#and i would probably like to play majora's mask as well

[n7punk]

Since you mentioned Zelda do you have a favorite Zelda game? Mine is skyward sword!

gonna get a bit controversal here probably XD

i was literally just talking about my ranking earlier today with a friend, so here's my personal take. keep in mind, some of these games i haven't played since i was a small kid, and like... i know i played phantom hourglass but i cant remember a damn thing about it so i wont be including it. ive got some stuff like that. i've played like nine zelda games or something but these are the only ones i feel like i remember/experienced enough to rank.

twilight princess and breath of the wild are nearly tied for me. they're different kinds of games, so which one is "better" really depends on what im in the mood for (and what your particular style of gaming is), but i think they're two of the best games of all time and would recommend them to just about anybody who is open to that genre of game.

then honestly i would probably put spirit tracks or skyward sword after those two. its been a long time since i played spirit tracks but i remember really liking it as a kid. conversely, i was just replaying skyward sword in the hd remaster and while i remember loving it the first time i played it as a kid (not considering it as good as twilight princess, but still good), i didnt enjoy it nearly as much on this playthrough. i think the gameplay just isn't fun enough to carry the whole thing for me when i already know the story, but the first time i played it i was clinging onto every line so i loved it. like, i remember when i finished the scorpion fight and the sand drained away being like omg!! it looks like the hub from spirit tracks i wonder how it all fits!! so i'd definitely recommend skyward sword to a zelda fan, but probably not to someone who has never played the series before. i think the back half of the dungeons are distinctly more fun than the first half, which is kind of the opposite of what you want because i was like "come on, just get through sky view, and eldin, and the mining facility, and then you'll get to do the dragons." (flooded faron is my favorite level btw).

next is probably link's awakening. i played the remaster (never the original) and enjoyed it. i thought the remaster was INCREDIBLY done, such a cute and fun and high quality style with a beautiful result, all while preserving a lot of the original look and probably some of the feel too (at least from what ive played of the original zelda, which isn't much).

next is probably a link between worlds (on 3DS). i got pretty far and i think i stopped just because i started feeling lukewarm on it due to the difficulty curve (i have a lot tougher time with handheld games than controllers, and consoles are already harder for me than mouse and keyboard in general) and the story wasn't interesting enough to pull me back in. because of that, i wouldn't really Recommend a link between worlds unless you're already a zelda fan and have played the others above.

here's the controversial part, but i put ocarina of time at the bottom. i know so many people love it, so i was really excited to play it when it came out for the 3DS, but... that game was such a slog. i stopped about halfway through the game not because i was stuck, but because i wasn't having any fun. i think part of it was the low res art (the game was visually muddy, unengaging, and just kind of hard to discern), but ive played a lot of low res or even 8bit art games (my first video game ever was super mario bros for the NES, which came out 14 years before ocarina and obviously has much worse graphics), so part of it has to be the game, and visuals alone dont make a game boring. like i said, i was kinda bored at parts of skyward sword this playthrough and it's such a gorgeous game. being unengaging visually made it harder to get into the gameplay, but that wasn't all it was for me.

[ashleyquinn03]

If I were to make the next Zelda game, what would I change?

Bring back underwater traversal and real Water Temples.

If you were to think about any iconic Zelda item that isn't a weapon, you'd most likely think about the hook/clawshot. I like that we can climb, but I miss the claw/hookshot. Personally, I'd have the Skyward Sword climbing mechanics where you can climb a little bit but not much, but make it so that the hook/clawshot can go on any surface. Even better is a double claw/hookshot so you can swing around like Spider-Man

Linkle. That's right, from the original Hyrule Warriors spin-off game. It would be cool if we got to choose to play as Link or Linkle at the beginning of the game. Make it so that Link can't get into Gerudo Town without a disguise like in Breath of the Wild, but also make it so Linkle can't get into Goron City without a disguise, that way it's even and there's no major advantage.

If Linkle can't be an option, I'd have Link be a different race than Hylian. Tears of the Kingdom already teased us with this concept with the Ancient Hero. Before TotK, the closest we got was Ocarina of Time/Majora's Mask Link who thought he was a Kokiri but found out that he was in fact Hylian and also had ghost masks to shapeshift into other races. (Or you could also add Linkle as this race too. But I think that's a bit much)

20 hearts OR harder enemies. With BotW, Link had 30 hearts. In literally every other Zelda game he had 20. With 30 hearts, it was a decent change in normal mode, but in Master Mode, it made it essential. Enemies did more damage and evolved from their normal mode counterparts. In TotK, Link has 40 hearts and no Master Mode. The enemies do basically the same damage as in BotW's normal mode and sometimes even far less with the decayed-unfused weapons. So I would make the series go back to 20 hearts or have Master Mode as the default difficulty.

A new fast travel system. Look, shrines were a good idea. Especially for a fast travel system, but if we're getting rid of the 10-20 extra hearts how I would do it, we need something else. For this, let's turn to Skyrim for just a second. The fast travel system there is broken because every cave, tower, dungeon, etc. is a fast travel point, but let's look at the towns/cities and important landmarks: they're fast travel points once we discover them. So let's turn those things into fast travel points in this hypothetical Zelda game. Now, what about the less significant parts of the map? Well, a few train stations around the map with a train. I mean, trains are in the Zelda universe. Spirit Tracks literally is about that, so it wouldn't be a big deal. I had this idea back in 2021, and now even fucking Fortnite has a train around a map with a few train stations in random spots.

This one will make a bit more sense if you read my "If I were to make a Zelda game, what would I keep?" post. Heart Pieces/Stamina pieces. You could go the normal route with 4 pieces makes a full thing or go Twilight Princess style with 5 pieces makes a full thing. These would probably be given as quest rewards in quests that are Side Adventures rather than Main Quests or Side Quests. Side quests would give you rupees or a rare item and Main Quests will give you more story progression.

Bring back the "one-and-done" races like the Kokiri, Twili, Minish, Zonai, Lokomo, etc.

[wayfayrr]

This is based on @sketchyspook's Mask - the hero of terminal! he's a lil gremlin who in this decided to pull a sky and break out of his game. He just wants a sibling though so can you blame him?

“Hey we were thinking about going out tonight [name], you want to join us?”

“Nah, I’ll be honest I was planning to stay in tonight. Just want a rest you know, got some old games I’ve been planning to replay.” “Fair, if I hadn’t promised someone I’d join them I’d probably be doing the same. See you around sometime [name].”

After how hectic everything has been recently it’ll be nice to have a night in where I can just zone out and do next to nothing; really what better way is there to do that than by playing through Majora’s mask for the, what 50th time? It’s such a nostalgic game to me that it can’t be anything other than my go-to relaxing game. Besides that though, really it’s just fun to fish using the fierce deity mask. Something about an ancient war god going fishing like that? It’s a fun break from the rest of the game.

Something feels different this time though. I can’t quite pinpoint what but even the opening cutscene feels different. There’s more static than there should be, it just feels wrong. There’s also this feeling, I’m probably just being paranoid, but I swear someone’s watching me. Judging me even. Like they’re trying to evaluate me for something, I just can’t tell what. It’s nothing I’m sure. Just need to shake it off and carry on playing. 

Saving it after getting the deity mask feels like a good point to leave it off for the evening, how long have I even been playing? I could’ve sworn it wasn’t that long but - It’s past 2?? It’s never taken me this long to get to this point before, maybe it’s been glitching way more than I thought. I mean it felt like every few minutes I lost control over Link, oddly enough it was only when his model was facing the screen. My controller must just be acting up, I knew buying the cheapest one on eBay would’ve been a bad idea, of course, it’s gonna have some issues. Just turn off the game and go to bed, it’s that easy [name]. Your bed’s comfortable anyway, you’ll fall asleep in no time. 

What’s that sound? It’s barely enough to wake me up, am I hearing things? What’s gotten into you tonight [name], first being paranoid while playing, now hearing things? Am I coming down with something? Just try to go back to sleep and deal with this in the morning. 

Okay, I can’t just be feeling things now, did something fall on me during the night?

No, it feels far too much like a person, but then who is lying on me? And how did they get here? Opening my eyes to a blonde kid who looks suspiciously like Link doesn’t feel quite real, maybe I’m still asleep and something fell on me and affected my dream? Oh, what am I kidding myself? I’m awake. I’ll just try to gently wake him up to get some answers, if he doesn’t wake up then at least I can move him so I can get a look at just how he got here. 

“Bewegen Sie mich nicht, ich fühle mich hier wohl.”

So he didn’t like that then, my german is rusty but even then it’s clear enough what he meant by how he’s trying to get closer to me in his half-asleep state. He’s going to be staying right where he is for as long as he can get away with it. All I can hope for in the meantime is to try and find out he got in here without moving. There isn’t any broken glass or windows so he didn’t get in that way, it would be insane for a kid to break in just for hugs as well so that rules out that possibility. 

There is broken glass though… by my laptop… what?Of all the - my laptop is shattered. How did that - did he? My laptop is broken and there is a game character in my arms, that has to be related, doesn't it?  

There are tiny cuts and fresh burns on his arms, ones that look like they could be - did he?

That would explain how my laptop broke. There are more questions from that though. Such as how did a video game character get out of my laptop and into my arms?? And why? Answers aren’t going to show themselves and theres only one person who knows why he did this. 

“Kid? I know you don’t want to move, but can you tell me what’s going on? How you got here at least?” That seems to have woken him up a little, enough for him to look at me now even though he looks very bitter he’s had to move. Now that I’m getting a better look at his face though, he’s certainly link but he looks a little different to how he does in the game. White streaks in the front of his hair, paler eyes and far too many scars for someone his age. It’s like he’s picked up traits of the fierce deity mask, you know what if he’s here in my room real like this why couldn’t he look different from in game?

“Ich kann, ich tue es nicht - I don’t want to be in the game any more, so I got out.”

“Can I ask how you got out?”

Alright no answer for that besides a quick look at his hair, must be a sore point for him. I won’t press him on that until he feels more alright to talk about it.

“Is there any reason you wanted to well, be like this link?”

With a gesture to how he’s decided to lay on me, he has at least a little bit of shame as he looks away from me before mumbling something just loud enough that I could hear.

“After you playing through it for so long, you uh, you feel like an older sibling to me. So I’ll stay here with you [name]?”

It’s either he can stay with me or he’ll go out to the street, not that I have the heart to throw him out, after everything I know he’s been through. That I’m partly responsible for putting him through? If I didn’t play his game, he - he wouldn’t have had to go through that would he. It’s my fault. 

“[name]? You aren’t upset at me are you? I didn’t - I didn’t mean to make you cry, I can - Nun, ich denke, ich kann - if you don’t want me here I can go back.”

“No I don’t - of course I don’t think that. I’m sorry link, I made you keep reliving all of that. I never even knew that you were - oh god I’m so sorry link.”

He paused at that to think things over for a second, most likely about to say something although I can’t tell what from his body language. Is he crying now? Shaking slightly while leaning towards me like he wants a hug, I wouldn’t be surprised if he was crying after everythin-

“AUGH! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?”

“You wouldn’t stop crying because you were blaming yourself for ‘hurting’ me. Now we’re even so you can stop crying about it.”

As much as I hate it he is right, somewhat, one single bite doesn’t exactly make up for everything that I put him through but I’m not going to say that aloud incase he bites me again. Inspecting my arm there is a neat mark from his teeth, kid’s got a strong jaw I’ll give him that.

“Alright [name] I’ve seen a few things of your world when you were playing, but um would you mind showing me what it’s like? You’re my big sibling now so I think that’s just what you have to do.”

“Oh about that, why do you see me as a sibling?”

A shrug with yet another glance at his hair like it holds the answer. 

“I’m not the only one who sees you as my sibling, I know the deity has kinda unofficially adopted you as well.”

“Huh? The deity? Like the mask, the thing you use in game? Has adopted me?”

“Mhm, he’s the one who encouraged me to get out, it’s a little complicated but basically I wore the mask a bit too much.”

Just another thing I’ve done wrong then, or maybe not seeing as he seems to be fine with what is happening and the fact that it’s gotten him out of the game. 

“You gonna explain what you mean by that?”

“Nah not yet, gotta come to terms with it myself as well before any of that.”

[milesluna]

My Favorite Games of 2023.

Hi. Hello. Thanks ever so much for clicking on this page. Happy to have you.

First thing's first: I'm a little freak when it comes to video games. I don't feel the need to beat most games I play. From Software is one of my favorite studios in the industry and I've never finished a single one of their games. This means, fortunately, that I get to play a LOT more games than the average bear.

I've written up some blurbs about my top ten favorite games from 2023, but before that here's the list of every game I remember playing this year that left any sort of lasting impact on me (in no particular order):

Dead Space Remake Resident Evil 4 Remake F-Zero 99 Humanity Dredge Metroid Prime Remastered Anemoiaplois Alan Wake 2 Baldur’s Gate 3 LoZ Tears of the Kingdom Counter Strike 2 Hunt Showdown El Paso Elsewhere Jusant Slay the Princess| Remnant II The Finals Street FIghter 6 Lethal Company BattleBit Remastered Don’t Scream Homebody The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog Pizza Tower World of Horror Super Mario Wonder Mr. Sun’s Hatbox Fifa 23 Sea of Stars (Demo) Half-Life (25th Anniversary Update)

And the games I played that were NOT released in 2023:

Unpacking Persona 4 Golden Picross 7 The Order 1886 Shovel Knight Dig Lost Planet: Extreme Condition Spider-Man: Miles Morales Pac-Man Championship Edition DX Project Zomboid Quake LoZ The Minish Cap Drill Dozer Wario Land 4 Pokemon Pinball Resident Evil Revelations Summer of ‘58 Trackmania TwinCop We Were Here Visage Cursed Halo CE Half-Life 2 (I probably play this once per year) Witch Hunt Red Dead Redemption 2 Cyberpunk 2077 Borderlands 3 Brutal Legend Cultic Slay the Spire PUBG Rez Infinite Batman Arkham City Alan Wake Alan Wake: American Nightmare Max Payne LoZ: Majora’s Mask 3DS Metroid Prime Metroid Prime 2 Tunic Everhood Final Fantasy VII Final Fantasy VII Remake GOODBYE WORLD Yakuza: Like a Dragon Critters for Sale Dome Keeper Phasmophobia Hades Nintendo Switch Sports

Now that you understand the kind of freak you're dealing with…

Let's dive into my top ten favorite games from this objectively fucked up year.

10. El Paso Elsewhere Developed by Texas indie studio Strange Scaffold, El Paso Elsewhere is a Max Payne-clone with vampires, an opinionated narrator, and lots and lots of bullet time. As a small studio punching well above their weight class, Strange Scaffold leans into abstract, PlayStation 1 minimalism when it comes to visuals and pairs them with a soundtrack that will make your hands sweat. The vibes are here and they're ready for the end of the world. I'm personally also a big fan of everything this studio stands for.

9. Mr. Sun's Hatbox I want you to imagine Metal Gear Solid V. Now I want you to imagine that game as a 2D, level-based, slapstick platformer you can play with up to three friends. If you think that sounds stupid, you'd be right. And it's beautiful. As you build up a secret army of soldiers with various skills (and disorders), you'll start to develop *favorites*. This game constantly asks if you're willing to send those favorites on a harrowing mission and risk losing them forever… or if you'd rather send an idiot you recently captured who blinks constantly and can't kill anyone without fainting.

8. Dredge Every year I feel like I find one game that falls into the “just one more round” category, and baby… Dredge was it for 2023. As a weary fisherman in strange waters, you'll make the most out of your 12 measly hours of sunlight only for your daily voyages to inevitably pull you into the darkness of night, and night is when things get weird. Rocks emerge from the fog that you swear weren't there before, your equipment malfunctions, and you're pretty sure you just saw something in the water… something big. Despite only containing a small collection of islands, the world of Dredge manages to feel vast - perhaps vast enough to swallow you whole.

7. Resident Evil 4 Remake I was curious to see what sort of changes would be made to the timeless classic and father of modern 3rd person shooters, Resident Evil 4. I wasn't let down. RE4 Remake takes all the things that didn't age well about the original, tossed them out, and replaced them with only good things. And MORE things! It's campy, fun, and better than a game of bingo.

6. Jusant I really feel like this one didn't get the recognition it deserves. Jusant is a rock climbing game that combines the quiet contemplation of Journey with the mechanical specificity of Death Stranding. Unlike Death Standing, though, there is very little story to interrupt your flow. There are plenty of collectible bits to find for those curious to learn more about what happened before the events of the game, but the environmental storytelling does most of the heavy lifting. For me, the joy of the game comes from how it feels. Right trigger controls your right hand grip, and left trigger controls left hand grip. Plan your route, manage your stamina, and climb high above the clouds in search of answers.

5. F-Zero 99 This. Shit. Slaps. I've never been a big F-Zero guy, but this MADE me one. The “battle royale”, 99 player format is the perfect fit for the ruthless, high octane world of the game. Races last about three minutes, and friend, they are the most intense, white-knuckled three minutes of your life. The decision to make your boost meter the same as your health meter started in F-Zero 64 (I believe), and it is so much more HARROWING in this game when another player could side-swipe you mere meters from the finish line and blow you to bits. Sadly it's only playable via Switch Online, but it made me cheer, laugh, and scream enough this year to earn a spot in my top 5.

4. Alan Wake 2 Remedy makes weird games that also manage to exist in the AAA space and for that I will forever love them. Although Alan Wake 2 resembles a 3rd person shooter survival horror, I'd honestly say it's more of a narrative game than anything else. There's sidequests, there's puzzles, there's upgradeable skills, but at the end of the day the characters, world, and story are what kept me playing. If you haven't checked them out recently, you should definitely watch a story recap of the original games before diving into this sequel, but the wild swings for the fences this game takes are well worth that small price of admission. There's a god damn musical number, for Christ's sake.

3. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom I've really got nothing to say about this game that most people don't already know. It's incredible. The fact that Nintendo made a game that redefined an entire genre and then made a SEQUEL to it that ups the ante is remarkable. To be honest, I've only cleared the Rito, Zora, and Goron cities. I got a bit tired of exploring the depths and guiding Koroks to their friends, but I can't deny the sheer level of complexity and polish on display here. I saw someone on TikTok build a functioning Mecha Godzilla in this game. Good God. I've heard that the ending of this game is one of the best in the franchise, and if I'd seen it this year then it may have wound up higher on my list, but for the time being I'll continue picking up this masterpiece from time to time, chipping away at it until the day comes that I can finally smack the tits off thicc Ganondorf.

2. Half-Life (25th Anniversary Update) I know I'm gonna get shit for this, but I don't care. This year was the 25th anniversary of Half-Life and Valve released an update that made playing it (and it's online Death Match) much more accessible. I threw it on my Steam Deck out of curiosity, expecting to play for 20 minutes. I could not put it down. It is unbelievable how modern this game still feels. I simply had so much fun sprinting through the corridors of Black Mesa with a dozen weapons strapped to my back, blasting aliens and military Spec-Op chumps as a 24(?!) year old theoretical physicist.

1. Baldur's Gate III This game is fucked up, man. The sheer amount of writing in this game scares me. We can all talk about how BIG this game is, it deserves it, but the thing BG3 does better than any other role playing game I have ever experienced is actually encourage roleplaying. I've played through Act I four times now, with four different groups of friends, and it has felt fresh every time. I have seen the same events play out in so many different ways that it boggles the mind, but in every one of those play sessions I see players asking themselves “What would my lil guy do here?” rather than "what is the best thing to do here?" The game rewards players constantly for just trying shit and the D&D 5e rule set means playing like the character you said you were from the start leads to frequent Points of Inspiration. Maybe one day I'll see the end of this story (probably not), but I don't have to in order to feel a connection with BG3's world, characters, and most impressively, the characters I made myself.

Honorable Mentions for 2023

5. Dave the Diver 4. Homebody 3. Sea of Stars 2. Humanity 1. Super Mario Wonder

Top 5 Favorites NOT from 2023

5. Metroid Prime 4. Final Fantasy VII Remake 3. Cursed Halo (Halo CE Mod) 2. Red Dead Redemption 2 1. Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask (3DS)

Games I didn't have a chance to play from 2023 but still want to when I find more time...

Viewfinder Venba Chants of Sennaar Thirsty Suitors Hi-Fi Rush Moonring Armored Core VI Laika Aged Through Blood Bomb Rush Cyberfunk

OKAY THANKS BYE!

[the-s1lly-corner]

Heyy me again so about the creepypasta thing, I just wondered if you can do Ben drowned with a gen z reader platonically? It's okay if your uncomfortable doing it ><

Ben drowned x gen z!reader (platonic!)

not uncomfortable at all! love that im getting ben drowned requests since i enjoy him a lot and kind of want to write for him more; just strictly platonic ..which reminds me, i need to draw him again soon! gonna answer this then take a break and get back to requests yipe!

admin is still sold on the idea of ben being confined to electronics most of the time so i can easily see him gaining access to your devices so he can pester you whenever he wants; though this may get a little annoying since youre... well still alive! you have a life

whether or not the reader is a creepypasta themselves or is a normal person is up to you! i think both can work, though i must say the idea of the reader being just some random person is really funny. like can you imagine? you get some haunted virus but the ghost is chill an you guys become friends

i do think ben can only mess with devices, i dont think he can mess with like. any internet browser stuff.... which segways me to my next idea; the og creepypasta came out in 2010, majoras mask came out in 2000, so putting it in the middle lets say ben died in 2005.. bro has missed a lot. youre going to have to fill him in on a lot of stuff, and boy let me tell you hes going to be going nuts

tell him about the new legend of zelda games. i think he would be hyped. throwing admins hc of ben being sick and tired of LOZ due to being trapped in the game out the window, admin needs this boy to get joyous!

he probably pesters you and asks you about the dumbest shit, does it on purpose because he thinks its funny

sometimes you guys play video games together, bro is absolutely astounded by how far games have come since he passed away. i think he would go insane over five nights at freddys. fill him in on the lore

going back on the video game stuff and playing together, just know that hes going to break the game and cheat + hes a sore loser, soooooooo...

do you think sometimes he comes and tries to spend time with you more and more over time because hes been stuck for years and hasnt really had many people to talk to? like yeah hes an angry spirit, but even angry spirits deserve friends!!!

ponders

probably messes with you by messing with your recordings if youre trying to make a video/tiktok/reel/what have you

probably interjects his own texts into your posts, never really says anything harmful, just messes with spelling or adds dumb messages

honestly its not your SM account/blog, its yalls shared account/blog now/j

stuck with old 2000s humor but i think he would absolutely love present day humor and how unhinged its gotten, though quick warning hes going to start quoting stuff

definitely quotes the sticking out your gyatt thing, hes going to drive you insane with it and hes going to laugh at you

do not play roblox tycoons with him hes going to bully small children

you guys play a horror game together on roblox and you can hear him freaking out through the speakers (likely using an old device for him so youre not fighting for control over one device)

absolutely DEVASTED when you tell him club penguin shut down

just know hes punching the metaphorical wall

on the rare chance ben is able to pull himself into the real world for a brief period of time, you guys probably do the same stuff hes just physically there for a short time!

make him touch grass while hes out, bro hasnt touched grass in nearly 20 years. this isnt even a haha "hes chronically online" joke, he hasnt actually touched grass in years due to circumstances

closing this with a hit of angst that made me go :( but imagine that it starts out as you guys being around the same age (well... close enough, since ben doesnt age anymore due to being a ghost) but overtime, you obviously grow up and have less and less time for him and :(

like owie

"what happened to us? we used to be best friends?" audio but its you two SOBS AND CRIES

[blueskittlesart]

how do u play zelda games... or are u just very familiar w the lore without having played all of them? i only have a switch and have played botw and totk it's the only console i've ever had and i'd like to play more games like ocarina of time and wind waker and majoras mask but idk how to access them and also. expensive 😭

i've played every game I talk about on here! I try not to talk about ones i havent played bc i don't have a full understanding of them lol. for me it's been about 10 years since I started playing zelda games so I've had some time to get this many under my belt but I can definitely recommend some good games & methods for new players!

since you said you only have a switch, i'll start with legal ways to get older zelda games on the switch. many of these will be expensive and arent actually the method i recommend to play them but. for the sake of being thorough. im gonna mention them.

skyward sword HD remake (highly recommend!!) this game would probably be a pretty good starting point after botw and the remake is notably easier to play than the original. it is $60 tho when the original game was $30. so

NES and SNES virtual consoles which are free with a nintendo online subscription have the original zelda, zelda II, and a link to the past on them. as a new player i wouldnt SUPER recommend any of these but alttp is definitely worth it if you DO end up liking some of the more modern games in the series.

the dreaded n64 virtual console has oot on it but im just straight up gonna tell you not to buy that shit. oot is a must play but there are millions of better ways to play it

the fucking $60 links awakening remaster. don't buy this

the way I personally played most of my games is either via console or hacked console. if you're willing to invest in a secondhand wii to hack you can emulate basically any console that came before it, including the n64 for oot and the gamecube for wind waker. if you're willing to invest in OR you have an old 3ds lying around (preferably that hasnt been updated recently but you can get around that) you can hack it to play GB/GBA/DS/3DS games, which includes link's awakening, minish cap, albw, oot 3d, and majora's mask 3d!

if you're looking for a COMPLETELY free option, my next suggestion is emulation. you want a decent PC to be able to run most of this shit without speed drops, and some newer consoles won't run perfectly no matter what. wii games especially are really dicey because of their reliance on motion control so there's not a lot of emulators out there for them.

for anything before the N64 (majora & any game released before it) I recommend the MAME vintage game emulator. this thing was originally built for arcade games but runs a lot of vintage consoles pretty well too and is generally intuitive and user-friendly.

Visual Boy Advance is a good option for GBA games (link's awakening, 4 swords, minish cap, oracle games.) these may also work on MAME

Desmume for DS games (phantom hourgass, spirit tracks)

Citra for 3DS games (requires high processing speed & decent graphics card, most laptops will not run it) (oot & mm 3d, albw)

for gamecube (wind waker) I used dolphin emulator on my hacked wii so I can't vouch for how it'll run on anything else but i believe it should also be able to emulate wii games? (sksw, tp)

hope this helps fuel your loz adventures! if you ever have specific questions about emulation or hacking i might be able to help also lol i hate paying for games so i do this a lot

[ghostgirl101]

Hiiiii can u do green haired BEN relationship headcanons? Tyty 🫶

Dating BEN Would Be Like This:

A/N: I certainly can, I've been thinking about this green-haired hive-minded being, so I'll give it my best shot 🙃 There's quite a lot I wrote here, so enjoy. For those who don't know, these headcanons are based around BEN, not Ben Lawman. The difference is that Ben is one person, a Moon Child trapped in Majora's Mask, who seemed a threat but was actually trying to warn Jadusable, and "BEN is an evil entity made up of several Moon Children, with the Majora Moon Child serving as the main leader." I'll try making this as accurate as possible but I won't go into confusing specifics 😅

🎮• Well, I'll start by saying that BEN here is the most annoying, unpredictable, crazed, dark sons of biatches you will ever have the pleasure of putting up with for... basically, eternity.

🎮• I've seen that basically everyone who's written for these guys thinks that it'd be a through-and-through toxic relationship, with no care for feelings, little to no romance or intimacy and you being toyed with like all their other victims. And, to an extent, I agree with your end relationship with BEN not being what you'd call a typical healthy relationship, which applies to pretty much all the slashers and creepypastas... but come on. If you're in a romantic relationship with BEN, I think there's gotta be something.

🎮• And I say there is. 😀

🎮• Don't get me wrong, though. They're not nice guys to anyone, they're devious, malevolent little brats who like getting into unsuspecting players' heads and twisting their world until they snap. You're one of the beginning targets who obliviously starts playing the warped copy of Majora's Mask, or a later victim once they've escaped to the internet. Either or, there's not much difference in the way they are. It's not like, you're unusually pretty and interesting to a few of them for whatever reason, so they'll take it easy on you. If anything, they'll make their methods worse.

🎮• Let's say you're a later victim, in which case, there are glitchy jumpscares out of nowhere while you're on your laptop doing work. YouTube videos crashing and pages redirecting to horrific ones with no URL. The screen flashing green when you're not using it from the corner of your eye, and weird, hard buzzing noises that wake you up from your already restless sleep. Then your phone starts playing up. Even your TV glitches and waves with bright colours every so often, all except the times when you have company or witnesses to prove you're not going mad.

🎮• It's when you're at your lowest mentally and really think you're losing your mind that they'll start making their proper appearances. First, it's through Cleverbot, or any documents and templates you'll be typing on. Then, one day, you'll go into your room and see a terrifyingly unnatural grinning face on your screen, before it disappears within the second you've seen it, leaving you reeling.

🎮• They can be very unpredictable in the ways they act and speak to you, because they're more than one person, and you never really know who you're interacting with. At this point, when you're having longer conversations on Cleverbot with different Moon Children from BEN, you're probably going to have to write out the differences based on what they say and how. But write it with pen and paper, because anything you type up can get mucked up by them, and it probably will.

🎮• When they're speaking collectively, you can tell, because the sentences are usually repeated loads of times, or their answers are shorter. It'll go from one of the telling you their real name and how strange you are to be talking so curiously with a hive-minded terroriser, to 'WE SEE YOU WE SEE YOU WE SEE YOU-'

🎮• That's the only way you really interact with BEN at first. Through them rifling through your computer programs and documents, redirecting you to pages when they feel like talking. Sometimes you have to wait days for them to feel like chatting, and other times they can't stop interacting with you. Depending on who it is that's driving them to talk, it could either be a fairly normal conversation, or just freaking crazy and disturbing. And the main person in control of the hive-minded being that makes up BEN is the Majora Moon Child.

🎮• Now, he's a real bitch.

🎮• I'm going to headcanon that all of Link going up in flames and the creepy messages through the game and the main ideas behind all of that was Majora. That's what you've grown to call him. He's the leader of BEN and makes the most appearances. He's the one that talks the most, that has the strongest personality, and is probably the most sadistic one of them all. He will absolutely get on your nerves and be the one you'll be dealing with him. So that's fun.

🎮• BEN collectively decides not to kill or hurt you after you've been associating with them for a month or so, since you're not trying to escape from them or screw up their plans anymore. It's a big debate; five of them don't understand why they feel like they should protect you from the world that turned them into monstrosities, three of them don't realise that what they're feeling might be love and are going mad with it, two of them have already decided that's its fate you and them met and they should start a more 'official' relationship with you. Four of them are annoyed by the fact that you're somehow different and pretty and nice and innocent, two others don't mind either way and see you more as a friend, while Majora decided days ago that you're theirs now.

🎮• So after that whole deliberation, you're woken up in the middle of the night to your computer buzzing and beeping, the screen going green, and red, pixelated text reading:

'YOU'RE OURS NOW YOU'RE OURS NOW YOU'RE OURS NOW' 'YOU ALWAYS HAVE BEEN' 'YOU ALWAYS WILL BE' 'OURS OURS OURS' 'OK??'

🎮• I beg of you to just say okay to them, otherwise they're gonna keep asking and asking and asking at the worst times and proving themselves to you in very drastic measures until you've got to accept them to make the madness stop.

🎮• Congratulations, you've got brats. For life. If things where chaotic before, get ready.

🎮• Now you're dating or whatever romantic relationship you're somehow in with BEN has started, you realise pretty early on that they are full-on yanderes. A few of them don't have much interest in romance and are more like weird friends or siblings to you, a few of them are surprisingly soft and quiet, but still just as brutal as the rest, and then there are the maniac lovers that are 100% possessive, protective, obsessive and clingy.

🎮• Sometimes they can act in contrasting ways because different people are taking control, and attitudes vary, but you can keep up with the shifting of personalities after a while. There are subtle hints, like the way their faces change slightly depending on who's appearing, and what and how they say things. Most of the time, though, you'll be faced with Majora. He's the fully green-haired grinning psycho boy who leads BEN, and being around him is... well, intense.

🎮• You'll know when you're chatting to him on Cleverbot or Word or whatever he's on, because he's a confident, arrogant jerk, and it shows. He's the one who likes making you jump by randomly appearing on your screen, toying with electricity and other things when he's not toying with unsuspecting peoples' minds. Sometimes you get BEN's face and a glitch, broken computerised voice - again, whose tone varies ever so slightly depending on who's talking - but most times, it's just typing.

🎮• If BEN are talking or arguing with each other, it's not really aloud, its in their shared mind, and I wanted to add the funny thought of you doing something random or asking a deep question, and how BEN's face goes completely blank and unblinking with that god-forsaken smile while they all fight in their head about how to react. So it's just him frozen for a solid ten minutes like 😀 on standby and you finding it funny until one of them snaps back to life - usually Majora - and jumpscares you by changing his face into something disturbing and blueish.

🎮• Yeah, he finds everyone's pain funny, but your screaming and cursing at him is even better. Then he and the others start thinking about trying to become more materialized to grab out at you and stuff, which leads to another debate. Seven of them are terrified at the concept of being vulnerable and weakened in a physical form, five of them don't care and want to be closer to you, four of them are trying to plan how it could best work, and Majora shuts them down with demanding they're doing it somehow, and takes the argument to you. Lucky you.

🎮• It turns out that the best way for them to appear in a glitchy, disturbing physical form is for the most amount of electricity and energy to be running in the house. You're going to need some stronger fuses, that's for sure. And your electricity bills are going to skyrocket. But, again, they can find a way to alter the prices in the system so it's not too much of a problem.

🎮• Of course, you're probably apprehensive by the idea of them being able to get to you physically now as well as through your devices and mentally, so ground rules have got to be set. You need to get them all listening and quiet, which could take ages if Majora's teasing you, or moments if he tells them all to shut up. Then you need to confirm that they won't hurt you, or anyone else, and understand that they can't leave the house and anything else that you want to avoid. If they don't follow the rules, you'll pull the plug.

🎮• 'PULL THE PLUG PULL THE PLUG PULL THE PLUG??' 'YOU WOULDN'T DARE' 'NO NO NO DON'T PULL THE PLUG'

🎮• And you're like "I will and I can if you don't do as I say 🙄"

🎮• Majora agrees to the terms in the end, and so they wait for you to plug and switch everything on, connect your computer to the TV, and let the horror of them climbing out of the screen unfurl as the glitchy green mass of a boy is standing in your home, grinning but blank, trying to adjust to their surroundings. Half of them are panicking, and half of them are just happy that they've found a way to be closer to you. And they can get pretty close.

🎮• If you leave everything electrical on all day, and especially when you're about to sleep, you're probably going to get intruded on by Majora, who almost gives you a heart attack when you wake up in the middle of the night to his glitchy figure and grin literally centimetres away from your face. He's impossible.

🎮• Right, now comes the physically affectionate side of things 😵‍💫

🎮• If it's anyone but Majora, you probably won't be too overwhelmed by it, since some of them or more twisted-friendly than they are romantic. But where it's the other way around with the group of Moon Children who are just as obsessive as Majora is, then that all goes out of the window. Any one of them can come out at any time, and once they're used to the natural world and the sensation of touch and basic senses they've been deprived of, you're gonna get ambushed.

🎮• He, along with the others, finds being materialised and almost a part of the real, outside world, fascinating and new in a way, so if they're out of the screen, they're probably touching all your stuff, looking through and studying everything like they're aliens. Some more carefully than others. Majora will knock some stuff over just to annoy you. He's a pain in the ass.

🎮• But since Majora is probably the one you'll be seeing the most out of BEN, you'll get used to him. He and the others like him are really grabby, since they're getting more comfortable in a material form and place, and they also find it funny when you get frustrated and push their glitchy, electric self off you so you can focus on your work. They're the type of guy that's always lingering curiously over your shoulder, playing with and examining your hair. Everything about you is fascinating to them, so you're gonna have to learn to get used to having this inhumane being hover over your shoulder with an absentminded grin while you watch Netflix or something.

🎮• When it comes to affection, they are very new to the concept of it. BEN are used to ruining people's lives, driving them so insane that they'll chuck themselves out of windows, do whatever they tell them to, just for the fun of it. So when they're introduced to coupley things like hugging and kissing and intimate conversations, you're going to have to explain and show them very slowly. Majora feels stupid doing it and has to get used to it, but he will get used to it. He just makes it a whole lot more intense.

🎮• Intense being realllly tight hugs where you're like "Majora, get off me, I actually can't feel a thing," because he's electrically charged and unstable and way too full-on. And he's all innocently grinning and cocking his head to the side with a "Why?"

🎮• "Because I can't breathe and you need to calm down." "Why?" "Because-" "Why?"

🎮• That's Majora 😑

🎮• Also, when you're hugging one of them, you're hugging all seventeen of them, so they're all going to feel it. Some of them get annoyed by that because they're possessive crazy people, and start arguing about who it was meant for and petty stuff like that, until Majora tells them to shut up.

🎮• They don't mind you touching them either, again, when they're used to it all. They trust you enough for it, but you might get shocked every so often, which is most of the time an accident, but if Majora's around, it most likely isn't. There'll be a sweet moment with you hanging around a shyer member of BEN and playing with their eye-watering green hair, and then Majora jumps in and says how annoying it is and tries untying yours or something stupid. It's safe to say that playfighting and winding you up is Majora's main love language and way of getting attention from you, even if it is enough to make a saint swear.

🎮• So when Majora's being surprisingly nice-ish and easier on you to the point where you'll let him kiss you...

🎮• BEN is going to short-circuit the first time, because holy hell, this is new, and they don't mind itttt-

🎮• It's literally the cliche of electric, because that's what BEN's running on, but all of them are different in their own ways. Some of them are a little gentler, some are surprisingly bashful, but once Majora's kissed you once and had his five minutes to pull himself together to make one of his proud remarks, he'll be a lot more confident in the future. He likes leaving you rolling your eyes in annoyance or completely spellbound, so it'll end in one way or the other. With a bit more time though, you will see that underneath all the dark humour and psycho-ness, he's the Moon Child that's been trapped in BEN the longest, and takes the longest to open up and let himself be vulnerable and surprisingly thoughtful and sweet. When he lets himself.

🎮• With some more time, more of them will tell you about who they were before BEN, though the details are a little fuzzy and painful to remember. That's pretty much the ultimate sign of trust, because there's no going back on what you've learnt, and what they learn about you. They remember every single thing you tell them, which is sweet sometimes, because they can order you stuff you said you want online for no cost on hacked accounts... or they can kill your enemies.

🎮• They can and they will. Even if it's a friend who you had a little disagreement with, BEN are going to take it personally. Basically, all of them think you can do no wrong and anyone that wrongs you is their new game. They won't leave that person alone, doxxing them, filming them and sending you clips of them terrified as a way to make you proud. And whether you choose to be proud, roll your eyes at the typical behaviour, or be completely unnerved by it is up to you, though it won't stop them. It's one way they show their love, and they will show it.

🎮• Majora, again, is a massive yandere, trying to watch you at all times, getting some of the others in BEN to lead with manipulation and terror in the screens while he obsesses over you with another few Moon Children. If you ever need one of them while they're busy on their latest 'game,' they've given you some intricate coding or website link to enter into your phone, and at least three of them, including Majora, are there and searching for the problem you need help with.

🎮• But even though, to the world and people they torture, BEN seems like an unfeeling, sadistic monster, you, one person out of all the others, somehow, are the only one who knows what they're really like.

🎮• Just don't tell anyone 🙃

[tarulink]

OOT Zelink is possible after Majora's Mask (theory 2024)

We don't really know what happened after MM so everything is possible until Nintendo denies it so here is my theory:

Everyone thinks that the only place Link could go after his trip through Termina is Lon Lon Ranch, but what if not? After all the last memories he had were about Zelda wishing she could meet Link again, she was THE ONLY PERSON who actually waited for him after his trip. THIS IS IMPORTANT!!

So after his trip he goes to Zelda and tells her everything that happened to him, she believes him, in fact she might be the only person who believes him because he believed her when she had her visions of Ganondorf.

Link does not necessarily have to have worked on the ranch, there are many other jobs in castle town, I would like to think that he got a job near the castle so he could continue meeting Zelda.

As the years go by their relationship becomes even closer, unfortunately Zelda has to marry someone else so Link decides to continue his life without her. He meets someone else and they get along well, he decides to rebuild his life and marries that woman (Maybe that's why Nintendo never said with whom he had a child, because it was probably with a random woman we don't even know lmao). He has a daughter (I would like to think he has a girl) and thinks she is the most important thing he has now in his life.

Zelda does not love her husband but by the laws of nobility she has to give him an heir. Zelda becomes pregnant and although she does not love her husband, she loves her baby. She thinks it is the most important thing she has in her life now.

Link and Zelda rarely communicate because they already have priorities to maintain (each one with their children).

If you notice this is where the lineage of TP Link and TP Zelda is born!

As fate would have it Link's marriage doesn't work out and he gets divorced or she leaves him with his daughter.

The king passes away.

Do you see where I'm going with all this?

Zelda as queen can do whatever she wants now, so she goes to visit Link after so long. They both talk about their lives and realize they still have romantic feelings for each other. Zelda offers Link to be her personal knight and he unhesitatingly accepts, she gives him a special armor (the armor we see in Twilight Princess).

He becomes her prince consort.

However they have no children or maybe they had one but that son never had descendants Take it as you wish!

We don't know how exactly Link died, but everything points to the fact that he died in a war and lost his eye. Maybe he knew he wouldn't survive and that's why he went to the Lost Forest, dying there and regretting not having taught his techniques, so his spirit stays there until the other chosen one arrives to teach him his techniques.

Zelda is widowed again, that's why we see Link's grave in the castle graveyard in Twilight Princess (like why would his grave be in the castle?)

Years go by and both Link's daughter and Zelda's child grow up. Link's daughter decides to leave the castle and make her life elsewhere, she takes Epona with her, playing the song that HER FATHER taught her (because it is not necessary for Link to have married Malon to learn Epona's song)

Zelda's child takes the throne once she dies.

So with this we have the birth of TP Link and TP Zelda many years later. The reason I don't support the Link and Malon theory is because I find many inconsistencies: TP Link is an orphan, he lives in a tree not in the ranch (he doesn't even own it, the ranch belongs to Fado and he is a human) Link is the only Hylian in Ordon. It's probably that Jaggle or Pergie are descendants of Malon bc their sons are named Malo and Talo (probably she married a human knight or probably Nintendo just put those names bc yes lol)

Also remember Sheik's words? Young love become deep affection Link and Zelda spent time together before Link went on a trip to Termina, I think these words are a reference to them, how much they care about each other ♡

Of course these are my thoughts, you may agree or disagree with me!

[hopeymchope]

The Legend of Zelda and shipping

I can't understand people who are like "I only ship Link in every game with one single character ever." What the hell... HOW?!

This seems to be most most common with people who ship Zelda/Link or "Zelink" — always wanting every Zelda to be with Link, because they're the main characters, though the phenomenon does exist with Malink and some other ships as well. And that’s not to hate on Zelink and Malink, because I love them! SPECIFIC INCARNATIONS of them, I mean.

Because there are a bare minimum of EIGHT different incarnations of Link, and you can’t tell me you think every single dude named Link has chemistry with/should have romance with every single girl named Zelda. Like EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.? I just can't with that. It's unfathomable, IMO.

I mean, OKAY, let me back that up: I get that people find it romantic to think that these are like... some kind of soulmates who always find each other through every reincarnation ala Hawkman and Hawkgirl or something, but it's not like they even display the same personality traits or share memories or something in each version of themselves. They just... act like totally different people quite regularly. Because by all accounts, they are.

Furthermore... shit - if we assume the incarnations are all descendants of one another and the same descendancy lines keep hooking up with the same partner lines, at what point do we wind up becoming dangerously incestuous with this repeated pairing? Because that shit seems INEVITABLE in such a case…?

NAH, my fam — I believe each Link and each Zelda are their own person, with their own traits. Their only unifying truth is that every person Link will ALWAYS look best in a green tunic and matching green, pointy flop-hat. (Sorry; I don't make the rules. Facts is facts.)

With that in mind, these are my sundry ships for various Links. And I apologize in advance for the fact that they're all boringly het. :P

Skyward Sword — Zelink, absolutely. Childhood Friend Romance always gets me right in the heart. I love these two together. The casual playfulness and fondness they display. The lengths they'll go to in order to see each other/protect each other. And although Zelda loses some of her distinct personality when she learns she's a reincarnation of Hylia, she gets her groove back near the end, so it's all good.

Ocarina of Time/Majora's Mask/SC2 — Malink with a bullet. The singing farmgirl and the boy without a fairy, two people who felt alone in the world and find each other. The nicknames! "Don't be long, fairy boy." The fact that you can declare your romantic intentions for Malon while you're still a fucking KID! The Gossip Stone that tells you how much Malon pines to be saved from her daily life by a hero on a horse! It's SO GOOD.

Wind Waker/Phantom Hourglass — I'm only mentioning this era because this Link is an ACTUAL CHILD. He's like, what? EIGHT? Maybe ten, if we're feeling generous? So I just want to say: Yeah... I just can't bring myself to ship this literal child with anybody. It ain't RIGHT.

Link's Awakening — Marink. If you weren't feeling these two by the time their sunset beach conversation wrapped up, I don't know what to even say to you. This was probably my first serious ship from playing the TLoZ games. Plus this ship is a good reason why the original black-and-white Game Boy version's secret ending is actually the best version of that bonus scene.

Twilight Princess — Ilink. Is there even any other contender worth mentioning? The writing and direction of the cut scenes makes it pretty clear that Link and Ilia are sweet on each other. You barely even meet Zelda in this game, and the only other option would probably be, well... Midna? You know - your partner imp that spends most of the game trash-talking you for her personal lulz and repeatedly slamming her body weight down HARD onto your spine? Mm, I’ll pass.

Breath of the Wild/Age of Calamity/TotK — Miphlink/Miphalink, no items, FINAL DESTINATION. Their story makes my heart just ACHE. The flashback to Mipha healing him up... Mipha's diary (OMFG that diary)... the Zora armor and its descriptions... holy SHIT, fam. And even if that story DIDN'T melt me into a complete puddle, Zelda put herself out of consideration by stealing my fucking house. I don’t understand why she pulled that, but given her privileged upbringing, I doubt she understands the value/expense of home ownership. So maybe she thought this was like yoinking a french fry. :P

Haven't Played — The only major entry I haven't played yet is "Spirit Tracks" on the DS. So I can't speak to that incarnation at this point. But the two things I can say is A) The Zelda/Link relationship sure appears cute? but B) This is also the same style of Link seen in Wind Waker, so I won't be surprised if she's supposed to be a LITERAL CHILD again (and therefore not a shippable character for me).

[skyloftian-nutcase]

Enneagram time with the Links!

I'm gonna type the Links from LoZ games I've played, might do Linked Universe too at some point. Anyway! I am too tired to explain the enneagram properly, but essentially it is a personality system that consists of nine different types. They're sorted by their core motivations and fears, and how they respond to the world in relation to that. Check out more info about that here!

Here's a list of the nine types

Okay, personality dweebs, let's do this!

Skyward Sword Link - Type 9, The Peacemaker, for sure. This boy just radiates type 9 energy. Laid back, doesn't seem particularly bothered by much of anything but when he is bothered, oh boy does it show. Is called "lazy" and a "daydreamer," yet he doesn't show traits of actual laziness. The teachers don't lament his lack of work. He's airheaded and unfocused, but he isn't lazy. Has strong feelings, you can see from how expressive he is. He's very empathetic, patient, and kind.

When type 9s are under stress they gravitate towards the more negative traits of type 6 - constantly anxious (always running too late), distrustful or reclusive (can't tell anyone else on Skyloft what's going on).

Link just... I can't put it into words, he just is type 9. As for his wing, I'd go with a 9w1. This Link isn't particularly assertive or looking for challenges, he's far more introverted, has a strong sense of duty and probably prefers the safety and comfort of routine.

Ocarina of Time/Majora's Mask Link - Type 1, The Reformer. His sense of duty, his position as Hero of Hyrule, his need to help the world and protect others literally dominates this man's life - and death!! It's clearly important to him as he imparts this ideology to his descendant, the Hero of Twilight. He sticks around as a stalfos to continue his legacy, to train the next generation because his greatest regret was not ensuring the continued protection of Hyrule and ensuring others fulfilled the duty of the Hero as well. He is quiet, reserved, logical, and incredibly intelligent - of all the games I've played, OoT dungeons are the hardest, and this dude figured them out when he was nine.

Type 1s under stress devolve into the negativity of type 4s, they're emotional, they think no one can understand them, they're isolated and just different, ring a bell anyone? This dude is so displaced in time I can't blame him for feeling disconnected from everyone else and bitter about it. He definitely had a phase like this in his adolescence, I'm sure. And when type 1s are growing and at their best, they have the sense of spontaneity and adventure of type 7s, which seems on par with his I'm-going-break-this-horse-out-of-the-stable-by-jumping-over-the-fence-with-her-during-a-race moment.

His wing would probably be a type 2. He has a very kind heart, even if he doesn't express it well, bless him.

Twilight Princess Link - Type 2, The Helper. Compassionate, putting others first always, having a strong need to defend, assist, and nurture others. This Link is a gentle soul, through and through. Until you put him on a battlefield of course, because wow he is the most ferocious Link of the bunch. And that's a thing with 2s! When under stress they are aggressive and overbearing like 8s!

The entire village relies on this guy before he ever even starts his journey. He's already being a hero to his own people, and it has nothing to do with leading or fight, it's just that he goes out of his way to help others. He is so caring and tender and loving, he whittles away at Midna's sharp edges until she warms up to him too.

His wing would probably be a type 1 because he seems very focused on helping the individual more than the group. He's a local country boy who thinks small scale, has a sense of duty to others specifically instead of a sense of building achievements and success.

Breath of the Wild/Tears of the Kingdom Link - Type 6, The Loyalist. Committed, security oriented, responsible, anxious. Sounds a lot like our boy, right? His anxieties dominated his life prior to the Calamity until his amnesia wiped those away. Committed? Dude, have you ever seen him leave Zelda's side? This is him to a T. Notably, when 6 is in a place of healthy growth, they act more like a relaxed, laid back 9, which you 100% see in Breath of the Wild. The contrast between Link under pressure prior to the Calamity and Link without the world making demands of him is huge. He and Sky Link would be chill besties is all I'm saying. Type 6s and 9s tend to be good friends.

Did I happen to mention that type 6 is filled with self doubt? This boy doubted his ability to be the Hero so much he let the world decide how he should act because he was convinced he would screw it up.

His wing is definitely a 7. 7s are spontaneous, wild, rambunctious, adventurous, and don't plan a second beyond the moment they're living in. He is absolutely a 6w7.

Summary!

Sky: 9w1 Time: 1w2 Twilight: 2w1 Wild: 6w7

[bryce-bucher]

what inspirations did you draw from in the making of Fatum Betula? where did the idea for the design of the spirit who wants the painting come from? are there any music artists or specific songs that you think reflect the tone of the game?

I played Iketsuki by my friend Modus Interactive while working on Protagoras Bleeds, and it really inspired me to want to make a game based around a single, strange goal. I remember walking down a sidewalk while trying to think of something to center this game around when, for whatever reason, the idea of watering a plant with various strange liquids stuck me. That was the initial seed for the whole game (to this day the original folder for the game is still titled "waterplantgame"). During development I was heavily inspired by Yume Nikki as well as my specific experience with the n64 zelda games. When I was really young, my cousin gave me his old n64 along with all his games, so my experiences with oot and mm were completely devoid of context aside from the art on the covers. I would play my cousin's 100% completed save files and just run around the game aimlessly talking to npcs, exploring environments, and triggering various events. I distinctly remember the vibe of kokiri forest and the big scary ass monster that flies at you in hyrule field if you get too close. I also spent a lot of time wandering around clock town. I honestly could not tell you where the idea for the spirit who wants the painting came from. It was probably one of those things that hit me at like 2am while I was drifting asleep idk. I can't remember if the painting came first or if he did. I think that Simone's OST for the game reflects it perfectly, but of course it would. I think a lot of Modus Interactive's music, the yume nikki soundtrack, and the more ambient songs from majora's mask would also be good fits.

[ordon-shield]

Animated Zelda Adaptions

With recent discussion of an animated Zelda film to follow the Mario movie, I got to thinking about ways to adapt different Zelda games into animation. While a Zelda movie wouldn’t necessarily need to be an adaption of a specific game, with the variety of styles the series has gone through over the years, they’d need to pick one to go with — so here’s my thoughts.

Zelda 1/Adventure of Link/A Link to the Past/Link’s Awakening

I’m putting these four together because I think they could all be adapted into animation the same way — based of the original official art, in the style of an 80s cartoon (just with a bit more of a budget). Each game could be a season of a TV show, expanding on the somewhat limited plot by making it episodic and using the extra time to expand on the characters and world within that format.

Ocarina of Time/Majora’s Mask

For these two, I think stopmotion in the style of Laika (known for Coraline & Kubo and the Two Strings) would work the best (or using 3D stylised to resemble stopmotion, like the Lego Movie). The OoT style doesn’t seem like one that would translate to 2D very well, and I think it would be fun to borrow some ideas from the Link’s Awakening remake for the Switch and have the character designs stylised so they look almost like action figures. While Ocarina of Time would have to be a movie, Majora’s Mask just wouldn’t work in that format, since the sidequests are so vital to the overall story, meaning a one season series would probably be the best way to adapt it.

Oracle of Ages/Seasons

I’ve never played these two myself, but I think going more ‘anime’ with them would work well, although it would be fun to work in the pixel art of the original games somehow. Like the other Downfall Timeline games, these ones would would work best as a TV series — maybe three seasons, one for Ages, one for Seasons, and one for the linked games ending but adding in extra story where Link travels between Holodrum and Labrynna. For an animation studio, someone suggested Toei Animation, who apparently did the animation for the LA remake.

Wind Waker/Phantom Hourglass/Spirit Tracks

Wind Waker, the one that got me thinking about animated Zelda in the first place! I think this is the only Zelda game that would work with Illumination due to its more cartoony style, although other studios like DreamWorks would also work. Although if it was done in 2D, based on the official art, Cartoon Saloon would definitely pull it off. Wind Waker would work pretty well as a movie with pretty minimal changes needed to the plot, and Phantom Hourglass/Spirit Tracks could make up a Zelda trilogy.

Minish Cap/Four Swords Adventures

Leaving out the original Four Swords due to its complete lack of story — I think these two would work with a similar style to the Wind Waker trilogy, although I’d definitely prefer them to be 2D over 3D. Minish Cap would definitely work as a movie, but I’m not sure about FSA, it probably depends on how much is pulled from the manga.

Twilight Princess

Much like Ocarina of Time, I don’t think the Twilight Princess artstyle as it is would work in 2D. Based on their work like Wolfwalkers and Screecher’s Reach, I think Cartoon Saloon could definitely replicate the vibes of the original game in a more cartoony style. Alternatively, they could go full anime with this one — although it would definitely work better as something more inspired by 90s anime and its more realistic proportions.

Skyward Sword

Initially I was leaning towards Ghibli and while it would definitely work, just doesn’t feel right to me. Maybe Toei again? I’m not too familiar with Japanese animation studios, but Skyward Sword is definitely a good fit for the typical ‘anime’ look. Also I don’t think 3D would work here.

A Link Between Worlds

While technically a sequel/remake to A Link to the Past, the differences in art style make me feel that this one should have its own look — preferably 3D so the contrast with Link’s painting form is strengthened.

Breath of the Wild/Tears of the Kingdom

These ones have got to be Ghibli, there’s no question about it there. The big question is do you make them each a series, or a movie with a number of timeskips? Either one has benefits and downsides.

[thequickbutt]

My version of the Indigo-Gos in the BotW style! They're more of a rock band here and I also made Mikau the lead singer. Lulu is second vocals and plays second guitar! If I had the skill and the patience, I would design their instruments as well...

Single images and some info under the cut!

Mikau

Lead singer and guitarist of the band. Also one of Zora's Domain's most skilled warriors. His headtail was once longer and looked pretty much like your average Zora's, but he lost a part of it in a battle. He wears a piece of jewelry at the end now to hide his scar. Even though most Zora fight with spears, Mikau prefers fighting with a sword. His arm fins are harder than a usual Zora's fins, and also sharper, which makes them useful in battle.

Lulu

Second vocals and second guitar. Based on a hammerhead shark (since it's confirmed Princess Ruto is based on one. And since Lulu is more or less a reused model of Ruto... you get the idea). Pink jewelry instead of the average cyan! Her personality differs from her Majora's Mask one, as she's more of a rock girl here! Probably a little more quiet and shy in person than on stage, though. Not wearing a dress, but some sorta skirt, which is attached to her belt.

Japas

Bassist. Lotsa smaller jewelry. Yes, he has eyes. The tallest of the five band members. Arm fins are differently attached to him than an average Zora's, plus he's got extra small fins on his legs to imitate flare sleeves and pants. Super chill dude.

Evan

Band leader. Plays the keyboard. Cool headphones! Rounder fins than your average Zora. Short headtail. Probably dislikes when the other band members just come up with songs on their own, and then steals said songs to pretend he made them up himself.

Tijo

Short, round ray friend! Mikau's bestie. Plays the drums. You can probably talk to him about anything. Not the most popular of the band, but he appreciates every single fan!

[bluesdesk]

People. 50.6% of 87 votes are exactly 44 votes. And 49.4% is 43 votes. Tears of the Kingdom lost to Alttp for ONE VOTE

Anyway, I decided to yeet both off the poll! Let the 9th round begin! There are 8 games left, and these are really the best. I still have one game I want to vote but then the choice will be harder!

As I've written many things about totk but I don't want to give unwanted spoilers, this time the rankings are here and my opinions on the games are under the cut!

<< Previous round

The CDIs

Triforce Heroes

Zelda 2

Hyrule Warriors / Legends / Definitive

Cadence of Hyrule

Zelda 1

Four Swords Adventures

Four Swords

Oracle of Seasons/Ages

Age of Calamity

Phantom Hourglass

Link's awakening/LANS

Spirit Tracks

Tears of the Kingdom

A link to the Past

Soo! TotK and AlttP. I played AlttP shortly after BotW on nso, when TotK still wasn't out. I liked it a lot at first, but I have to say I didn't complete it. It was technologically advanced for that time for sure, but I don't think it aged well. The dungeons didn't leave me anything valuable to remember, like other games did, the items weren't equipped easily and the story was too simple and banal.

As for TotK. Oh TotK. I got to play botw another bit before returning it (I had borrowed it from a friend), after quitting alttp. And I still liked it! Then I bought TotK and at the beginning I was extremely surprised, it looked so great. I thought Rauru was the same first sage from OoT and he had a "goat disguise" to not be recognized, like his owl form. Of course I was wrong and then I was so disappointed, i left it almost one year ago and don't have any urge to play it again, I probably will though and give it another chance because something was really good like seeing grown up characters or finding those "Zeldas" or building things or finding amiibo costumes. - the story is great for a standalone game, but for zelda? The zonai make no sense to me and contradicted everything we knew. In the past right after sksw the gerudo weren't known, the zora and rito didn't exist, the gorons weren't on death mountain. They should have made another antagonist and not Ganondorf. Zelda's sacrifice was honestly a so great part, but the ending was awful. - the "dungeons" were copies of each other. And short and banal as heck, and the dialogues after each one were always the same. - People didn't remember Link. Only some of the major characters did but the majority of the npcs didn't know him. And Link didn't have the majority of his clothes. I know the outfits weren't mandatory to get in botw (nothing was mandatory tho) but at least the most known could have been left. The gerudo outfit, the climber set, the hylian set, the luminous stone set! They made up a story for the zora tunic and that's a good thing. - The depths were empty and too dark, even after the light roots were lighted. It was too easy to get lost. - the ultrahand and fuse mechanics are amazing as well as the ascend, but they should have made them mandatory at least for some parts of the game, to give them more spotlight. - I would have loved to have way more sksw references, this isn't a flaw of course but a personal preference! Also I would have loved to have Wolf Link as an ally again, instead of the spirits of the sages. - personal experience: the game crashed after I defeated Ganondorf for the last time. I was about to see the final cutscene when the screen went black and it never played (I saw it on youtube). Everything else on the swotch worked perfectly so it was just the game. Of course it doesn't autosave or let people save the game after entering the zone before the first fight with Ganondorf so I'm back there. I hated it.

[tenshiharmonia]

The Fourth Piece

"Courage that is untempered by kindness risks eating itself forever. Wisdom that is untempered by kindness is no wisdom at all."

I recently played Tunic, and the above quote reminded me of something I wanted to write about for quite some time now, in regards to The Legend of Zelda. You see, I'm a big enjoyer of the "Tetraforce" theory. I guess the name is pretty self-explanatory, but for those who don't know, it's the belief that the Triforce as it is is incomplete, and that there is a fourth, missing piece, taking the shape of an inverted triangle meant to fill the hole in the middle of the sacred relic*.

Now, I'm fully aware that it will likely never be a thing in canon (I even heard that the theory has officially been addressed and refuted, but I never really checked the veracity of that statement, so make of it what you will), but hey, as far as my headcanons are concerned, it's quite a fun and interesting idea to toy with. :3 Of course, if you're a fan of the Zelda franchise, you probably know that a core aspect of its mythology is that each of the existing pieces of the Triforce corresponds to a certain quality. We have Power, Wisdom, and Courage, so the question is : what ideal would this hypothetical fourth fragment stand for ?

I think you see where this is going, but personally, my favourite take on the matter is that the lost piece would represent Kindness. This is definitely not an original idea, of course. As you may know, it initially comes from Majora's Mask, where four of the great fairies who inhabit the world are referred to as the Great Fairies of Power, Wisdom, Courage and - you guessed it - Kindness. So it already has some basis in the series' lore (even if the great fairies have technically nothing to do with the Triforce XD ), but most of all, I really like how well it complements the other three pieces. Kindness fosters harmony. It helps bring balance. For Courage and Wisdom don’t amount to anything without Kindness, as explained by the line I quoted earlier from Tunic. And Power will just set the world on fire without it. They need Kindness to temper them, but Kindness also needs them to help guide its efforts. Really, I love the dynamic it creates, if that makes any sense.

Alas, Kindness and its champion are missing from the world. But what would happen if they were to awaken ? Who knows, they might hold the key to putting an end to Demise’s curse, the curse that was born from wrath and hatred… On the other hand, the events and context that led the fourth fragment to be "missing" in the first place also make for an interesting topic. First of all, the existence of a fourth Triforce piece naturally implies the existence of a fourth deity, a deity who would be on a par with the Golden Goddesses and who would have also partaken in the creation of the world. But once again, what could have led to their contribution being erased from the legend ? I mean, considering the level of almightiness we are dealing with, it can reasonably be assumed that it could only have been the doing of the other three creators - or at least one of them -, but even then, it doesn’t tell us much. XD

Really, there are so many directions this story could take. I’m almost afraid of picking one ! So here is a bunch of mostly inconsequential details I was musing about instead. :p

First thing first, I should probably mention that I like to imagine this fourth deity as a god rather than a goddess. Don’t take it as a statement of any kind, I just like the immediate contrast it creates. XD (Also, I love the idea of Kindness being represented by a buff and burly - yet gentle and caring - man. :p )

I was also toying with the idea that he could be related somehow to the "Fierce Deity" whose power imbues the eponymous mask. Maybe it could be an incarnation of the rage he felt after getting erased from the world’s history. I don’t know, but it could be interesting…

Since Din, Nayru and Farore are respectively associated with Fire, Water and Wind, it’d be fitting for their "brother" to have an elemental attribute as well. And it just so happens that we are missing one of the four classical elements to have the complete set : Earth.

Which, based on the iconography of Minish Cap and the Four Swords games, means that his dedicated colour would likely be purple. (I was going to say yellow**, to match the aforementioned Great Fairy of Kindness (and because I kind of feel like it complements the other three better), but the colour is already associated with the Triforce as a whole, so it’d probably be redundant…)

As for his name, I’d like to base myself on Twilight Princess. Since three of the game’s four provinces are named after the golden goddesses, it’d make sence for the last one (which is apparently not considered a part of Hyrule) to reference the fourth deity, one of the few hints of his existence left in the world. That’s where it becomes a bit difficult, considering how vastly different the English name (Ordona) is from all the other versions (that are mostly variations of the Japanese name, Latoan). Naturally, the version I’m personally used to is the French one, Latouane, so you can guess which one I’d base myself on. :p (I was thinking, maybe something along the lines of "Latoun", but there is obviously nothing definitive about it.)

Another thing to consider is what his contribution to the world’s creation could have been. We know that Din modelled the earth and everything material, Nayru defined the laws of nature, and Farore was the one who created life, so what does that leave us with ? My first idea was that it was him who gave living beings a heart (metaphorically speaking, of course), bestowing them with free will and a sense of self, as well as the power to defy destiny. Which, naturally, could have contributed to his ultimate erasure. But once again, I’m just brainstorming out loud…

By the way, is it just me, or does it start to sound like I’m basically recreating the Diamonds from Steven Universe ? I mean, four impossibly powerful beings, each tied to a particular colour and elements, with the fourth one being strongly associated with Earth and freedom and having disappeared under mysterious circumstances ? I swear it wasn’t intentional, but the similarities are definitely here. XD (Even the Diamonds’ sigil seems to hark back to the Triforce in a way, especially the triangular version used after the shattering…)

Anyway, this is pretty much everything I had to say on the matter. As you can see, it’s quite a mess of ideas. I would have said it’s a work in progress, but let’s be honest, it barely counts as a work to begin with. XD Still, I needed to get it all out of my system. Of course, if you have anything to say about the content of this post, I’ll be more than happy to hear you. As I said earlier, there are so many directions you can take with this concept. But then again, it’s also what makes it so fascinating in the first place. ^_^ (Also, go play Tunic if you haven't already ; this game is an absolute gem. :p )

* Note that while "Tetraforce" is an useful term, the object itself would probably still be called "Triforce", as the fact it was already named as such when there were only two pieces seems to indicate that it likely got its name from its shape, and not from the number of components… ** Which is actually purple’s complementary colour, funnily enough.

[amaesama]

Hii!!

I just wanted to tell u that ur lovely and how i love ur hcs

If its not troubling you,may I request general head canons for BEN,like any hcs,his relationship with other or just some weirdly specific hcs like not liking candies or smth lmao

Have a nice day! ^_^

Ahh that’s so sweet, thank you so much! BEN was like my favourite creepypasta when I was younger so I have a very strong connection with him and I have so much to say, thank you for the request!

BEN Drowned headcanons

He is an absolute menace.

Like this kid has one goal in life and that is to be as irritating and annoying as he can possibly be. In my own au he stayed as a 12-13 year old after he died and idk if you’ve met 12-13 year old boys but they are so fucking annoying.

BEN’s annoying in an endearing way though.

He’s kinda upset that he doesn’t age. It doesn’t bother him all the time, but sometimes when he’s watching some of the older people he’s around like Liu and Helen (istg I’m always making up an excuse to mention Helen I’m so sorry y’all) he just gets reminded that he’s never gonna get the chance to grow up.

He’s very smart, god knows he needs to be to work out all the puzzles in LoZ Jesus Christ and he’s basically the Slendermans centre of intelligence. He’s grateful that the slenderman gave him a purpose, he feels like he’s forever in its debt. He’s not the type to flex his big brain but sometimes people can get a bit pissy when he starts talking smart. Again he doesn’t do this intentionally, he just thinks stuff is cool and will go on rants.

Idk if this is a stereotypical take for BEN but I don’t really care; he’s a massive gamer nerd. Like he can see a single frame and be able to identify the game it’s from, he has every cheat code memorised and has all the sims expansions.

Touch of the ‘tism.

He bares a resemblance to Majoras Mask Link (surprise surprise), but he just has the face he has before he died. When he ‘spawned’ reanimated?? Man idk he managed to get his hands on new clothes but keeps his lil Link cosplay in his room.

Unironically wears the triforce and cargo shorts outfit

He doesn’t really have a ‘bedroom,’ he just kinda lives in the CCTV room where he has a few consoles, a beanbag and a mini fridge. He doesn’t really need to eat or sleep, but he can do if he gets bored.

Mainly just eats snacks and junk food, it’s not like he needs to keep shape or worry about his health since he’s already dead. In particular he likes East Asian snacks, the ones you can only get by paying a fortune to get them imported.

He kinda glows?? Like a flickering glow, and if you’re close to him you’ll notice an electric humming sound coming from him, it’s very faint but noticeable. He also totally gives people electric shocks for shits and giggles lmao.

I feel like not many people who live in the mansion are a big fan of him, they don’t exactly HATE him but he’s just been known to piss people off and get on their nerves sometimes.

Works closely with Tim, Brian, Kate and Toby so they’ve just kinda learnt to put up with him. Out of all of them Toby’s probably the one who can handle him the longest.

They might even chat and hangout sometimes idk.

I feel like he would be great friends with Nina and Dina, I mentioned in my mansion hc’s that they would be two of the nicest and welcoming residents and I feel like although BEN isn’t as social as either of them he would still make occasional conversation with others.

He’s particularly close with Sally and it’s absolutely adorable, he always goes the extra mile to make sure she’s happy and makes an effort to play with her. I kinda link this to his frustrations with not aging, taking on a sort of ‘older brother’ role

Since Dina and Helen are close he SOMETIMES gets the chance to see him sometimes (mandatory Helen mention since you all know how much I love him), but since Helen keeps to himself a lot and is very quiet BEN just thinks he’s boring.

Surprisingly he gets along with Puppeteer pretty well, which is probably because they’re both ghostly beings. However he knows how manipulative Johnathan can be so he still stays on guard around him.

Has a kind of love-hate relationship with Jeff, like they despise each other and take the piss out of each other, but they’ll always team up to do some wacky hijinxs together.

All in all he’s a gremlin.

But he’s my gremlin :)