Theory: Zelda: Twilight Princess is a direct sequel to Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask

[ZeroMachine]

Wow you took this WAYYYY too far

Yeah, I bet Nintendo said "Hmm, the game obviously needs to be easy because secretly this is the same link as before"

Hell, Nintendo SAID that it wasn't a time-line, what the hell more do you need than that? They are the storytellers, if they say that's how the story is, that's how it is

Stop rationalizing it with increasingly complex and ridiculously far-fetched "secret evidence"

There's no conspiracy, they are different, Nintendo just thought that the old link looked better, so they used his model

I'll explain it again, I do this sort of thing for fun. As a hobby. I'm not saying my word is law, I just like putting things together in a way that makes sense to me so I can look at it and say "wow, this could be a huge epic story".

I realize that that's not what Nintendo was thinking and, frankly, I don't give a damn what Nintendo was thinking. I haven't exactly had much respect for them lately.

EDIT: And I think that this is the sort of thing Miyamoto would have wanted. A work of art that other people added to. It encourages complex thought and speculation about certain things that happen throughout the games. The entire series is supposed to be taken the way the player wants it to be in order to make it as fun for them as possible. And I like it this way.

So I guess what I'm trying to say is that no theory will be the same, everyone will have different one, and everyone should just enjoy theirs, for it is neither right nor wrong.

Ok, I have to give you credit for that one, Nintendo has been pissing off its whole old fanbase lately, if you want to think Zelda is one big timeline, be my guest, we all have to enjoy the story in our own way right?

Exactly

If we all had to adhere to some set-in-stone timeline, or if no timeline existed, I think the hardcore fans of the Zelda game's stories wouldn't enjoy it as much.

 

[UnravThreads]

In an interview conducted by Nintendo Dream with Eiji Aonuma in December 2006, it was revealed that there are two parallel universes in the Zelda chronology. The timeline is split at the end of Ocarina of Time, when Link is sent back in time by Princess Zelda to live through his childhood, while the original events of Ocarina of Time continue on a different path. Once returned to his original time, Link leaves the Master Sword in its place, preventing Ganondorf's plan from coming to fruition, and goes to see Zelda again, resulting in the "Child Timeline" in which the villain Ganondorf is arrested and tried by the ancient sages. They attempt to execute him, but he overpowers them, and the sages are instead forced to banish him to the Twilight Realm. Twilight Princess then occurs over one hundred years later, after Link's role as a child in the events of Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask. Meanwhile, The Wind Waker occurs in the "Adult Timeline", after the Hero of Time saved Hyrule in Ocarina of Time, and it is directly followed by Phantom Hourglass. Spirit Tracks takes place 100 years after Phantom Hourglass

#1 [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Legend_of_Zelda#cite_note-nintendori154zelda-4]
#2 [http://www.thehylia.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1173582355&archive=&start_from=&ucat=19&]

 

[SkylerRock]

I pick fault only with your genetics argument, both my parents are lefties and both their kids are righties. Apart from that, it's a plausible theory.

 

[GamingAwesome1]

Ninty has said there isn't a timeline so I've got no idea why fans are so desperate to find one!

 

[Miles Tormani]

First, Link's uncle asks Link during the game's first dialog, "You've never been to Hyrule, right?" to hint that this is this Link's first adventure. His uncle's name? Rusl. The same name as the uncle in LTTP. Also, the Temple of Time is in ruins and overgrown with forest. Just like in the hundreds-of-years-after-OoT Zelda game Link to the Past, which refers to Ganondorf entering the Golden Land CENTURIES ago. Then as a sign that LttP is a sequel to another zelda game, Zelda telepathically calls out to Link and talks with him as though they met before. They did meet before. During the twilight crisis. Also, you remember in TP that the great spirits refer to Link as the inheritor of the Hero of Time's power? Inheritor. There's the Hero of Time Link from OoT, Majora's Mask, the Oracle games and (in my opinion, don't quote me on this) Minish Cap. The Hero of Winds was chosen by the ghost of the King of Hyrule to take up the mantle in Wind Waker a thousand years later. And that leaves us with our middle avatar, TP Link.

P.S. I believe there's another split timeline theory, but here's the difference. Say for the sake of argument that Minish Cap Link is OoT Link who just returned from Termina. He's befriended Zelda since they both remember the OoT incident. The split timelines run parallel up until the end. In the canon ending, Vaati is utterly conquered. In the other, he is sealed into the pedestal by the four sword. That reality is where the Four Swords games take place.

First, Rusl is never stated as Link's uncle in Twilight Princess or anything else. Ever. http://zelda.wikia.com/wiki/Rusl

Second, Link's Uncle from ALTTP is never named. (The link to it's page on that wikia won't work, look it up)

Wait, what? I thought Rusl was just the breadwinner for another family entirely within Ordon Village. Link steals that wooden shield from him early on.

As for the Minish Cap thing, I had come up with an idea to explain to this guy

*loads and loads of stuff we don't need to go over*

that could work with your idea.

It's fairly obvious that the timeline thing isn't set in stone, so you can take it however you please. But, there is only one thing that is set in stone... Ocarina of Time causes a split. After that, it's all up in the air, and everyone needs to have their own interpretation. Such as mine (each arrow points in a seperate timeline in the split):

Twilight PrincessPhantom Hourglass

You see, the way I look at it, these games are in their own contained universe. While this would be a mix of Nieroshai's and Mile's timelines (Nieroshai's being on the left, Mile's being on the right) that we've etched out so far:

??????

So basically, it's all about what you think could fit where and why. Whatever makes the story cooler for you. As I said earlier, I think this is what Miyamoto wanted in the first place, which is why he kept saying "there is a timeline, we just aren't revealing it yet". Those who now run Nintendo, though, have completely fucked up that way of looking at things.

See, before many of the recent games, I always thought the timeline worked like this:

Ocarina of Time (it's obviously first)
Majora's Mask (direct sequel)
(Oracle of Seasons/Ages, arguably, goes here. Though it's hard to argue as canon.)
Link to the Past (a backstory that Ocarina of Time references heavily for its main story)
NES Zelda
Adventure of Link (direct sequel)
Wind Waker

I considered Wind Waker to be final for a few reasons.

Spoiler: Huge spoilers for anyone who hasn't played, well, all the games. Also wall of text.

1. In NES Zelda, Zelda broke up the Triforce of Wisdom into eight pieces so that Ganon could not easily claim it, because, as was established both there and in Ocarina of Time, Ganon doesn't need the Triforce of Courage to conquer Hyrule. Apparently that Link followed suit with the Triforce of Courage, breaking it into eight pieces when he left.
1.a. Considering only one Link, supposedly, was not born in Hyrule (that being the NES Link, according to the game's manual), it would make sense that he would return to his homeland, but as he had no reason to keep the Triforce of Courage with him, he would logically have it broken apart the same way Zelda did with the Triforce of Wisdom prior.

2. Link from Ocarina of Time, being the selfish jerk that he is (kidding), never got rid of the Triforce of Courage intentionally. As evidenced by him still having the Triforce in the Oracle games.

3. Wind Waker is the only Zelda game where Hyrule has been buried beneath the ocean, and thanks to King Hyrule's wish on the Triforce, that's where it will remain for eternity.

4. Continuing from the issue with King Hyrule, he specifically said that the new land above the Great Sea will not be New Hyrule. "It will be your land."

5. There are clear references to every other Zelda game released prior, all in Hyrule Castle, that all can arguably be used to claim they took place prior in the timeline. Including the fact that the King is dead. Like, dead dead. Because Aghnim killed him.

6. Going back to the idea that Ganon figured that he only needed Power and Wisdom, Ganondorf in Wind Waker realizes that he needs all three parts of the Triforce to get what he wants: Hyrule. In addition, he almost seems to sense his own end coming, as he finally reminisces to the Hero of Winds why he invaded Hyrule in the first place, and regrettably acknowledges his own envy of Hyrule's prosperity over the suffering over the Gerudo.

7. He also chooses to subdue Link and Zelda rather than kill them, throwing punches at Link instead of trying to blast him with energy balls.

8. To cause the Triforce to manifest, the Triforce pieces from each member was extracted magically. Ganondorf is then killed by Link (by stab in the face) before he gets his wish. Though to be fair, after King Hyrule used the Triforce himself, Ganondorf did attack Link with two swords with the intention of cutting his future short.

9. Link, being the jerk that he is, left the Master Sword impaled in Ganondorf's skull as Hyrule was finally washed permanently under the ocean, leaving it inaccessible to all.

Then Phantom Hourglass, Twilight Princess, Minish Cap, Spirit Tracks, and this new rumored one come out and ruin everything that made sense to me. Though, honestly, if I had to just fit in Twilight Princess and Phantom Hourglass, I'd place Twilight Princess after Link to the Past, arguing that the Evil Realm/Dark World somehow became the Twilight Kingdom, or something, and place Phantom Hourglass after Wind Waker on account of being a direct sequel. Though I'm sure Phantom Hourglass has Ganon in it, screwing over how I felt about Wind Waker.

I still personally refuse to acknowledge a split timeline, because first, it overcomplicates things, and second, it feels like an excuse to be lazy about figuring out what happens when. Like saying that Twilight Princess and Wind Waker occur at the same time in two different timelines simply because no one bothers to find parallels or references.

Ninty has said there isn't a timeline so I've got no idea why fans are so desperate to find one!

Because just accepting that there is no timeline whatsoever is stupid. Nearly all the games, save for the original NES titles and the CDi abominations, reference Ocarina of Time as a prequel, so if Nintendo or Shiggy later said that Ocarina of Time has nothing to do with Wind Waker, then I say that they're lying.

 

[Soxafloppin]

But if link put the master sword back into the base, wouldnt he be trapped back in time?

 

[ZeroMachine]

*another huge quote*

Ganondorf isn't in Phantom Hourglass, so you're good there. And just so you know, I'm pretty certain that, although Nintendo stated there isn't some huge timeline with everything, that the split timeline theory is correct... it's not that hard to figure out, either.

Still, to each there own. You enjoy your legend, I'll enjoy mine

 

[teisjm]

While zelda is prolyl my favourite game series, this has never bothered me the slightest.

While a bit stretched (and wrong, courtesy of some nintendo spokesman) if you'd been a nintendo spokesman, i wouldn't have had any objections

 

[Urgh76]

MM fairy was called tatl btw.

and replay TP, link lived in that village and helped around.

he was sword trained by that guy in the village, the swordsman

epona was a gift when he was younger to help herd, so what they look the same. nintendo kept it that way so fans would enjoy it, if they changed it people would complain.

So im just going with the CREATORS style and saying it has no timeline.

oh and the goddess blessed him with the triforce, also mentioned in game

he knew it was Tatl but in the beginning of the game he goes looking for navi LOOKING

 

[Woodsey]

If they've said there's no connection, and they make the games, there's no connection.

Simply because there can't be! It's literally impossible for there to be a connection when the creators/writers haven't purposefully created one.

The game was dull beyond belief anyway (just-a like-a Mario!).

 

[Dark Knifer]

*snip snip*

This theory is quiet good, better then alot that I have seen. Any more interesting theories you have I'd love to see.

 

[Zeromaeus]

1. Link always lives in Kakariko village.
2. Link alwyas has Epona if he has a horse.
3. Link is born with the fucking triforce. DESTINY!
4. Link is good with a sword because he's done it over several reincarnations time and time again.
5. The Heros Shade is the Hero of Time. Notice the Heros Shade is long dead.

CP1. Why did the Spirit of Light have to explain the legend of the hero to Link when first donned in the tunic?
CP2. Ganon was selaed away at the end of Ocarina of Time and doesn't reappear until assumidly Wind Waker.

I can do more if I need to.

From what I understand, there is supposed to be a set timeline that isn't shared to the general public, just pieced together by fans. Yeah, wikipedia says there's one. Good enough for me.

 

[Phlaren1]

Ganondorf didn't even lay his eyes on him
In OOT when you first met Zelda, Ganondorf looks RIGHT AT YOU.

Link was sent back before the events of OOT. Probably to the moment before he met Zelda
He wasn't able to choose when he went back, he just went to the spot where he last put the Master Sword, so it's after you met Zelda.

But.... other than those, this is pretty good, I may have to go back and beat the Zelda games again and really look at this theory.

 

[Pimppeter2]

Its a pretty good theory, I'll give you that

 

[Crapster]

The generally accepted Zelda timeline I've seen in most forums goes something like this:


........./(Adult)-Wind Waker- Phantom Hourglass-Spirit Tracks
OOT
.........\(Child)-Majora's Mask-Twilight Princess

The 2D Zelda's can go on either branch, and where they fall is pretty much impossible to determine as of right now, and probably will never be revealed because its so damn convoluted and Nintendo doesn't really care that much...

 

[Zeromaeus]

The generally accepted Zelda timeline I've seen in most forums goes something like this:


........./(Adult)-Wind Waker- Phantom Hourglass-Spirit Tracks
OOT
.........\(Child)-Majora's Mask-Twilight Princess

The 2D Zelda's can go on either branch, and where they fall is pretty much impossible to determine as of right now, and probably will never be revealed because its so damn convoluted and Nintendo doesn't really care that much...

What?

 

[Crapster]

The generally accepted Zelda timeline I've seen in most forums goes something like this:


........./(Adult)-Wind Waker- Phantom Hourglass-Spirit Tracks
OOT
.........\(Child)-Majora's Mask-Twilight Princess

The 2D Zelda's can go on either branch, and where they fall is pretty much impossible to determine as of right now, and probably will never be revealed because its so damn convoluted and Nintendo doesn't really care that much...

What?

Yeah. It's a mess.

If you go into the timeline section of almost any Zelda message board, most people think that there's a sort of "timeline split" in Ocarina of Time, with one timeline continuing from the adult timeline where Ganondorf got the Triforce and took over and another from the child timeline when Zelda sends Link back so he can have his childhood again.

Majora's Mask follows on from the child timeline because it features the same Link from OOT and he's a kid. Twilight Princess isn't a direct sequel, but it is the next game on the child timeline. Ganondorf doesn't recognize Link or the Master Sword in this game because he didn't fight adult Link in OOT since he didn't get the Triforce in the Child ending.

Wind Waker is on the adult timeline because you see pictures of the seven sages from OOT in Hyrule Castle, and because Ganondorf recognizes Link and the Master Sword, since he had to deal with them.

I've spent WAY too much time in Zelda timeline topics. The whole exercise is convoluted and ultimately kind of pointless if you ask me...

 

[Mrsoupcup]

Snip

Also Link and Zelda seemed to know each other.

 

[Zeromaeus]

The generally accepted Zelda timeline I've seen in most forums goes something like this:


........./(Adult)-Wind Waker- Phantom Hourglass-Spirit Tracks
OOT
.........\(Child)-Majora's Mask-Twilight Princess

The 2D Zelda's can go on either branch, and where they fall is pretty much impossible to determine as of right now, and probably will never be revealed because its so damn convoluted and Nintendo doesn't really care that much...

What?

Yeah. It's a mess.

If you go into the timeline section of almost any Zelda message board, most people think that there's a sort of "timeline split" in Ocarina of Time, with one timeline continuing from the adult timeline where Ganondorf got the Triforce and took over and another from the child timeline when Zelda sends Link back so he can have his childhood again.

Majora's Mask follows on from the child timeline because it features the same Link from OOT and he's a kid. Twilight Princess isn't a direct sequel, but it is the next game on the child timeline. Ganondorf doesn't recognize Link or the Master Sword in this game because he didn't fight adult Link in OOT since he didn't get the Triforce in the Child ending.

Wind Waker is on the adult timeline because you see pictures of the seven sages from OOT in Hyrule Castle, and because Ganondorf recognizes Link and the Master Sword, since he had to deal with them.

I've spent WAY too much time in Zelda timeline topics. The whole exercise is convoluted and ultimately kind of pointless if you ask me...

That seems a little...overly complicated.
I just assumed that when Ganon remembers you, its because he was sealed and not actually killed. When he doesn't remember you, its because its a new incarnation of Ganon.