Zelda Time Line Explained

[dragonkid6]

I understand it all the timelines but one thing is still buggin' me... all the LoZ games in the Adult Arc are Toon Link...So what exactly is the split between Hero of Time Successful?

In Twilight Princess, it shows Ganondorf being imprisoned as it happened in the end of OoT (with a few, extra, rather important details). This happens at the end of the child timeline before Ganondorf can take over the world. Because this timeline is created when Ganon doesn't take over Hyrule, the Adult Timeline, the one where he does defeat Ganon instead of simply imprisoning him, would logically lead to Wind Waker instead of Twilight Princess due to Ganon's revival. I don't see a problem with that. It's a new Link in a new game with a new art style. The games aren't designed to be 100% contiguous. There are little details differing in each version (the location and design of the Temple of Time, for one thing). While all of the games are on one giant timeline (with branching paths), the designers of the game clearly stressed artistic expression over complete accuracy.

Hrm, so they just changed the art style in WW, PH and the SP, but by the timeline, it's adult Link. Well now that we know this timeline there is but one question left....WHICH LINK IS THE HERO OF TIME!? To me it seems likely to be SS Link.

 

[dragonkid6]

The Hero of Time defeated arc seems like Non-Canon to me. Sorry to the fans of those games that followed but, seriously, making an arc on a "what if Link in OoT died" is just filler crap. I was in the middle of playing all the LoZ games to figure out a timeline but now I'm gonna skip the Non-Canon/Spin-Off Arc. To me, it's on the same level as Pokemon Ranger, or Pokemon Rumble.

EDIT: In my hastiness I mistyped. Fixed

T_T WHY in Holy Hell would you want to skip Link to The Past? You're a madman!

I'm gonna recant, that statement seeing as how, after further explanation, it makes sense. Good thing too since I already have those games. Only game I need to get is Wind Waker.....the one LoZ game I don't like.

 

[Gahars]

Here's an even more needlessly convoluted timeline than you were you expecting. Merry Christmas!

Love,
Nintendo

 

[Schlupi]

So to those who can't understand why the timeline branches "if he fails"...

Imagine ANY other series where time travel is involved. Let's say... Back To The Future, that's popular enough.

When the hero/s fail/s, there is always an alternate outcome that can happen. Remember when Doc Brown got shot to death by those Libyan terrorists? That was him failing. In that timeline, Marty goes from 1985 to 1955 afterwards, and a second timeline is created where he is able to be saved and other crazy shit happens. In doing so, however, other things were altered that caused all of their futures to be changed (Marty got that Sports Almanac and Biff got it) and Biff ruined shit.

The reason why there are three timeline branches is simple. It's because one is if Link fails, and one is with Young Link's continuation after Ocarina of Time (where Ganondorf is stopped before he can wreak havoc since Link knows what he is up to). The final one is the Adult Era's future after Ganondorf's actual defeat, and the world lives on peacefully after Ganondorf is sealed until he breaks out, whereas since the Hero of Time is gone, and they don't know how to stop him, so they just say "fuck it" and flood Hyrule so he can't have it.


I, for one, and impressed. It seems like they have legitimately thought this out to some extent, it doesn't seem like it was completely made up half-assedly.

 

[KingVamp]

As I've said before, Nintendo have basically fucked a duck when it came to Zelda continuity so this is the most slapped together explanation they could fabricate. Why couldn't they just say "All the games aren't related at all and we just made different games with different settings because we fucking wanted to"?

Because they are links (lol) between the Zelda games, why not connect them? It also fun to see what they going to

do with the timeline. Imagine at one point there is another split in the timeline with N branches.

The are infinity possibilities in time, so there could be a timeline where he fails. Basically that the timeline when you get a game over in Zelda.

The way I see it, at any point that he fails that timeline would happen one way or another unless he fails in that actually timeline.

"Good going dumbass, now Ganon is king"

This timeline makes sense. But I still don't fucking like it. I'd rather have no timeline and make us figure it out ourselves like the old days of a few weeks ago.

But everyone was slightly wrong! Anyway, they can figure the next Zelda games continuation for another 25 years.

 

[vpd]

As I've said before, Nintendo have basically fucked a duck when it came to Zelda continuity so this is the most slapped together explanation they could fabricate. Why couldn't they just say "All the games aren't related at all and we just made different games with different settings because we fucking wanted to"?

This.

The timeline stuff has just been made up years later after loads of games and been twisted and shit to try fit around the games, there was never a proper timeline in place or any real continuity.

 

[awssk8er]

Sure this makes sense, but I just like to believe each game is the same story just passed down, and over time told differently. That's why it's The Legend of Zelda.

I know that's not what Nintendo intended, but it makes things easier for everyone.

 

[dragonkid6]

I went and looked back at TP and OoT, and in TP you learn lessons from the Hero of Time, OoT Link is called the Hero of Time, but the Hero of Time closely resembles something akin to SS Link. But the Hero of Time talks about how he failed to guide other heroes and he wants to teach TP Link his skills. Now, at the end of the skill learning he says that the last skill is skill that is kept in the bloodline. I'm not gonna get into whether or not they're related, but if the Hero of Time has failed to teach other "heroes" and if he really is OoT Link (but dead) wouldn't that put the Hero of Time into the "Link is Defeated" arc? But since he shows up in TP, it only further proves that the Hero of Time is SS Link, right?

 

[Tom Bombadildo]

I went and looked back at TP and OoT, and in TP you learn lessons from the Hero of Time, OoT Link is called the Hero of Time, but the Hero of Time closely resembles something akin to SS Link. But the Hero of Time talks about how he failed to guide other heroes and he wants to teach TP Link his skills. Now, at the end of the skill learning he says that the last skill is skill that is kept in the bloodline. I'm not gonna get into whether or not they're related, but if the Hero of Time has failed to teach other "heroes" and if he really is OoT Link (but dead) wouldn't that put the Hero of Time into the "Link is Defeated" arc? But since he shows up in TP, it only further proves that the Hero of Time is SS Link, right?

...i don't think you actually learn anything from the Hero of Time, I thought that thing only taught the heroes and isn't the actual hero of time. According to SS, the Link in that game is the official Hero of Time, as you

Spoiler

see when you beat the game, Demise will cast a curse on you and your descendants that this sequence of events will continue on and on forever, causing Zelda and Link and Ganon (supposedly) to constantly resurrect whether through bloodline or a whatever and fight a battle of good and evil

From what we learn here, every Link in each game is a descendant of the Hero of Time, despite which timeline it's in....I hope that all makes sense...

EDIT: Oh and in most every game the Hero is described differently, such as The Hero of Hyrule or The Hero of the Winds but generally (I believe) they are all just a descendant of SS Link.

 

[dragonkid6]

I went and looked back at TP and OoT, and in TP you learn lessons from the Hero of Time, OoT Link is called the Hero of Time, but the Hero of Time closely resembles something akin to SS Link. But the Hero of Time talks about how he failed to guide other heroes and he wants to teach TP Link his skills. Now, at the end of the skill learning he says that the last skill is skill that is kept in the bloodline. I'm not gonna get into whether or not they're related, but if the Hero of Time has failed to teach other "heroes" and if he really is OoT Link (but dead) wouldn't that put the Hero of Time into the "Link is Defeated" arc? But since he shows up in TP, it only further proves that the Hero of Time is SS Link, right?

...i don't think you actually learn anything from the Hero of Time, I thought that thing only taught the heroes and isn't the actual hero of time. According to SS, the Link in that game is the official Hero of Time, as you

Spoiler

see when you beat the game, Demise will cast a curse on you and your descendants that this sequence of events will continue on and on forever, causing Zelda and Link and Ganon (supposedly) to constantly resurrect whether through bloodline or a whatever and fight a battle of good and evil

From what we learn here, every Link in each game is a descendant of the Hero of Time, despite which timeline it's in....I hope that all makes sense...

EDIT: Oh and in most every game the Hero is described differently, such as The Hero of Hyrule or The Hero of the Winds but generally (I believe) they are all just a descendant of SS Link.

That's been my theory this whole time too, I just wanted to argue that the Hero of Time is not OoT Link is the same statement.

 

[abel009]

So basically, in Skyward sword you have another timeline split, where link goes back to the past to defeat demise, when link fails to defeat demise and where link goes back to his timeline and there is no hero to defeat demise so demise wins. So basically when you get game over on every game you get another timeline split. am i making any sense?

---

 

[gloweyjoey]

Do you think it's the same Link all over the three timeline?

As the producer said once, it's different heros and Zelda (reincarnated or not).
And, if I remember well, it's even explained in a Zelda game (was it Zelda2?) that all princesses are named Zelda in memory of the first one who is sealed. So there were a lot of generations between most games.

You could not be any more correct. Its Zelda 2. Although not explained in the game, it was in the manual...


It seems like they just separated them into 3 different series. 2D series, 3D realistic series, and 3Dcartoon link series.

 

[Deleted-236924]

Works for me!

 

[Sora de Eclaune]

What is the sacred realm, exactly? It wasn't addressed in Skyward Sword, but it was sealed between Skyward Sword and Minish Cap.

Also, I think they made Minish Cap happen second because there were still people living in the sky.

Link dies when Gannon first hits him with the magic blast at the drawbridge in ocarina of time

im wondering if the next zelda game might show the footage where link is the creator of majorias mask

hes a nice little pic of the scene

I didn't know link made that evil mask! I now feel like a timeline correction is going to be made. The other world from that game is possible kid link traveling to the other failed link's time line's future. They never said that Link died, he just failed. What if he grows up and makes the mask to wear. The mask showing people his sadness and how sorry he his. The mask kind of looks like a sad and depressed heart. Many years later, Hyrule's name is lost, a new town as been founded. One day Kid link appears from the other timeline, not knowing he's there to fix a time loop and save the people there.

Link did not make Majora's Mask.

That man you see in that manga page is supposedly the Fierce Deity.

It only looks like Link because the Fierce Deity in-game looks like adult Link.

 

[gloweyjoey]

I understand it all the timelines but one thing is still buggin' me... all the LoZ games in the Adult Arc are Toon Link...So what exactly is the split between Hero of Time Successful?

In Twilight Princess, it shows Ganondorf being imprisoned as it happened in the end of OoT (with a few, extra, rather important details). This happens at the end of the child timeline before Ganondorf can take over the world. Because this timeline is created when Ganon doesn't take over Hyrule, the Adult Timeline, the one where he does defeat Ganon instead of simply imprisoning him, would logically lead to Wind Waker instead of Twilight Princess due to Ganon's revival. I don't see a problem with that. It's a new Link in a new game with a new art style. The games aren't designed to be 100% contiguous. There are little details differing in each version (the location and design of the Temple of Time, for one thing). While all of the games are on one giant timeline (with branching paths), the designers of the game clearly stressed artistic expression over complete accuracy.

Hrm, so they just changed the art style in WW, PH and the SP, but by the timeline, it's adult Link. Well now that we know this timeline there is but one question left....WHICH LINK IS THE HERO OF TIME!? To me it seems likely to be SS Link.

There is only ONE hero of time, when Link defeats gannon he becomes the hero of time and zelda sends him BACK in time leaving this "adult link timeline" WITHOUT the hero of time, or another link until generations later.

If SS come before OoT it is not possible for SS link to be the hero of time.

 

[Nathan Drake]

Still doesn't address the odd gap between Four Swords and Four Swords Adventure that can not be there for the timeline to make any sense.

 

[Deleted User]

This timeline is such a load of BS.
Nintendo basically duckfucked and ended up with this shit in the end

 

[Sterling]

This timeline is such a load of BS.
Nintendo basically duckfucked and ended up with this shit in the end

Several people have said similiar things in this thread, and I don't see why you guys think this. Doubters, haters, and nintendorks alike, have all questioned the existance of this timeline. This is the real deal. This is not thrown together. It is thought out, and tied firmly together minus a couple plotholes. I guess haters gonna hate.

 

[Heran Bago]

Link dies when Gannon first hits him with the magic blast at the drawbridge in ocarina of time

im wondering if the next zelda game might show the footage where link is the creator of majorias mask

hes a nice little pic of the scene

What is this from? The Majora`s mask manga?

 

[Guild McCommunist]

Several people have said similiar things in this thread, and I don't see why you guys think this. Doubters, haters, and nintendorks alike, have all questioned the existance of this timeline. This is the real deal. This is not thrown together. It is thought out, and tied firmly together minus a couple plotholes. I guess haters gonna hate.

You can tell the timeline is shit when it's dependent on events that can't even fucking happen in the game. All the Zelda games have a single ending and a single path of story progression, saying "Oh well there are two possible events" is the ultimate thing of ass pulling. If the game had alternate paths then I'd understand. But to have the timeline dependent on events that CAN'T EVEN FUCKING HAPPEN IN THE GAMES is probably the dumbest fucking thing I've ever heard.