Post by: DRJ on July 22, 2003, 08:46:20 AM
If you have read the Wheel Of Time series by Robert Jordan you will understand. Basically time can be thought of as a wheel. Constantly spinning, with spokes on the wheel representing different ages or periods of time. The time that is now the present will eventually become the past. Then a distant memory. Then a legend or myth. Then it will be completely forgotten. And eventually that time will come full circle and be repeated.
In ALTTP the ending says the Master Sword sleeps forever. Clearly this is the end of all evil in the world, at least for a time. This is the final game of the series, it has happened in the past (If we consider Wind Waker the present) and will happen again in the future.
While time repeats itself, most of the major events will be replayed over and over again, although each time will not be repeated exactly.
This is where all the games prior to OoT fit in. They may happen in the same time period as the other games or they may happen in the distant past or future.
We then get to the most recent timeline starting with OoT. All the other games that have taken place, or will take place have long since been forgotten and so nobody remembers anything that happened. Maybe there is some myth or legend, but that is all they are since nobody remembers that these events have happened before. Some people that can seemingly predict the future or seem to know more than they should or possibly could (Like the owl in OoT) are able to perceive (if only subconsciously) the other times that this age has come to pass. Since the general events of this time have repeated many many times.
Now look at Majora’s Mask. It would seem to take place at the same time frame, but not everything is the same. There are some similarities (people, items etc.) but there are many differences. This game is describing the same time frame as in OoT, but it is a different cycle. Since the OoT is referred to in Wind Waker I will assume the Majora’s Mask tells the story that happened many ages ago. So long ago that nobody remembers anything about it. There was evil (Majora’s Mask) that was trying to destroy the world and that evil was destroyed by the hero of time. Many ages passed and that time eventually came around again. This time we have OoT.
After Ganondorf is defeated at the end of OoT Zelda does something completely unexpected. Although she was trying to reward link, she unknowingly trapped him forever in a causality time loop. She sends link back in time to a time right before he met Zelda. Link then meets her again, and sees Ganon. Zelda asks for his help, which he provides and eventually recovers the Master Sword, and gives Ganon the power he wanted. Seven years pass until Link is ready to defeat Ganon, afterward he is returned to the past by Zelda again and again and again.
In Wind Waker it talks about the Hero of Time from OoT. Although this happened hundreds of years ago (as stated by the King of Hyrule) people still remember. The story goes that after Link defeated Ganon he went off to another part of the world on another adventure. Clearly this is the story that Zelda told everyone, since only she knew what really happened to him. Since the Hero of Time was trapped in the past when evil attacked the world again there was nobody to stand up and fight it. The world was flooded until such a time that a new hero could be born. One who could defeat the evil and restore peace to the world… for a time.
Well these are my thoughts on the series. Its about the only way I can make sense of it all.
Post by: mouse_clicker on July 22, 2003, 10:34:52 AM
Ocarina of Time: The first Link is born and Ganondorf is still human. He tricks Link into letting him into the Sacred Realm and grabs the Triforce. However, since his heart is not in balance of the 3 virtues (Courage, Wisdom, and Power), the Triforce splits, leaving him with the one he most believes in, the Triforce of Power. He uses it to conquer all of Hyrule, but he still searches for the other two pieces. Link returns wielding the legendary Master Sword and, with the help of the Seven Sages, defeats Ganondorf and seals him in the Sacred Realm, which he has corrupted.
Majora's Mask: On an alternate timeline after Zelda returned Link to his childhood, one where Ganondorf didn't exist because he was already defeated. He is transported to a different dimension and must save that world, and his own, from being destroyed by a falling moon. Same Link as OoT.
Wind Waker: Takes place either 100 years after OoT or hundreds of years (both are said). In an earlier time, Ganondorf/Ganon returned and reaked havoc across the land unchallenged. Since no other help would come, the Three Goddesses (Din, Nayru, and Farore) flood the land of Hyrule. After a while, Ganondorf reclaims his power and a new Link arises to defeat him.
A Link ot the Past: Presumably takes place thousands of years after OoT. An evil wizard controlled by Ganon from the Dark Realm (previously the Sacred Realm) is trying to get him back into the Light Realm. Yet another Link comes to combine the power of the descendants of the 7 Sages to defeat Ganon once again.
Link's Awakening: Link grows weary of Hyrule and sails off to a distant land and washes up on a dream island where he must stop an gian fish from awakening (I think). Same Link as LttP.
Legend of Zelda: Ganon has returned and has split the Triforce into 8 pieces. The 4th Link must collect each piece and defeat the evil man once and for all.
Adventures of Link: I'm not real sure about it's story- I haven't played it in so long, but it does encompass the same Link as LoZ.
As for the Oracles, I have no idea where they go. I've heard some people say After LA and using the same Link as LttP, and others say after AoL and using the same Link as LoZ. I don't have a clue either way.
Post by: DRJ on July 22, 2003, 11:01:48 AM
Quote
Majora's Mask: On an alternate timeline after Zelda returned Link to his childhood, one where Ganondorf didn't exist because he was already defeated. He is transported to a different dimension and must save that world, and his own, from being destroyed by a falling moon. Same Link as OoT.
Ganondorf was defeated in the future not the past, and when Link is sent back in time Ganon is still there. The ending of OoT shows Link meeting Zelda for the first time and she shows him Ganon through the window.
Post by: mouse_clicker on July 22, 2003, 02:45:26 PM
Post by: Bill Aurion on July 22, 2003, 02:57:44 PM
OoT
MM
WW
LttP
LA
OoA
OoS
LoZ
AoL
making 5 Links in my timeline
Post by: Joey on August 02, 2003, 06:20:39 PM
Quote
Link's Awakening: Link grows weary of Hyrule and sails off to a distant land and washes up on a dream island where he must stop an gian fish from awakening (I think). Same Link as LttP.
He was actually trying to wake the Wind Fish up.
Post by: kurst_chao3030 on August 02, 2003, 07:36:02 PM
When Link had defeated Ganon in OoT, Zelda sent him back to a time when Ganon never existed. In which Navi left him when he returned to the past, so Link was gone from the time when he sealed Ganon in the sacred realm. Later, Young Link left on a journey to find Navi bringing him to Termina. While there was no Hero of Time in the Future world of Hyrule Ganon broke free from the sacred realm and the Gods had no choice but to flood the land which brings you to the story of WW. Thats all I'm gonna say on my part, the other games are pretty much on there own, except for mabye LoZ and LA.
Post by: kurst_chao3030 on August 02, 2003, 07:49:36 PM
Post by: Bill Aurion on August 03, 2003, 04:58:46 AM
Post by: DRJ on August 03, 2003, 09:55:39 AM
Also if he was transported to another dimension in Majora's Mask, how does Link have the Ocarina. Zelda kept it at the end of OoT.
Post by: Bosrs1 on August 03, 2003, 12:31:37 PM
Personally I think the timeline is linear, and goes like this based on what I've read in official guides and just the stories in general over the years.
*Ocarina of Time (The Imprisioning War) - The "Original" Link
*Majora's Mask (A Few months after Link is sent back to the past at the end of OOT)
*Link to the Past (Thousands of Years later when the Imprisioning War is a distant memory) - "New" Boy Named Link
*Link's Awakening (A Few Months after LTTP)
*The Legend of Zelda (Several Years after LTTP)
*Zelda II: Link's Adventures (Soon After TLOZ)
*The Windwaker (Thousands of Years Beyond the Previous games when Hyrule has become myth) - "Newest" Link
This set up seems to actually satisfy continuity pretty well. There have been essentially 3 time periods each with a boy named Link which is a fairly common name since OOT's Link made the name famous in the imprisioning war. It's obvious that Ganon was Imprisioned at the end of OOT, and that he's still in the Dark World / Golden Land in LTTP. TLOZ takes place years later and LTTP was introduced as TLOZ's prequel which puts it earlier in that same Link's life. As for Windwaker, since Hyrule is now myth and legend, it happens in the farthest future.
Post by: Bill Aurion on August 03, 2003, 02:03:07 PM
1) Ganondorf tells Link in WW that he is the reincarnation of the Hero of Time. Not to mention that in the opening it shows that WW comes after OoT.
2) The Link in LoZ is different than the one in LttP. In both games Link meets Zelda for the first time.
Post by: Bosrs1 on August 03, 2003, 02:08:54 PM
Post by: Bill Aurion on August 03, 2003, 02:24:09 PM
And to further prove the two Links from LttP and LoZ are different. The LttP Link was born in Hyrule while the Link in LoZ was born in a country outside Hyrule.(Can't remember where exactly...I have to go look it up).
Taken from the LoZ manual:
"All was not lost. A young lad appeared. He skillfully drove off Gannon's henchmen, and saved Impa from a fate worse than death. His name was Link. During his travels he had come across Impa and Gannon's henchmen. Impa told Link the whole story of the princess Zelda and the evil Gannon."
Why would Link need to be told of Zelda if he had known her from LttP? It is clearly obvious that the two are seperate, perhaps by another 1000 years.
Post by: Drunk Fly on August 06, 2003, 12:37:03 AM
So my guess is
Ocarina of Time
Majora's Mask
*hundreds of years pass*
Wind Waker
Link's Awakening
Got no clue where the other's come in. It also seems to me slightly suggestive that both the games have 'wake' in their titles....
Post by: kurst_chao3030 on August 06, 2003, 07:29:41 PM
Just think of OoA, OaS, LoZ, and Z2LA, as myths died, down, generation, after generation, after generation. This makes those games all seperet, now lets just shutup and stop yapping about an extremley long timeline, to hard for anyone to understand. -_-hehehe
Post by: Ness_the_Mess on August 13, 2003, 12:05:14 AM
This is just a copy + paste of something from another thread but I believe it is quite relevant to this ...
As to the 'new Hyrule ... In my opinion, Wind Waker was just a continuation of the future in OoT. You see, when time travel occurs, new continueum are formed. These must be caused because all time happens at the same time. So, when Link defeated Gannon while he was a late-teen, that continueum contined. However, that continueum was continued in the form of Wind Waker. In the history of WW, they say that the hero left the plane entirely, and that is because Link went back in time. Many people asume that when the history says that, it is reffering to Majora's Mask, but in MM Link comes back.
So, Wind Waker continued the continueum where Gannon was semi-defeated. Does anyone else recall that at the end of WW, it says 'The Legend of Zelda The End'? It didn't bother saying Wind Waker in there. That is because that is where the Legend of Zelda stops. At least, in that continueum. Now, they can continue the continueum where Link was just a child, and met Zelda at the end of OoT. Since Gannon was banished into a temporal plane, it removed him from all time, past and present, and so he was no longer in that continueum. Thus, a new story starting at the beginning of OoT, without Gannon.
Post by: kurst_chao3030 on August 13, 2003, 05:26:02 PM
Post by: Bill Aurion on August 13, 2003, 05:30:30 PM
Post by: norebonomis on August 14, 2003, 07:07:47 PM
Post by: Giolon on August 14, 2003, 08:51:52 PM
(in chronological order)
1st Link --
Ocarina of Time
Majora's Mask
2nd Link --
Wind Waker
3rd Link --
Legend of Zelda
Adventures of Link
4th Link --
Ocarina of Seasons/Ages
5th Link --
A Link to the Past
Link's Awakening
Here's why... in each of the following games, Link meets Zelda for the first time: OoT, WW, LoZ, OoS/OoA, LttP. Thusly, there must be 5 different Links. As for the ordering, well, OoT is clearly the first and MM is a sort of continuation of that. We know Wind Waker comes a hundred or several hundred years after OoT. I place the LttP set last because it does say that Master Sword sleeps forever and it talks about how thousands of years ago Ganon was sealed away in the Seven Years War by the Seven Sages (This is OoT). As for OoS/OoA occuring before or after LoZ, I don't really know. All I know is it's a separate Link.
Post by: Bill Aurion on August 15, 2003, 06:34:30 AM
(I think the 7-year War stuff should be left out. The story has been changed immensely throughout the series, and I don't think even Nintendo knows what the true story is.
)
Post by: kingbry on August 25, 2003, 06:39:18 PM
Majora's Mask follows shortly after the end of Ocarina in the other Timeline, and ALTTP continues this thread. It can't have happened before WW because the Triforce is whole, and it can't have happened after because in the last moments of WW, Hyrule was destroyed and the King drowned with his wish on the entire Triforce. "the world above" was clearly NOT Hyrule, and a "new Hyrule" that Link and Tetra set out to find would not have been as connected to the lore and history of the first Hyrule as was the Hyrule of ALTTP. Which means ALTTP belongs in the MM timeline. Also, WW states that the Hero of Time did not return, which would seem to indicate that none of the games occured in this time period.
Now, the other games would seem to fit on this timeline too, depending on what state the Triforce is in. I could believe that Link's Awakening goes in the WW timeline, perhaps occurring after Link left to find the new Hyrule, but I have also heard a good case for EVERY SECOND of L'sA occuring in a dream during the seven years where Link was inprisoned in the Sacred Realm. I'm sorry I can't give anything more than that, but I haven't played many of the early games, or the Oracle games.
this theory has AT LEAST 3 Links: OoT-MM, WW-LA and ALTTP. OR LA before end of OoT followed by MM, WW Link2, ALTTP Link3. Depending where you place the other games, there are probably more.
So that's my 2 cents.
Post by: Avinash_Tyagi on November 10, 2003, 03:23:55 AM
This effect of recursive erasing was illustrated quite nicely in that episode of Star Trek Voyager where they battle that time ship.
Post by: Jale on December 15, 2003, 11:54:00 AM
