why does it seem so impossible for theory people .. or any people really to even consider that rauru isnt the firstest of the first kings of hyrule, its been remade so many times already and the 'forgotten era of myth' might as well have included hyrule being forgotten; instead its always messing with the old titles and timeline and im so TIRED

is it rly some sort of complex to HAVE to connect the new stuff to the old titles somehow?? again i get that theorizing and all that can mean anythign but i havent seen anyone even bring up the fact that maybe, this is just a new hyrule and rauru was just the first guy on this one to call himself king, maybe the name hyrule survived but it didnt connect back to a kingdom so hey jsut thought thats a neat old name lets call it that, hell, maybe it was a surname of sonia even so he literally just called the kingdom after her not knowing its been called that since the beginning of time, wouldnt that be a cool coinsidence!! and also rly sweet of him!! like him being called rauru!! like a guy loooong long before him that no one knows of bc its been so long its long been forgotten he ever existed! isnt that cool and somber connection!

id also love if someone could just kinda ... consider botw/totk(uhg) as their own thing, like, i love the old titles, but i also love them as being done, their era has ended, this is a new era, what if we could just ... view this new era as their own thing without having to chain every little bit of dialog to the old titles

i really wish rauru/sonia never said they just founded hyrule, and zelda(i think) never called him the 'first' king bc apparently some people are unable to think oh this is a new hyrule and he was the first king of this one like i did but instead go into a rampage trying to make everyone believe totks past is somehow canonically right after fucking SKYWARD SWORD; like ... some people take every line of dialog like wayyy to literally, rauru probably THOUGHT he was the one who founded this kingdom bc he literally couldnt know any better with everything of the old stuff being so loong forgotten already, hes just some dude and not literal god who knows it all, characters can be wrong even when they believe they are right!!

(yes i am annoying about this bc i hate this on a personal level)

like .. i cant be the only one who thinks botw to be of a new era so long after all the old titles its basically a new world entirely, with no direct links to anything in the past, with references and callbacks from all old legends, but still a new world, without chains to the old, reoccuring names and happenings haunting it just the same as it did all the ones before them yet not being aware this has been happening over and over .... .. and, after it was said that oh rauru was the name of the 'first' king of hyrule, immediately thought oh shit he founded this new hyrule coolio (lets ignore how much i grew to dislike totk in general, i was hopeful still at that point) (lets also ignore how many problems totk alone has with its own damn lore for this ok, its its own mess that dragged botw into its mess but that doesnt mean it ALSO has to drag literally every single other game into its mess too)

For context, I believe Rauru’s Hyrule is a “new” Hyrule founded after the past version(s) fell long in the past (allowing it to exist in any timeline, etc)

I was thinking about Ganondorf and reincarnation. My theory naturally implies TOTK Ganondorf is not literally The Same Dude from OOT that all the other appearances of Ganon(dorf) are. Well, except maybe Four Swords Adventures, but that’s kinda vague. Uh, anyway

The conversation that naturally crops up when it comes to reincarnation in the Zelda series is the touchy subject that is Demise’s Curse and what it actually means on a practical level. People tend to interpret it to either mean Ganondorf is a literal reincarnation of Demise, or an incarnation of Demise’s hatred. But I really don’t think so.

Demise’s curse specifically states that “an incarnation of my hatred shall ever follow your kind, dooming them to wander a blood-soaked sea of darkness for all time!” The obvious way to interpret this is the idea that some Big Evil Guy will pop up now and again to toss a bowling ball at Hyrule and knock a few pins over until some kid in green PJs comes along and smacks them around a bit, but I really don’t think it’s meant to be nearly that literal. Mostly because it would remove literally all agency from Ganondorf. Which is lame. And also, it kinda doesn’t make sense? Not every conflict in Hyrulean history involves Ganondorf. Hyrule has quite the blood-soaked sea of darkness all on its own, no Ganondorf required. Even ignoring all the stuff involving Vaati, there’s the Hyrulean Civil War, which, granted, is implied to have potentially involved the Gerudo, but very likely had several different players, and it was the Hylians who were clearly taking power, as they’re the ones who eventually wound up on top.

All of this to say, I think the incarnation of Demise’s hatred is less Ganondorf and more just the general greed and desire for power that those who inhabit Hyrule may feel. That Ganondorf happens to really enjoy having power simply makes him an obvious example, but by that same token it paints many of the various monarchs and royals in Hyrulean history in a similar light. It also means that those who fall prey to this are still perfectly in control of their own actions. They are culpable, and still complex people rather than just being the literal incarnations of evil. It also means that the fact that Ganondorf can reincarnate is less to do with being Demise reborn and more to do with him just having an exceptionally strong will and spirit all on his own

That said, I am Not a good Analyst and I’m mostly throwing spaghetti at the wall and hoping something sticks. So uh dear smart person who is also a big Ganondorf fan does any of this spaghetti stick

Heyy thank you so much for this ask, it's super interesting!

I agree that the curse being more about light beckoning darkness, and stability demanding upheaval just like absolute order leads to death just as surely as entropy does, feels very appropriate and binds the entire series together.

I also think this Ganondorf being a different dude, and the kingdom of Hyrule being one of its many versions, makes the most sense (even if I'm a little sad because my favorite part of Ganondorf is how his arc pans out across several games, I think the gaps between each game nourish him into a more interesting version of himself and I'm sad this one loses all the previous buildup of content --even if that makes sense, his last version was 17 years ago so okay I guess.....)

I've seen takes that say that TotK is the real, historical version of the legends that are Ocarina of Time, A Link to the Past and even perhaps Skyward Sword... and I'm really not on board personally. Not because they're Wrong to think that, it might even be what Nintendo is going for tbh, but it just comes down to me believing this version of the events is so much weaker and less rich than the legends they're based on, and that kind of doesn't make sense to me that reality would be even more black and white and drab than the way people (especially the victors) would have retold the story to each other? Again, I think that's really the heart of why TotK is not landing with me: if you recovering your past leads to you being coddled in what you already and always believed, then the world feels crazy claustrophobic to me? It's just not how these things tend to happen in real life, so if it does here... it's suffocating? Inescepable, almost?

(I mean Zelda always had this vibe of being pretty existentially horrifying when unpacked for two seconds, but I think this iteration pushes it to unprecedented heights)

welcome to my TED Talk. Skyward Sword Link is the ancient hero mentioned in Twilight Princess. here we go

(for my own sanity im referring to SkSw Link as “Sky” and TP Link as “Twilight”)

so like, The Big Reason: the Hero’s Clothes. it’s probably really obvious but y’know how it be. when you first get them in Twilight Princess, Faron tells you this:

In TP’s timeline, the only heroes there have ever been in Hyrule are the ones from Skyward Sword, Minish Cap, Four Swords and Ocarina of Time/Majora’s Mask. Out of them, Sky’s outfit is almost identical to Twilight’s, sans the embroidery, and it’s honestly the only outfit that would fit Twilight. 

MC’s and FS’s Links were children, and OoT/MM’s Link wasn’t remembered as a hero because of all the time travel stuff (which is where Hero’s Shade comes in but that’s something else entirely). Even if he was, his outfit is completely different than Twilight’s, and only the child Hero of Time’s version would exist in that timeline, since the adult version of the outfit was given to OoT Link in the Sacred Realm. So really, the only option left is Sky.

They’re both around the same height and age, and the elements in their outfits are basically the same, with tiny differences. There’s the high-collared undershirt (Twilight’s is sewn closed while Sky’s is open), the chainmail, the tunic with the same base design...

We know Twilight is strong - he works at a farm, can throw goats and gorons like it’s nothing, picks up big rocks with ease... while Sky can barely pick up a barrel without running out of breath/strength in a few seconds. Twilight clearly has more muscle mass, and we can see this in the outfits’ differences. In these design notes, we can see the sides of Twilight’s tunic have been opened, then half re-stitched, and the same goes for his sleeves.

Meanwhile, Sky’s lacks all of these modifications. On him, the tunic even looks baggy, made for someone bigger than him, while on Twilight it’s really tight-looking.

Even the hat seems to have been adjusted for Twilight’s head... and also elongated, judging by the extra fabric sewed on the tip. the length difference is a bit clearer in the following screenshots. It can also be seen that Sky and Twilight’s adventurer bags are almost identical but that could just be coincidence rather than them being the same bags.

Actually, the Hero’s Shade talks about the Hero’s tunic too.

This could just be a reference of the Shade to his own outfit as the Hero of Time, since he also talks about accepting the life of the hero in another of his encounters - but if he doesn’t consider himself a worthy hero after being unable to pass on his secrets, it wouldn’t make sense for him to refer to the Hero’s Clothes in such a way (”the proud green of the hero’s tunic...”)

It could go with my theory of the Kokiri’s green clothes being inspired by the first hero (Sky, not the 25th anniversary manga’s Link), with the Kokiri evolving from the Kikwis in Skyward Sword who met him. OoT Link, growing up as a Kokiri, could have heard stories about this first hero, maybe even looking up to him (kind of like the Koroks with Wind Waker and Breath of the Wild Links). It’d make sense then for him to think so highly of the hero’s outfit despite his own situation.

Outfits aside, there’s the Double Clawshots you get in Twilight Princess. Besides TP, these only appear again in Skyward Sword - other games just have hookshots or grappling hooks.

They have really different designs in general, yes, but that could either be explained by the different art styles of the games, or that, even if they’re not the exact same pair, TP’s were inspired by SkSw’s. Considering Sky’s clawshots are a sacred gift from Nayru herself, though, they should be able to last thousands of years.

Actually, talking about Nayru, that’s where we can get some “proof” that they could be the same pair. In TP, the first clawshot you find is in the Lakebed Temple - at this point in the timeline, water is Nayru’s element (instead of Electricity like in SkSw), so one of her divine gifts being in her element’s temple (possibly put in there as an offering either by Sky himself or by his descendants time after Skyward Sword) is completely fine... But what about the other clawshot? Well, you find it in the City in the Sky. Not entirely sure why they’d leave one behind like that, but it being in what could be a modified version of Skyloft’s ruins...

We could also mention the Hero’s Bow in all this. Its description even mentions the hero of legend, supposedly the same hero the outfit Twilight wears belonged to.

It looks quite similar to the bow you use in Skyward Sword. There are obviously design differences (it’d also mean Sky never upgraded it during his adventure), but they share key elements.

TP’s bow shares a few more key elements with Majora’s Mask’s bow than with SkSw’s, such as the little branches near the edges, but MM’s is way smaller (mostly to fit that Link, but yeah) and Twilight wouldn’t be able to use it. Though, it should be noted MM’s bow is also referred to as the Hero’s Bow, like in TP, so it could be the same bow in all three cases.

(Wind Waker’s bow is also called the Hero’s bow - and looks a bit more like Skyward Sword’s than these other two but that’s another timeline,)

Anyways. The ones guarding the Hero’s bow in Twilight Princess are the Gorons. Now, why would the Gorons have it? It’d mean this Hero of the past would have to have been close enough to them to trust them with it. The first Link to pop to mind with that is usually OoT Link. 

But, when he gets sent to the past by Zelda after his adventure’s done, it’s to before he ever goes to Death Mountain, and before he becomes sworn brothers with Darunia. I’m not saying he couldn’t have gone and befriended them later, but I don’t know if, with that being the case, all the future generations of Gorons would refer to him as a Hero even hundreds(?) of years later if he didn’t physically defeat any evil, or even consider his bow a treasure. And if they did, I don’t think they’d just call him the Hero of the past, considering he was relatively “recent”.

Another one of the heroes in this timeline who has had some contact with Gorons is Sky. Granted, it was only with about... 4 or so of them, but him (or one of his descendants idk) giving the Gorons his bow for safekeeping would make sense considering they’re 1) one of the first species he ran into on the Surface, and 2) helped him a bit during his adventure. And coming from the very first hero (one of the founders of Hyrule, even), it being treated as a treasure by the Gorons even thousands of years later seems to make a bit more sense 

It could also probably tie with one of the Clawshots being in the Lakebed temple. Maybe that clawshot was given to the Parella, who would later turn into the Zora? Maybe all the races Sky ran into during his adventure got a “gift” of sorts once Hyrule was offiically founded, maybe to unify all the races currently living there? And the other Clawshot could stay behind in Skyloft with the Loftwings, that could have turned into the Oocca. Who knows

So, BO2W Breakdown

Buckle up, this is gonna be a long one.

Here we’ve got Ganon’s...energy taking over Link’s arm. Ordinarily, I’d call it Malice, but based on what it turns into, I’m just going to be calling it corruption. We don’t get much information from this scene besides this expression:

Link’s grabbing the corruption with his other hand, and wincing. It looks painful. I personally think it’s for cinematic effect that it was included, but it COULD be a gateway into a Phantom Hourglass sort of mechanic--Link has to function on a time limit, or using the corruption’s power could drain his life.

Next we’ve got a closeup of Ganondorf. F in chat to the rehydration theorists.

And the closeups of his jewelry. The only significant thing I can see is his necklace, which looks like a cross between the Gerudo symbol and a Fleur de Lis:

But what I’M most interested in is this tie on his belt:

For one, it’s WAY bigger than it needs to be, and that’s deliberate. Ganondorf’s got a jewelry aesthetic he’s already hit above; everything else is gold, why not this bit?

Most importantly, you can barely make it out, but the designs either look Sheikah or Zonai--they’ve got that same kind of swirly busy pattern to them. The red tint and tan-ish lines in it makes me think it’s possessed Sheikah tech.

Next, we’re shown Zelda falling. This looks like it happens right after these two caps from the first trailer:

So we reach for her as the ground collapses, and evidently, we fail to pull her back up. So my next question for that scene is going to be what the in-game reason is for us not diving in right after her. Maybe we won’t get one, since the appeal of the original BOTW was that you could fight Ganon whenever you wanted.

Up next, we’ve got a skydiving shot:

The first thing to notice is that Link’s pose while skydiving is just about identical to his pose in Skyward Sword:

Second is that, yes, he’s falling towards a floating island, and that in itself is noteworthy, but he’s FALLING. There’s something either above him that he jumped off of, or a force that carried him high enough TO fall, and I doubt Nintendo’s encouraging magnesis flying.

So, there’s a few options: Loftwings making a return (which is unlikely, but a hope I have), something like Revali’s Gale boosting Link up for a cinematic shot, indicating that the corruption arm has that kind of power, or islands higher than the one shown here.

Now the island itself:

In Skyward Sword, Skyloft looks like this:

And (spoiler alert) we loose this island here over the course of the game:

Now, it’s not a PERFECT 1:1 match, as most things between games aren’t, but a quick rotate and overlay shows it’s got the same kinds of shapes between the two. The same “W” shape along the eastern side, the same tiny island off the northeast point, the same relative edges.

Now, I don’t know what happened to the plaza at South Skyloft, or the Knight’s Academy isle, but it could very easily be drift away from the central island.

The presence of other islands through the clouds seems to support that theory. Now let’s look at Link here:

The outfit is new. We haven’t, to my knowledge, seen one of this design in other games. My gut reaction to this image was “oh, we go back in time and we’re the first hero now!” because it’s vaguely reminiscent of Tapestry Hero.

But upon closer inspection, that theory’s null and void. Under Link’s tunic in the image above, you can see that he’s still wearing the shorts he woke up in in the first game. So either Sheikah boxers haven’t changed in 10,000 years, or it’s taking place in present day. Jokes aside, I’m curious to know if the outfit he’s wearing is modeled after Tapestry Hero.

Next thing to point out is the obvious:

Link’s arm here looks less prosthetic and more...withered, I almost want to say. The corruption here’s made his hand look frailer, and armored them up with Zonai patterns before it fades out at his shoulder. Based on how the tattoos look, I think they’re an artifact of the corruption taking hold.

Also, the belt here:

Aesthetic purposes, or specific function? The presence of the second, smaller one on the side reminds me of Skyward Sword’s adventure pouch, which could be how the new game handles inventory size:

Next we’ve got another flying shot:

It seems like he’s flying towards Ruined Skyloft, and you can see the bottoms of islands above it, possibly meaning that the sky serves as more than just a hub world like it did in Skyward.

Now let’s look at the paraglider he’s using. It’s new.

This is how the paraglider looks in the original BOTW. It looks like we still have the Rito symbol in the center, but other than that, there’s a LOT of changes here.

First off is the color. We’re now blue and gold. The shade of blue makes me think of the Kochi Dye Shop’s navy blue:

So, possibly a dyeable paraglider?

The new pattern surrounding the Rito symbol makes me think that it’s combining the paraglider with Skyward Sword’s sailcloth:

Other than that, there isn’t much else to say about the paraglider besides the handles looking like they’re made of bone. Craftable paragliders? God, I hope not.

Back to Link:

Here we have him in different gear than the last shot. He’s wearing the snow boots, he has a shield with a stylized Eye of Truth looking upwards, and he looks like he’s carrying a traveler’s sword and an unknown bow. The presence of the bow makes me think that the shield here is a lower tier item, rather than this game’s Hylian Shield equivalent.

Now, let’s get a better look at the horizon:

The trees here look a lot like the smaller trees you can find in Akkala, but there’s a distinct lack of red among them.

Then it looks like we’ve got some ruins at the furthest isle.

Whatever the rock formations are over there, they don’t LOOK natural.

Another thing I noticed is the bottoms of the islands.

These look a little too geometric to be natural, too. Now, this one, I’m a little muddy on, because it COULD be a stylistic choice. But it also reminds me of the Shrines if you clip out of bounds:

And a little bit of the dormant Gate of Time from Skyward:

My money’s on the cube-like nature of the islands’ undersides being deliberate, rather than just a far-off render.

And then there’s this thing!

What is it? It doesn’t look broken at all; look how nicely the roof(?) is kept. The ribbing on the sides makes me think it might be a Zonai thing, but the shape makes it difficult to figure out. A giant temple? An airship? A sloped coliseum? This thing haunts and vexes me.

Our next shot is presumably from one of the islands, based on the color. Here we can see that there are definitely ruins all over the place. Link is in the same gear as before, so I won’t touch on him.

This, however, has my interest. The design here has more geometric patterns--Zonai ruins?

We’ve got another one off in the distance here. Sky checkpoints, like Sheikah towers?

Now this guy here. There’s a LOT to look at. First off is the eye design, it’s the same sort of upward looking one that Link has on his shield in the previous shots.

The energy that’s pulling this thing towards its base looks like the same green energy that surrounds the arm holding Gan in place in Trailer One:

This stuff. That, plus the fact that the robot has to be pulled into its base rather than just existing, implies that either A: Link activates it himself, like a trial thing, or B: that the green energy here functions in the same way Malice does in the original BOTW.

This pattern at its base is intriguing, too. I don’t recognize the gold symbol in the center, but the green around it reminds me of the portals from Twilight Princess.

Which, yes, everyone’s already said that the Twilight Princess patterns look like Zonai things. But another thing this weird dial thing reminds me of is from Lanayru Desert:

On top of that, the color palette of this guy looks like that of the Lanayru Robots from Skyward:

BO2W robot on the left, Lanayru robot on the right. Given that Skyward is a lot more vibrant than other non-Toon Zelda games, I think this is a fair enough comparison to draw similarities from.

And then we get a closer view of the sky ruins from the last shot. I don’t know if the geometric pattern in the corner is a deliberate carving, or wear from time, but since the pattern looks ALMOST mirrored around the corner, I’m going to go with the former.

A better shot a few frames later. The robot has HANDS, which I do not like in any way shape or form. However, we get a better look at the sky ruins.

We haven’t seen this style of stairs before, to my knowledge. The pedestal out front looks like a light source, and it has the same floral egg thing the robot above has on each shoulder; the eggs could easily be a power source for Zonai tech. And at the top of the stairs, we see a pedestal, backing up the theory that these ruins function as our new Sheikah towers.

This is our next shot. Which...

Unikoblins. Can we talk about that? UNIKOBLINS.

Anyways, Link is here again in his old clothes. This is a very early game shot, because his right arm isn’t corrupted yet; this means we get to explore Hyrule before we embark on the main quest. Which gives rise to a question: Where’s Zelda?

The hopeful side of me wants to say that she’s a tutorial companion, like Navi or Tatl, at least for the beginning here. The pessimistic side of me thinks that she’s waiting for us at a predetermined location, and this is just part of getting to her.

Now the unikoblin structure itself is built on a Talus, meaning that the dev team at least intends to have more inter-monster interactions. But if you kill the Talus, does that mean that the base falls apart, or does it just drop down as a separate entity?

Also, what are these background ruins? The one on the left looks like it’s a distinctly different style than the one on the right. It looks almost like a giant guardian arm.

Our next shot is Link’s arm getting corrupted. Which, first of all, the effects look beautiful.

Now, we can see a corner of Link’s hip here, and we know that this is his right arm. So Link’s lying down here. Unconscious? Knowing how Zelda games like to start with Link waking up, probably. Although it looks like at least part of his shorts got an update.

We can see what looks like circuits here. It looks a bit like the electricity puzzles you can find in the Divine Beasts and Shrines in the original.

Then we’ve got these strange symbols.

Whatever this circular stone he’s lying on is, it looks a lot like the Zonai puzzle from the “A Fragmented Monument” sidequest.

This one that everyone thought was the Mirror of Twilight for years.

Our next shot is Link using the corruption powers against enemies:

The spike ball itself looks solid; the question is, is this a duplication power, or a visualization of how the spike ball is set into motion?

We see it barreling over a poor Unikoblin or two, but I’d like to turn your attention to the Moblin and the background.

The moblins here have helmets, and the bases, while they carry the same design, look like they have more cause and effect in mind. The left base’s rock, for instance; that’s a lot bigger than the rocks we got to play with in the last game, and it looks like we can barrel anything in the screen over with it.

The helmet, though, concerns me a little bit. It looks natural rather than forged; like it’s the moblin’s horn, just very much deformed. Does it mean a harder enemy, or is it just for flavor?

Our next shot is this strange flower thing. Note that Link’s right arm is perfectly fine in this shot, meaning that it’s still early game.

This is what Link’s flamethrower looks like. And this:

Is Zonai art.

So the question is, what IS the flamethrower? My first thought was that it’s either a new item in its own, or it’s a Sheikah Slate upgrade. The latter might sound a little far fetched, but Link in this game is right-handed, and in BOTW, he always held the slate in his LEFT hand when using it.

We have more of the weird faded designs that we saw on the Sky ruins:

And we’ve got some kind of pedestal or stage behind the ground flower thing:

It looks like it’s either an altar or a grave, from what I can tell. The stairs aren’t the same design as the ones in the sky, and there aren’t any patterns on it.

More importantly, though, is that this place is underground. This could be a part of the game you’re required to go through, in order to get to Raisin Gan.

A few seconds later, though, we get our answer to what the flamethrower is!

It’s a shield!

Off to the left side, we can see pillars with more weird scribblings towards the top. These match the Sky ruins’ pillar shape, with a narrow base and a wider top.

Our next scene is...weird.

We see a puddle splash in reverse. It’s hard to tell if it’s actually water or not, but the design on the ground implies that it’s either been there for a long time, or that that’s a dedicated splash spot. And the quality and zoom makes me think that this is part of a cutscene. Return of the timeshift stones?

We then see Link...surfacing out of the island? I don’t know how else to describe it. However, his arm is changed again, and glowing, meaning that this is a corruption power. And the “water” he rises out of here looks a lot like the puddle in the last clip.

We get a good look at the Zonai Lights:

A Sky ruin that looks like it contains a room:

And a glimpse of other isles’ ruins in the far distance.

And then as the camera zooms out...

We can place a location!

We’re right over Thundra Plateau!

We also get a mildly better look at the back wall of the sky ruin, which looks to be some kind of table:

The next scene is Hyrule Castle:

The ground shakes and it starts to rise up. However, notice that the columns surrounding the castle are now missing.

We’ve also got red sparks in the air, like we would have in a blood moon. However, due to the sky color, we can assume that this is a conscious decision by Gan himself, and that he isn’t drawing power from his surroundings.

We then see that power bleeding out of the ground. It’s MUCH more red than Malice is, which has always been a kind of burnt pink-ish color.

However, even though Ganon lifts the castle up, he doesn’t lift it very high.

The castle’s about triple the height it was. But since we’re talking Skyloft levels of floating islands, this is still pretty ground-level. What’s interesting to me, though, is that in this shot, despite the game now being about sky islands that we should be able to see from ground level...there aren’t any here. This, to me, means that there’s going to be a sudden appearance of the isles in the sky, rather than them simply being accessible now.

And that’s the whole trailer! I have many questions.

My blog! If you have any opnions/questions/theories, feel free to drop an ask!

Part 2 is up! We missed a lot!

@aureateart​ ok. My favourite parts of twilight princess  (and some other random thoughts about TP sprinkled in there) taken from my monster TP word vomit google doc :

Link lmao

Ok but for real, I like this incarnation of Link :)

I love Ordon (it just seems like such a chill and cozy village)

ALSO love how easy it is to interpret Link as being a sort of older brother figure to the Ordon kiddos. It’s just,, super cute? AND GHHH nice nice good thanks nintendo for giving me characters to care about/characters that I can imagine Link caring about

He didn’t sign up for any of this (tbh, none of the Links really signed up for this jshdjsd). But I mean like, dude was just going to take a trip to castle town, drop a gift off for the royal family, and come back. But haHA oopsies he did get to castle town eventually but definitely not the way he expected hsjdhsd

He’s just a little dude?

AND FUCK. HE REALLY HAD NEVER BEEN OUTSIDE OF ORDON UNTIL ALL OF THAT

everything is new for the player AND Link

Midna

She’s cool :)

she really just

*teleports into your jail cell* hello whore.

I am no master at writing but AYYYY she do got a character arc!!!

She was actually pretty helpful sometimes, I ALWAYS checked in with her before turning to a game guide

Other NPCs

NICE

Love all of the TP character designs (ASHEI’S ARMOUR??? AOWOAOAOOAO)

Saving Zelda and all of Hyrule was important yea but thinking back maybe it was more like, the Ordonians and the kids were what was pushing Link to keep on going

I like the Resistance members :) Very video gamey of them to have one NPC assigned to each dungeon but hey!!! Kinda cool getting to see a little glimpse of each of em

Idk, it’s just fun to imagine Link popping into Telma’s bar after each dungeon and taking a little rest :) (or to celebrate? maybe just chat, idk, give this man some downtime!!)

Honestly it was just kind of nice that Link wasn’t entirely alone. I mean, I know Midna was there the whole time, but I am always for giving Link a big group of friends (see my love for hyrule warriors, age of calamity, and LU LMAO)

Hero’s shade, very very cool, kinda sad he died with regrets but HEY. He got to pass on his knowledge eventually

AND the connection to OoT?? AND assumed to be related by blood too????? GOOD SHIT

Ilia, I REALLY really wanted to like her (er, it’s not like I dislike her, she’s just,,, kinda there for me).

It definitely seems like Nintendo was pushing to make her the romantic interest, but GHHHHH they really threw that out of the window for me by having her lose her memories

I saw a text post a while ago that said it would have been interesting if Ilia was Link’s sister instead and YES!! That would have been cool too :0

Wish we got to know Zelda a little more

I feel like we barely know anything about her

Idk man, like I said earlier, I never really had any sort of drive to save Zelda during my playthroughs

She obviously knows Midna, so maybe if they gave us just a little bit more of that relationship I’d be more interested in her?

TP WORLD BUILDINGGGG

Botw has good world building too, but each race felt kinda,,, isolated? I absolutely love the different architecture and vibe each town has (and all the the weapons too) but ghhh yea everyone felt so separated. As far as I can remember, we don’t see tooo much of the races interacting with each other? Now that I’m typing that out maybe that’s to be expected because of the calamity but KLSJDKJFD ANYWAYS THIS IS ABOUT TP

The world feels nice and alive, love how populated everything is

Castle town I like castle town a lot, it feels dense and busy and I really like how you can’t talk to every NPC you see

Very cool very fun that we got to see the Gorons hanging out in multiple spots

kinda wish we got to see the Zoras a little more (I guess they are a bit limited since they need water but GHHHH the tp zoras are so prebby,,)

BUT HEY, I do remember seeing a zora or two hanging out in the hot springs around death mountain after beating the lakebed temple (I think, might have been a different dungeon) 

but aaaa would have been nice to see them in at least a couple of other places. I think it would have really added to the “congrats Link!! You’re restoring peace to Hyrule” feeling you get from seeing the Gorons hanging out in Kakariko and Castle Town

ORDON

Love how chill it is and how it’s kind of separate from Hyrule proper

They really do seem to be doing their own thing apart from the rest of Hyrule

Just kinda adds onto the “he’s just a regular dude minding his own business” kind of vibes I get from TP Link

Also I like Ordona :)

THE LIGHT SPIRITS,,

Love their design

And love how they’re not exactly like a pure white?

Different spirit representing each aspect of the triforce my beloved

But yes hi I think Ordona is very cool

Who are you, how did you get here, which goddess do you represent? Do you even represent one of the three golden goddesses? Do the Ordonians know about you? Have any of them ever SEEN you??? Do they worship you? Does anybody even know about the existence of the light spirits?? FUCK so many questions but ghhh I like how they broke the status quo a bit by throwing in a fourth spirit :)

I feel like this one is kinda weird but I like that voice sample they used in the light spirit music. It’s spooky and pretty at the same time :)  

cutscenes mmmmm

Ok ok, the spooky lanayru cutscene is very good

BUT THE “Link, Chosen Hero! Lend us the last of your power!” CUTSCENE MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM LOVE IT SO MUCH

IT just

Idk man

It just hit different

I like the music

And seeing the light spirits swimming around in the light juice water whatever it is

Summoning the light arrows?

AND HHHHH “Lend us the last of your power!” THIS IS IT. This is the final battle.

Seeing Zelda bow down, and then Link putting his hand out 👌👌👌

Link: ok bud, let’s do this together :)

Connection to OoT (did I already mention this? Maybe., Whatever)

Very cool nintendo :)

I love seeing connections between all the diff zelda games.

Because like, on one hand, they’re all separate from each other because of yknow, individual hero stuff. BUT ALSO, they’re all connected because of the reincarnation stuff

Grrrr walking through the sacred grove and going “The Hero of Time walked around here a long time ago” FUCK THATS SO COOL

Is the Hero’s Shade watching me? What does he think of me? DIsappointed? Proud? The Hero of Time went through HELL so this timeline didn’t have to deal with any of the shit Ganon was gonna pull with the triforce, better not fuck this UP Link!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Midlink is cute

Kinda hurts that she smashed the mirror but that was probably so Nintendo didn’t have to worry about people going “but what about the twili??????” for any of the other games LMAO

BUT ALSO LIKE SKJDKLJFJ There are some pretty massive plot holes in TP anyway so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ whatever it’s fine we’ll just use this for angst because GOD do y’all like angst

So is Shadlink

Honestly don’t know where this ship came from but it’s cute so whatever

THE MUSIC??

Love Midna’s theme and how they referenced the dark world theme from ALttP (I remember trying to learn the dark world theme on the piano and doing the Leonardo DiCaprio point meme at the little jingle I recognized from Midna’s theme)

Hyrule field theme SLAPS.

Apparently references a couple of the other over-world themes from the previous zelda games (I got this from 8-bit Music theory’s video on the over-world zelda themes, he talks about TP at around 11:40 but def recommend watching the whole video if you’re into music analysis stuff)

So there’s this bit of the Hyrule Field theme, I don’t know the official name for it but I remember seeing somewhere it being called the “at an advantage theme” since yeah, you hear it during the boss music whenever you expose their weak points. FUCKINGGG LOVE THAT. Didn’t notice it during my first playthrough, but hearing it during my second was like a little easter egg for my ears every time :)

Midna’s lament is very pretty (and fun to play on the piano)

COURAGE THEME.

I didn’t care for it too much when I started playing the game but hearing it in ZREO’s arrangement of the Hyrule Field theme literally makes me turn into a puddle of emotions. Also hearing it around and of the Ordon kids (I think it plays after Link saves Colin) AAAAAAAAAAAAA

Orchestra piece #1 and #2 HOLY SHIT???????????????? 

Literally, the first time I listened to those I just,,,, plugged in my headphones, volume 100, layed on the floor/against my desk and silently vibed. I don’t know what the hell it is, but those two just fit so well with TP?? I still avoid listening to them nowadays cause if I DO I definitely will get overwhelmed with the “god I love this game so FUCKING MUCH” kind of feels.

Wolf link sucks at singing

the first time I heard him howling Zelda’s Lullaby I lost my shit because LKSJLDKSGLKJFSKG god that was.,, Bad. Anyways, hearing him howl some of the songs from OoT was cute :)

TP STAFF ROLL??? 

VERY GOOD. IT’s like 10 minutes long and GOD do I love every single second of it. It doesn’t have the same energy as the skyward sword staff roll or the orchestra pieces but GOD does it hit good??

Nice and calm after that big exciting adventure. Maybe it would have been more fun or emotional to have a higher energy piece but it was really nice getting to sit back and watch the camera fly around Hyrule. Seeing like, the Gorons and the Zoras having a good time, the kids returning to Ordon? GOOD SHIT.

and AAAAA that end, when you hear the main Zelda theme and see Link riding off out of Faron woods on Epona… good shit. It gets you thinking, where the hell is he going? What is he doing? Off ot do more adventuring? Going to help out the resistance or something? Going to help Zelda? Or maybe he’s trying to figure out a way to restore the mirror of twilight? Whoooo knows.

hhHHHHhhh it’s just that final reminder that YES!!! YOU JUST PLAYED A ZELDA GAME. JUST ANOTHER STORY APART OF THE WHOLE EPIC OF THE ZELDA SERIES AS A WHOLE

I also want to acknowledge the instrument/samples they used for all the twili stuff.

They’re all just so unique and contrast SO well with the rest of the TP OST. LIKE FUCK!! Anytime I hear the screech from the Twilit Kargarok? Sends a shiver down my spine. I associate those sounds SO strongly with the twili realm. (Like, the same way you associate the BSHEWW VVWWMMM sounds with light sabers)

I love it so god damn much

literally any time there’s a certain sound or motif associated with something I lose my shit

Sacred grove sacred grove sacred gro-

lovely lovely lovely so much fun playing that on the piano. AND again, I did the Leonardo DiCaprio pointing meme when I heard the theme from the lost woods come in GHHHHHHHH

shoutout to TP Faron Woods for helping me study and get through all of my schoolwork

BLEGUUHHH can you tell that I really love music?

and also yea I guess TP is kinda cool too :\

IF YOU READ ALL OF THAT THANKS I GUESS

Do you have nicknames for thy Lonks? Or a tidbit of info about them? (Or both???)

Thank you for asking!! I love talking about these dorks :)

So I wrote a whole huge thing out about all of them but then tumblr removed me from the premises and did not save anything. So this took longer to answer then it would have jgfkhsgjdkj

Skyward Sword: Cloud*

Minish cap: Mini

Ocarina of Time and Majora’s mask: Sprite

Link to the past, oracle of ages/seasons and Link’s awakening: Hibiscus

Link between worlds and Tri force heroes: Hue

Original Zelda and adventure of Link: Brownie*

Twilight Princess: Gloam

Four Swords Adventures: Light (along with Shadow)

Windwaker and phantom hourglass: Windy*

Breath of the Wild: Slate

Nicknames with * are ones I haven’t decided I totally like yet and might change. I’m also going to put spirit tracks Link in here (once I get around to playing his game) and possibly the other four swords Link, haven’t decided yet. Hyrule Warriors Link will end up in here too, but there’s plot stuff about him I don’t want to spill too much about.

Here’s some tidbits about them all too!

- Cloud literally just married Zelda like a week ago and is very upset about being yoinked through time. He misses her a lot. Cloud is really nice, and tries to always be kind, but if he gets mad he gets mad.

- Mini is only ten and a half and really mature for his age. (Arguably more then some of the older Links) He’s also surprisingly innocent despite his maturity and the fact he could easily kill a man if he so wished

- Sprite is on this adventure with grim acceptance and a refusal to get close to any of the rest of the heroes. This is the fourth time he’s dealt with time shenanigans (war of ages is in there) and is so tired.

- Hibiscus is one of the Responsible Ones, the most experienced, and is one of the best medics in the group. He’s hoping this adventure will help him out of the depressive state funk he’s been in since Koholint.

- Hue’s a blacksmith apprentice who pays more attention to clothing then nearly anyone else (except maybe Slate). ‘Clothes make the man’ is his motto, and he always dresses for the occasion. Also the tips of his hair are still green from when he was in Hytopia, and he thinks it looks good for some reason.

- Brownie is a rather anxious guy, a little on the paranoid side actually. But he’s really nice once he gets over his paranoia, and the most magically adept out of all of them. Also the only brunette, which annoys him a bit.

- Gloam is another Responsible One, and rather protective of all the younger Links. (which most of them don’t mind but Sprite despises) He’s surprisingly chaotic for being so responsible, and has a feral streak that mostly shows itself when he’s a wolf. He got his nickname from Slate who heard the word from Zelda and thought it sounded cool. Also Gloam was sick of being called ‘Wolf Guy’.

- Light has an eye that’s red and blue and another that’s green and purple, and sometimes his mood changes a little sporadically. Despite these oddities he’s one of the best team players they have, and Hue is so happy to have someone who agrees with him on teamwork.

- Windy has a mischievous streak a mile wide and is very upbeat, but there’s a side of him that’s very serious that occasionally shows itself. His big brother tendencies make him worry sometimes about the younger Links, but he’s not that old himself so he doesn’t push it. Also occasionally he meows. Gloam isn’t sure wether to bark at him or try to pick him up.

- Slate’s a bit of a mess. He thinks this whole problem with the Yiga is his fault, and despite the fact that none of the other Links blame him (except maybe Sprite) he’s determined to set this right. He’s close with Gloam (knew him as a helpful wolf on his quest) and waffles between being quiet and feral. There’s no inbetween.

JP vs. Localization in Fire Emblem Fates: Revelation

(Okay, for real this time lol)

Again, here’s a link to my sources post.

Fortunately, this route follows suit in terms of good localization quality after Conquest. It’s the shortest out of all the posts, since I don’t really have a lot to talk about. Mostly subtle line changes, references and a few key points of information that were cut out. I also went through Hidden Truths and Heirs of Fate to see if I could add stuff from those on here, but there were no big problems that I found.

Once again, the main part of this post will all be put under the cut. If a chapter isn’t covered, it means I didn’t think there were any differences worth talking about.

I’ll use localized names for characters and locations, unless I feel the need to do otherwise.

I’ll be using she/her when referring to Corrin in this post. (I flipped a coin to decide the gender lol)

Also, note that after Chapter 14, the translation of this route on Fateswartable ends, so I mostly relied on the English patch done by Serenes at that point forward. (I also used PegasusKnight.com as a reference to fall back on if I needed it)

Chapter 7

-A minor gripe I have with localization. The JP version compares Touma (Valla) to hell constantly. To jump ahead a bit, I believe in the JP versions of the End of All Sky/Land/Below tracks are even called The End of All Roads Heaven/Earth/Hell. The Vallites are also often called demons in the JP version, and Anankos himself is known as the ‘Invisible Demon Dragon’.

Another cool thing I just thought of too, is a connection to a popular Japanese short story. Zelda fans might be familiar with the story, “The Spider’s Thread”, which inspired the Ancient Cistern dungeon in Skyward Sword.

The beginning of the story has Buddha walking through paradise (heaven), before coming across a pond. The pond is filled with crystal clear water, and covered with water lilies/lotuses. As Buddha gazes further into the pond, he begins to see the depths of hell.

Sound familiar? “Azura is walking through Hoshido, before coming across a lake. The lake is filled with crystal clear water, and when she gazes into the lake she sees the fallen kingdom of her birth. Valla, the kingdom associated with water lilies/lotuses in the game, has been turned into hell itself.”

This association loses its meaning a bit when the comparisons to hell are a bit toned down, as well as when the Buddhist inspirations were kind of supplanted in favor of Greek renames. It’s not supremely important to the plot as a whole, but it’s something interesting I wanted to bring up.

-In the JP version, while explaining what happened in Valla, Azura eventually says “Using the art of manipulating people’s souls, he (Hydra/Anankos) made the people kill each other.” This bit of the people killing each other was cut in localization.

Chapter 12

-In the JP version, when Corrin asks Flora if she knows anything about dragons, Flora says “Sorry, I don’t know…The ancestral dragon of the Ice Clan has already perished and isn’t part of the legend. I don’t know what role it plays, sorry…” Localization makes her response “I'm sorry, but I can't think of anything... They've been gone so long that we don't even have tales of dragons in the Ice Tribe. I'm sorry I couldn't be of more assistance...”

So, the JP version explicitly says the Ice Dragon is dead (I believe Fates’ second artbook mentioned this as well), whereas the localization only says the First Dragons have been gone for a long time.

Chapter 16

-There’s not really much of a problem that I have with what Ryoma says about Corrin “having leadership qualities at a young age” but I wanted to do comparisons regardless cuz the word choice might lead one to different conclusions. In localization, Ryoma says this:

Ryoma: Huh... So she told us the same thing... I don't think it's in Corrin's nature to lie. And there's a leadership quality about her that just attracts followers. I remember being jealous of her as a child, in fact. Even at such a young age, she displayed the characteristics of a ruler. Silly to be jealous of her, right?

In the JP version, Ryoma says this:

Ryoma: Oh... So, she told you the same thing. …Corrin isn’t one to tell lies. She’s been like that since childhood. She’s always genuine and honest... She has this mysterious appeal that draws people to her. Seeing my younger sister with the qualities of being a ruler... Honestly, it makes me feel envious. …What a ridiculous thing to say, right?

Again, I don’t necessarily have a problem with how it was localized, but some might. The localization version might have people think that Corrin somehow was a fantastic leader at such a young age, but JP is more clear that it was about the qualities she had at a young age that would be valuable as a leader.

Chapter 19

-A minor gripe. In the localization, Azura says that Anankos uses his magic to send Vallites to Nohr and Hoshido to stir up conflict. In the JP version, she says he uses magic, along with the help of a body of water. That’s why whenever you fight Vallites outside of Valla proper, there’s a body of water nearby; Hoshido’s lake (and the ponds shown in Hinoka’s CQ battle which are in the capital) for Chapter 5, the sea for BR chapter 11, the burning falls for BR chapter 21, and the city for Rev chapter 13. Similarly, the consequences of being a victim to the curse are described as “turning into sea foam” in the JP version. Localization as a whole kind of toned down how much water has an influence on the story.

Chapter 23

-Probably the pettiest gripe I have lol. As Arete is fading away from Azura’s arms, Azura has a different reaction in localization and Japanese. In localization, Azura says “Mother? Mother!” while a voice clip of her in-battle pain cries plays. In the JP, she says  “*Sob... Sob*…! Mother... Mother...!”, while a voice clip of her crying plays. Her crying voice clip I don’t recall hearing anywhere else.

This is one of the few times in the you get to see Azura express a heavy and heartfelt emotion, since her rough childhood caused her to remain guarded and stoic around everyone. The equivalents to this scene in other routes is her death scene in Birthright, and her crying with Corrin over Ryoma’s death in Conquest; a normally unflinching and aloof character breaking down is a rarity, and indicates that the cause of it is something to take note of for the character as a whole. Localization softened this aspect, and I take issue with it, despite it probably seeming trivial to most other people.

Chapter 24

-When Corrin is questioning the phantom Mikoto, an exchange happens. In localization, part of it goes like this:

Corrin: But this can't be... Are you truly my mother?

Mikoto: I am. Even as a puppet of Anankos, my spirit at least remains my own.

Corrin: I... I believe you.

In the JP version, it goes like this:

Corrin: It can’t be... …Are you really my mother?

Mikoto: Yes... I became an Invisible servant, controlled by the Invisible King... Even so, I am your mother.

Corrin:  …………

Again, a minor thing that I don’t personally have issue with, but replacing Corrin’s silence with an admittance of belief could make some believe she has “reverted” back to being too naïve.

Chapter 26

-While Gunter is relaying his past, an exchange happens. In localization, it goes like this:

Gunter: I ask myself that, every day. I cannot understand the minds of royals. To you all, we commoners are little more than pawns in your schemes... Or weeds to be killed on a whim.

Corrin: That's not true...

Xander: Is that how people view the royalty?

Ryoma: Such an impression would easily breed powerful resentment...

In the JP version, Corrin, Xander and Ryoma don’t say anything. They just remain silent.

Endgame

-Not a major problem so much as a general thing about the game, but I can think of like... at least three memes that Treehouse inserted into the localization. Now I like memes, but there is no better way to date your media nowadays. One of them was Kana’s “That’s dragon for I love you” which tbh, is kind of cute and isn’t the most well known meme so I guess I can let it slide. Another is Felicia saying “I had one job!” when she messes up in the dining hall, which isn’t that big of a deal since the dining hall is very optional.

The last one I can think of is why I put this specific grievance here, and it’s during Corrin’s speech before facing Anankos.

Corrin: We won't back down! This is my... This is our destiny! Ready your weapons! Fight for your friends! With the Seal of Flames... With the Fire Emblem on our side! We fight for our world!!

Yeah, she says “Fight for your friends” which is everyone’s favorite Ike line from Brawl. Now, this isn’t even a totally inaccurate translation either, but it kind of just... makes the moment funny for the player when it’s supposed to be commanding and serious I guess.

But yeah, not the most important issue by far, but something I’d thought to mention. Hell, it’s not even that bad compared to how they made Peri’s, Effie’s and Hisame’s quirks into exaggerated and tired jokes. And the Beruka-Saizo support. Never forget.

-When Azura and Corrin are by the lake and discuss the latter’s plans to rule, Corrin says this in localization:

Corrin: I'm going to make Valla a wonderful place! In honor of the true last king and for Queen Arete. And everyone who fought... I promise to make them all proud.

In the JP version, she says this:

Corrin: I’ll make the Invisible Kingdom (Valla) into a great land. For the previous monarch, Queen Shenmei (Arete)… And for all of my allies who fought beside me. I promise.

So, JP version only mentions Arete as the reigning monarch of Valla. Which makes sense, cuz unless there was some wild “keeping the bloodline pure” shenanigans in Valla, Arete being the Queen keeps in line with what we know about the rest of Valla’s history. Arete was royalty from birth, as was her sister Mikoto. Arete is the one who passed down Lost in Thoughts and the pendant to Azura.  

Just thinking about how Ghirahim would be perfect for either Botw 2 or an Age of Calamity dlc

Before I go into this, there’s a number of reasons why I didn’t pick any other zelda villain or antagonist. And it’s mostly because all the other villains were; made for the one game they were in (Zant, Yuga), has some copyright issues (Vaati), or it’s clear that they’re not coming back. 

So it’s quite obvious that the botw triology (we can argue for days if aoc is considered canon or not, but not right now) takes a lot of inspiration from skyward sword in regards to Hylia, game mechanics (weapon durability, player gameplay, etc...), and of course, how incredibly similar the trailers for botw 2 look compared to skyward sword in general. And I’m crossing my fingers to hope for more SS references in the triology in the future. 

I’ll start with age of calamity. 

Now, Astor was an unexpected addition to the triology. His involvement in aoc leads to some continuity issues with botw, seeing as you would think that his important role with bringing back Ganon would be at least mentioned in botw. (Yes I know he was created after botw was made, and already has some weird timeline placement issues, did he and the other cultists only get involved because they saw the events of botw? Have they been active before then? Where did they even come from? It’s a bit of a mess with his backstory.) But timeline set aside, he wasn’t a memorable villain. Sooga and Kohga definitely took up the spotlight, and their change of goals was a nice touch (though I highly doubt the Yiga continued being “good guys” after ganon was defeated). 

Astor felt like this generic zelda villain, there’s no shown character motives besides “I must not let the future of Hyrule be altered,” and him being a follower of Ganon. Like why is he a follower? The Yiga had a pretty interesting reason being against the hyrule monarchy, they represent an extremist group of a rebellious minority that had an actual point when first formed. But then found alliance with another enemy of Hyrule, thus becoming a terrorist group that stands against everything the Sheikah do (followers of Ganon vs servants of Hylia). The Yiga has this amazing backstory we haven’t seen much of in the zelda series, and has a lot of potential to explore and expand on. 

But they were pushed to be this secondary antagonist, with Astor and Ganon (Ganondorf most likely as well in the future) being the main threats in the triology so far. Which, all right. Always good to have a variety of antagonists. But to be pushed to the sidelines by Astor? This guy without a compelling character drive who has one (1) significant role in aoc... even though he’s not actually needed since botw proved that Ganon didn’t need anyone to help him resurrect. 

Now, I’m not implying that Nintendo should’ve just replaced Astor entirely with Ghirahim. There’s so much stuff going on already in the main storyline of aoc, it would be an insult to him if he was squeezed between time travel shenanigans/good secondary antagonists/an already large cast of characters that needed the spotlight after botw. But to have him as this guy behind the scenes and giving out orders on behalf of Ganon? That would be cool. 

Because not only would it give some character motive for Astor and the Yiga clan by extent, he would serve as this imposing figure that wrecks shit up just when everyone thinks the calamity’s over and the fix-it fic focused plotline is done. I don’t think he would go to the lengths of completely bringing back Ganon (if I see another rendition of calamity Ganon in the same game I might lose it, they all looked alike with the malice and guardian eyes and over saturated colors, it’s a bit of a nightmare to look at and everytime he gets a redesign -see: egg guardian ganon 2.0- I cry a little). Mainly because that was his job in SS and would feel too repetitive for his character. Instead, having him as someone to acknowledge that his forces didn’t win this round; and so he chooses to avenge his master by going after those who defeated him, ultimately becoming a more dark and sinister character. That, that would be sick as hell. 

Some perks of him filling out this role; the Yiga clan would be able to be the antagonists again (if they wanted, gotta love that morality conflict when it comes to antagonists), aoc would be able to branch out more than focusing on time travel shenanigans and with the cast limited again there could be some actual focus on the champions themselves (aoc really only gave meaningful content of the main champions when they were with their descendents, which wasn’t bad it was actually a nice refresher to how they’re normally portrayed like in botw, but it would be nice to see them develop within their own cast as well), and something a lot of people had trouble with- Link’s character in aoc. 

I have many thoughts on Link’s charcter in aoc/botw/and how it will be in botw 2, and there’s just a lot to cover so I’ll keep it short. There’s not much in aoc. That’s it. He has 1 motivation, be Zelda’s bodyguard and protect her- the kingdom as well by extent. Now, I’m not going to say that botw Link was better because there is such a big difference between these two, they each have different jobs to do, it wouldn’t be fair to compare them. What I will do, is compare aoc Link with pre-botw Link, because that’s where he loses something that really puts him apart from the other incarnations of the hero. And it’s that he’s been dealing with the pressure of being this perfect standard of a knight for longer than he’s been chosen as the legendary hero. Not only is this actually canon, and backed up further more in the various translations from zelda’s diary in botw (there is an amazing post thread on this somewhere on tumblr with analysis on the translations but I can’t find it rn), but it provides an explanation on why his defining traits are being a quiet and closed off person. But unfortunately, we did not receive this same character despite them both having the same senario of dealing with a lot of pressure before taking the master sword and instead aoc Link was left rather bland and underdelveoped. 

Now who better to crack his resolve and prove to be his biggest rival and opponent than a sadistic and well skilled fighter who knows how to get under people’s skin, than one of the most iconic zelda villains of all time? Something Link lacked in aoc was something to really test him. The other champions had their blights, designed to evenly match them, Zelda had her personal connection to the egg guardian (I’m still salty about terrako but I will stay neutral for the sake of this post’s length), the champion’s descendents were tasked with a duty to help save a timeline so Hyrule wouldn’t be doomed like their’s. Meanwhile Link; had no trials, no resistance from the master sword... You could argue that the four blights combined against him was his test, but that’s ultimately debunked when you realize that 1) he was fighting to stall for Zelda to escape 2) Zelda took care of the blights too early for it to really be Link’s big challenge. That scene was more for the sake of Zelda finally unlocking her powers because of her compassion towards Link. 

Let’s switch back to Ghirahim. His fate at the end of SS was pretty vague. It can be theorized that he no longer can take a physical form bc of the scene where Demise rips out the demon sword and absorbs his essence (?), but the sword itself kinda just disappeared at the end of the final fight in SS, even Demise looked surprised at this. And it’s not like being SS Link’s rival is the most interesting part about him. He’s the counterpart to Fi, the now dormat spirit of the master sword, who had a brief appearance in the botw dlc, Proving That She Is Still Active. (more on this later for botw 2) He’s important to the overall lore of the series and honestly deserves another appearance for how iconic his appearance was in SS. I need you guys to understand that he was tumblr sexyman status in the early 2010s in terms of how popular he quickly became with the fandom, which has been reignited with SSHD recently. 

So for him to return in the events of post-aoc, so that not only can he reprise his iconic role, but also so he can provide a compelling point of conflict. Now some of you may go “well if he’s just here to avenge ganon it wouldn’t be interesting because he would just try and kill Link or Zelda and it would be too short.” Which I counter with; that’s not exactly how this bastard would deal with things. He probably learned his lesson of underestimating his opponent in SS, but that just makes it even more interesting if we saw him drag his revenge out. We know that he’s not going to be satisfied with just getting the job over quick and easy, he’s in it for the dramatics and to see his opponents suffer. Now obviously he wouldn’t actually suceed because Nintendo would never kill off some of its main plot-heavy characters but he would play a vital of fleshing out Link’s character and providing some lovely angst. My only problem with this route is that his appearance would only be in dlcs, which would suck because that means less actual screen time for him + higher chance of his character being butchered by hastily made production.

For breath of the wild... I understand why he’s not there. 

He wouldn’t fit in with the overall atmostsphere of the game, and botw Link isn’t the best character to be his main problem. His role in Skyward Sword worked perfectly because he was an amazing antagonist to ss Link, not exactly a foil (that was Groose’s job, which he also did perfectly), but just this polar opposite. This wouldn’t work with botw Link because he’s too early in his character progression (not saying he’s a blank slate, he just would be more confused and unnerved by Ghirahim than actually threatened like ss Link was) and there’s not enough stakes for Ghirahim to be an actual threat. Yet. 

Now onto botw 2

I mentioned previously that Ghirahim has an important role in SS lore along with Fi, and that his “death” was very vague. Botw 2 provides an opportunity for him to fit back into his bigger role since I highly doubt the Yiga clan is going to be a big part of this game based on what happend in botw and what direction this game looks to be taking. With the trailers showing the reapearance of Ganondorf, we can safely assume that he’s going to be a huge plot point since the last time Ganondorf was seen in canon was Twilight Princess back in 2006. Whether he’s going to be an antagonist or not, isn’t confirmed, but it would be interesting either way. Botw 2′s atmosphere fits a lot with SS already, and confirmed by developers that it’s going to be one of the more darker and serious zelda games. Now there is a chance we could really see at least a reference of him outside of this theory/hc, considering how the general setting is inspired by SS and Fi had a brief appearance in the dlc, it’s not a long stretch to say there’s probably something for him as well. 

I’m not going to theorize too hard on Ghirahim in botw 2 because there simply isn’t a whole lot of content to work with. So I’ll cut it off here by saying that if the general theory that Zelda and Link get separated during the game is true, Ghirahim could dramatically raise the stakes of how fast could the duo find each other before he confronts one of them alone. 

Also if he’s in botw 2 there’s no excuse if Fi doesn’t get an appearance, please Nintendo I miss her so much

so a while back before i had tumblr i had a BIG zelda phase and with it came all sorts of fun things.

like making a crackhead zelda theory. and since i have no one else to share it with you all get it <3 how lucky

demise’s counterpart (+ history of lorule i guess)

yall i just came up with a crackhead zelda theory bc that’s how i do.

ANYWAY, what if majora is actually the lorule version of demise??? all we know abt majora is that it was created by some ancient tribe that used it for hexing rituals.

so what if that ancient tribe was in the original version of lorule, inhabited by the original people of lorule (as in, not the loruleans in albw), and the ancient tribe created majora’s mask, based on a god they worshipped, the god of chaos?

they used it for their hexing rituals, and powerful people such as the leaders of the tribe would get to wear it. however, when they wore the mask, they would become possessed by their god’s spirit, so the others could worship it. the mask gave its wearers great and strange powers that made them the most feared and respected person while they wore it.

however, after taking the mask off, the leaders would noticeably be crazier and less morally sane than before. the tribe still continued to use it, despite its effects, and the god grew more and more comfortable with the tribe and started to ask them for things like sacrifices and whatever else.

the tribe listened. it went fine for a long, long time, but then there was a breaking point when someone who wore had worn the mask had gone mad and slaughtered half of the tribe before they were stopped.

the tribe realized their mistake, and so they tried to hide away the mask.

the mask caused so many problems that “they locked it away,” according to the happy mask salesman. what if the golden goddesses and hylia noticed what was going on in lorule, so they created a twin for hylia to watch over lorule, who would be much like her but not exactly the same?

that twin would be loria, whom would eventually become hilda. loria chose her hero much like hylia, except loria’s was a man name ravio. ravio and loria sealed away majora for the ancient tribe. the goddess then breathed new life into the world, the loruleans were created, and the ancient tribe was allowed to stay in lorule as well for their part in helping seal majora away. (the ancient tribe eventually faded away and derailed into what we see as the monster cult, but that’s for later.)

but the seal was not perfect. loria knew this would happen, that majora would break free, so like hylia, she sent out herself as an incarnation.

like in skyward sword, the first hilda is taken to purify herself, while her counterpart ravio is trained to defeat majora. he has the counterpart of the master sword and the spirit, mi.

so ravio defeats majora, and it’s sealed away again inside the mask and not the sword like demise is, proving the be the first mistake the loruleans made. the only thing keeping majora inside the mask was the power of the master sword, which in turn was powered by the triforce and the golden goddesses.

however, majora gave one last final hurrah and spat a curse on ravio and hilda: they would be plagued for the rest of their incarnations of its chaos and hatred. this curse causes, you guessed it, yuga!

the mask was watched over for ages, while various incarnations were born, until eventually, one of the hildas destroyed the triforce. when the triforce was destroyed, so was the sword, and thus the seal on majora’s mask. so majora broke free and took control of its own prison, with nothing to contain it. this happens around the same area in the timeline as right before the child timeline in hyrule.

there were still yugas, though majora had broken free, its curse still reigned strong. this majora was not the same as the god anyway, it was a twisted version of it, driven mad in the time it was stuck in the mask.

majora became even more chaotic and demented than it was before its imprisonment. it no longer wanted to conquer- it wanted to destroy, and it wanted to destroy anything it could set its sights on.

however, majora realized that without most of its powers, it would be practically useless to try and destroy lorule, even without the triforce. so it wanders.

unfortunately for everyone, the first person who finds the mask is someone who isn’t exactly sane. this person put on the mask, and though they managed to take it off, they were driven mad. they stumbled around, wandering wherever their crazy mind told them to, the mask still trying to leech its mind. though majora had broken free, its powers were nearly gone, and so all it could do was try and nudge the person sometimes.

the person eventually runs into the happy mask salesman, who is traveling from hyrule in his attempt to find majora’s mask. luckily for him, the unfortunate person stumbles upon him. the happy mask salesman offers to take the mask from them, and so he finally succeeds in his goal.

the happy mask salesman was actually one of the last members of the ancient tribe. his ancestors managed to travel from lorule to termina to hyrule, and so the happy mask salesman grew up with the knowledge. he also grew up with the tales of majora’s mask and wanted to have the mask of his ancestors back in his hands, and he wanted to have its powers, too.

and majora recognized his aura from even far away, so he influenced its poor host to move towards where he was. majora knew that the happy mask salesman was a descendent of one of its creators, and so it wanted to find him.

and the happy mask salesman wanted to find the mask, too. he managed to get majora some of its magic back with his ancient magic.

side note: this is why all of the moon children appear like the happy mask salesman. majora remembered its original creators, but only barely. it modeled the moon children after the happy mask salesman because that was the only member of the ancient tribe it remembered.

anyway, many of majora’s powers are restored, except for the invulnerability to everything except for the lorulean master sword. since the sword is gone, so is its hold on majora, and in turn, so is majora’s hold on it. majora can be damaged by anything now, which is how link manages to defeat it.

skull kid steals the mask from the happy mask salesman, yada yada yada. then majora’s mask (the game) happens. the reason majora is so vindictive against link is not only because link “interrupted its game,” but also because link reminded him of the man who had sealed had it inside the mask in the first place… which makes sense considering that link is hyrule’s ravio!

anyway, majora is killed, and instead of being sealed in the mask like last time, it is released into the world, spreading like dust in the wind, since link was unaware of its true nature. it manages to return to its lorule, where it bides its time until it can strike again…

ok so there’s my background for majora n stuff, but now i wanna explain why i think this is a cool theory.

demise’s personality is quite the opposite of majora’s. demise seems to be calculating, having whole plans and grand schemes. majora is a psychopath. “lorule versions are just like their hylian counterparts in this version, though,” you must be wondering. i actually have an explanation for that!

when the triforce and master sword were destroyed, so was the hero’s courage, the princess’ wisdom, the incarnations’ incredible power and coldness. and the god’s sanity and calculating plans. ravio became cowardly. hilda became unwise. yuga became weak and reliant on ganon for power. majora become demented and psychotic.

essentially, it became the opposite of demise, just like ravio is the opposite of link, hilda is the opposite of zelda, and yuga is the opposite of ganondorf.

plus not only is majora’s mask in link’s home in albw, but there’s the mask cult in lorule. like i mentioned above, the ancient tribe eventually degraded into that masked monster cult, as all of their old customs got flanderized into what we see in the game. the only thing that remained the same was the heavy reliance on masks. they didn’t even remember their god, majora, but they would later…

yeah this became a LOT longer than i wanted it to be lol. i might add more later.

Alright, I think i’m done BOTW 2 spamming for today. Anywho, time for some thoughts in general!

1) I hated how the shrines in BOTW were so cold and dark compared to the bright and lively nature outside (I wish they had all looked like the Master Trials challenge where there were trees and stuff incorporated inside), so I hope if we’re forced to have dungeons they’ll be more like the Wind Waker ones. 2) I hope they don’t make us use the grappling hook or anything like in Wind Waker to move around the sky islands (I hated that mechanic). 3) I’m probably one of the few people who wanted less Zelda and more of the Champions in HWAOC since i’m only really attached to BOTW (and we saw a fair amount of Tetra in Wind Waker)/apparently Zelda’s been sidelined in all the other games, so i’m hoping in vain that we get more Champions material in BOTW 2. Also, Link could stand to have some more cutscenes centered around him as well (the few we got in some of the sidequests in BOTW were great). 4) I only really somewhat care about Riju and Sidon, so I won’t mind if the new gang gets sidelined in BOTW 2 (I still think Nintendo wasted the found family/band of brothers aspect on the dead characters--I love them so much and they’re all I want!! The problem is, they’re dead and I don’t really care all that much about their replacements!!! I dunno, maybe i’m hampered by the fact that I can replay the original champions’ memories whenever I want/read their diaries, but I can’t rewatch the new gang’s cutscenes AKA i’ve forgotten their characterization since they don’t talk to me much now that the game’s over). It’d be great if they have some weaving storylines in BOTW 2 that will get me more invested in them, but currently i’m not that interested. 5) Speaking of which, I know it’s 100% not going to happen, but goddang if I don’t want the Champions to have been returned to life. Nintendo totally squandered HWAOC by not making it a true prequel/canon to BOTW (the Champions Ballad confirmed that the Divine Beasts had trials in order to be synced to the champs, so the new gen use of them wouldn’t have happened without that + Mipha thought Link had changed in BOTW yet says in HWAOC that he hasn’t changed + some scenes like “Champion Revali’s Song” never happened at all/got replaced with alternative scenes that really changed some dynamics + basically all of Revali’s time-relative characterization from his diary/pre-100 years of solitude got thrown out + I feel like Daruk got totally sidelined), so i’m still craving that Champions content. Also, I feel like it’s totally unfair that Zelda came out of 100 years totally unaged while everyone else died. Life seems to really suck for people in the LoZ universe who aren’t chosen by divine powers. 6) They’d better keep it open world and non-linear. I can’t go back to being forced to backtrack/trudge through things, I just can’t. BOTW was everything i’ve ever dreamed about in a game (truly open world + non-linear + interactive + meaningful story + lots of outfits + beautiful landscapes) with Skyrim previously being the only thing that came close to what I wanted, so I really hope BOTW 2 doesn’t deviate too much from that. 7) I really liked Kass in BOTW, but i’m not sure what direction they’d go with him in BOTW 2/i’d be fine if he sat BOTW 2 out. I worked so hard to complete all his quests in BOTW so he’d go back home to his family, GODDANGIT, KASS. 8) Someone mentioned that since the first trailer had underground aspects, we’re probably going to be playing as Zelda with the Slate there, and I agree. They didn’t make a playable model for her in HWAOC for nothing. 9) I want to be able to stable the deer and bears and stuff, but I know that won’t happen. Being able to ride the moose and rhino things from the Hebra area probably won’t happen either, but I want to ride them!!! 10) I hope there’ll be at least a few new buildings and stuff in the towns/they’ve started construction on some areas in Central Hyrule, but I guess that’ll depend on how long it’s been in-universe since BOTW. Or maybe not, considering how there’s still Karson and Hudson even though Bolson retired from Bolson Construction--insta-towns like Tarrey Town could totally be feasible if they wanted! 11) I have one foot in the camp that believes there’ll be time shenanigans in BOTW 2. HWAOC totally threw me off with it being an alternate timeline, so i’m not sure whether we’re going to be experiencing that again or time travel itself, but I definitely won’t be surprised this time around if Nintendo goes that route again (and it would be super interesting to see the Link from 10,000 years ago). I’m not entirely convinced that the Link we see exploring the sky in the second trailer isn’t our Link, mainly because he seems to still have on the blue boxers from BOTW. 12) I also heard that maybe this will be the last LoZ game ever since something something Demise something Skyward Sword something something lore from games i’ve only vaguely looked into (i’ve only ever played BOTW --> Wind Waker --> HWAOC)??? If so, it kind of sucks that I came in just when they started making games with playstyles palatable to me (I had to look up every single thing when playing Wind Waker, but BOTW let me solve things according to MY logic/I missed being able to explore in HWAOC), but at least it’ll end on a super high note/I won’t experience later disappointment, I guess. If BOTW 2 involves breaking the reincarnation cycle for the Triforcers, I would be really surprised. (On a related note, Nintendo making Ganondorf good would also be a 100% shock to me, but it would be great to end on that as a subversion. Yes, I want them to bring back the semi-complicated Ganondorf from Wind Waker.) 13) I hope they don’t rush releasing it. I heard they pushed back BOTW originally (I got it in 2019), but it came out fantastic for it! I know COVID’s been affecting things, so I really hope they’re treating their staff right and are mindful of crunch. 14) I want even more outfits (there seem to be at least two new ones, if the variant of the Hylian Tunic crossed with Link’s Champion’s Tunic counts). Give me all the outfits!!! Also, I hope we get even more hair variations in addition to the hair down option (which is all i’ve ever wanted since I saw the mod that altered the Ancient Helmet). 15) I wonder if we’re going to get a bonus for having both BOTW and HWAOC save data. 16) I wonder if we’re going to be keeping the Champions’ skills. I’m going to miss being super overpowered, if not. 17) I hope Nintendo doesn’t cave in and make surfaces climbable in the rain. Having that limiter is more realistic and Link would otherwise be too overpowered with a super climbing ability. 18) I liked BOTW’s scattered music that got more noticeable in populated areas because it was fitting for the post-apocalyptical/nature aspect. Hearing your footsteps in an open field and the buzzing of insects was super nice and prevented me from getting music fatigue (which i’d probably experience since whenever I play BOTW it’s for 5-10 hours at a time). I hope Nintendo either keeps that or makes audio options. 19) I heard that BOTW 2 is going to be super dark or something, and i’m okay with dark, but not GRIMdark, so I hope it doesn’t go that far. From what we’ve seen in the second trailer it still looks beautiful, but I hope it doesn’t do that thing that some games do where after the midpoint/a certain story point all the scenery permanently changes to be dark and scary (that’ll seriously hamper post-game playability for me if so). 20) If they expand on the Zonai, that would be super cool! Doubly cool if the time travel shenanigans involve them/ancient Link being one! 21) I kind of want windstorms to be a weather feature. We had lightning, heat, and cold, but no wind! No, I don’t count the wind geysers and the occasional breeze in Tabantha. 22) I want a chest in my house to hold more weapons than just the gear mounts. BOTW only had enough mounts for the champions’ gear, but it also had rare items like the Kite Shield and Forest Dweller’s Sword that you can’t get anymore once you use them up! 23) I want to be able to stable my horses at my house. What’s the point of that little area if you can’t stable your horse there! 24) Speaking of Link’s house: where is Zelda going to live? If the castle’s not reconstructed, it’d be neat if Link adds an extension to his house for her. 25) I hope they open up part-time jobs (think Mabinogi) as an option to earn rupees. Having to hunt for Luminous Stone deposits or feed Trott to make money can be such a chore. I think some of BOTW’s minigames/sidequests might count as those, but those minigames were either frustrating if your goal is to earn money (since most of them cost money to play in the first place and the mechanics weren’t always easy), or didn’t earn that much in general. 26) I wonder if Kilton is going to have updated items since the monsters seem to have changed. 27) I want to be able to dive underwater (mainly so I can explore the beautiful reefs over at Lurelin). A dive meter like the one from Super Mario Sunshine would be cool. Also, it’d doubly be neat if you had a separate stamina wheel for swimming and could permanently upgrade your swim/diving stamina (the speed+ swimming items just consumed your stamina faster, which was a pain)! 28) It’s definitely too late for this, but it’s a shame that the Hylians have so many face/body/hair and outfit variations, but the Zora, Rito, and Gorons don’t. The Gerudo were kind of okay with the hair and body variations, but the other races seemed to have a serious copy-paste problem. I guess technically some of the more important NPCs (ones with quests/cutscene triggers) had different coloring, but they were severely lacking in clothing variation. Also, the only old Rito was the elder??? At least the Gorons and Zora had some old folks besides their leader walking around. Very weird, but I don’t think BOTW 2 can fix any of this. 29) I wonder how they’re going to do the final boss battle, considering how epic/cinematic the BOTW 2x battle was. What can top fighting (on horseback, no less) a giant, flaming boar made out of malice? 30) I wonder what the Yiga are going to be up to, considering how Ganondorf seems to be somewhat kicking in BOTW 2.

FAQ

For The Hyrule Exchange on AO3

What is a Gift Exchange? It’s when a group of creative fans get together to do a Secret-Santa style gift exchange.  Each participant who signs up is offering to write a story, draw a piece of fan art, or create a comic based off a list of prompts they have been given.  In return they will receive a story, piece of art or comic based off a list of prompts they provided.

What sort of things are allowed? Any fan work for The Legend of Zelda & its related fandoms as long as it matches the tags your recipient requested!  This means that if your recipient requested Link & Zelda, fanfic, and Skyward Sword Canon Universe, you have to write them a fanfic involving Link and Zelda as friends or partners within the Skyward Sword Canon Universe, without involving anything on their DNW (Do Not Want) list.  However, any other details they write in the Details box are a guideline, not a requirement.

What about crossovers/fan work of a fan work? You are given five prompts to fill out, if you want a crossover or fan work of a fan work, that’s fine as long as the crossover or fan work includes the Legend of Zelda & its related properties.  Linkedin Universe?  Fine.  Legend of Zelda/Zorro?  Go for it.  Smash Bros?  As long as you request a Zelda character.

I would recommend that not all five of your prompts be for crossovers or fan work of a fan work, as that will make it harder to find you a match.

What am I expected to do? By signing up you are agreeing to write a 1k or more fan fiction, create a 500x500 or larger piece of fan art with clean lines, or to create a three panel or larger comic for the Legend of Zelda based off a list of prompts you will receive.

Fan Art and Comic can be debated on a case by case basis if so desired.

How do tags work? On AO3, tags involving an & are for nonromantic/nonsexual relationships, and tags involving an / are for romantic/sexual relationships.  Mipha&Sidon is for Mipha and Sidon as siblings or friends; Mipha/Sidon is incest.

There are no restrictions on what ships you are allowed to request or offer, so long as your prompt involves at least one Legend of Zelda character.  Please do not be a jerk about people liking things you don’t like.

Please also say if you are a minor so that people know not to give you anything NSFW.

When do assignments go out, and when are they due? Prompts will be sent out on the 21st of April and due on the 12th of June.

What do I do if there’s stuff I particularly want or don’t want to make? When putting in your offers, please included any special requests.  Such as: What medium you are offering; Fic, Art, Comic, all of the above. Are you comfortable offering NSFW? What games, canons are you offering? Preferred genres or story type. Character or Paring preference. Gen, M/F, F/F, M/M, Poly, other, or all of the above? Anything you don’t want to offer?

What do I do if there’s stuff I don’t want to receive?

Put it in your DNW (Do Not Want) at the bottom of your prompt. Whatever you put there I can enforce and make sure is not in your gift. If you have a link to a letter and have extra DNWs over there I can not enforce them.

Also if you are only interested in getting one type of medium, say you only want to receive fanfic, put that in your request/prompt.

Remember give detail without being restrictive. Here are some bad examples; Link, Time Travel. - Nice, but you're going to give your gifter heart palpitations because there’s not enough detail to give them inspiration or to show what you like.

Twilight Princess comic Link time travels into Twilight Princess game canon, just in time to save Ordon Village from the bokoblin raid by using dark shadow powers he picked up from Midna while wearing a blue and green butterfly crown he got from Agitha. After cutting off the boss bokoblin’s head by using the secret technique helm splitter, the whole village celebrates by roasting up pumpkins and the bokoblin’s boar. Link gets drunk on goat butterbeer and teaches everyone a dance he learned in Castle Town, also he tells the younger Link not to lead Ilia on as he’s going to meet someone way hotter later and should probably try hooking her up with the Zora prince instead. - Fun, but you’ve added in a lot of details your gifter may or may not want to write. Also, you seem to have a clear picture of this, are you sure don’t want to write it yourself?

What is a letter? You may notice the option to link to a letter.  You can use Google docs, Tumblr, Dreamwidth, Pillowfort, or any other hosting site to write a more in-depth request to go along with your prompts.  This is a good place to add, for example, little things you enjoy about characters, setting details you’re keen to see, fic genres or tropes you enjoy, any kinks you might have.  It gives your gifter more to work with and a better feel for what you like, but they are not required to add anything from your letter.  (It can also, for this exchange, help your mod with the matching process.)

I’m really busy.  How do I drop out? On AO3, in the top right corner, there’s a drop down menu, if you click “Hi, Name!” on that menu is “My Assignments.” Please find you assignment for this exchange and hit the Default button as soon as you realize you can’t complete your assignment before the deadline so a pinch hitter can be found.

What if I can’t finish in time? Your assignment gives you a choice between five prompts, of which you can choose to fill as many as you like so long as you fill as least one in a way that matches the prompt.

That said, life is crazy for everyone right now and things happen.  If you know you won’t be able to complete your assignment, contact me as quickly as possible so a pinch hitter can be found.  There will be not be a punishment for this, I just make sure everyone gets a present on time.

And of course, you can always submit a late work if/when you do finish, so don’t feel discouraged.

Am I certain to get a gift? So long as you complete your assignment, yes!  All pinch hits will be posted to the tumblr as they come up, and assignments will be due over a week before all gifts are revealed, so that I can ensure that everyone gets a gift.  Gifts will not be revealed if anyone is still missing theirs.

You may still get a gift if you drop out.  Please remember to thank the person who made it for you!

Pinch Hits? What’s that? A pinch hit is when someone’s requests are posted for anyone to claim as a second assignment, to fill for whoever dropped out.  Please follow the Hyrule Exchange tumblr in order to keep track of them, and either send an ask/message to the tumbler account or email [email protected] to claim it if you’re willing and able to pick it up.

How do I post my work? Go to AO3's New Work. If you're writing a fic, it's the same process as usual, except that you need to click the button saying that this is an Assignment. If you're drawing art or making edits, please follow this tutorial instead. It's mostly the same, though.

Can I post multiple works? Of course! As long as you finish one prompt you can do as many as you like.

Have any more questions? Feel free to ask!

Be honest with me. (us? The TP/BotW community? idk.) What do you think of the BotW2 trailer, and do you think there's even a sliver of potential for the Twili to return? I've been dying to know your answer, Amos. By the way, thanks again for the Midlink art piece. Doing a smart here by being off anon for this ask lol.

My My, Quite the question 

*TP Link

First off I’m pretty sure Twilight Princess Link is done as far as canon in-game appearances go. Wolf Link was a pretty dope add-in for Breath of the wild and could be added in for BOW2, but that’s really all were gonna get I’m afraid. :/

well sorta at least.

I mean we got TONES of Amibo and in-game TP stuff like the Twilight tunic, TP Epona (the only Epona in this game mind you), TP Zelda’s Light bow, TP Ganondorf’s Sword, Midna and Zant’s helmet, mention of Prince Rails on the path to Zoras Domain, the somewhat homage to the Bridge of Eldon and of course the famous side quest “A Fragmented Monument” being an obvious nod to the Mirror of twilight.

but even with all this TP stuff It’s no indication that Nintendo has any plans to bring TP Link into the mix.

...

That said... Between you and me, Nintendo just won’t let go of Twilight princess Link.

TP Link got the hi-rez treatment a few years ago for promotional stuff, and as much as I love it and want posters of the full version there really isn’t a reason for Nintendo to be using him to promote things.

They could have use any other Link, but they picked him specifically.

 I mean, Skyward Sword Link was technically the latest in the usual green tunic design(although it was basically a simplified TP tunic), Ocarina of Time and Toon Link are the “fan favorites”, and Breath of the wild Link is the brand spanking new one that broke records.   

Yet, TP Link is still getting promoted.

Whats even more interesting is the the rest of the Nintendo Tokyo banner.

Breath of the Wild Link and Zelda are both there, but so is TP Link and Ganondorf!

 And get this, TP Link is the one in the smaller more common banner!

I love it, but I can’t explain it!

*This is from the 2019 Nintendo Tokyo game show btw*

So as much I have my doubts about TP Link showing up in BOTW2 or ever having a real return of any kind Nintendo sure isn’t making it easy for me to keep believing that.

 Almost like they're toying with me. :(

Is TP Link gonna show up in Breath of the wild 2? probably not. at most heel be a non-cannon amibo wolf companion like in the first one.

Is there gonna a new game with TP Link in it? doubt it.

Is there gonna be a port of the HD Version of Twilight princess to the switch? Could be... but highly unlikely.

Will they do a complete remake of Twilight Princess with these dope re-rendered models with a gameplay style like the Wii U tech Demo of the spider boss!!??? GOD I WISH BUT I KNOW IT WILL NEVER HAPPEN!!!!!  ( ͡ಥ ͜ʖ ͡ಥ)

But logically it’s probably that TP Link is the best looking and most Marketable out of the Link bunch.  :/

Anyway, you were asking about Breath of the wild 2 right. lol

*BOTW2

the trailer is interesting... like really REALLY interesting.

Its looks waaaaay darker and shaping up to be the Zelda story we never knew we wanted.

I mean com’on whats not to love about dark Zelda stories!? Zelda is always at it’s best when its pushing the edge a bit.

I even did my own break down of it.

  I think I posted it here already but I can’t remember so here it is anyway.

This is pretty much what I gathered from the trailer.

Dark, mysterious, somewhat hopeless and tragic, our heros are in over their heads, everything is on the line, I love it!

Sadly, I really don’t wanna think about it too much because I got my hopes up last time and Nintendo has a bad habit of playing it safe when they should go all out. :/

Straight Up though we’re gonna be seeing Zelda in a much more involved role so that much seems apparent. to what degree? I have no idea.

She might be playable as a character you switch off to for puzzle solving or Goddess powers since shes using the sheikah slate.

All I ask it that she not be an exclusive cutseen character. I wanna see my girl doing things in game.

that said, I know people want Zelda to be the the main playable character but she really isn’t suited to fill Links role as the adventurous warrior type. 

She’s really more of a sage type character on top of being a book worm and not really fit for direct combat.

Ironically enough playing as Zelda would change things so much it wouldn’t be a Zelda game. lol

Or heck, she just might be the playable character its hard to tell honestly.

but what about Link?

Link on the other hand (no pun intend) is still gonna be the player character I think.

I imagine the thing going on with his arm is going to replace the sheikah slate’s function with some added combat stuff.

Kinda like Nero’s arm from DMC or the Shinobi prosthetic from Sekiro.

It would be pretty cool to see Links combat and exploration open up because of a nifty arm. :)

or it could be killing him and we gotta find a way to cure him so he can defeat Ganondorf. (that would be rad!!!)

All-n-all that just depends on what the arm is doing and waht the game wants to be like.

I hope and pray for a combat system like in Twilight Princess and a return to the Temple / Dungeons puzzle and bosses system from the other 3D Zelda’s with a breath of the wild spin.

Golly, just picture exploring a Dungeon with Zelda doing logic puzzles and switching off to Link to handle the combat segments doing a back and forth between the 2 leading up to a boss fight they have to work together to defeat. 

THAT WOULD BE SO RAD!!!!!

Man this is getting long.

 I’ll just say that I have high hopes for BOW2, but going in with zero expositions is always the the way to go.

I trust Nintendo took the feed back from the first game and is adjusting t something that will hopefully satisfy the fans.

I apologize if this was all over the place, I had to do work in between.

I had others ask me slimier questions if you’re that curios and want a fresher take on my thought for BOTW2.

* thoughts about that BotW sequel trailer

* how much Hyrule has changed 

thanks for the question, hope I answered it properly! lol

-Amos :)

Hi! I was wondering, what are your thoughts on the different Zelda games? Not a ranking or anything, just what did you like/dislike in each game/franchise as a whole? And how did you come up with the personalities of the characters for DL? Thank you!

Oof.  Oh, you’re gonna make me Longpost, aren’t you.  Yeah, okay.  You asked for it.

Skyward Sword/Gen 

-I both love, and hate, the motion controls.  On one hand, I have never felt more epic than when I personally stabbed my sword into Demise’s head.  On the other hand, I have never felt more frustrated when my wiimote would misinterpret my swings and I would subsequently die.  Contrary to popular opinion, I actually like Fi.  Her design is beautiful, her theme is gorgeous, and her goodbye to Link is one of the most beautiful yet heartbreaking moments in the entire franchise.  The origin of the Master Sword, in my opinion, might be one of the best things to come out of this game.

Gen’s personality came about mainly as the foil to Lore and Dusk’s pre-existing dynamic.  Lore is the spastic one, and while Dusk is definitely somewhat of the straight-man, he’s much more likely to roll with it unless it’s drastically damaging.  Gen, on the other hand, will avidly apply common sense to anything and everything, and since Lore very rarely follows common sense, Gen morphed into his ‘conscience’, so to speak.  His predilection for healing was a side-effect of me dying a lot in his game and spending more on Red Potion than probably anything else, and also because the group needed a medic and Gen was definitely the most take-charge character I had who would do that sort of thing.

Minish Cap/Speck

The Picori are the cutest things, oh my gosh.  I do, however, suspect their violent and painful end in BotW - if they’re the ones who put the Rupees and Bombs and stuff in the grass, and there’s no such things in BotW…  Aside from that!  I adored the concept of shrinking down and having the entire environment change on you.  It was such a unique way to make an old area new again.  On the flipside, I loathed the Kinstone sidequest with a passion.  I never did manage to match them all.

Speck was basically me saying to myself, ‘He’s a tiny person.  How do tiny people see the world?’  And then he turned into a quiet, shy kid who tries very hard not to be a bother and looks at problems from a completely different angle than most people.  This is why he always second guesses his words - he’s by far the most frequent user of ‘um’, ‘uh’, ‘ah’, ‘oh’, etc, and this is entirely on purpose.  Tiny people, by nature, will do whatever it takes to make sure the bigger people don’t get mad enough to smush them - a bit morbid, I know, but if you think about it…  This is also where his habit of stabbing the eardrum came from.  Where most people wouldn’t even think of it, Speck just saw a really good access point and a whole lot of convenient fabric handholds to get him there.  

Four Swords/The Four

I have actually never been able to get my hands on a copy of the original Four Swords game.  I know.  I’m a disgrace to the fandom.  However, I have done extensive research, and I can say that by far my favorite concept is being able to deploy a Bow-Wow in the direction of my enemies.  I literally cannot imagine it without cackling.  

The Four were the result of me having two sets of Four Sword Heroes and desperately needing some way to tell them apart.  It took a very long time for me to decide to play up the hive mind aspect, but once I did everything clicked for them.  Rather than being split individual aspects of the original Link, the Four are literally a copy-paste of OG Link’s personality with only tiny variations between them, which led to the decision to make them somewhat quiet and awkward about their synchronization.  People rarely accept what’s unfamiliar to them, and to be honest the Four probably have one of the more ‘tragic’ backstories.  They may or may not have been chased out of a town or two due to a couple misunderstandings about the source of their hive mind.  (My babies, I’m so sorry I did this to you I’m a terrible author whyyyyyyyy)

Ocarina of Time/Ocarina

By far, one of the most investing stories in a game.  Ganondorf is fabulously evil, 10/10 would thwart again.  Music, of course, is beautiful.  The travel mechanic, on the other hand, I am not a fan of.  Trying to get somewhere before getting the respective warping Song is tedious at best, and the sheer amount of time it takes for me to swap between Young and Adult Link is just… it’s a hassle, is what it is.  

Ocarina is a little kid in a Big Person’s body, and I write him accordingly.  He’s the wide-eyed boy in a brand-new world.  He’s naive to a lot of things and oblivious to several others.  He and Mask have a bit of an odd dynamic because of this - Ocarina will basically gravitate to wherever Mask is as a sort of unconscious instinct, under the unrealized assumption that Mask means protection.  The ‘Little Brother’ mentality, if you will.  

Majora’s Mask/Mask

THE MOON.  THE FREAKING MOON.  I will never be able to play this game without feeling vaguely stressed and unsettled the entire time and THAT FREAKING MOON is the reason why.  Very compelling plot, 10/10, but WHY.  Aside from that, the music is fantastic, Majora is Creepy To The Max and we so rarely get that in Zelda games so I am on board, the transformation masks are probably my favorite mechanic, and your heartstrings get yanked on several times with the Goron Lullaby quest and Mikau’s entire storyline.  

Mask evolved directly as the opposite to Ocarina, with the caveat that he is directly aware of Ocarina’s unconscious ‘Little Brother’ mindset - Mask just happens to be sincerely uncomfortable with the ‘Big Brother’ role.  He’s more knowledgable, more experienced, and this was done explicitly to be in direct contrast with the fact that he looks like a little kid.  He’s Ocarina’s opposite in every single way, and it’s fun to have them play off each other.

Twilight Princess/Dusk

Probably my favorite game, art-style-wise.  There’s some things that Twilight Princess does fantastically well artistically, not to mention that it contains one of my favorite characters of all time.  Midna is awesome and there’s nothing that will convince me otherwise.  I actually think the wolf mechanic is a really good way to make new problems within old areas - but I will admit, the bug hunts can be tedious.  And that one escort mission can go jump off a cliff. But I adore everything about the concept of a Twilight Realm, and even though Ganondorf comes in and kinda shafts Zant out of the way, he’s fabulous enough that I can accept it.  They are, after all, both marvelously evil.  

Dusk’s personality came from me thinking back on everything that happens in his game and promptly deciding that: he either went a little insane to deal with it all, or he had the lowest level of crap to give that I’d ever seen.  Obviously, I decided on the latter, and I’m very glad I did, because from there that allowed me to build the faux-duo-actually-triad leadership between him, Lore, and Gen that works so very well.  I kinda ended up putting a little of myself into Dusk, in that he’s very reserved and will think about what he says before saying it.  Of course, I had to incorporate the wolf somehow, and the way that was the most fun for me was to bring some of those traits over into his hylan form.  One of these was me interpreting the howling mechanic as Dusk being a naturally good singer, and we all know where that led.

Four Swords Adventures/Red, Blue, Green, and Vio

The loss of the Bow-Wow hits me deeply, but we do get horses so that helps a little.  Also, it surprised me a little how similar this game is to the predecessor, Four Swords.  There’s a couple plot differences, Shadow Link is a thing, but for the most part it follows a very similar pattern and I kinda wish something different had been done.  It’s fun having more than one weapon to swing around, but not quite as much without other people to play with.  The one thing I have to say about Zelda multiplayer games is that, without actual multiple players, it’s just… not as fun.

I freely admit that large parts of Green, Vio, Red, and Blue’s personalities came directly from the FSA manga - particularly, the subversion of color expectations by having Red be the timid one and Blue be the aggressive one.  You never see that nowadays, and I immediately pounced on it.  Vio and Green had slightly less large chunks of manga personality, but I basically ripped their inner-group dynamic wholesale.  Their individual interactions though, those are all me.  Blue and Vio just seemed like natural bicker partners.  Red’s Adorable Puppy face evolved out of the sheer amount of times the manga had him on the verge of, or shedding, actual tears.  And Green naturally needed to be the exasperated leader keeping them all in line.  It all just sorta flowed from there.

Link to the Past/Lore

The originator of such musical classics like Kakariko Village, the Dark World theme, and Zelda’s Lullaby, and I thank this game for making these songs so good.  I adore the way that the Dark World can take the entire freaking country of Hyrule and turn it into something completely new.  But there were some times where I wasn’t sure where to go?  I don’t know if it was me or not, and it could have been.  I might just be bad at inferring destinations.  

Lore is the direct result of being the target of four entire games, and me thinking to myself, ‘Now how does a normal person deal with something like that?’  The answer was, of course, that they throw normality out a window.  Lore is my way to have fun, and also to let out every random impulse I’ve ever had but never acted on.  In a way, Lore is me, but without all the inhibitions.  Sometimes he ends up being a direct conduit between my brain-thoughts and the page.  That aside, I also gladly seized the opportunity to bring something different to the group, which is how the different languages came in.  He’s the only Link who actively, within his games, visits other countries, and there was no way I could pass that up.  

Oracle of Ages/Oracle of Seasons

They remind me of Pokemon titles.  “Here’s these two games!  With the exception of some minor details, they’re exactly the same!  Combine them for a special surprise!”  I do think the Subrosians are adorable though.  And of course, shout-out to Veran, the only explicitly female villain the Zelda franchise has ever seen.  Maybe someday you’ll get a friend to help you out in that testosterone-filled mess.  Maybe someday. 

Link’s Awakening

Far sadder than I anticipated it being.  Also, the Bow-Wow returns!  Clearly the best thing in the game. On the bad side - I don’t remember which one it was - there was this one dungeon that just… for the life of me I could not get it to make sense in my brain.  I don’t know why.  I also don’t remember what the solution was.  Very engaging story though, the Windfish mystery kept me engaged right up to the Big Reveal.

A Link Between Worlds/Sketch

The painting mechanic is just.  It’s so clever.  The entire landscape is transformed with a single dimension shift and I loved it.  I was kinda skeptical about the same map as LttP, but then Lorule happened and I was pleased enough with that to accept it.  Ravio and Hilda are fine additions to the LoZ family and I wholeheartedly accept them - also, the Lorule Castle theme is one of the best songs in the franchise, fight me.  One thing I do remember is this one boss battle, I think with some sort of Manhandla plant?  It took me at least ten or so tries to get past that thing.  Really didn’t enjoy that one.

Everything intentional about Sketch evolved from his painting ability, this being his phobia of water, his tendency to use stealth in a confrontation, and his continued sidetracking with artistic ideas.  At some point though, he turned into one of the most sarcastic Links in the bunch, and I’m really not sure how it happened.  But it seemed to fit him for whatever reason.

The Legend of Zelda/Realm

I regrettably have not been able to get my hands on this one either, but I have watched a play-though.  My observations are as follows:                    Where is the map.  How did anyone figure out where they were going in this game.  I don’t understand how that wall was supposed to indicate it was bomb-able.  How did people play this game without getting too frustrated to continue.                                                                                       On the bright side, the dungeons seemed to be very well-laid-out, and the bosses, while repetitive, were pretty memorable.  I suspect I would get lost within the first ten minutes, though.

Realm is directly based off of my above observations.  I am firmly of the opinion that absolutely nobody can make it through the original LoZ game without getting lost at least once, and this resulted in Realm’s absolutely abysmal sense of direction.  Consequently, I made him hopelessly optimistic and cheerful enough to make the sun jealous, because the only person who could put up with those sorts of mishaps is the person who can just get right back up and keep going.  Also, the fact that I myself and severely directionally challenged means that writing Realm comes very easily.

The Adventure of Link

I have not played this one either.  I apologize.  That said, I dislike the switch from top-down to 2-D scroller.  In comparison with literally every other game in the franchise, AoL feels the least like a ‘Zelda’ title.  Though, for the invention of Shadow Link, I award at least few points.

Wind Waker/Wind

It’s adorable.  It’s somehow a very dark and serious game disguising everything behind a cute and cartoony art style and even though I can recognize it I don’t actually care.  The story is engaging, Tetra is the Best Pirate, and the ocean makes it feel so big.  I do think the sailing mechanic can be a bit time-consuming before the warp travel kicks in, and I actually feel like Ganondorf went down too easily, maybe?  

Wind is based off of sailing, basically.  I took the amount of time it takes him, in-game, to get places and decided that he has the patience of a saint.  Also the bafflingly ability to stay awake for three days straight, but that hasn’t come up in DL, so.  Because of this, he’s usually pretty content to let conversations evolve without much input from him, unless he’s got something important to say.  And of course, he’s got the Wind Waker, which resulted in me making up an entire magical classification system to explain why he’s so good at controlling the weather, accompanied by an entire chapter-length head canon about the relation between the weather and music.  Ironically enough, for all that Wind has no instrument of his own, the fact that he’s a conductor means he’s actually the most musically talented of the whole group.

Phantom Hourglass

I wouldn’t call it a worthy sequel to Wind Waker, but I honestly don’t think it’s too bad - with the exception of the Temple of the Ocean King.  First time, it was kinda fun.  Second time, less fun,  Third time, getting repetitive.  Fourth time, getting annoying.  Fifth time, and I was really done with that mechanic.  The remixed Sailing Theme was good though, and once I got past Linebeck’s surface personality I liked him pretty well too.

Spirit Tracks/Steam

I have never played this one, but the concept seems fun.  The riding-a-train song is amazing.  This Zelda is probably the most fleshed-out that the character has ever been, and I dearly hope she can take the position of ‘companion guide’ again someday.  Or maybe even ‘protagonist’, who knows?  I do dislike how vague Malladus is, because as the Final Bad Guy I feel like he should have been solidified more than just “Demon sealed a long time ago”.  And to be honest, why Trains?  It just seems so random.  

Steam, like several other Links, is based around his gameplay.  As an engineer, he’s a pretty hands-on type of person, which is why he frequently gets distracted with the inner workings of other Links’ items.  And due to the fact that Trains require very little input to control and a lot of travel time, he’s the least physical of all of them.  This basically means that he runs the slowest, hits the lightest, and will likely bring the least to the table in a fight.  This is one of the reasons I gave him the ‘I Like Trains’ summon, because even if he himself can’t hit very hard, his Train sure as heck can. 

Oh my gosh I think this took me a solid hour to type out, I hope you’re very happy with this response Anon ;)

ALRIGHT, Hit me up with your LoZ theories!!

   OKAY, this is going to be a MAJOR DOOZY, so hear me out-! Buckle in, get snacks, a drink or two, cause whenever LoZ and I lock eyes, I write like a novelist who’s final draft is due Monday of next week…and it’s Friday.

   First off, I’d like to introduce my building block to all of my subsequent theories involving this series: There’s a fourth goddess that would complete the Triforce.

   This theory has…typically died out, but I won’t let it. I keep mine alive and kicking, because while most people try to nudge someone else into that empty slot (Goddess of Time, Goddess of Deserts (of the Gerudo), Hylia, etc), there’s a FAR more convincing, prior unknown option… One of darkness.

   Four themes are actually more prevalent in LoZ despite threes being the sign of the goddesses and- you would think- be more common compared to fours, but… Hey, there’s a lot to work with when you have four, especially when you look at it from the perspective of the Japanese.

   Anyways… Under the cut go the shorthand of my extensive notes.

We’ll start with four, the first basis for this theory I think of a lot: “Four” in Japanese can be read as “shi” [死 ]. This specific reading translates to “death” and is considered an unlucky number. If four goddesses could be unlucky….why not cast out for 3?

Though what’s interesting… I couldn’t find a source for it- so who knows, maybe the guy pulled it outta his ass- but there was a theory video involving Majora’s Mask that mentioned purple often being a color of death in Japan. Again, couldn’t find anything to back that claim up, but…. On the other hand…..

The image above is of the Shadow Medallion from Ocarina of Time. Not only is it in the color purple, but it’s found in the Shadow Temple (a place that seems to reek of death and horrors) and features…an upside down triangle, with three dots around it…… Hmm.

Equally baffling, the Four Poe Sisters from the Forest Temple in the same game. Four over three, again. Also, this is a trend we see repeat in ANY Four Sword adventure… Take a look.

Note how we can see the colors of the four goddesses represented here. Red for Din, of Power. Green for Farore, of Courage. Blue for Nayru, of Wisdom…and purple. The fourth, odd color out.

This is actually ANOTHER issue in Tri-Force Heroes. While on the surface, all Links would be accounted for…. There IS a fourth, forgotten Dopple…. Check it out.

Ditto for Minish Cap; four objects, purple the odd color out. Image link.

It’s suspicious, I tell you.

Four AGAIN shows up in Twilight Princess, wherein there are FOUR guardian Light spirits… Three helped the goddesses, while one was unaccounted for…. I believe this was Ordona, far removed in nearby Ordon Village.

Nintendo tries to state “Ordona” finishes Faron’s name (for Farore), but I personally find THAT a load of bologna.

Though not of four, Purple continues to be an important color in the LoZ franchise… Even when they remove it from the final product. See here, the removed Fairy Doors from Phantom Hourglass (Philos) and the almost-there sixth Lokomo of Shadow… See their art Here (Syda).

A theory persists Bryne might’ve still been the reincarnated “Shadow lokomo”, but it’s only a theory that’s never been confirmed. (Much like the stuff I do.)

As well… What purpose would there be for the goddesses to create flaws? Who would create Demise? Where did he come from? The darkness, the evil….and all the creatures that bloom from it…?

Having also learned of beings like the Horned Statue and looking more into Malanya (BotW)… There are beings who don’t fit the norm of most “godly” creations, but STILL fit into the role of such “gods.”

(Which, I should note now, I use loosely; as someone else pointed out during my binge-watching, “gods” are probably used in translation of “kami”… Which is more like “god or spirit” in Japanese. Kami are a complicated thing for our mindset of what gods are, but… Essentially, all things have a spirit and are alive. A worship of them can go from “spirit” to “god” as far as translation goes, but….. Y’know.)

I just personally don’t see a bunch of well-intentioned goddesses go a’slippin’ and spill out some evil, especially one as chaotically evil as Demise goes…

So I brought forth the idea of Orona. An exiled fourth goddess of Shadow. Chosen color purple. Creator of Demise and the evil within the hearts of Hyrule.

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   Oh, and the bit! About the Horned Statue and Malanya! That’s new!!! Which is what’s really gotten me jazzed about my theories involving LoZ… I just keep feeling like Nintendo is unintentionally validating me, even though it’d be a game-changer and probably would work TOO WELL for ending the series… Which is the last thing Nintendo would want to do.

   ….I mean, not that it’s going to stop me any. I can write out how my version of the series could end as Nintendo keeps making money and I keep giving it to them, too, LMAOOO. To be fair to them, don’t fix what ain’t broken….and I’ll sure keep buying Pokemon and Legend of Zelda long as the series keeps living up to the core of what they’ve always been, y’know?

   Anyways, wanna drop one more theory on ya before I set you free. :3c

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So… Remember Groose? Skyward Sword? Red hair, kinda tanned skin, golden eyes? Wanted the girl, lost out to MC, grew enough by that time that he wasn’t bitter about it, and flew off with friends to go be cool somewhere else?

Yeah, that guy. So…. Here me out.

Groose got cursed by Demise, too. It wasn’t ONLY Zelda/Hylia and Link who were dragged down into the reincarnation cycle.

Hear me out… Most people have made a fair guess that- by endgame- Groose and Co. flew off in the way of Lanayru Desert. (Once a populous ocean and with green fields… I’d joke about it being a downgrade, but I live in a desert, too, so… FML.) This location- deserts, specifically- have been KNOWN for housing the Gerudo race.

Now…. Please look at Groose compared to an OoT Gerudo.

They might not be the most similar people in existence….but you try to tell ME that a few who-knows-how-many-generations later, his kids could VERY WELL end up becoming the Gerudo race.

(Also not a flattering picture, but I don’t have a lot to work with premade…and I currently don’t have the ability to make one of these on my own.)

So what am I getting at? Groose was cursed to have his descendants bear his new host.

Theory goes like this: Groose is cursed. Never knows of it. He has kids normally… They have kids normally….for a few generations. As time goes on, more women are born, less men. Until no boys are born, only little girls who resemble their mothers. It never ceases.

Until the day the first boy in thousands of years is born. He is hailed a king of their people, in honor of such a rare, undocumented occasion.

Ganondorf, they name him. Unknowing that within the boy, is a demon, waiting for his time. Ganondorf shall grow up with a hatred unmatched, nobody will know why, but the goddesses will. They will do nothing unless called down with might.

Unwittingly, Groose continues a line of a people scorned nearly always by Hyrule, who’s king is ALWAYS destined to lose himself to the madness of the darkness that consumes his very being.

EDIT: BEFORE I FORGET, I also think it’s very telling of BotW to say there’s “not been another male Gerudo since the King who became the Calamity” that’s very HMM, isn’t it?? (Reference: Creating a Champion / Master Works)

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   My name is Aki, and I stan the LoZ franchise because I rebuilt it with my bare hands, how’ya doin’?

9 Things That Need to Happen in Breath of the Wild’s Sequel

Just as I was getting over my intense love for Breath of the Wild, Nintendo go and drop that trailer on us at E3 and stop my whole ass heart. Hi, I’m two months late to the party on this one, but I’ve had a lot of time to think over what this sequel can learn from its predecessor and the rest of the series, as well as what brand new stuff can be brought to the table to make this sequel as spectacular as the first. Without further ado, here’s my list of 9 things Nintendo should do to make this amazing, as well as my own personal theories on what they could do to make it happen. Enjoy!

Spoilers for Breath of the Wild ahead!

1. Ditch the shrines

Don’t get me wrong, I loved the shrines in Breath of the Wild, I loved how difficult some of them were to find, how they brilliantly utilised each and every mechanic in the game and testing you on everything you’ve learned. These shrines were the ultimate compliment to a game that really wasn’t about holding your hand. But I think they’ve had their time, and it might be a nice idea to go back to some of the larger, more traditional dungeons of Zelda past. I’m not saying to go back to the old way of ‘you get given an item, it’s useful for one dungeon and that’s all’, I’m saying they need to definitely keep the massive variety of ways you can approach dungeons to keep that sense of freedom intact, but at the same time give us whole new types of dungeon with more visual variety. Abandoned forts, weird Lorule-esque dark versions of dungeons, towers, there’s really any kind of location they could explore when designing a new set of dungeons. Oh, and I adored the divine beasts, but I’m hoping for something completely different and surprising when it comes to main story dungeons this time around.

2. A whole new world map

If there’s one thing I think basically everyone agrees on, it’s that Breath of the Wild absolutely nailed its world. A huge, sprawling map with a variety of locales to explore and all of it packed to the brim with extra content and adventure-y fun. But we all know this world inside out, and even if they strip it bare and fill it with brand new secrets, it’ll still feel too much like something we’ve seen before. So from what we know from the trailer, it seems like Link and Zelda will be delving into the underground in this latest installment, so a fairly safe theory would be that they’ll uncover a whole new world down there, perhaps a forgotten and buried civilisation from thousands of years ago, now overgrown with Ganon’s influence and bizarre plants and animals that don’t exist on the surface. If they’re going full Majora’s Mask on this one, I think Nintendo’s best bet is to fully embrace this new darker tone they’ve shown to us and give us a world that is as twisted as that trailer.

3. Keep Zelda’s importance to the plot

I could honestly make a whole separate blog post about the evolution of Zelda as a character throughout the series, from her literally being asleep the whole time in Zelda II, to her role as more of a quest-giver in Ocarina and more recent games like Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword where she plays a much more active role in the plot. In Breath of the Wild however, they did something completely different that I adored; they made her into her own person. I mean sure, she was never completely devoid of character, but between the games where she wasn’t really there and the games where she’s outshone by every other character, Breath of the Wild really felt like her time to be properly fleshed out and have enough depth to be remembered. Sure, Zelda doesn’t turn up in the flesh until the end, but you spend the whole game with her voice guiding you, with you finding memories of your past with Zelda; how she seemed to have only contempt for you at the beginning because of Link’s fulfilled destiny compared to hers. You form your own opinion of her through her actions and how the champions perceive her (Urbosa as her sort of mother figure, Revali sees her as ever so slightly inferior for not being able to access her power and the mutual respect between Mipha and Zelda). Then you watch their relationship grow and change into something neither of them can really understand, but they become so close and so integral to each other that Zelda is the one to finally make him open up about himself. And that makes it all the more heartbreaking that Link has had all these memories snatched away from him and, of course, all the more gratifying when he finally gets them back so him and you, the player, both understand that you’re not just fighting for the safety of a realm you’ve been shoved into with no recollection of what’s happening, you’re fighting to be reunited with Link’s closest friend. Very probably more than friend, considering that final memory in Korok Forest. Nintendo did a brilliant job of laying the groundwork for Zelda not as a plot device or a damsel in distress, but a real, complex human being who enriches the story and makes the world you’re living in and what you’re fighting for feel more alive. So build on top of this! Keep developing Zelda, ask those questions of how Zelda feels now she’s free of Ganon and her constant fear of her power failing, how 100 years alone facing a demon has affected her mental health and, most of all, how everything that happened in Breath of the Wild changed their relationship. Are they together now? Do they have any idea what they are really? Do they just pick up where they left off or do they have to make an active effort to regain that close relationship they had before? I don’t know, but I’m really hoping we find out.

4. Ditch the sheikah slate

Get rid of it. Do it, cowards. Make Link drop it over a ledge in the first 10 minutes or something. Much like the shrines, the sheikah slate was such a fantastic idea and gave you 4 brand new powers to play around with in the massive sandbox world full of puzzles and it was great fun! But again, we know those powers too well now; we know how they work and how they can be exploited when you think outside of the box. What I want is for Nintendo to keep that brilliant creativity when it comes to gameplay mechanics, don’t just give us bombs and an ocarina again, give us something unique to this experience! I mean yeah, they could just give us an updated sheikah slate; a different model perhaps that dates back even further than the original one that has some weird abilities (maybe even a slate that’s somehow been infected with Ganon’s influence, that’d be funky), but my hopes are riding on Nintendo pulling something completely different out of the bag for this one. Making Link lose everything and only be able to use whatever he can salvage in this ancient, evil place is surely going to have a whole host of ideas behind it so I’m curious to see what they can come up with.

5. Embrace the darker tone

This sort of goes without seeing considering what we’ve seen so far, but I really want them to go full in with this darker atmosphere they’ve shown us. I mean, Breath of the Wild was never a ‘light’ game so to speak, but most of the games darker elements were masked by its beautiful landscapes and huge array of colourful characters that made Hyrule feel alive. There hints here and there of a much more macabre side to the realm; destroyed battlefield littered with rusty weapons, old structures covered in Ganon’s malice and the general feeling that Ganon was always watching you from the castle that you can see basically anywhere on the map. I want them to take that mild dread they instilled and turn it up to eleven. And one way that can be accentuated is through the plot. For example, we know a fair amount about the Sheikah tribe at this point, but what if there’s a side that was never explored? What if there’s a much more sinister reason why the Sheikah tribe were suddenly shunned by the royal family all those years ago? Or maybe the Sheikah found something under the castle as well as the divine beasts that they left buried down there and hoped no one would ever find it. Oh, and I’ve heard a theory that Calamity Ganon was just a puppet of the real Ganondorf, who was hiding underneath the castle all this time, which is absolutely terrifying if you consider what the puppet managed to achieve on its own. Not just plot stuff like this, but the music (keep that ambient style they went for before that knows when to amp it up and make it epic, but with a creepier vibe to match the tone of the world), the visuals, the sounds you hear while exploring. Nintendo need to make it clear that we aren’t in Kansas anymore; no more soft piano melodies while riding through beautiful valleys on my horse, make it spooky!! Unsettling, distorted notes playing through dark, twisted woods with trees gnarling into each other and shiny eyes peeking out at you from the canopy. Or something. Who knows, I just wanna be spooked.

6. A much fuller story

One of the main criticisms I always hear for this game is its lack of story content, which I suppose is true to an extent. But I don’t think this let the game down at all really. The game was far less linear than previous titles, so it makes sense that the story they were telling was much more general, but I don’t think this kind of approach would fit as well in its sequel. Nintendo told us just enough in Breath of the Wild to keep us guessing; we were introduced to this particular version of Hyrule, its inhabitants and what Ganon’s up to etc. But they’ve deliberately been extremely vague on what could possibly be explored in a sequel, as well as where/if these two games even fit into the overall Zelda timeline. They deliberately lifted focus off the narrative to make the world and how you traverse it the central point of your adventure. But now that they seem to be plunging us into a much darker world and have given us so many unanswered questions, I reckon its time to dial the narrative back up and give us a bit more of a beefy story to go with our hell exploring.

7. Change in characters

Slightly vague subtitle, but here’s what I mean. As I mentioned beforehand, Breath of the Wild is full of colourful characters that populate the towns as well as the general landscapes, from merchants to adventurers and shield-surfers to Beedle (I love Beedle). And for the most part, these characters all want to help you along on your journey by giving you helpful advice or sending you off on quests to find more shrines. And while I’m not saying this sequel should do away with all helpful NPCs, I do think there should be fewer of them. When designing new towns and settlements, they could give us the odd helpful citizen here and there, but for the most part, how would the inhabitants of this forgotten underground place treat Link? I think it would add to the atmosphere really well by having some of the characters that populate the world deliberately unnerve Link when giving him advice or telling him something helpful and then mocking him at how ineffectual he is at completing his quest. Or if they really want to go a bit overboard, they could even have occasional encounters where talking to the wrong NPCs can end in a random fight, in the same vein as the disguised Yiga in Breath of the Wild. But of course, you don’t want to only populate a world with characters that hate you (that’s what MediEvil is for), so some form of guide would maybe be a welcome addition. If not Zelda (I would definitely welcome the idea of her being along for the ride, though I fear it would take away some of the nerves if you have Zelda as an anchor of familiarity), then perhaps the ghost of a Sheikah from thousands of years past that never agreed with what his tribe were doing or was responsible for something in his life that he now deeply regrets and he can’t pass on until Link helps to finally defeat the real Ganon. Who knows what they’ll do with the characters, but as long as they leave Navi and Tatl back on the N64, pretty much anything will do me.

8. Keep the stamina wheel

As much as I’ve bleated on about everything I want them to change or add in, this is something I most definitely want them to keep. The core gameplay, while I can’t imagine them really changing it, is integral to the sandbox world they created. Having Link be able to sprint, jump, climb up literally anything is what gave players such a sense of freedom; being given this whole massive world to explore and being able to access absolutely all of it. And while I’ve talked a lot about how much I’d like this sequel’s tone and approach to narrative and a bunch of other things to change, this game absolutely needs to keep the same sense of unabashed freedom we had in the first game. And the most integral part of that freedom was the stamina wheel. Short segment I know, but that’s all I really had to say on that one. Let me climb things, Nintendo.

9. Switch up the monsters

In Breath of the Wild, there was an excellent balance of amazing new designs for old favourite monsters, as well as a whole host of new ones (the guardians and the moldugas getting a special mention here). But I reckon what this sequel needs is some brand new monsters to add to the pile; a larger variety of monsters to encounter out in the wilderness would enrich this new darker world we could be exploring to no end. Also, while I really loved all the main story bosses in BotW, I feel as if a larger design variety of story bosses would benefit this sequel. Imagine the potential for whatever ancient monsters are down under the castle to give Link a hard time and what kind of an epic fight is Ganondorf going to put up when we finally get there?? Just as a little idea to throw out there, maybe undead Sheikah will make an appearance as an enemy, woken from the dead and forced into Ganon’s service after being infected by malice. And hey, the Yiga Clan never really got full closure! Yeah Link gets rid of their leader, but the Clan is very much still alive and kicking by the time of Calamity Ganon’s death, so perhaps they’ll play a central role once again now that Ganondorf seems to have come back into the picture. What would make the Yiga even more menacing is if this were their plan all along; knowing that Link very well could defeat Calamity Ganon and then, after retaking the castle, be drawn underground to free the real culprit. Nobody knows what direction Nintendo are going to take with any of this, other than ‘it’ll probably be kinda spooky’, but I am way too excited to find out.

Got any cool ideas or theories of your own? Anything you want them to add or take away in this sequel? Drop it down below in the comments! I’d be v interested to hear if you have anything to add. Thanks for reading and let’s hope the wait isn’t too painful!

THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: DARK SOULS?

So apparently Nintendo is hiring a key level designer for the next Zelda game and that got me to thinking...so here comes a potentially unpopular opinion (I apologize in advance):

I've recently become enamored with the souls-like genre.  You know, DARK SOULS, DEMON SOULS, and my personal favorite so far, BLOODBORNE.  For those unaware, they are extremely hard, but not unfair games that take joy in killing the player, but not so sadistic that they allow you to learn from your mistakes and actually use death as a tool to figure out how to beat obstacles in the game.  That's skimming the surface of the subject but it's the basic truth. There is something I like even more about the souls-like games from From Software, and that is their level design.  It's not universal, but the thing that tend to be known for are their interconnectedness, and their surprising amounts of secrets.  Exploration may get you killed, but it's extremely rewarding when you find treasures hidden away in hard-to-reach areas, or when you find a door that leads you back to the start of the level so that you don't have to backtrack and hoof it as much if and when you die again.  

What's more, though, is how the games tell their stories.  Which, can be argued, I guess, is that they don't tell them at all, really.  There are sort of overarching narratives, but it's never really spoonfed to you, and it's never really the focus of the game.  It's up to you, through context clues and bits of lore mostly accessed through item descriptions, to kind of piece the story together yourself, and get a broad idea of what is going on in the game's world, rather than having it broadcast to you over loud-speaker the whole time.  It gives the games an air of mystery and really promotes player participation if they want to understand more about the world.

Now, when it comes to the next Zelda, no, it's not as simple as me saying, "YOU SHOULD MAKE IT MORE LIKE DARK SOULS."  Mostly because, weirdly enough, Nintendo already has.

I love BREATH OF THE WILD; it's ZELDA, undeniably, but in a lot of ways, I feel like it's the Zelda game that Miyamoto wanted to make originally, the kind that emulated exploration and the kind of gaping joy one has when finding something you didn't expect.  But to do that, Nintendo didn't just throw out everything and start over from scratch; they borrowed and lifted things that worked from other games to make them work within that familiar Zelda framework.  So it's not hard to look at BREATH OF THE WILD and also see echoes of SKYRIM, as an obvious example, or even weirdly surprising inclusions from games like MINECRAFT, etc.  I didn't realize until after having played BLOODBORNE how much BREATH OF THE WILD actually seems to have in common with souls-like games, even if it's circumstantial.

Not to outline every single instance of it, but to highlight a few things: it's markedly harder than some of its predecessors...it's possible for enemies to kill you in a single hit...it's entirely possible to find enemies and areas that will kill you mercilessly, because you aren't strong enough to defeat them yet.  That includes bosses, some of which are optional.  The game is packed with secrets and urges you to find them, but in doing so you put yourself at risk and frequently into peril to find them.  Some areas have interesting connections to other areas you don't know about till you explore them all.  And the story, while not as obtuse as anything found in BLOODBORNE (or DARK SOULS III, which I'm playing now), is very much up to you to put together, even if cut-scenes and exposition are a little more ham-fisted.  It's not a carbon copy, but there are certainly things in this game that remind me of a From Software game.

I guess what I'm getting at is this: it wouldn't kill me if Nintendo leaned hard on DARK SOULS for inspiration for the next Zelda game.  That comes with a ton of caveats and I will preface this by saying: that doesn't mean Nintendo turn it super dark, gory, and/or rage-inducing.  But they can keep what works in BREATH OF THE WILD and can continue borrowing things from the souls-like genre that makes it so engaging and addictive.  Ideally, I think it would be something like this:

Keep the storytelling minimal.  Not to say that we can't have a sweeping epic story (in a way, BREATH OF THE WILD denies us that, at least when it comes to what I feel is not a satisfying finale), but the way it was being handled in BREATH OF THE WILD is definitely the way to go in future games.  Accessing memories, cut-scenes not always giving you all the answers, having to find and earn certain story-beats instead of them happening in a pattern or a rigid structure.  I want to put the story together myself.  I would almost argue they could be MORE subtle and obtuse, but I don't think that would be too popular an opinion.  I'm probably alienating people enough right now.  But I know the idea of a Zelda game where I truly didn't know what the heck was going on and forced me to put the pieces together makes me super excited.  And I don't think I'm out of line by saying that I'm not the only fan who kind of wishes the series would let me just figure out what's going on myself, instead of forcing it down my throat.

No dungeons.  At least, not in the sense we've seen them in the past; and, being frank, I think the series could exist without them.  BREATH OF THE WILD more or less did away with them except for the shines and the Divine Beasts, and a similar dynamic can be preserved in future games.  But (and here comes another unpopular opinion) I think SKYWARD SWORD was onto something when it was taking things you typically found in a dungeon, and putting them in the overworld environment instead.  Puzzles, pitfalls, and bosses.  BLOODBORNE did that amazingly well; I never really knew what would be around a corner, because I wasn't going through the motions of finding a boss key knowing I was going to have fight Gohma for the nth time.  I had similar feelings rounding a corner and seeing a freaking Hinox asleep in the area in front of me, forcing me to stop and rethink my position.  It throws preconceived notions out the window; all the things you've learned through Zelda games of the past get thrown out the window.  Lean hard on that, Nintendo.  I want to feel like the overworld is one huge dungeon, so I never know what to expect.

More to the point, perhaps superficially, I like the idea of future levels looping back on themselves and connecting to places in surprising ways like they do in the SOULS games, only accessible through exploration, puzzle-solving, and toil.  Perhaps that won't work all the time, and that's fine; it's one false move away from being gimmicky anyway.  But I remember some of my fonder memories from SKYWARD SWORD, a game that has very little love from fans for good reason, was solving a puzzle that made an area accessible that previously wasn't, and looping back around to an area I'd already been, streamlining my progress going forward.  It felt like a reward.  I liked the idea that the puzzles were not confined to a dungeon and instead were out there in broad daylight, and on occasion a freaking giant scorpion boss would jump out unannounced, instead of me knowing I was about to fight one in a boss room.  Discovery and happening upon stuff like that made me instantly fall in love with BLOODBORNE, even though I died in Inner Yharnam easily around 80 times.  

"I'm going over this bridge and HOLY CRAP A BOSS BATTLE I'M NOT READY OH GOD I DON'T WANT TO DIE OH WAIT THIS IS FUN OH WAIT I'M DEAD...well, gonna get stronger and beat this guy later."  :D

It's hard for me to get into specifics, but I think I've belabored the point.  I think BREATH OF THE WILD built a pretty sturdy foundation for future Zelda games, but I feel borrowing smartly from DARK SOULS and BLOODBORNE could only make it more compelling.

(And, yes, I realize a key thing here that differentiates the two games: you can't climb everything in BLOODBORNE.  Yes, that might be a problem, lol.)