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[IbizaPocholo]

The Legend of Zelda timeline is one of the most infamous timelines in all of gaming. Nintendo’s fantasy franchise unfurls its tale of grand adventure across 19 mainline games from the original 1986 Legend of Zelda all the way through to 2023’s Tears of the Kingdom.

With Tears of the Kingdom further expanding the story established in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, what better time to dive back into the ongoing battle between Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf.

This is the Legend of Zelda timeline fully explained.

00:00 - Intro
00:50 - Creation
02:15 - Skyward Sword
07:35 - The Sacred Realm
08:39 - Minish Cap
11:00 - Four Swords
11:50 - Ocarina of Time
16:43 - The Great Split
18:13 - A Link to the Past
20:36 - Link’s Awakening
21:58 - The Oracle Games
23:13 - A Link Between Worlds
25:46 - Tri Force Heroes
26:46 - The Legend of Zelda
28:47 - The Adventure of Link
30:20 - Majora’s Mask
33:04 - Twilight Princess
35:47 - Four Swords Adventures
37:28 - The Wind Waker
41:45 - Phantom Hourglass
42:52 - Spirit Tracks
44:23 - Breath of the Wild
47:32 - Tears of the Kingdom

From the origins of the Master Sword in Skyward Sword through to the battle against Calamity Ganon in Breath of the Wild via the time travel shenanigans of Ocarina of Time, this video breaks down the confusing timeline of the Legend of Zelda franchise.

• This video is about explaining The Legend of Zelda timeline, which is infamous in the gaming world.
• The Legend of Zelda's narrative begins with three goddesses: Din, Nayru, and Farore, who create the land of Hyrule.
• They leave behind the Triforce, a magical artifact that grants wishes to those who come into contact with it.
• The goddess Hylia is tasked with protecting the Triforce.
• The first game in the timeline is Skyward Sword, which starts with a great big bloody fight for the Triforce between Hylia and the malevolent Demon King known as Demise.
• Hylia gathers her people on a chunk of land and fires them off into the sky to protect them from Demise.
• Hylia demotes herself from goddess to human and is reborn as Zelda.
• Link is introduced in Skyward Sword as a student of the Knight Academy.
• Link's quest to rescue Zelda for the first time begins with the help of the sword Spirit Fee.

• The Gerudo tribe leader, Ganondorf, seeks the power of the Triforce, but the king of Hyrule should not trust him.
• The princess Zelda senses the evil plans of Ganondorf through a prophetic dream and implores her father to banish him from the kingdom.
• Link and his fairy, Navi, plan to find the remaining keys to the sacred realm while Zelda keeps an eye on Ganondorf's plans.
• After Ganondorf invades the sacred realm, Hyrule Castle becomes populated by monsters, and Zelda disguises herself as Sheik to hide from him.
• Link sleeps for seven years, during which he is in no fit state to counter Ganondorf's forces.
• Link goes on an epic quest to break the curses on five temples around the land and awaken the sages that slumber within.
• Ganondorf morphs into the boar-like Ganon during a chaotic battle atop Hyrule Castle, but Link emerges victorious.
• The chronology splits into three different strands, with one possible outcome where the hero of time is defeated by Ganondorf.

• Link follows Yuga to Laurel, where he meets Princess Hilda, Zelda's doppelganger, who helps him keep Yuga at bay while he tracks down the Triforce of Courage. It turns out that Hilda is playing Link and is in league with Yuga to resurrect Ganon and steal Hyrule's Triforce to replace their own destroyed one.
• Triforce Heroes is a multiplayer game where Link and two other characters save a princess from a cursed jumpsuit. They venture into the drab lands to confront the witch responsible and break the curse.
• The original 1986 Legend of Zelda begins with Ganon back again and Princess Zelda splitting up the Triforce of Wisdom into eight chunks, which she hides across the land to prevent Ganon from getting them. Link arrives in the devastated Kingdom of Hyrule and seeks out the Triforce pieces to defeat Ganon.
• After defeating Ganon, Link sticks around to help clean up the mess Ganon left. Six years later, on Link's 16th birthday, the crest of the royal family appears on the back of his hand. Impa tells Link about the tragedy of Princess Zelda the first and implores him to search for the Triforce of Courage to unite the complete Triforce.

• The first part explains how Link and Zelda defeat Vati and Ganon in the Light World.
• The video then talks about the end of the timeline split in Ocarina of Time.
• The timeline branch from the events in Ocarina of Time follows the adult timeline ending where peace is restored across Hyrule after Ganondorf is sealed away.
• The Desperate Times Desperate Measures plan is put into action, and Hyrule is flooded. Ganondorf survives and searches for Zelda and the Triforce of Wisdom.
• Link travels beneath the waves to Hyrule Castle to grab the Master Sword, but it is useless against Ganondorf.
• Link is directed to seek out the shards of the Triforce of Courage so they can put an end to Ganondorf.
• As Ganondorf reaches out to take the completed Triforce, the King wishes for the ancient land of Hyrule to be destroyed once and for all, which angers Ganondorf.
• Link and Zelda defeat Ganondorf and escape Hyrule as it crumbles around them.

 

[Robb]

This timeline is such a mess, but for some reason I kind of enjoy that there is one at all.

 

[mcjmetroid]

It's very clear that Nintendo doesn't care about the timeline and never has. It's fans desperately trying to read into it to try give the Zelda series the lore of other series.

They've tried to tell fans this countless times before finally just throwing out a book with the timeline in it that made no sense just to cash in on it.

I mean have fun if you want but it's like trying to sort out a timeline in the Final Fantasy series or Super Mario Bros. It's pointless and will only lead to fan disappointment when something doesn't allign up with their fake visions.

 

[cireza]

Do people care about this ?

I'd like to see the timeline of Mario, Kirby, Donkey Kong, Mario Kart and Tetris games as well.

 

[ManaByte]

Do people care about this ?

I'd like to see the timeline of Mario, Kirby, Donkey Kong, Mario Kart and Tetris games as well.

I’d like GameSpot to do a Harry Potter timeline…oh wait.

 

[Woopah]

It's very clear that Nintendo doesn't care about the timeline and never has. It's fans desperately trying to read into it to try give the Zelda series the lore of other series.

They've tried to tell fans this countless times before finally just throwing out a book with the timeline in it that made no sense just to cash in on it.

I mean have fun if you want but it's like trying to sort out a timeline in the Final Fantasy series or Super Mario Bros. It's pointless and will only lead to fan disappointment when something doesn't allign up with their fake visions.

I don't think Nintendo cares too much about keeping things 100% accurate.

But unlike Mario or FF, the vast majority of Zelda titles are connected to it others in the series in various ways.

 

[kunonabi]

At this point I've just decided to use the fan timeline where the downfall branch happens during the minish cap. It makes infinitely more sense than the "official" Nintendo one.

 

[mcjmetroid]

I don't think Nintendo cares too much about keeping things 100% accurate.

But unlike Mario or FF, the vast majority of Zelda titles are connected to it others in the series in various ways.

It's possible but I've always just seen them all as soft reboots in their own way.

It's easier and less stressful to think of them in this way

 

[Woopah]

It's possible but I've always just seen them all as soft reboots in their own way.

It's easier and less stressful to think of them in this way

I guess it is less stressful, but on the other hand I quite like the links between the different games (no pun inteded).

Every game with the Master Sword relies on the events of Skyward Sword happening first, every game with Ganondorf relies on Ocarina of Time happening first. Phantom Hourglass and Spriti Tracks can only happen becuase of what took place in Wind Waker. Plus there are several games that feature the same Link.

So yes you can think of them as soft reboots, but Zelda games have been connected to each other story-wise since the 80s.

 

[GMCamaro]

The Legend of Zelda on the NES was the first. Barring Link’s Adventure, they are all retellings of a hero named Link and a princess named Zelda as their story becomes lost to time and becomes a loose narrative legend.

 

[EverydayBeast]

Started and finished every console Zelda game after ocarina of time it’s got a lengthy history with valuable lore.

 

[Moses85]

Do people care about this ?

I'd like to see the timeline of Mario, Kirby, Donkey Kong, Mario Kart and Tetris games as well.

Sure..

It always makes sense to give something sense

 

[mopspear]

The Donkey Kong timeline diverges after the Great Bananna Split

 

[AJUMP23]

I only go the GAME_EXPLAIN for timelines.

 

[IbizaPocholo]

The Legend of Zelda is one of the most beloved series in all of gaming. Over 30 years, the series has innovated game design, inspired countless other game developers, and changed the landscape of video games for good. To celebrate the launch of the eagerly awaited Tears of the Kingdom, let’s take a look at the history of The Legend of Zelda.

In the mid-1980s, Shigeru Miyamoto was working on Super Mario Bros for the Famicom, but began noodling around with an idea for a different game. Miyamoto was inspired by his youth exploring the Japanese countryside, and wanted to move away from the linearity of Mario to give players an adventure where they had to carefully consider their next moves.

The team worked up a classic damsel-in-distress tale whereby the hero, Link, would rescue Princess Zelda from the evil Ganon’s lair on Death Mountain. It was a simple premise, but Miyamoto, along with Takashi Tezuka, went on to build something on top of it that would change the kinds of games Nintendo made. The Legend of Zelda remains as one of the most influential games of all time, and was the springboard for a franchise that would define Nintendo. In this episode of History Of, we examine the impact the series has had on gaming since its inception in 1986.

Timestamps:
00:00 - Intro
00:24 - The Legend of Zelda (1986)
02:52 - Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (1987)
04:22 - The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (1991)
05:21 - The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening (1993)
06:47 - The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998)
09:13 - The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask (2000)
10:58 - The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages (2001)
12:42 - The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (2002)
14:10 - The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures (2004)
15:06 - The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap (2004)
15:56 - The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (2006)
17:20 - The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (2007)
18:09 - The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (2009)
18:43 - The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (2011)
20:23 - The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds (2013)
21:45 - The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes (2015)
22:08 - The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017)
24:25 - The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (2023)

The Legend of Zelda is a beloved video game series that has been around for over 30 years. The first game was created by Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tazuka, who wanted to offer players an adventure where they had to carefully consider their next moves. The first game, released in 1986, established the core tenets of the Zelda playing experience, including exploration, puzzle-solving, and battling through dungeons. The game was a critical and commercial success, selling over 6 million copies worldwide and influencing future games in the franchise. Zelda 2, released in 1987, introduced new gameplay elements like side-scrolling gameplay and RPG systems. A Link to the Past, released in 1991, acted as a prequel to the other games and introduced the franchise’s iconic Master Sword. The game was critically acclaimed and re-released on the Game Boy Advance with multiplayer.

 

[RoboFu]

Not this shit again.

Zelda has no real timeline and doesn’t need one. They only made one up for weirdos who can’t function.

 

[Fuz]

Spoiler

There is no timeline.