| Link (legend Of Zelda) |
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Link is the Protagonist of Nintendo 's '' Legend Of Zelda '' Video Game series. Link was created by Shigeru Miyamoto , and first appeared in the 1986 game '' The Legend Of Zelda ''. Introduced as a generic sword-fighting hero, the character was typical of Fantasy -adventure games. However, later ''Legend of Zelda'' titles revealed significantly more details about him. The game's success—over 6.5 million copies sold worldwide—and that of its numerous sequels made Link one of Nintendo's best-known characters. Link is named for the "link" the player shares with the hero of each game, and in every game, the player can name the character according to his or her wishes. A peculiarity of the character is that there are several different '' refer to an ancient, legendary champion, identical in appearance to Link, and ''TWW'' directly mentions the "Hero of Time" as a historical entity. Because of this unique situation, Link may be referred to both singularly and plurally throughout this article. Miyamoto confirmed that there were multiple Links in late 2003; however, the exact Chronology of the ''Legend of Zelda'' series is subject to debate among Fan s, and apart from a few fairly clear pairings it is uncertain which of Link's incarnations appears in each of the games. Even "official" timelines tend to contradict previous "official" timelines. ''Further information'': Link's Incarnations and The Legend Of Zelda Series . __NOTOC__ COMMON ATTRIBUTES OF ALL LINKS Link is a courageous boy or young man; it is unlikely that his age ever exceeds 17 years at any point in the series. In the ''Legend of Zelda'' (''LoZ'') games, he usually leaves his home and relatives at an early age to pursue his destiny and fight '') Link is a child or a young adolescent when he begins his quest. This is made clear through Link's body dimensions in the 3D games and by his lack of sexual awareness: when certain characters exhibit sexual behavior in parts of some games, Link is often taken aback, rather than tantalized. Link's adventures mostly take place in the kingdom of ''—although all of these games at least mention Hyrule). Link is closely associated with the Triforce of Courage and thus with the goddess Farore and her color, Green . Recovering the Triforce of Courage is a key part of some ''LoZ'' games like ''The Adventure of Link'' and ''The Wind Waker''. The ''Legend of Zelda'' titles give few hints at Link's view in many of the games is not well-suited to depict his facial expressions. In the 3D games, beginning with ''Ocarina of Time'', Link has been voiced by three actors; '', but because no ''Zelda'' game to date contains substantial spoken dialog, the part merely consists of short phrases, grunts and other sounds. However, a defining trait of his character seems to be his bravery, an attribute consistent with his role as the rightful bearer of the Triforce of Courage. In ''The Adventure of Link'', it is explicitly stated that the quest for the Triforce of Courage is to be a trial for whoever seeks it. Despite his youth and the adversity that he must face, alone for the most part, Link rarely shows signs of Fear or cowardice (although he sometimes expresses fear of allies for comic effect). Nintendo's ''Zelda.com Encyclopedia'' also uses "humble" to describe him. Appearance Invariably, every Link wears a green tunic and a long, floppy green cap, at least for part of each adventure, (not counting the bonus "Second Quest" of ''The Wind Waker'') although the shades of green vary. He also wears different clothes during parts of some ''Legend of Zelda'' games, most often color variations on his basic outfit. Link's Kokiri tunic in '' to achieve a Cartoon esque look, which ''The Minish Cap'' imitated. Link's hair color changes throughout the series, ranging from brown in the first ''Legend of Zelda'' game, to pink in ''A Link to the Past'' (although official artwork for the latter shows him with blond hair), but recent Links have had blond hair. Shades range from a gingery color in ''Link's Awakening'' and strawberry blond in ''Ocarina of Time'' to a light, lemony gold-blond in ''The Wind Waker'' and ''The Minish Cap''. The new Link in ''Twilight Princess'' has straw-colored, dirty blond hair. Link has long pointed ears resembling some conceptions of Elves . These are apparently a distinctive trait of the Hylian race (and their descendants) which supposedly allows them to hear messages from the gods. Older Links usually wear small hoop earrings. Several games mention or show a Triforce Mark on Link's left hand; the instruction booklet for ''The Adventure of Link'' reveals that this mark identifies him as the champion who will find the Triforce of Courage. A segment in the opening clip of '' Super Smash Bros. Melee '' shows three hands (Link's left, Zelda's and Ganondorf's rights) being crossed, each bearing a glowing Triforce symbol with one triangle a brighter white than the others, representing the three pieces. Most recently in a demo for ''The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess'' at E3 2005, Link was shown as having a whole brown triforce mark on his hand as in the ''Oracle'' series. Abilities and weaponry Swords and shields In all ''LoZ'' games, Link carries a Sword as his primary weapon, and usually a Shield for protection. He usually acquires more powerful versions of both items at later stages of his quests. The most well-known sword the hero can use is the Master Sword . This sacred blade, forged centuries before any of the events recounted in the ''Zelda'' games, has become an important symbol for the series, appearing on many of the titles' cover art. It is also known as the "Blade of Evil's Bane", a fitting title given its ability to greatly damage evil creatures and repel evil magic. Link does not wield the Master Sword in the first two games, where it is replaced by a "Magical Sword". Additionally, in the first two games the Holy Cross appears on his shield. Some of Link's other swords include the Wooden Sword, the White Sword, the Magical Sword, the Fighter's Sword, the Tempered Sword, the Golden Sword and Gilded Sword, the Kokiri Sword, Biggoron's Sword (a massive, two-handed sword), the Razor Sword (loses it edge and reverts to the Kokiri Sword after 100 hits), the Giant's Knife (two-handed, breaks after a few hits and must be re-forged), the Great Fairy's Sword (also two-handed), the Noble Sword, and the Four Sword (sword that allows Link to replicate himself up to three times). Other shields usually include something larger and stronger than his original shield, such as a metal or magical shield to improve on a small wooden original. The ultimate shield is often the Mirror Shield, highly resistant to attacks and capable of reflecting light, lasers, and even some spells back at their source or another target. It is unclear when most of Link's incarnations developed their Swordfighting or weaponry skills; it appears that they are naturally gifted with great Dexterity , which would be consistent with Link's role as a warrior Chosen to hold or retrieve the Triforce of Courage and stop the evil that threatens an innocent person/people/land. In some games, however, he is taught special techniques by instructors he encounters on his way (''The Adventure of Link'', ''Majora's Mask'', ''The Minish Cap'', ''The Wind Waker'') or can practice on dummies. Link is Left-handed , although this detail is never particularly stressed in any of the games, save for a Nintendo Gallery figurine description in ''The Wind Waker'', which states that Link favors his left hand, and the ''Adventure of Link'' instruction booklet, which describes Link setting off "with a magical sword in his left hand and a magical shield in his right". He wields his blade accordingly in the 3D games. In the original NES and Super NES Legend of Zelda titles, Link can be seen alternately holding his weapon in the right or the left hand, depending on his orientation, due to sprite mirroring (Nintendo's originally joking explanation for this is that he always keeps his shield pointed at Death Mountain, which in the 2D games that featured it was always North, towards the top of the screen). Starting with The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, however, the sprites are no longer mirrored and have been updated to reflect that Link holds his sword in his left hand and his shield in his right, no matter what direction he is facing. This occurs in the left and right-looking sprites. In ''The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap'', however, Link returns to alternately holding his weapon in the right or the left hand, depending on his orientation. At the beginning of the ''Four Swords Plus'' (''Four Swords Adventures'') manga, Link is referred to as the "left-handed hero" after defeating pirates that were raiding a Hylian town. =Sword techniques Link's oldest special sword-fighting technique is the ability to shoot beams of energy from his sword—the exact nature of the beams remains obscure, though it has been referred to as "throwing his sword". This allows him to hit opponents from great distances, but often with less power than a direct strike. In most ''Zelda'' games, Link must have full health (measured by a meter with red, usually Heart -shaped units which empty as he takes damage) to perform this move. In ''The Legend of Zelda'' and ''The Adventure of Link'', Link's first sword has the ability to shoot beams at full health. In subsequent 2D games, Link usually had to acquire a more powerful sword to perform the technique. ''Majora's Mask'' changed the technique slightly by requiring him to don the Fierce Deity's Mask, which then consumed magic to perform the beam technique. In ''The Minish Cap'', the ability was taught to Link by one of the Blade Brothers, and he could also learn to perform the technique when he had just one heart. In the animated TV series, Link and all other characters fight solely by shooting beams from one weapon or another. These only induce pain in people, but warp Link's enemies back into Ganon's "evil jar". Only two games in the ''Zelda'' series do not feature the sword beam technique, the first being ''Ocarina of Time'', although it was intended to be implemented, as shown in a picture on Nintendo's official website during the development process. ''The Wind Waker'' also omits the sword beam. Another of Link's signature moves is the spin attack, also known as ''whirling blade'' or ''spinning slash'', during which he executes a full 360° (or more) rotation with his sword drawn; this can damage several of his opponents at once and is usually more powerful than an ordinary strike. Although the visual representation of this attack varies throughout the series — performing a spin attack usually causes Link's sword to light up and other related visual effects — the technique itself is present in every ''Legend of Zelda'' game beginning with ''A Link to the Past''. From "Ocarina of Time" on, this attack can be executed instantly by rotating the analogue stick in a full circle and pressing the sword button. Charging the blade takes time and magic but will result in a stronger and wider attack. In ''The Wind Waker'' and ''The Minish Cap'', after Link learns a special technique, he can charge power longer to spin for an extended period (rather than a single rotation) when he uses his spin attack. Sometimes known as the " Hurricane Blade", this technique was also present in the ''Game Boy Advance'' re-release of ''A Link to the Past'', and it was usable in the Gamecube release of '' Soul Calibur 2 '', which featured Link as a playable character, and in both ''Super Smash Bros.'' games. Occasionally, Link also possesses the "up thrust" and "down thrust" techniques, which are used to strike at enemies above or below Link while he is jumping. The down thrust move is also known as the "sword plant" technique, as it ends with Link planting the sword point down in either his adversary or the ground. These moves are found in ''The Adventure of Link'', ''Super Smash Bros.'', ''Super Smash Bros. Melee'', and ''Soul Calibur 2''. The down thrust is featured in ''The Wind Waker'' as a parry technique usable only against Magtail and Floor Master enemies, as well as in ''The Minish Cap'', but as a move Link needs to learn from one of the Blade Brothers. Furthermore, preview videos for ''Twilight Princess'' have shown Link utilizing the sword plant move. The animation for the move in ''Twilight Princess'' is directly taken from the parry version in ''The Wind Waker''. Parry ing, introduced in ''The Wind Waker'', is a new technique for Link to perform; if the player hits the action button just before being hit by an enemy, Link will dodge the attack and counter it, either by rolling behind his opponents or jumping over them and slashing them from behind. The third parry, mentioned above, is the rare down thrust. Link learns this technique from the old warrior and fisherman, Orca, in his home village on Outset Island. Other weapons There are other weapons recurrent in Link's arsenal, most notably (and repeatedly) small Bomb s and projectile weapons including Boomerang s, Bow s and the Hookshot . =Bombs Link's Bomb s are small, blue, and have a short fuse. When they blow up, they can hurt enemies or destroy obstacles, or even bring down walls to reveal Secret Passage s. Variants include Bomb Flowers, from which bombs are made, which explode shortly after Link picks them; Bombchu, mouse-shaped bombs which, once released, zoom along floors and walls searching for targets; and grey Remote Bombs which Link can detonate at will. A larger, reddish "Super Bomb" can be purchased late in ''A Link to the Past'', and is necessary to gain access to the Silver Arrows and Golden Sword. In ''Majora's Mask'', Goron Link can also use a Powder Keg. This huge explosive device provides a far larger explosion than regular bombs, enabling Link to destroy huge rocks and walls. Unlike Link's other weapons, bombs normally inflict damage indiscriminately. Link may be harmed if he is within range when they go off. =Boomerang The Boomerang , somewhat exotic for a Sword And Sorcery fantasy setting, is available to Link in all ''LoZ'' games except for ''Zelda II'' and ''Majora's Mask''. In ''Majora's Mask'', however, Zora Link/Mikau is able to shoot his fins as if they were two boomerangs thrown simultaneously with each arm. The boomerang always returns to Link when thrown. It is most useful for stunning enemies, but can be used to kill some weak opponents and collect items or activate switches at a distance. In ''The Wind Waker'' and ''Twilight Princess'', Link's boomerang can hit multiple targets. According to ''Zelda.com'', Link is "one of the most accurate boomerang throwers Hyrule has ever seen". Occasionally, Link obtains a "Magical Boomerang" which flies farther and can sometimes be controlled after he throws it. In the upcoming ''LoZ'' game ''Twilight Princess'', the "Gale Boomerang" creates whirlwinds which can carry items. =Bow & Arrows Link's Bow & Arrow s allow him to shoot at enemies from a safe distance. In addition to simple Wooden Arrows, Link can acquire more devastating rounds to foil the traps and dangers that await him. In ''The Legend of Zelda'' and ''A Link to the Past'', he finds special Silver Arrows that are required to defeat Ganon, alluding to silver's role in mythology as a tool against evil magic and creatures. In ''Ocarina of Time'', ''Majora's Mask'', and ''The Wind Waker'', Link can use magic with this weapon, enchanting his arrows to become Fire and Ice arrows which burn/melt or freeze enemies and obstacles on contact. In these games and ''The Minish Cap'', the Silver Arrow is replaced by the mystical and powerful Light Arrow. Link's bow & arrows are often essential in solving in-game Puzzles and defeating very powerful bosses. For example, the final confrontations with Ganondorf in ''The Wind Waker'' and Ganon in ''Ocarina of Time'' involve extensive use of the bow. ==Other Projectile weapons Link sometimes also makes use of another projectile weapons such as a slingshot in ''Ocarina of Time'' and ''Oracle of Seasons'' as well as a gun-shaped weapon called the “seed shooter” featured in ''Oracle of Ages''. In ''Link's Awakening'' bombs can be fired along with arrows to create an explosive missile. =Hookshot The Hookshot , introduced in ''A Link to the Past'', is a weapon which fires and retracts a hook on a chain, using a spring-based mechanism. The hook can dig into certain surfaces, such as wood, and then pull Link to them. Alternatively, it can be used to retrieve items, break objects, or attack enemies. Variations on the hookshot include a longer-ranged version called the Longshot in the latter part of ''Ocarina of Time'', and a simplified rope and Grappling Hook in the early stages of ''The Wind Waker''. ''Oracle of Ages'' also featured the “Switch Hook” which allowed Link to swap places with an object (such as a vase or enemy) from a distance. Items During the course of his games, Link also makes use of normal objects as improvised weapons. Parts of the scenery - such as rocks - can be used instead of normal weaponry. One example of an item is the ''Deku Stick'', a thin wooden stick usually found by defeating enemy plants. These are quite flammable, and act as portable torches, though they burn out quickly. Used as weapons, the sticks usually break upon first hit, but a glitch allows the player to keep the stick after it breaks - a weapon stronger than the Kokiri sword. Physical abilities Link is generally physically fit, and often exhibits above-average strength, speed, agility, and reflexes. In addition to his fighting skills, he can perform certain actions on his own or by using powers granted by non-weapon items. In several 2D games Link can use the Pegasus Boots (or Pegasus Seeds) to give himself a speed boost and dash, allowing him to travel quickly, ram obstacles and enemies, and cross unstable terrain into which he would otherwise sink. Link can generally jump down from ledges where they exist and are not blocked, but curiously he is limited in other jumping ability. In the 3D games, he jumps small gaps and steps automatically, but can not jump higher (although he can climb). In the 2D games, only ''The Adventure of Link'' has jumping available as a standard action; in other titles Link must use an item such as the Roc 's Feather or Roc's Cape to jump. Because jumping is integral to ''Smash Bros.'' game play, it is a standard action in those games. Link can usually lift small bushes, clumps of grass, and sometimes small clay pots on his own. When aided by the Power Bracelet(s) or other magical bracelets, gloves, and gauntlets, he can lift and push objects much heavier than those he would normally be able to move. The swimming abilities of the Links vary greatly. Some cannot swim at all, while some can remain afloat indefinitely. To reach his full swimming and diving potential, however, Link usually needs to obtain aid from a magical item such as Zora 's Flippers or an enchanted Zora scale. In Majora's Mask, Link can don the Zora mask and change into Mikau to maximize his aquatic prowess. In the Wind Waker, Link is able to swim for a certain amount or time, as depicted by a 'stamina bar', and if Link can not make it to land (or his boat) in time before the bar depletes, he will start to drown. In ''Soul Calibur 2'' (see relevant section below), Link also shows mastery of unarmed Martial Arts , but this is not canon. He can also attack unarmed when in other forms in ''MM'', and when wearing a certain magic ring in the ''Oracle'' series. Also, in all of Link's 3D incarnations, he has the impressive ability to perform backflips and rolls to avoid attacks while targeting an enemy. This move is difficult enough with no equipment, but with the hero weighed down by shield, sword and an array of other items, Link's strength and agility are quite apparent. Magic Many Links are skilled with magic and, once taught, can use spells to protect, transform, defend, or otherwise enhance themselves, or to directly attack the enemy and cause other effects. In some games Link uses magic power to activate items such as Magic Wands, Rods, Staves, Canes, etc., although sometimes he does not have a Magic Meter and these work on their own.
Often, Link also plays Songs on special instruments that magically affect his environment. RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER CHARACTERS Link is essentially a lone Adventurer . Although Zelda games feature more interaction with friendly or neutral non-player characters (NPCs) than some adventure games, such as the Metroid Series , these characters rarely take an active part in Link's quest. At best they provide him with hints, maps or useful items. There are too many NPCs who help Link in some way throughout the series to name here. Nevertheless, some are particularly notable because they are related to Link, and therefore provide insight into his character and background, or because they directly accompany and assist Link in his quest, instead of passively offering advice or items. For more characters not covered here, see The Legend Of Zelda Series Characters . Family
Companions and allies Princess Zelda See Also: Princess Zelda Zelda herself often aids Link in his quest to defeat evil. For example, in ''Ocarina of Time'', she guides Link through his adventures and provides him with hints, sometimes disguised as Sheik . In ''The Wind Waker'', as the pirate captain Tetra, she helps Link free his sister from Ganondorf's grasp. In both games, Zelda is by Link's side helping him during the final confrontation with the "King of Evil" (Ganon). There is a popular theory among some fans of a Romantic relationship between some of the Link or Zelda characters in the series. Although not yet definitely confirmed in the video game titles of the franchise, it is based on strong hints given in the games, interviews with the game creators, the cartoons, and comics/manga. |
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