Few video game villains are more iconic than Ganon from The Legend of Zelda franchise. Gamers have defeated the Gerudo King numerous times as series hero Link, but every time Ganon has been able to find a way to come back and continue his conquest of Hyrule.

Regardless of how he's beaten, the Zelda franchise's big bad always manages to trick, escape, or reincarnate his way back and bring some dastardly plan along with him. With so many attempts by Ganon to rule Hyrule, we decided to take a look through Ganon's history and create our list of the ten worst things he has done.

10 Stole The Triforce

via hiddentriforce.com

Ganon has used the power of the Triforce multiple times in his attempts to conquer Hyrule, but to have this weapon, he has had to steal it on more than one occasion. Most famously during Ocarina of Time, the Gerudo King waits until Link opens a way into the Sacred Realm before following him in and stealing a third of Triforce.

Another notable instance was before the start of the original Legend of Zelda Ganon stole the Triforce of Power from Hyrule during an attack on the kingdom.

9 Took Over Hyrule

Zelda Hyrule castle skyline in distance

As with stealing the Triforce, Ganon has successfully taken over Hyrule multiple times throughout the series, but some of these times have been more evil than others. Once again, Ocarina of Time proves to be an excellent example of this as in that game, Ganon not only rules over the kingdom, but his magic and presence have also begun to corrupt the world.

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This corruption is most noticeable once Link returns to Castle Town as an adult and quickly realizes that many of the town's former residents have been brought back as ReDead enemies.

8 Killed The Great Deku Tree

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Returning once again to Ocarina of Time, early on in the game, it is revealed to you that the Great Deku Tree is dying as a result of a curse placed upon them by Ganon. The Great Deku Tree eventually dies as a result, and players learn that Ganon placed the curse because the tree refused to help him get to the Sacred Realm by turning over its Spiritual Stone.

Placing a death curse on a sentient tree by itself would probably have made it on to this list, but when you add in the fact that Ganon killed the tree to try and dominate the world, it definitely qualifies.

7 Caused The Flooding Of Hyrule

While it was not technically Ganon who flooded the kingdom of Hyrule, it did happen as a result of him breaking free from the Sages' control following Ocarina of Time and attempting to rule the world. This is because once Ganon returned, at this point in the Wind Waker timeline, there was no hero alive yet who could defeat him.

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To stop Ganon, the Gods of The Legend of Zelda universe then decide to flood all of Hyrule in an attempt to trap him underwater.

6 Took Control Of The Guardians

During Breath of the Wild, players learn that in the events leading up to the game's story, the people of Hyrule created the Guardians to be an army that could fight against Ganon. Unfortunately, once he began attacking Hyrule, he took control of all the Guardians and started using them against the people of the kingdom.

Ganon taking control of the Guardians makes this list not only because it is an underhanded trick, but also because of how much of a pain it can be to fight against these mechanized enemies in the game.

5 Possessed Zelda

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In the later stages of Twilight Princess, Ganon manages to possess Zelda and turn her into an enemy that players must defeat. The enemy is referred to as Puppet Zelda, and luckily, Link is able to free the princess in a mostly painless fashion.

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During most Legend of Zelda games, the most disturbing enemy Link will encounter is a shadow version of himself or a monstrous creature, but forcing him to fight against one of the primary people he is trying to save is truly evil.

4 Killed His Followers

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Before the events of A Link to the Past, Ganon was able to make his way into the Sacred Realm with a group of thieves to steal the Triforce. Upon arriving in the Sacred Realm, Ganon turned on his followers and killed them to ensure that the power of the Triforce would be his and his alone.

It is not entirely unsurprising that someone of Ganon's reputation would decide to kill those loyal to him for selfish reasons, but this doesn't mean that it isn't one of the worst things he has done.

3 Used The Twili

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Similarly to how Ganon treated his followers in A Link to the Past, in Twilight Princess Ganon manipulates Zant and the Twili into helping him escape the Twilight Realm and conquer Hyrule. Ganon was even able to use the Twili's aguish and hated to restore himself to full strength.

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To add insult to injury, Ganon also refers to those of the Twilight Realm as pathetic and that despite this, they were still able to serve him well.

While Ganon has never really killed Link in one of the games, according to the Zelda timeline, there is a moment where Link was unable to slay his nemesis. Following the Ocarina of Time, there are three branching paths called the Adult Timeline, Child Timeline, and Downfall Timeline.

These names refer to what canonically happened at the end of Ocarina of Time in those timelines, and in the Downfall Timeline Ganon is actually able to kill Link in their final confrontation.

1 Being The Literal Incarnation Of Demise's Hatred

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It is revealed in Skyward Sword that Ganon is the manifestation of the Demon King Demise's hate following his death, which is meant to eternally return to take over the world and fight those with the blood of the Goddess and the spirit of the hero. Ganon's creation is ultimately what begins the entire Zelda timeline and leads to the never-ending fight between himself, Link, and Zelda.

If being the literal incarnation of the Demon King's hatred towards the world isn't evil, then what is?

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