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| 24 | [[quoteright:347:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/zelda_18.png]] |
| 25 | [[caption-width-right:347:Heroes are remembered, but legends never die.]] |
| 26 | |
| 27 | ->''"Many games have a story, only one is a legend."'' |
| 28 | -->-- ''The Legend of Zelda: Collectors Edition''. |
| 29 | |
| 30 | ''For the first game in the series, which shares the name, [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI go here]].'' |
| 31 | |
| 32 | [[JustForFun/DescribeTopicHere It's Dangerous to Describe 'The Legend of Zelda' Here Alone! Take This.]] |
| 33 | |
| 34 | ''The Legend of Zelda'' is Creator/{{Nintendo}}'s [[MedievalEuropeanFantasy medieval fantasy]] ActionAdventure video game series. It's one of its [[VideoGameLongRunners longest running series]], beginning in 1986 on the Platform/NintendoEntertainmentSystem. |
| 35 | |
| 36 | The franchise is, in essence, a mythos in the classical sense of the word. Link and Princess Zelda, respective wielders of the Triforces of Courage and Wisdom, are the eternal heroes destined to be reborn in an endless cycle of reincarnation to defeat Ganon, the evil wielder of the Triforce of Power, in his quest to destroy the kingdom of Hyrule. |
| 37 | |
| 38 | A given game typically goes like this: an evil [[SorcerousOverlord wizard]]/[[EvilOverlord king]]/[[DesertBandits thief]]/[[HumanoidAbomination monster]]/[[EldritchAbomination thing]], variously named [[BigBad Ganon]] or [[WasOnceAMan Ganondorf]] (but [[FandomEnragingMisconception not Gannon]]), has cast a great evil over the [[TheGoodKingdom land of Hyrule]], and a [[TheHero young]] [[TheChosenOne boy/man]] usually in a sort of green Franchise/PeterPan[=/=]Myth/RobinHood costume must save Hyrule by [[PlotCoupon recovering powerful artifacts]] that rest in [[TempleOfDoom places tainted]] [[DungeonCrawling by Ganon(dorf)]], typically by traveling across the game's overworld between a series of complex, puzzle-like dungeons that he must successfully navigate to reach the artifact at their end. [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething Princess Zelda]] is his resourceful ally and sometimes [[ImpliedLoveInterest ambiguous love interest]]. He either must [[SaveThePrincess rescue her]] or is guided by her, if not both at once. |
| 39 | |
| 40 | The story is repeated in many of the games, showing many eras, generations and {{Alternate Timeline}}s for the land of Hyrule, and [[LegacyCharacter as many young boys (or young men) named Link who find themselves forced to become heroes]]. While the above conflict is not present in every game, with several installments featuring totally new villains or events, the threat of Ganon is the one that pops up most commonly, and even games with a much different plot tend to be shaped by it in one way or another. |
| 41 | |
| 42 | On November 7th, 2023, Shigeru Miyamoto announced that a [[https://www.nintendo.co.jp/corporate/release/en/2023/231108.html live-action film based on the franchise is in the works by Sony.]] |
| 43 | |
| 44 | Created by Creator/ShigeruMiyamoto with the help of Creator/TakashiTezuka, the series is now produced by Creator/EijiAonuma and directed by Hidemaro Fujibayashi. |
| 45 | ---- |
| 46 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 47 | |
| 48 | [[folder:Main ''The Legend of Zelda'' games]] |
| 49 | [[index]] |
| 50 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI'' (Platform/{{N|intendoEntertainmentSystem}}ES, 1986): The evil Ganon has claimed the Triforce of Power, and Princess Zelda has broken the Triforce of Wisdom into eight pieces to keep them from his wicked clutches. Only Link can collect the pieces of the Triforce, vanquish Ganon, and save Hyrule. |
| 51 | * ''VideoGame/ZeldaIITheAdventureOfLink'' (Platform/{{N|intendoEntertainmentSystem}}ES, 1987; direct sequel to ''The Legend of Zelda''): To save an ancestor of Princess Zelda (from whom the first Zelda's name was taken) from a powerful sleeping spell, and to prevent the forces of darkness from reviving Ganon, an older Link sets off on a quest to reclaim the Triforce of Courage. |
| 52 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'' (Platform/{{S|uperNintendoEntertainmentSystem}}NES, 1991; distant prequel to the NES games): When the wicked wizard Agahnim starts kidnapping maidens from across Hyrule, Link heeds Zelda's call to seek out the Master Sword, sending him on a journey that will see him travel between worlds of Light and Darkness. |
| 53 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'' (Platform/GameBoy, 1993; direct sequel to ''A Link to the Past''): Link awakens on the shores of a mysterious island after his ship runs aground, and cannot leave until he seeks out and awakens the mythical Wind Fish. There is much more to this island than meets the eye, however... |
| 54 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' (Platform/Nintendo64, 1998; distant prequel to all prior games): With the evil Ganondorf seeking to take over Hyrule with the Triforce, Link, a young boy from a secluded forest village, sets out on a journey to vanquish the vile conquerer, a journey that will see him transcend time itself! |
| 55 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'' (Platform/Nintendo64, 2000; direct sequel to ''Ocarina of Time''): An encounter with an enigmatic kid under the influence of a mysterious mask ends up sending Link to the alternate world of Termina, where said masked kid has set the moon on a collision course with the planet. Now Link must traverse across the three days before impact in order to find enough time to save Termina. |
| 56 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames'': ''Oracle of Seasons'' and ''Oracle of Ages'' (Platform/GameBoyColor, 2001[[labelnote:Sequel?]]While ''Hyrule Historia'' (2011) states that they're direct interquels between ''A Link to the Past'' and ''Link's Awakening'', ''The Legend of Zelda Encyclopedia'' (2017) says the ''Oracle'' games are not connected to the others and take place well after them. In the games themselves, there's no hard evidence for a specific placement on the timeline, though all four share the same art style and the ''Oracle'' ending has Link get on a boat that could be connected to the shipwreck that starts ''Link's Awakening''.[[/labelnote]]).: Two games, one journey! Over the course of both games, Link travels to the realms of Holodrum and Labrynna, where he must rescue the Oracles of Seasons and Ages, Din and Nayru (respectively). |
| 57 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwords'' (the multiplayer mode for the ''A Link to the Past'' GBA port; Platform/GameBoyAdvance, 2002): When the wicked wizard Vaati kidnaps Princess Zelda, Link will call upon the power of the Four Sword, a blade that quadruples his power by calling forth copies of himself! |
| 58 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'' (Platform/NintendoGameCube, 2002; distant sequel to ''Ocarina of Time''): In a Hyrule radically changed by a great flood, Link joins forces with the pirate captain Tetra, and a sentient ship known as the King of Red Lions, to rescue his kidnapped sister. |
| 59 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwordsAdventures'' (Platform/NintendoGameCube, 2004; sequel[[note]]Originally implied, though not outright stated, to be a direct sequel; but ''Hyrule Historia'' classifies it as a distant sequel.[[/note]] to ''Four Swords''): Shadow Link kidnaps Zelda and the seven maidens while she is attempting to strengthen the seal on Vatti. After Link accidentally breaks Vatti's seal by pulling the Four Sword, it is now up to him to stop the two villains. |
| 60 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap'' (Platform/GameBoyAdvance, 2004; distant prequel to ''Four Swords''): When the wicked wizard Vaati unleashes a hoard of monsters upon Hyrule and turns his friend Zelda to stone, Link will need to work together with Elzo, a sharp-witted hat, to save the day. |
| 61 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'' (Platform/NintendoGameCube and Platform/{{Wii}}, 2006; distant sequel to ''Ocarina of Time''[[note]]Yes, the same designation as ''Wind Waker''. This is where the ContinuitySnarl trouble really starts.[[/note]]): Together with the mysterious imp Midna, Link embarks on a journey to stop Zant, the "King of Twilight", from taking over the worlds of light and dark, traveling through both worlds to do so. |
| 62 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass'' (Platform/NintendoDS, 2007; direct sequel to ''The Wind Waker''): In pursuit of a mysterious Ghost Ship, Tetra vanishes! With the power of the Phantom Hourglass, Link must find her! |
| 63 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks'' (Platform/NintendoDS, 2009; distant sequel to ''Phantom Hourglass''): Just as the kingdom of Hyrule is restored, Princess Zelda has her soul separated from her body by the forces of evil! Link, now a Royal Engineer, must embark on a journey across the kingdom, via a locomotive on the Spirit Tracks, to save her! |
| 64 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' (Platform/{{Wii}}, 2011; distant prequel to all prior games): Link and Zelda, denizens of the floating islands of Skyloft, become separated by a mysterious wind storm. Now on the surface world below, he must work with Fi, the spirit residing in the Goddess Sword, to find and save her! |
| 65 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds'' (Platform/Nintendo3DS, 2013; distant sequel to ''A Link to the Past''): The wicked sorcerer Yuga is turning the people of Hyrule into paintings! It is up to Link to stop him on a journey across not only the breadth of Hyrule, but also the dark alternate dimension of Lorule, ruled over by the dark Princess Hilda. |
| 66 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTriForceHeroes'' (Platform/Nintendo3DS, 2015; direct sequel to ''A Link Between Worlds''[[note]]While there's no in-game evidence of this, Nintendo stated its connection to ''Between Worlds'' at its release.[[/note]]): In the kingdom of Hytopia, the fashionable Princess Styla has been cursed to become unfashionable! It is up to Link, Link, and Link to use the power of different outfits to right this heinous wrong. |
| 67 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' (Platform/WiiU and Platform/NintendoSwitch, 2017; distant sequel to all prior games(?)[[note]]WordOfGod[[invoked]] and an in-game monument state that the game takes place in the far future of the series, but with multiple {{Alternate Timeline}}s in play the devs [[ShrugOfGod explicitly did not choose WHICH far future]]. ''Tears of the Kingdom'' later throws even this into doubt, seeming to contradict prior continuity on several points, leading to speculation that it's a ContinuityReboot.[[/note]]): Link awakens 100 years after the rise of the Calamity Ganon, a malicious entity that destroyed the kingdom of Hyrule, with only Zelda managing to hold it back from inside Hyrule Castle… and even that can’t go on forever. With no memories of what happened before and only a few clues to go on, he sets out across the radically altered realm to regain his strength and identity, and finish the fight that began a century ago. |
| 68 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTearsOfTheKingdom'' (Platform/NintendoSwitch, 2023; direct sequel to ''Breath of the Wild''): While exploring the depths underneath Hyrule Castle, Link and Zelda find the ruins of Hyrule’s ancient founders, The Zonai… and the reawakening Demon King Ganondorf. Robbed of his strength and his Master Sword, and with Zelda being lost to an unknown place, Link must set out on another journey across a changed Hyrule in order to regain his strength, find Zelda, stop Ganondorf and his machinations, and finish the fight the Zonai started in a bygone era. |
| 69 | [[/index]] |
| 70 | |
| 71 | [-Due to the ContinuitySnarl about the series timeline, "prequel" and "sequel" labels are based only on information that's in the game or in its promotional material near release; ignoring later {{Retcon}}s found in ''Literature/HyruleHistoria'' and other sources (though these other sources are noted in ambiguous cases). "Direct" means it features the same incarnation of Link as the game it's a sequel or prequel to, "distant" means it's a different Link from a later or prior generation.-] |
| 72 | |
| 73 | [[AC:Remakes and Rereleases]] |
| 74 | * ''Link's Awakening DX'' (UpdatedRerelease, Platform/GameBoyColor, 1998) |
| 75 | * ''A Link to the Past'' (UpdatedRerelease featuring ''Four Swords'', Platform/GameBoyAdvance, 2002) |
| 76 | * ''Ocarina of Time: Master Quest'' (UpdatedRerelease as a PreOrderBonus for ''The Wind Waker''[[invoked]], Platform/NintendoGameCube, 2002) |
| 77 | * ''The Legend of Zelda: Collector's Edition'' (CompilationRerelease of ''The Legend of Zelda'', ''The Adventure of Link'', ''Ocarina of Time'' and ''Majora's Mask'', Platform/NintendoGameCube, 2003) |
| 78 | * ''Classic NES Series'' releases of ''The Legend of Zelda'' and ''The Adventure of Link'' (Platform/GameBoyAdvance, 2004) |
| 79 | * ''Four Swords Anniversary Edition'' (UpdatedRerelease, Nintendo Platform/DSiWare, 2011) |
| 80 | * ''Ocarina of Time 3D'' ({{Video Game Remake}}s, Platform/Nintendo3DS, 2011) |
| 81 | * ''The Wind Waker HD'' ({{Video Game Remake}}, Platform/WiiU, 2013) |
| 82 | * ''Majora's Mask 3D'' ({{Video Game Remake}}, Platform/Nintendo3DS, 2015) |
| 83 | * ''Twilight Princess HD'' (UpdatedRerelease, Platform/WiiU, 2016) |
| 84 | * ''Link's Awakening'' (VideoGameRemake, Platform/NintendoSwitch, 2019) |
| 85 | * ''Skyward Sword HD'' (UpdatedRerelease, Platform/NintendoSwitch, 2021) |
| 86 | [[/folder]] |
| 87 | |
| 88 | [[folder:Spin-Offs]] |
| 89 | [-Spin-offs are considered not canonical to the main series unless otherwise noted.-] |
| 90 | |
| 91 | * ''VideoGame/GameAndWatch'' games (Platform/GameAndWatch systems) |
| 92 | ** ''Game & Watch: Zelda'' (1989; collected in ''Game & Watch Gallery 4'' for Platform/GameBoyAdvance) |
| 93 | ** ''Game & Watch: The Legend of Zelda'' (2021; ''Game & Watch'' system release of the three NES and Game Boy games) |
| 94 | [[index]] |
| 95 | * ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaCDIGames'' (Platform/PhilipsCDi) |
| 96 | ** ''Link: The Faces of Evil'' (1993) |
| 97 | ** ''Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon'' (1993) |
| 98 | ** ''Zelda's Adventure'' (1994) |
| 99 | [[/index]] |
| 100 | * ''Platform/{{Satellaview}}'' games (''Platform/{{Satellaview}}'', 1995) |
| 101 | ** ''VideoGame/BSTheLegendOfZelda'', a 16-bit ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI'' VideoGameRemake |
| 102 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaAncientStoneTablets'', a ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'' MissionPackSequel |
| 103 | [[index]] |
| 104 | * ''"Tingle's"'' games |
| 105 | ** ''VideoGame/FreshlyPickedTinglesRosyRupeeland'' (Platform/NintendoDS, 2006)[[/index]] |
| 106 | ** ''Tingle's VideoGame/BalloonFight DS'' (Platform/NintendoDS, 2007)[[index]] |
| 107 | ** ''Videogame/RipenedTinglesBalloonTripOfLove'' (Platform/NintendoDS, 2009) |
| 108 | * ''VideoGame/LinksCrossbowTraining'' (Platform/{{Wii}}, 2007) |
| 109 | * ''Hyrule Warriors'' series (crossover with ''VideoGame/DynastyWarriors''): |
| 110 | ** ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriors'' (Platform/WiiU, 2014)[[/index]] |
| 111 | *** ''Hyrule Warriors: Legends'' (UpdatedRerelease, Platform/Nintendo3DS, 2016) |
| 112 | *** ''Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition'' (UpdatedRerelease, Platform/NintendoSwitch, 2018)[[index]] |
| 113 | ** ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriorsAgeOfCalamity'' (Platform/NintendoSwitch, 2020, direct prequel to ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]''[[labelnote:spoiler]]Though it takes places in an AlternateTimeline, making it a case of LooseCanon that fits into the canon timeline but can be ignored if desired.[[/labelnote]])[[/index]] |
| 114 | * ''My Nintendo VideoGame/{{Picross}}: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess'' (Platform/Nintendo3DS, 2016; My Nintendo rewards program exclusive)[[index]] |
| 115 | * ''VideoGame/CadenceOfHyrule: VideoGame/CryptOfTheNecroDancer featuring the Legend of Zelda'' (Platform/NintendoSwitch, 2019) |
| 116 | [[/index]] |
| 117 | [[/folder]] |
| 118 | |
| 119 | [[folder:Other games featuring ''Zelda'' content]] |
| 120 | * ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' series |
| 121 | * ''VideoGame/NESRemix'' series |
| 122 | * ''VideoGame/NintendoLand'' (The ''Legend of Zelda: Battle Quest'' minigame) |
| 123 | * ''[[VideoGame/SoulSeries SoulCalibur 2]]'' (Link is a GuestFighter in the Gamecube edition) |
| 124 | * ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'' (Multiple games include ''Zelda''-themed weapons and armor DLC, including ''4'', ''4 Ultimate'', ''Generations'', ''Generations Ultimate'' and ''Stories'') |
| 125 | * ''VideoGame/SonicLostWorld'' (A level based on the series was released as free DLC for the Wii U version) |
| 126 | * ''VideoGame/MarioKart8'' (A DLC pack includes Link as a playable racer and a ''Zelda''-themed motorcycle and track; the ''Deluxe'' UpdatedRerelease includes this content by default) |
| 127 | * ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim'' (The Switch version includes a ''Zelda'' tunic and weapons) |
| 128 | * ''VideoGame/DiabloIII'' (The Switch version includes ''Zelda''-themed items) |
| 129 | * ''VideoGame/SuperMarioMaker2'' (the December 5th, 2019 update added the Master Sword that transforms Mario into Link) |
| 130 | * ''VideoGame/Splatoon3'' (hosted a ''Zelda''-themed Splatfest event in May 2023, including a Triforce-shaped arena) |
| 131 | * Various Toys/{{amiibo}}-compatible games have ''Zelda'' costumes and skins available, unlocked by figures of ''Zelda'' characters. |
| 132 | [[/folder]] |
| 133 | |
| 134 | [[folder:Other ''The Legend of Zelda'' Media]] |
| 135 | * ''The Legend of Zelda'' art books[[index]] |
| 136 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda: Literature/HyruleHistoria'', a 25th anniversary book that is part ConceptArtGallery and part UniverseCompendium that notably gave an [[AllThereInTheManual official answer]] to the long-debated timeline ContinuitySnarl.[[note]]Per [[http://www.hyrulehistoria.com/information/ HyruleHistoria.com]], "Though ''Hyrule Historia'' provided the fans with an official timeline, the creators mention that [[BellisariosMaxim various details had to be overlooked]] and that [[MST3KMantra fans should just enjoy the series and the new timeline]]. It is said that the order of events and the details within the timeline change according to who is weaving the tales, and additionally, history is still being spun. Therefore, it may be safe to assume that, years down the road, various aspects of ''Hyrule Historia'' may become obsolete as new information could take its place."[[/note]] The book was authored by Creator/ShigeruMiyamoto and Creator/EijiAonuma.[[/index]] |
| 137 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda: Art and Artifacts'' |
| 138 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda Encyclopedia'' |
| 139 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild: Creating a Champion'' |
| 140 | [[index]] |
| 141 | * ''[[WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfZelda1989 The Legend of Zelda]]'' cartoon by Creator/DiCEntertainment, the segments of which aired with episodes of ''Series/TheSuperMarioBrosSuperShow'' |
| 142 | ** ''WesternAnimation/CaptainNTheGameMaster'', also by [=DiC=]. When the ''Super Mario Bros.'' cartoon ended, the ''Zelda'' cast migrated to ''Captain N''. |
| 143 | * ''Machinima/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMisadventuresOfLink'', a series of 12 short {{Machinima}} videos for the Nintendo Video service for the Nintendo 3DS. |
| 144 | * ''Literature/NintendoAdventureBooks'': Two of the {{gamebooks}} were based on ''The Legend of Zelda'': ''The Crystal Trap'' and ''The Shadow Prince'' |
| 145 | * ''ComicBook/TheLegendOfZelda'' comic book published by Valiant and based on the two NES games |
| 146 | * ''ComicBook/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast1992'': Comic adaptation of ''A Link to the Past'' published in ''Magazine/NintendoPower'' |
| 147 | * ''Manga/TheLegendOfZelda'' manga adaptations of several games |
| 148 | ** ''Manga/TheLegendOfZeldaAkiraHimekawa'': Manga adaptations specifically done by the artist duo Akira Himekawa, and the only ones to see official Western releases |
| 149 | *** ''Manga/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime1999'' |
| 150 | *** ''Manga/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwords2004'' |
| 151 | *** ''Manga/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast2005'' |
| 152 | *** ''Manga/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess2016'' |
| 153 | [[/index]] |
| 154 | * A series of novelizations |
| 155 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda: Molblin's Magic Spear'' by Jack C. Harris |
| 156 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda: The Count of Black Shadows'' by Akio Higuchi |
| 157 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past'' by Katsuyuki Ozaki |
| 158 | ** ''Link and the Portal of Doom'' by Tracey West |
| 159 | * A live-action film adaptation to be directed by Wes Ball (''Film/{{The Maze Runner|Series}}'', ''Film/KingdomOfThePlanetOfTheApes''), produced by Avi Arad, and distributed by Creator/SonyPictures. |
| 160 | |
| 161 | * Other Gamebooks |
| 162 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda: Battle of Mirage Castle'' by Akio Higuchi |
| 163 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda: An Original Version'' by Mitsunori Kitadono |
| 164 | ** ''The Adventure of Link: The Legend of the Hero of Hyrule'' by Studio Hard |
| 165 | ** ''The Adventure of Link: The Legend of the Dark Triforce'' by Shōbi Inoue |
| 166 | ** ''The Adventure of Link: Counterattack from the Darkness'' by Studio Hard, Naoki Kusano, Shōko Uehara, Toresu Kuro |
| 167 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past'' by Studio Hard, Yoshihiko Tomisawa, Ken Sawafuji, Hiroshi Tominaga |
| 168 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda'' by M's Company and Maekawa Yōko (Adapted from ''A Link to the Past'' rather than the first game despite sharing a title with it.) |
| 169 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons'' by Craig Wessel |
| 170 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages'' by Craig Wessel |
| 171 | |
| 172 | * A ''WebVideo/CriticalRole'' One-Shot session that takes place in the world of ''Tears of the Kingdom''.[[note]]''Critical Role'' DM Creator/MatthewMercer is the voice of Ganondorf in ''Tears''.[[/note]] |
| 173 | [[/folder]] |
| 174 | |
| 175 | ---- |
| 176 | !!Tropes that appear in multiple entries in this series, or are about the series as a whole: |
| 177 | |
| 178 | [[folder:A-C]] |
| 179 | * AbilityRequiredToProceed: Since the days of ''A Link to the Past'', most Zelda dungeons follow a simple pattern: "Explore to find a major item. Use item to explore further and find a big key. Use key to open the unopenable door and fight the boss using said item. Then use item again to reach next dungeon." The most flagrant example may be the hookshot in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'', without which you cannot even enter the Forest Temple. |
| 180 | * AbnormalLimbRotationRange: |
| 181 | ** Kaepora Gaebora and the other Owls. |
| 182 | ** Link himself in ''Skyward Sword'', under some extreme Wiimote gestures. |
| 183 | * AccidentalKidnapping: What kicks off the plot for ''The Wind Waker''. [[FeatheredFiend The Helmaroc King]], a minion of Ganon, mistakenly kidnaps Link's younger sister, Aryll, after nearly succeeding with Tetra, and his quest to give the bird and its master [[ItsPersonal their much-deserved punishments]] begins. |
| 184 | * AccidentalProposal: Several times in the series. |
| 185 | * AdvancedMovementTechnique: In the 3D games, players will usually mash the roll button almost constantly, since rolling is faster than walking. |
| 186 | * AerithAndBob: Link and Zelda are both normal, if rare, names, but Malon? Midna? Kafei? Laruto? And on the "regular" names from Hyrule, the series gleefully mixes Western and Japanese names in a way you probably wouldn't expect from a kingdom trapped in MedievalStasis. For the most glaring example, the second-ranked Knight of the Cobble Kingdom in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass Phantom Hourglass]]'' is Doylan. The first-ranked is named Max. |
| 187 | * AfterTheEnd: A pretty common setting for the series, with ''Skyward Sword'', ''The Wind Waker'', ''Breath of the Wild'', and even the original game all taking place after some cataclysm or societal collapse. [[CozyCatastrophe Not that the apocalypse seems to bother the people much]]. |
| 188 | * AllTheWorldsAreAStage: In many 3D titles -- Ganon's Tower in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'', the Moon in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'', Sky Keep in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'', and the two DLC dungeons (Trial of the Sword and Final Trial) in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild''. Almost all of them reunite assets and themes seen in the respective games' previous dungeons, serving as a final test standing between Link and the FinalBoss (the Trial of the Sword, being a MultiMookMelee challenge, reunites overworld themes instead). |
| 189 | * AllThereInTheManual: Nintendo released a guide to the series called ''Hyrule Historia'' as part of the 25th Anniversary celebration. Among other things, it contains the series' official timeline. |
| 190 | * AlternateTimeline: According to Creator/EijiAonuma, ''Ocarina of Time'' split the timeline in two, with one timeline leading into ''The Wind Waker'' and the other into ''Majora's Mask'' (and ''Twilight Princess'' 100 years later). The [[AllThereInTheManual Hyrule Historia]] revealed it actually split the timeline into ''[[http://www.zeldauniverse.net/zelda-news/official-zelda-timeline-100-complete-translated/ three]]''. The third branch leads into ''A Link To The Past'' followed by ''Link's Awakening'', the ''Oracle'' games, and the original NES ''Zelda'' games. This branch is the result of Link being defeated by Ganon in ''Ocarina.'' |
| 191 | * AlternateUniverse: The various {{Dark World}}s in ''A Link to the Past'', ''Twilight Princess'', ''Spirit Tracks'', and ''A Link Between Worlds''. |
| 192 | * AmbidextrousSprite: Played straight in the 2D games, although most incarnations of Link are canonically left-handed. The [=LttP=] manual attempts to either justify this or hang a lampshade on it (depending on who reads it) by stating that Link always points his shield towards Death Mountain due to superstitious beliefs. |
| 193 | * AmbiguouslyHuman: Several races, including the Hylians, Twili, Gerudo, and Sheikah. Generally, it seems that the word "human" refers to Hylians, Sheikah, and Gerudo, each being considered a different race of human, with normal round-eared humans existing in the ''Zelda'' universe alongside them. |
| 194 | * AnachronicOrder: The first four games come an indeterminate amount of time after (a what-if ending of) ''Ocarina of Time'' (the fifth), while the sixteenth title, ''Skyward Sword'', is said to come before any other game. And while some games are obvious sequels to each other, it's still hard to tell which games are supposed to happen when unless you're looking at the timeline. |
| 195 | * AnachronismStew: The series absolutely ''explodes'' with this trope. While the core of the games is MedievalEuropeanFantasy (albeit a more Greek version than most others), you still have [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime ranches]] and [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess ghost towns stripped straight from the Old West]], [[BattleBoomerang boomerangs]], [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass steamboats]], [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks trains, chancellors with 19th-century top hats]], [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening ca]][[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask me]][[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker ras]], and even [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening telephones]]. And that's just ''barely'' touching how JustForFun/{{egregious}} the anachronisms get in this franchise. |
| 196 | ** [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess "The Group"]] has a ''bazooka''. Fortunately, that's the most egregious of anything not-magic... except perhaps [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Goht]], the ''mechanical bull''. |
| 197 | ** By ''Twilight Princess'', the Goron people seemed to have not only mastered manipulation of electricity but also understand the principles of electromagnetic attraction. Their mining facility is also remarkably modern-industrial for the ''Zelda'' world. |
| 198 | ** The Bombchu Bowling Alley in ''[=OoT=]'' even features neon lights. |
| 199 | ** In ''Skyward Sword'', the earliest game in the series' internal chronology, Link encounters the remnants of a civilization of robots, making robots one of, if not ''the'' oldest races in the world. Based on clues in that game, the world may have undergone a CataclysmBackstory caused by the demon invasion of the surface, and the advanced tools that Link finds in the various games are LostTechnology. |
| 200 | ** ''Breath of the Wild'' includes a ton of advanced, presumably Magitek devices, with the smart tablet-like Sheikah Slate, underground shrines with electricity and elevators, and highly advanced robotic sentries with [[WaveMotionGun death lasers]]. All of these are remnants of a Sheikah technological renaissance that was halted by the king ''10,100 years before''. Beyond a few tinkerers and mad scientists, everyone else gets by with basic medieval technology and few recognize the work of the Sheikah. |
| 201 | ** It's worth mentioning that ''Majora's Mask'' also has a ''rock band''. With electric guitars, keyboards and all. |
| 202 | * AnimatedArmor: Darknuts in some interpretations, though others have them as humanoid or doglike soldiers beneath their armor. |
| 203 | * AnimatedAdaptation: The games had a [[WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfZelda1989 cartoon series]] back in TheEighties, along with ''Super Mario Bros''' own adaptations. |
| 204 | * ArcHero: Since ''Ocarina'', the new FairyCompanion tends to be the main supporting character for each game, providing Link and the player with necessary guidance and information. |
| 205 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' added Navi to personify the new Z-Targeting system. She was the fairy for 'the boy without a fairy' and his guide as he fulfilled his destiny. Tatl in the direct followup ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]'' didn't add anything different gameplay-wise, but was friends with ArcVillain Skull Kid and the sister of his fairy companion Tael. |
| 206 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'': The King of Red Lions gave character to the sailing mechanics as a talking boat. Getting deeper into the plot, it's revealed he's actually the King of Hyrule trying to [[TheChooserOfTheOne awaken and reunite this era's Link and Zelda with their Triforce pieces]] to end Ganon and bury old Hyrule once and for all. However, when Link is on land, he is unaccompanied. |
| 207 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap The Minish Cap]]'': Ezlo was the [[APupilOfMineUntilHeTurnedToEvil former mentor]] of ArcVillain Vaati and was the character tied to the growing and shrinking mechanics. |
| 208 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'': Midna partners with Link and commands his new wolf form, as well as managing teleportation and a few other new twilight abilities. Link's story to save his friends ends about a third through the game, with the rest about her quest to stop Zant [[spoiler:and reclaim her throne from him]]. Unlike Navi and Tatl, she does not give information about enemies or bosses, which makes a degree of sense seeing as she's from another world and wouldn't recognize anything from Hyrule. |
| 209 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'': Fi, the titular Skyward Sword, personified the new one-to-one motion controls, and various new abilities of the Goddess/Master Sword. She's Link's guide to become Hylia's chosen hero and is the GoodCounterpart to ArcVillain Ghirahim. |
| 210 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds'': Ravio makes a case for this role, as the one who runs the item shop and is [[spoiler:Link's Lorulean counterpart, intimately tied to the fates of Hilda and Yuga]]. |
| 211 | * ArcVillain: A game that doesn't have Ganondorf, Vaati, or Twinrova often produces a new villain to serve as the BigBad. |
| 212 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'': The Nightmare/Dethl is a shadowy monster that plagues Koholint Island with monsters and tries to keep Link from awakening the Wind Fish. |
| 213 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'': The Skull Kid is using the power of the titular ArtifactOfDoom to crush Termina with the Moon. [[spoiler:However, the Skull Kid has become possessed by Majora's Mask, who is the FinalBoss of the game.]] |
| 214 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames'': Onox seeks to overturn the seasons of Holodrum in ''Seasons'', while Veran travels through time to change Labrynnna's past for the worse in ''Ages''. |
| 215 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass'': Bellum, a life force-consuming EldritchAbomination. |
| 216 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks'': Malladus, a demon king trying to escape from his prison and pull a GrandTheftMe on Princess Zelda. |
| 217 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'': Ghirahim seeks to revive his master Demise, the villain whose power will bring rise to Ganondorf as revenge for being defeated. |
| 218 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds'': Yuga, a native of Lorule who kidnaps the sages of Hyrule and seeks to take the Triforce. |
| 219 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTriForceHeroes'': The Lady, who cursed Princess Styla. |
| 220 | * TheArtifact: The Triforce as a physical object has grown steadily less important to the series' plots ever since ''Wind Waker'', not counting remakes and remasters. However, its image is so intrinsic to ''Zelda'' that said image will appear at least once in every game, even ones where it isn't named or has nothing to do with that game's story. |
| 221 | * ArtifactOfDoom: |
| 222 | ** Majora's Mask. To put it in perspective; everything wrong in Termina when you get there? All of it was done either directly or indirectly by the Skull Kid wearing the Mask. And on top of ruining everyone's lives, he's planning to drop the [[ColonyDrop frickin']] ''moon'', destroying the entire land of Termina. And he ''can do it''. Oh, and it's not just a power-up artifact of doom: [[spoiler:the mask is intelligent, and is possessing the Skull Kid. And when Majora decides he's outlived his usefulness, the mask discards the kid like an old pair of socks.]] |
| 223 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'' has the Fused Shadows, which are hyped up to be an ArtifactOfDoom by the Light Spirits that Link rescues throughout the game. However, they all agree that, despite the potential for evil the Shadows hold, Link needs to collect them in order to have a chance of challenging [[BigBad Zant's]] power. Their power is proven when Link fights the creatures that possess them, which have grown into horrific beasts of great power: a Deku Baba, one of the least dangerous monsters in the game, became an enormous three-headed creature that could swallow a man whole when it grabbed a Shadow. We never do see them exert a corrupting power over Link or Midna, though... presumably they were too pure-hearted to be affected ([[spoiler:and Midna is eventually revealed to be the rightful possessor of their power anyway, so it makes sense it wouldn't affect her]]). |
| 224 | ** The Mirror of Twilight from ''Twilight Princess'' turns demure, unassuming [[spoiler:Yeta]] into the crazy ice-monster Blizzeta. |
| 225 | ---->'''''"NOT TAKE MIRROR!"''''' |
| 226 | * ArtifactTitle: Occasionally. The titular young princess is absent from ''Link's Awakening'', and merely has a cameo in ''Majora's Mask'' and ''Tri Force Heroes''. |
| 227 | * ArtificialGill: Various items are required to grant full swimming throughout the series, though they don't always come with the ability to breathe underwater. |
| 228 | * AttackItsWeakPoint: Most boss battles in the series function this way. ''Breath of the Wild'' mostly averts this: while there ''are'' weak points that can be exploited to deal higher damage, they're almost never the only way to hurt bosses. |
| 229 | * AxCrazy: Majora, Zant, and Ghirahim are possibly the most psychotic characters Link has encountered in his many adventures. The first is an OmnicidalManiac who wants to obliterate the world with a moon [[ForTheEvulz for kicks]], the second is a deranged, power-hungry man willing to do anything to become king and possibly has an unhealthy obsession with Midna, and the third is a creepy BloodKnight who threatens to [[ColdBloodedTorture torture Link]] for getting in the way of his plans. |
| 230 | * BagOfHolding: Implied in the games. Subverted in ''Skyward Sword'', where your items get transported to the Item Check if your adventure pouch is full, and ''Breath of the Wild'' has a limiting inventory for weapons, that even when fully expanded, can quickly fill up. |
| 231 | * {{Bathos}}: The series always has some sort of bathos involved, ever since ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening Link's Awakening]]''. It's most evident in cutscenes: |
| 232 | ** For example, in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]'', there's a scene where you encounter a dying Zora just off the coast of the beach. You push him to shore, where he tells you how pirates had stolen his girlfriend's eggs and he tried to get them back, but he was mortally wounded and is close to death. However, the way he tells his story is to get up and ''rock out on his electric guitar''. After he's done, he promptly keels over and dies. |
| 233 | ** Another one is in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker Wind Waker]]'': Here, Link places the last of the goddess pearls he's collected up to that point in an ancient statue. At first, it seems like it's about to explode, but then it stops for a moment. Just as Link thinks it's okay to get close, it promptly explodes and launches him off the island. However, the statue also causes the Tower of The Gods to emerge from the waves. It's as majestic as it sounds... until [[{{Slapstick}} Link goes splat against the side of the rising structure]]. |
| 234 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'': At one point, you find yourself in an abandoned village, having been tasked to kill 20 Bulblins (orc-like creatures) in a western-style shoot-out in order to save the last resident (an elderly lady). This particular scene is also accompanied by a western soundtrack. Later on, you're given a similar task that's accompanied by the same music piece. This time, however, you're tasked with ''talking to and befriending 20 of the old lady's cats''. |
| 235 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'' has a scene where an ancient ruin is revealed. However, the way it is revealed involves putting a stone into a statue... The statue then shoots a single cannonball, which it hits a floating island. At first, nothing happens, but after a few seconds, the ruin reveals itself. |
| 236 | * BeastInTheMaze: The player character must traverse labyrinth-like dungeons to find a monster affiliated with or controlled by the BigBad. |
| 237 | * BeingEvilSucks: |
| 238 | ** This trope only comes into play once Link is in action. Until that point, [[YouCantThwartStageOne the villains' plans tend go incredibly well without many issues plaguing them]]. Then Link undoes all their damage, seals or kills the evil, and generally gives the story a happy ending. Simply put, staying evil in the ''Zelda'' universe guarantees failure in the end, even if your power [[spoiler:rivals a goddess' own power]]. |
| 239 | ** One exception to the Link part is when Ganon breaks free and his takeover is a success because the Hero of Time was not around to put him down. But even then, Ganondorf's plans were thwarted when the Goddesses flooded Hyrule. |
| 240 | * BeTheBall: The Gorons curl themselves up into balls in order to move at high speeds and to attack their enemies. |
| 241 | * BewareTheNiceOnes: |
| 242 | ** Link is an all-around nice kid. People who end up on his bad side tend to wind up with multiple stab wounds to their everything. |
| 243 | ** Princess Zelda as well. Indeed, she gets kidnapped repeatedly, but the girl has shown she is a decent archer, knows a bit of magic, has some Sheikah training in ''Ocarina of Time'', and is willing to fight with a sword in ''Twilight Princess''. Even in ''Spirit Tracks'', as an AnimatedArmor, when you attack her too much, she'll go berserk on Link, and even safe zones can't protect him from her wrath! |
| 244 | * {{BFS}}: Some examples include the Biggoron's Sword, the Great Fairy's Sword, and the blade used by the Fierce Deity. |
| 245 | * BicolorCowsSolidColorBulls: Cows are usually black-and-white. Elsie, the one cow who isn't black-and-white, is [[AmazingTechnicolorWildlife blue-and-white]]. Minotaurs (bulls) are black. |
| 246 | * BigBad: Ganon(dorf) in most cases (eight games), followed at a relatively distant second by Vaati (three games), with every other villain except Twinrova having one appearance each so far. |
| 247 | * BigBoosHaunt: Several games in the series have at least one dark/shadow-themed dungeon, starting with the Shadow Temple in ''Ocarina of Time''. In these dungeons, undead enemies like Poes, Wallmasters, and [=ReDeads=] roam, and puzzles focus on either tackling invisible hazards or rerouting light beams. |
| 248 | * BilingualBonus: It's been possible to translate the various versions of the Hylian language since ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime OoT]]''. They're usually a straight cipher for either Japanese kana or the English alphabet, English being more common in later games. |
| 249 | * BlackMagic: Many of the main villains possess some knowledge of black magic. Even some evil characters mentioned only once or twice use it, like the interlopers from ''Twilight Princess'' or the tribe that used Majora's Mask. |
| 250 | ** Agahnim can send people to the Dark World and control minds. Being a wizard, he also has various magical attacks. Since [[HijackedByGanon Agahnim is Ganon's alter ego]], these feats apply to Ganon himself. |
| 251 | ** Ganon can lay death curses, revive ancient terrors from the dead, transform into a beast-like form, create ghostly versions of himself, and more. |
| 252 | ** Majora (and Skull Kid using Majora's Mask) was able to steal and transfer souls, summon a moon to destroy the land of Termina, and inflict curses on people and places. |
| 253 | ** Twinrova can brainwash people, use fire and ice attacks, and twist the environment to an ice or fire setting in the ''Oracle'' games. |
| 254 | ** Vaati can curse beings, turn people into stone, corrupt an area, and use various magical attacks. He even manages to [[spoiler:kill Zelda]] in a NonStandardGameOver during a timed segment before the FinalBoss battles. And all that is from ''The Minish Cap'' alone. His (chronologically) later appearances show him displaying extreme proficiency in [[BlowYouAway wind magic]]. |
| 255 | * BlackoutBasement: Several areas in the series are underground, and thus it's more difficult to explore them due to the limited sight. They range from small grottos from large subterranean dungeons. The Lantern item in ''Twilight Princess'' is specifically designed for spaces like this to feature, and Thyphlo Ruins and the first minutes of Vah Rudania in ''Breath of the Wild'' have complete blackness that requires Link to use a light source so he can get around. The Depths from ''Tears of the Kingdom'' take this to the extreme, being a cave the size of the entire land of Hyrule that is ''pitch black'' except in a few places, and must be slowly lit up using lightroots. |
| 256 | * BlockingStopsAllDamage: If Link can block an attack with his trusty shield, it always stops all damage, and his upgrades to his shield allow him to block more stuff. |
| 257 | ** ''Skyward Sword'' gave him a shield gauge that shows how much the shield can take before destruction, but the best shield in the game is invulnerable. |
| 258 | ** ''Breath of the Wild'' takes this up to eleven, with it being possible to perfectly block a high-speed Guardian laser with a humble wooden pot lid, with a perfect guard never dealing damage to whatever Link is using. |
| 259 | * BonsaiForest: Like many isometric games, the 2D entries in the series have very short trees. To a lesser extent, this also occurs in some of the 3D titles, although specific areas may still have tall trees. |
| 260 | * BootstrappedTheme: |
| 261 | ** The title screen[=/=]overworld theme from the first ''Zelda'' game along with many others are used in later games both as the series' Main Theme and as Link's {{Leitmotif}}. |
| 262 | ** Zelda's theme wasn't originally Zelda's theme in its first appearance in ''A Link to the Past'': there, it is just a song that plays each time you rescue a maiden. Zelda, however, has a personal, extended version of that song, which becomes her theme in ''Ocarina of Time'', and the tune is reversed for the main theme of ''Skyward Sword''. |
| 263 | %%%Simply becoming the main Zelda theme doesn't count. After all, it was the title theme of the original game. |
| 264 | * BowAndSwordInAccord: All the Links make use of a variety of ranged weapons as well as a sword. |
| 265 | * {{Bowdlerize}}: |
| 266 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'' was named as such in English because of Nintendo of America's aversion to even the most tenuous of religious themes; what the title would have translated to was ''Triforce of the Gods''. Though their content standards had become more lenient by the time of ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds'', the title was still changed for consistency, as it was originally ''Triforce of the Gods 2''. |
| 267 | ** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'', they changed cross-shaped grave markers into "RIP" rounded-block gravestones. Also, the bikini top of the Mermaid became a... [[DoubleEntendre pearl necklace]]. When the [[UpdatedRerelease DX version]] came out, it crept to the European cartridges, and then the Japanese version for the Switch remake. |
| 268 | ** The original release of ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'' had Ganondorf [[BloodFromTheMouth cough up blood]] after you beat him and mortally wound him. The blood was turned green and then removed in later-produced cartridges; the 3DS remake retains the green blood. The vocal track in the Fire Temple was excised as it was a Muslim [[OminousLatinChanting chant]], and the Gerudo symbol of the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_and_crescent star-and-crescent]] was replaced with [[https://zelda.gamepedia.com/Crest_of_the_Gerudo a symbol resembling a stylized face]], again for its association with Islam. |
| 269 | ** The 3DS remake of ''[[Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'' gave [[NonHumansLackAttributes Princess Ruto]] an extra layer of scales that ends in a small ridge just above her chest, in order to suggest clothing. This carried over to her later appearance in ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriors''. |
| 270 | * BrainyPig: Inverted, where recurring BigBad Ganondorf is a cunning SorcerousOverlord, but his beast form Ganon is almost always a raging, primal giant boar or PigMan who relies solely on brute strength (in VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames this was because the ritual required for his resurrection had been botched). |
| 271 | * BrokenBridge: Very often Link cannot progress or do dungeons out of order due to some obstacle either needing a later item to pass or needing to clear a specific dungeon to open the way. ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' was made in response to complaints of this trope being overused in later games (especially ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'') so, aside from needing the Paraglider to leave the opening area, the game is completely open ended to the point of being able to challenge the FinalBoss as soon as you leave the Great Plateau. |
| 272 | * ButNowIMustGo: Link’s companions usually part ways with him at the end of the game. Link sometimes pulls this himself. |
| 273 | * ButThouMust: Several dialogues require Link to agree with, or accept, the requests given to him by the main character. If he tries to refuse, the characters will insist on the importance of said requests. |
| 274 | * CallARabbitASmeerp: Chicken? Cucco. Bats? Keese. [[DemBones Skeletons]]? Stalfos. {{Mummy}}? Gibdo. Zombie? Redead. Dinosaur? Dodongo. Venus Flytrap? Deku Baba or [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker later in the timeline,]] Boko Baba. |
| 275 | * CallASmeerpARabbit: On the flipside, there's also a recurring enemy that's a floating skull surrounded by flames of varying colors. What are they called? Bubbles. |
| 276 | ** And one Cucco you [[ForcedTransformation can talk to]] refers to her species as chickens. |
| 277 | * CallToAdventure: Has been getting steadily more complex. It used to be a bunch of random (but [[ButThouMust extremely insistent]]) strangers ordering poor Link to save the world, but now we have mysterious sidekicks, kidnapped sisters/lovable village scamps/possible love interests, and so on. |
| 278 | * CameraCentering: Every 3D game with an adjustable camera has a "return to behind-the-head" shortcut. |
| 279 | * CameraLockOn: While the name of the button has changed between consoles, since ''Ocarina of Time'', 3D entries have had a [Button]-targeting system that locks Link on to enemies. |
| 280 | * CanonIdentifier: The Links all have the same CanonName, but typically pick up some sort of title, which makes it easier to specify which game's protagonist you're talking about (e.g. The Hero of Time for ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'', the Hero of Winds for ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'', etc). |
| 281 | * CapRaiser: |
| 282 | ** It's common, but not guaranteed that a game in the franchise requires Link to earn larger wallets that will allow him to carry more rupees. |
| 283 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI'': Link can only hold 8 bombs. He can later upgrade his bomb capacity to 12 and then 16 if he finds certain old men in dungeons and pays the 100 rupee fee to upgrade. |
| 284 | * CartographySidequest: Every game since ''Link's Awakening'' (except ''A Link Between Worlds'', [[GrandfatherClause for consistency with]] ''A Link to the Past'') reveals sections of map as you progress. |
| 285 | ** ''The Wind Waker'' adds to this by having the player hunt down the Fishmen to fill in the Sea Chart. |
| 286 | ** Uncharted Isle in ''Phantom Hourglass'' has no map, but the player can write on the lower screen to take notes. Most will follow the map borders and trace Link's path to actually draw the map. |
| 287 | * CartoonBomb: In most games, bombs are portrayed this way. The cel-shading effects in ''The Wind Waker'' and its sequels help too. |
| 288 | * CastOfSnowflakes: Part of the charm of the 3D Zelda games are seeing what crazy character designs the developers came up with for each and every {{NPC}}. They seem to be getting more outlandish with every installment. |
| 289 | * CataclysmBackstory: Two notable examples are [[spoiler:Demise's fight against the Goddess Hylia in ''Skyward Sword'']] and the battle to seal Ganon in the backstory of ''A Link to the Past''. There's also whatever Ganon did in the backstory of ''Breath of the Wild''. |
| 290 | * TheCatfish: In ''The Legend of Zelda'' fishing minigames, there is often a big fish of this sort that will earn you the maximum prize for catching it. It's usually the "Hylian Loach", and it has a tendency to be utterly impossible to catch, unless you have a special lure that the fishing hole's proprietor may or may not approve of, in which case it's merely ''nigh''-impossible to catch. The trope is inverted in ''Twilight Princess'' with the Ordon Catfish -- they're common, easy to catch, and unpopular with [=NPCs=] due to their sliminess. They're also not very big. The Hylian Loach fits the bill for this trope better. |
| 291 | * Myth/CelticMythology: Just a little bit. The default name of Link's horse, in the games where she appears, is Epona -- which is the name of the Celtic goddess of horses. |
| 292 | * CentralTheme: A number of mainline games can be said to have one. |
| 293 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast A Link to the Past]]'': Prisons. [[MiscarriageOfJustice Wrongful imprisonment]]. Guilt and innocence, and how [[TyrantTakesTheHelm abuse of power]] can blur the line between the two. [[ToBeLawfulOrGood Having to choose between doing the right thing or obeying the law]]. |
| 294 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'': ComingOfAgeStory. |
| 295 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]'': Solitude and survival in the wild. |
| 296 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTearsOfTheKingdom Tears of the Kingdom]]'': Hands, representing things you can do, and joining hands with others to accomplish common goals. |
| 297 | * ChainOfDeals: Several games have long sidequests requiring multiple stops between characters, often resulting in a [[InfinityPlusOneSword powerful optional weapon]] as a reward. |
| 298 | * ChangingGameplayPriorities: Perhaps the series' biggest draw is how it models character growth without simply resorting to bigger numbers. As Link starts any of his adventures, he can only take a couple of hits and his pockets are empty. The world is filled with places he can't get to, doors he can't open, and things he can't yet do. Each new treasure he finds lets him get to things he couldn't reach before. |
| 299 | * ChaosArchitecture: Landmarks of Hyrule, such as Lake Hylia, Hyrule Castle, Death Mountain, Kakariko Village, and the Lost Woods, tend to move around from game to game. |
| 300 | * ChargedAttack: The "whirling blade", introduced in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast A Link to the Past]]'': after briefly gathering power, Link swings his sword in a 360-degree arc to strike multiple enemies with a stronger-than-normal cut. |
| 301 | * ChestMonster: In ''Ocarina of Time'' and ''Majora's Mask'', some chests freeze Link (like a Freezard's breath) instead of containing items. In ''Link's Awakening'' and the ''Oracle'' games, Zol enemies could be hiding in chests. Other types of trapped chests exist as well, but aren't related to enemies. |
| 302 | * ClamTrap: In several games, there is a recurring aquatic enemy known as a Shell Blade, which is a huge clam that snaps at you or charges forward to ram the player and is defeated by hitting the soft parts inside the shell. |
| 303 | * ClothesMakeTheLegend: Link's signature outfit is a green cap and tunic, and several games make a special point of making him switch from regular clothes to the green gear as he embarks on his quest. Averted in ''Breath of the Wild'', which has an entirely different outfit (marking Link as a Champion in this game's story), which features a ''blue'' tunic (and no cap) in its place. There, the green ensemble is relegated to an optional OneHundredPercentCompletion prize, and is based more on the humbler early games' depiction. |
| 304 | * ColorCodedItemTiers: Rupees usually have different colors to denote their value, though higher colors tend to vary. Over time, the games have settled (mostly) consistently with the values: Green=1, Blue=5, Yellow=10, Red=20, Purple=50, Silver=100, and Gold=200 or 300. |
| 305 | * ColorCodedCharacters: |
| 306 | ** The [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames oracles]], Naryu, Din, and Faore, have clothing and hair based on their namesakes. Naryu is blue, Din is red (though she wears pink and has orange hair), and Farore is green. |
| 307 | ** The great fairies from ''Majora's Mask'' are similar to the Oracles in this regard, sharing the same model between them but having different colors. |
| 308 | ** Odds are that you will never see Link in any color other than green unless [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwords duplication]], shadow counterparts, certain powerups, or [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds alternate universes]] are involved. [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Or the incredibly distant future.]] |
| 309 | * ColourCodedForYourConvenience: |
| 310 | ** Items and uniforms, especially. Enemies too, in many games; enemy power is shown via PaletteSwap. Which color is stronger tends to vary. |
| 311 | ** Dialogue text will [[RainbowSpeak often have important words highlighted in a different color than the rest of the words]], sometimes using appropriate colors (like "forest" in green, "lake" in blue, etc). |
| 312 | * ColorCodedStones: Tends to do this for their goddess related objects. |
| 313 | ** Used in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'' with the green [[ElementalNation Spiritual Stone of Forest (Kokiri Emerald), red Spiritual Stone of Fire (Goron Ruby), and blue Spiritual Stone of Water (Zora Sapphire).]] |
| 314 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'' brought this back with the Emerald Tablet for the Forest, Ruby Tablet for the Volcano, and (for the first time) Amber Tablet representing Yellow for the Desert. |
| 315 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker The Wind Waker]]'': Has the three "goddess pearls", each with a different color (red, green, and blue). |
| 316 | ** In fact, this trend to have color coded stones of power in the Zelda series has been around since ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast A Link to the Past]]'', starting with the three pendants of virtue. |
| 317 | * CommonplaceRare: Bottles. In every game that they were featured in, Bottles seem to be something that ''should'' be easy to get. But as it so-happens, the Bottles tend to be only possessed by a few (if that many) people in Hyrule. And these people ''normally'' require some quest or mini-game to be completed (the main exception being a bottle salesman who sells you one bottle early in the game). |
| 318 | * ConservationOfCompetence: |
| 319 | ** The Hylian Royal Guards are undoubtedly one of the worst military forces in all of fiction, at least when Link is around. When they're not being slaughtered in droves by whichever villain the game features, they're either standing around, walking back and forth in pointless patrols, or brainwashed and attacking Link (in which case it's ''Link'' who slaughters them in droves). They have lost every war they have ever fought, and [[StealthBasedMission breaking into and out of]] their [[TheGuardsMustBeCrazy "heavily"-guarded]] fortresses is a frequent early-game challenge for child Links. (If Ganon is ever in control of Hyrule Castle, on the other hand, it will be TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon.) Their ''best'' contributions consist of them acting as meat shields, getting [[CurbstompBattle slaughtered to a man]] just to buy the sages, gods, or Royal Family a little more time against Ganon's army. In complete contrast, Princess Zelda--their supposed leader--seems to have gotten more powerful over the course of the series. This eventually leads up to situations like the ones in ''Spirit Tracks'' and ''Twilight Princess'', in which Zelda is a potent sorceress and archer while the guards are incompetent morons whose uselessness is repeatedly lampshaded. |
| 320 | ** In ''Twilight Princess'', if you run through Castle Town in wolf form, the guards will circle around you, but every one of them is shaking and cowering like mad, and if you make a move, they all scream and go running like crazy. And then there's the soldiers [[DirtyCoward who back out of escorting Ilia to Kakariko Village as soon as they realize that it'll involve actually putting their lives at risk]]. |
| 321 | * ContinuityDrift: |
| 322 | ** In ''The Legend of Zelda'', the Triforce was originally a single triangle split into two halves. Since ''The Adventure of Link'', all games have established that there were three triangles in total, rather than the Triforce being a single piece. |
| 323 | ** The supporting cast in the backstory of ''The Adventure of Link'' has largely been ignored in other games, with no mention of the King of Hyrule outside of some cartoon and comic adaptations. The general discrepancies between the first two games and the rest of the franchise were retroactively explained by sequestering them into their own branch of the [[AlternateTimeline split timeline]], referred to as "the era of decline". |
| 324 | ** The details of the backstory told in ''A Link to the Past'' has caused confusion, particularly in regards to games that precede it. Ganondorf is described as having found the Triforce "quite by accident" and managed to clutch it in his "bloodstained hands" after killing his way through his minions. Then, he found himself trapped in the Sacred Realm, which became corrupted into the Dark World, leading into the Imprisoning War and the forging of the Master Sword. Several of these details are proven false, or at least misleading, in later games -- not the least of which is that Ganon found the Sacred Realm ''on purpose'' and the Master Sword was forged not to stop Ganon, but [[spoiler:the Demon King Demise, his predecessor]]. Some, but not all, of these changes are due to [[DubInducedPlotHole inaccuracies]] in [[http://www.zeldalegends.net/files/text/z3translation/z3_manual_story.html the English translation of the manual.]] |
| 325 | * ContinuityCreep: Zigzagged. Early in the series' history, every game's place in the timeline was explicitly defined in relation to the others: ''Zelda II'' was a sequel to the first game, ''A Link to the Past'' was a prequel, and ''Link's Awakening'' was a sequel to ''A Link to the Past'' (while leaving room for the possibility of adventures taking place between those two games). It wasn't until ''Ocarina of Time'' that things started to get confusing, particularly with the unclear placement of the ''Oracle'' games and the introduction of the parallel timelines, as well as having fewer official statements of each game's placement. Later games would start to make things clearer. Of course, ''Breath of the Wild'' then further complicated matters as a DistantSequel with references to and elements from all timelines, with queries of whether it takes place at the end of a particular timeline or [[MergedReality all of them]] being met with a ShrugOfGod. |
| 326 | * ContinuitySnarl: ''The timeline'', at least until the revelation in the 25th anniversary artbook of [[http://kotaku.com/5869993/this-might-actually-be-the-official-zelda-timeline the master timeline thus far]]. As the article puts it, it's like someone pulled random scattered pages out of ''three'' mega-DoorStopper Hyrulean history books[[note]]for separate histories, no less[[/note]] and then shuffled them. While Professor Nintendo finally saw fit to step in and show us which page goes where and give us a number of chapter titles, the snarl ''will'' reemerge whenever a new game is released, as its place in the timeline is viciously fought over (along with the merits of the timeline itself). |
| 327 | * CoolKey: Boss Keys tend to be this, as they are far more elaborate than the standard keys you find. |
| 328 | * CoolSword: The Master Sword, the Four Sword, the Great Fairy Sword, the Double Helix Sword, the Razor and Gilded Swords, the Lokomo Sword, the Phantom Sword, Biggoron's Sword... basically, any major sword upgrade. |
| 329 | * CosmicHorrorStory: [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]. The world Link is trying to save is already doomed due to some unexplained, malevolent force of destruction, and the best he can hope for is to buy enough time (via TimeTravel) to find the {{Macguffin}}s and call upon giant, godlike entities. This is taken even further by the main antagonist being an [[BlueAndOrangeMorality insane]], [[RealityWarper reality-warping]], [[PsychopathicManchild eerily childish]] EldritchAbomination, plus the Moon itself having a NightmareFace and containing an EldritchLocation inside of it and one of your only allies being a creepy, mysterious mask salesman with an oddly complete knowledge of [[ArtifactOfDoom Majora's Mask]] and a HairTriggerTemper. And even to the end of the game, there is [[NothingIsScarier no adequate explanation of what Majora's Mask is, what the Happy Mask Salesman's deal is, why the Moon's face is so horrific, what exactly the nature of Termina's existence is, and how Link ended up there.]] |
| 330 | * CosmicKeystone: The Triforce. Or, as revealed in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds A Link Between Worlds]]'', the Triforc''es''...plural. To the point that, when [[spoiler:Lorule's Triforce is destroyed, the entire kingdom suffers a slow, inevitable destruction. To prevent this, Princess Hilda tries to steal Hyrule's Triforce to compensate, and it's stated that this would eventually lead Hyrule to the same fate. Link and Zelda instead wish on Hyrule's Triforce to restore Lorule's]]. |
| 331 | * CounterAttack: Some of Link's techniques in the games, like the Parry from ''The Wind Waker''. [[note]]This same move ended up being divided into two bonus combo moves in the form of the Back Slash and Helm Splitter in ''Twilight Princess''.[[/note]] |
| 332 | * CounterpartArtifacts: The iconic Triforce. Zelda has the Triforce of Wisdom, Ganon, the Triforce of Power, and Link, the Triforce of Courage. [[RuleOfThree The "Triforce" name does indicate all three are needed]]. |
| 333 | * CoupDeGraceCutscene: Many of Ganondorf's final boss battles. |
| 334 | * CozyCatastrophe: Despite AfterTheEnd being a common setting for the series, the people usually aren’t negatively affected much. In fact one of ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker''’s [[CentralTheme central themes]] is that life ultimately moves on after disaster. |
| 335 | * CrateExpectations: Usually money or consumable items, though occasionally collectables. |
| 336 | * CriticalAnnoyance: The incessant beeping sound that appears when you're down to low health. It's not as high-pitched in later games, though and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' would later axe it entirely, barring a sound effect that plays upon taking damage that puts you at critical health. |
| 337 | * CrosshairAware: |
| 338 | ** Aiming your bow at a rock-throwing Bokoblin in ''Skyward Sword'' while it's unarmed will cause it to retreat. Most enemies will also readily avoid your Beetle. |
| 339 | ** The ghost-like Poes of ''Ocarina of Time'' and ''Majora's Mask'' turn invisible and float away if you [[CameraLockOn Z-target]] them. |
| 340 | * CultureChopSuey: Probably more than one example, but Link's regular use of a boomerang in a relatively (at least in the earlier games) [[MedievalEuropeanFantasy medieval]] setting stands out the most. |
| 341 | [[/folder]] |
| 342 | |
| 343 | [[folder:D-F]] |
| 344 | * DarkerAndEdgier: [[DarkerAndEdgier/TheLegendOfZelda See here]]. |
| 345 | * DarkReprise: Series-wide example. A heroic Hyrule Castle theme heard in ''A Link to the Past'' gets a darker reprise in ''Minish Cap''. |
| 346 | * DeadlyRotaryFan: Peahats attack using whirling sharp leaves in the N64 titles. |
| 347 | * DefeatEqualsExplosion: Every game except the N64 titles, where the enemies dissolve into flames instead. |
| 348 | * DependingOnTheWriter: Various things in the series vary depending on the writer. For example, whether monsters like octoroks, Deku Scrubs and Moblins are MadeOfEvil or just wild fauna/another race of sapient beings that get in way of the player. Similarly the monsters vary between actively serving the BigBad or are just territorial/independent bandits. |
| 349 | * DespotismJustifiesTheMeans: Ganondorf, befitting his obsession with power, seeks to conquer Hyrule with no intentions of being a benevolent ruler. Other villains with a similar goal aren’t much different, especially [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Zant]]. This is {{Downplayed|Trope}} in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'', which reveals he initially had sympathetic motives before [[MotiveDecay succumbing to his lust for power]]. He’s also portrayed much more sympathetically in this game and to some extent genuinely believes that [[spoiler: restoring Hyrule is what’s best for the people. Of course he [[NeverMyFault never takes responsibility for forcing the gods to destroy Hyrule in the first place]] and it’s clear that, at the end of the day, he just wants Hyrule for himself.]] This is played completely straight in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'', where he makes no pretenses of his goals not being completely selfish. |
| 350 | * {{Determinator}}: |
| 351 | ** Link's determination is outweighed only by his courage. Curses, giant monsters, long falls, dangerous terrains, being flung across the ocean... the Links go through a lot. Ghirahim comments on this in ''Skyward Sword'': "But instead of scurrying away like any creature with a basic instinct to survive, you just kept coming back. Again...and again...and again." |
| 352 | ** Ganon is a tough son of a gun as well and keeps charging forward despite horrible injuries. In every instance that has the Triforce, it's no coincidence that these two almost always end up possessing the Triforces of Courage and Power, respectively. Considering these typically embody the power of their respective goddesses, who helped create the entire world, it's no surprise that nothing can keep Ganon sealed. |
| 353 | * DesertBandits: The Gerudo race lives in the desert and are known throughout Hyrule as a band of thieves. They've [[ProudMerchantRace moved away]] from this by the time of ''Breath of the Wild'' and utterly disavow their associations with Ganon, disgusted that he once took a Gerudo form. |
| 354 | * DieChairDie: Pots, boxes, and grass. [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess And chairs and tables and couches]] [[OverlyLongGag and who knows what else]]. Link's destructive tendencies see some lampshading and punishment in later games, such as rich [=NPC=]s making you pay for the fancy pots you destroy in their homes. |
| 355 | * DiscOneFinalBoss: Agahanim in ''A Link to the Past'', Zant in ''Twilight Princess'', Byrne in ''Spirit Tracks'', and the third Ghirahim fight in ''Skyward Sword''. |
| 356 | * DiscOneFinalDungeon: Hyrule Castle in ''A Link to the Past'', the Palace of Twilight in ''Twilight Princess'', the 24th floor of the Tower of Spirits in ''Spirit Tracks''. |
| 357 | * DistantSequel: Most games are implied to take place anywhere between a few lifetimes to centuries away from each other, as Link, Zelda and Ganondorf all reincarnate over and over again throughout Hyrule's history, and events from various games often feature as legends of ancient deeds in chronologically later installments. While clear amounts of time are never given, games at the far end of the franchise's timelines, such as ''Spirit Tracks'' and ''The Adventure of Link'', take place centuries, and likely millennia, after games such as ''Skyward Sword'' and ''The Minish Cap'' that are set in the early parts of the setting's history. |
| 358 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'' takes place a very long time after [[TheGreatFlood a great flood]] destroyed Hyrule at some point after ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'', long enough that Hyrule itself, Link and his deeds and the Triforce have all long passed into legend, and that language drift has caused the dialect of Hylian spoken in ''Ocarina of Time'' to become an incomprehensible dead language to the people of the game's present. |
| 359 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' is one to effectively the franchise as a whole. Exactly how long after the other games ''Breath of the Wild'' takes place, and which branch of the timeline it falls under is not stated, but 10,000 years have passed since the ancient, technologically advanced Hylian civilization sealed the Calamity Ganon away in the game's backstory, with another 100 years since Ganon revived again and incapacitated Link. This is on top of the amount of time that would have been needed for the medieval Hyrule seen in most games to develop the technology needed to create robots, GiantMecha and other such wonders to begin with, making the amount of time that must gone by between the times of the other ''Zelda'' stories and ''Breath of the Wild'' vast indeed. |
| 360 | * DivineBirds: Many entries in the series feature birds which offer Link some help in either direct or indirect form, from the bird statues in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening Link's Awakening]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast A Link to the Past]]'' which dispense advice, to the live bird in the latter game who serves as a WarpWhistle, to the owl-shaped {{save point}}s in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]'', to the Loftwings (based on shoebills) in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]''. Even the royal crest of Hyrule, which was founded by the avatar of the goddess Hylia, features a pair of stylized wings, implied to be from the Loftwings introduced in ''Skyward Sword''. |
| 361 | * DivineConflict: ''Skyward Sword'''s backstory, between [[GodOfGood Hylia]] and [[GodOfEvil Demise]]. The game itself establishes that the entire series is this, as [[spoiler:on his deathbed, Demise curses Hylia's [[GodInHumanForm reincarnation]] Zelda to forever be in conflict with his own reincarnation, Ganon]]. |
| 362 | * DoomedByCanon: ''Skyward Sword'' is the first game in the chronology, and its ending establishes why Ganon is a recurring threat for Hyrule, and why a Link and Zelda are bound to face it through the generations. This is a tamer danger than what has been fought throughout the game, but almost all future games in the story have a conflict due to ''Skyward Sword''. |
| 363 | * DoubleMeaningTitle: The series loves this trope. |
| 364 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'': The title can mean either "link" as in "connection", or "Link" as in TheProtagonist. Same with the sequel, ''Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds''. |
| 365 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'' has several meanings. It can refer to Link awakening in Marin's house at the beginning of the game, it can refer to Link awakening the Wind Fish, or it can refer to [[spoiler:how the game is just a dream, and therefore Link awakens from the dream at the end]]. |
| 366 | ** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap'', the title either refers to [[spoiler:Ezlo, a Minish who became a cap]] or [[spoiler:the magical cap created by Ezlo that empowers the villain.]] |
| 367 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'': In addition to the title artifact, the title can refer to Link as its wielder. He's called "Wind Waker" and "waker of the winds" in-game. |
| 368 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'': The title can refer to both Zelda, the princess of a realm which has been overtaken by Twilight, and [[spoiler:Midna, whose actual royal title ''is'' Twilight Princess]]. |
| 369 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'': In an interview, the devs mentioned that in addition to "Skyward" meaning "towards the sky", they picked up from the American team that "ward" means "to defend", giving it the double meaning of "Protector of the/from the sky". |
| 370 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'': The title is meant to refer to the AfterTheEnd version of Hyrule with its relative lack of civilization. The "breath" part of the title is also meant to sound like "breadth," in reference to the massive WideOpenSandbox nature of the game world compared to previous games. Lastly, [[spoiler:the [[AnimalMecha Divine Beasts]], constructed to look like wild animals, use a BreathWeapon attack on Calamity Ganon right before Link faces him]]. |
| 371 | * DownTheDrain: The water dungeons usually follow this as constructed reservoirs and the like, with the [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Water Temple]] being the most well-known (read: notorious) example. |
| 372 | * DramaticThunder: |
| 373 | ** Clashes with Ganondorf sometimes uses lightning as a backdrop, just in case fighting a thirty-foot-tall [[WesternAnimation/SouthPark man-bear-pig]] wasn't freaky enough. |
| 374 | ** [[spoiler:Demise]] makes some appear during the 2nd part of his battle. He uses it to [[{{Pun}} charge]] his sword. You can use it too for the same purpose. |
| 375 | * DualBoss: Some boss battles have Link facing two symmetrical opponents: Twinrova, Twinmold, Fraaz, etc. |
| 376 | * DualWorldGameplay: ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast A Link to the Past]]'' started with its use of the DarkWorld, and then ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames Oracle of Ages]]'' used time travel. Time travel-dual worlding is revisited in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'', but only within the radius of "Timeshift Stones." This culminates in the Sandship dungeon, where there is a Timeshift Stone powerful enough to resurrect an entire ship [[spoiler:and the kraken-esque monster beneath it]]. |
| 377 | * DungeonCrawling: The games tend to feature elaborate dungeons filled with traps and puzzles that Link needs to brave in order to find the objects of his quests. |
| 378 | * EarthDrift: The first games had crosses sprinkled about, and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast A Link to the Past]]'' has artwork showing Link kneeling before a crucifix. All of this would be phased out in favor of a more original mythos. |
| 379 | * EasilyConqueredWorld: If the main villain, Ganon, is alive during the events of a game, odds are he's taken over the kingdom of Hyrule, whether in the backstory (like in the original or ''Wind Waker'') or during the events of the story (like in ''Ocarina of Time''). This isn't even exclusive to him, looking at evil sorcerer Zant's takeover of Hyrule in ''Twilight Princess'' and the Demon Lord Ghirahim's domination of the Surface World in ''Skyward Sword''. In spite of this, the Hylian army is often regarded in-universe as very powerful (they managed to form and then maintain a vast empire in several continuities), even if all we see of them in-game is a sparse handful of inept guards. |
| 380 | * EasingIntoTheAdventure: After the games transitioned to three-dimensions with ''Ocarina of Time'', each game starts off with Link in a domestic community before going off into the world to gradually face greater evils. ''Breath of the Wild'' averts this, with Link waking up defenseless in a desolate world where all of the game mechanics are taught by doing and dangers are learned the hard way. While you're isolated in one part of the map for the tutorial stage, there's very little verbal instruction and more encouragement to experiment and figure out survival yourself. |
| 381 | * EatDirtCheap: The Gorons, a race of underground {{Golem}}s, eat rocks, though the Gorons in ''Ocarina of Time'' prefer gemstones and ask Link to clear out Dodongo's Cavern since they can't bear to eat ordinary rocks. |
| 382 | * EatingTheEnemy: |
| 383 | ** The Like Like, a BlobMonster that appears throughout the series, is a [[DownplayedTrope downplayed]] example. When it sees Link, it will indeed swallow him up. But then it'll spit him out, but not without eating his shield. |
| 384 | ** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'', upon saving Bow-Wow, a [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Chain Chomp]] {{Expy}}, in the Moblin Cave, he'll then be able to devour all enemies, including the Goponga Flowers blocking Bottle Grotto. |
| 385 | * EldritchAbomination: |
| 386 | ** [[SealedEvilInACan Bongo Bongo]] in ''Ocarina of Time'' qualifies. An ancient, cyclopic spirit of darkness that manifests as a hanging, decapitated corpse with severed hands. |
| 387 | ** [[https://gamepedia.cursecdn.com/zelda_gamepedia_en/e/ef/PH_Bellum_Model.png?version=099b2d6ff944690b6f7ddc329dfb8bba Bellum]] from [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass Phantom Hourglass]], a [[CombatTentacles tentacled]] monstrosity with [[EyesDoNotBelongThere eyes where they shouldn't be.]] It isn't really evil or malicious and probably doesn't even have agency in any human sense, it just ''is''. |
| 388 | ** Malladus, Majora, and Dethl are a [[https://gamepedia.cursecdn.com/zelda_gamepedia_en/5/50/ST_Malladus_Model.png?version=f1cb34502ad3677a98fea350f3549cf3 demonic, misty skull]] with a habit of [[DemonicPossession possessing people]], an evil, insane [[TheTrickster Trickster]] [[https://zelda.gamepedia.com/File:Majora%27s_Incarnation_2.png god]], and a giant, [[LivingShadow shadowy]] [[https://zelda.gamepedia.com/File:LADX_DethI_Sprite.png manifestation of nightmares]], respectively. |
| 389 | ** Ganon himself by the time of ''Breath of the Wild'' has become a vaguely boar-shaped mass of dark energy as possibly the purest embodiment of [[spoiler: Demise's hatred curse]]. [[spoiler:However, the forms he takes when fought fit more into the categories of HumanoidAbomination and AnimalisticAbomination.]] |
| 390 | * ElectricJellyfish: The Bari species of jellyfish are electric. |
| 391 | * ElementalMotifs: |
| 392 | ** The Goron, despite being a race of rock people, are strongly associated with fire and the goddess Din (also associated with fire), as they live in an extremely hot volcanic region. |
| 393 | ** The Zora are a race of FishPeople who usually live underwater and are associated with the goddess Nayru (water). |
| 394 | ** The Kokiri/Koroks are "children of the forest" who are in tune with the land and earth, and are guarded by the Great Deku Tree away in a HiddenElfVillage. They are appropriately associated with the goddess Farore. |
| 395 | ** The Rito are bird people who can fly, and are appropriately associated with wind. |
| 396 | * ElementalNation: Hyrule is [[LightEmUp the Light Realm]], Lorule and the Twilight Realm are associated with [[CastingAShadow darkness]]. Hyrule's provinces are also usually split up into [[PlayingWithFire Volcano]]/Mountain, [[GreenThumb Forest]], [[MakingASplash Water]], etc. |
| 397 | %% * EmptyRoomPsych |
| 398 | * EnergyWeapon: All throughout the series, from laser barriers in ''The Wind Waker'' to Beamos in multiple games which shoot lasers. ''A Link to the Past'' has the enemy called the Laser Eye, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin which is an eye that shoots lasers]]. |
| 399 | * EquipmentBasedProgression: The series (with the exception of ''VideoGame/ZeldaIITheAdventureOfLink'', which experimented with RPGElements) uses this trope, having Link pick up a new weapon in each dungeon. |
| 400 | * EquipmentUpgrade: The series often has sidequests where equipment can be upgraded. The best examples being ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'' and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds'', which both had multiple upgrade sidequests for the sword (after the Master Sword was picked up, it could be sharpened and tempered) and fairies/a collection sidequest respectively for the other equipment. |
| 401 | * ErmineCapeEffect: It's an important plot point if Zelda is not wearing her dress. |
| 402 | * EternalEquinox: |
| 403 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'': {{Averted}} given that it uses a day/night cycle, but takes place over only during an interval of three days, so there wouldn't be as much noticeable variation in times for sunset and sunrise. |
| 404 | ** Played straight in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'', ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker Wind Waker]]'', ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'', and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]'', which also have day and night. |
| 405 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'' has both day and night, but you never see the transition from one to the other (since you can only change time by sleeping), so it's unknown if this is happening or not. The rest of the series takes place exclusively in daylight. |
| 406 | * EvilIsBigger: |
| 407 | ** Played straight with Ganondorf, as he usually towers over both Link and Zelda, even in his human form. |
| 408 | ** Subverted with some of the ''Zelda'' races. |
| 409 | *** The Gorons, a race of huge, rock-eating mountain-dwellers, are usually among the friendliest races in the entirety of ''Zelda'' lore. Even in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'', when they're portrayed as less friendly, it's only because they've run into problems on Death Mountain and are trying to protect the physically weaker Hylian race from the danger that lurks there. |
| 410 | *** The Gerudo in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'', while tough and almost intimidatingly tall and muscular, are a friendly race of fiery redheads that live in the desert. |
| 411 | * EvilTowerOfOminousness: Ganon(dorf) often resides in a tower before the FinalBoss. ''The Wind Waker'''s last dungeon is even called Ganon's Tower. |
| 412 | * {{Excalibur}}: The Master Sword is called this in the French versions, except for in Ocarina of Time and Skyward Sword, where it is called l'Épée de Légende (the Sword of Legend). |
| 413 | * ExpositionFairy / FairyCompanion: In order of appearance: |
| 414 | ** [[WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfZelda1989 The cartoon]]: Spryte, who set the stage for another American adaptation fairy... |
| 415 | ** ''[[Manga/TheLegendOfZelda A Link to the Past]]'' adaptation: Epheremelda, the Fairy Companion in the Nintendo Power comic illustrated by Shotaro Ishinomori, which inspired back in Japan... |
| 416 | ** ''[[Manga/TheLegendOfZelda Link's Awakening]]'' manga by Ataru Cagiva: Felicia, making the concept of the Fairy Companion popular enough along with the previous entries to become a CanonImmigrant at last with... |
| 417 | ** ''[[Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'': Navi, the TropeCodifier. |
| 418 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]'': Tatl. |
| 419 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker The Wind Waker]]'': The King of Red Lions. |
| 420 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwordsAdventures Four Swords Adventures]]'': Whichever maiden you've just rescued, who takes the form of an actual fairy. |
| 421 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap The Minish Cap]]'': Ezlo. |
| 422 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'': Midna. |
| 423 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass Phantom Hourglass]]'': Ciela, Leaf, Neri, and Linebeck. |
| 424 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks Spirit Tracks]]'': Zelda. |
| 425 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'': Fi. |
| 426 | ** ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriors'': Proxi, also acting as the VoiceForTheVoiceless. |
| 427 | * EyeScream: There's a recurring element throughout the series of shooting arrows into eyes. Find an eye-shaped thing in a dungeon? Shoot an arrow into it to solve the puzzle. Fighting a boss with one large eye? Shoot an arrow into it to beat it. It's easy to forget how disturbing this is. |
| 428 | * FaerieCourt: There are numerous Great Fairies in the series, who contrast normal fairies, which are tiny [[WingedHumanoid Winged Humanoids]], by being gigantic, flirtatious humanoids, who may or may not have wings. Their relationship with and authority over normal fairies is not clear. Fairy "Queens" show up in a few games, most notably [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker Wind Waker]] where she initially appears as an alien figure with four arms, but this is actually a puppet controlled by a childlike figure with mystical coloration. |
| 429 | * FairyBattle: Used in ''Zelda II'' whenever you find a fairy in the overworld. |
| 430 | * FairyInABottle: They either heal you to full or AutoRevive you, depending on the game. Usually, fairies can be used electively for a heal, but are more useful for preventing game-overs. |
| 431 | * FanservicePack: Straight-up admitted by Yoshiaki Koizumi (who was in charge of Link's character design) -- Link's adult character design from ''Ocarina of Time'' onward was a result of his wife's request for a {{bishonen}} Nintendo hero. |
| 432 | * FantasticNamingConvention: Goron leaders usually have names that begin with 'Dar', with known characters of this mold being Darunia, Darmani, Darbus, and Daruk. |
| 433 | * FeatheredFiend: Several throughout, from Kargorocs to the Helmaroc King. |
| 434 | * FetchQuest: Overworld segments between dungeons usually utilize fetch quest objectives for plot elements or unanticipated roadblocks to story progress, with Link either going out for an item per procedure or having to make a detour for an uncooperative or needy NPC. |
| 435 | * {{Fictionary}}: Hylian, which is just a substitution cypher for Japanese when it appears in-game (except in ''Twilight Princess'' and ''Breath of the Wild'', where it's based on English). |
| 436 | * FiendishFish: Skullfish are recurring enemies resembling skeletal fish with jaws bristling with sharp teeth. They're generally entirely skeletal besides the usual GlowingEyelightsOfUndeath, but the ones in ''Twilight Princess'' still have some sort of fleshy core inside their ribcages. They are, of course, highly aggressive. |
| 437 | * FireIsMasculine: The Gorons are a OneGenderRace who all refer to themselves with male pronouns and have stereotypically masculine designs and voices. With very few exceptions (such as Yunobo in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]''), they are known to be HotBlooded and vigorous. They have been shown to be fire-resistant which allows them to thrive in volcanically-active environments. The Sage of Fire in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'' is the Goron patriarch Darunia. |
| 438 | * FireWaterWind: The Three Golden Goddesses. Din is often associated with fire, Nayru with water, and Farore with wind/nature. |
| 439 | * FishingMinigame: Most games since and including ''Link's Awakening'' have had one. Averted in ''The Wind Waker'', which apparently has few fish in its ocean, with only monsters, the anthropomorphic Fishmen, and the guardian Jabun inhabiting the waters. |
| 440 | * FishPeople: The Zoras, which come in two flavors. The ugly fish-monster enemies that debuted in the first game, and the beautiful friendly race that debuted in ''Ocarina of Time''. Due to this disparity, the former were retroactively explained as biologically distinct River Zoras, while the latter became Sea Zoras. The western fan community sometimes instead use the term "Zola" for the former, due to a misprint in the first game's manual. |
| 441 | * FlippingHelpless: The Spiked Beetle, Terrorpin, and Snapper are various enemies in the series that are based on turtles and thus have this weakness. Typically, they can be flipped with the hammer or the shield, or in the latter case, by getting underneath them using a Deku Flower and launching out. |
| 442 | * ForebodingArchitecture: Whatever Ganon is using as his home base tends to be a towering, scary place. Sometimes it's even Hyrule Castle itself! |
| 443 | * {{Foil}}: On a meta level, the game series, as a whole, intentionally serves as a foil to ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros''. According to Creator/ShigeruMiyamoto, even [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI the first game in this series]] was designed to contrast ''VideoGame/SuperMarioBros1'' in terms of game mechanics. They also serve as foils in a different way: While the ''Mario'' games focuses more on gameplay than story (to the point of most ''Mario'' games having an ExcusePlot and [[NegativeContinuity little continuity between them]]), the ''Legend of Zelda'' games, in contrast, focuses on world building and are thus, rich in story with a strong sense of continuity between games (to the point where an official ([[AlternateTimeline split]]) timeline was [[{{Retcon}} retroactively applied]] just so that the contradicting stories would make more sense).. |
| 444 | * FourIsDeath: In addition to ''Majora's Mask'' and ''Breath of the Wild'' making frequent use of both grim themes and the number four, the series has a pretty consistent application of this trope by making its [[BigBoosHaunt deathly, spooky dungeons]] the fourth ones in a sequence. |
| 445 | ** In ''Ocarina of Time'', the fourth dungeon encountered overall is the haunted Forest Temple, which is abandoned, ruined, and features undead enemies and surrealist haunted-house mechanics. Also, the fourth full dungeon in the adult half of the game is the Shadow Temple, a vicious, gothic torture center for criminals with more undead enemies inside. |
| 446 | ** In ''Majora's Mask'', the fourth big dungeon isn't very spooky, but the area it's in is objectively the most deathly place in the game, being barren and featuring a graveyard and ghosts, and [=ReDead=] zombies and Gibdo mummies. |
| 447 | ** The fourth dungeon in ''The Wind Waker'' is the Forsaken Fortress (Link storms it early in the game, but he's unable to conquer it until after claiming the Master Sword), the base of operations of the BigBad (Ganondorf) and the place where the girls kidnapped by the Helmaroc King are kept captive; and until its completion, it keeps the flow of time unnaturally static in its area of the sea so it's AlwaysNight. Tellingly, one of the islands that surround it is the ''Four''-Eye Reef, whereas all other Eye Reefs (1 to 3, 5 and 6) are placed in relatively safe, lively parts of the Great Sea. |
| 448 | ** The fourth dungeon in ''Twilight Princess'' is the Arbiter's Grounds, which blends the locale of a prison with themes of haunted Egyptian tombs and has several undead enemies. |
| 449 | ** The fourth dungeon in ''Phantom Hourglass'' is the Ghost Ship, the haunted vessel that steals the life force of the unlucky seamen and travelers it approaches (including Tetra, whose life force is unusually high due to her Zelda lineage). It is overrun by Reaplings and inhabited by the Diabolical Cubus Sisters. |
| 450 | ** The fourth dungeon in ''Skyward Sword'', the Ancient Cistern, initially seems to defy this, looking like a beautiful Buddhist temple with lots of water. Then you go to the depths, where the water is stagnant and poisonous and undead Bokoblins swarm, while the boss above is a robot possessed by dark energy and lets out a ghostly child giggle when defeated. |
| 451 | * FriendlyShopkeeper: While many shopkeepers in the franchise can be friendly, the Treasure Chest Shop Gal from ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'' deserves special mention, as she'll compliment Link to him and all his mask transformations and be very flirtatious for a couple of them, she'll even give discounts depending on the form. |
| 452 | * FrozenFoePlatform: |
| 453 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'': Enemies frozen by the Ice Arrow can be used as platforms. This is required in parts of the Great Bay Temple and to reach Ikana Canyon. |
| 454 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'': Hostile Gorons can't be killed, instead they roll up into a ball that can be climbed on, and they get back up with enough force to send Link flying vertically to gain access to ledges. Once the Gorons stop being hostile, they still allow Link to climb on their backs to send him on his way up, but now they do so willingly. |
| 455 | * FullHealthBonus: In all of the 2D games, as well as ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds'' and ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriors'', Link's sword can create a SwordBeam when swung, but only if his hearts are full. In every game starting with ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'', finding a sword upgrade is required before this technique can be used. The bonus finally made its proper debut in the 3D titles with ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'': when using the "Throw" options while wielding the Master Sword, Link will instead cast a SwordBeam rather than throw the sword when at full health. |
| 456 | * FunctionalMagic: Most magic depicted in series is either Inherent Gift, Theurgy, or some combination of the two, with some MagicMusic for good measure. Device Magic, some light Rule Magic, and Alchemy also show up on occasion. |
| 457 | ** Inherent Gift: Magic use in the Zelda series is often restricted to certain individuals, or occasionally races. When individuals are shown using magic, whether they were born with the ability or learned it because their race as a whole is capable of doing so is generally not elaborated upon. |
| 458 | *** Ganondorf is frequently shown using some kind of BlackMagic to do evil. |
| 459 | *** The Seven Sages of ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'', individuals representing the six races of Hyrule in that game, have abilities that, when combined, help seal Ganondorf away. |
| 460 | *** The Champions of ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]'' all have single-application magical abilities (with the exception of Link, depending on your view) that are seen nowhere else in their respective races. The origins of the Champions' powers and their connections to earlier depictions of magic in the series, if any, are never elaborated upon, and only one of the powers, Daruk's Protection, is shown to be heritable as Daruk's [[InsistentTerminology ancestor]] Yunobo is shown to also be able to do it. |
| 461 | *** Some of the Sheikah (and their defectors in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]'') have been depicted using ninjutsu-type abilities, such as flash-stepping, {{Doppelganger Spin}}ning, teleportation, and even some limited summoning of inanimate objects. |
| 462 | ** Rule Magic: It's uncommon, but has appeared in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker Wind Waker]]'' and ''Breath of the Wild''. |
| 463 | *** The Link of ''Wind Waker'' is not actually an incarnation of the legendary hero and is only a kid who proved his worth to the gods, simply gaining a MagicMeter powering his Deku Leaf and [[ElementalPowers elemental]] {{Trick Arrow}}s in the process. |
| 464 | *** The four Champions' abilities in ''Breath of the Wild'', despite apparently being the result of Inherent Gifts, end up getting conferred onto Link, implying that they're not strictly limited to certain indviduals. The only rule of these abilities is that they can only be used three times (once in the form of Mipha's Grace) before having to recharge. Whether the Champions themselves had these limits on their abilities is not known. |
| 465 | ** MagicMusic: Since ''Ocarina of Time'', some kind of musical element driving magic has been relatively common in the ''Zelda'' series. The songs played on the Ocarina of Time, Wind Waker, Spirit Flute, or Goddess's Harp have all had effects ranging from opening ways to areas, summoning your horse, or contacting a friend, to changing the direction of the wind, the time of day, or summoning storms. This is downplayed somewhat in ''Twilight Princess'', as the role of music is limited to Wolf Link activating Howling Stones. |
| 466 | ** Theurgy: It is stated in several games that Link and Zelda are reincarnations of a legendary hero and princess who carry the blood of the goddess Hylia. Zelda's magic is often WhiteMagic related to sealing away evil, and Link's magical ability often originates from deities in some form, whether that's Hylia Herself or the trio of Golden Goddesses (Din's Fire, Farore's Wind, Nayru's Love). The Triforce itself is an artifact of the Golden Goddesses. |
| 467 | ** Device Magic: Appears in the form of various artifacts that often originate from the Sheikah, as well as some of the items that Link uses on his journey, such as the Gale Boomerang in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'', as well as [[MagicMusic the Wind Waker and the Spirit Flute]]. |
| 468 | *** ''Breath of the Wild'' features numerous Sheikah artifacts from 10,000 years ago in the game's plot, ranging from the Sheikah Slate that Link and Zelda are shown using and the Ancient Armor and weapons, to the mecha-like Divine Beasts, [[SpiderTank Guardians]], and Shrines. All of these are made out of mysterious ancient materials that far surpass other contemporary materials in all aspects at the time of the game's scenario. |
| 469 | *** ''Literature/HyruleHistoria'' suggests that certain magical items seen in pre-[=BotW=] games, such as [[spoiler:the Ocarina of Time, Gossip Stones, Howling Stones, Sheikah Stones,]] and others may be made of the same material as [[spoiler:[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword's]] Timeshift Stones]], bringing some Alchemy into play. |
| 470 | %% Funny Moments belong on Funny/TheLegendOfZelda |
| 471 | [[/folder]] |
| 472 | |
| 473 | [[folder:G-I]] |
| 474 | * GenderIncompetence: It does this with the members of the Triforce. The bearer of wisdom is always female while the other two are male and while all three are portrayed as powerful in their own right the bearer of wisdom, no matter how strong and combat-ready she gets, will always be weak to sustained attack while the other two don't have the same weakness. |
| 475 | * GenerationXerox: Link and Zelda always, and sometimes notable supporting characters (like Marin/Malon, Tingle, Beedle, Dampé, and Linebeck). |
| 476 | * TheGhost: Impa did not actually appear in a game until ''Ocarina of Time''. This is noteworthy, as the character had otherwise existed in the instruction manual of the first game, and was mentioned by name in ''Zelda II'' itself. It took over a decade before she actually got an in-game appearance, but she has continued to appear regularly afterward. |
| 477 | * GhostButler: There are two cases of this: one where iron bars or some similar obstruction blocks regular doors until a MiniBoss is defeated or a puzzle is solved, and one where the big door to the boss just slams shut and becomes locked for no apparent reason. |
| 478 | * GhostShip: Present in both ''The Wind Waker'' and ''Phantom Hourglass'': |
| 479 | ** The ship that appears in ''The Wind Waker'' guards a chart that leads to one of the fragments of the Triforce of Courage. It can only be entered after the Ghost Ship Chart is found. |
| 480 | ** The ship in ''Phantom Hourglass'' lurks the waters of the Ocean King's domains to steal life force and give it to Bellum. |
| 481 | * GiantEyeOfDoom: Gohma, the first boss in ''Ocarina of Time''. Wart in ''Majora's Mask'' as well. |
| 482 | * GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere: Many examples, particularly {{Mini Boss}}es. Sometimes, like in ''Majora's Mask'' and ''Twilight Princess'', all of the bosses are explicitly under the villain's control, but sometimes a boss will emerge with connection to anything and no reason to be there other than providing a climax for the dungeon. |
| 483 | * GiantSpider: Many enemies and bosses, most notably the various versions of Gohma and the Skulltulas. ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'' features the largest and most realistic spider in the series so far, Armogohma. |
| 484 | * GodInHumanForm: ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'' reveals that [[spoiler:Zelda is the human form of Hylia, the goddess who saved humankind from Demise]]. |
| 485 | * GoForTheEye: A perennial favorite. For example, Gohma's weak spot whenever she appears is her eye, and every boss in ''Majora's Mask 3D'' gains an extra weak spot in the form of a giant Majora eye. |
| 486 | * GoodMorningCrono: In almost every game since ''A Link to the Past'', Link begins the game asleep. Or at least, he is first able to be controlled after he wakes up. Apart from the CD-i games, but nobody counts those, and we all [[LetUsNeverSpeakOfThisAgain try to forget those]]. Eiji Aonuma even lampshaded during E3 2016 that for as many conventions of the series as ''Breath of the Wild'' breaks, it does keep that one. ''Tears of the Kingdom'' averts this by having the game begin with Link and Zelda exploring underneath Hyrule Castle (Link does end up waking up in a different location not long after that, so it's not a ''complete'' aversion). |
| 487 | * GoodColorsEvilColors: Usually, Link's basic colors are green and blue. Zelda's are pink and white. Ganondorf's, black and red. Neat, huh? In ''Breath of the Wild'', the Champions led by Zelda, including Link, all wear light blue and white to match Zelda, while everything Ganon touches is a sickly magenta and black with his essence. |
| 488 | * GottaCatchThemAll: The Triforce pieces/pendants/whatever. Also, whatever collectibles were scattered about starting with ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening Link's Awakening]]'' and only getting deeper since. |
| 489 | ** ''Link's Awakening'': Up to 26 Secret Seashells (50 in the remake) can be collected for a sword upgrade, but only 20 are necessary and the rest disappear once the sword is obtained. |
| 490 | ** ''Ocarina of Time'': 100 Gold Skulltula tokens. Every ten up to 50 gives a special item, and getting all 100 gives effectively ''unlimited money''. |
| 491 | ** ''Majora's Mask'': The 24 collectable masks. The last one can only be gotten by getting and relinquishing the rest. Also, 15 Great Fairy fragments in each temple, a large number of upgrades and hidden areas, and the Bomber's Notebook tasks. |
| 492 | ** ''The Wind Waker'': The Nintendo Gallery, which makes figurines for you based on photos you take of [=NPCs=] and monsters. Thankfully, the [[UpdatedRerelease HD remake]] gives you more room in your camera to make this faster. |
| 493 | ** ''The Minish Cap'': Kinstones, which unlock other goodies, some plot relevant. |
| 494 | ** ''Twilight Princess'': Golden Bugs and Poe Souls, besides the required Tears of Light, Fused Shadows, and Mirror Fragments. |
| 495 | ** ''Skyward Sword'': Bugs again, as well as Tears during Silent Realm missions. |
| 496 | ** ''A Link Between Worlds'': Baby Maiamais, which are necessary to upgrade your items. |
| 497 | ** ''Breath of the Wild'': Korok seeds, used to upgrade your inventory space. ''900'' of them. Though thankfully you only need about half of them to max out your storage. The rest are just there for the sake of completionists and to make achieving the minimum more casual by providing more options and making it less of a matter of scouring the map. |
| 498 | * {{Gotterdammerung}}: It isn't as apparent from a single game, and requires a look at the timeline to become really noticeable. In the earliest games in the timeline, there is always an explanation for why there are monsters everywhere, and Link has direct divine intervention and SupernaturalAid to help him. Later on, the fact that the world is crawling with monsters is taken for granted by the populace, and Link is reduced to scrounging for remnants of ancient power that can be used in his struggle against evil. |
| 499 | * GrapplingHookPistol: Hookshot is the most common name, though the Switch Hook is used in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames Oracle of Ages]]'', and the Clawshot in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'' and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' takes it to extreme levels, as you [[DualWielding can use two of them in tandem]]. There's also the Griphook in ''Tri Force Heroes'', which is basically the Hookshot and Clawshot combined. |
| 500 | * GraveClouds: Kakariko Graveyard gets these before entering the Shadow Temple for the first time. They also appear when Link opens the Royal Tomb. |
| 501 | * GreaterScopeVillain: [[spoiler:Demise,]] as ''Skyward Sword'' reveals. [[spoiler:He is responsible for Ganondorf's and every other monster's existence.]] |
| 502 | * GreatEscape: In ''Ocarina of Time'', ''The Wind Waker'', and ''Twilight Princess''. |
| 503 | * GreaterScopeParagon: |
| 504 | ** The Golden Goddesses, Din, Nayru, and Farore, representing Power, Wisdom, and Courage respectively, and the creators of Hyrule and the Triforce, the series' biggest {{McGuffin}}. They rarely directly act upon Hyrule, instead using intermediaries such as the [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Goddess Hylia]] (who served as the progenitor for the Hylian Royal Family, and was the one who originally sealed away Demise, the franchise's own GreaterScopeVillain) and the [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Light Spirits]] who sealed away the interlopers within the Twilight Realm for trying to steal the Triforce. One of the few exceptions was when they flooded Hyrule in the ''The Wind Waker''[='s=] backstory to prevent Ganondorf from taking it over. |
| 505 | ** Hylia herself serves as this apart from being the origins of Princess Zelda's bloodline, as her personal weapon, the Goddess Sword, was what later became the Master Sword over the course of ''Skyward Sword'', the Blade of Evil's Bane and signature weapon of many Links afterwards. |
| 506 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks'' has the Spirits of Good, who originally sealed away the Demon King Malladus and sent the Lokomo to look after what would later become New Hyrule, before returning to the heavens after exerting too much of their power, and the creators of the Spirit Train, Bow of Light, and the Compass of Light. They also created the Lokomo Blade, a sacred sword that serves as the strongest weapon in the game. |
| 507 | ** The Hero of Men mentioned in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap'', who was the first person to wield the Picori Blade (which would later become the Four Sword) and the Light Force granted by the Minish, and used them to seal away the Army of Evil inside the Bound Chest during the titular War of the Bound Chest. The theories on his exact identity identify him as either King Gustaf or Swiftblade the First, who both existed long ago and help Link from beyond the grave, but have limited influence in the present otherwise. |
| 508 | ** A few of the Links and Zeldas end up taking this role to one another when their plots have close ties to one another: |
| 509 | *** The Link from ''Skyward Sword'' takes on this role to all the other Links, as he was the very first to wield the Master Sword and used it to defeat Demise, the franchise's own GreaterScopeVillain. |
| 510 | *** The Hero of Time serves as this in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'', as he was the one who originally defeated Ganon during ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' using the Master Sword, and assisted in sealing him away, but has no influence on the plot otherwise due to returning to the past at the end of the game, which caused the Triforce of Courage he was carrying to split into eight pieces. He also takes on this role in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'', where he passes down sword techniques to his direct descendant, the Link of that game, but has no direct influence on the plot otherwise. |
| 511 | *** The Hero of Winds from the ''Wind Waker'' takes on this role in ''Spirit Tracks'', as he and Tetra were the original founders of the nation of New Hyrule following their defeat of Ganon, and Tetra in particular made a deal with Anjean of the Lokomo that the Royal Family would always protect the Spirit Flute. However, by the time of the game, both appear to be long deceased. |
| 512 | *** The Link from ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'' serves as this in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds'', as he was the one who defeated Ganon where the Hero of Time had failed in the Defeat Timeline more than a century prior. |
| 513 | *** The Link from ''The Minish Cap'' to the Links of the ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwords Four Swords]]'' subseries, as he was the one who first wielded the Four Sword and used it to seal away Vaati centuries ago. |
| 514 | * GrimUpNorth: The northern part of the world map will generally have some sort of [[DeathMountain foreboding mountain or volcano]]. |
| 515 | * GuideDangIt: Typically, the games each have a couple of things you probably wouldn't ''normally'' think to do, but overall the puzzles are solvable with no external help. |
| 516 | * TheGuardsMustBeCrazy: Once again, the Hyrulean guards. |
| 517 | * HealingPotion: The red potion you can carry in bottles. |
| 518 | * HeartsAreHealth: One of the [[TropeCodifier most memorable examples]]. |
| 519 | %% Heartwarming Moments belong on Heartwarming/TheLegendOfZelda |
| 520 | * HeelFaceTurn: Ingo, Mido, Skull Kid, Linebeck, [[spoiler:Byrne]], and [[spoiler:Groose]]. |
| 521 | ** Though in the case of Mido, Linebeck and [[spoiler:Groose]], they aren't evil. Just [[{{Jerkass}} jerks]]. For example, Linebeck starts out as [[spoiler:a greedy son of a gun, but he then does a mini heel-face and turns out to be pretty cool]]. |
| 522 | * HelloInsertNameHere: Although the [[CanonName name]] "Link" is used extensively here and on many a fansite, you get to name the lad in almost every game (he takes the name from your save file; in ''Twilight Princess'', you also get to name his horse). Canonically, this is justified by saying "Link" is merely the pseudonym used in the retelling of the legend of the various boys who inherited the spirit of the hero through the ages, their actual names lost to the mists of time. Averted in ''Breath of the Wild'', where "Link" is actually the hero's given name due to the game's use of spoken dialogue for the first time in the series. |
| 523 | * HenotheisticSociety: Hylians and Hyrulians as a whole generally worship the three Golden Goddesses Din, Nayru, and Farore. ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' introduces a fourth goddess named Hylia, who had previously only been alluded to by having a lake and species named after her. Hylia is an EthnicGod for the Hylians who [[spoiler:the original Zelda is a {{reincarnation}} of]]. By ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'', Hylia worship prioritizes worship over the Golden Goddesses. Although they haven't been completely forgotten[[note]]Zelda speaks about Nayru in one memory (either by mentioning "the Goddess of Wisdom" in the English version, or by calling her name in the Japanese and French versions for example) so it's safe to assume Din and Farore are remembered as well.[[/note]], only statues and churches for Hylia are seen throughout Hyrule. |
| 524 | * TheHero: Link is often "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin The Hero]]" in a literal sense -- of [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast Hyrule]], [[Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Time]], [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker Winds]], or [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess chosen by the Gods]]. He may start out as an unassuming FarmBoy, but heroism is inevitably [[BecauseDestinySaysSo his destiny]]. |
| 525 | * TheHeroDies: ''[[AllThereInTheManual Hyrule Historia]]'' states that one of the timelines in the series is created when Link fails to stop Ganon in ''Ocarina Of Time'' and creates the Imprisoning War (a.k.a. leads up to ''A Link Into The Past''). |
| 526 | * HeroicAmbidexterity: Link has traditionally been left-handed; but in the earliest games, because of technical limitations, his sprite would switch hands depending on which way it was facing, and in later games, to accommodate motion controls, he reverted to being right-handed in order to match the majority of players (although handedness doesn't actually affect gameplay). Creator/ShigeruMiyamoto decided that he's ambidextrous in order to smooth over the inconsistencies. |
| 527 | * TheHerosJourney: In almost every game, with the possible exception of ''Majora's Mask''. |
| 528 | * TheHighKing: Originally, the land of Hyrule was governed by a wide number of different kings and queens of roughly equal power. However, over time, the various nations of people began fighting over control of the Triforce, which eventually led to all of Hyrule being unified under what would become the Hyrule Royal Family. The Royal Family's duty was to both protect the Triforce and use it responsibly for the benefit of the entire world. While other kingdoms and monarchs still exist (the Goron, Zora, and Gerudo kings, for example), they only guard a specific artifact which is part of a set needed to claim either the Triforce or Master Sword. The Hyrule Royal Family, in the games where it exists intact, are the final guardians of the Triforce itself (or, in games like ''A Link To The Past'', some other vastly important thing such as a seal). |
| 529 | * HijackedByGanon: TropeNamer and TropeCodifier. Eventually given an in-universe justification in Demise's curse. |
| 530 | * HilarityEnsues: Go ahead. [[SchmuckBait Attack the Cuccos]]. Watch a whole flock of angry poultry dashing and flying towards you in retaliation, not stopping until you either leave the screen or drop dead. |
| 531 | * HitodamaLight: |
| 532 | ** An uncaptured Poe usually looks like your typical sheet-ghost, but from far away or in bottles, they're bluish-white and balls of flame. They can usually be captured in bottles and traded for money, plot coupons or upgrades. |
| 533 | ** Bubbles are directly referred to as ''hitodama'' in the Japanese manual of the first game. When Link touches one, he generally loses the ability to draw his sword for a few seconds. |
| 534 | * HolyBurnsEvil: |
| 535 | ** The Master Sword is explicitly imbued with the "Power to Repel Evil", thanks to the combined blessings of four different goddesses. This gives it the rare ability to defeat even purely evil beings such as Ganon and Demise. The Light (sometimes Silver) Arrows have similar power. The Four Sword, the Lokomo Sword, the Phantom Sword, the Picori Blade, and presumably others, are all holy swords created for a similar purpose to the Master Sword and also can't be used by someone evil or unworthy. |
| 536 | ** The swords ''do'' have a finite amount of power, though. Defeating or sealing a significantly powerful enemy or threat (such as Ganon, when a Hero could not be found) robbed the Master Sword of a great portion of its power, forcing the Hero of the Winds to go on a quest to recharge it. |
| 537 | * HumansAreSpecial: While the gods created the Triforce, its unlimited power can never be used by any deity. This was [[GodIsGood specifically devised]] to give mortals hope, and so that they may shape their lives in Hyrule and destinies however they please. They can make their world into a idyllic paradise, or a chaotic nightmare, if they so choose. |
| 538 | * HyperspaceArsenal: |
| 539 | ** In all games, Link has always been able to carry quite a bit of stuff, though for some reason in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'' and [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]], his ''wallet'' is rather limited until he gets a bigger one. |
| 540 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'' plays with this a little by limiting some of Link's inventory to "pouches" he has to find throughout the game. He starts off with four and has a maximum of eight, limiting the number of items he can carry. Of course, he's still managing to fit everything from his ''shield'' to quivers and bomb bags inside a small belt pouch... Also, major pieces of equipment like the bow, clawshots, and gust bellows are part of a separate inventory that don't use the pouches. |
| 541 | * IceCrystals: Common throughout the series. |
| 542 | ** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'', a crystal-shaped chunk of ice tops the Ice Staff. |
| 543 | ** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'', due to system limitations, ice normally appears in blocky shapes. However, anything frozen in red ice is trapped in a crystalline shape. Kotake's and Twinrova's Ice Staff also has a crystal on the end. |
| 544 | ** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames'', actual ice crystals appear as a breakable object in the Sword and Shield Maze of ''Seasons'', and they are said to have the power to freeze anything. In-game, they function as part of a puzzle to cool a lava floor leading to deeper parts of the dungeon. |
| 545 | ** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap'', ice crystals form natural blockages in the Temple of Droplets, including sealing the Water Element in one larger giant block. Smaller ones can be melted with the Flame Lantern. |
| 546 | ** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'', Chillfos and White Wolfos are enemies made out of crystal-shaped ice, and Blizzeta shapes her icy pillars into the typical crystal shape (at least on the bottom) so she can spear Link with them. |
| 547 | * IconicItem: Link's green tunic and hood and, to a lesser extent, the Master Sword. The Triforce also serves as the IconicItem for the entire series. |
| 548 | * IconicStarterEquipment: |
| 549 | ** Generally averted with the Master Sword, the SwordOfPlotAdvancement in most of the series, with Link using it in most official art, and the sword is a veritable part of the series iconography. There are exceptions though. Link from ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker Wind Waker]]'' uses the early-game Hero's Sword in all of his official art, and Link from ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'' uses the early game Ordon Sword in most of his official art as well, though he does have a few pieces with the Master Sword. |
| 550 | ** That, said, some games do feature swords that are more powerful than the Master Sword, but these are typically (a) upgrades to the Master Sword itself, or (b) have some tradeoff that might make the player want to switch back to the Master Sword, such as the Biggoron's Sword from ''Ocarina of Time'', which is a two-handed sword that prevents Link from using his shield. |
| 551 | ** Link's iconic outfit is his green tunic. In some games he can find other outfits that offer some benefit over his standard one, meaning that the players will rarely use his default one after acquiring them. ''Twilight Princess'' averts this because while Link's alternate outfits of the Zora Armor and Magic Armor give him the ability to breathe underwater and invincibility, respectively, they each have their respective downsides of making him extremely weak to fire and ice attacks and draining his rupees, giving players a reason to equip his standard outfit again. In ''Ocarina of Time'', Link can swap out his green Kokiri Tunic for the Goron or Zora tunics, which respectively grant him the ability to withstand high temperatures and breathe underwater. Unlike in ''Twilight Princess'', there's no benefit to switching back to the default outfit, meaning that once you acquire them, you'll probably be wearing the Goron or Zora Tunics for the rest of the game. This makes for an awkward moment with the introduction to ''The Wind Waker'', in which young boys are said to wear green tunics to mark their coming of age in commemoration of the green-clad Hero from ''Ocarina of Time'' who defeated Ganon, even though many players probably defeated Ganon wearing the red Goron or blue Zora Tunic in the latter game. |
| 552 | ** Zigzagged in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'', with most official art depicting him wearing the Champion's Tunic and Hylian Trousers. The Champion's tunic averts this, due to it not being starter equipment as well as offering good protection at each upgrade level without compromising stealth too much, so players have a reason to keep using it throughout the game, but the Hylian Trousers play this straight since they are one of the first items of clothing you can acquire and have only modest defense and stealth, and no protection from extreme elements, meaning that players will likely be wearing something else most of the time. Link is also [[HelmetsAreHardlyHeroic depicted without any headgear]], even though it is usually optimal to equip one since doing so will raise your defence and/or offer some other benefit. |
| 553 | * IdenticalGrandson: While not ''all'' of the Zeldas look alike, there are a number (such as [[http://zs.ffshrine.org/album/minish-cap/art/princesszelda.gif Minish Cap Zelda]], [[https://gamepedia.cursecdn.com/zelda_gamepedia_en/b/b1/TWW_Princess_Zelda_Artwork.png?version=ac19e232f2c5efb7829377f106079918 Wind Waker Zelda]], [[http://www.zeldauniverse.net/images/games/st/characters/zelda.png Spirit Tracks Zelda]], and [[https://gamepedia.cursecdn.com/zelda_gamepedia_en/3/30/TWW_Portrait.jpg?version=70ccb36272dab17584d36ce7d09a8a95 the one from before the Great Flood]]) that are so identical that they even wear the same exact clothes. |
| 554 | * ImpliedLoveInterest: Link and Zelda in many (but not all) of the games. They're even the trope page image. The biggest examples are ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks Spirit Tracks]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]''. |
| 555 | ** Averted in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'', where Link has an explicit love interest, Ilia, and a completely separate ImpliedLoveInterest in Midna. |
| 556 | ** Played with in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]'', where Zelda (as well as two other girls) is confirmed to be in love with Link, but Link's own feelings are left to the player to decide through dialogue options. |
| 557 | * ImpossibleItemDrop: Most enemies (and [[DieChairDie random objects like pots or bushes]]) drop rupees, arrows, bombs, magic potion vials, and hearts at random. Even better, whenever you get a new item (bow, bomb bag, slingshot, etc...) that consumes something, whatever it is suddenly starts appearing everywhere in spite of its not showing up before. |
| 558 | * InescapableAmbush: Some rooms lock down tight and won't let you leave until everything inside is dead. |
| 559 | * InexplicableTreasureChests: Why do so many items appear just sitting around in Temples? Or holes in the ground, or in the middle of nowhere...? |
| 560 | * InfiniteStockForSale: Generally, in the games, some shops will sell items that Link can use forever, such as new armor or [[HeartContainer pieces of heart]]. Once these are gone, they will sometimes be replaced with different wares, but more often, they will be sold out forever, denoted by a wooden sign with an X painted on it. This is just as unrealistic in the opposite direction, as it means these shops only have one of the given item and had no prospects of selling them to anyone else (though in one game, once all these one-sell only items are sold, he immediately announces that he has enough money to retire). Items that can be used or lost, like potions or ammo, will never run out, and otherwise infinite-use items that can be lost (such as a wooden shield that was destroyed) will be back in stock after they are lost. |
| 561 | * InfinityPlusOneSword: The Magical Sword in the first game, the Level 2 Sword in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'', Biggoron's Sword in ''[[Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'', and the Great Fairy's Sword in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask''. |
| 562 | * InformedAttribute: The Zelda family are said to be more active and even vital to the final defeat of the game's final enemy but many Zeldas have either not done anything at all (one even SLEEPING through the whole game) and others bearly get to do anything before they are kidnapped and don't do anything until saved. |
| 563 | * InsectQueen: The Gohmas are generally portrayed this way (mostly as an Arachnid Queen, but fits nonetheless). They appear as bosses of the dungeon in which their offspring appear as enemies, and they often release their offspring as a FlunkyBoss. |
| 564 | * InsurmountableWaistHighFence: Though Link has no problems at all with ladders, steep mountain trails, and vine-covered walls, he is unable to pass man-made fences without the aid of his horse. [[http://wii.ign.com/articles/117/1175200p1.html This is averted]] in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'', where Link is actually able to move around it automatically, and in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]'', where he can climb over fences and pretty much anything else he wants. |
| 565 | * InterchangeableAntimatterKeys: A staple of the series since Day One. The first [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI two]] [[VideoGame/ZeldaIITheAdventureOfLink titles]] even had keys that worked in ''any'' dungeon. |
| 566 | * InterfaceSpoiler: If there are empty spots in your item and quest menu, rest assured that they will be filled up later on. Notably [[AvertedTrope averted]] in the ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames Oracle]]'' games in which you get several more item spaces than you actually need, and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'', where the item menu is a circle where the items are evenly spaced, and the quest menu puts all the [[PlotCoupon Plot Coupons]] in one space where they float around. ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening Link's Awakening]]'' actually has more items than inventory spaces -- one has to be traded away for another (and traded back if you need it again, as buying a new one will make the game {{Unwinnable}}). |
| 567 | * {{Interquel}}: According to ''Hyrule Historia'', ''Twilight Princess'' is this to ''Majora's Mask'' and ''Four Swords Adventures''. ''A Link Between Worlds'' is somewhere between the ''Oracle'' games and the original NES game.[[note]]''Hyrule Historia'' stated the ''Oracle'' games were this to ''A Link to the Past'' and ''Link's Awakening'', but ''The Legend of Zelda Encyclopedia'' retconned these games to take place after ''Link's Awakening'' with a new Link.[[/note]]) |
| 568 | * InterspeciesRomance: Gets mentioned (and usually poked fun at) in several games. |
| 569 | ** In ''Link's Awakening'', there's a subquest where you have to deliver a picture from a shy man and his female penpal. Said penpal turns out to be a talking goat in Animal Town (who sends him back a photo of [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Princess Peach]] to boot). |
| 570 | ** In ''Majora's Mask'', Treasure Chest Shop Owner (a female Terminan) will flirt with you while you're wearing the Zora Mask. She does it to Goron Link in the remake too. |
| 571 | ** In ''Oracle of Seasons'', Link needs to go on a date with a Subrosian (mysterious, subterranean people who wear cloaks, eat metal, and bathe in molten lava) in order to proceed and can ask her for further dates as well. |
| 572 | ** Vaati, a Picori who used black magic to assume humanoid form and first introduced in ''The Minish Cap'', is explicitly stated as kidnapping Hylian girls because he's attracted to them. |
| 573 | ** In ''Ocarina of Time'', Link gets an AccidentalMarriage to Princess Ruto of the Zoras. |
| 574 | ** In ''The Wind Waker'', there a subquest about a Hylian girl falling in love with a Moblin. A book mentioned in the ''The Minish Cap'', also covers a Hylian and Moblin romance. |
| 575 | ** In ''Twilight Princess'', there's the hinted romantic attraction between Link (Hylian) and Midna (imp/Twili). And there's Link spending one-third of the game as a wolf (though Midna treats him more like a pet dog at this stage). |
| 576 | ** In ''Oracle of Ages'', Link gets [[AccidentalMarriage propositioned]] by a ''tree''. A tree wearing ganguro-gal makeup. |
| 577 | ** In ''Breath of the Wild'', it's spelled out that Mipha, a Zora, was planning to propose to Link [[spoiler: before being killed by Calamity Ganon.]] |
| 578 | * IntraFranchiseCrossover: |
| 579 | ** In ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriors'' all the playable characters that aren't legacy characters or original come from the Adult Link games, ''Ocarina of Time'' (original and popular), ''Twilight Princess'' (popular) and ''Skyward Sword'' (modern). There's an entire mode dedicated to the orginal NES ''The Legend of Zelda'' but outside of these four games most other Zelda games are barely referenced. The ''Majora's Mask'' DLC added content including characters from the Dark Horse game. |
| 580 | ** Taken further with ''Hyrule Warriors Legends'' which adds content from ''Wind Waker'' and, with DLC, ''Link's Awakening'', ''Phantom Hourglass''/''Spirit Tracks'' and ''A Link Between Worlds''. |
| 581 | * InvincibleVillain: Ganon has shades of this. After being pelted with holy arrows, exposed to powerful magics, and stabbed lord knows how many times with the ultimate sword of good, Ganon tends to stay alive through it all. This is taken to scary limits at the end of ''Ocarina'', when he is shown after being sealed away. He showed no signs of being harmed at all despite receiving a stab wound ''to the face'' moments earlier[[labelnote:*:]]though this could be explained in part by the game aiming for a kid-friendly rating and the graphical limitations of the N64[[/labelnote]]. |
| 582 | * ItemGet: Link reacts to new items and treasures in the most enthusiastic way possible (and [[{{Fanfare}} the music agrees]]) in every game. Increasingly {{lampshaded}} as the series goes on. |
| 583 | [[/folder]] |
| 584 | |
| 585 | [[folder:J-L]] |
| 586 | * JapaneseSpirit: The central moral virtues of Courage, Wisdom, and Power were not present in the first two games (the Triforce of Courage was not introduced until the second game), nor is it used in many of the side games (such as ''Link's Awakening''); however, it's still an underlying theme in every game in the series. The overall story of a weak but courageous hero, supported by a character that embodies wisdom, defeating a despicable villain focused exclusively on power, is what the ''Zelda'' series is all about. |
| 587 | -->'''Maiden:''' ...Our power will increase if we mix the courage of the knights with the wisdom of the sages!" |
| 588 | * {{Jerkass}}: Skull Kid before he found Majora's Mask (more so afterward). Mido remains a jerkass until he puts his jealousy of Link aside. Groose is the best example in ''Skyward Sword''. [[spoiler:He kidnaps Link's Loftwing at the beginning of the game and becomes both a friend and hero at the end.]] |
| 589 | * JustEatHim: Like-Likes don't seem to be able to keep Link down, and usually opt instead to strip him of his shield or clothes (or Rupees for some varieties). No idea why those would be more nutritional than Link. Originally, they only "ate magic", and devoured Link's Magic Shield because it was the only easily-accessible edible item. |
| 590 | * KarlMarxHatesYourGuts: Generally speaking, prices for certain items are the same in every store in each game. There are exceptions, though. |
| 591 | * KillEnemiesToOpen: Most of the games in the saga make use of this trope. Usually, the locks activate after you find an important treasure, or just before you get said treasure. |
| 592 | * LampshadeHanging: While other handheld Zelda games have done this, the [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass two]] [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks Nintendo DS]] games are most well known for doing this to extreme levels. They also enjoy LeaningOnTheFourthWall a bit. |
| 593 | * LateArrivalSpoiler: |
| 594 | ** Crosscheck with ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosMelee'' and ''Brawl'' -- Sheik is [[spoiler:actually Zelda]], and [[spoiler:Ganondorf is the ManBehindTheMan in ''Twilight Princess'']]. |
| 595 | ** Also, literally ''any'' game in any connection with ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker The Wind Waker]]'' (''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'', once again, counting) literally goes out of its way to make sure that everybody knows about [[spoiler:Tetra's heritage]]. |
| 596 | * LavaAddsAwesome: Any fire-base dungeon, especially volcano dungeons. Usually, you also have to fight burning bats and huge monsters that set themselves on fire. |
| 597 | * LegacyCharacter: Due to the sprawling (and branching) timeline of the series, Nintendo confirmed there are multiple Links and Zeldas. In the case of Zelda, this is simply because ''all'' princesses of Hyrule are named Zelda; Link is more of a wild card, and seems to appear by lucky happenstance (or, more likely, divine intervention). There's also a viable option presented by ''Skyward Sword'': Demise's curse means that Ganondorf will always be there to haunt Link and Zelda. So while there's always a Zelda, the fates don't allow Ganondorf to reappear until a new Link appears, which itself appears to be by chance. |
| 598 | * LegendaryWeapon: |
| 599 | ** [[SwordInTheStone The Master Sword]], aka "The Blade of Evil's Bane", is as legendary as the Triforce itself. It is inscribed in Hyrule's lore that evil ones cannot touch it, nor can anyone, save for the [[TheChosenOne Chosen Hero]], draw it from the Pedestal of Time. |
| 600 | ** The Four Sword is Link's most commonly-used weapon when the Master Sword isn't in play. It has a very different pedigree, but a similar level of power. |
| 601 | * TheLegendOfX: Zelda, named for the [[PrincessProtagonist princess]]. |
| 602 | * {{Leitmotif}}: Music is reused throughout the series. The most common examples: |
| 603 | ** The iconic series Main Theme, which eventually [[BootstrappedTheme became Link's leitmotif too]]. It's the only leitmotif that can be tracked down to the very first NES game. |
| 604 | ** ''Zelda's Theme'' (a.k.a ''Zelda's Lullaby''), for the titular princess. Its first appearance was in ''A Link to the Past'', but it was codified in ''Ocarina of Time'' (which is the reason why most fans refer to it by its alternative title). |
| 605 | ** The series' BigBad has his own: ''Ganon's Theme''. It was also created in ''A Link to the Past''. |
| 606 | ** ''Great Fairy Fountain'' is almost always used as the File Select theme and the fairy's leitmotif. And yep, appeared in ''A Link to the Past'' first too. |
| 607 | ** ''Kakariko Village''. It has had several arrangements, depending on the setting of the titular village. [[RunningGag Guess which game it first appeared in.]] |
| 608 | ** It is worth noting that many of the songs introduced in ''A Link to the Past'' didn't become true leitmotifs until ''Ocarina of Time''; ''Link's Awakening'' [[EarlyInstallmentWeirdness lacks many of these themes]], using entirely different songs for the File Select and Great Fairy Fountains. |
| 609 | ** ''Ocarina of Time'' also introduced the cozy ''Inside a House'' theme, which has recurred ever since. |
| 610 | * LethalJokeItem: |
| 611 | ** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'', the final Arena-style sword battle with Ganondorf can be made ridiculously easy by using your fishing rod as one of these. The fishing rod has no practical use in battle, since you normally use it only for fishing, but if you pull it out, Ganondorf will ''stand and stare at the line'' while you wave it around, completely oblivious to the fact that he ''should'' be fighting you. You then quickly whip out your sword and slash at him while he's caught unawares...rinse and repeat, because he never catches on. |
| 612 | ** There is also the curious property of bottles in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'', where you can swing them to [[TennisBoss reflect energy ball attacks in boss battles]]. These examples are in turn somewhat of a a CallBack to ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'', where you could deflect the dark wizard Agahnim's projectiles with the Master Sword...or the Butterfly Net, which was normally just used to catch insects and fairies in bottles. Later games had the bottles themselves do the catching and deflecting. |
| 613 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'' has two: the Shovel, which deflects Agahnim's Shadow's projectiles, and the Boomerang, which normally doesn't affect bosses, but ''takes down the final boss [[OneHitKill in one hit]]''. |
| 614 | ** Both ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames'' have the Whimsical Ring. It decreases your attack power... though each swing of your sword has a 1 in 256 chance of causing a OneHitKill, to which not even the final boss is immune. |
| 615 | ** In ''Seasons'', some Subrosians steal your Roc's Feather and leave you with an item called the Fool's Ore. All you can do with it is swing it like your sword, which does nothing. However, if you find an enemy to use it on, you can kill it in 1 hit. The only enemy, however, is the Fire Pokey (which you sometimes dig up), and you can't leave the area until you get the Roc's Feather back, which replaces the Fool's Ore. |
| 616 | ** Following this trend, in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'', the net you use for catching bugs will also distract [[spoiler:Demise]] during the first half of the battle, and not only does it deflect the projectiles he fires in the second half, ''it's the only way to do so'' -- your shield can only block them and trying to use your sword just gets yourself electrified. |
| 617 | * LethalLavaLand: Starting with ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'', this always overlaps with the eponymous DeathMountain trope. |
| 618 | * LevelMapDisplay: The world map can be viewed at any time via the menu screen. From Ocarina of Time onwards, a mini map display -- complete with arrows marking your point of entry (represented in blue) and your current heading (the yellow one) -- usually occupies the lower left corner of the screen for faster, easier navigation. |
| 619 | * LightIsGood: The Light Spirits, the Light Arrow, Rauru (the Sage of Light), and the Sols. |
| 620 | * LightLiegeDarkDefender: Zelda and Impa in their many incarnations. In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'', Princess Zelda's personal bodyguard is the ultra-serious and threatening Impa from the Sheikah clan, while Zelda herself is very cheerful and friendly. The same dynamic between Princess Zelda and Impa also takes place in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'', and was later [[PlanetOfCopyhats extended to the whole Sheikah tribe]] in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'', where they are a race of albino {{Ninja}}s who have worked in the shadows to create dangerous {{Magitek}} technology to help defend the Hylians. |
| 621 | * LimitedSoundEffects: There are only three sounds your sword makes when it hits something, but more than three materials. |
| 622 | * LivingStructureMonster: |
| 623 | ** Several games contain enemies called [[https://zelda.gamepedia.com/Flying_Tile Flying Tiles]]. From a distance they're just ordinary floor tiles, but as you approach they levitate up, start spinning, then hurl themselves at you. |
| 624 | ** There's a miniboss in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames Oracle of Seasons]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening Link's Awakening]]'' (Facade), a giant face who appears in the floor and is killed with bombs. |
| 625 | * LoadsAndLoadsOfSidequests: Most entries in the series feature several sidequests ranging from simple {{Collection Sidequest}}s to potentially massive {{Fetch Quest}}s, but three entries in the series stand out: |
| 626 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'' is rather known for the huge amount of {{Sidequest Sidestor|y}}ies it features. Fortunately, this is the first game in the series to include a daily planner (the Bomber's Notebook) to help keep track of them all. |
| 627 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'' has lots of extra content besides the usual ones. These include completely optional islands with their own puzzles and enemy matches, treasure charts to find sunken treasure, and the notoriously long Nintendo Gallery. Even just [[CartographySidequest filling the Great Sea's map]] can take a while. |
| 628 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' has a quest log right from the beginning. Considering the [[spoiler:120]] shrines, [[spoiler:900]] Korok seeds, the Hyrule Compendium, and all of the other things the game throws at you, it's pretty safe to say it was needed. |
| 629 | * LoveInterests: Although it's implied that Link ends up with Zelda at the end of some games, along the way, Link often meets other girls with whom he has chemistry with as well. ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'' has at least ''three'' different girls who qualify, and [[ChickMagnet that's only counting the ones roughly his age]] |
| 630 | [[/folder]] |
| 631 | |
| 632 | [[folder:M-O]] |
| 633 | * MacGuffin: The Triforce [[ZigZaggedTrope Zig Zags]] in this category throughout the series. In the first three games it definitely qualifies, while in games like ''Ocarina of Time'', ''The Wind Waker'', or ''Skyward Sword'', it affects the plot more deeply. |
| 634 | * MagicIsFeminine: While mages of both sexes appear throughout the games, Link and Zelda's dynamic has always been that of a MasterSwordsman[=/=]MultiMeleeMaster (who fights with some magic) who saves a princess who possesses light magic of divine in nature. ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' reveals that Zelda and Link are the reincarnations of the goddess Hylia and her chosen hero respectively, explaining why this dynamic recurs throughout the centuries. |
| 635 | * MagicMap: In dungeons Link finds maps of them that reveal rooms he's been in and when paired with the compass reveal all the dungeon's treasures as well. |
| 636 | * MagicMusic: Excluding ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass Phantom Hourglass]]'', some form of this trope has appeared in every Zelda game so far. |
| 637 | * MagicPotion: The series has traditionally included a number of potions buyable from certain shops. You need at least one empty bottle to buy one, and can then story it indefinitely until you want to use it. The common types are the red potion, which heals you; the green potion, which refills either you magic meter or stamina bar; and the blue potion, which does both things at once. Less common variants include purple and yellow potions. In ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass Phantom Hourglass]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks Spirit Tracks]]'', they're stronger healing potions; in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds A Link Between Worlds]]'', the purple kind creates an attack that damages all enemies in your vicinity and the yellow kind turns you invincible. |
| 638 | * MagicWand: Many, including the Rods of Ice and Fire and the Staves of Byrna and Somaria in ''A Link To the Past'', the Rod of Seasons in ''Oracle of Seasons'', the Wind Waker, and the Dominion Rod in ''Twilight Princess''. |
| 639 | * MaidAndMaiden: Fulfills the imagery with Impa as The Maid and Zelda as The Maiden. In some incarnations, Impa totally fulfills the stereotype by being much older and portly and is officially Zelda's attendant. In other versions, she's a NinjaMaid since the series is in the Action Adventure Genre. The romantic element, if any, is only hinted at here. |
| 640 | * MalevolentArchitecture: For some reason, almost all of Hyrule's "temples" are labyrinthine deathtrap and monster repositories. Occasionally [[JustifiedTrope justified]] with the temples either being tests of courage for the Hero set out by various goddesses, [[SealedEvilInACan prisons for evil spirits]] or simply corrupted by evil power. |
| 641 | * ManaPotion: In games that use magic, enemies often drop bottles that restore the ManaMeter. Some games also let you carry potions in bottles. |
| 642 | * TheManBehindTheMonsters: In most games, that honor goes to BigBad Gannon, who either creates them, unleashes them on an unsuspecting world, or both. |
| 643 | * MarathonLevel: The Palace of Winds in ''The Minish Cap''. |
| 644 | ** ''Twilight Princess''[='=]s City in the Sky. |
| 645 | ** The Cave of Ordeals from ''Twilight Princess''. Getting to the bottom means trudging through 50 levels of enemies with limited health and item refills. Fortunately, every tenth floor is a Great Fairy Fountain. And there's an EasterEgg for beating it ''twice''. Completing it multiple times is the only way to hold more than one bottle of Great Fairy's Tears, too. |
| 646 | ** Vaati's Palace from ''Four Swords''. |
| 647 | * TheMaze: TheLostWoods overlap with this, in every incarnation. |
| 648 | * MeaningfulName: Link got his original name as a nod to him being an avatar connecting the player with the games' universe. The word ''"links"'' is also translated as ''"left"'' in German and Dutch, referencing Link's trademark left-handedness. |
| 649 | * MedievalEuropeanFantasy: The main setting of the series, although with noticeable Greek and Eastern influences. ''Link's Awakening'', ''Wind Waker'' and ''Phantom Hourglass'' avert it, however, having more modern Pacific/Caribbean-style tropical island settings. |
| 650 | * MedievalStasis: With occasional SchizoTech. Wild mass guessing ensued. |
| 651 | * MiniBoss: A staple since ''Link's Awakening'', with mini-bosses usually featuring halfway through dungeons as the last obstacle to the new item earned within. In most games, the mini-bosses are closer to regular tough enemies that are seen elsewhere, but ''Majora's Mask'' has three mini-boss types that all come closer to full boss fights, and ''Twilight Princess'' features a unique, developed mini-boss encounter for almost every dungeon. |
| 652 | * MiniDungeon: Almost all games since ''Link's Awakening'' have one or two each. ''Majora's Mask'' has more of them to make up for the lower amount of main dungeons. |
| 653 | * MissingMom: Even in the games where Zelda's father is present, she never ever has a mother (at least not one who is still alive). |
| 654 | * MistakenForGranite: Armos enemies usually appear as inanimate statues before springing to life when approached. Some decayed Guardians in ''Breath of the Wild'' also do this, appearing to be inanimate legless husks like the many scattered around the map, but waking up when approached. Some fully-functional legged Guardians even pose as Decayed Guardians. |
| 655 | %% Moments of Awesome belong on Awesome/TheLegendOfZelda |
| 656 | * MoneyForNothing: All too common in early installments, the player could amass far too much money very early on in the game and have nothing to spend it on later. First ''attempted'' a fix in ''Link's Awakening'', with the Bow (costing a whopping 900 Rupees), but properly dealt with in ''A Link Between Worlds'', where money is necessary to rent items that, in previous games, would have been in dungeon chests instead. |
| 657 | * MoneySpider: Enemies don't ''always'' drop currency, but fighting monsters is a pretty reliable way to get some. |
| 658 | * MookBouncer: The Wallmasters aren't just a type of AmbushingEnemy; they also tend to place Link back at the entrance of a dungeon. |
| 659 | * MooksAteMyEquipment: Like-Likes cam swallow Link and take his shield or special tunics or other items, depending on the game. |
| 660 | * MultipleChoicePast: |
| 661 | ** The Master Sword. The manual for ''A Link to the Past'' says it was forged by the people of Hyrule. Princess Zelda in ''Twilight Princess'' says the Master Sword was forged by the ancient sages. ''Skyward Sword'' [[spoiler:has that game's Link forge the Goddess Sword into the Master Sword himself]]. |
| 662 | ** The Triforce was said to have disappeared into the Golden Realm shortly after Hyrule was created (''[=ALTTP=]''). Or that it was hidden away there (''[=OoT=]''). Or, even, that there were only two pieces (''Zelda 1''). [[spoiler:It was hidden in [[VideoGame/TheLegendofZeldaSkywardSword Skyloft]], a place shrouded in legend on the surface world. Among the myths is that the streets are paved in gold.]] |
| 663 | ** The end of ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' ends with the implication that Link and Zelda will stay on the surface to establish the Kingdom of Hyrule together. In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTearsOfTheKingdom'', the Zonai king Rauru is introduced as the co-founder of Hyrule with Queen Sonia. Hidemaro Fujibayashi, who directed both games, has mentioned the possibility of Rauru and Sonia ''re''founding Hyrule after the original was destroyed. |
| 664 | * MultiStageBattle: The series has this with ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'' (the final battle with [[spoiler:Ganondorf]]) and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'' (battles with Zant and [[spoiler:Ganondorf]]). |
| 665 | * MundaneMacGuffinPerson: Princess Zelda, most notably in the original ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI Legend of Zelda]]''. She is usually [[BarrierMaiden the key]] to saving the world and is kidnapped by the BigBad in order to give him whatever power he needs for the game's plot. Traditionally, this is her segment of the Triforce, but not always. Zelda herself lampshades this in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks'', saying that being a distressed damsel is a family tradition. |
| 666 | * MundaneUtility: Apart from being an ancient, powerful holy weapon forged by the gods/sages/[[spoiler:Link]]/people of Hyrule, the Master Sword is also an excellent lawn-mower. (''BoTW'' does ask you not to do so, however.) |
| 667 | * NamedAfterFirstInstallment: The first game was simply titled ''Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaI''.[[note]]Except for Japan, where ''The Legend of Zelda'' was a subtitle and the full title was ''Hyrule Fantasy: The Legend of Zelda''[[/note]] The second game, ''Videogame/ZeldaIITheAdventureOfLink'', included ''Zelda'' in the title, but using ''The Legend of Zelda'' as the series title was firmly established beginning with ''Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast''. |
| 668 | * NamedAfterSomebodyFamous: |
| 669 | ** Miyamoto says the titular princess is named after Creator/FScottFitzgerald's wife. |
| 670 | ** Zelda Williams, daughter of Creator/RobinWilliams, was named after Princess Zelda and appears in commercials for ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]] 3D''. |
| 671 | * NamedByTheDub: |
| 672 | ** An ''accidental'' version happened in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask''. The translator mistook the context of the carpenter Bremor saying "tetsuya" (meaning a long, sleepless night) and thought it was the name of the carpenter nagging him (Tetsuya is indeed a common Japanese name) resulting in Bremor complaining about his co-worker "Brac". The name Brac would eventually be removed from later releases of the game. |
| 673 | ** The BigBad of ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' and the franchise's overall GreaterScopeVillain was originally not ''named'' Demise but was rather titled the ''Being'' of Demise. |
| 674 | * NaturalSpotlight: The Master Sword tends to be highlighted by beams of light wherever it is placed to rest. |
| 675 | * NeverTrustATitle: Perhaps one of the most famous in gaming; Princess Zelda is ''not'' the main character in any of the mainline games -- that honor always goes to Link, who is always a boy. Some games aren't even ''about'' Zelda, and she ends up [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask making a brief cameo]] or [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening not appearing at all]] in a game franchise that's named after her. |
| 676 | * NewWeaponTargetRange: In multiple games, you get a new item only to be locked into a room where you [[AbilityRequiredToProceed have to use the new item and learn its mechanics to get out]]. |
| 677 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' |
| 678 | *** The FirstTown is a plateau that the player can't get off until they unlock the glider, by completing several Shrines (effectively self contained puzzle rooms). Each shrine grants the player a new ability for their [[MagicalComputer Sheikah slate]] and is solved only using that ability. |
| 679 | *** To proceed at this point, the player has to use the orbs they unlocked from these shrines to buy a heart or stamina upgrade from a nearby shrine (teaching the player the mechanic that rewards them for finding and completing shrines). |
| 680 | *** Upon unlocking the glider, the player must glide down from a rooftop. |
| 681 | *** The rest of the game downplays the trope significantly compared to the first few hours and the rest of the series; every item is available from the start (since it's a WideOpenSandbox), but side quests and main quests where they're needed [[SuspiciousVideogameGenerosity usually give them a ready source of the item in question]] (e.g. shock arrows in Zora's domain). |
| 682 | ** Getting the Master Sword in ''Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'' causes the time stop on Hyrule Castle to be undone, allowing the powerful enemies frozen within to roam free. This gives players a quick chance to use their new weapon. |
| 683 | ** ''Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'': Once you get the Spinner in the sixth dungeon, the door locks, and you need to use the spinner to navigate the grooves in the walls allowing you to reach the exit. |
| 684 | |
| 685 | %% Nightmare Fuel belongs in NightmareFuel/TheLegendOfZelda |
| 686 | * NiceJobBreakingItHero: It happens so often through the series that one wonders if Ganon didn't plan it from the beginning. |
| 687 | ** [[spoiler:In ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'', Ganon reaches the Temple of Time because Link left the door open while time traveling.]] Oooops. |
| 688 | ** [[spoiler:The hordes of evil are unleashed from their seal when Link retrieves the Master Sword in the submerged Hyrule Castle in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker The Wind Waker]]''.]] Crap. |
| 689 | ** [[spoiler:Vaati in ''The Minish Cap'' ends up finding the Elemental Sanctuary because Link visited it several times to infuse the Minish Sword with the power of the elements.]] Goddamnit. |
| 690 | * {{Ninja}}: The Sheikah, the Yiga, and the Garo. |
| 691 | * NoHeroDiscount: You can save the world as long as you have enough Rupees. |
| 692 | * NoHuggingNoKissing: In (almost) every game, Link and Zelda never express romance, though there's an undercurrent in several games. However, this is averted to various degrees in ''Skyward Sword'', ''Breath of the Wild'', and most famously the ending of ''Zelda II'', where Zelda and Link kiss behind a curtain. |
| 693 | * NonLinearSequel: Half, maybe two-thirds of the time. Part of why the timeline is such a mess. |
| 694 | * NonStandardGameOver: Occurs in ''Majora's Mask'', ''Spirit Tracks'', ''Skyward Sword'', and ''The Minish Cap'' with special game over scenes. |
| 695 | * NoticeThis: Important items nearby may make Link look in their direction as he passes by. Or an arrow showing that the object can be targeted will appear above it. |
| 696 | * OddNameOut: ''Zelda II: The Adventure of Link'' is the only entry in the main series to not have ''The Legend of Zelda'' in its title. It's also the only numbered title in the series (outside Japan, where ''A Link Between Worlds'' is titled ''Triforce of the Gods 2''). |
| 697 | * OddballInTheSeries: ''Zelda II'', ''Link's Awakening'', ''Majora's Mask'', and ''Four Swords Adventures'', all to various degrees. |
| 698 | * OminousFog: ''Phantom Hourglass'' has it around the Ghost Ship. |
| 699 | * OneGenderRace: |
| 700 | ** The Gerudo (most prominent in ''Ocarina of Time'') are ''almost'' all female. One man is born to the race every hundred years, and the only known male Gerudo in the whole series is Ganondorf. It's implied by a Gossip Stone in ''Ocarina'' (and outright stated in ''Breath of the Wild'') that the Gerudo mate with Hylians. |
| 701 | ** It also appears as though all Gorons are male. Every Goron is referred to as a "brother" by each other and so far, no definitely female Gorons have come forth. However, a Goron freely wanders the otherwise females-only Gerudo Town in ''Breath of the Wild'' without explanation. |
| 702 | * OneHeadTaller: [[GenderInvertedTrope Gender inverted]]; Zelda is often depicted as being a bit taller than Link. |
| 703 | * OneWingedAngel: Often Ganondorf, who turns into Ganon for the final battle. Even when his human form is the FinalBoss, he still does turn into Ganon at one point. |
| 704 | * OnlyGoodPeopleMayPass: |
| 705 | ** ''Videogame/ZeldaIITheAdventureOfLink'': The Great Palace (the final dungeon of the game) houses the Triforce of Courage--and true to the item's name, the Temple's barrier will not open unless the entrant has placed eight jewels in the other temples as proof of their courage. The final challenge, before the person can claim the Triforce itself, is to fight [[EnemyWithout the evil within them]]. |
| 706 | ** ''Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'': The entrance to the Sacred Realm (also known as the Golden Land) where the [[CosmicKeystone Triforce]] dwells is hidden and requires four sacred objects (the Kokiri Emerald, Goron Ruby, Zora Sapphire and Ocarina of Time) that are each protected by the various nations that populate Hyrule. Only possessing all four and then playing the Song of Time in the Temple of Time will reveal the hidden entrance, but this is technically possible if the items are stolen through nefarious means. The ''final'' test, however, [[OnlyTheChosenMayWield is pulling out the Master Sword]], which can't be touched by someone evil. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, there's nothing stopping someone evil from [[UnwittingPawn waiting for a good person to do all that]], and then step inside and enter the Sacred Realm themselves]]. |
| 707 | ** ''Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'': At the conclusion of ''Ocarina of Time'', the previous ChosenOne that wielded the Master Sword was sent back to his original time, thus breaking the cycle of reincarnation which spawns a new Chosen One. The Tower of the Gods was created to test anyone who wanted to wield the sword in the future, and it requires three pearls that embody the virtues of the goddesses themselves to unlock it. |
| 708 | * OnlyTheChosenMayWield: Although the methods for testing the wielder's worth are different each time, only the appointed hero can use the Master Sword. |
| 709 | * OurFairiesAreDifferent: |
| 710 | ** Their appearance varies between games. Generally speaking, they're depicted as female {{winged humanoid}}s in the top-down games (and ''The Wind Waker''), while they're depicted as winged orbs of light starting with ''Ocarina of Time'' and continuing into the other 3D games. ''A Link Between Worlds'' and the ''Link's Awakening'' remake [[TakeAThirdOption use both]]: they're glowing orbs when in a bottle and humanoid otherwise. |
| 711 | ** The Great Fairies vary even more. They're usually depicted as floating, humanoid women, but even their size can vary depending on the game, such as the massive ''Ocarina of Time'' and ''Majora's Mask'' fairies compared to the ''Twilight Princess'' fairies, who stand around Link's height. The ones in ''The Wind Waker'' have four arms and only vaguely resemble humans. |
| 712 | * OurHumansAreDifferent: |
| 713 | ** Most games treat Hylians -- Link and Zelda's kind, and the setting's "main" race -- as a HumanSubspecies. They're known for their long, elfish ears and their ability to "hear the gods" better than round-eared humans. Other than those differences, however, they're usually interchangable with non-Hylian, round-eared humans. There aren't any physical or social differences and they interbreed just fine. |
| 714 | ** Two of the franchise's other recurring races, the Sheikah and the Gerudo, also strongly resemble pointy-eared humans, and their exact relationship with each other, humans and Hylians is never explained. They're effectively human in most respects, with the main differences being that the Sheikah are rather LongLived and have red eyes and MysticalWhiteHair, while the Gerudo are all women -- a male is born among them only every century or so, and they normally have children by coupling with Hylians. |
| 715 | * OurMonstersAreWeird: The four biggest examples are the Like Likes, Pols Voices, Octorocks, and Digdogger. |
| 716 | %% * OurOrcsAreDifferent: Moblins. |
| 717 | %% ** The Bulblins in ''Twilight Princess'' are a straighter example. |
| 718 | * OverheadInteractionIndicator: In multiple games, Link can interact with characters with a downward arrow overhead. |
| 719 | ** In both ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'', the arrow turns blue for {{NPC}}s and green for certain objects such as signs. |
| 720 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'' and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'' has yellowish downwards arrows. |
| 721 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' has a white arrow that turns orange when locked on. |
| 722 | * TheOverworld: |
| 723 | ** Hyrule Field in ''Ocarina of Time'' is possibly the TropeMaker for the Adventure-style overworld. |
| 724 | ** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'' it is The Great Sea, an interesting take on the concept being that you have to traverse by boat. There are small islands that have nuances you can explore, but it's mostly just open seas. |
| 725 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'' features the largest, most detailed overworld of any Zelda game until ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild''; featuring varied terrain, scores of enemies, and secret grottos. In fact, it was so massive that the game gives you Epona early on; otherwise, getting around could take awhile... |
| 726 | ** In ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' it's the Sky, which you have to traverse by giant bird. Similar to ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'', there are small ''floating'' islands strewn out among the clouds. |
| 727 | [[/folder]] |
| 728 | |
| 729 | [[folder:P-R]] |
| 730 | * ThePaladin: [[https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/zelda/images/6/69/Christianity.png/revision/latest?cb=20100206235403 Official Nintendo artwork]] shows [[TheHero Link]] kneeling before a crucifix of Jesus Christ. The first two games in the Legend of Zelda franchise [[AmbiguouslyChristian directly portray Hyrule as a Christian land]], and [[https://zelda.fandom.com/wiki/Christianity Link as a Christian warrior]]. He has both an [[https://web.archive.org/web/20190505052056/https://server.emulator.games/images/nintendo-famicom-disk-system/Link%20no%20Bouken%20-%20The%20Legend%20of%20Zelda%202%20(Japan)%20(Rev%201).jpg obvious crucifix emblazoned on his shield]], and a Bible in his inventory ([[{{Bowdlerize}} which was localized in the West]] as a [[JesusTaboo "Book of Magic"]]). Later games changed Hylian religion [[CrystalDragonJesus to an utterly fanciful one]] with multiple ''goddesses'', but the overtones remain: Link is a warrior who was chosen by the goddesses to [[LegacyCharacter reincarnate]] continually to protect [[TheGoodKingdom the Kingdom of Hyrule]] from the ongoing curse of an evil demon. He is utterly pure of heart, and wields the Master Sword: a holy weapon specifically forged by the goddesses to destroy evil. |
| 731 | * ParentalAbandonment: Has anyone ''ever'' seen Link's parents or Zelda's mother? In ''A Link to the Past'', ''The Wind Waker'', and ''The Minish Cap'', Link is raised by other relatives. In ''Ocarina of Time'', it's revealed that both of Link's parents died during a great war. Link's father presumably died in battle (the game never says what happened to him), and his mother was killed while trying to hide Link in the Kokiri Woods. In ''Twilight Princess'', Link lives in a small village with several families, but he has his own house and no one claims him as a relative. In ''Skyward Sword'', Link is in the same situation, inhabiting a dorm room in the Skyloft Knights academy, but he's not alone; all of the other students are also missing their parents, except for Pipit's mother and Zelda's father. ''A Link Between Worlds'' again gives him his own house and an apprenticeship with the local blacksmith, but any family is nowhere to be found. |
| 732 | * PersonalSpaceInvader: [=ReDeads=] and Like-Likes, quite infamous among the fandom. |
| 733 | * PeterPanParody: Miyamoto confirms that Link's iconic green tunic and elf ears is a send-up to Peter Pan. This is further emphasized by later games giving him a FairyCompanion, and the introduction of Dark Link is more than likely inspired by Peter's troubles with his own shadow. |
| 734 | * PickupHierarchy: |
| 735 | ** '''Primary''': Spiritual Stones, Medallions, Triforce Pieces, Boss Remains, Pearls, Fused Shadows, pieces of the Mirror of Twilight, Servant Spirits, Pure Metals, Force Gems, Essences, Siren Instruments; and that's before most weapons/items... |
| 736 | ** '''Secondary''': Heart Pieces, Gold Skulltulas, Stray Fairies, Bunnies, Stamps, Poe Souls, Ship/Train Parts, Secret Seashells, various capacity upgrades... |
| 737 | ** '''Tertiary''': Bombs, Arrows, Rupees, Seeds, and so on... |
| 738 | ** '''Extra''': [[InfinityPlusOneSword Biggoron's Sword and its ilk]]. It's safe to say there's a lot of stuff to collect in every Zelda game you play. |
| 739 | * PimpedOutDress: Zelda has had those since at least the second game, and her standard dress since ''Ocarina''. Occasionally combined with BattleBallgown in some of the newer games. |
| 740 | * PinballSpinoff: Averted; a ''Zelda'' [[PhysicalPinballTables arcade pinball game]] was planned, but Creator/{{Gottlieb}} could not secure the rights. It was eventually released as ''Pinball/{{Gladiators}}'' instead. |
| 741 | * PintsizedPowerhouse: The Cuccos; hit one too much and its friends will peck your hearts out. |
| 742 | * PlagueDoctor: The Wizzrobes occasionally sport a similar outfit, particularly in ''The Wind Waker''. |
| 743 | * PlatonicLifePartners: Between Link and Zelda. It has been shown in many games, most notably in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap''. |
| 744 | * PlotCoupon: Every game in the franchise uses it. |
| 745 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda'': Eight Pieces of the Triforce. |
| 746 | ** ''Adventure of Link'': The Six Crystals, or rather the six statues to put the crystals in (you have the crystals at the outset). |
| 747 | ** ''A Link to the Past'': Three Pendants of Virtue first, then the Seven Crystals/Maidens. |
| 748 | ** ''Link's Awakening'': Eight Instruments of the Sirens. |
| 749 | ** ''Ocarina of Time'': Three Spiritual Stones followed by the Six Medallions ([[FreeSamplePlotCoupon you get Rauru's medallion free when you draw the Master Sword for the first time]]). |
| 750 | ** ''Majora's Mask'': Four Mask Remains. |
| 751 | ** ''Oracle of Seasons/Ages'': Eight Essences of Nature/Time. |
| 752 | ** ''The Wind Waker'': Three Goddess Pearls, then the Two Sages, and finally the Eight Pieces of the Triforce. |
| 753 | ** ''Four Swords Adventures'': Six Shrine Maidens, then Zelda; at the same time, four sacred Jewels. |
| 754 | ** ''The Minish Cap'': Four Elements, the same jewels as above. |
| 755 | ** ''Twilight Princess'': Three Fused Shadows, then the Four Mirror Fragments (the first of which is already in the proper place when you find it). |
| 756 | ** ''Phantom Hourglass'': Three Spirits, then the Three Pure Metals. |
| 757 | ** ''Spirit Tracks'': Four Force Gems (or, more precisely, the energy from them, which reattaches the broken segments of the Tower of Spirits) and the four glyphs to find them, followed by the Bow of Light, and then the Compass of Light. |
| 758 | ** ''Skyward Sword'': Two surface maps (there are three in total, but [[FreeSamplePlotCoupon one is given for free]]), then the three flames (and accompanying harp songs), then the four parts of the Song of the Hero, and finally [[spoiler:the three pieces of the Triforce]]. |
| 759 | ** ''A Link Between Worlds'': Three Pendants of Virtue ([[FreeSamplePlotCoupon although Zelda gives you the Pendant of Courage before you even know you need them]], and, yes, these are the same pendants from ''A Link to the Past''), then seven paintings containing the Seven Sages. |
| 760 | ** ''Breath of the Wild'' shakes this up, as the player will only really need the Paraglider to get off the Great Plateau--the four Divine Beasts and Master Sword are optional. |
| 761 | ** ''Tears of the Kingdom'' has the Secret Stones, of which there are seven. In a twist, it isn't Link who is receiving them, but the Sages themselves. What Link receives is the Sage Vows, which represent the bond between him and the Sages and [[PlotCouponThatDoesSomething allow him to summon avatars based on them]] (serving as the game's equivalents of the Champions' Powers in ''Breath of the Wild''). |
| 762 | * PlayerDeathIsDramatic: This series is the TropeCodifier, as almost every game takes dying seriously in some form. See the trope page for more details. |
| 763 | * PlayingCardMotifs: Meta example. The internal codename for ''Ocarina of Time 3D'' is "Queen", ''Wind Waker HD'' and ''Breath of the Wild'' are both "King", ''A Link Between Worlds'' is "Jack", and ''Majora's Mask 3D'' is "Joker". And ''Tri-Force Heroes'' is [[Literature/AlicesAdventuresInWonderland "Alice"]], referring to the source material's playing card motifs. |
| 764 | * PlotTailoredToTheParty: Many of the items in the games have to have certain markings or items in the wall to be useful, or are most useful when used on said markings or items. This is most pronounced in ''Twilight Princess'', in which several items are either completely useless (such as the Dominion Rod) or so badly outclassed by other gear so as to be practically useless (such as the Spinner) outside of the specific places where you need to use them. There's also one example of an item that becomes completely useless when you get another item that fills the same role, but better (namely the Slingshot being supplanted by the Hero's Bow). |
| 765 | * PlotTumor: The Master Sword didn't even appear until ''A Link to the Past'' when you needed it to battle Agahnim, but it was emphasized even then that it only repelled his magic, it couldn't actually harm his body. To defeat Ganon, you had to strike him with the Master Sword to stun him, then shoot him with a Silver Arrow. And you could even have blacksmiths temper the sword to power it up. Ever since ''Ocarina of Time'', though, the Master Sword is a CosmicKeystone that is just as important as the Triforce to the cosmology and fate of Hyrule, its usage determining the fate of entire dimensions, races, and the space-time continuum. It's the only weapon that can harm Ganon(dorf), and if you're looking at powering it up, it's going to take divine intervention. ''Breath of the Wild'' averts this, as the Master Sword is completely optional, and the final form of Ganon can only be defeated by the Light Arrows granted within that sequence. |
| 766 | * PointyEars: Many species in the game, such as Hylians, ''Breath of the Wild''[='s=] Gerudo, and Sheikah, have them. They also serve to mark the difference between Hylians and regular humans. |
| 767 | * PowerFloats: Many instances throughout the series, from {{mooks}} to bosses. The Triforce itself hovers over its pedestal, turning slowly. |
| 768 | * PowerUpMagnet: One of the abilities of the hookshot and boomerang. |
| 769 | * PowerupMount: Riding Epona allows the player to jump over fences. |
| 770 | * {{Precursors}}: The series is a fan of this trope. Enemies like the Armos and Beamos (any robotic enemy, really) are leftovers from a more advanced group, one example being the Minish. |
| 771 | * {{Prequel}}: By [[AllThereInTheManual Hyrule Historia's]] reckoning, ''A Link to the Past'', ''Ocarina of Time'', ''Four Swords'', ''The Minish Cap'', and ''Skyward Sword'' each go successively further back into the original game's past. |
| 772 | * PrimeTimeline: The Adult Timeline, debuting in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'', is the original setting of the franchise, with the Child and Fallen Hero Timelines being created through time travel and one version of Link dying against Ganon, respectively. |
| 773 | * PrisonEpisode: Prison settings are presented in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker The Wind Waker]], [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]], [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]],'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast A Link to the Past]]''. |
| 774 | * ProlongedVideoGameSequel: At least three ''The Legend Of Zelda'' games were designed with this trope in mind: |
| 775 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'' has a longer main quest than the first two games, which is reflected in the presence of ''two'' overworlds, between which Link can explore up to 12 dungeons, the highest number of any ''Zelda'' game. It also features more sidequests (which, to be fair, were barely present at all in the previous titles), as well as more overworld activity. |
| 776 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'' has the same amount of dungeons as ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'' (nine), but the main quest is overall longer due to the exploration of the Twilight segments, the horse track battles, bigger landscapes, and other factors. |
| 777 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' is larger than all the other previous ''Zelda'' titles ''combined''. While it only has five dungeons, the world is enormous to the point that the [[NoobCave starting area]] is as large as the ''Twilight Princess'' map, and there are tons of sidequests, over a hundred mini-dungeons and an endless list of collectibles. The following [=DLCs=] added even more content. |
| 778 | * PuzzlePan: Used occasionally for some bigger puzzles. |
| 779 | * PuzzleReset: Some puzzles have time limits, and will reset if not completed. Also, incomplete puzzles often reset when you leave the area to let you start over. |
| 780 | * PyroManiac: Bombs are one of Link's all-time favorite problem-solvers. In the first game, he also started several forest fires. |
| 781 | --> IF ALL ELSE FAILS USE FIRE |
| 782 | ** Lampshaded towards the beginning of ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]''. |
| 783 | * RainbowSpeak: Most plot-important items or events are highlighted, occasionally color-coding them based on important aspects (for example, "Link" shown in green, "Zelda" shown in blue, and "Ganon" shown in red). |
| 784 | * RateLimitedPerpetualResource: Resources in the franchise are often carried in Empty Bottles, of which each game has a limited number to find. Many powerful {{Healing Potion}}s and the like are free, but only found in out-of-the-way places that must be revisited each time the player wants to refill a bottle. |
| 785 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'': |
| 786 | *** If the player has an abundance of elemental arrows then the shops won't stock more until the player runs low. However, normal arrows are almost always available for purchase regardless of player amount, and more elemental arrows can be acquired at any time from enemies carrying them. |
| 787 | *** Healing fairies will stop spawning if the player has more than 5 in their inventory. They can partially circumvent this by holding some of the fairies in hand. |
| 788 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'': Healing fairies can always be obtained at fairy fountains in various locations around the world, but the number you can take with you into a dungeon is limited by the number of bottles you have found, the maximum possible being four. |
| 789 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'': After reaching the Great Fairy in the [[BrutalBonusLevel Cave of Ordeals]], respawning fairies can be found in fountains to be bottled for use. 1 fairy per bottle. The Great Fairy will also grant you her Tears, which act as a HealingPotion that gives a FullHealthBonus, and also must be bottled. |
| 790 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'': The Elixir Soup fully refills Link's [[HealingPotion health]] and [[ManaPotion magic]], and also [[FullHealthBonus makes him more powerful]] until he gets hit again. Two helpings fit in a bottle, but Link's grandma, who lives in the FirstTown on an island in the corner of the map, will only give him a refill if he doesn't already have at least one helping. |
| 791 | * RecurringElement: The "Link" and "Zelda" characters are, excepting for the direct sequels, different people in each game (they just happen to look exactly alike and wear the same clothes and have the same name). ''The Adventure of Link'' explains the multiple Zeldas as tribute to an ancient Zelda whose brother trapped her with a sleeping spell. |
| 792 | * RecurringRiff: |
| 793 | ** The main motif and overworld theme of the first Zelda game can be heard in numerous songs throughout the series. |
| 794 | ** The dungeon theme of the first ''Zelda'' is a lot less recurring, but it still notably pops in up a couple of later games. |
| 795 | ** The "Puzzle Solved" and "Major Item Found" jingles have been present in every single game from the very first one onward. |
| 796 | * RedshirtArmy: The entire Hyrulean army. It's a wonder that they still bother. |
| 797 | * {{Reincarnation}}: Appears several times. |
| 798 | ** Link and Zelda are constantly reincarnated to defy Ganon. |
| 799 | ** In ''Spirit Tracks'', the Lokomo [[AscendedToAHigherPlaneOfExistence ascend to a higher plane]] at the end of the game and say they will return in a new form without memories of their previous life. |
| 800 | ** In ''Skyward Sword'', [[spoiler:the goddess Hylia is reborn as that game's Zelda]]. |
| 801 | * {{Retcon}}: ''The Legend of Zelda Encyclopedia'' published alongside ''Breath of the Wild'' retconned certain things stated by ''Hyrule Historia'', such as shifting ''Link's Awakening''[='=]s place on the Downfall timeline, and stating that [[spoiler:Demise's curse in ''Skyward Sword'' did not start Ganondorf's cycle of reincarnation, but that Ganon himself was responsible through his own hatred and power]]. |
| 802 | * TheReveal: Ever since ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast A Link to the Past]]'', almost every game has had at least one of these, ranging from "oh, that's pretty interesting" to ''' "HOLY CRAP, DID THAT JUST HAPPEN?!"''' |
| 803 | ** ''A Link to the Past'': [[spoiler:Agahnim is actually Ganon's alter ego.]] |
| 804 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening Link's Awakening]]'': [[spoiler:The whole game is the product of the Wind Fish dreaming; defeating the Nightmares will result in the Wind Fish waking and, thus, the disappearance of Koholint Island.]] |
| 805 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'': [[spoiler:Sheik is Zelda, and Ganondorf only obtained ''part'' of the Triforce.]] |
| 806 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]'' : [[spoiler:Skull Kid was the "human" puppet of the titular mask.]] |
| 807 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames Oracle of Ages/Seasons]]'': [[spoiler:The evil plans of the villains in both games were part of a plot to resurrect Ganon.]] |
| 808 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker The Wind Waker]]'': [[spoiler:The King of Red Lions is King Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule, and Tetra is Zelda.]] |
| 809 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwordsAdventures Four Swords Adventures]]'': [[spoiler:Ganon had been manipulating Vaati behind the scenes.]] |
| 810 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap The Minish Cap]]'': [[spoiler:Ezlo was Vaati's mentor before Vaati turned him into a hat, Vaati was originally a Minish, and the Light Force is within Princess Zelda.]] |
| 811 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'': [[spoiler:Ganondorf gave Zant his powers, and Midna is the Twilight Princess.]] |
| 812 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass Phantom Hourglass]]'': [[spoiler:Oshus is the Ocean King.]] |
| 813 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks Spirit Tracks]]'': [[spoiler:Byrne used to be a Lokomo.]] |
| 814 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'': [[spoiler:Zelda herself is the goddess Hylia in human form, [[BigBad Ghirahim]] is the EvilCounterpart to Fi, [[GreaterScopeVillain Demise]] creates Ganon as the reincarnation of himself and his hatred, and the Old Woman at the Sealed Temple is actually Impa.]] |
| 815 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds A Link Between Worlds]]'': [[spoiler:Lorule used to have a Triforce before its people destroyed it to prevent further bloodshed (which ultimately sent the kingdom on a downward spiral to ruin), Hilda sent Yuga and manipulated Link in order to obtain Hyrule's Triforce to save Lorule, and Ravio is Lorule's equivalent of Link.]] |
| 816 | * RewardingVandalism: |
| 817 | ** Such a perennial favorite that it is a minor shock when someone calls you out for destroying scenery for your own benefit: |
| 818 | --->'''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Lumpy Pumpkin]] Owner: Why would you do that?!'''\ |
| 819 | '''Link:''' ''(Picks up Heart Piece from chandelier wreckage)''\ |
| 820 | '''Player:''' TOTALLY [[WorthIt WORTH IT!]] |
| 821 | ** Also, sometimes you get money from people for keeping their secret places that you just discovered for yourself. Subverted in the first game and the Oracle games, where you sometimes have to pay for the door you just destroyed. |
| 822 | * RevivingEnemy: The Stalfos are usually this (falling apart into a pile of bones and reassembling themselves if their remains aren't dealt with). |
| 823 | * RoguishRomani: The Gerudo are a CultureChopSuey of Roma and Arabs (with some Latin and German spliced in). They're primarily Arabic inspired in design and culture, but they also have some Romani inspirations. Primarily, they're introduced in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' as a tribe of thieves living nearby to the European-esque country of Hyrule. Centuries later in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'' they're no longer thieves and have lost most of their Roma elements. |
| 824 | * RuleOfThree: Is present ''everywhere''. |
| 825 | ** Link almost always starts out with three Heart Containers. (There are exceptions, however, as early as ''Zelda II'' starting him off with four.) |
| 826 | ** Bosses usually die after three rounds of a battle. |
| 827 | ** There are three Golden Goddesses of the Triforce: Din, the Goddess of Power; Nayru, the Goddess of Wisdom; and Farore, the Goddess of Courage. |
| 828 | ** Link occasionally must collect three items for the plot. ''A Link to the Past'' and ''A Link Between Worlds'' has the pendants of virtue, ''Ocarina of Time'' has the three Spiritual Stones, ''The Wind Waker'' has the three Goddess Pearls, ''Phantom Hourglass'' has the three pure metals. ''Twilight Princess'' has two instances of this with three pieces of the Fused Shadow and three pieces of the Mirror of Twilight[[note]]technically four, but the first one is already in its proper place when you find it[[/note]]. ''Skyward Sword'' does it with the three Ancient Tablets, the three Sacred Flames, the three parts of the Song of the Hero, and [[spoiler:the three parts of the Triforce]]. |
| 829 | * RunningGag: |
| 830 | ** Don't attack the Cuccos, or they'll kill you faster than enemies and bosses do. |
| 831 | ** Since ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast A Link to the Past]]'', bosses in subsequent games tended to have at least one WeaksauceWeakness of some sort among the lot (and it's usually the ClimaxBoss or FinalBoss on top of that). It happens so often that it can't just be a {{Good Bad Bug|s}}. In short order: |
| 832 | *** [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast Agahnim's]] [[PlayingTennisWithTheBoss energy balls]] can be reflected with the Bug-Catching Net. His cameo in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening Link's Awakening]]'' has a similar trick with the Shovel. |
| 833 | *** [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Phantom]] [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker Ganon]]'s energy blasts can be reflected with an empty bottle. |
| 834 | *** Dark Link can be easily defeated with the [[NerfArm Broken Goron's Sword]] (due to the fact that his attempts to stand on your sword fail without, y'know, an actual blade). |
| 835 | *** [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Ganondorf]] is [[AttentionDeficitOohShiny easily distracted]] by the fishing rod, of all things. |
| 836 | *** In what is almost certainly a [[MythologyGag twofer nod]] to ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast A Link to the Past]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'', [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Demise]] suddenly stops to look at your bug-catching net if you pull it out. It can also reflect his lightning strikes. |
| 837 | *** The FinalBoss of the Champion's Ballad DLC in [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]] can be distracted by Mighty Bananas, just like the Yiga Blademasters. ItOnlyWorksOnce though. |
| 838 | ** The highly memetic phrase "IT'S A SECRET TO EVERYBODY", originally spoken by a [[TokenGoodTeammate surprisingly generous Moblin]] in [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI the first game]], has appeared in many other titles. Interestingly, earlier games correct the grammar by changing the wording, but later ones lean more into the BlindIdiotTranslation that made the original line so memorable in the first place. |
| 839 | *** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'': The master lockpicker who opens a chest for you requests that you "keep it a secret from everyone else." |
| 840 | *** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'': Before Zelda gives you her InfoDump after your first meeting with her, she asks "Please keep this a secret from everyone." |
| 841 | *** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask'': After Kafei reveals his backstory and why he's in hiding, he tells you "Keep what we just talked about a secret from everyone." |
| 842 | *** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'': After Zant traps Hyrule Castle in a force field, Link can talk to a Goron on a balcony in Castle Town who's apparently [[FailedASpotCheck the only one who's noticed the problem.]] The Goron remarks "I have kept this a secret from the others. Yes, it is a secret to everybody." |
| 843 | *** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'': Both a Kikwi and a Parella use the phrase as they're about to give Link some sensitive information. |
| 844 | *** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds'': After rescuing her and later finding her in a cave, the thief girl gives you 100 rupees and says, "How about we just keep this a secret to everybody." |
| 845 | *** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTearsOfTheKingdom'': Oaki, a Korok, tasks you with helping him decorate a hidden chamber he's made inside the Great Deku Tree's mouth. After you complete it, he happily declares "It's a secret to everybody that I built a room in here!" |
| 846 | * {{Ruritania}}: Hyrule, a monarchy with a lot of Greek influences in its architecture, monsters, and naming schemes, that is constantly conquered, has quirky customs, a bloody history, and borders a desert country inhabited by Arab-like peoples. |
| 847 | [[/folder]] |
| 848 | |
| 849 | [[folder:S-U]] |
| 850 | * SamePlotSequel: Certain games (especially those involving Ganon and the Triforce) fall into this. ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'' justifies it by revealing that many of the games are the result of [[spoiler:a cyclical curse placed by Demise, causing the same events to be repeated for eternity]]. |
| 851 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'' closely follows the structure of ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast A Link to the Past]]'': gather three PlotCoupons, get the Master Sword, enter a DarkWorld / BadFuture, go through a harder set of dungeons, and fight Ganon. The differences lie in ''Ocarina of Time''’s greater emphasis on characters and fleshing out each region of Hyrule. |
| 852 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'', in turn, sticks closely to ''Ocarina of Time''’s story, complete with a companion character, Link originating from a forest, NostalgiaLevel dungeons, and another trip through Hyrule Castle to fight Ganondorf. However, ''Twilight Princess'' differentiates itself with its DarkerAndEdgier tone, larger overworld, heavier themes, and more plot-driven progression. |
| 853 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'' itself is a Same Plot ''Prequel'' that follows many of the same beats as ''A Link to the Past'' and ''Ocarina of Time''. Three PlotCoupons, a reveal halfway through, Zelda going missing for an extended period, time travel shenanigans, and a BigBad that seeks to revive a Demon King, [[spoiler:the latter of whom is revealed to be the original incarnation of [[HijackedByGanon Ganon]] himself]]. Additionally, the "Sacred Flames" arc of the game closely follows the second half of ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker The Wind Waker]]'', as Link travels to new areas to power up his sword and learns more about his destiny. |
| 854 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds A Link Between Worlds]]'' is a deliberate example, as the game reuses the overworld from ''A Link to the Past''. Most of the game follows the story to a T with only minor alterations: three PlotCoupons, Master Sword, DarkWorld, more dungeons, and TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon. However, the final act throws in several major [[TheReveal reveals]] that heavily subvert and deconstruct its predecessor's plot. |
| 855 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTearsOfTheKingdom Tears of the Kingdom]]'' is a combination of the narratives from ''Ocarina of Time'' and ''Skyward Sword''. Once again, we see the founding of Hyrule in the distant past by a race from the Sky [[spoiler:and a black, scaly Demon King that threatens the land]]. Ganondorf's initial scheme to overthrow King Rauru by swearing fealty to him is reminiscent of his plan in the child portion of ''Ocarina of Time'', complete with a scene of him bowing in front of Rauru, [[spoiler:followed by Zelda attempting to warn the king of Ganondorf's treachery, only to be ignored]]. Finally, Link's storyline sees him rushing to awaken each of the Sages in order to find Zelda, restore Hyrule, and defeat Ganondorf once and for all— a dead ringer for the adult portion of ''Ocarina of Time''. |
| 856 | * SaveThePrincess: It's been getting better as the series has progressed in terms of plot complexity. The games started with the simple [[ExcusePlot "save Zelda from Ganon"]], but in some games, the Princess doesn't even get kidnapped until later in the plot. This is even completely [[SubvertedTrope subverted]] in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks Spirit Tracks]]'', where the princess is actually your ExpositionFairy. ''Link's Awakening'' and ''Majora's Mask'' avert this entirely, albeit by virtue of lacking the eponymous Princess to begin with. In ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriors'', [[spoiler:it's also averted. Zelda disappears after the first stage in story mode, but only because she slipped away. She later joins the fight as Sheik.]] |
| 857 | * SceneryPorn: The console games after the leap to 3D indulge heavily in this. Even the N64 games were considered this before [[TechnologyMarchesOn technology marched on]]. |
| 858 | * SchizoTech: It's like a mish-mash of Medieval, Pirate, and Arabian themes, with a few borderline EasterEgg modern inventions (Platform/GameBoyAdvance, telephones, colour film cameras, and locomotives) thrown in for good measure. Notable examples include: |
| 859 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening Link's Awakening]]'' is probably the most eclectic of the bunch, having phone booths, a photography sidequest, and a mechanical crane game. It's somewhat justified since [[spoiler:it's all the Wind Fish's dream]]. |
| 860 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]'' has a ''mechanical bull'' as a boss, some industrial-looking locations (Pirates' Fortress and Great Bay Temple), and a MiniGame area with neon lights (also present in ''Ocarina of Time''). |
| 861 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker'' and ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap'' both have ''robots'' as bosses. The one in ''The Wind Waker'', in particular, seems to have full-speech capabilites, as it speaks to the player. |
| 862 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'' has a miniboss ([[spoiler:[[https://zelda.gamepedia.com/Phantom_Zant Phantom Zant]]]]) which is actually a ''3D hologram'' like those common in ''Franchise/StarWars''. It's even colored blue, has scanlines, and flickers just like a ''Star Wars'' hologram. The internal game name of the miniboss, [[spoiler:Zant Hologram]], acknowledges its high-tech qualities. |
| 863 | ** In ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]'' there's an entire ''area of the game'' based on technology. And keep in mind that the game only has four main areas (the Sky and the three regions of the Surface) that you frequently revisit, so that means ''one fourth of the game'' is technology-based. And not only is it chronologically the first ''Zelda'' game, but you actually have to ''travel to the past'' in order to see the technology, due to it actually being LostTechnology. In addition, Skyloft has electric lighting, indoor plumbing, and a computer-looking device (in Beedle's Air Shop). |
| 864 | ** Contrary to popular belief, the trains in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks Spirit Tracks]]'' don't look particularly out of place for Hyrule, as trains existed in real life since the 16th century in Germany. However, the game also features hot-air balloons (which date from 1783) and tanks (which date from 1915), co-existing alongside the aforementioned medieval-inspired kingdom. |
| 865 | ** Exaggerated in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]''. as the entire game is rife with thinly-veiled science-fiction trappings. To wit: the people of Hyrule used their [[ClarkesThirdLaw advanced technology]] to build four HumongousMecha and an [[MechaMooks army of robot drones]] to protect them from an EldritchAbomination. However, before their weapons could be deployed, the enemy used a ComputerVirus to [[ContagiousAI take control of the machines]] and destroy the land. The hero, equipped with a DataPad (complete with blue TronLines), must now go to various locales to [[PowersAsPrograms download maps, data, and apps,]] [[DuelingHackers regain control of the mecha,]] and [[MagicVersusScience defeat the eldritch horror.]] Just give Link a [[BrainUploading neuro-link]] and he can be a Creator/WilliamGibson character. |
| 866 | * TheScottishTrope: As of the Virtual Console rerelease of ''Link's Awakening'', "Yahoo!" was considered this by Nintendo as far as this franchise is concerned, and it remained that way throughout most of UsefulNotes/TheNewTens, when YAHOO! was still an Internet powerhouse. The Switch remake, which was made after YAHOO!'s fall from prominence in the second half of the decade, ultimately averted this and restored every instance of "Yahoo!" from the original version. |
| 867 | * SealedEvilInACan: |
| 868 | ** While Ganondorf apparently has met his final end a few times, the end of ''Ocarina of Time'' and the backstory to ''A Link to the Past'', ''The Wind Waker'', and ''Twilight Princess'' has him sealed in a DarkWorld due to his immense power. Of course, his long isolation there gives him plenty of time to gather his strength, allowing him to break the seal and unleash havoc upon Hyrule once more. |
| 869 | ** There's also Vaati, except he's sealed in the Four Sword rather than any alternate dimension. |
| 870 | ** Malladus, Bellum, and ''Ocarina'''s Bongo Bongo are sealed deep beneath the worlds of their respective games. |
| 871 | * SequentialBoss: |
| 872 | ** Ganondorf in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' is a bit of an exception, since there is an escape sequence between his two forms. Twinrova before him, however, is two forms right after each other. Also, Phantom Ganon is first fought as he rides with his stallion and then when he's alone floating. |
| 873 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'' does this for every boss except the second, in some cases even tricking you (and Link) into thinking the battle is over: |
| 874 | *** Zant himself is a FinalExamBoss with minor variations (namely, that he mimicks the behavior of some bosses and minibosses, and that he warps Link into a previous location at the start of a new phase). |
| 875 | *** Ganondorf's battle consists of a fight with [[spoiler:Puppet Zelda]], then Beast Ganon, then Ganondorf on a horse, and finally Ganondorf himself in a SwordFight. And all of this takes place in direct succession of one-another. |
| 876 | *** Played for laughs with Armogohma, whose second form (his eye on legs) runs away to a sillier version of the boss music and dies very easily. |
| 877 | ** The final battle with Majora from ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]'' features [[RuleOfThree three]] forms, named ''"Majora's Mask,"'' ''"Majora's Incarnation,"'' and ''[[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast "Majora's Wrath"]].'' |
| 878 | ** The Shadow Nightmares in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening'' probably take the prize, having six forms (although the last two forms can be one-shotted with the right weapons). Some of them even reference bosses from ''A Link to the Past''. |
| 879 | ** Veran from ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages]]'' probably comes second after the Nightmares, and none of her forms are one-hits. You have to fight Veran-possessing-Ambi, Veran's "True Form [[VideoGame/CastlevaniaSymphonyOfTheNight (and despair!)]]", and her final battle (in which she shapeshifts between three forms), one after the other, without healing. And if it's a linked game, you then go on to face Twinrova and Ganon! Hooray! |
| 880 | ** Vaati from ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheMinishCap'' does not like to die. His first form is a humanoid boss version of Patra, and his second form is a giant eye. He appears to die after this, bringing down the castle with him, but just as Link is almost to safety, a ''third'' form appears that looks like another giant eye, this time with arms. Woe be to you if you used up all of your potions and fairies already. [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaFourSwords And even then, he's not dead yet.]] |
| 881 | ** With the exception of Scaldera and The Imprisoned, every boss in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword'' has two phases. |
| 882 | ** This started as early as ''VideoGame/ZeldaIITheAdventureOfLink''; that game had the Iron Knuckle Knight, who you have to defeat on horseback before you can fight him normally. |
| 883 | * ShiftingSandLand: Since the beginning, typically termed the Gerudo Desert. |
| 884 | * ShoutOut: |
| 885 | ** Mostly to ''Mario'': |
| 886 | *** Some houses in ''A Link to the Past'' contain portraits of him. |
| 887 | *** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening Link's Awakening]]'' has several enemies straight up lifted out of the Mario series (some can even be killed by [[GoombaStomp jumping on them]] via the Roc's Feather), the ChainOfDeals sidequest starting out with a Yoshi plushie, and one character sending a fake picture of herself to her penpal where she looks like Princess Peach (she's actually a goat). Then there's the characters of Tarin and the Henhouse Keeper, who respectively resemble Mario and Luigi physically. |
| 888 | *** In ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]'' the Happy Mask Salesman has a Mario mask on his bag. |
| 889 | ** It's confirmed by the longtime developers of the ''Zelda'' series that the trading sequences present in several games are inspired by ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Straw_Millionaire Straw Millionaire]]'', a Japanese Buddhist folk tale. |
| 890 | * SigilSpam: |
| 891 | ** The Triforce is only the most prominent example. This series loves its recurring symbols. An incomplete but extensive list can be found [[https://zelda.gamepedia.com/Symbols here]]. |
| 892 | ** To a lesser extent, you have the Hylian crest (like the one on Link's shield) and the Sheikah symbol/Lens of Truth eye. |
| 893 | * SilverBullet: The Silver Arrow plays a crucial part in slaying Ganon in both the original ''Legend of Zelda'' and ''A Link to the Past''. Stab him as many times as you want with any sword in those games. Without the Silver Arrow finishing him off, Ganon will keep coming for more. |
| 894 | * SkeletonKey: The first two Zelda games both had a key item that basically served as infinite keys for the remainder of the game. |
| 895 | * SlidingScaleOfContinuity: The games tend to be standalone, but there are three timelines that diverge at ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]''. |
| 896 | * SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism: ''Massively idealistic''. At its core, ''The Legend of Zelda'' is a fairly simplistic fairy tale about a knight saving a princess and the whole world from a monster, complete with standard happy endings for everyone. Even the darker games are dripping with idealism and are outright ''themed'' around hope in the bleakest of circumstances. |
| 897 | * SlidingScaleOfRealisticVersusFantastic: Fantastic. |
| 898 | * SlippySlideyIceWorld: Uncommon for this series, with most games relegating ice to a single dungeon. It usually shows up in mountainous areas when they're not the standard DeathMountain: there's the Snowhead region in ''Majora's Mask'', the Snowpeak mountain range in ''Twilight Princess'', and Lorule's Death Mountain in ''A Link Between Worlds''. |
| 899 | * SolitarySorceress: |
| 900 | ** In several games, Link can obtain potions from a witch (usually named Syrup) who lives by herself either in TheLostWoods or just outside of Kakariko village. |
| 901 | ** There's also the occasional fortune teller who is similarly isolated, such as Astrid from ''Phantom Hourglass''. |
| 902 | ** [[spoiler:Impa, of all people,]] falls under this ''Skyward Sword''. |
| 903 | * SongsInTheKeyOfPanic: Since the 3D games, minigames and timed switches use this method to tell you to hurry up. Then there's ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Majora's Mask]]'', which takes the whole concept of [[TimedMission limited time]] and uses it to mess with your head. |
| 904 | * SoundOfNoDamage: Used for both Link's shield deflecting projectiles and enemies getting hit in armored areas. |
| 905 | * SpeakingSimlish: Midna's voice clips in ''Twilight Princess'' are [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YLakSs0mlU scrambled syllables of English phrases]], giving off this effect. Same goes for Fi in ''Skyward Sword'', though hers are instead [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_5DUnUC-jk reversed Japanese phrases]]. |
| 906 | * SpinOff: ''VideoGame/LinksCrossbowTraining'' (of ''Twilight Princess''), ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriors'' (of the franchise as a whole), ''VideoGame/FreshlyPickedTinglesRosyRupeeland'' (not of a specific game, but starring a recurring character), and an actual board game. |
| 907 | * SpoilerTitle: For ''Link's Awakening'' and ''Twilight Princess'', this is the second meaning of their {{Double Meaning Title}}s. |
| 908 | * StabTheSky: Almost every time Link gets a sword, he thrusts it into the air. This is also a game mechanic in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Skyward Sword]]''. |
| 909 | * StandardJapaneseFantasySetting: A major TropeCodifier, originally drawing heavy inspiration from ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'' and other western fantasy. Over time, the game has also incorporated many other elements of Japanese fantasy; Ganon was conceived as a "Maou" from the beginning, but the fact that he, Link and Princess Zelda are destined to eternally reincarnate to battle each other was added in later games, as were concepts like different brands of {{Precursors}}, which are more explicitly magical in earlier games but tend to leave much more technological legacies in later ones, and a variety of deities, spirits and demonic entities. The series' mortal races don't fit into either the Western or Japanese archetypes very closely, as they tend to be original creations, but there are usually a variety of the NatureSpirit ''sei'' races (such as the Kokiri/Korok forest children, the fairies, and the wise and ancient Great Deku Tree), the monstrous hordes of the ''ma'' races under Ganon's thrall, and holy ''shin'' beings (such as the goddess Hylia and a variety of lesser deities and immortal dragons). |
| 910 | * StationaryEnemy: |
| 911 | ** Deku Babas, a type of ManEatingPlant, can't move from their base, but can still lunge as far as their stem will reach. |
| 912 | ** In the 3D games, some LivingStatue enemies don't move from their position on the floor but rotate, shooting lasers at Link if they see him. |
| 913 | * SteamPunk: Elements of this began to appear after about 2000. ''Spirit Tracks'' has a train, ''Phantom Hourglass'' has a steamboat, and Termina in ''Majora's Mask'' is borderline Industrial Revolution, especially with the Great Bay temple. |
| 914 | * SticksToTheBack: Jarring in ''Ocarina of Time'', where Link is often depicted with his sword strapped to his back, but has no such strap in-game. ''Majora's Mask'' fixes this, as does the [=3DS=] remake of ''Ocarina of Time''. Not one game in the series explains how his shield stays put. In real life, they're usually strapped across the chest. Link apparently Velcros it to his scabbard. |
| 915 | * StockMoneyBag: Wallets (which resemble drawstring pouches) always have a rupee on them. The denomination of rupee (determined by its color) indicates the relative capacity of the wallet. As with most examples, this serves as a necessary visual cue, as otherwise they could easily be confused with bomb bags or other items in Link's HyperspaceArsenal. |
| 916 | * StockVideoGamePuzzle: Every single one in the blasted book, what with the series basically being the TropeMaker and TropeCodifier for a large portion of them. |
| 917 | * StrangerSafety: Many fans have commented on Link's ability to ''just'' walk into anyplace. Few [=NPCs=] will care that much about you breaking pots and taking the goodies inside, or just walking around. Bedrooms aren't off-limits. ''Some'' places can only be entered during the day, though. This is especially apparent in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]'', where you can talk to people for the first time while they're sleeping in their beds and they ''won't'' react as if you've snuck into their homes. |
| 918 | * StrictlyFormula: |
| 919 | ** Enter dungeon. Get item. Beat boss with item. Use item to enter next dungeon. Repeat. |
| 920 | ** And there's the other formula of "visit three dungeons, villain gains upper hand/escapes, visit three to seven more dungeons, final boss" that has been present since ''A Link To the Past.'' ''Skyward Sword'' mixed things a little by making the outside of the dungeons just as complex as the inside. However, critics and fans don't agree whether that changes the pattern in a meaningful way or not. |
| 921 | ** ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]'' broke with this tradition and focused instead on the open world (though dungeons still have their place). |
| 922 | * SurprisinglyCreepyMoment: |
| 923 | ** There's a lot of foreboding and horror for a series that, before ''Spirit Tracks'', was [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids ostensibly]] given [[UsefulNotes/MediaClassifications an E rating]]. |
| 924 | ** ''Ocarina of Time'' is rather infamous for this, particularly for the Shadow Temple and the Bottom of the Well, which are decorated with bones, blood and torture devices. The Bottom of the Well is also home to Dead Hand, a miniboss who frankly would have looked right at home in a horror game. |
| 925 | ** ''Skyward Sword'' is graphically and thematically more lighthearted than its predecssor ''Twilight Princess'' (which is DarkerAndEdgier than most entries), but that masks the fact that Ghirahim is [[AxCrazy the most psychotically insane villain seen by players]], as he takes pleasure in [[ToThePain describing what he wants to do to Link]]. [[spoiler:Additionally, you learn that the planet suffered [[ApocalypseHow a class 2 apocalypse]], which is why the sky islands exist, and the GreaterScopeVillain of the entire franchise is a bloodthirsty, genocidal demon lord who's brought back to life because he's in the process of ''digesting Zelda's soul''.]] Also, half of the Ancient Cistern is unexpectedly creepy. While the top half is beautiful, ornate and lit with pleasant, golden light, the bottom half is murky, dark and populated by shambling undead zombie Bokoblins. |
| 926 | * SuperDrowningSkills: In the 2D games, Link cannot touch water without certain items or he'll drown. Taken to the logical extreme in ''Oracle of Ages'', where you needed two separate items in the game for two different depths of water. |
| 927 | * SuperSpit: The land or water-dwelling octopus-like creatures known as Octoroks spit rocks that can do damage. |
| 928 | * SwordBeam: In the first game and some of the others, usually only when you are at full health, as well as in the AnimatedAdaptation. |
| 929 | * SwordOfPlotAdvancement: The Master Sword in most games where it appears; the Phantom Sword in ''Phantom Hourglass''. |
| 930 | %% Tear Jerkers belong on TearJerker/TheLegendOfZelda |
| 931 | * TakeYourTime: No matter how much your ExpositionFairy is nagging you to ContinueYourMissionDammit, feel free to SideQuest, FetchQuest, and get SidetrackedByTheGoldSaucer to your heart's content, unless there is actually some kind of timer on the screen. Averted in ''Majora's Mask'', where you are in fact under a strict time limit. |
| 932 | * TechnicolorBlade: The Master Sword is bluish. |
| 933 | * TempleOfDoom: Several dungeons in the series, starting from ''The Adventure of Link'', consist of ancient temples filled with traps, puzzles and hazards.[[note]]Note that in both ''The Adventure of Link'' and ''A Link to the Past'', the temples were renamed "palaces" outside Japan due to censorship.[[/note]] |
| 934 | * TennisBoss: |
| 935 | ** Starting with Agahnim from ''A Link to the Past'', though most often it's Ganondorf and his Phantom. Their attacks can only be thrown back with the Master Sword, since it has the power to repel evil. |
| 936 | ** The Cubus sisters in ''Phantom Hourglass'' give it the name "Dead Man's Volley", as the shots ricochet even between themselves. |
| 937 | * ThematicSeries: A ZigZaggedTrope compared to ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' or ''Franchise/FireEmblem''. The main series is connected into a [[AlternateTimeline branching timeline]], and characters such as Link and Zelda recur between installments. However, these recurring characters are different individuals in most games, and most games, including the more "direct" sequels, focus on recontextualizing common elements of courage, power, and wisdom rather than connecting several games into a singular narrative. |
| 938 | * ThemedCursor: In the Wii and DS games, they use these to show off the new controls. [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]] has Navi as the Wiimote pointer. ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass Phantom Hourglass]]'' used the [[ExpositionFairy Exposition Fairies]] as indicators of where you touch. |
| 939 | * ThemeNaming: Most of the dungeons throughout the series are named after either their element or their location. |
| 940 | * ThrivingGhostTown: To the extent that Hyrule itself could be called a Thriving Ghost ''Kingdom''. |
| 941 | * TimeTravel: Everywhere in the series, and has been the central mechanic of three games (''Ocarina of Time'', ''Majora's Mask'' and ''Oracle of Ages''). |
| 942 | * TogglingSetpiecePuzzle: Various dungeons and temples in the series feature puzzles and setups where you have to alternate the state of objects and mechanisms by pressing switches or performing a similar action. Examples include color-coded blocks or plates that can be toggled on or off, changing the level of water, or even flipping the layout of a whole dungeon. |
| 943 | * ToiletHorror: Several games feature a ghostly/zombiefied hand that appears out of toilets called [[MyNameIsQuestionMarks ???]] which is based on some Japanese ghost stories. |
| 944 | * TokenAquaticRace: The only recurring underwater race are the [[FishPeople Zoras]]. They come in two varieties - a more monstrous, green kind called River Zoras, and a more humanoid, blue kind called Sea Zoras - but the only game where both appear is ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames Oracle of Ages]]''. |
| 945 | * TookALevelInBadass: Zelda, depending on which game she's in. In the original games, she's merely the DamselInDistress. Other games, she's either a badass [[spoiler:(especially when she's Sheik)]] or GenkiGirl. |
| 946 | * TranslationConvention: Whenever a character talks, we're supposed to think they're speaking Hylian. Jarringly apparent when a voiced character talks (except for Midna and Fi, who [[SpeakingSimlish speak Simlish]] instead). This even appears to be the case with ''Breath of the Wild'', which features fully-voiced cutscenes. |
| 947 | * TreasureIsBiggerInFiction: Throughout the series, the size of your average rupees has varied up to the size of Link himself. |
| 948 | * TropicalIslandAdventure: ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening Link's Awakening]]'', ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker Wind Waker]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass Phantom Hourglass]]'' all take place on tropical islands, being departures from the Medieval European Fantasy setting of the rest of the series. ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOracleGames Oracle of Ages]]'' also has a section where Link is shipwrecked on a tropical island known as Crescent Island where the third dungeon is located, has his stuff stolen by the local lizard-like Tokay and has to get it back, and ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild Breath of the Wild]]'' has a trial on a tropical island known as Eventide Island, which also functions as a NoGearLevel. |
| 949 | * {{Tsundere}}: In order of appearance and type: |
| 950 | ** "Harsh" types: [[WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfZelda1989 Princess Zelda in the Animated Adaptation]], [[Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Princess Ruto]], [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaMajorasMask Tatl]], [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker Tetra]], [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Midna]], and [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass Linebeck]]. |
| 951 | ** "Sweet" types: [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Ilia]], [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaPhantomHourglass Ciela]], and [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks Princess]] [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword Zelda]]. |
| 952 | * UndergroundMonkey: They're usually not elemental, but different colored enemies indicate different strengths, especially in early games. |
| 953 | * UnderwaterRuins: Several [[DownTheDrain water-themed dungeons]] in the series. |
| 954 | * UniquenessDecay: |
| 955 | ** The Triforce went through an inversion, then reversion of this trope. In the first game, it's made known that there are two different Triforces that are basically equal in influence. The second game introduces the third Triforce and reveals that all three have a SetBonus, where the person who has all three and summons the Golden Power is functionally {{Omnipotent}}. Then, the TimeyWimeyBall gets thrown into the series, where it's revealed that there's multiple timelines -- each with its own Golden Power (although there's no overlap between the timelines, thus never more than one unified Triforce). And then at last, in ''Videogame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkBetweenWorlds'', it's revealed that there is at least one twin of Hyrule... complete with its ''own unified Triforce''. |
| 956 | ** Hylians. In earlier games, they were considered the more "magical" humans whose pointy ears supposedly allowed them to hear the voices of the gods. Over time, however, Hylians became no more special than regular humans, with Zelda and Link being some of the only ones who are remotely magical or remarkable at all compared to the more fantastical races in the series. |
| 957 | * UnstoppableMailman: Aside from ''Majora's Mask'', where he doesn't deliver letters to you, the mailman in the games will always be able to find you to deliver letters. He ''wants'' to stop and flee Termina before it's destroyed, but there's still mail that has to be delivered tomorrow. It takes an order from Madame Aroma, the Mayor's wife, to finally get him to abandon his duties and evacuate. |
| 958 | [[/folder]] |
| 959 | |
| 960 | [[folder:V-X]] |
| 961 | * VagueHitPoints: |
| 962 | ** ''VideoGame/HyruleWarriors'' uses quarter hearts as the smallest visual unit of the LifeMeter, it's not the smallest actual unit. Every quarter heart is worth 100 HP, which the player will only be able to notice if they enter a keep with a damage barrier, which deals small increments of HitPoints per second, so they're damaged without otherwise visual change. If the character is hit by an attack that activates the LastChanceHitPoint, that would leave the character with 1 hp, but it would be displayed as 1 quarter heart. The exact number of HitPoints is shown in the pause menu/results screen for the Platform/WiiU only, as the Platform/NintendoSwitch uses percentages instead. |
| 963 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'': While Link's hitpoints are evident by his heart meter, the hitpoints of his weapons are not. The only visible indicator of how much durability his weapons have before they shatter is a sparkle on the inventory screen when they're brand new and a red flash on that same menu when they're a hit or two away from breaking. |
| 964 | * VariableMix: The series has been increasingly embracing this to an awesome degree. |
| 965 | * VeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon: Every game has one. |
| 966 | ** ''The Legend of Zelda'': Death Mountain. |
| 967 | ** ''The Adventure of Link'': Great Palace. |
| 968 | ** ''A Link to the Past'': Ganon's Tower. %%% The Pyramid isn't a dungeon, it's simply a battlefield for the final battle, the trope it fits in is PostFinalLevel |
| 969 | ** ''Link's Awakening'': The Wind Fish's Egg. |
| 970 | ** ''Ocarina of Time'': Ganon's Castle. |
| 971 | ** ''Majora's Mask'': The Moon. |
| 972 | ** ''Oracle of Seasons'': Onox's Castle/Room of Rites. |
| 973 | ** ''Oracle of Ages'': The Black Tower/Room of Rites. |
| 974 | ** ''Four Swords'': Vaati's Palace. |
| 975 | ** ''The Wind Waker'': Ganon's Tower. |
| 976 | ** ''Four Swords Adventures'': Palace of Winds. |
| 977 | ** ''The Minish Cap'': Dark Hyrule Castle. |
| 978 | ** ''Twilight Princess'': Hyrule Castle. |
| 979 | ** ''Phantom Hourglass'': Temple of the Ocean King. |
| 980 | ** ''Spirit Tracks'': The Dark Realm. |
| 981 | ** ''Skyward Sword'': Sky Keep. |
| 982 | ** ''A Link Between Worlds'': Lorule Castle. |
| 983 | ** ''Tri Force Heroes'': Sky Temple. |
| 984 | ** ''Breath of the Wild'': Hyrule Castle. |
| 985 | ** ''Tears of the Kingdom'': Gloom’s Approach |
| 986 | * VideoGameCrueltyPotential: Keep hitting those Cuccos. See what happens. |
| 987 | * VideoGameCrueltyPunishment: |
| 988 | ** '''[[Film/TheBirds Revenge of the Cuccos!]]''' |
| 989 | ** Also possible in ''Spirit Tracks'' if you hit Zelda with a boomerang, whip, etc. |
| 990 | ** [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] in ''Spirit Tracks'' when [[spoiler:Rael asks you to bring Cuccos to the Sand Sanctuary. Apparently, they're needed for research. "They are flightless. But, when cornered, they can call their friends to unleash an amazing power."]] |
| 991 | ** Also the pigs in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker The Wind Waker]]''. |
| 992 | ** Steal from the merchant in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaLinksAwakening Link's Awakening]]''? Prepare to be zapped. |
| 993 | ** Steal from the [[ItMakesSenseInContext afro-wearing merchant bird]] in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]''? Prepare to be continuously pecked any time you enter the "shop" until you pay up. |
| 994 | * VideoGameTools: Many of the iconic items are these: Boomerang, Bombs, Bow, and Arrow. Most games have an item or two whose main purpose is clearly not battle, but which can still be weaponized in some form. |
| 995 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess'': The Spinner is largely a movement tool, allowing you to climb certain walls and boost your speed quickly, but its "burst" move can be used to attack enemies. Even the humble Empty Bottle can be used to reflect [[PlayingTennisWithTheBoss certain attacks!]] |
| 996 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'': The Hookshot is excellent at this. You can use it to one-hit kill the small Moblins in the annoying Lost Woods hedge maze and stun the extremely annoying giant Moblin guarding the way to the Forest Temple. |
| 997 | ** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'': The line between "tool" and "weapon" is blurred --weapons can be used to break ore, chop down trees, or light fires; and you can kill enemies with an iron sledgehammer or even a wooden ladle. Durability comes into play instead: yes, you can chop down trees with your Royal Broadsword (attack level 36), but it'll wear the sword down a lot faster than it would a Woodcutter's Axe (attack level 3). |
| 998 | * VillainBeatingArtifact: The Master Sword is the only thing that can hurt Ganon. Usually in concert with the Light Arrows, which are needed to weaken him enough to get close enough with the sword. |
| 999 | %%* VisibleSilence |
| 1000 | * VoiceGrunting: The games with any "voice acting" use this exclusively, with the exceptions of the Tetra and the pirates in "Navi Trackers", certain cutscenes in ''Breath of the Wild'', Midna in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'', and Fi and Zelda in ''Skyward Sword'', the last three [[SpeakingSimlish speaking (or singing) Simlish]]. In some games, the voice grunts are [[BilingualBonus actually bits of Japanese]]. (For instance, Zelda's "Nē!" in ''Skyward Sword'', which basically translates to "Hey!") |
| 1001 | * TheWallsHaveEyes: All over the damn place. You would be hard-pressed to find a Zelda game where there aren't eyes as switches. |
| 1002 | * WarriorVersusSorcerer: |
| 1003 | * WhereTheHellIsSpringfield: Unless you count sequels, expect Hyrule to look different each time. Death Mountain is almost consistently to the North, and the Master Sword just a bit West-Southwest of it, but most other landmarks will not sit still. The most likely explanation is a combination of factors: Hyrule changing its physical location (''Twilight Princess''), the passage of time itself (''A Link to the Past'', ''The Wind Waker''), and the evolution of the series to the point where Hyrule is no longer represented as a square/rectangular map (''Ocarina of Time'' versus the original game). |
| 1004 | * WombLevel: Jabu Jabu's Belly. |
| 1005 | * WhenAllYouHaveIsAHammer: Most bosses follow the "expose the weak point with the dungeon's item, then whack it with your sword" schema. |
| 1006 | * {{Xenafication}}: |
| 1007 | ** Zelda has progressively become more active in the games as the series went on. Originally just a classic DamselInDistress, in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime Ocarina of Time]]'', she gained the badass [[spoiler:([[SweetPollyOliver though in drag]]) alter-ego Sheik, who]] admittedly didn't do much against the actual BigBad [[spoiler:but was instrumental in Link dealing the final blow]]. But in the later games, starting with ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTheWindWaker Wind Waker]]'', it became her schtick to fire Light Arrows at Ganon during the final battle, and in ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSpiritTracks Spirit Tracks]]'' she even [[spoiler:helps Link push his sword into Malladus' head]]. |
| 1008 | ** Also happened to Impa, who went from a frail old woman in the first two games to an Amazonian ninja in ''Ocarina of Time'' and ''Skyward Sword''. [[spoiler:Though the latter actually had her in ''both'' roles.]] |
| 1009 | [[/folder]] |
| 1010 | |
| 1011 | [[folder:Y-Z]] |
| 1012 | * YouHaveToBurnTheWeb: ''Ocarina of Time'' was one of the first video games to do this, showing up in the first dungeon. Later games have used the mechanic as well (except ''The Minish Cap'', where webs are sucked up with the Gust Jar instead). |
| 1013 | * YouShouldntKnowThisAlready: There's the Ocarina Songs from ''Ocarina of Time'' and ''Majora's Mask'', the ''Wind Waker'''s songs, and the sword fighting moves from ''Minish Cap'', ''Twilight Princess'', and ''Zelda II''. |
| 1014 | * YoungerThanTheyLook: Link, in his adult forms, is usually supposed to be around the age of 16 or 17, but the artwork often depicts him as looking around the age of 20 or 21. The same is true of Princess Zelda, who is almost always the same age as him but also frequently confused for a 20-something in her adult iterations. |
| 1015 | * ZipMode: The games feature a variety of ways to speed your trek across the land of Hyrule. |
| 1016 | [[/folder]] |
| 1017 | ---- |
| 1018 | ''[[spoiler:"IT'S A SECRET TO EVERYBODY."]]'' |
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