A Star Fox Arwing Appeared in Ocarina of Time Without a Cheat Device. Here's How It Was Accomplished

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When hackers and speedrunners love a game very much, they plunge their hands into its code, rip it apart, and see what makes the game tick. Hence why the beloved Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time has been picked apart byte-by-byte to fascinating effect. A very current example: Speedrunners have found a way to spawn Star Fox 64's Arwing into Ocarina of Time without the use of a Game Genie or other cheat device.

Runner Zfg1 showed off the deviceless Arwing spawn, which was then uploaded as a separate clip (via Reddit). Executing the trick is a simple matter of utilizing arbitrary code execution (ACE) and forcing Ocarina of Time to read your save file name as game code. Nothing to it! Here's a tutorial on ACE if you're interested.

If I left you on the porch stuttering "Wait, wait, there's an Arwing in Ocarina of Time?", I apologize. There is indeed an Arwing coded into the game—and as an active character no less, not simply a static model. When it's brought forth, the Arwing shoots lasers at Link until he brings it down, or it kills him. While this miniature crossover makes it seem like Star Fox is getting in some early licks before the birth of the Super Smash Bros. series, most runners believe the Arwing serves as a stand-in for Volvagia, the dragon boss in the Fire Temple. Indeed, the fighter ship's movement pattern mirrors the dragon's twists and turns.

If you need a reminder of what makes Ocarina of Time so special with Zelda fans, we went in-depth with the game and laid out everything that makes it such a charming, unforgettable adventure.

Header image via Zeldapedia.