Are Link and Samus plain stupid or just forgetful?

[madwarper]

but Ocarina of Time and Major's Mask are supposed to be sequels.

I assume you mean Majora's Mask and Phantom Hourglass.

So how does Young Link from Hyrule head off to Termina and forget his bomb bag, sling-shot, lens of truth, boomerang and ETC. How could he think of leaving those in Hyrule and go off to a new and dangerous land?

Spoiler

Majora's Mask:
First, since the point of Link's journey was just searching for Navi, one could assume he wouldn't have needed his full armament and left it at home. Second, even if he did have his full armament with him, the game opens with him getting mugged by the Skull kid and riding off on Epona. He was just trying to get Epona back, he wasn't planning on falling into Termina and having to solve its Moon problem.

Phantom Hourglass:
Link starts the game jumping after the Ghost Ship, then being washed away to an island. Is it really so surprising that Link would have lost his possessions in the ocean?

And, as for Metroid, as far as I'm aware, except for Other M, most games open with some explosion knocking most of Samus' upgrades off line.

 

[William MacKay]

maybe Samus gets the upgraded suit deactivated or the software needs an update and those weapons are incompatible, and she didnt order them in time.
and maybe Link has all his stuff in a storage building that constantly burns down. shit happens, y'know.

 

[Salokin 7]

Every time Samus uses the light speed on her ship to get away from an exploding planet or something, its possible that it affects her brain somehow. She could probably lose her stuff easily with a semi-damaged brain. And for Link, its possible that he purposely leaves his stuff so its a lighter load to hull around to the next adventure.

 

[GrimHeaper]

Metroid usually does a good job explaining it, actually.

Except for Other M.

You are right, like the incident with her zero suit.

Every time Samus uses the light speed on her ship to get away from an exploding planet or something, its possible that it affects her brain somehow. She could probably lose her stuff easily with a semi-damaged brain. And for Link, its possible that he purposely leaves his stuff so its a lighter load to hull around to the next adventure.

Most links are different, I don't even see how you can blame him and the other times it isn't some disaster befalls him and makes him lose everything..liek says beign turned into a tiny deku and getting your stuff and your horse stolen.
OP doesn't know the story well enough.
Other M is the only one that sticks out.

but Ocarina of Time and Major's Mask are supposed to be sequels.

I assume you mean Majora's Mask and Phantom Hourglass.

So how does Young Link from Hyrule head off to Termina and forget his bomb bag, sling-shot, lens of truth, boomerang and ETC. How could he think of leaving those in Hyrule and go off to a new and dangerous land?

Spoiler

Majora's Mask:
First, since the point of Link's journey was just searching for Navi, one could assume he wouldn't have needed his full armament and left it at home. Second, even if he did have his full armament with him, the game opens with him getting mugged by the Skull kid and riding off on Epona. He was just trying to get Epona back, he wasn't planning on falling into Termina and having to solve its Moon problem.

Phantom Hourglass:
Link starts the game jumping after the Ghost Ship, then being washed away to an island. Is it really so surprising that Link would have lost his possessions in the ocean?

And, as for Metroid, as far as I'm aware, except for Other M, most games open with some explosion knocking most of Samus' upgrades off line.

In the Metroid Prime series it at the start of the game she get bang up really bad that her suit downgrade itself.

For Legend of Zelda each Link is a different Link except for OoT and Winder Waker and Phantom Hourglass. I guess he just dump them since he save the world and all thus no longer needing them I guess?
Unless they made a third game to either one of two game timeline and he just happen to start with the default gears then I would called him stupid.

I though hour glass happened like several hundred years after WW or is that spirit tracks?

 

[geK0]

I recall seeing a little animation of links items fading away over a black background (same animation that plays every time you travel back in time) after being cursed by skullkid.

 

[Sudenak]

This is something that I find weird in Metroid and Zelda games. In Metroid Samus can gather up somewhere around 300 missile slots in her arm cannon, a few dozen energy tanks and super bombs, power-ups like guns and visors, and then she loses them all by the next game. I know Nintendo needs to do this to keep the games from being broken easy at the beginning but realistically how can Samus possible lose all the upgrades to a suit she wears as a second skin?
The same goes for Link from the Zelda series. Yes there are more than one "Links" in the series since there's no set timeline, but Ocarina of Time and Major's Mask are supposed to be sequels. So how does Young Link from Hyrule head off to Termina and forget his bomb bag, sling-shot, lens of truth, boomerang and ETC. How could he think of leaving those in Hyrule and go off to a new and dangerous land?
I know I'm knit-picking but its a little annoying if your that kind of person, what do you guys think about this mental issue these game characters seem to be infected with? Also leave some comments on why you think i'm wrong or dumb if that's the case.

Well, Samus always has a convenient plot point that strips her of her gear. If you look at the Prime series, her suit malfunctions in the first few minutes and she loses everything. It's lazy writing, but an effective explanation.

Link is almost always a reincarnation.

BUT, in the case of Majora's Mask, the answer is pretty simple. He was looking for Navi as a child, so much of his adult inventory was useless, thus left behind. He packed light, carrying only his ocarina, sword, and shield so that he could defend himself if necessary and the ocarina could warp him back to a more recognizable place once he found his friend. Skull Kid steals his horse and ocarina, Link gives chase, he falls into a new world. Not really possible to run back and get his things unless he wanted to risk losing Epona and the Ocarina of Time.

But really, you could pick on any character from any game sequel.

 

[SD-Fiend]

well in link's case he lost all of his stuff when he was teleported to the past before it all began meaning he never went on his adventure to claim them in the first place

 

[Nieroshai]

The explanation in Zelda is that the Hero of Time doesn't WANT to get dragged into fight after fight, therefore he only brought basic weapons for self-defense. He's the kind of character that tries to attempt to live a normal life. As for Samus, there's always a reason. In Metroid 2... well that's tough but most likely her inventory tally of missiles is never canonically consistent. In Super Metroid, she has basically the "canon" gear from Metroid 2, the bare minimum of stuff you needed to beat the game. In Fusion she doesn't even have her original suit. In Prime 1 and 2, suit damage disrupts her suit's link to its pocket storage dimension. In 3 it's a mod to her suit that messes things up. In Other M... I wish that wasn't canon. Not using gear because of orders?

 

[2xDouble]

And what about MegaMan? He gains the ability to stop time (twice) and rend space (three times). You'd think someone would have said "you know what? Wily's escaped again, and is probably going to come back again at some point. Maybe we should hold on to these super powers."

Only MegaMan V (for the game boy) gave any kind of explanation, and it was the standard DragonnBallZ "your weapons don't work because these new guys are stronger" idea.

And the Megaman X series? He gets to keep his armor (most of the time), but never keeps his weapons (except in X5)?

 

[madwarper]

I though hour glass happened like several hundred years after WW or is that spirit tracks?

Phantom Hourglass is Windwaker's direct sequel.
Same generation. Same Link. Same Tetra (Zelda). Same pirate crew.

Spirit Tracks is the one that takes place 100 years later.

 

[jFr[e]ak93]

The only time this has bothered me was between Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask.
Otherwise, just enjoy the game.

 

[busterkeatonrules]

I think you are delving too deep into this. Each game is supposed to be enjoyed as a different game.

Either that or they both have secret lairs to rival a dragon's hoard.

"To the Link cave!"

On topic: Both characters travel a lot - maybe their more epic gear gets confiscated by customs?

 

[Troublesome Lagomorph]

Er... Link isn't the same dude in every game. Its a different hero taking on the mantle of the first, in most. SOME, like Ocarina of Time -> Majora's Mask is the same guy.

About Metroid, not a clue. Only played the beginning of the first Prime game and found it to be beyond clunky.
Edit: And from a gameplay standpoint: the game loses most of the difficulty if everything carries over.

 

[Shakomaru]

Perfect example of the opposite of this. The Banjo-Kazooie series. In the second game, they keep all the moves, and in the third game they got too fat, and forgot them due to never practicing. The series needs a GOOD game for the present though...

 

[funguy2121]

This is something that I find weird in Metroid and Zelda games. In Metroid Samus can gather up somewhere around 300 missile slots in her arm cannon, a few dozen energy tanks and super bombs, power-ups like guns and visors, and then she loses them all by the next game. I know Nintendo needs to do this to keep the games from being broken easy at the beginning but realistically how can Samus possible lose all the upgrades to a suit she wears as a second skin?
The same goes for Link from the Zelda series. Yes there are more than one "Links" in the series since there's no set timeline, but Ocarina of Time and Major's Mask are supposed to be sequels. So how does Young Link from Hyrule head off to Termina and forget his bomb bag, sling-shot, lens of truth, boomerang and ETC. How could he think of leaving those in Hyrule and go off to a new and dangerous land?
I know I'm knit-picking but its a little annoying if your that kind of person, what do you guys think about this mental issue these game characters seem to be infected with? Also leave some comments on why you think i'm wrong or dumb if that's the case.

Did you not see the end of Ocarina? Link went back in time to relive his childhood. I always read that as a reversal of everything that had happened in the game. Either way, I don't think he WENT to Termina looking for a dangerous mission (see opening cinematic). Do Marines carry their rifles and sidearms and grenades with them when they visit their families for Thanksgiving?

The Prime games dealt with what you're describing. The first 2 showed Samus losing her abilities early on and having to regain them, along with newer abilities. The third simply limited what Samus started out with and never took any abilities away from her.

Just remind yourself that it's only a video game.

Funny, I read the thread title as "Are Link and Samus plain stupid or just forgettable." I had some answers prepared involving Ratchet and Clank, Sonic, and Master Chief.

 

[MisterM2402]

Majoras Mask continues after Link is sent back in time to a point where the only items he has are his sword, shield, ocarina and slingshot; all of which you have at the beginning of Majora (except for the slingshot). Hence he doesn't have the bomb bag or boomerang anymore because at the point he's sent back he hasn't visited dodongo's cavern or Jabu-Jabu.

But he gets his Ocarina of Time after he gets the bomb bag and boomerang. But like you said, he doesn't have his slingshot anyway, so it's kind of a moot point.

 

[V8 Ninja]

Alright, analysis time!

Spoiler: Explaining Majora's Mask goes into some spoilers from the Ocarina of Time, so fair warning.

Majora's Mask: At the end of Ocarina of Time, the future Princess Zelda plays the Song of Time, sending Link back into the past before he pulled the Master Sword from it's resting place. Since Link got most of his real heavy-duty equipment from AFTER he pulled the Master Sword, it makes sense why he doesn't have it. Also, I believe Link gets mugged at the beginning of Majora's mask by Skull Kid and gets stripped of most of his equipment. And, as a few of the previous Escapees have suggested, Link didn't really see a reason to bring his equipment along with him because he was just searching for Navi.

Metroid: Admittedly, there's no real reason why Samus can't keep the stuff that she has gotten from her previous missions. If I had to take a guess as to why she doesn't have it, I would say it has to do something with the Federation not wanting to have a freelancer-like agent having so much power that's out of their control. Other than that, I don't see a reason why not. Or then again, maybe it's because the games would get ridiculous with their new additions and then it would just ruin the atmosphere of being alone on an alien planet in a science-fiction world.

EDIT: It is explained in the first Metroid Prime that Samus got her suit badly damaged by Ridly, forcing her to abandon most of it. Also in Metroid Fusion it's explained that most of Samus' suit got infected with the X virus and doctors had to remove those infected parts in order to save her life.

 

[TheSchaef]

So basically, we've used as an example of Sequel Amnesia, two of the few characters in the entire industry who actually have some semblance of an explanation as to why you start at Level Zero every game.

Oops.

Castlevania also uses different protagonists each game, so even when they started doing SotN-style RPG elements, they could weasel out of this plothole.