Ever since he was first introduced to the world, Link and Zelda have remained consistent throughout all the entirety of the Legend of Zelda series. No matter his incarnations, Link is always depicted as a young Hylian boy who is renowned for his swordsmanship and fighting skill who is humble yet brave. Although his appearance and back story have been altered during the course of the series. For example, many of Link early incarnations depict him as a young man or even a child-like version and some later version show him to be in his late teens with a more adult looking appearance. He is the bearer of the Master Sword and rightful bearer of the Triforce of Courage and has gone by many nicknames depending upon the title. He is known as the “Hero of the Skies” from Skyward Sword; “Hero of the Minish” from Minish Cap; “Hero of Time” from Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask; “Hero of Legend” from Link’s Awakening, A Link to the Past, Oracle of Ages, and Oracle of Seasons and “Hero of Hyrule” from the original The Legend of Zelda and Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, just to name a few.
- Zelda’s design in the original Legend of Zelda
- Zelda throughout the years
Princess Zelda, however, has been through more changes than Link. Early versions of her showed her with blonde hair and wearing a pink dress, similar to Princess Peach. Blonde Zelda has been seen in several games including A Link to the Past and Skyward Sword. She has even been shown with brunette hair (Twilight Princess) and was a red head in the original Legend of Zelda and Link’s Adventure. Again, similar to Princess Toadstool who was also a red head in the first three Super Mario Bros games. Unlike Peach however, her attire has gone through variations throughout the series. The dresses that she always wears are long with determinate colors, such as different tones of pink, white and blue. Most of her dresses are shown with the Hylian Crest, and in almost every game, she is seen wearing a tiara with either a red, pink or blue jewel in it. In some games, she also wears long gloves. Most of the time, Princess Zelda is seen wearing make-up (The Wind Waker, Spirit Tracks), and her hairstyle is characterized either with her hair down or with braids. She wears high heels, although in Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword, she wears boots. Link, on the other hand, has stuck with his green tunic and matching Phrygian hat.
- Ganon and his minions terrorized the land of Hyrule in the series as well.
- The Legend of Zelda cartoon series aired Fridays as part of the Super Mario Bros Super Show
The Legend of Zelda, just like Miyamoto’s other game series Super Mario Bros, grew in popularity. An animated series loosely based on the Legend of Zelda and Link’s Adventure aired weekly as part of the Super Mario Bros Super Show and ran for thirteen episodes until both shows were canceled. The animated series featured older versions of Link and Zelda. Sounds and remixed music from the games were used in the series. Manga adaptations of many entries in the series, including A Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time, Majora’s Mask, Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages, Four Swords Adventures, The Minish Cap, and Phantom Hourglass, have been produced under license from Nintendo, mostly in Japan. A prequel manga to Skyward Sword by Zelda manga duo Akira Himekawa was included in an art book that was published exclusively in Japan titled Hyrule Historia to coincide with the series 25th Anniversary. The book received an international release by publisher Dark Horse Comics on January 29, 2013 where it took the number one spot on Amazon’s sales chart, taking the spot away from E. L. James’s 50 Shades of Grey trilogy.
Nintendo soon commissioned an original symphony, The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses which has toured the United States and Canada since its creation in 2011. This year marks the Symphony of Goddesses final run. Over the last three decades, the Legend of Zelda has not only changed the world of gaming but has influenced pop culture as well with television series and books telling the story of Link and Zelda. The Legend of Zelda-themed Monopoly board game was released in the United States on September 15, 2014. A movie adaption of the series was pitched in 2007 but Nintendo declined due to the failure of the Super Mario Bros movie. The world of cosplay is also influenced with many cosplayers portraying the beloved Hero and Princess. Link and Zelda have appeared in many other Nintendo titles, most notably the Super Smash Bros series and Link is unlocked in Mario Kart 8. Link proved to be a popular guest character in the other, non-Zelda series as well. In 2008, IGN ranked him as the best bonus character in the Soul Calibur series. He earned a star on the Walk of Game along with his creator Shigeru Miyamoto. He has been ranked high on several “Top Video Game Heroes” lists. Zelda is no slouch either, being hailed as one of the “sexiest women in gaming”, ranking among the likes of Lara Croft, Bloodrayne and, her rival, Princess Peach. Both Link and Zelda were featured in Screw Attack’s Death Battle series. Link has been voted in the 2011 edition of Guinness Book of World Record Gamer’s Edition as the second best video game character of all time. The late Robin Williams named his daughter Zelda Williams after the game’s princess since he is big fan of the series. Even the Legend of Zelda theme has become an icon in its own right, being one of the most played video games themes ever. It has become a favorite amongst guitarists. The Legend of Zelda has left an amazing impact on gamers young and old and will continue to do so for years to come. The series has sold more than 64 million copies, with the original Legend of Zelda being the fourth best-selling Nintendo game of all time. It is said that “legends are born.” This legend was created.
- Oracle of Season was released for the Gameboy Color simultaneously with Oracle of Ages in 2001
- Oracle of Ages was released for the Gameboy Color simultaneously with Oracle of Seasons in 2001
- Seasons and Ages coincided with each other
- A Link Between Worlds is a re-imagining of A Link to the Past. One of Link’s new abilities allows him to press himself against walls
- Ocarnia of Time was released for Nintendo 64 in 1998
- Link whips it up in Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
- Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D was released for the Wii U
- Skyward Sword hit shelves in 2011 to commemorate the series 25th Anniversary
- Zelda and Link are playable characters in Super Smash Bros.
- Zelda as she appears in Twilight Princess
- Zelda protects her kingdom in Hyrule Warriors
- Link defends Zelda against hordes of enemies in Hyrule Warriors
- Ganondorf lends a hand when he is threatened in Hyrule Warriors
- Link rides into Mario Kart 8
- Cosplayers portray Link and Zelda
- Awesome Ganondorf cosplay
The adventure begins here with Part 1 of Legend of Zelda 30th Anniversary!!
Guitarist Eric Calderone aka 331Erock, has played several Legend of Zelda themes!! Here he plays the original theme!
Both Zelda and Link have appeared in Screw Attack’s DEATH BATTLE!!
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