Link’s Awakening opens with a lightning crack. His ship is struck by a bolt of lightning, causing his ship to run aground on a mysterious island. He awakes in a small house, surrounded by people he’s never met before. Marin and Tarin fuss over him before Link runs out of the house, ready to find his sword. He takes his first step into Mabe Village, an idyllic little town filled with fun characters, interesting locations, and shops to buy (or steal) from.
Mabe Village is kind of a hub for your adventure. You have to return to it multiple times throughout your time on Koholint Island. You’ll find key items, strange dreams, and even bring back the dead!
Heading west after leaving Marin’s house, the first location you’ll find is Madam MeowMeow’s home. Her overly friendly dog, Bowwow, is chained in front of the building. Try to be nice to him as he becomes your companion later on in your journey. Inside, you can chat with MeowMeow herself. She’ll even give you a special prize after returning her beloved pupper. In the little house to the right, you’ll find the fashion obsessed little chomp named CiaoCiao.
To the north of MeowMeow’s house is a fishing spot where you can get a Piece of Heart and some easy rupees. If you go west from MeowMeow, you’ll find a well where you can get, well, another Piece of Heart. South from there, you’ll find the library. The books hold tons of secrets, including the location of a hidden dungeon.
Let’s head back to the village proper, now. Using Marin’s house as the starting point, head south and you’ll find a telephone booth which is basically the game’s hint system. But, who knows all of this information? Who is on the other end of the line? Well, head west from the booth and you’ll find the answer in two of the oddest characters this game has to offer.
Old Man Ulrira is the man behind the phone. If you enter his house and talk with him, he’s very shy, almost catatonic in his chair. As quiet as he is in person, he is quite the jabberjaw on the phone. Outside of the house is Grandma Yahoo. Boy howdy, does this woman love sweeping. Give her a broom later in your adventure and see how she gets her name.
You can find the Trendy Game in the bottom right corner of the village. For ten rupees, you can get all sorts of cool items, including the Yoshi Doll. North of that is a field of grass for rupee farming. Go one square north of that and you’ll find the Town Tool Shop. The kindly man behind the counter has tons of items for you to purchase. Rumor has it that you can distract him and quickly run away with your item without paying! Just make sure you never return. If you do…Well, don’t say I didn’t warn you!
North of the shop is a mysterious shrine called the Dream Shrine. It’s blocked off by heavy rocks and mysterious creatures are said to dwell within. There are strange obstacles in your way to the bed in the center of the shrine. Some say that taking a nap in the bed will grant you an item of incredible power.
The Quadruplets House is to the west of the Dream Shrine. Mamasha and Papahl are the heads of this large household. The children that run around town belong to these two. Not only that, there’s a little baby at home who just so happens to love Yoshi! Later on, you’ll find Papahl lost in the mountains. Why is he climbing mountains instead of helping rear his children? Who knows.
Our final location is north of Marin’s house. It’s one of the most iconic locations in all of Link’s Awakening, the rooster weathervane. Marin likes to hang out here most of the time. After obtaining the Ocarina, you can learn “Ballad of the Wind Fish” from her, one of the game’s many banger tracks. Under the weathervane, you’ll find the remains of the Flying Rooster. This overdramatic goofball becomes integral to your quest near the end.
Mabe Village is a comfortable place to begin your adventure. It’s full of lots of stuff to explore and is one of the few locations in the game where you keep coming back. Whether it’s to venture into the Dream Shrine or steal (uh, I mean buy) from the shop, it always feels like coming home.
