We're finally talking about another of the Big Three Nintendo Franchises: Mario Bros, Metroid, and finally the Legend of Zelda, which unusually, not about a person name Zelda. Or atleast not directly, but a majority of the time, you're leading someone completely different, and only looking to save the Titular Princess Zelda. It's like if Mario Bros was called, Peach.... which still sounds cool. In any case, the confusing timeline of Zelda is explained, and hopefully, Mom isn't too lost in it.
Skyword Sword (2011) Wii U
Skyword Sword starts the Zelda timeline, set in a world
where humans primarily live in the sky and travel around on giant Sky
birds. Zelda, a reincarnation of the
Goddess Hylia, who is charged with watching over the Tri-Force, is whisked away
to the surface world, where she learns of her purpose and intends on
safeguarding the world from Demise. Link
goes about saving her and puts an end to Demise, but not before he can make his
own reincarnation. This is also the
creation of the Master Sword, as the sword was originally a part of Hylia prior
to giving up her divinity.
The Minish Cap (2004) GBA
As the GBA had a long life span, this incarnation is notable
for introducing the Minish Cap, a replacement hat for Link, not unlike Mario
Hat from Super Mario Odyssey. Much like
many features of Zelda there is a obvious world, and a hidden world. In this case, the Minish Cap allows Link to
shrink to Minish proportions (Small), in order to navigate and transverse
secrets of the world. This adventure for Link sets up the Four Sword and the
main antagonist of the next game Vaati.
Four Swords (2002) GBA
Released alongside a release of A Link to the Past, Four
Swords tells of how Link used the Four Sword and transformed into four copies
of himself. This story primarily focuses
upon Vaati’s return and Link utilizing the Four Sword to defeat him. The true feature of this game was the 4
player co-op nature, which was later revisited on the Game Cube.
Ocarina of Time (1998) N64
Credited as landmark title that brought Zelda to 3d. The story tells of a very young boy link
saving Princess Zelda, but traveling back and forth from time, which causes him
transform in to the Adult Link. This
game introduced 3d, but also a music system, with special songs, capable of
summoning effects or allowing used to progress through the story. The game was the first time the story fleshed
out more of Ganondorf’s back story, along with other notable races, including
the Gerudo, Goron, Kokori, & Zora.
DEVIATION IN TIME
Based on the events of Ocarina of Time, one of Three
Timeline get created:
Child Timeline – Where at the end of Ocarina of Time, Link
returns the Master Sword to the pedestal and reverts to a child to finish out
the rest of his life.
Adult Timeline – Where at the end of Ocarina of Time, Zelda
returns the Master Sword to the pedestal, and Link is said to have disappeared
following his return to the past.
Fallen Hero Timeline – Where as Link was failed to defeat
Ganondorf, and he is instead sealed by the Seven Sages and locked away.
Child Timeline:
Following the defeat of Ganondork, Link returns the Master
Sword to the pedestal and reverts to his child form to live out the rest of his
life.
Majora’s Mask (2000) N64
Created using the original Ocarina of Time engine and many
of the same assets, Majora’s Mask is very much a sequel to the Ocarina of
Time. In this version, Link stays a
child, but gains additional powers in the form of masks, which alter his shape
and abilities. The main events of
Majora’s Mask resolve around Link in search of Navi, his fairy from the first game. He meets the mysterious Skull Kid, who is
wearing the possessed Majora’s Mask.
Skull Kid, via Majora’s Mask, aims to destroy the town of Termina by
having the moon crash in to it. Link has
only 3 days in which to stop the apocalypse, but learns can go back in time by
playing the Song of Time on his Ocarina, giving him unlimited tries to save the
world.
Twilight Princess (2006) Wii
Following the events of Ocarina of Time, Ganondorf is
stopped and due to having the Triforce of Power, can’t be killed. As a result, he is banished to the Twilight
Realm, where he eventually takes it over and corrupts it to his own
purpose. During the events, he usurps
Midna, the Twilight Princess, and during his invasion back into the world of
Light, plunges the world into twilight.
Midna recruits Link, who in twilight infused areas, is able to transform
into a wolf the Midna rides, and the two aim to save both the world of Light
and the world of Twilight.
Four Swords Adventure (2004) Game Cube
Revisiting the GBA Four Sword’s multiplay gameplay, the game
utilizes the GBA link Cable to link various GBAs together to play all at the
same time. While Ganondorf has been
defeated for hundreds of years, his sudden resurrection forced the Link of the
time to draw the Four Sword once again.
This releases Vaati, which Ganondorf uses to his advantage to distract
Link. Eventually, Link is able to defeat
Vaati once and for all, and seals Ganondorf within the Four Sword.
Adult Timeline:
Following the events Ocarina of Time, Link disappears
following the defeat of Ganondorf and his sealing away in the Sacred
Realm. Ganondorf continue to own his
Tri-Force of power, as does Zelda with her Triforce of Wisdom, however, Link’s
disappearance, shatters the Tri-Force of courage in to 8 pieces.
The Wind Waker (2002) Game Cube
A major departure in style, Wind Waker and all games in the
Adult Timeline follow a very cartoony, cell-shaded look. While a prominent style in the games, and a
departure from a more realistic looking Link promised in trailers, the look had
grown on players and has its own unique charm, with lot of personality in
Link.
Wind Waker tells of how Ganon returns from his seal in the
Sacred Realm, and in order to save the world, the Gods decide to flood the
world, sealing away Hyrule and Ganon at the same time. Follow flood, people move to the top of
mountains that become islands. Link is
set in to action as Ganondorf returns to the surface and is kidnapping young
girls with pointy ears, in search of Zelda.
Link traverses this world on the King of red Lions, a boat sent by the
gods, in which Link must use the power of the Wind Waker to cause winds to help
pilot the boat.
Phantom Hourglass (2007) DS
Following the events of Wind Waker, Tetra(Reincarnation of
Zelda) and Link travel the world in search of a new continent to call
home. Tetra is kidnapped and Link must
travel around to save her. He receives
the Phantom Hourglass, which is necessary for exploring various dungeons. Much like the last game, the gameplay is
largely split in two major features, sailing between islands, and fighting in a
similar top-down form as previous classic era games.
Spirit Tracks (2009) DS
Following the Events of Phantom Hourglass, the new kingdom
of Hyrule is established. Hundreds of
years pass, and a new Link and Zelda are reborn. Zelda is concerned about her advisor,
Chancellor Cole, who reveals himself to be a demon initially sealed way on the
new Hyrule Kingdom long before they arrived.
He steals Zelda’s body, but her spirit remains with Link, who together
must navigate the mysterious Spirit Tracks and find the sacred Spirit Temples
that original banished the Demon.
Fallen Hero Timeline:
Unfortunately, Link was unable to defeat Ganondorf, who
succeeded in claiming the Tri-Force of Courage and the Tri-Force of
Wisdom. Before he could use the full
Tri-Force, he was sealed away by the Seven Sages into the Sacred Realm, where
Ganondorf continued to create his armies.
Following initial seal’s breaking, Hyrule launched an invasion on the
Sarcred Realm in order defeat Ganon.
Despite the Kingdom of Hyrule successfully banishing Ganon in the realm
once again, it left the country impoverished and without many resources,
including money and its people.
A Link to the Past (1991) SNES
The first game to feature a duality Light and Dark world
system, Link to the Past is a classic and one of the best selling SNES games of
all time. Hundreds of years after
Ganon’s defeat, a Wizard named Agahnim was able to stop a number of mysterious
events plaguing the kingdom. Naming him
the priest of Hyrule and top advisor, Agahnim brainwashed the guards and makes
the six maidens, descendants of the Seven Sages, disappear in to the Dark
World. Zelda, the last maiden,
telepathically calles out to Link to rescue her. He saves her and begin searching for the
tools needed to defeat Agahnim, who wants to resurrect Ganon. Link eventually goes to Stop Agahnim, but not
before being banished to the Dark World, where he eventually found the six
maidens and is able to find the TriForce.
Link’s Awakening (1993) Game Boy / Switch
Initially, a pet project by a few game creators to try and
remake the first Zelda for the Game Boy, the project eventually caught the
attention of other developers who wanted to add to it. Eventually, the higher ups found out about
the game and decided to fund it in earnest.
Following the Events of A Link to the Past, Link sets off to find new
training, in case of the next disaster.
His ship wrecks on Koholint island, which is populated by individuals
that remind him Hyrule. He learns, in
order to leave the island, he must collect 8 sacred instruments, and wake up
the Wind Fish in order to leave the island.
Oracle of Seasons & Oracles of Ages (2001) GBC
Originally starting as a trio of games that would use
passwords to link the three games together, the result ended in just two games,
with Seasons being more action oriented and Ages being more puzzle
oriented. The main story focuses on two
witches, collectively known as Twinrova, attempting to resurrect Ganon. Link from A Link to the Past is summoned by
the TriForce and sent to stop them.
A Link Between Worlds (2013) 3DS
Centuries after Ganon’s Defeat, a mysterious wizard named
Yugo appears and kidnaps the Seven Sages, and Zelda, storing them in Paintings
until needed. Link travels after them
into the world of Lorule, which is similar to his own. Link is unable to stop Yugo from summoning
Ganon and takes it into himself. Link is
nearly killed, if not for the Dark Counterpart to Zelda in this world,
Hilda. Eventually it is revealed that
Lorule had its own TriForce, but constant warring and fighting forced them to
destroy it; however, this allowed monsters and demons to rise up, which
destroyed their Kingdom. Hilda brought
all the elements of Link and Zelda’s world to hers in order to gain a Tri-Force
of their own and save their world. Link
eventually defeat Yugo and convinces Hilda that their world needs the Tri-Force
as well. Upon returning to their world,
Link wishes upon the Tri-Force and it creates a sister version in Lorule,
restoring peace to the dark world.
Tri-Force Heroes (2015) 3DS
A new adventure for Link, who travels to Hytopia. Here, the evil witch Maud has forced Princess
Styla into an irremovable brown Jumpsuit, which she forces her to hide away in
her castle. Using two other Link
look-a-likes, they must collect the Lady’s Ensemble and defeat the evil Witch
Maud. Similar to 4 swords, this utilizes
multiplayer to play and complete, and feature different outfits link can wear
to utilize different abilities.
The Legend of Zelda (1986) NES
At some point, the Tri-Force of Courage is hidden by the
King of Hyrule, suspecting his son, the Prince of Hyrule, won’t be a worthy
person. As a result, the Prince
questions Princess Zelda, who knows the true location, but refuses to tell her
brother. Now put in an eternal slumber,
the Kingdom falls into decline to due not having the full power of the
Tri-Force. Ganon returns and gains
control of the Tri-Force of Power; the next Princess Zelda hide the Tri-Force
of Wisdom in eight dungeons in order to safeguard it. Link is tasked with saving Princess Zelda,
who has now been imprisoned by Ganon, and is dubbed the Hero of Hyrule.
The Adventure of Link (1988) NES
6 years following the events of The Legend of Zelda, Link
had a glowing mark on his hand, which imprints the boy who will be able to
wield the Tri-Force of Courage. Tasked
with visiting several locations to prove his worth, Link is able to successful
collect the Tri-Force of Courage, and return to the eternal slumber Zelda,
awaking her with the full power of the Tri-Force.
Great Calamity
Timeline
Though not a part of the official timeline just yet,
developers state that this timeline is the end of all timeline, marking the end
to major timeline. While it’s unsure
which time line this falls into, it’s a future in which an advanced
civilization named the Sheikah Tribe, helped install various technologies into
Hyrule, causing it to prosper. In
preparation for Ganon’s return, they created various Guardians and Divine
Beasts to fight Ganon upon his return, now known as Calamity Ganon.
Breath of the Wild (2016) Switch
The next princess, named Zelda, notices that Ganon is nearly
upon them and goes about claiming the Divine Beasts, giving them to four
capable pilots, and finding Link, a knight who can successful wield the Master
Sword. While Zelda is initially unable
to awaken her sealing powers, the Day of Calamity occurs, causing all the
guardians and Divine Beasts to go malfunction and turn against the
populous. Now with Zelda and Link alone,
Link is fatally injured and forced to be healed in the Shrine of Resurrection. Zelda herself, went to seal away Calamity
Ganon, successful, but not without sealing herself away too. 100 Years have passed since the Day of
Calamity, and Link, partly with Amnesia, sets out to save the Princess Zelda.
Breath of the Wild Sequel (2022) Switch
Characters
Princess Zelda
Named after Zelda Fitzgerald, mother to Scott Fitzgerald,
Zelda is the Princess of Hyrule, and titular character of the Legend of Zelda
Series. The reincarnation of Hylia, the
Goddess that protected the Tri-Force from Demise, she is the individual that
started the reincarnation process for the Zelda line of individuals. While the Princess and defacto ruler of
Hyrule, she is also known to be the keeper of the Tri-Force of Wisdom. She depicted slightly differently from game
to game, but is usually a Blonde woman in her late teen to early 20s, depicted
in flowing princess robes and possessing mannerism of a Princess. Her weapon of choice is typically a Bow,
which shoots light based Arrows, and is known for her ability to seal away
evil. While she is often the Damsel in
Distress, there are some games that show to have more agency.
Link
The main Playable Character in the series, Link is presented
as an everyman, just going about his life, until the call to be a Hero calls
upon him. He is the keeper of the
Tri-Force of Courage, and generally depicted as a sword and shield using
adventurer, in his typical Green tunic and hat.
Link can wield the Master Sword, a legendary sword, considered the final
weapon in the game, and usually depicted as utilizing it in his left hand,
while his right hand carries his shield.
Link has had several titles in various games, including:
Hero of Time (Ocarina of Time)
Legendary Hero (Link’s Awakening)
Hero of Winds (Wind Waker)
Hero of Twilight (Twilight Princess)
Hero Chosen by the Ocean King (Phantom Hourglass)
Hero of the Skies (Skyward Sword)
Hero of the Wild (Breath of the Wild)
Hero of Hyrule
Ganon / Ganondorf
While interchangeable, Ganon and Ganondorf are the same
person. The main villain of every
mainline Zelda Game, Ganon is known for wielding the Tri-Force of Power and
leading various villainous armies against the Hero. Initially a reincarnation of Demise, the evil
from Skyward Sword, Ganondorf has reappeared time and time again, always with
aims to claim the Tri-Force for himself.
While starting as Ganondorf, a dark-skinned Gerudo, Ganondork eventually
can be transfigured and warped in to Ganon, which is more akin to a boar or pig
like man, as seen in later incarnations of the character. Ganon/Ganondorf is always the final villain
and main antagonist of all major Zelda games on home console.
Impa
Princess Zelda’s caretaker and chamber maid. Impa does not always play a major factor in
the story, and as such, is depicted in various forms. She is sometimes an old woman on the verge of
death, to a skilled fighter in her 30s to 40s.
She is always there to assist and lead Zelda on the right path, and has
even led Link on the right path in some games.
Sages
Derived from the original Seven Sages from Ocarina of Time,
the term Sage is meant for individuals with wisdom and great power. While much of their lore is not known, it’s
whispered in legend that they created the Master Sword and even the Temple of
Time. Maidens are similar in line with
Sages, as they are either reincarnations or descendants of Sages. The initial sages seen in Ocarina of Time,
which later sages are either descendants or reincarnations, include:
Rauru - Sage of Light
Saria - Forest Sage
Darunia - Sage of Fire
Ruto - Sage of Water
Impa - Sage of Shadow
Nabooru - Sage of Spirit
Zelda - Leader of the Sages, and presumed Sage of Time
Homework
Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Available on the Nintendo Switch)
