Dodongo Snake

Dodongo Snakes are Sub-Bosses in Link's Awakening.^[1]^[2]

Characteristics

Dodongo Snakes are snake-like monsters with round bellies that slide across the floor with their mouths gaped open and always appear in pairs. Much like regular Dodongos, they are defeated by causing them to ingest a number of Bombs. This is achieved by dropping or throwing a Bomb as close to the Dodongo Snake's mouth as possible, or even placing it directly in from close range. Each Dodongo Snake requires three Bombs to be defeated and will leave behind a Fairy when destroyed. A pair of Dodongo Snakes serve as the Sub-Boss of the Key Cavern. They also appear later in the game, in both the Face Shrine and Turtle Rock, where they will return like normal enemies after being defeated. Unlike most Sub-Boss areas in the game, the Dodongo Snake areas are unique in that Link can exit them at any time. This is presumably so if Link runs out of Bombs, he can leave the room to refill and restart the battle later in order to prevent him from getting stuck in the room with no way to defeat the Dodongo Snakes.

In Link's Awakening for Nintendo Switch, although the battle remains largely the same, they will briefly keep their mouth closed for a few seconds, and if they bump into a Bomb during this time, they will briefly shake their head in refusal.

Nomenclature

Names in Other Regions
Language	Names	Meanings
English^BRBritish	Dodongo Snake ^{(LANSLink's Awakening (Nintendo Switch))}^[5]
Japanese	ドドンゴ (Dodongo) ^{(LALink's Awakening)}^[4]
French^EUEuropean	Dodongo ^{(LANSLink's Awakening (Nintendo Switch))}^[5]
Italian	Serpe Dodongo ^{(LALink's Awakening \| LADXLink's Awakening DX)}^[3]	Same as English.
This table was generated using translation pages. To request an addition, please contact a staff member with a reference.

Other Names

These names, though from official English sources, are not considered Canon by Zelda Wiki as they contradict a name or names from a higher-priority source.

Name	Bomb Eater^[6]
Applies to	Link's Awakening
Source	Zelda.com
Superseded by	Encyclopedia
Name	Bomb Eater^[6]
Applies to	Link's Awakening DX
Source	Zelda.com
Superseded by	Encyclopedia

Name	Applies to	Source	Superseded by
Bomb Eater^[6]	Link's Awakening	Zelda.com	Encyclopedia
Bomb Eater^[6]	Link's Awakening DX	Zelda.com	Encyclopedia

Gallery

Dodongo Snakes in the Key Cavern from Link's Awakening DX
Dodongo Snakes in the Face Shrine from Link's Awakening DX
Concept artwork of a Dodongo Snake from Link's Awakening for Nintendo Switch

References

↑ Encyclopedia, Dark Horse Books, pg. 175
↑ Dreamer Art Book, Nintendo Co., Ltd., pg. 53
↑ Enciclopedia di Hyrule, Magazzini Salani, pg. 175
↑ The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening Certain Victory Strategy Guide, Futabasha, 1993, pg. 25
↑ ^5.0 ^5.1 Artbook, Nintendo Co., Ltd., pg. 52
↑ ^6.0 ^6.1 "Bomb Eater
Link encountered Bomb Eaters while exploring the Key Cavern and Face Shrine on Koholint Island. The Bomb Eaters knew that they would perish after eating just three Bombs, but their hunger for explosives made it impossible for them to resist the temptation to eat more." — The Great Hyrule Encyclopedia , Zelda.com (archive), retrieved January 22, 2022.