The Zelda Timeline*
Now, prepare yourself for the new and improved timeline. Sure, it has
the same order of games as usual, and the writing is mostly the same,
but I’ve added in quite a few things in Notes. Get ready for generic
timeline fun!
Note: Reading this might spoil the endings for a few of the Zelda games.
Read only if you know what happens in each, because I need to draw from
important game events to make the timeline. Read at your own risk.
Second only to the argument of whether Zelda is an RPG or not, there is
one aspect of the Zelda series debated by many.
The Legend of Zelda is a series of twelve separate games at the present
time. Since these games were not released in an order that made sense,
many people argue with one another about just how it should be
organized. That’s what this timeline is here for – to express my views
on the subject. I think that the series in bad need of better
organizing. Many timelines are awful and don’t make sense. The
timeline must abide by certain rules. But before that, here’s a list
of every Zelda game that either was new when it was released or had
something new on it.
The Legend of Zelda
1987 for the NES
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
1988 for the NES
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
1991 for the SNES
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
1993 for the GB
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
1998 for the N64
The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
2000 for the N64
The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of the Ages
2001 for the GBC
The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of the Seasons
2001 for the GBC
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past/Four Swords
2002 for the GBA
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time/Master Quest
2003 for the GCN
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
2003 for the GCN
The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures
2004 for the GCN
The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap
2005 for the GBA
Note that these release years are all North American. First, notice
that A Link to the Past and Ocarina of Time are listed twice. This is
because those games had a new game on them when they were re-released.
Ocarina of Time had Master Quest, which was a harder version. Master
Quest has the same events in it as Ocarina of Time, so it will not be
counted. A Link to the Past was re-released with a multi-player game
called Four Swords. Link’s Awakening DX does not count because it only
included an extra dungeon. It is an actual game, and it shall be
counted.
As I said, there are a few rules one must follow when making their
timeline. Here are common errors people make. First, what Link or
anyone else looks like has nothing to do with the chronological scheme
of things. Wind Waker Link was a very popular look so Nintendo showed
him that way in a few extra games. This doesn’t make Link different.
Secondly, items (unless they are extremely important, like the Master
Sword) do not determine anything. That is, whether Ganon used his
trident in one battle or not does not give us a good timeline. Third,
there is only one timeline.
Many people think that there are two (the Alternate Timeline Theory)
because Link time-traveled in Ocarina of Time. If you think about it,
this is a really stupid theory. After all, at the end of Ocarina of
Time, Zelda sends Link back to relive the seven years of his childhood
that he lost (to quote Zelda exactly, “Link, give the Ocarina to me…
As a sage, I can return you to your original time with it.”). It is as
if the latter part of Ocarina of Time never happened.
Fourth, there will be no dates. Many people try to use dates in their
timeline and that is completely false. Fifth, comic books have no
bearing on the timeline. Sixth and foremost, if it’s not in the game
or the manual, then it is speculation and it doesn’t count. For
instance, one could add tons of different events that weren’t in the
games or manuals and connect things together (like Ganon revivals,
descendants, and other “events”).
Now we can truly start. This is quite anticipated because everyone
wants to know how Minish Cap is placed on the timeline. Remember that
the timeline tries to string the games together in an order that makes
sense for the existing games only. It will be modified should a new
game be released.
Note: In my timeline, it is very important to remember that Link did
not have the Triforce piece of Courage at the end of Ocarina of Time,
nor Zelda or Ganon theirs. He had it when he was an adult, but Zelda
sent him back to the past “to regain his lost years.” Even if you do
disagree with this for whatever reason, it wouldn’t matter (if he did,
Link would lose the Triforce of Courage in Majora’s Mask due to what
the King of Red Lions says in Wind Waker). Also, the timeline focuses
a lot on Ganon. Ganon is the only character that is completely unique
(that there are no descendants of) and he has different conditions in
each game.
Ocarina of Time is obviously the first game. This is a universally
accepted fact and it should not be argued with. Then comes Majora’s
Mask. Again, this is universally accepted. The best reason for
Majora’s Mask coming next is that Link has the Ocarina of Time in it,
although there are many more. Now here’s where my timeline becomes
unique. Now, recall that I said earlier that the adult part of Ocarina
of Time didn’t matter.
Well, it basically never happened as far as the timeline is concerned
because Link was sent back to his past to relive his childhood. Ganon
is, therefore, trapped in the Sacred Realm/Dark World whatever you want
to call it at the end of Majora’s Mask. There are only a few games
that start out with Ganon in the Dark World. Four Swords could come
next (although it really can’t, as I will explain later) and Four
Swords Adventures would follow.
This cannot be because the Four Sword, which is used in both those
games, is broken and you must restore it in the re-release of A Link to
the Past in an optional side quest. Yes, it seems like a cheap shot,
but it is how things happened. The only other game in which Ganon
starts out imprisoned is A Link to the Past. Therefore, it is the only
game that actually can come next logically.
This presents a new problem. At the end of A Link to the Past, it
would seem that Ganon is dead. Yes, one might think that Ganon really
is dead, but in truth, he is not. Again, this is a very random
observation, but in the credits of A Link to the Past (by completing
different events you can see different credits) they show Link’s uncle
and the king of Hyrule. This is important because both of these people
were dead earlier in the game. Also, in one scene of the credits (“The
Bully Makes a Friend”), they show two characters on Death Mountain that
would normally be in the Dark World in the Light World.
This means that, when Link’s wish was granted by the Triforce, he
wished those that died as a result of Ganon back to life and that all
those in the Dark World be transported to the Light World. Well, this
includes Ganon, which means that Ganon is alive again and he’s in the
Light World. There are only two games like this at the beginning and
Wind Waker cannot come yet (if it did, Adventure of Link would later
and this is impossible). Therefore, the original The Legend of Zelda
has to come next.
Ganon dies at the end of The Legend of Zelda. Even more importantly,
he dies leaving a pile of ashes behind at the end of The Legend of
Zelda. This is very important. There are only two games in which
Ganon is dead throughout the entire game. These games are Link’s
Awakening and Adventure of Link. Now, all games in which Ganon is dead
in must be consecutive, right? If you disagree with me, think about it
for a second and you’ll realize what I mean. So, this leaves us to put
Link’s Awakening and Adventure of Link in the right order. At first
glance, it seems like it doesn’t matter, but it actually has a huge
bearing on the timeline.
Remember that in Wind Waker the King of Red Lions tells us that the
legendary hero of ages long past left the land of Hyrule and lost the
Triforce by doing so (the guidebook of Link’s Awakening says that Link
traveled to many different lands to seek enlightenment)? Well, Link
gets the Triforce piece of Courage in Adventure of Link. If Adventure
of Link came first, Link would lose the Triforce piece in the very next
game. Besides, the next two games in the timeline (the games in which
Ganon is resurrected) have Link using his piece of the Triforce at the
very beginning.
Even though the instruction booklet of Adventure of Link says that Link
never left Hyrule after The Legend of Zelda and before Adventure of
Link, he has to. However, we know that Link MUST have the Triforce
piece in the game after these two, and that Link’s Awakening must come
either before or after this one. So, Link’s Awakening comes first
(Link would not lose the Triforce piece in this scenario) and then
comes Adventure of Link. Easy.
Now, we are out of games in which Ganon is dead, and that means that he
must be resurrected in the next game. However, it takes two games to
revive Ganon. These games are Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons.
In the secret ending in a Beowulf-like plot, Kotake and Koume (Ganon’s
surrogate mothers) revive their son after trying to kill Link.
After another defeat by Link, Ganon is sent back to the Dark World
right after being revived. There are few games remaining, and they are
rather easily sorted. First, Four Swords comes before Four Swords
Adventures. The proof for this is rather obvious. The Four Swords
Adventures manual refers to three separate occasions in which Vaati
appeared (Four Swords, Four Swords Adventures, and a very long time
ago).
Well, this means that Four Swords comes next and then comes Four Swords
Adventures. Now we’re left with two games, The Minish Cap and Wind
Waker. The Four Sword was forged in The Minish Cap, but it was used in
Four Swords (Adventures, too). This means that Wind Waker comes next.
So far, I have only covered the previous eleven games. Now I’ll give
Minish Cap a home on the timeline.
There are three proofs of my theory. I’ll list them in order of their
obviousness. First, the Four Sword was created in Minish Cap. It is
later used in Four Swords. Therefore, Minish Cap must come before Four
Swords. However, the Four Sword also made a brief appearance in the
re-release of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, which means that
Minish Cap comes before ALttP. However, since Zelda had a piece of the
Triforce in Minish Cap (that’s what the light force is, obviously),
then Minish Cap must come BEFORE Ocarina of Time. If Minish Cap came
after Ocarina of Time or Majora’s Mask, then Ganon would not have the
complete Triforce in A Link to the Past, which he does. That is proof
one.
Proof two and three are a bit smaller and not as effective, but they
get the job done. First, Vaati appeared as a black eye-like creature
in Four Swords and Four Swords Adventures. Well, a figurine in Minish
Cap (# 135. To quote it exactly, “Once Vaati’s body has been shattered,
this dark form rises up, all that remains of the evil sorcerer. Only
the sacred Four Sword can defeat him.”) says that Vaati’s human body
had been shattered. This means that Vaati appeared in FS and FSA the
way he did because something happened to him before. The instruction
manual of FSA makes reference to a boy who split into four to beat
Vaati before even Four Swords. This just supports what I said earlier,
although this proof alone cannot move this before Ocarina of Time.
The third “proof” is implied. At the end of Minish Cap, Ezlo returns
to his Minish-sage form and he gives Link a green hat, a token to
remember him by. This seems to imply that this is the first time Link
ever wore such a hat, and it became a tradition afterward for heroes of
Hyrule. That’s a bit of a stretch, though. Why would the Kokiri have
adopted it? Like I said, proof one up here is the best answer to the
placement question.
And to reinforce these points and to counter the entire Sacred Realm
argument some people have tried to use against the placement of Minish
Cap, please see “The Imprisoning War” in the Notes section.
Below I have a list made of where the games in the timeline go
according to my theory. Notice that Oracle of Ages comes before Oracle
of Seasons. I decided to alphabetize them, even though Oracle of Ages
should come first for a few reasons, mainly due to the Triforce stone
being pushed.
The Minish Cap
Ocarina of Time
Majora’s Mask
A Link to the Past
The Legend of Zelda
Link’s Awakening
The Adventure of Link
Oracle of Ages
Oracle of Seasons
Four Swords
Four Swords Adventures
The Wind Waker
Now I will try to clarify things by explaining a few items mentioned
here.
=======================================================================
Notes
=======================================================================
+---------------------------+
| The Imprisoning War |
+---------------------------+
This is the center of so much confusion, but I’ve finally cracked it.
Many verses of the Book of Mudora, as well as other Hylian myth, depict
a terrible war between the forces of good and evil, centuries later
named the Imprisoning War by historians. I’ve been challenged a lot
lately about my placement of Minish Cap at the beginning of the
timeline. This helps make things possible. Prepare to delve deep into
the heart of Zelda mythos, as described in the manual of A Link to the
Past.
Three goddesses created the Triforce, and with it the world. The
hiding place of the Triforce became known as the Golden Land, and the
location of the gates to this land was unknown, as the knowledge had
been lost over the centuries. But, by chance, one man – Ganondorf
Dragmire, King of Thieves, skilled in the black arts, came upon an
opening to the Golden Land. He fought and killed his fellows to reach
the opening, and he held the Triforce in that land, and his wishes were
granted. From that day forth, Ganondorf became Mandrag Ganon, Ganon of
the Enchanted Thieves (though no one says “Mandrag” anymore).
Evil began to flow from the Golden Land, mercenaries joining the ranks
of Ganon’s army, and soon the darkness beset Hyrule itself. The lord
of Hyrule ordered seven sages and the Knights of Hyrule to seal the
entrance. But before that happened, the people began to suspect the
truth. Ganon’s evil power must come from the Triforce. And so the
people forged a blade that could even repel the magic of the gods, and
it became known as the blade of evil’s bane, the Master Sword. Only
one strong of body and pure of heart could wield it, and the sages
searched for one who could...
But war inched closer until it eventually broke out. Ganon’s forces
surged from the Golden Land before it was sealed to wage war on Hyrule,
the battlefield Hyrule Castle. But the valiant Knights of Hyrule
fought courageously against them. Many died in the battle, but the
sages were able to seal Ganon away in his tainted Golden Land. There
was peace.
Now, many people would say that this describes Ocarina of Time. Really,
it works out pretty nicely. Ganondorf enters the Sacred Realm through
the Temple of Time, he uses the Triforce to invade Hyrule, and he is
sealed away by seven sages and the descendant of a Knight of Hyrule
(Sahasrahla says Link is descended from them in A Link to the Past, and
so I assume all Links are). There are a few problems with this, and
the biggest one is obvious: It says that the Master Sword was forged
after Ganondorf entered the Sacred Realm. As we all know, the Master
Sword was already legendary and forged in Ocarina of Time. The
Imprisoning War is not Ocarina of Time.
What does this mean for the timeline? Let’s investigate further by
quoting a few verses from Minish Cap.
“A long, long time ago...when the world was on the verge of being
swallowed by shadow...The tiny Picori appeared from the sky, bringing
the hero of men a sword and a golden light. With wisdom and courage,
the hero drove out the darkness. When peace had been restored, the
people enshrined that blade with care. And the force of the golden
light, embodied in Hyrule's princess, shone forth upon the lands.”
And during this first cinema, they show Link, without a hat, holding
the Triforce of Courage AND a sword with a blue hilt. The sword with
the blue hilt is the Wind Waker-style depiction of the Master Sword.
Yes, the Master Sword was forged by the Picori. Furthermore, this is
NOT the Picori Blade. The Picori Blade has a purple hilt. I admit,
they do show the Master Sword in a pedestal, what would appear to be
the Bound Chest, but that means that the Master Sword was removed from
it at some point (because it was the Picori Blade in Minish Cap).
Either that or they colored the hilt incorrectly, although the sword is
exactly like the Master Sword, Wind Waker style.
And do you know what that means? Examine the second quote, the one
said by Vaati.
“The princess who holds the power of light... That mysterious power is
said to flow in the veins of every royal lady in your family ever since
that day when it was gifted to your people. If I leave you now, you'll
only cause me trouble later. That will never do.”
The Triforce has not been locked up in the Sacred Realm until Ocarina
of Time. On the contrary, there is overwhelming evidence that the
Triforce has been divided and possessed since the Imprisoning War! It
says that the mysterious force – the Triforce of Wisdom – has been in
Zelda’s family for ages! This makes sense, since Ganon would’ve only
gotten the Triforce of Power after his wish was granted. And the line
in the first quote, how the hero drove out the darkness “With wisdom
and courage” shows this well. All three pieces of the Triforce were in
possession of their destined owners long, long before Ocarina of Time
took place.
And therefore, the evidence suggests VERY strongly that Minish Cap
comes before Ocarina of Time. There, I proved it in full!
Unfortunately, this has a few negative side effects on the timeline
(they would’ve happened anyways; these are just plot contradictions
within the Zelda series itself, not just my timeline). Now that I’ve
proved that the Triforce was NOT in the Sacred Realm until Ocarina of
Time, several new questions arise.
- This problem cannot be avoided in any Zelda timeline; it is in itself
a Zelda continuity inconsistency, not because of my timeline but
because of the series itself. After being imprisoned in the Golden
Land, we must wonder: How did Ganon, and everyone else, lose their
piece of the Triforce? Obviously, Ganon escaped the Sacred Realm over
time, just like he did in Wind Waker, but how did everyone lose their
piece? It’s the last remaining mystery of the timeline, although this
is bound to happen to any timeline, not just mine.
- At the end of the Imprisoning War, Ganon was imprisoned within the
Golden Land with his piece of the Triforce. The question would be,
then, how does Ganon get the other pieces of the Triforce into the
Golden Land to set the stage for A Link to the Past. Never fear, I
have answers. First of all, the Dark World is a reflection of Ganon’s
wish from a long time ago – during the Imprisoning War. Ganon is
locked in the Golden Land/Sacred Realm from Ocarina of Time, and it is
still tainted from long ago. Link ventures into Termina, which makes
him lose his piece of the Triforce, in Majora’s Mask. Zelda is
abducted by Agahnim, which gives Ganon plenty of time to extract her
piece of the Triforce. By the time Link fights Ganon at the end of the
game, Ganon has all three.
- If you don’t think my above explanation of Link losing his piece of
the Triforce is true, then it could work out another way. If you are a
believer that Link did not have the Triforce at the end of Ocarina of
Time, then consider this alternate reason. If Link did not have the
Triforce at the end of Ocarina of Time, then he would have it all the
way through A Link to the Past. That means that when he defeated Ganon,
who had Zelda’s piece from when he abducted her, his piece of the
Triforce joined the two that Ganon had, making it appear as though
Ganon had the Triforce complete. After all, they never specifically
say that Ganon used the Triforce from the time that A Link to the Past
begins to the time it ends. He just wanted to break the seal so that
he could use the Triforce.
+----------------------------------+
| The Nature of the Triforce |
+----------------------------------+
The King of Red Lions and Sheik, collectively, told us a lot about how
the Triforce works. First, the Triforce does one of two things when a
person touches it. But first, I should explain that the Triforce is
divided into three equal parts, each representing the goddesses that
created the world. There is Wisdom (Zelda), Power (Ganon), and Courage
(Link). When there is an imbalance of virtue in the person that
touches it (that is, they believe in one of these forces more than the
others), that person receives the one that they believe in most. The
other two pieces are placed in other “chosen ones.”
The person who touched it must gather the pieces to get a wish granted.
You see, the Triforce grants a wish that reflects a person’s soul.
Regardless, there is another possibility. If someone with balance in
the virtues touches the Triforce, their wish is granted automatically
(they receive the “True Force”). However, the Triforce has another
strange property, revealed to us by the King of Red Lions in Wind Waker.
If a person that harbors a piece leaves the land of Hyrule, then they
lose their piece. This is very important to know in understanding the
order I placed the games in. Note that the Triforce piece of Courage
is used by Link in the beginning of Oracle of Ages. I hope this
clarifies things – why Link’s Awakening must come before Adventure of
Link. In AoL, Link gets the Triforce piece of Courage. If he got it
in that game and Link’s Awakening came next, he would lose it right
away. And since Ganon’s revival has to come next, he would have no
Triforce piece in Oracle of Ages, which we know that Link does.
+----------------------+
| The Dark Rites |
+----------------------+
Here, I’ll discuss Ganon’s resurrection in the Oracle games in more
detail.
As we know, Ganon died in The Legend of Zelda. While the Evil King was
dead, Link went on other adventures – Adventure of Link and Link’s
Awakening. But, Ganon’s surrogate mothers, Kotake & Koume Twinrova,
were busy at work trying to revive Ganon. They were trying throughout
Adventure of Link (or, at least, it was being tried, not necessarily by
them). But, they failed to sprinkle Link’s blood upon the ashes of
Ganon. So, they turned to an alternate method, the Dark Rites. In the
Dark Rites, Twinrova must light three fires – the Flame of Destruction,
the Flame of Sorrow, and the Flame of Despair – and sacrifice a
legendary figure to bring Ganon back into the living world. They got
to work at once.
To light the flames, they must flood the world with what they represent.
The blue flame, the Flame of Destruction, was lit by Onox when he threw
the seasons of Holodrum into chaos. The red flame, the Flame of Sorrow,
was lit by Veran when she erased many elements of the present age by
tampering with the past. And the white flame, the Flame of Despair,
was lit when Zelda, a symbol of hope for the people, was abducted by
Twinrova. The Gerudo Witches intended to sacrifice Zelda, who was
acting as the “Holy Sacrifice,” on the altar around the three torches,
but Link arrived before that could happen with the help of Din and
Nayru, the Oracle of Seasons and Ages, respectively.
He fought Twinrova and emerged victorious, but it was not over.
Although they could not sacrifice Princess Zelda, or Link for that
matter, Twinrova would revive Ganon, even if it meant destroying
herself. Twinrova sacrificed her own body. Now, had Zelda been
sacrificed, Ganon’s resurrection would have been complete. But,
because Twinrova was the incorrect Holy Sacrifice, the revival did not
work out quite as well. Ganon’s spirit was renewed, but his body was
not. So, Ganon’s spirit was placed within an empty vessel (according
to Twinrova), and the result was a mindless and raging Ganon. Link
fought valiantly to destroy Ganon, and he succeeded. The fell beast
explodes in a white flash of light.
So, wouldn’t that mean Ganon is dead again? No, it does not. For you
see, Link destroyed the vessel that Twinrova created to house Ganon’s
spirit. Ganon’s spirit was successfully brought back. And remember,
the Room of Rites is within the Dark Realm (one of the many alternate
names for the Sacred Realm, but this runs more along the lines of the
Dark World). When Ganon’s vessel was destroyed, the white flash was
the release of his spirit. So, Ganon was in fact resurrected, just not
his body.
So, this raises the question: how did Ganon get his body back for Four
Swords Adventures? Well, I think it’s probably thanks to Vaati, who
was also imprisoned within an alternate realm, and who was working with
Ganon from the beginning of Four Swords Adventures at least, probably
even before that. I’m really quite surprised I never received e-mail
objections about this.
+------------------------+
| The Picori Blade |
+------------------------+
A lot of people would consider the Picori Blade and the Four Sword the
same weapon. Well, newsflash people, they aren’t. First off, “Four
Sword” and “Picori Blade” are definitely human names. That is, these
are the titles of the swords as declared by the Hylians/Hyruleans. Why,
therefore, would these titles be different? And, if you think about it,
the broken Picori Blade is mended by Melari using two elements. This
makes it the White Sword. Well, the Picori Blade must not contain any
elements at all. So, these two swords are different, which keeps my
timeline in check. By the way, if you think that Four Sword is the
Minish name for the Picori Blade, you’re wrong. After all, it is
referred to as the Four Sword by many humans (Borlov is a good example).
+----------------------------------+
| The Light Force = Triforce |
+----------------------------------+
Vaati and the guards of Hyrule make several references to the “light
force.” This is the Triforce, but to be specific, it is the Triforce
piece of Wisdom. We find out that Zelda contains the light force near
the end of the game. They show stained glass that details the legends
of the Picori in the Elemental Sanctuary. Since they show Zelda
holding one golden triangle, we can safely assume that this is her part
of the Triforce. By the way, Vaati does take some of the Triforce from
Zelda, but she gains it back when she wishes on the Minish Cap at the
end.
+-----------------------------------------------------+
| The Adventure of Link/Link’s Awakening Theory |
+-----------------------------------------------------+
It’s not uncommon for people to say that Link’s Awakening, which we
find out is a dream, happened during the raft ride in The Adventure of
Link (when you have to raft from western Hyrule to the east). Well,
this can be easily disproved. Who could forget the opening cinema in
Link’s Awakening? Remember Link, journeying on his ship into the storm.
Well, ships and rafts are two different vessels. I think that that is
a very important difference made in his journey across the sea. It
doesn’t affect the timeline that much, but it is a storyline flaw in
many a timeline.
+-------------------------------+
| The Wind Waker Theories |
+-------------------------------+
Many people think that the timeline should start with OOT, MM, and then
go to WW. At first, I could not disprove this theory. But now I can.
In WW, Ganon died. Since it’s the last game in my timeline, this makes
no difference. However, it does in the proposed theory. You see, if
this were true, than Adventure of Link would have to come after Wind
Waker. In Wind Waker, recall that all knowledge of Hyrule was lost.
Adventure of Link had towns named after characters from Hylian myth
(the sages of Ocarina of Time, plus Mido and someone named Kasuto). If
all knowledge of Hyrule was lost, how could they regain it? Clearly,
Wind Waker comes last in the series.
+---------------------------+
| The Losers of Zelda |
+---------------------------+
A company called Phillips released three hugely unsuccessful games –
Link: Faces of Evil, The Legend of Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon, and The
Legend of Zelda: Zelda’s Adventure. Well, these games were AWFUL. I
have never played them personally, but I’ve seen screenshots, examples,
etc. enough to know. First, they were made by Phillips using a system
that was a complete and utter flop called the CD-i. These games were
all very corny. For instance, two of these games use Zelda instead of
Link and they take place in different lands (one land is called Tolemac,
which is Camelot backwards).
Also, Ganon kidnapped (but didn’t kill, for some reason) Link in two of
these games, as well as the King of Hyrule in one of them. From what
I’ve heard, all three of these games were not good, actually terrible,
and that Zelda’s Adventure was the best. Well, that’s all well and
good, but why I am writing this? Simply put, these three games are not
counted in the timeline.
They are not, after all, Zelda games. Maybe they are legally, but I
will never consider these games to be a part of it. After all, they
were not made by Nintendo, and the makers were obviously uneducated
when it comes to Zelda (for example, they call Ganon the “dark king of
the underworld”). Also, Soul Caliber 2 and the Super Smash Bros.
series do not count (they’re fighting games where people get to use
different characters from different series).
+-------------------------------+
| A Re-Release Side Quest |
+-------------------------------+
I mentioned that the re-release of A Link to the Past allowed me to
safely determine the placement of Minish Cap. I think, personally,
that this is pretty under-the-belt, but in A Link to the Past’s remake,
they included a side quest that involved the Four Sword. Since it was
forged in Minish Cap, Minish Cap must come before. Since Zelda has her
Triforce piece in Minish Cap but not in Ocarina of Time or Majora’s
Mask, Minish Cap comes first. If I didn’t explain things well above,
here it is in simplified form.
+-----------------------------+
| Agahnim and the Blaze |
+-----------------------------+
An interesting note was brought to my attention by Steven Zoeller. It
is speculative, but it is very interesting all the same. Of course, we
do not take it into account if it is speculation, but I still thought
it intriguing enough to get a note. First, let’s recall that A Link to
the Past was re-released for the Game Boy Advance eleven years after
the original’s re-release. Of course, the new version should have an
instruction manual. As it turns out, some of the storyline for A Link
to the Past was changed in the manual of the re-release. Here’s how.
-The newer storyline does not include any information about Ganon, the
Imprisoning War, and it does not mention a number of other minor
details.
-In the original, a series of natural disasters, among them pestilence
and drought, had struck Hyrule. Agahnim gained favor with the king by
quelling them with a form of magic previously unseen. In the new
version, it states that Agahnim gained fame by extinguishing a blaze of
unknown origin.
These are the important differences. The first point is rather
interesting. Is Nintendo trying to blot out the original, rather
complicating storyline of the original? Or is it trying to rewrite
Zelda history because they hit a debilitating snag? Either way, it
would seem that Nintendo wants to change the storyline of the original.
Furthermore, the second point is even more intriguing. This is where
Steven made the connection that most would overlook. If you remember
Ocarina of Time, the new Deku Tree tells Link that his mother delivered
him to safety in Kokiri Woods after a fire broke out during a skirmish
before she died.
However, because of the way the young Deku Tree phrases this statement
(“Some time ago, before the King of Hyrule unified this country, there
was a fierce war in our world. One day, to escape from the fires of
the war, a Hylian mother and her baby boy entered this forbidden
forest.”), it could be interpreted that fire was being used
metaphorically. But, if this was the mysterious blaze that Agahnim had
extinguished, then it is conceivable that Ocarina of Time happened in
the same lifetime of the A Link to the Past Link, and so it could be
proved that every game in the timeline from Ocarina of Time to Four
Swords Adventures happened with the same Link. However, because this
is only speculation, as the manual never directly says that it was
Agahnim who extinguished (or started) the blaze, I put it here as notes.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
These are the most common e-mail objections I get, and so I disproved
them in full for you above. If you want to argue with me, please read
all the notes above and consider how your theory affects the timeline
as a whole. I’ll be happy to disprove you, but you could lessen my e-
mail load that way. You can write to me at
Kirby0215@aol.com.
And I’m back! Now that we’re reaching a close, it is time to read the
FAQ. Read slow, my friend, read slow... for it’s all over soon... too
soon. Oh, I’m going to cry, I know it!
