#botw masterworks

[ganondoodle]

(while i am crumbling into pieces from cramp pain)

back when they announced the totk masterworks book i said i wasnt happy about it bc it would either

prove they thought all this was good from the start and everything went as planned

show us that they had unbelievable better ideas and plans but for some unknow reason scrapped it all

as it stands now with the concepts i have seen ... they somehow did both, some things seemed to have been planned fro mthe start (the whole focus on sonau/zonai stuff for example, which i personally just dont like bc i liked them better as an unkown mystery you never get to meet) and other stuff (like ganondorfs concepts, or the infinitely cooler castle in the sky esque concepts for the sky islands, instead of some nonsensical, meaningless little stone crumbs) was much, much more interesting initially (together with the interviews that said they initially planned to have the battery be a magic meter and make the sonau more magic than tech- but then decided to build their stuff around modern electrical devices just so players would immediately know what it was an what it would do -why????? thats so boring?? and unecessary ?? and they still give you tutorials for it anyway, multiple times??!!- for some ungodly reason)

it makes me more and more sure that this game, that took 6 years to make with most assets already being there (the same time that botw took to make?????????), went through a similar development hell as that one final fantasy game did where the director decided to make it an entirely different game every few weeks bc he saw something cool in another game-

its the only thing that makes sense to me, why else would it be so weirdly ... unfinished, its full of grand ideas badly executed, or like i said in a previous post, like an alpha build (weird! did someone in charge also see cool stuff every few months and decide they wanted it in there too no matter what so everyone had to scramble to try and put it in making the whole jenga tower fall over and over??), just to test how far you can push things, with placeholders everywhere, the same cutscene pasted in where another should be and a placeholder reason to get players to go soemwhere (fake zelda) and rough ideas for puzzles etc, that was never finished, jsut highly polished (in looks, sounds and presentation) in hopes of it being 'good enough' or players not noticing (like, take the underground for example, the idea itself is fantastic and cool as fuck, but its feels like an idea that was never finished and just barely fileld with some things to try and cover up the fact that it was never done, like a statue that wasnt done being carved but ran out of time so they painted it anyway- take the base map and invert it, put some easily accessible points of jumping down into it in random spots to test if the game can handle it- no time left to actually get that idea anywhere more specific and well thought out/put together, so its left like that, put the same texture everywhere, barely modified copies of the same enemies, and some little reward spots that make no sense, modelling three types of trees and an enemy camp is way quicker to do than actually making an entire new map (they didnt have to make it the same size btw, just make it big but unique caves, put the gravity effect down there in enclosed spaces! makes it less weird to have randomly happen in the sky! etc) but its there!! its in the game and if they are lucky most players wont go down there enough to notice how meaningless and unfinished it all is)

knowing they would most likely never admit to it though, probably bc of their reputation, is just addign to the frustrations i have with it :I

(i just hate to not know the reason for things, if the devs, who are usually the ones being worked to the bone for things they know arent good, where put through that bc some executive big shot threw their tables around every so often or neglected their project bc they wanted to focus on something else first ... id like to know, i dont enjoy making up these conspiracy (?) theories .......... but i cant shake this feeling, its jsut makes no sense)

[noirandchocolate]

Everybody's excited for the Tears of the Kingdom Masterworks book to drop tomorrow and that's cool and all but meanwhile I'm just wanting to see that sweet sweet shipping notification for my Great Deku Tree lego sets on Sunday.

[sunset-peril]

*GASP* I forgot! I think you unplugged before Echos of Wisdom, didn't you? It was a good game!

Did you get it, too??

I haven't been able to yet!! I got hit in late September and had to buy a new car and then had to spend every second of the day either in class or doing classwork.

I hope to be able to play it soon!! My little sister got it this week. I'm waiting to see if it goes on sale because I've spent so much money since I was last alive haha!

[karama9]

The scrapped festival to celebrate the defeat of Calamity Ganon is interesting to me because I agree with the sentiment that pre Calamity Link would have hated it and there is strong indications that TotK Link is not big on fame either, possibly as much as hating it from remembering what it was like from the age of 12 on.

But! As a Zelink shipper, I have to be ok with him eventually being prince consort. So in my mind (and my story Worth the Spotlight) he eventually grows out of feeling like he is responsible for how people feel and can handle fame better.

It made me think of other times I’ve thrown my OC Links parties.

In Hero, he enjoys the party because he spent his life up to that point being mocked and bullied and now he’s getting well earned recognition. But then in the sequel I gave him trauma. He would not enjoy another party because it would feel undeserved by then.

In No More, he ends up getting a ceremony in which he pulls the sword and is quite ceremoniously acknowledged as the Hero. He would have hated it and fought it so he was drugged (forcibly) into a stupor for it.

In All That Hurt Us, there’s a Hero’s Day once a year. He hates it because of imposter syndrome and paranoia that his village making a big deal will give away his location.

Anyway, I find it fun to think of how various Links would react.

[1tsjusty0u]

everyday i yearn for storyboards..,.,,

[sedat3dmaiden]

i’m not a tears of the kingdom hater by any stretch of the imagination, but all the masterworks stuff is just proving to me we could have had an infinitely more engaging and interesting final product if nintendo stuck to the initial darker fantasy theme and weren’t hellbent on making the game as accessible as possible to people who didn’t play the game it is LITERALLY a sequel to (that was advertised for 90% of its development cycle as a SEQUEL to botw)

[sarasalandhistory]

A Quick Rewrite of Tears of the Kingdom ~ Part 2: How a Canon Zelink Would've Helped Both Characters

This is part 2 of my last quick rewrite.

As the title says, I genuinely believe that having an unambiguously canon Zelink would've helped the characterizations of both Link and Zelda in this game because now there's more stakes and not just resetting them back to 'Princess and Knight who might be more' because that was already done in BotW, and this is supposed to be a sequel to that game, so I want it to build upon the relationships that were presented there especially Zelink. BotW (and SS/ST) is what got me so into Zelink because of how natural their progression felt, where, despite being at odds at first, they reach an understanding, become friends, and then are willing to risk everything for each other. Heck, it's confirmed that Zelda is in love with Link and was probably going to confess to him after the Calamity, so it would be entirely logical to have them be in love, which raises the stakes for both characters. Link is confronted with the reality that Zelda, his shining beacon, might be permanently gone from this world, and Zelda has to grapple with the decision to be with the man she loves for another fleeting moment or choose to give him a happy future at the cost of herself. This, I admit, was touched upon, and there is subtext for those like me who look for it. However, having it on the surface would make for a more engaging story in the present and would address many other issues with how the story is told.

One of the main problems with TotK is admittedly Link himself, in that it seems like he hasn't existed unless the player is in control of him. I know that Zelda says that Link is always with her in her diary, and I genuinely believe this as well, but this narrative is muddled by the people of Hateno, Kakariko, and the Zonai Survey Team not recognizing Link even though he's been with Zelda all this time. It comes off as jarring, especially when you have sidequests like Eventide Island and Tarrey Town that Link canonically did, but then don't have NPCs like Bolson act like he doesn't recognize you. Heck, Masterworks confirms that Link did own the house Zelda now resides in before giving it to her, so Link would've canonically have to have met Bolson anyway. To me, this all seems like Nintendo not wanting to commit to a specific ship in case someone might be offended, while still hinting at it so as not to offend the other half of the population who do ship it. It's wishy-washy and honestly unneeded.

Just look at what Nintendo did to the other ships:

Mipha: It's confirmed with the memos that Mipha never actually gave the Zora Armor to Link and instead left it with her father so that means they were never actually engaged.

Sidon: He's going to be married to Yona.

Riju: Still a teenager and confirmed not to care about romance or love.

Paya: While not definitively sunk, she does grow close with Tauro and is nowhere near as hung up over Link.

The only other one you could stay is still in the water besides Zelink, thanks to the memos with Revelda(?), but even that reads in a besties manner vs romantically. On that note, someone make a jealous Link vs Revali fanfiction!

Back on topic, not having Zelink while sinking the others doesn't make sense if you're not just going to have them be canon, especially when it opens the door to new ideas and experiences while tightening up the narrative of where the heck Link has been and would give him more of a character that players can connect with rather than be a skin suit when he in all logic, should not be. Link has experiences, a life, and a personality without me in control, so that should shine through in how he interacts with the world around him and show that he has made an impression on Hyrule, along with Zelda. I want to feel Link existed in this world before I took over playing him. Heck, we see this done well in BotW through the diaries, the Zora, and the memories, where we know what Link was like 100 years ago, along with his relationships, and it tells us a lot about who he is and who he was without our interference. It made for a more engaging narrative and made us want to free Hyrule, because Link would. However, in TotK, we don't get that same impression, and the story's weaker for it. We know Link wants to save Zelda more than literally anything, even killing Ganondorf, but without context on how deep their relationship has become beyond a few choice NPCs and dialogue, I feel like an outsider looking in rather than being immersed in Link's primary goal. His lack of meaningful expressions in pivotal scenes doesn't help either. I mean frick, he doesn't even react seeing his father figure half-dead thanks to someone who was supposedly Zelda.

Speaking of the Princess, Zelda, while I love her to death, does come off as more static in this game vs BotW, where we saw her maturing and learning to become more compassionate through her relationship with Link until her love for him finally saved Hyrule. Now, I know Nintendo says that Zelda's trying to understand what she should do for Hyrule's future and how she learns about leadership and sacrifice from Rauru and Sonia, but honestly, I never got that. Zelda has already been acting as Hyrule's leader in the time between BotW and TotK, and doing everything she can to rebuild Hyrule. The people love and respect her for it, which I love, but why does she need to learn from Rauru and Sonia when she's already been doing it very well on her own? Also, Zelda did sacrifice herself for Hyrule's preservation 100 years ago and was willing to sacrifice herself for Link, so why does she need to learn what she already knows? Wouldn't it be more interesting to go into how her past affects her personal relationships, and how seeing how happily married Rauru and Sonia are, helps her with her trauma over whether or not she should take the next step with Link? Heck, this would make the draconification scene more heartbreaking because Zelda was finally able to decide that she wants to be with Link forever, and now to give him his future, that's a dream that can never be.

Now I know what you might be saying, "Well, how would you fix it?"

Simple.

Zelda and Link are a couple, but they're only dating and have been for years by now (At least 2-3). However, not everything is peaches and cream with them, as Link wants them to take the next step (ie, marriage), but Zelda is afraid of the prospect, which sets up their character arcs in the game. For Link, he knows he loves Zelda with all his heart, and he knows she loves him, so why not just get married? Link isn't a jerk about it, but he doesn't fully understand her hesitation and what being her husband would mean in the grand scheme of things for him and her. Zelda is still the Princess of Hyrule, and her husband would need to be a king, not just a knight, which is a reality Link is forced to grapple with when she goes missing and he takes on most of those duties now that she's gone. Link is the one who will have to step into the role as Hyrule's leader and learn just what that means. I'll get into how later on in story but that's his arc for this game.

As for Zelda, we learn her fear is not rooted in Link but her past. Love and marriage were not things that mixed in the old royal court and Zelda had learned to resign herself to a loveless marriage united by duty and expecation, not romance. However, in this Hyrule she's able to happily be with her beloved despite his social status and have the freedom she was denied growing up being able to research, learn, and develop to her heart's content, but that expectation of what marriage should be vs what she knows about it still remains, and this is what created the conflict between her and Link because she just came back and still wants to know as much as she can before being forced to be queen which would be the likely result if she married Link. Effectively their relationship is stuck in limbo at the beginning of the game, and Zelda has no idea about what she should do. Her loving Link is never a question to her, but is she being selfish by keeping him with her but not marrying him, even when he wants to? Are their wants too different to be compatible? Zelda doesn't know, and this is what she learns about in the past with Rauru and Sonia. I'll get more into them in a seperate rewrite, but to be short Sonia in this rewrite was Hyrule's ruling queen after being thrust into the role after losing her older sister who was first in line, and thought she'd never be able to be the Queen her sister was meant to be but Rauru through love and encouragment helped her through her anxiety, and let hr believe she could do it. This teaches Zelda that marriage is not a cage when two people love each other very much and seeing them together helps heal that part of herself. Unfortunately, Ganondorf and you know what happens next. However, an addition to this is Zelda actually does learn how to get back to the future but knows that if she did it that way, the Master Sword would still be destroyed and Ganondorf infinitely more powerful, which leaves her to grapple with her decision: go back to Link and spend the last few months they have to gather before Ganondorf destroys everything or become an immortal divine dragon but be forever parted from Link. In the end, she chooses the latter because while she does want to marry him now, she wants him to live a happy, long life even if it's without her. Basically Zelda's story is one about healing from trauma and selfishness, and realizing that tomorrow is never a promise.

With these character arcs for the main leads, I genuinely believe that doing it this way showcases more of TotK's theme of connection, love, community, leadership, and sacrifice than if they were just implied.

Now do I think Nintendo would ever be this obvious with Zelink. No. I don't, but I think a story like this would create so many more stakes and moments that would make TotK stand out as among the best Zelda games. Now, Zelda's arc could be included in AoI, but giving Link an arc like that on the surface instead of in the subtext would've been wonderful.

But honestly, at the very least, let people know Link as at least the Princess's Hero/Swordsman.

Anyways, what do you guys think?

[sunset-peril]

I want to buy this book so badly!

Too bad it's only being sold in Japan. The BotW Masterworks eventually made its way to Amazon to be purchased outside of Japan, so maybe this one will too (or get an English release)

Massive Tears of the Kingdom concept art book teased, to be released in Japan August 30th

It’s time to get hyped like it’s May 2023 all over again. On Friday May 10, two mere days before the game’s one year anniversary, The Legend of Zelda’s official Japanese X account shadow dropped another upcoming concept art book for Tears of the Kingdom called “Master Works.” It will be co-published by Tokuma Shoten and is set to release in Japan this year on August 30th, 2024. But on closer…

[offeryoucannotrefuse]

So, I'm replaying Tears of the Kingdom, and I am really hyper critical of stuff, I realize that more and more, but god the game is a mixed bag. A really, really good mixed bag

On the one hand, I don't know if I will pick up Breath of the Wild in the next decade because of how much better the gameplay and combat and collectables and ultra hand and god the new enemies are so good. Horrablins are fantastic, just make a Proboscis Monkey evil, and Gleeoks and Frox are great, and of course it just has literally double the content of Botw, and it's just so good and I got the Official companion book (the game guide, not the masterworks) and it's great and I got the MM and Oot amiibo so now my paraglider can be Lon Lon Milk god it's a good game.

But on the other, they ditched breath of the wild faster than they ditched the Virtual boy. Every single shrine and guardian (minus one) has disintegrated, including the shrine of awakening, so now it's just a joke that the yiga hang out in. So they deleted shiekah tech to make the same thing for zonai And while there are freedoms that come with the more magical Zonai tech, Sheikah tech actually has a backstory, and feels older. Calamity ganon was a known quantity to a degree, so the entire world made an effort to end that war before it began, so there was a tech boom, just like in real life. Then, just like after actual wars, there was an arms collection and the government destroyed them. The Zonai just existed, found zonite, made a civilization that never existed in the first game (excusable, but still throws you off),went basically extinct somehow (how the heck is Zelda related to Rauru, and also pick a new name), made a pathetic defense against a much smaller force than Calamity ganon, and lost.

The only people who have a connection to the era of myth (the tapestry battle) are mummified in the shrines in botw, and it's as if their souls are speaking before they go. There aren't robots that still exist and just tell you everything. And it felt like a valid reset with Botw, a unified timeline, where nothing from the previous games can affect creativity, but come on, the second time collecting memories of someone you don't know before they make a novel sacrifice so that you can rescue them does not have the same effect. Also secret stones are really pathetic compared to divine beasts and the champions inherent powers, although I like the modern day sages powers, but having a ghost follow you around feels unnecessary when the method from botw worked so well.

And Ganondorf...

For those who don't know, Ganondorf from Oot, TP, and WW (and all the ganons) is the same individual Gerudo, after different events and timeline splits. And the most interesting appearance of him was in Wind Waker, when he explained that some of the reason he attacked Hyrule was because the desert was just a horrible place to live, and why should there be green field when his people go without water. It's like 2 lines, but it shows more humanity in a villain than any other Zelda game has done, and when I heard they were hiring Matt Mercer to do Ganondorf, I thought they would give him more of that, something beyond generic ruthless villain, a reason this Ganondorf, a separate extremely rare male Gerudo whose a mage and has the powers of evil and a second form he gets using his yellow magic item, was worth using instead of just letting Ganondorf stay dead.

But the writers didn't, they gave more cunning to the giant purple cloud shaped like a boar than the man.

Really, I just didn't like what they chose to keep from the breath of the wild and what they chose to ditch. Dispute that, I think it's my second favorite game on switch now.

[mememan93]

Translations from the new totk masterworks, plus a comparison of the botw masterworks

Basically Totk ganondorf is the most recent ganondorf, sometime after oot ganondorf dies, which would make Rauru's hyrule a Re-founding of hyrule, and not the original

[sheikfangirl]

Believe it or not, I made an account just to write this. Your Zelink art is so wholesome, and Puppet Zelda art is so rage-inducing, that it is 100% cannon for me now, and not even Aonuma could tell me otherwise. And while I can't reconcile Ganondorf lowering himself to harass Link after so completely dismissing him... I have NO trouble believing that "Puppet Zelda" is actually the spirits of those witches Kotake and Koume tormenting the man the way only a siren can. (part 2 coming...)

Copy Paste of @sc21v Pt 2: They are canonically in the game, if you hadn't heard. A quick google for "twinrova totk" will give you all the deets, but in the memories, the masked Gerudo women with gold masks have their names in Hylian on their red / blue respective sashes. -------

Woah!! You made an account to send me a message?! You deserve and imaginary virtual hug, come here in my imaginary arms! So, Twinrova?! Don't get me fu***** started on Twinrova in Totk!!! yeah, i saw the easter eggs and they are as awesome as they are infuriating hahahah I BET we are gonna find out more about them in the upcoming TotK Masterworks book, it's actually one of the topics i will personally throw myself at when i get my hands on a copy! I wouldnt be surprised to find out they were planned at some point in the production of the game but where cut out for some reason, like Link's family in BotW. If we get Twinrova concept art in that book, i will go berserk!!! Cheers, and welcome to the Cult of Puppet Zelda! Glory to Puppet Zelda

[skyloftian-nutcase]

lol! The masterworks is like the creating a champion for botw. Basically a big book with developers notes, art concepts and a little bit of lore that we might have not known about just playing the game. You might have seen some art of pixie cut Zelda that came from a teased image from that book

Ahhhhh ok, that’s cool! I did see Pixie Cut Zelda going around, it’s really cute! The lore of totk and I kind of just side eye each other, but it is interesting to learn more about it. :) Also concept art is always fun!

[oshidorifuufu]

woahhh the fact that you can read in japanese is so amazing.. ive been meaning to learn but idk where </3 also reading 3 at the same time is so crazy to me.. (acts as if i dont have 5 hyperfixations)

ehhh financial support is still financial support in my eyes :33 also AWWW that is cute art :D

YIPPEEEE i hope you get more in the future <333

-🎀🖌️anon

ohh haha i’ll have been studying it for 6 years this march i think! if you really want to learn i could post a list of rescourses i made for 2 other ppl on my studyblr sideblog for you ^^

welll ive got priorities, im prioritising the one i gotta finish by this month first, and then the other two is one i didnt finish for one of the others book club months, and one im just casually reading. that one is a non-fiction abt an autistic guy btw, im interested to read about it from a japanese perspective since i only know a little about how its treated there

although i may even have more on my plate seeing as if im able to get a copy ill be joining the manga book club version too LOL they’re reading yuru camp this month which seems cute ive seen the characters of it a lot

yess i want so many more!!! the botw concept art book “creating a champion” (or masterworks in jp) is what got me interested in concept art and is why i wanna pursue it as a career >_<

[somethingwittyandweird]

What's your favorite game you played this year?

You've activated my “review of my year in gaming” trap card! I was already going to make this post in some form or another, you've just given me the perfect launching point. So, the first thing you should know about asking me for favorites: I never give just one. How could I, when it's been such a banger year of games? (Heads up, this one's going to go long.)

I loved Tears of the Kingdom to death, and it took home my most hours played on Switch. It is a shining example of what devs can do with an extra few months to polish a game. There were so many remarkable moments that testified to how much care and ideas the devs were able to put in. I loved how it used the time since the first game to develop familiar places and characters, adding depth (no pun intended) and also making sure every familiar location had some new twist. The story was a much stronger followup to BotW, and I think this overall has my new favorite ending sequence of anything in the series (I'd love to make a full post sometime about how the final Ganondorf battles just keep getting more spectacular with each new title). I am so, so, so, so normal about this incarnation of Princess Zelda. 

Also in my favorites this year is Fire Emblem Engage, which hit at just the right time to scratch my strategy itch. As a long time FE fan it’s not a surprise I enjoyed this one- though it lost the political intrigue of its predecessor in favor of a more traditional/tropey story, I still had a lot of fun with all its gimmicks and gameplay innovations. Also it is hands-down the most visually appealing game in the franchise, a title previously held by the series’ GBA entries which are masterworks from the peak era of beautiful sprite art. From the incredible crit animations to the spectacle of super attacks to the battle maps which are so beautifully detailed that the game lets you free roam around them after a battle just to appreciate them better. 

I finished the Link’s Awakening remake this year! It was a charming trip back to an older era of Zelda design philosophy and I found it fascinating to compare the ways where the classic puzzles and challenges differ from what the game would be like if it were made today, as well as the places where modern technology allowed for better QoL changes that weren’t in the original. I really enjoyed the music as well, which I find to be a standout among the series still.

Here at the end of the year, I have to give a shout out to Sea of Stars. It has everything you want in an indie darling- very pretty pixel art, very nice music, turn-based battles with timed hits I joke, but Sea of Stars does a great job balancing evoking/paying homage to icons like Chrono Trigger and bringing new gameplay to the JRPG formula. I like its pared-down take on JRPG combat which revamps skills/mana into a much more dynamic resource that’s constantly being spent and regenerated, and I’m a known sucker for character combo attacks which this game has in spades. The later parts of its story are told with a lot of heart, and again I am a known sucker for certain character archetypes. Surprisingly also, I think the movement and exploration is absolutely a standout- not something that’s typically emphasized in the genre. But this game constantly has you hopping across stepping stones, balancing on tightropes, climbing walls and ledges… the emphasis on interesting traversal and verticality is a strength few games like it can boast. 

Before my final pick, I’m including a special section for all the games I didn't play myself but watched my friends play and still want to praise: Hi-Fi Rush, Bomb Rush Cyberfunk, Mario Bros Wonder, Pizza Tower, the Minish Cap Switch rerelease, and more all came out this year and all of them have brought killer music, excellent gameplay, and stunning visuals that I’ve enjoyed to no end. Anyone considering to pick up any of them would find a quality product without a doubt.

With all that said: I think ultimately it has to be Tunic in the end. Underneath its premise of a Zelda/Souls-like adventure game there is a wealth of secrets that goes as far down as you have the courage to delve. It’s a game built to evoke nostalgia for games that you didn’t understand yet, posing as a game that you watched an older sibling play or a game you could only find a poorly-translated foreign copy of. It obscures everything and teaches you its secrets through context, exploration, and discovering in-game pages of the manual (remember manuals?). It’s a game made for lovers of secrets and puzzles, full of hidden paths and trophies that reward inquisitiveness and observation (and taking paper notes). It was when I saw that it not only has a conlang, but that it gives you the hints you need to fully translate it, that I knew I had to get it myself. It spurred me to screenshot every in-game piece of menu text, then spend evenings cross-referencing it to identify phonemes and construct a key.

The rush I got on completing that key is one of two moments I knew this game was absolutely special. The second standout moment is when the game teaches you its hugest secret, and then invites you to prove your mastery of it by presenting you a huge, multi-part puzzle. But, Tunic does the same thing that one of my other all-time favorites, Outer Wilds, does so well: powerups via knowledge, “unlocking” abilities that you always had, you just didn’t know that you did. The pieces to this puzzle are hidden in plain sight; it’s only when the game tells you what you’re looking for that your understanding shifts, everything clicks, and your eyes are opened to the path you have to follow. I don’t say it lightly, but I consider Tunic to be a one-of-a-kind title, and one that delivers completely on its unique vision. 

In case that brick of text doesn’t make it clear, I love this game. 

I love all of these games.

It's a fine time to be alive.

[sweet-lemonad-rose-sapphire]

Why I’m writing a BOTW prequel

I got into the Legend of Zelda (TLOZ) fandom in May of 2023 (2 weeks after TOTK came out so it was probably the best possible time to discover it!). At first I just watched the BOTW cutscenes on YouTube in chronological order, but then I ended up getting INVESTED in the story!!! I had already watched a video about Top Ten Saddest Video Game scenes at some point, so I knew that the Champions would die, but I just wasn’t expecting how REAL the scene was!

The next night I decided to watch the TOTK cutscenes because BOTW was so interesting, and of course, I fell in LOVE with the games! I loved how they portrayed Zelda and her character arc, I loved how the storyline wasn’t afraid to take a dark turn, but most of all, LINK stood out to me.

I had already known that he was a “Silent Protagonist” but I think that was the reason why I was interested in watching the BOTW cutscenes in the first place. I wanted to see how it was pulled off, being that Link was the main character after all. Yes, admittedly there were a few scenes that made me just want to shake this man, yelling “JUST SAY SOMETHING DUDE!!!” I still found his backstory interesting… or more lack there was.

I read the diary entries from the game and had questions like “So what, he’s just been silent for years? What caused this? What was he doing with the Master Sword during the ages 12/13 to 17? What caused such a change of personality at such a young age? It couldn’t just be because of the Master Sword… right?” I was absolutely HOOKED on finding answers! Then I found out about Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity.

At first I thought the cutscenes were from BOTW, then I saw the title of the video and thought it was a fan project, until I found out there was an ENTIRE prequel game of BOTW and I couldn’t understand why not many people were talking about it! Just a few nights after watching the BOTW cutscenes, I waited until my mom went to bed, popped some popcorn, and sat down on the couch, pulling up YouTube. I was about to get answers, and these next 3 hours were going to emotionally destroy me! And I was ready!

“IT’S A WHAT IF SCENARIO?!?!”

I was destroyed, but not for the reasons I thought I’d be… Things were happening in a different order, Link didn’t have the Master Sword yet (even though he was CLEARLY older than 12/13!) and they knew when Ganon was going to attack! I was a little upset. I thought I was promised a Prequel, but ended up getting what felt like a Fan-fiction! I did like the awkward Link scene and the smile he gave Zelda at the end though…

By the time the cutscenes ended, I just remember staring at the screen for a while. Processing.

I still had so many questions.

After a while, I got on Amazon to find out how much a Switch was.

“Fine,” I said. “My turn!”

I’ve grown to enjoy AoC for the moments that couldn’t possibly happen in BOTW (Sidon getting to see his Sister again, Zelda and her Father reconciling), but I just REALLY wanted to know Link’s story.

WHY did Link not talk?

WHEN did Link meet Daruk (why was he taking a casual stroll through Death Mountain)?

HOW did Link end up with the Master Sword at 12 or 13 years old if it was in the middle of the Lost Woods?

WHO was Link’s father (and his other family)?

WHERE was Link during those 4 or 5 years and

WHAT was he doing?

I was determined. I did research, I bought the game, I bought the DLC, I even bought the Masterworks Book! Video, after video, after video, I learned all I could about Link, Zelda, and the Champions! I also learned about the storyline of each Zelda game.

By the end of all this, I ended up with what I’m pretty sure is an entertaining story. I had to split it up into 2 books, but that just made Link’s story even more interesting. I will certainly be taking some creative liberties, especially during the first book (the part going over what was happening during the time between Link finding the Master Sword at 12/13 years old and him becoming Zelda’s personal knight), but I think the information I found should be enough to fill in the blanks.

I’ll be sharing my findings during the next few months (only sharing what has been explained or hinted at within the games, of course) so I hope you guys enjoy what I found!

[foibles-fables]

What's that? Random asks? Don't mind if I do!

How did you hear about Horizon that made you want to play it, and how was that first time?

Howdy hello and HECK YES! I love this question.

So--summer 2020. I'd just come back from a decade-long hiatus from fandom in general, and was starting to learn the new ropes and spaces (this former livejournal clown breaking into discord and twitter, etc.). One night, I was scrolling through my twitter timeline and happened to stumble upon the freshly-posted E3 announcement trailer for HFW. And even though I hadn't really played a narrative video game since the PS2 era, I decided to watch it. And, huh! I remember saying, "Badass freckly redheaded archer...seems relevant to my interests." The graphics were absolutely gorgeous and what little hints of the story were present in that trailer (especially for someone who knew nothing of the narrative background presented so far) were compelling.

So I looked up some info and found out that it was a sequel to a 2017 game. Cool. Filed that away for later, deciding to get a PS5 when they released later that year.

Jump-cut to late December. I managed to get my hands on a PS5, and it was delivered a couple days before Christmas. Which was awesome, because life was not going super well and I needed a heavy-duty distraction. At this point I had kind of pushed Horizon to the backburner and was instead excited to play AC Valhalla as my first game! But when I booted up, I learned that my mother had bought me the disc version as a Christmas gift. I was left with a couple of days to try other stuff out before I could dive in to ACV.

So, I shrugged and downloaded HZD instead. And the rest is kind of history.

Went into it kind of ambivalent and really hoping I would like it. I had tried to play BotW and was completely overwhelmed by the open-world aspects, and not in a pleasant way, and I hoped that wouldn't be the case here. I'd also never really been into a ton of action games before, as most of my old faves were turn-based. The gameplay itself wouldn't be the clincher for me--that would be the story.

WELL, good news is, I was hooked from the prologue. I would equate playing HZD to not just watching a narrative masterwork unfold, but being in the driver's seat of one. Each discovery Aloy and I made was enthralling and exhilarating, and I legitimately could not stop playing. Could not stop exploring. Every side quest, every collectible, every corner of the map (besides the hunting grounds after earning my Suns at the Nora one, SORRY TALANAH). The entirety of "Deep Secrets of the Earth" had me staring into the darkness of my gaming room in a mix of existential horror and pure amazement. I wept at the ending. The HZD cast left an indelible mark on my heart, and it really reminded me of just how powerful game stories can be. Still trapped in hyperfixation hell (affectionate) over it.

The fun didn't stop there, though. By the time I finished the game (I took my time!), it was early February 2021. I feel very lucky to have sauntered in when I did, because it really seems like it was the perfect time to join the fandom. Folks were coming out of hibernation from both 2017 and the 2020 PC release, hyped with excitement and theories for HFW. Within those first months I met some of the most fabulous and now-lifelong friends (and more <3) I've ever had.

Bottom line: after playing HZD, Horizon and the fandom pulled me through a very very very difficult time in my life. I'm eternally grateful to this series and the meaning I derive from it. Especially from the first game--its vibrant narrative, and its absolutely fantastic characters. Lightning in a bottle, man.

And no, I still haven't finished AC Valhalla. lmao.