down for those two to escape.

I too have that fear. The first few times I enter an area in a game, I examine EVERYTHING. I've gotten better about that (don't have as much free time as I used to), but I still look around a LOT.

My theory is that the guard was heavily wounded at the castle, he knew he wouldn't make it out alive so he snuck out of the castle to see his family in castle town, his house was in the back alley, he collapsed before he could get home, and that's when you find him

Or... Ganon's men ARE the remaining guards. This guard was always on the back alleys, maybe accompanying the princess and Impa there. Then Ganon's coup began, an undetermined number of guards might have died inside the Castle, and this guard fought whoever in the back alley, allowing Zelda and Impa to flee, but getting mortally wounded in the process.