Targeting System

The Targeting System is a combat and environment interaction interface that locks Link's focus onto a single enemy or other target with a press of the either the Z or L Button in 3-dimensional Zelda games. Up until the release of the Nintendo 64, all Zelda games were 2-dimensional games with a clear view of all the action on the screen. In order to incorporate an easy battle system into a 3-dimensional game, something different had to be done to make combat more manageable and less frustrating.

Z-Targeting
marked the beginning of Z-Targeting. Once an enemy is Z-Targeted, Navi flies to the selected enemy and all of Link's attacks are directed at the targeted enemy. Navi can give Link useful information about enemies that are targeted. Z-Targeting helped make Ocarina of Time a success, and the interface was carried over to Majora's Mask (with the help of a new Fairy, Tatl), the Wii version of Twilight Princess, and SS undefined.

L-Targeting
The layout of the Nintendo GameCube controller lacks a conveniently located Z Button. In order to carry the popular targeting system over to the Gamecube, the button used for targeting was switched from Z to L. Implementation is the same, but with a different button. The L Button is used in the GameCube titles and Twilight Princess. It was also used in the GameCube re-releases of Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask as well as the 3DS remake of the former, as the 3DS lacks a Z button whatsoever.

Trivia

 * In Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask, Link can only target with the help of a fairy, though this is rarely acknowledged (for example, during the battle with Ganondorf in Ocarina of Time, Link cannot target him as he drives Navi away). In Majora's Mask, targeting is achieved with Tatl, and her light is used to guide Dampé through the catacombs of the Ikana Graveyard.
 * The targeting system of Ocarina of Time was originally meant to be more like the one in The Wind Waker or Twilight Princess; with an upside down triangle above the targeted object, but that was too simple for the designers. They thought of using a more typical design for a fairy instead, but due to the system's limitations, it became a ball of light with wings.
 * In Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask, Poes will turn invisible when targeted. When this happens, Link can no longer target or attack them until they turn visible again. The accuracy of this is disputable, as oftentimes, Navi will continue to target the invisible Poe.
 * Certain enemies, like the Gold Skulltula, cannot be targeted for unknown reasons, forcing Link to manually aim his weapons at them. In both and, unused targeting text for Gold Skulltulas exists but is never used.