There’s one very important truth about theZeldatimeline: it has always existed. Contrary to the common pushback the timeline received as Nintendo caving to audience demands, the fact of the matter is thatThe Legend of Zeldahas always been very conscious about its lore, its story, and the themes the franchise was pushing.A Link to the Past’s manual is a dive into Hylian mythology that’s still relevant to the franchise’s storytelling today.
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It’s also necessary to recognize thatThe Legend of Zeldahas a timeline in the most basic of senses, asZelda II: The Adventure of Linkwas developed as a direct narrative sequel to the originalLegend of Zelda, withA Link to the Pastan explicit prequel.The Legend of Zelda’s timeline is very much real and it’s evolved considerably since the Hyrule Fantasy originated back in 1986.
10The Triforce Of The Gods
Although the Triforce has always been an important part ofThe Legend of Zelda’s iconography, the first two NES games make use of Christian imagery alongside the Triforce. Hyrule as originally depicted was a traditional fantasy setting with a Judeo-Christian slant. It’s to be expected of the era, but it also made the transition intoA Link to the Pastmore notable.
TitledTriforce of the Godsin Japan,A Link to the Pastcompletely redefinedThe Legend of Zelda’s lore. Not only were all visual references to Christianity completely removed, Hyrule was established as a polytheistic setting with multiple Gods (who would later be clarified as Goddesses.)
9A Link To The Past
More notable thanA Link to the Pastrecontextualizing the series’ lore was the game taking a step backwards inThe Legend of Zelda’s chronology. The originalZeldaandThe Adventure of Linkboth star the same Link, the sequel set roughly three years after the first.A Link to the Pasttakes place centuries early, this Link an ancestor of the eventual Hero of Hyrule. As a prequel,A Link to the Pastset an important precedent for the series’ timeline.
8The Imprisoning Split
One of the main events detailed inA Link to the Past’s backstory is the Imprisoning War, whichOcarina of Timewas originally intended to focus on. In practice, however,Ocarina of Timeserves more as a prologue to the Imprisoning War– establishing key players and moving pieces on the board.
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The full details of the Imprisoning War are still unclear, butOcarina of Timechange in direction brought major consequences. Instead of focusing on the Imprisoning War,Ocarina of Timetells an intimate story about the passage of time that ends with Link cast out from the future, alone in a past that isn’t truly his. More impactfully, it’s this event that resulted inThe Legend of Zelda’s timeline splitting.
7The Legendary Hero’s Adventures
The average Link only ever stars in a maximum of two games, with quite a few relegated to a single game. This isn’t the case for the Legendary Hero, the main character ofA Link to the Past,Link’s Awakening, and theOracleduology. Miyamoto famously saidLink’s Awakeningwas an adventure any Link who’s defeated Ganon could experience, but it explicitly referencesA Link to the Past’s imagery.
Similarly, bothOraclegames referenceLink’s Awakeningin subtle ways.Oracle of Seasonsfeatures Marin– a potential influence on how Link interprets Marin– whileOracle of Agessets up why Link writes on all his equipment comeLink’s Awakening. More importantly, theOraclegames end with Link setting sail, mirroring the intro ofLink’s Awakening. That said, the Legendary Hero is now an anomaly. It’s unlikely any other Link will get four whole games.
6The Saga Of The Four Sword
There aren’t many story arcs running through theZeldatimeline other than the mainline games featuring Link, Zelda, & Ganon in tandem, but that just makes the existence of the Four Swords narrative all the more compelling. In a timeline that has so far chronicled a single epic, it’s endearing that three games pivot to tell their own tales.
Four Swords,Four Swords Adventures, andThe Minish Capstruggle to fit into the timeline as neatly as the other titles, but they don’t create any jarring continuity errors either. They’re perhaps better designated as spin-off games, but it’s important the Hyrule’s history not solely center on Ganon or the Master Sword. Vaati and the Four Sword are a familiar, but welcome, bit of variety.
5Hyrule Washed Away
Nintendo didn’t pull the split timeline out of thin air andOcarina of Time’s ending credits showcase very clearly how the timeline works. There’s the timeline Link left behind– where everyone was celebrating in– and there’s the timeline Link was sent to– where the rest of the ending andMajora’s Masktake place.
The Wind Wakerdecides to put this timeline split to good use by adding some serious consequences toOcarina of Time’s ending. With Link gone, there’s no one to stop Ganon when he resurrects. The Goddesses have no choice but to flood Hyrule, washing away the kingdom and giving the Adult Timeline a dark tone in spite of its colorful aesthetic.
4The Fallen Timeline
The reveal that there were actually three timelines– not two– came as something of a shock for fans of the franchise, but it was in many ways to reconcile the existence of the pre-Ocarina of Timegames. By not adapting the Imprisoning War,Ocarina of Timeleft a narrative gap that was meant to lead intoA Link to the Past.
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Hyrule Historia rationalizes that a previously unmentioned third timeline exists where Link was killed, leading directly intoA Link to the Past. There’s nothing in-game to indicate where this split happens or why, but Link’s dream at the start ofOcarina of Timedoes show him being killed by Ganondorf.
3Reincarnation Blues
Skyward Swordtakes theZeldafranchise back to the very beginning in order to recontextualize the series’ main players. Link and Zelda are now key players in a game of divine chess between Hylia and Demise, destined to reincarnate through time in order to confront the spirit of Malice, often Ganon.
Hylia herself is shaping up to be an incredibly important player in the series’ lore. A matriarch of sorts for the Golden Goddess, Hylia orchestrates the main events ofSkyward Swordand her iconography appears quite frequently throughoutBreath of the Wild. Hylia will likely have the role the Golden Goddesses used to play.
2Parallel Universes & You
A Link Between Worldsmight be a handheld installment, but it makes some massive revelations about theZeldauniverse. Beyond there being alternate worlds (often conveyed through the dual world mechanic,) that are straight up parallel universes. Beneath Hyrule is Lorule, a land that looks like the Dark World but very much isn’t. Not only is Lorule a direct mirror to Hyrule, it once had its own Triforce that was corrupted with time. The lore implications of there being a second Triforce at all is extremely significant.
110,000 Years Of History
There’s at least 10,000 years of history unaccounted for leading up to the events ofBreath of the Wild. While Nintendo has used this as a shield to avoid clarifying where in the timelineBotWfalls, all signs point to the game being set in the Fallen Timeline.Breath of the Wildshares several key similarities with the Fallen Timeline games: a Master Sword in the Lost Woods, a focus on pure gameplay, and a Hyrule that’s already past its prime.
More importantly, it’s said in-game that both Ruto and Nabooru once challenged Ganon, which they would have done in the Fallen Timeline. Of course, the pointBreath of the Wildis trying to make is that so much time has passed, it ultimately doesn’t matter when or if any of this happened.
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