{"id":220301,"date":"2021-03-20T16:35:24","date_gmt":"2021-03-20T16:35:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gamerant.com\/complete-chronological-order-legend-zelda-games\/"},"modified":"2021-03-20T16:35:24","modified_gmt":"2021-03-20T16:35:24","slug":"the-complete-chronological-order-of-legend-of-zelda-games","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/itteacheritfreelance.hk\/wordpress\/index.php\/2021\/03\/20\/the-complete-chronological-order-of-legend-of-zelda-games\/","title":{"rendered":"The Complete Chronological Order Of Legend Of Zelda Games"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The more incarnations of\u00a0The Legend of Zelda\u00a0Nintendo has created, the hotter debate\u00a0surrounding\u00a0the\u00a0timeline has become. In 2011,\u00a0that debate was finally laid to rest thanks to the ‘Hyrule Historia’, a book laying out the official order in which Link\u00a0& Zelda’s adventures\u00a0were meant to be arranged.<\/p>\n

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There’s still plenty of debate to be had for the best entry point into the franchise, however, with so many different\u00a0Zelda\u00a0<\/em>games to choose from. Even so, for players who love to play a franchise by following its overarching plot, the\u00a0timeline placement\u00a0is clear \u2013 for the most part. Here is the official chronological order of every\u00a0Legend of Zelda<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>title to date.<\/p>\n

Updated on March 20, 2021, by Renan Fontes:\u00a0<\/strong>Breath of the Wild undeniably changed timeline discourse for The Legend of Zelda, something only compounded by Age of Calamity’s launch in late 2020. With Breath of the Wild 2 set to release for Nintendo Switch, the\u00a0franchise’s timeline is bound to only get more complicated as the series firmly sets itself in the same branch for the\u00a0third\u00a0game in the row. The Legend of Zelda’s timeline may be hard to follow from an outsider’s perspective, but the games and Hyrule Historia make it clear where exactly each title falls (and why).\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

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The\u00a0franchise begins before the Kingdom of Hyrule is\u00a0founded or the Master Sword is even created. In\u00a0Skyward Sword,\u00a0<\/em>Link hails from the flying island town of Skyloft where he’s a knight in training and childhood best friends with Zelda. His adventure begins when Zelda is spirited away to the Surface by mysterious forces, compelling him to explore the unknown world below.<\/p>\n

Skyward Sword<\/a> was famous for its extensive use of motion controls and the chance to explore the sky world with a flying mount. The story’s events set the stage for generations of battle\u00a0over the Triforce, while contextualizing the cycle that keeps Link, Zelda, and Ganon together along with the history of the Master Sword.<\/p>\n

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The Minish Cap is the first\u00a0game in the timeline to take place in Hyrule, and was the closest thing to an origin story for Link’s cap<\/a>\u00a0before\u00a0Skyward Sword\u00a0<\/em>was released. The title refers both to a diminutive people called the Minish, as well as a particular Minish named Ezlo. After being\u00a0turned into a bird-like cap by the treacherous Vaati, Ezlo teams up with Link to save Hyrule.<\/p>\n

The Minish Cap also marks the first chronological appearance of the recurring Four Sword, describing its creation and\u00a0role\u00a0in the first battle against Vaati. Notably, The Minish Cap also features a power called the “Light Force” which takes the Triforce’s functional role in the story. Whether or not the two forces are directly related has yet to be confirmed.<\/p>\n

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The now-monstrous Vaati returns\u00a0for\u00a0the next game in the timeline<\/a>.\u00a0Four Swords\u00a0<\/em>places\u00a0emphasis on the Four Sword itself and was the first game in the series to introduce the blade. In fact, Four Swords was the first multiplayer\u00a0Legend of Zelda\u00a0<\/em>entry and required two to four players to complete.\u00a0Four Swords was later released as a free single player title on the DSi and 3DS, albeit only temporarily.<\/p>\n

Narratively, Four Swords contributes little to the Zelda timeline other than introducing the Four Sword itself as a concept. At this point in the timeline, Vaati is a beast who’s lost most sense of self and the game itself spends next to no time on cutscenes \u2013 focusing on randomly generated dungeons instead. In the end, Vaati is sealed away and Zelda is rescued by (the) Link(s).<\/p>\n

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Arguably the most famous\u00a0entry\u00a0in the series,\u00a0Ocarina of Time<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>holds a very important place in the timeline.\u00a0The story focuses on seven years of the Hero of Time’s life as his childhood is uprooted and destiny forces him to confront Ganondorf long before he’s ready. Ocarina of Time is a tragedy at its core, allowing Link & Zelda to fail come the halfway point while turning Hyrule into an apocalypse.<\/p>\n

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Time travel becomes pivotal\u00a0in thwarting Ganondorf’s\u00a0conquest of Hyrule, as well as influencing the future of the Zelda timeline. At the end of Ocarina of Time, Princess Zelda divides the timeline by sending Link back to the past\u00a0without\u00a0<\/em>compromising the future. OoT’s end credits clarify that these past and future timelines can coexist, setting the stage for sequels that\u00a0branch from Ocarina’s ending.<\/p>\n

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There’s actually a third timeline that’s not seen in Ocarina of Time, but has played a crucial role in recontextualizing the 2D games. As revealed by the ‘Hyrule Historia,’ there’s an unseen timeline branching from Ocarina of Time where Link fails in stopping Ganon \u2013 directly leading into the Imprisoning War that’s a part of ALttP’s backstory.<\/p>\n

\u00a0A Link to the Past<\/a>\u00a0<\/i>was notable for introducing the Master Sword into the franchise, establishing the formula for future games (in particular Ocarina of Time & Twilight Princess), and greatly expanding the series’ lore. The NES games heavily feature Christian imagery, which A Link to the Past exchanges for Hyrule’s polytheistic society while also establishing the kingdom’s creation myth in the manual.<\/p>\n

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Link’s Awakening\u00a0<\/em>is a direct sequel<\/a> to\u00a0A Link to the Past.\u00a0<\/em>After defeating Agahnim and Ganon, Link\u00a0sets sail\u00a0from Hyrule on a quest to train himself for future adventures. A storm destroys his ship on his way home, and he\u00a0awakes on the mysterious Koholint Island. While everything seems business as usual at first, Link\u00a0soon\u00a0learns that his only way home is to wake the sleeping Wind Fish \u2013 in turn destroying Koholint in the process.<\/p>\n

Link’s Awakening\u00a0<\/em>notably included a quirky roster of enemies referencing enemies and creatures from other Nintendo titles, as well as its existentialist themes.\u00a0Marin herself stands out as the first truly developed character in the series, her arc setting an important precedent for the likes of Zelda\/Sheik in Ocarina of Time, Tetra in The Wind Waker, and future partners like Midna & Fi in general. Although narratively inconsequential, Link’s Awakening is the game where Zelda started taking its stories seriously.<\/p>\n

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Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages were released simultaneously at\u00a0the end of the Game Boy Color’s lifespan. Developed by Capcom, the Oracle duology originally began life as a remake of the original Zelda before striving for something for more ambitious altogether. The Oracle games are designed to be played back to back in\u00a0either order, with players able to transfer their progress from Seasons into Ages and vice versa.\u00a0Story events from the previous game are referenced, there’s an extra dungeon, and you even get to inherit all your Rings.<\/p>\n

Completing a fresh playthrough and linking it into its sister game triggers the Oracle Linked Game, a genuine video game epic that brings Twinrova into the mix, reintroduces Princess Zelda, and ends with a final battle against Ganon himself. While the Oracle games were originally meant to take place between A Link to the Past and Link’s Awakening, they’ve since been moved to take place after LA (though narratively the intent was clearly to feature the same Link between ALttP, LA, and OoX).<\/p>\n

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Developed as a spiritual successor to\u00a0A Link to the Past, A Link Between Worlds\u00a0takes place long\u00a0enough its inspiration where the events of ALttP and Ocarina of Time\u00a0have been\u00a0misremembered\u00a0as the same event in-universe. The Light and Dark World mechanic makes a return,\u00a0albeit this time in the form of<\/a>\u00a0Lorule \u2013 a parallel world with its own history and Triforce.<\/p>\n

A power-hungry wizard named Yuga serves as the initial antagonist, spurring Link\u00a0on journey into Lorule after Yuga turns the Seven Sages into paintings, but not all is at it seems. A Link Between Worlds twists iconic Zelda imagery like the Triforce and the very nature of the main characters to tell a story that reflects on the franchise’s lore with a mature amount of tact.<\/p>\n

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Taking place a few years after the events of A Link Between Worlds,\u00a0Link travels the world\u00a0and eventually stumbles upon the Kingdom of Hytopia. The kingdom’s princess, Styla, has been\u00a0trapped by the witch Lady Maud in a hideous jumpsuit \u2013 flying in the face of Hytopia’s passion for fashion. Like the Four Swords games, Tri Force Heroes was designed with multiplayer in mind, but actually features a proper single player campaign for a change.<\/p>\n

Narratively, the only real connective tissue between A Link Between Worlds and Triforce Heroes is a throwaway NPC who recognizes Link from the former game. It’s also worth pointing out that the other “Links” players interact with are\u00a0just similar looking heroes.<\/p>\n

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The franchise’s namesake and start of the series\u00a0actually takes place\u00a0late in the\u00a0Fallen Hero timeline. Hyrule falls into decline after a\u00a0Golden\u00a0Age brought on by the rediscovery of the Triforce in\u00a0A Link Between Worlds.\u00a0<\/em>Ganon returns and tries to conquer Hyrule in pursuit of the Triforce of Wisdom, but Zelda shatters it into eight pieces\u00a0which she scatters them across the kingdom.<\/p>\n

According to the manual, Link runs into Impa being attacked by Moblins and \u2013 after rescuing her \u2013 feels a burning sense of justice upon hearing Zelda’s plight. Hyrule as depicted is a wasteland compared to other games and there’s a deep sense that Ganon is on the cusp of victory. While the original Zelda features little in the way of actual plot, its tone and backstory set the stage for the rest of the franchise.<\/p>\n

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Roughly three years\u00a0after\u00a0The Legend of Zelda,\u00a0<\/em>Ganon’s minions plot to bring their master back to life through a blood sacrifice \u2013 Link’s. Meanwhile, the image of the Triforce appears on the back of Link’s hand and he learns that he must now find the lost Triforce of Courage to wake Princess Zelda I<\/a>, who has been trapped in a magical sleep for years.<\/p>\n

The Adventure of Link is considerably darker than its predecessor in concept alone. Link’s life is in constant danger, Princess Zelda is locked in a near-unbreakable coma, and Ganon’s minions have a genuine bloodlust. While also light on story, Zelda II brings in a considerable amount of worldbuilding through the introduction of townships (the namesakes for Ocarina of Time’s supporting cast) and ancient temples that test Link’s worth.<\/p>\n

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Ocarina of Time ends with Link returning to the past, which the ‘Hyrule Historia’ ultimately labels as the Child Timeline. Set around a year later,\u00a0Majora’s Mask\u00a0<\/em>is a direct sequel<\/a> to\u00a0Ocarina of Time\u00a0<\/em>where Link accidentally finds himself in the world of Termina while searching for Navi.\u00a0Like\u00a0Link’s Awakening<\/em>,\u00a0Majora’s Mask<\/em>‘s story is\u00a0defined by its themes \u2013 in this case, identity and accepting loss.<\/p>\n

RELATED:\u00a010 Nintendo Switch Games To Play While Waiting For The Legend Of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

The\u00a0Ocarina\u00a0makes a return from OoT, alongside new mechanics involving magical masks, both of which Link must use to prevent Skull Kid from destroying Termina in three days’ time. Majora’s Mask is a deeply grim game that doesn’t shy away from the inevitably of death while ultimately reminding audiences that the people you love still care about you even if they need to leave.<\/p>\n

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The Child Timeline’s darker themes persist from Majora’s Mask into Twilight Princess, the next immediate game in the timeline.\u00a0<\/em>Presumably set centuries after Ocarina of Time, a new incarnation of Link faces the consequences of Ganondorf’s banishment the Hero of Time returned from the future. Ganondorf is set to be executed, but the Triforce of Power manifests itself just in time and Ganon is able to find sanctuary in the Twilight Realm.<\/p>\n

With the help of the\u00a0disgraced Twilight Princess,\u00a0fan favorite Midna<\/a>, Link embarks on a Hero’s Journey that has him saving Hyrule piece by piece and slowly inspiring Midna to be a better person. Twilight Princess also doesn’t get enough credit for it twists Zelda’s narrative conventions, resigning Zelda to a side role in favor of Midna and fleshing out a God\/Servant relationship between Zant & Ganondorf that makes the latter’s eventual demise all the more powerful.<\/p>\n

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Four Swords Adventures is the last game\u00a0in the Child Timeline and sees Ganondorf\u00a0& Vaati finally\u00a0crossing paths. Although Vaati is presented as FSA’s main antagonist initially, it is slowly revealed that he is merely a tool of Ganondorf. Centuries after the end of\u00a0Twilight Princess,\u00a0Ganondorf is reincarnated into a new being and exploits Vaati in his quest for power.<\/p>\n

Four Swords Adventures\u00a0<\/em>combines the multiplayer gameplay of the Four Sword with the dimensional travel of\u00a0A Link To The Past,\u00a0<\/i>along with generally featuring more story beats. As the last game in the Child Timeline, Four Swords Adventures marks Vaati’s final defeat and Ganondorf II’s sole appearance in the franchise.<\/p>\n

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After sending Link back to his past, Princess Zelda remains in the\u00a0present which ‘Hyrule Historia’ deems the Adult Timeline. Unfortunately, Zelda’s intended act of kindness has unforeseen consequences. The next time Ganon is revived, there’s no Spirit of the Hero around to stop him. In turn, the people pray to the Gods who ultimately choose to flood all of Hyrule instead of letting Ganon conquer the kingdom.<\/p>\n

The flood sets the stage for\u00a0The Wind Waker, <\/em>where centuries later the world is covered in water and only referred to as The Great Sea. Link is notably not a reincarnation of the Hero of Time, but a boy who just wants to rescue his sister.\u00a0While the first game in the Adult Timeline, The Wind Waker feels like a grand finale for the whole series \u2013 washing away Hyrule, the Triforce, and the Master Sword in order to pave the way towards a new future.<\/p>\n

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Set immediately after the events of The Wind Waker, the Phantom Hourglass\u00a0sees Link traveling the Great Sea with pirate\/princess Tetra in order to found a new Hyrule. Phantom Hourglass takes cues from Link’s Awakening, setting itself in a parallel dimension Link becomes disconnected from by the end of the story. Similarly, the focus is less on the plot itself and more on the general atmosphere of this alien world. Phantom Hourglass ultimately amounts to little narratively, but it does at least set up the events of Spirit Tracks.<\/p>\n

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Link and Tetra succeed in\u00a0hitting\u00a0land after the events of Phantom Hourglass, founding the kingdom of New Hyrule in the process. 100 years after\u00a0Phantom Hourglass, <\/em>Spirit Tracks deals with New Hyrule’s ancient history from before it was settled.\u00a0New Hyrule is thrown into turmoil when Chancellor Cole \u2013 one of Zelda’s retainers \u2013 betrays her in order to revive the demon Malladus. Zelda loses her life in the process, but she ends up accompanying Link for the rest of the game as a result.<\/p>\n

Spirit Tracks is one of the most unique entries in the series, lending The Legend of Zelda its first taste of an industrial age. Story-wise, Spirit Tracks makes it clear that New Hyrule isn’t just a repeat of its namesake, the backstory behind the Lokomo, Tower of Spirits, and Spirit Flute all giving the plot a unique flavor. More importantly, Link and Zelda’s relationship is arguably the most developed it’s ever been.<\/p>\n

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Although not developed directly by Nintendo, Age of Calamity story was written with the intent of connecting to Breath of the Wild. Age of Calamity was originally marketed as a prequel detailing the events of Breath of the Wild’s backstory 100 years prior, but the story proper actually functions as something of a stealth sequel.<\/p>\n

Age of Calamity makes\u00a0notable use of time travel to simultaneously take place before and after the events of Breath of the Wild. This does unfortunately mean the exact events of Age of Calamity are non-canon to Breath of the Wild, but only in the sense that AoC is triggered by BotW happening to begin with. Chronologically, Age of Calamity does take place a century before BotW while highlighting Hyrule before the Calamity, but the game is only a prequel in the loosest sense of the word.<\/p>\n

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Breath of the Wild\u00a0and its upcoming sequel are not officially attached to\u00a0a particular timeline (yet).\u00a0<\/em>Instead, Nintendo has simply clarified that BotW takes place at the end of a branch without specifying which. Since the game takes place 10,000 years after Ganon’s last appearance in a technologically advanced Hyrule, clues to the timeline are scarce \u2013 but not non-existent.<\/p>\n

Breath of the Wild actually features the most references to the timeline than any other game in the series, directing referencing historical characters like Ruto and Nabooru (something very rarely done in the games).\u00a0Ganon’s potential resurrection<\/a> in Breath of the Wild 2 could likewise illuminate where exactly BotW falls. While thematic and aesthetic details hints towards the Fallen Hero timeline, fans can only wait for the sequel and consider\u00a0Breath of the Wild\u00a0<\/em>the distant end to the franchise until further confirmation.<\/p>\n

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>is in development for Switch.<\/p>\n

Next:\u00a0Breath Of The Wild: Where To Find Shock Arrows (& Everything You Need To Know About Them)<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n

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More than three decades of Legend of Zelda history can be arranged in a chronological order to see the plot progress from one game to the next.<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":630,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"slim_seo":{"title":"The Complete Chronological Order Of Legend Of Zelda Games - ITTeacherITFreelance.hk","description":"More than three decades of Legend of Zelda history can be arranged in a chronological order to see the plot progress from one game to the next."},"footnotes":""},"categories":[607],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/itteacheritfreelance.hk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220301"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/itteacheritfreelance.hk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/itteacheritfreelance.hk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itteacheritfreelance.hk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/630"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itteacheritfreelance.hk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=220301"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/itteacheritfreelance.hk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220301\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":220302,"href":"https:\/\/itteacheritfreelance.hk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220301\/revisions\/220302"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/itteacheritfreelance.hk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=220301"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itteacheritfreelance.hk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=220301"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/itteacheritfreelance.hk\/wordpress\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=220301"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}