Yesterday, part 1 of our TBB review was published about LEGO The Legend of Zelda 77092 Great Deku Tree 2-in-1 the Breath of the Wild version of this tree guardian. But now we need to go through a few bars of the notes A, D, and F to play the Song of Time on our ocarina and roll the review back to the beginning. This time, we’ll be diving deep into the version of the Great Deku Tree from Ocarina of Time. LEGO The Legend of Zelda 77092 Great Deku Tree 2-in-1 comes with 2,500 pieces and releases on September 1st. The set is already available for pre-order and retails for $299.99 US | $389.99 Canadian | £259.99 UK on the LEGO website. It may also be available from third-party retailers like Amazon and eBay.

But what about part 1?

If you haven’t already, I highly recommend reading LEGO The Legend of Zelda 77092 Great Deku Tree 2-in-1 – Part 1: Breath of the Wild Edition (Review) before you continue. There I describe the usual unboxing and set contents in our typical TBB style. Part 2 will jump straight into the building process for the OoT construction path.

The Build

Unlike part 1 of this review, this time we start with bag 1. This begins the construction of Young Link’s home in Kokiri Forest. We get the ever-annoying Navi sitting on a clear pole. This is a second version of this print, different from the pink fairy we saw in the BotW version. There’s also a great printed 2×3 tile with some Hylia writing spelling out a message.

The opposite side is open to provide play opportunities. In the next step, we will use it as storage space. Notable in this first step is the reuse of great LEGO engineering to get the sloped sides of the cabin, using 1×1 tiles with a rod to hold the bricks at a 45 degree angle.

Bag 2 completes the house with a second floor that includes a porch, ladder, and Link’s bed. While the top looks a little odd, it feels right at home here too, with the “old” N64 graphics from my childhood.

If you flip the building over, you’ll also find a chest full of fun trinkets on the lower floor. We’ll break down the contents later. Unlike the Master Sword platform from Part 1, this hut remains a separate part of the final exhibit and stands on its own.

With Link’s house complete, we can finally begin the actual construction of the Deku Tree. We’ll start with the process after Bag 9 of the build, as previously described. To keep you updated, here are all the steps up to this point from Part 1:

Things get a little crazy with the bags from here, so be prepared to jump around and combine pieces. Our next section uses bags 10, 14, and 23 to flesh out the face, roots, and some pretty cool gameplay features of our Deku Tree. The face is noticeably changed and more angular than the previous version. And the roots of the tree are less pronounced, just moving quickly from the trunk into the water. Instead of a talking tree-man, we instead have the opening mouth that allows Link to enter the “level” in search of Ganondorf’s curse.

On the back, the mechanics of the mouth opening mechanism are easier to see, and there is also a spider web that indicates the enemies you will face in the tree.

And speaking of spiders, the other gameplay feature used here allows a Skulltula to fall from the ceiling onto our Hylian hero. While the spider will be added later, the pulley and locking gear system will be installed at this stage. And we’ll be sure to show both of these gameplay features in action before the end of this review.

We’re working with three whole bags of parts, so of course there’s a lot to do before we open the next bag. And so we’ll use the remaining parts to put together a trio of limbs that will be used in a later step. I told you the instructions would have you jumping around!

With all that done, let’s get to work and open up bag 13. For those of you who read part 1, this bag is constructed in the same way as the previous tree. It’s mainly to cover holes and smooth out curves before adding the final piece of trunk. Once again, two voids form on either side of the GDT. We’ll come back and fill them before completing the set.

Bag 16 is also quite similar to the one from the BotW version and provides a small space at the top of the Deku Tree. However, in this case we fill it with one of the branch pieces we made earlier. The other two smaller branches are attached to the outside of this open dome.

The green canopy of leaves comes in place with bags 17, 20 and 21. The branch design is very reminiscent of the BotW Deku tree, but the leaves are different from the previous version. When fully assembled, it forms a fairly smooth canopy of leaves.

I’m not sure why, but this Great Deku Tree feels like it has a much denser crown. Maybe it’s the green coloring compared to the pink, or maybe it’s the use of those large, solid leaf parts. But either way, it’s very impressive.

We finish building the Ocarina of Time Great Deku Tree with Bag 22, adding a lot of details as we go. The voids on both sides of the trunk are filled, one side with the musical staves that play such an important role in the game. And the other with a bow and the three spiritual stones (though I wonder why one of them is yellow).

The front of the scene is further decorated with a pair of Deku Babas and a healing Deku Tree Sprout. We’ll take a closer look at these when we talk about the minifigures.

And to the right of the building there is a spot for a Gossip Stone, which sits on a light green, round 2×2 jumper plate.

More details have been added to the Great Deku Tree, including a torch and a chest containing the indispensable slingshot. And here we also add the Skulltula, but we’ll see about that when we test the gameplay feature.

The minifigures and accessories

After all of those great details in the final step of the build, let’s also take a look at the minifigures and other accoutrements. Link and young Link are both unique to this set. They have the same headgear and torso print. However, their dual-molded arms are different. Each has dual-molded legs, with young Link’s being shorter and covered by a skirt piece in bright green. Each torso has a print on the front and back, as does each unique face. Young Link is armed with a Deku Shield (unique print) and Kokiri Sword, while adult Link has his trusty ocarina.

We should probably also rummage through the chest under Link’s house. As we pour out the contents, we find all sorts of references to items in the game. From left to right, we have the Hylian Shield, a Magic Jar, a Bomb, a Compass, a Red Potion, and the Longshot.

And here’s a look at the characters from this scene. Navi contains transparent round tiles in multiple colors (1 x 1) that can be swapped out for other guide fairies from the game, such as Tatl. The Deku Sprout is a particularly cute creation.

Finally, we should look at the three custom-made staples of any Zelda set: the Master Sword, the Ocarina, and the Hylian Shield. All three are excellent new pieces and add a lot to the value of this kit.

The finished building

The Great Deku Tree from Ocarina of Time doesn’t have much competition in the scene, but it does tower high into the grassy landscape. Its more angular face is an excellent recreation in the game, and its gentle eyes signal concern to the young adventurer about to perform a cursectomy on the stunted tree-beast. While Link’s house features some brilliant props, it feels a little out of place here to me. The disparity of the two locations in the game probably contributes a little to this.

Now that everything is assembled, we can also look at some gameplay features. First, watch as the Great Deku Tree opens its mouth. Link can walk right in to take on Queen Gohma.

The second gameplay feature I like the most is dropping the Skulltula from the ceiling onto Link. It’s a cool little system and I wish there were more inside the tree, perhaps presented like LEGO Indiana Jones 77015 Temple of the Golden Idol.

Thoughts and recommendations

In LEGO The Legend of Zelda 77092 Great Deku Tree 2-in-1 – Part 1: Breath of the Wild Edition (Review), I used this section to compare the two options for building the Great Deku Tree. Now, however, it’s time to really talk about the build as a whole. I was talking to a friend about this set last week, as he’s a huge Nintendo fan and is keen to find space for the Great Deku Tree in his display. He said something that really resonated with me about Nintendo IP: they’re very protective and want to be sure that recreations and references to their work are done right. With the recent uptick in Mario movies, theme parks, and other cross-branding opportunities, it seems like there’s more openness to Nintendo opportunities like this set. Perhaps that’s why so many LEGO Ideas submissions were pushed aside. In any case, it’s here now and it feels like a fitting tribute to a great video game series worthy of the Nintendo name. If you’re a fan, I highly recommend the set! You won’t be disappointed.

However, there is a bugbear with many of these big single-IP releases (for example, 21348 Dungeons & Dragons: Red Dragon’s Tale, 10323 PAC-MAN Arcade, and more recently 21351 Disney Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas), and we need to start talking about it more openly. LEGO sets are expensive. Shocking, I know! They’re incredibly high quality and usually worth every penny. But keeping up with every massive set of your favorite IPs these days will absolutely empty your wallet, especially as purse strings tighten everywhere in the shadow of COVID-19’s impact on the global economy. While I recommend this set and believe it’s worth the high price tag, I also hope LEGO plans to reduce the size of its excellent adult sets soon. LEGO builders can’t be expected to keep shelling out $300 for the only representation of their fanbase that officially exists as a set.

With 2,500 copies and a release date of September 1st, LEGO The Legend of Zelda 77092 Great Deku Tree 2-in-1 is available for pre-order now on the LEGO website and costs $299.99 US, $389.99 Canadian and £259.99 British. It may also be available from third-party retailers such as Amazon and eBay.

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