#just a thought I had while playing botw

[adrift-in-thyme]

I love Wild having a fox as his dark world form. Or a dragon

But have you considered…blupee Wild

[amiharana]

Magnet as a revalink song👀?

i hope this was referring to the vocaloid song 'magnet' i only know like three vocaloid songs and those are World is mine, romeo & cinderella, and irony (but the lizz robinett eng cover) ☝️😀

i also realize now that this is the song with the extremely intimate 'staring longingly into one another's eyes while our butterfly headphones mics are intertwined' album cover and i couldn't be anymore pleased to enthusiastically announce that YES, that in itself is so revalink 😋 where is the fanart for it i need it so bad

miku!revali x luka!link, but here's my live slug reaction to the lyrics. (i skipped the first verse, but i used a mix of this video and this vocaloid lyric wikia to look at lyrics. lmk if the translations are wrong or if there are better interpretations!)

I'm wrapped around your finger from the lips to the tongue Even if this is something that cannot be allowed, The flames jump higher still

if there's anything that anyone should know about me as revalinker, it's that i'm completely obsessed with the idea of link always being wrapped around revali for cuddles, for napping on him, etc., and revali just letting him because he's so fond of link he can't and won't say no. link is wrapped around revali's finger (his wing?) physically; revali is wrapped around link's finger metaphorically.

and for the next lines, consider the idea of revali with this warped idea of loving and being loved in his status as a champion, and him trying to maintain a boundary between the two of them. he tries to find every excuse why he and link can't be together even though he's desperately in love with link anyway; they're champions and have responsibilities to their people, they're foils to each others, they butt heads too often, they're too different to be together, or what would the other champions, or the people of hyrule think if they knew they were together? and yet still, they can't help but continue to seek each other out and intertwine and wrap around each other once more.

Every moment, it's harder to restrain myself If this is love, I want to wear it on my sleeve The "strange feeling" turns into an unbearable longing I would follow you to the end of forever

OH MY GOD. I CAN'T BREATHE. STOLE THE BREATH OUT OF MY LUNGS. there's a reason why i said luka!link i was like THESE LINES. THIS IS LINK RIGHT HERE.

going back to what i said about revali trying to keep them apart for all his stupid reasons, link disregards all of them because he wants revali and he knows revali wants him, too. he knows revali just wants to protect the both of them from anything that could tear them apart or anyone who could oppose them, but who cares what others think? if link hadn't already vowed to silence, he would wish to declare his love for revali for the rest of his days, to wear his heart on his sleeve proudly.

the last two lines. oughghfj. ougugh! i'm screaming crying shitting pissing and throwing up. oh god. i love slow burn for revalink so bad, especially link taking forever to realize that he's in love with revali but when he finally does, he's completely devoted. link being like "what is this feeling. i'm supposed to hate your ass but um. i kinda can't live without it." KJDHFJKSDFHJKSDKJFH he would have followed revali into the afterlife and dragged his soul back if he could

With a heart that has gone astray, We will melt so easily That there's no free time for us even to feel each other's tenderness

thinking about link who puts his duty as the wielder of the sword that seals that darkness over his own happiness, over his own love for revali, because that's his responsibility, his purpose. what else was he made to do?

thinking about revalink who will never get the chance to love each other, to hold each other close and look upon each other fondly and sweetly because of that damned calamity. there's no place for tenderness in these prophetical battlefields. they were always doomed to never be.

What has been repeating is not our dream, But the unmistakably realistic "we" If we touch, I know we can never go back, But that's fine; you are everything in the world to me

THEY'RE SO CLOSE. SO CLOSE YET SO FAR. i'm telling you, revali, it doesn't have to be this way, you can have link if you just choose to be with him 🥹

but also i was talking to @senchee the other day about an au timeline split where it's like avengers: endgame when captain america goes back in time to be with peggy. what if after totk, link went back in time to be with revali. haha. "if we touch i know i can never go back" when he gets sent back in time by rauru or something, it was actually just to send his spirit to see the champions one last time as a fulfilled wish, and rauru tells him not to touch anyone in the past because he'll get stuck there with no way of returning to the present if he does (but rauru is fully aware of what link is about to do 😋)

hylians and rito aren't long lived, especially not over a hundred years if that's how far back link went, but when link doesn't return from the past, rauru takes zelda to rito village goddess statue, where there is now a tablet on revali's landing, memorializing link and revali :)

As dawn breaks, I become uneasy and end up in tears When you whispered, "It's alright", did I hear tears in your voice too?

it's giving the scene in 'pinesong' by aperplexingpuzzle when revali cries every time he watches the sunrise. i love that fic so much i need to go back and reread the revalink bible.

if totk link went back in time to be with revali, do you think he'd cry at the sunrise too, counting every single sacrifice he had to make to be back here again?

and lastly,

I want you to embrace me, I want you to tell me that you don't think this is a mistake I want you to kiss me, I want you to remake me, I want to drown in this moment of captivation I'm drawn to you like a magnet Even if I left, we would find each other again Let's become one; I can never go back but that's fine You're everything in the world to me

oh my god. oh my god. i can't move. you people are gay 🫵😧🏳️‍🌈

revali may speak verbosely, decorating his intentions in all sorts of flowery words, but for link, desire is plain. it's so easy to fluster revali with such simplicity; what better way to convey it with such directness?

[rinstaro]

Tbh I don’t have an idea for this one kore, but smth horny asf with my bb time or even wild cause I’ve been having a bit of a rough time

hope ur well and thank you!!

-���

of course, anything for you dear. this took so long!!!! sorry i’ve been so dead lately, life is tryna whoop my ass. i was playing botw and changed into the barbarian set and…… yeah. you know how it “bolsters links fighting spirit”? in my head it just makes him a lot more feral so it makes him horny too. i hope you like it! and i hope you feel better soon! i promise that these rough times will pass 🌟

cw: he’s a little mean, doggy, forest sex, reader is implied to be shorter than him, slight predator/prey dynamics, y’all are just messing around… or are you? reader has a vagina no pronouns, not proofread <3

minors do not interact.

you played with wild’s stuff all the time. he didn’t mind so long as you didn’t hurt yourself. his swords, his bows, and especially his armor. no matter how many rupees he’d spend buying you whatever clothes you wanted, you were always fascinated with his instead.

his knights armor was heavy and sturdy. his climbing gear showed off his toned arms. his sheikah armor had you drooling.

the only set you hadn’t seen on him was the barbarian armor. you always wondered about the set. the headpiece was just a little scary, so you asked him what the armor was for when it covered so… little.

“it makes me a little more…. it’s easier to fight.”

he left it at that, but it made you curious. so it made him stronger, but you wanted to see that firsthand. you asked him if he’d put it on for you to which he shied away. “i don’t think you’d like it…”

you rolled your eyes, begging him to do it, just once. he eventually caved. when he did, you immediately realized why he was hesitant to show you his armor.

he looked fucking divine.

the way it exposed the best parts of him had you salivating. you circled him, trailing your gaze up and down his body. the tattoos that manifest on his torso and legs... you wanted to taste them for yourself. “i cannot believe you hid this from me,” you mumbled. you wrapped your arms around him, tracing his skin with your fingertips. you could hear his breath hitch as you teased him relentlessly.

suddenly he grabbed your wrists, looking at you with a hardened gaze.

“i’m not sure if we should… do that right now.”

you could tell wild was holding himself back, so you decided to kick it up a notch. you dropped to your knees in front of him, batting your eyelashes when he hisses. your hands trailed down to his thighs, nails scratching the skin ever so slightly. “come on, you don’t wanna have fun? at least let me– oh!”

the grip on your wrists tightened, and you were locked in place. your heated gaze met his, and you shuddered. he looked like he was about to eat you alive. wild’s nostrils flared as he stared down at you, seemingly trying to keep himself together. he slowly leaned down, eyes never leaving yours.

“sure, let’s have some fun.”

that’s how you ended up deep in the forest, heart racing and wild hot on your trail. this was harder than you thought, but it was definitely exciting. the deal he made you was simple. just a quick game of hide and seek.

“you get five minutes. if you win, you get your way. if i win, i get mine.”

you took off as soon as he uttered the word ‘run’, excited giggles ringing in his ears as he watched you. he waited til you were out of sight, and even gave you an extra minute. after counting, he started walking at a leisurely place in the direction you took off in, grinning to himself.

sure, this was a little unfair. you didn’t stand a chance against him without the set, let alone with it. but you didn’t need to know that. you wanted to have some fun, so he’ll entertain you. wild wondered how long you’d last when he finally got you under him.

you stopped to catch your breath, hands on your knees as you panted. surely this was far enough. you'd been running at full speed for a while, and you were sure at least 2 minutes had passed. you had to have gotten pretty far.

only moments later did you hear a loud “thud” from behind you. you spun around to be met with trees and shrubs, the silence making you uneasy. your eyes scanned the area only to find nothing. probably just some animal, right? even if it was, you weren’t gonna take the chance. you slowly backed away in the opposite direction of the noise, keeping an eye out for any movement.

when you turned back to run, you were met with the hard surface of someone’s chest. you groaned, rubbing your nose before your eyes widened at the sight of your boyfriend.

“i win, right?”

you opened your mouth to protest, quickly being cut off by him gripping your chin. his hold was gentle but the look in his eyes was anything but. “l-link?” he wore a twisted little grin, as if he’d just caught his first meal in days.

“so we’re doing this my way. i’ll still give you one choice. do you want it here, or do you want me to chase you back home?” your knees buckled at his words, your mind reeling. you couldn’t even begin to speak, sputtering out nothing but nonsense. wild huffed, grabbing your wrists and pinning you face first to the nearest tree. he pinned your arms on the side of you and spoke, “don’t move.” you nodded hastily.

“you know you look really cute when you run? it was hard not to take you right there. the wait was worth it, though,” he grinned. his fingers traced your spine, his hunger only growing as he watched you shiver.

wild placed a hand over your eyes and started trailing love bites down your neck. you whined. the bites felt hard enough to leave marks, yet you could still tell he was holding back. you pushed your ass back against him, trying to rile him up.

your boyfriend growled, suddenly biting down harshly on your neck. you whimpered loudly as your arms twitched with the need to move, which didn't go unnoticed.

"look at you, still trying to be a good pet. ah, its a little late though. you've already pushed me to my limit," he snarled, landing a smack to your ass. he watched the flesh jiggle, humming contentedly. without warning, your bottoms were ripped from you and thrown to the ground. the roles were now swapped, wild on his knees before you- well, behind you.

you felt him part your folds with his thumbs, watching your sex drip with arousal. you squealed at your sudden nudity, arms reaching back to grab him. he quickly put a stop to that, grabbing both wrists in one hand. "on the tree. don't interrupt me."

you obeyed his orders, bringing your arms back to yourself and placing them on the tree. once he was satisfied with your position, he gave no warning before licking a long stripe up your cunt. you moaned shakily, the pleasure between your legs making you tremble. wild hummed, tongue swiping across your clit at a rapid pace.

he ate you like a man starved, your position not allowing you any room to squirm. you moaned his name over and over, and it only seemed to make him more ravenous. a mix of spit and slick dripped down his chin while his nails dug into your thighs. he'd been waiting for this for far too long. "l-link, im gonna- keep going, please!"

your boyfriend wasn't listening to your whines, tongue fucking you until your eyes crossed. he was doing this for him.

only a couple moments later did you gush all over his face, legs shaking in his grasp. wild didn't stop even when you whimpered for him to slow down. he made sure you were licked clean before pulling away from your cunt.

"b-babe what- oh!"

you weren't sure when he undid his belt, but you felt the head of his cock push against your folds.

"you always taste fucking amazing. be sure to give me another taste later," he whispered in your ear. his buttercup blonde hair tickled your shoulder as he leaned over you. "that wasn't loud enough for me, though. maybe i just need to be a little rougher, then you'll scream for me right?"

without another word, he pushed his cock into your cunt making your eyes roll back into your head. it took no time for you to adjust to his size, and he took no time in starting up a mean pace. the sound of his hips slamming into yours rang in your ears, every pleasurable thrusts making your head spin. one hand left your hips to grab your hair, tugging slightly. you winced, the pain sending heat right to your cunt.

"oh, you like that? squeezing me so hard— so cute, baby, thinking you could beat me," he groaned. you could only respond with loud moans, your brain turned to mush. "sound so pretty, gonna cum?" you nodded frantically in response, begging for him to keep going. he watched your cunt suck him in, your ass jiggling with every mean thrust.

"p-please, feels good!" your words slurred together, drool beginning to drip from your chin. it was too much and yet you wanted more. he was hitting your g spot with every thrust, his balls slapped against your clit, and you couldn't imagine a better way for this game of yours to end. you heard him snarl before he picked up his pace.

"f-fuck! 'm my god yes!" a few more thrusts and you were spasming in between him and the tree. wild stopped his movements, relishing in the feeling of your cunt squeezing around him. he chucked to himself as he watched you writhe. he suddenly frowned, realizing he hadn't been able to see your face when you came. oh, well. he'll just make you cum again.

wild pulled out, turning you around and staring you in the eyes. he then watched as your chest rose and fell, mouth hung open as you tried to catch your breath. the ferocity that was temporarily sated was now rising again.

you yelped in surprise when he lifted you up, wrapping your legs around his waist. your back rested against the tree as you furrowed your brows in confusion. "b-babe?"

"you're so gorgeous. how many times do you think i could fuck you til your legs gave out?" he questioned casually, a dark smile on his face. your legs clenched against him, hands coming to rest on his shoulders while he held you up by your thighs. you swallowed thickly, unable to answer. "hm? three? four? or more than that? well, i guess we'll see..."

wild never broke eye contact as he slipped his cock back into you, not even giving you a moment before fucking you at a savage pace. your back arched against the tree as you squirmed in his grasp. he pounded himself deeper into your cunt, his growls getting louder and your vision beginning to turn white. he was too much, fucking you so mercilessly and yet you couldn't bring yourself to want to stop. is this what he meant? he thought you wouldn't like this?

"l-link!"

"hm?" he answered, never faltering in his pace.

"harder!" your boyfriend's eyes widened slightly in surprise before he huffed in disbelief. you just continued to surprise him. he adjusted his grip on your thighs, leaning in so that you two were nose to nose.

"i've always wanted to see how much you could take."

[blueskittlesart]

I've heard that while most people really really love BotW and TotK, some people hate those two for going open-world, and some people hate TotK specifically for something about the story. As the resident Zelda expert I know of, what do you think of those takes?

"something about the story" is a bit too vague for me to answer--if you look at my totk liveblog tag from back when the game was newly released or my general zelda analysis tag you may be able to find some of my in-depth thoughts about the story of totk, but in general i liked it.

the open world thing though is something i can and will talk about for hours. (I am obsessed with loz and game design and this is an essay now <3) breath of the wild is a game that was so well-received that a lot of the criticism from older fans who were expecting something closer to the classic zelda formula was just kind of immediately drowned out and ignored, and while i don't think it's a valid criticism to suggest that botw strayed too far from its origins in going open-world, i am more than willing to look into those criticisms, why they exist, and why i think going open-world was ultimately the best decision botw devs could have made. (totk is a slightly different story, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.)

Loz is a franchise with a ton of history and a ton of really, REALLY dedicated fans. it's probably second only to mario in terms of recognizability and impact in nintendo's catalog. To us younger fans, the older games can sometimes seem, like, prehistoric when compared to what we're used to nowadays, but it's important to remember just how YOUNG the gaming industry is and how rapidly it's changed and grown. the first zelda game was released in 1986, which was 31 years before botw came out in 2017. What this means for nintendo and its developers is that they have to walk a very fine line between catering to older fans in their 30s and 40s now who would have been in nintendo's prime demographic when the first few games in the franchise were coming out AND making a game that's engaging to their MODERN target demographic and that age group's expectations for what a gaming experience should look like.

LOZ is in kind of a tough spot when it comes to modernizing, because a lot of its core gameplay elements are very much staples of early RPGs, and a lot of those gameplay elements have been phased out of modern RPGs for one reason or another. gathering collectibles, fighting one's way through multilevel, mapless dungeons, and especially classic zelda's relative lack of guidance through the story are all things that date games and which modern audiences tend to get frustrated with. for the last few releases before botw, the devs had kind of been playing with this -- skyward sword in particular is what i consider their big experiment and what (i think) became the driving force behind a lot of what happened with botw. Skyward sword attempted to solve the issues I listed by, basically, making the map small and the story much, much more blatantly linear. Skyward sword feels much more like other modern rpgs to me than most zelda games in terms of its playstyle, because the game is constantly pushing you to do specific things. this is a common storytelling style in modern RPGs--obviously, the player usually needs to take specific actions in order to progress the story, and so when there's downtime between story sections the supporting characters push the player towards the next goal. but this actually isn't what loz games usually do. in the standard loz formula, you as the player are generally directly given at most 4 objectives. these objectives will (roughly) be as follows: 1. go through some dungeons and defeat their bosses, 2. claim the master sword, 3. go through another set of dungeons and defeat their bosses, 4. defeat the final boss of the game. (not necessarily in that order, although that order is the standard formula.) the ONLY time the player will be expressly pushed by supporting characters towards a certain action (excluding guide characters) is when the game is first presenting them with those objectives. in-between dungeons and other gameplay segments, there's no sense of urgency, no one pushing you onto the next task. this method of storytelling encourages players to take their time and explore the world they're in, which in turn helps them find the collectibles and puzzles traditionally hidden around the map that will make it easier for them to continue on. Skyward sword, as previously mentioned, experimented with breaking this formula a bit--its overworld was small and unlocked sequentially, so you couldn't explore it fully without progressing the narrative, and it gave players a "home base" to return to in skyloft which housed many of the puzzles and collectibles rather than scattering them throughout the overworld. This method worked... to an extent, but it also meant that skyward sword felt drastically different in its storytelling and how its narrative was presented to the player than its predecessors. this isn't necessarily a BAD thing, but i am of the opinion that one of zelda's strongest elements has always been the level of immersion and relatability its stories have, and the constant push to continue the narrative has the potential to pull players out of your story a bit, making skyward sword slightly less engaging to the viewer than other games in the franchise. (to address the elephant in the room, there were also obviously some other major issues with the design of sksw that messed with player immersion, but imo even if the control scheme had been perfect on the first try, the hyperlinear method would STILL have been less engaging to a player than the standard exploration-based zeldas.)

So when people say that botw was the first open-world zelda, I'm not actually sure how true I personally believe that is. I think a lot of the initial hype surrounding botw's open map were tainted by what came before it--compared to the truly linear, intensely restricted map of skyward sword, botw's map feels INSANE. but strictly speaking, botw actually sticks pretty closely to the standard zelda gameplay experience, at least as far as the overworld map is concerned. from the beginning, one of the draws of loz is that there's a large, populated map that you as the player can explore (relatively) freely. it was UNUSUAL for the player to not have access to almost the entire map either immediately or very quickly after beginning a new zelda game. (the size and population of these maps was restricted by software and storage capabilities in earlier games, but pretty muhc every zelda game has what would have been considered a large & well populated map at the time of its release.) what truly made botw different was two things; the first being the sheer SIZE of the map and the second being the lack of dungeons and collectibles in a traditional sense. Everything that needs to be said about the size of the map already has been said: it's huge and it's crazy and it's executed PERFECTLY and it's never been done before and every game since has been trying to replicate it. nothing much else to say there. but I do want to talk about the percieved difference in gameplay as it relates to the open-world collectibles and dungeons, because, again, i don't think it's actually as big of a difference as people seem to think it is.

Once again, let's look at the classic formula. I'm going to start with the collectibles and lead into the dungeons. The main classic collectible that's a staple of every zelda game pre-botw is the heart piece. This is a quarter of a heart that will usually be sitting out somewhere in the open world or in a dungeon, and will require the player to either solve a puzzle or perform a specific action to get. botw is the first game to not include heart pieces... TECHNICALLY. but in practice, they're still there, just renamed. they're spirit orbs now, and rather than being hidden in puzzles within the overworld (with no explanation as to how or why they ended up there, mind you) they're hidden within shrines, and they're given a clear purpose for existing throughout hyrule and for requiring puzzle-solving skills to access. Functionally, these two items are exactly the same--it's an object that gives you an extra heart container once you collect four of them. no major difference beyond a reskin and renaming to make the object make sense within the greater world instead of just having a little ❤️ floating randomly in the middle of their otherwise hyperrealistic scenery. the heart piece vs spirit orb i think is a good microcosm of the "it's too different" criticisms of botw as a whole--is it ACTUALLY that different, or is it just repackaged in a way that doesn't make it immediately obvious what you're looking at anymore? I think it's worth noting that botw gives a narrative reason for that visual/linguistic disconnect from other games, too--it's set at minimum TEN THOUSAND YEARS after any other given game. while we don't have any concrete information about how much time passes between new-incarnation games, it's safe to assume that botw is significantly further removed from other incarnations of hyrule/link/zelda/etc than any other game on the timeline. It's not at all inconceivable within the context of the game that heart pieces may have changed form or come to be known by a different name. most of the changes between botw and other games can be reasoned away this way, because most of them have SOME obvious origins in a previous game mechanic, it's just been updated for botw's specific setting and narrative.

The dungeons ARE an actual departure from the classic formula, i will grant you. the usual way a zelda dungeon works is that link enters the dungeon, solves a few puzzles, fights a mini boss at about the halfway point, and after defeating the mini boss he gets a dungeon item which makes the second half of the dungeon accessible. He then uses that item in the dungeon's final boss fight, which is specifically engineered with that item in mind as the catalyst to win it. Botw's dungeons are the divine beasts. we've removed the presence of mini-bosses entirely, because the 'dungeon items' aren't something link needs to get within the dungeon itself--he alredy has them. they're the sheikah slate runes: magnesis, cryonis, stasis, and remote bombs. Each of the divine beast blight battles is actually built around using one of these runes to win it--cryonis to break waterblight's ice projectiles, magnesis to strike down thunderblight with its own lightning rods, remote bombs to take out fireblight's shield. (i ASSUME there's some way to use stasis effectively against windblight, mostly because it's obvious to me that that's how all the other fights were designed, but in practice it's the best strategy for that fight is to just slow down time via aerial archery, so i've never tried to win that way lol.) So even though we've removed traditional dungeon items and mini-boss fights, the bones of the franchise remain unchanged underneath. this is what makes botw such an ingenious move for this franchise imo; the fact that it manages to update itself into such a beautiful, engaging, MODERN game while still retaining the underlying structure that defines its franchise and the games that came before it. botw is an effective modern installment to this 30-year-old franchise because it takes what made the old games great and updates it in a way that still stays true to the core of the franchise.

I did mention totk in my opening paragraph and you mention it in your ask so i have to come back to it somehow. Do i think that totk did the gigantic-open-world thing as well as botw did? no. But i also don't really think there was any other direction to go with that game specifically. botw literally changed the landscape of game development when it was released. I KNOW you all remember how for a good year or two after botw's release, EVERY SINGLE GAME that came out HAD to have a massive open-world map, regardless of whether or not that actually made sense for that game. (pokemon is still suffering from the effects of that botw-driven open world craze to this day. rip scarlet/violet your gameplay was SUCH dogshit) I'm not sure to what degree nintendo and the botw devs anticipated that success, (I remember the open world and the versatility in terms of problem-solving being the two main advertising angles pre-release, but it's been 7 years. oh jesus christ it's been SEVEN YEARS. anyways) but in any case, there's basically NO WAY that they anticipated their specific gameplay style taking off to that degree. That's not something you can predict. When creating totk, they were once again walking that line between old and new, but because they were only 3ish years out from botw when totk went into development, they were REALLY under pressure to stay true to what it was that had made botw such an insane success. I think that's probably what led to the expanded map in the sky and depths as well as the fuse/build mechanics--they basically took their two big draws from botw, big map and versatility, and said ok BIGGER MAP and MORE VERSATILITY. Was this effective? yeah. do i think they maybe could have made a more engaging and well-rounded game if they'd been willing to diverge a little more from botw? also yeah. I won't say that I wanted totk to be skyward sword-style linear, because literally no one wanted that, but I do think that because of the insane wave of success that botw's huge open world brought in the developers were under pressure to stay very true to botw in their designing the gameplay of totk, and I think that both the gameplay and story might have been a bit more engaging if they had been allowed to experiment a little more in their delivery of the material.

[ganondoodle]

one of the things in my totk rewrite that im most confident about is removing the building gimmick (to put it in another game truly build around it, its such a waste here imo) to add the hookshot instead

everyone loves the hookshot, i have never heard anyone say they didnt like it

in a world like botw it would be a perfect fit- it adds a unique and different movement option while-

it does not destroy the world design (like the building aspect does, though the towers also need a different function, letting you fly anywhere and skip everything everywhere all the time, including puzzles in both shrines and dungeons, something like that in a world thats build around climbing and gliding WILL end up destructive to the world design without really careful changes and balances .. that absolutely werent done in the game)

opens up a whole new way to think and do puzzles in a way that wasnt there in botw

preserves the feeling of dread when high up or in the sky, since falling is still a danger even with the parasail ( bc removing almost all warp points up there makes the danger being loss of progress rather than the fall itself- removing the parasail as a whole for the entire game is not an option and it will always be a security to not die by fall damage, so there should be a different danger even if im usually not a fan of loss of progress pressure, the bird mechanic i mentioned in other post would also help you not lose everything even if you make a mistake)

it makes climbing easier WITHOUT making it obsolete or skippable, especially with adding the main way to get up to sky islands as islands to climb up via the hookshot, its just adds another way to interact with the terrain instead of .. not interactign with it at all, the range is still limited and you still have to cling to the wall and get down to shoot it again

it being built into links prosthetic shiekah arm makes it more unique both in looks and mechanic/narrative aspects so i dont think it would be boring to have an old 'item' reused in a new way, especially together with the rest of the abilities- like it being not an instant 'pulls you to the thing' but a reactivatable one instead (so you can grab things to move them if lightweight enough similar to ultrahand)

bosses can benefit from it too, imo one of the coolest things in twilight princess was grabbing onto a boss to pull yourself to and onto them, being able to do that even to smaller ones shadow of the colossus style would be so neat

grabbing onto something moving and not pulling yourself immediately to it opens up not just fun but also funny scenarios aka you being flung around by whatever you grabbed (grab on a dragon ...weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee- on a lynel ...'ragdoll chaos')

(with the removal of building and thus the majority of all the puzzles being fly thing from point A to point B not being a thing it also makes way for cool kinds of ways to get to the next sky island for example- a thought i had was making the reason they fly and are practically invisible from most angles being that they are swimming in a special kind of cloud that hides them due to breaking of light in certain ways withing them- thus hiding it from below most of the time, eliminating the problem of 'sky too full' which was apprently a reason why they removed alot of them too, and it would be incredibly fun to be able to poof into little clouds (they look a certain way so you know which ones you can swim in) also! lil cloud bridges between islands! a boat to surf on them high up in the sky! mario galaxy vibes!

probably more im forgetting

anytime i think about the hookshot mechanic i get so sad bc i just keep imagining how much you could have done with in totk and desperately want to play that :U

[weirdmageddon]

am i crazy or does the cel shading have a higher resolution in totk than botw

like while playing i just thought “huh. i’ve never seen the cel-shaded contour of link’s abdominal muscles this much in botw, not even to mention ribs” this is definitely new

link’s model didn’t change (he always had a little abdominal muscle though it was super subtle and almost never visible in plain lighting) so i think they made the cel shading threshold more granular

it looks good though i like it. gives the world a bit more dimension that you otherwise wouldn’t have seen in botw. sometimes it can be weird when it hits something at a certain angle though but that’s the trade off

[tanjir0se]

Too incoherent to form real thoughts about zelink right now so please enjoy this random list of concepts that are making me insane right now

When did they start sharing that bed? When did that house become “Zelda’s House” (as it’s called in TOTK) instead of “Link’s House” (as it’s called in BOTW)? Did he give it to her? Were they just roommates for a while because Zelda didn’t have anywhere else to go? Was it awkward? Who proposed the idea? Was it mutual? Did they lie awake all night the first night, silently, facing away from each other even in the darkness, not even daring to look at the other?

Zelda needing her place to concentrate because the last time she was working with Link in the house she accidentally started doodling him in her notebook and if he finds out he won’t ever let her live it down

WHAT WAS HIS HAIR TIE DOING ON HER BED TABLE. IM GOING FUCKING CRAZY

Sorry

They had like five years of peace between botw and totk. Man what did those years look like!!!! Did they celebrate holidays and birthdays and go on vacation and spend cozy nights in??? At any point during those years did they attempt to define their relationship or were they content to just sleep in the same bed and spend every moment together without expectation or pressure. She’s the princess and he’s her knight. It doesn’t matter.

Zelda giving Link a jewelry box to keep all his earrings in. Link spending months checking caves and ore deposits to make her a diamond necklace. LINK HELPING HER CUT HER HAIR. ZELDA HELPING HIM GROW HIS OUT. Ok I’m fine I’m fine

Uhhhh

Is Link a stay at home wife? Zelda has her job as a teacher and Link’s job as a knight is kind of on hiatus because she doesn’t really need one at the moment so. Does he just follow her around anyway? Does he stay at the house and make her things because he doesn’t know how to say “I love you”? Does he go out on rides without her and visit all the friends he made while trying to get her back??? What’s that boy doing when he actually gets to decide what he wants to do??? Is ‘Zelda’s Knight’ all he ever wants to be?!

Help

DID HE LEARN TO PLAY AN INSTRUMENT AGAIN??? NINTENDO HE ALWAYS PLAYS AN INSTRUMENT. WHERE IS HIS MUSICAL ABILITY NINTENDO!??!

[spicyicetea]

My Forest Spirit

A legend of Zelda BOTW/TOTK Yandere x Reader. This is obviously cannon divergent. Fem!Y/N is short and Curvy in this, and is often described with long hair. This story will contain NSFW! scenes, violence and profanity. MDNI

Previous chapter/Next chapter

Chapter 4: You're so soft

I watched in awe at the petals that floated on the water's surface. Red and purple flowers danced in unison, sent in parting directions as Urbosa added strange crystals that dissolved into the water. She motioned me over as a knock rang out from the main entrance to her chambers. Her expression seemed somewhat annoyed but she just shot me a smile before leaving to answer the door.

 Dropping to my knees, I dip a finger into the water, playing with the soft petals that seemed to gravitate towards me. On closer inspection, I actually think I did recognise these flowers. Although I had never seen them in person, I knew someone had told me about them. Her voice rang in my ears like a distant melody that I hadn't thought about for centuries. 

"And what is this one called?" The sweet voice asked, gesturing to a book she laid in her lap.

"That is warm Saffina! It grows near the Gerudo desert." I answer, smiling as she runs a hand through my hair and tucks some loose strands behind my ear.

"That's right dear. You're getting better at remembering all this new information, perhaps I could teach you some magic one day darling."

"You would do that for me? Thank you, my queen, what an honour!" I kick my feet excitedly, my ears twitching as I rocked in excitement.

The woman just raised a hand to her mouth to cover it while laughing. The delicate markings that ran over her tan skin never became boring to look at. I wonder what they all meant. She moved her book from her lap and pulled me closer until my head laid in it. Her gentle touch ran over my face and back into my hair as she smiled down at me.

"Dear I've already told you not to call me that, I prefer you just calling me by my name." Her sweet voice whispered, changing to a hum at the end like a lullaby

"Of course," I yawn. "Sorry, I keep forgetting So-"

"Y/N are you alright? You seem vacant."

My eyes darted around until I turned and saw Urbosa knelt beside me. Her hand rested on my hip as she gave me a concerned look. Feeling guilty, I turned and shook my head profusely. She sighed in what I can only hope was relief.

"Thank goodness, you were worrying me for a minute there. One of the knights just dropped off some clothes that should fit you, if you wish to bathe now we can."

My eyes lit up at the idea of being able to be in warm water for once and I jumped up. Eagerly, I slid my skirt of leaves down, nearly ripping apart the scrappy shirt that I had been given by Hestu. The clothes lay abandoned on the floor as I stretched. Urbosa's eyes widened as they met my body, her honey skin going a soft pink. My hands moved to cover my body, unsure why she was acting like that.

"Are you alright? Is there something wrong?" I ask, stepping over to make sure she wouldn't collapse.

"Yes dear I'm fine, I just hadn't expected you to undress so quickly. Why don't you step into the water while I prepare the soaps?"

I beamed at her suggestion and nodded eagerly. Swiftly, I turn on my heels and walk towards the deep tub. With an arm under my chest to stop the bouncing from my jumpy steps. Warm water in the sunken tub wrapped around my body as I lowered myself in, only reaching my hips. I felt almost weightless as I danced around the tub, enjoying the comfort of the heated water. A warm chuckle echoed through the bathroom as Urbosa watched me play. Excitedly, I turned to her, some flower petals stuck over my shoulders and chest from where I had been tossing them around. 

"Oh, I can't believe you all have stuff like this! It's so nice!" I grin at her.

She chuckles at my reaction and strides towards the tub. 

"You sweet little angel, relax for a moment. Think of all those spirits that you wanted to tell me about."

I had completely forgotten what we had even planned to talk about. My back turned to her as I began thinking. There were many spirits I had met over the years. The Koroks have always been there, but many more visited me over the centuries. One of the fondest had to have been the woman I was thinking of earlier. She was always so sweet to me, running from her husband to read books to me and teach me about the world outside the forest. I knew she was a queen yet I can't remember her name. How bittersweet. The more I think of it, I can barely remember her husband either. He looked nothing like her or even myself. His warmth is all I can remember. When he'd find where his wife had disappeared to, scolding her for not telling him where she was going as he had been worried. The way she'd pout and hug me tighter telling him to just leave so she could go back to relaxing. He'd always roll his eyes and sat beside her. His long nails raked against my scalp, quickly lulling me to sleep as their conversation slowly drowned out.

I jolted as I felt a hand on my shoulder. Panicked, I attempt to turn but the hand holds my chin in place. 

"Calm down it's only me, you wanted me to wash your hair, right?"

"Oh, yes. Sorry, I forgot."

Urbosa just chuckled and ran a hand through my hair, making sure it was all wet. The water moved around me as I felt something soft press against my shoulders and neck. I shivered at the contact and I tried to turn to see what it was but Urbosa held me in place, running a hand over my waist.

"Don't worry dear, just relax, let me take care of you." She whispered, her warm breath tickling the back of my ear. 

My breath caught in my throat as her hands rested on my sides. Her warm lips pressed against the side of my neck, and one of her hands reached elsewhere out of my sight. I gulped as her hand came back to my shoulder, massaging a cold gel against my skin. Her hand slowly massaged closer to my chest and my breath hitched again.

"I thought you just wanted to wash my hair?" I gulped.

"Oh my apologies dear, I just wished to help you relax dear, a massage. May I?" She cooed, her lips pressing on the shell of my ear,

I gulp but nod as her hands knead my shoulders and slowly move down to my chest. The bubbles gathered over my skin as her fingers pressed into the soft fat on my chest. Her hands massaged further squeezing at the plush mounds. A strange sound bubbled from my throat escaped, like a songbird's call. 

"Urbosa! Lady Zelda called for you an hour ago, get your hands off of Y/N and do your job!" A masculine voice barked. 

I turned in panic to the doorway where Link stood, covering his eyes with his hand.

[ganonfan1995]

And it's not exactly that all fans ever want linear games (some do~) Most people I've spoken to who didn't like BoTW, simply wanted a game with a bit more depth and energy put into the story and the world.

While I don't fully agree on that front with BoTW (personally I think BoTW was one of the most concise LoZ games to date) ToTK only amplifies BoTW's weaknesses, rather than its stengths.

I understand the desire to expand on Hyrule, to make a truly vast and vibrant world, flush with exploration. Now with next-gen consoles and better hardware, there's a lot more opportunity for these types of games to take front and centre.

But at the same time, large procedurally generated landscapes can often break immersion while feeling bleak and unnatural. Even if landscapes are generated to be as natural as possible, worlds are as much a character, as well...the characters. (I could go on a whole tangent about design here, but I digress..)

I think what people miss from LoZ titles, is the human touch and energy invested into making Hyrule, feel like a place, rather than an idea.

BoTW wasn't perfect, but it was their first swing at this type of world and gameplay. I do think it can be improved on, and honestly, I was expecting progress on that front in ToTK.

But given that ToTK (past the demo lmao) was nothing more than a 100$ expansion on BoTW...I'm not feeling too confident myself moving forward with these open-world Zelda games.

Despite being linear games, growing up OOT and WW felt open world enough for me. LttP was a super fun play that had both a linear story line, and open world possibilities while giving the player full access to all the dungeons and tools off the bat.

If sacrificing genuine, thoughtful, world-building and design is what it means to have a truly open world Hyrule...I kind of don't want it either.

I dunno just some thoughts

[notgonnaedit]

Fading Scars

Summery: After the Chain meet Twilight's family and friends, a portal takes them to another Hyrule

Focus Link: Wild

A/n: Art isn't mine, it belongs to @gia-d

I really enjoyed writing this one. There's a reference to the BotW overworld music in there too. Takes place after BotW but before TotK

Master list

Wild turned in his makeshift bed as he tried to fall asleep. The day's events should've left him exausted. Playing with the children of Twilight's village, exploring as much as he could, but no matter how much he tried, the Champion couldn't find sleep.

He had been waiting for Twilight to return. The Rancher had left suddenly a few hours ago, and hasn't returned. Wild worried for his friend. What if the Shadow creature found him and hurt him all over again? Not being able to stand it anymore, Wild got pushed his blankets off, and walked to the door. He made sure to be quiet as to not wake his comrades, and opened the door and stepped outside.

Wild took a breath of fresh air. He found that the smell of grass calmed him. Maybe it was because it reminded the Champion of his own home; a wilderness that cried out to travelers like him to explore. 

Home. 

A sigh escaped Wild's lips as he thought of his own Hyrule. In his own time, Hyrule was undergoing restoration. Princess Zelda had wasted no time in preparing to fix the ruined kingdom. A small smile came across his face at the memories of Zelda seeing the house he bought.

The Princess had almost cried at the thought of living in Hyrule Castle again. So when Wild offered for her to stay with him in Hateno Village, she was overjoyed. The children of Hateno loved her, and Zelda had taken to teaching them about the local wildlife. Her new role as an educator earned her the name "Miss Zelda" from the kids, and "Flora" from Wild himself, stemming from Zelda's love of flowers.

The soft sound of footsteps turned Wild's attention back to the present. He looked down from where he stood above the ladder on Twilight's house to see Twilight and Ilia walking from the path that led to the Spring. The two were smiling, and upon a closer look, Wild saw they were holding hands. A small smirk played across the Champion's face when he saw them, he knew from the moment they were reunited that the Rancher and his friend had feelings for each other. It had confused him, though. From the way Twilight had talked about Midna, the Champion was sure that was who he loved.

"How long will you be staying for?" Ilia asked. They were in Twilight's yard now.

The Rancher sighed. "I don't know. The portal that took us here was random, so we might be here for a while, or a few days." In truth, Twilight hoped they could stay for a while, like they did with Malon. Not only did he want to spend time in his home, he also wanted to show his friends his world. He could show them the Resistance and how they were working to help Hyrule, or maybe even Snowpeak and take Wild sledding.

Wild watched Twilight and Ilia, hesitant to make himself known, but also uncomfortable with eavesdropping. Sure, he listened in on people's conversations before, but that was to get information on the Hateno Ancient Tech Lab.

Deciding on showing himself, Wild acted like he'd just walked out and yawned, a loud, drawling sound. Twilight and Ilia looked up at him immeaditly. "How long have you been standing there?" The Hylian asked.

Wild shrugged. "I just came out. Nice night, isn't it?" The Champion could've sworn his mentor's cheeks were tinted pink.

Ilia smiled and looked at Twilight fondly. "Yes, it is."

The Rancher's blush deepened at her words, and Wild jumped down from his perch, avoiding the ladder. 

Ilia looked between the two. "Well, now I know you're the same person. Only Link jumps off ledges like that."

Wild looked at his friend. "You told her?"

Twilight shrugged. "Kind of. She figured it out."

Ilia chuckled at them, and the Rancher and Champion couldn't help but join her. But suddenly, the earth seemed to hold it's breath. Twilight's senses were put on edge, and before them, a portal appeared.

"What is that?!" Ilia asked as Twilight stepped in front of her.

"A portal," Wild said. He turned to his mentor, who looked solemn. "You know what we need to do."

Before Twilight could answer, the door to his house opened, and the Chain tumbled out, all half dressed and bleary-eyed.

"What's happening?" Time asked.

Four gasped. "Another portal?"

The Links began to discuss among themselves and grab their things. Twilight did the same, saddling up Epona. As he secured their bags to her saddle, Ilia walked over to him. 

"So I guess this means you're leaving, huh?" She said softly. She stroked Epona's neck, running her fingers through the mare's white mane.

Twilight sighed. "Yes. And I don't know when I'll be back." 

"I'll tell everyone what happened, so don't worry." She said. Twilight took her hand and took a step closer. He moved in to kiss her, but Legend called him.

"Rancher, you ready to go?"

Twilight sighed. He looked down at Ilia and squeezed her hand. "I'll be back. I promise."

He let go of her and led Epona through the portal with his comrades.

                           ~~~~~

This time, the portal was more pleasant. None of them landed face first in the dirt, but rather a grassy plain. Wild looked around, wondering where they could be.

"That was much better!" Sky said. 

"This place looks like Hyrule Field." Four said looking around. Several of them nodded in agreement. There were ruins scattered here and there, and several broken automations that caused Wild to grab his Sheikah Slate.

He opened his map, and it was working again! They were in Blatchery Plain, just got west of Fort Hateno.

"We're in my Hyrule." Wild said, turning to the group. Everyone looked at him.

"You're sure?" Hyrule asked.

Wild nodded. "Yeah. Just over there is where I died."

"Uh, okay?"  Legend said. But Wild couldn't stop smiling. They were only a short distance from his house.

"C'mon," The Champion said. "We can go to my house." He led the way as he walked. Epona nickered at the wild horses.

"Whoa." Wind looked up at the wall of Fort Hateno. "What is this place?"

"Fort Hateno." Wild said. "It's where Hyrule made it's stand against the Guardians. A bunch of fleeing farmers held them back here."

"A bunch of farmers?" Twilight asked. "What about the army?"

Wild sighed. "They were at Akkala Citidel, but they were overpowered. They say that it wasn't until Akkala fell that Hyrule was truly lost."

"The Guardians you mentioned." Time said as they passed through the woods. "We'll we see any?"

The Champion looked around the road, keeping an eye out for Yiga. "You already did. All those broken machines out there."

"How did they break?" Hyrule asked. "You make it seem like they were unstoppable."

A small smile played on Wild's face. "Zelda. She unlocked her power there and destroyed them. But I helped a little bit. I managed to take a few out before they got me."

"What is your Zelda like?" Sky asked. 

Wild pursed his lips. Sometimes it was hard to describe her. After losing his memories, the Champion had to practically watch his old life, and with that the old Zelda. But she was much different now. She smiled more and laughed. She wasn't burdened by the coming of the Calamity. "She's very smart and kind. But she also isn't afraid to tell people exactly what she thinks.

By now they were walking under the Cliffs of Quince. They walked in silence for a bit, taking in Wild's homeland. It was strangely quiet, save for their footfalls and a few birds. It was nice almost, the other lands they'd been to seemed to be loud, and bold. Boasting their adventure with the sounds around them. But Wild's home was quieter. There were still sounds, but it's silence allowed them to really take in their surroundings. The ruins of a once boasting kingdom. They were walking through what was left, and the sounds around them seemed to know.

Soon they saw a tall tower that has the Sheikah symbol on it. Time looked up at it in interest. It seemed that in this time, the Sheikah were thriving, as compared to his own time when Impa was the last one. 

Up ahead, a windmill could be seen, and a few houses as well. Wind brought his hand to his forehead to block the sun. He was riding Epona to get a better view. "Is that your village?"

Wild nodded. "Yep. I bought a house there. They're starting to put wells in too."

Time grimaced inwardly. He hated wells. It was bad enough having to navigate the haunted well under Kakariko Village, but fighting that...thing. Very few things scared the Old Man, but Dead Hand was one of them.

They walked along the part between Ginner and Midla Woods until they reached the front gate. A man familiar to Wild but not the rest waved. He had a straw hat and a pitchfork. He smiled when he saw Wild.

"Hey, Link! You're back? The Princess is at your house. She's been waiting for you to return."

Wild grinned. "Thanks, Thadd. I'll see you around." He led his companions up the hill and to the right, crossing the bridge over Firly Pond.

"Nice place, Champion." Warriors said surveying the property. "But the Princess lives here?"

Wild nodded. "Yeah. The castle is still undergoing reconstruction, so she stays with me. I am her appointed knight after all."

He opened the door. "Zelda?" He looked around, but no one was inside. It was a small house, she couldn't be far. "She's probably out back." He walked behind the house, and found the one he was looking for.

Zelda was sitting on the grass with a notebook and pencil in her hand. She had taken up the hobby of cataloguing the wildlife around her. At the sound of Wild's footsteps, she turned around. Her green eyes were as bright as ever. "Link?"

Wild gave her a lopsided smile. "Hey, Flora. It's been awhile."

She stood up and walked over to him, giving him a hug. "Where have you been?!" Her royal accent seemed to incenuate her words. She looked over his shoulder and saw the Chain. 

Flora pulled away from her knight. "Who are they?"

Wild scratched the back of his head. "It's a long story."

                          ~~~~~

Inside, all the Links were sitting at the table. Legend was looking at the pictures on the walls, and Four was examining the weapon mounts.

"Fascinating," Flora said. "So you're all the same person, yet not. And even more interested, you're all chosen by the gods to save Hyrule."

"Well, not me." Wind said as he fiddled with his sleeves. "My sister was kidnapped by Ganondorf, and in order to save her, I had to undergo lots of trials. Only then did the gods recognize me as the Hero."

Flora smiled. "You're all so different too." She looked at all of them as she spoke.. "From what you told me, you're from the forest, you're a captain of the Royal Army, you're a blacksmith, a sailor, a rancher, a knight in a new kingdom, a traveler, and you're..." She looked at Legend.

The Veteran shrugged. "Let's just say I'm a Jack of all trades."

Sky looked at the Princess. "You're so different from my Zelda, but so similar at the same time."

Flora brightened. "Really?"

The Chosen nodded. "You're both strong willed and powerful. But you're also kind and forgiving." He sighed at the thought of his Zelda. He longed to be with her once again.

Twilight shrugged. "I don't really know my Zelda very well, but you do have the same air of leadership, Your Highness."

Flora chuckled. "Please, there's no need for formalities."

"You don't know your Zelda?" Four asked, to which the Rancher shrugged. "I've known mine as long as I can remember." The Smith thought back to his loud friend, how her father and his grandfather had been old friends.

"I've known mine since childhood as well." Time chimed in. "But we went our separate ways long ago. I still see her sometimes when I'm delivering milk to Castle Town, but that's it really."

Warriors rapped the table with his knuckles. "I never really knew mine. But when the war started, I fought along side her. She is a powerful ally."

Wind grinned. "My Zelda hates being called Zelda. She prefers to be called by her middle name and lead us through the seas."

"How about you, Traveler?" Legend asked his friend. "What's your Zelda like?"

Hyrule had to think about it for a moment. He had two Zeldas. One that was captured by Ganon, and the other whom he awakened from a deep slumber. The former know lived in Hyrule Castle and was repairing her kingdom, much like Flora. But the latter was living on a small farm run by her and Hyrule, having chosen to lay low and live the life of a commoner.

"She working on helping my Hyrule, too." The Traveller said, choosing the Zelda from his first adventure. "What about you?"

Legend shifted. "She's the ruler, and a kind one at that." He wasn't lying, but it wasn't the whole truth. The Veteran didn't want to get into the whole scandal.

"Well, it sounds like you have very interesting versions of me as well." Flora said.

Wild nodded. "It really makes you wonder if there are more of us."

The group was silent as they thought about that. Could there be more of them. More young men with a heart of a lion, and more princesses with the blood of the goddess?

The setting sun shone through the windows, casting a golden light on the group's faces, and even making Wild's scares dance. Legend moved up the stairs and observed more pictures, but one caught his eye in particular. 

It showed Wild and Flora in the middle, but both held expressions of surprise. There was a Zora girl who was thrown forward and just as surprised, and a bird man, a Rito as Wild and Wind called them, who seemed to be sqwaking in shock. A Gerudo woman was smiling playfully, and a Goron with a mischievous grin was pushing them all together.

"Who are they?" The Hero of Legend asked. They obviously held some significance in Wild's, and possibly the Princess' life.

Wild and Flora's faces saddned slightly at the picture. "Those were the Champions." Wild explained. "Like me, they were chosen to help in the fight against Calamity Ganon."

"Were?" Time asked.

Wild sighed. "They fell in battle, but they weren't as lucky as me. If I had been faster...

Flora stood and looked at Wild. "Link, you know just as well as I do that it wasn't your fault. You were protecting me, you were doing your duty."

Wild scoffed. "Yeah, and some job I did with that. Tell me, how long were you in the castle fighting Ganon while I slept?"

"Link–"

"A hundred years, Zelda." Wild said standing. "And how much longer did you wait as I ran around Hyrule, just trying to remember who I was. Not to mention how long it took me to free the Divine Beasts." He scowled. "I wasted so much time as you were on your last legs. Some appointed knight I am." He opened the door and left.

"Link–!" Flora tried to go after him, but the door was shut in her face. Twilight rose and rested his hand on the Princess' shoulder. Was he overstepping his boundaries? Maybe. But at that moment she wasn't the princess, she was a girl who needed comfort from someone Wild knew well.

"Don't worry, he be okay."

"How can you be so sure?" Flora sniffed. Wild had expressed very little to her, an old habit he was trying to break.

Twilight sighed. "A few weeks back, I was mortality wounded and was dying. He had a moment like this, but after some time alone he calmed down and was able to help the situation."

Flora looked at the Rancher. While she may be older in years, 118 to be exact, the young man was still older physically and mentally. Not to mention he had spent months traveling with her Link. She let out a sigh. "I'm going to speak to him." She walked out the door.

                        ~~~~~

Wild sat at the summit of Ebon Mountain where Heartbreak Pond called home.

Heartbreak. That seemed to be the theme in the Champion's life. Doomed to fail and live with it. Sometimes Wild wished he had died a century ago, then he could at least be at piece with his friends. Or even his father and sister, who would have died by now anyway, even without the Calamity.

Wild didn't remember much of his family. Only his father's strong hands, and his sister's laughter. He had no recollection of his mother, but Zelda had found records at Hyrule Castle of each knight and their families. It seemed that his mother had died when his sister was only a baby due to an illness that swept over Hyrule.

Wild looked down at his gloved hands. Only his fingers showed, and the ones belonging to his left hand had scars on the tips. The scars. Each one a reminder of the pain he endured fighting for Zelda. His only goal to usher her to the safety of Kakariko Village. 

It was strange to think about how much he had changed since that fateful day a century ago. Once a silent, dutiful knight, loyal to his king, he was know a rambunctious wanderer, who didn't trust as much as he used to. Random travelers turning into banana-crazed assassians will do that to a person.

A sigh escaped his lips as he watched the sunset, and another sound was heard. Footsteps. Wild turned around to see Zelda walking over to him. Her blonde hair looked like a waterfall of gold and amber in the day's last light.

"I've always wondered what caused this pond to have such a shape." She said sitting down next to Wild. "I've heard of another pond like this on Tuft Mountain. Maybe I'll go and see it soon."

"It's nothing much." Wild said. "There's a few fairies that come out at night, but that's it."

Flora hummed. "It doesn't sound like nothing to me. I'd like to take up painting, and that could be an excellent way to start."

"The people of Lurelin might recognize you." Wild said. "You've mentioned how you want to keep a low profile."

"Then I shall have to wear a disguise then. How well do you think I can wear a false mustache?" She grinned at Wild, and he couldn't help but chuckle.

"Not very well." He replied honestly. "Not with that long hair of yours." 

Flora looked at him. "I've been thinking about cutting it. It gets in my way when we're traveling. We are headed to Faron to explore the Zonai ruins when you find out what's causing this mysterious portals. The climate there is humid and hot, so I don't know how well these locks will suit me. What about you? Have you given your hair any thought? It's rather long."

Wild felt his hair. The mane of gold reached down to his belt, but he didn't mind it. "I haven't thought about my hair in a hundred years." 

The centenarians shared a laugh. Wild looked down at his hands. "Flora, I'm sorry for my outburst inside. I just–"

Zelda put her hand on his. "Link, it's okay. I myself have felt the same way. But you must remember what Urbosa told you to tell me. "No one need carry blame." "

Wild smiled at her, stretching his scars upwards. "Thanks, Zelda." 

The two stared off into the sunset in silence. Wild turned to look at her suddenly. "You really think I should cut my hair?"

Flora chuckled, touching her fingers to her miumo as she so often did when laughing. "Well, it may help you sneak into Gerudo Town easier."

Wild gaped at her as she burst into laughter. "Fine. I'll remember that when you need someone to escort you to the Lost Woods."

She shoved him lightly. "I can navigate my way through the Lost Woods just fine, thank you very much."

Wild gave her the side eye. "Sure you can."

Now it was her turn to gape at him. "I can too! Honestly, Link, I'm surprised you even found your way through at all."

Wild smirked. "It was easy. Especially when you–" He stopped suddenly. "Oh, you almost got it out of me." 

Flora sighed. "It was worth a try. Why won't you tell me?"

"The Lost Woods is the only thing protecting Korok Forest." Wild explained. "I'll teach you when we go to get the Master Sword back from revitalization. It needs to be kept secret."

"I suppose you're right." Flora admitted. "You're counterparts..." She said changing the subject. "You seem to be close to the one you call 'Rancher'."

The Champion looked at her. "Do you remember the wolf that shows up randomly?" Zelda nodded, and he continued. "Well, that's him. Except younger. He didn't know me until this journey, but I know him because he helped me in this time, but he doesn't know that. Does that make sense?"

Flora nodded. "Yes." She looked out at the sunset. "But this whole thing is extraordinary. What could possibly be driving the Hero's Spirit together?"

"I don't know." Wild admitted. The sky was nearly dark now. The Champion looked over to his charge. She still had her hand on his, and he enjoyed the feeling. It reminded him that someone living remembered him, unlike so many of the people of Hyrule. Some exceptions were Kass, Riju, Yunobo, Teba (though he took some convincing), and the entirety of Zora's Domain.

But Zelda was there when it happened, when Hyrule fell. When he died. She has been with him since the beginning of his journey as a Champion, and Wild treasured that more than anything. He was her knight, and would give his life all over again for her.

[ofcowardiceandkings]

companion piece of young Link

AAHH i finally finished something :'D

i've uh had some very specific Thoughts about Zelda's childhood for a while now so its about time i put them to paper - this is actually round TWO since the original doodles are lost to ... somewhere ... i like these second editions better though so alls well that ends well

we're looking at ages around 4, 7 and 10 years old here touchin bugs in the dirt, archery practice, and playing a lyre ;w;

more detailed Thoughts under the cut 💙

iiitssss customary ranting about my BotW/TotK opinions tiiiimeeee welcome my darlingsss jfkdjfkd 💙

i had a much more solid idea about where i was going with Zelda than with Link but some of it is kinda abstract or weird lol

we know a fair amount about her upbringing in general, or can infer as much from Zelda's interactions with her father and what they and people around them wrote. she was clearly a smart and vivacious kid with a strong personality from the start, no matter how much you sort of squash that shit for the public face, repression etc. so yknow, her mother's death when she was 6, awful. her father's change in attitude especially in her teens, awful. being under public scrutiny her whole life, awful. restrictive structure of royal life, dull (i bet it bored Zelda to death at times no matter how strongly duty-oriented she is). having said that though, she got by and just by looking at her study, she clearly got stuff done to herself - you can take the kid away from the science but the science stays with the kid !!!

additionally, forgive me for mentioning ... timelines ... but in my humble onion, BotW/TotK serve as a Dragon-Break scenario which are SO far in the future from other entries that ALL timelines will inevitably converge and lead to that point, so it doesnt matter any more (i dont like extended Timeline theory, Nindooty doesnt like extended Timeline theory, the current writing team seem to want shot of it, let me be). being a history guy i also subscribe to leaning on the LEGEND aspect of 100 and 1000 year games of telephone, it makes things spicy. tradition is a strange thing, we do things we dont have much of a context for anymore, we're still living with the cultural hangovers of people living when mammoths were around and no thats not hyperbole lol its WILD. ive typed around the point enough lets get going

she was a bugs girl !!!! she still IS a bugs girl lmao but if our 16 year old girlie is gonna pounce on frogs apropos of nothing, that 4 year old girlie is gonna go catch bugs in the Royal Gardens and freak out her maids or escorts with them, good for her 💅

the other two are where my timeline thing comes in; the triforce is never mentioned by name, its just there in symbolism ?? something about the blood of the goddess ?? divine sealing powers ??? no one knows in the same vein, i like to think that its traditional for Hylian Princesses to learn archery and play a lyre or harp ... but no one remembers quite WHY ?? so Zelda does. the Priestess-Princess* role means the public is aware that Zelda had formal singing training, but its not really common knowledge outside of the Castle that the Royal Girls do THIS (no one knows why that part is important either, but it stays in the Castle). she might be a little out of practice now, but give that muscle memory enough time and she might be able to really surprise people.

*this is part of the Japanese translation, at least in Kass' final song Zelda is referred to as an term roughly meaning Priestess-Princess - which makes total sense to me

ohhh my god i talked a lot okay i just love my gorl fhjdkfjdk

actual footage of me explaining my shit and going way long

[suniix]

perfect match | (botw) link x reader

synopsis | you find a rock that perfectly matches link’s eye color

word count | 2.2k

note | saw this trend on tiktok and thought it was adorable :((

UPDATE my amazing moot rain made like an angsty continuation to this AND YOU SHOULD LIKE TOTALLY GO CHECK IT OUT!!

Summer had hit Hyrule, hard.

Of course, the heat was not as bad as it was on Death Mountain, but it was damn near close. Fanning yourself was proving to do nothing, but you liked to think it helped just a little bit.

Link walked not too far ahead of you, seemingly unaffected by the heat. Despite keeping a steady pace you could see sweat beginning to drip down his neck. He was feeling the heat too.

“Link,” you called out, jogging a bit to catch up to him. “Why don’t we take a break for a bit? This heat is killing me.”

He paused, contemplating your words. Sensing his hesitation you leaned into him to look at the sheikah slate in his hands. “Look!” You pointed at the map. “There’s a river nearby! We can rest there for the rest of the day then head out at first light!”

You knew you won him over when he sighed. Giggling, you gently tugged him to follow you. “Come on! The river awaits us!”

Link can’t help but laugh at your excitement, allowing himself to be pulled along by you. The sound of running water is quickly heard as the two of you make your way past the trees, revealing the river.

You quickly dropped your backpack and Link did the same, squatting down to look for ingredients for tonight’s dinner. “Craving anything specific tonight?” He asked.

“Mm, not really. I’m fine with anything you cook! It always comes out amazing.” You replied, clumsily taking off your shoes before running off to the water.

Link is shocked for a moment but plays it off by laughing. He never got used to you complimenting his cooking, no matter how many times you told him. He’d gladly cook you any meal if you wished it.

Nearing the river you noticed the water was crystal clear enough to see a couple of tiny fish swimming by. You could also see various small stones littering the riverbed, painful for your feet but it was a small price to pay to cool off.

Cautiously dipping your toes in the water you nearly scream at the cold feeling. Although it was cold you gladly welcomed it. You take a few steps, slightly wincing at the feeling of sharp rocks digging into your feet. You were about ankle-deep when you heard Link clear his throat from behind you. Turning to look at him you see him standing a few feet away from you, quiver filled with arrows and a bow in hand. “I’m gonna go hunt, we don’t have much and I doubt you wanna eat mushroom skewers again.”

You made a disgusted face. “You’re right, as much as I love your cooking, if I have to eat one more mushroom I think I’ll vomit, no offense!”

Link merely laughs, shoulders shaking slightly as he does so. “None taken, I won’t be long.” He begins to walk away from your temporary camp.

“Stay safe!”

For a moment you think he’s too far to hear you, but to your surprise, he turns around and gives you a small wave. It’s a small gesture, but it’s enough to make you feel butterflies.

Once he’s out of sight you continue to walk into the river, bending down to roll up your pants so they wouldn’t get too wet. You’re about knee-deep when you stop, looking up to admire the scenery around you.

The branches from the trees extend about halfway across the river, if you walk any further you’d be in the sun. Despite the branches being long beams of sunlight manage to peak past the leaves and create patches of sunlight that reflect off the water. You look down, feeling the water rush past your legs. Beneath the surface, something catches your eye. Reaching down into the water you pull out a dark blue rock that shines once it catches the light.

Suddenly, an idea hits you.

To say Link was surprised was an understatement.

He knew you were going to cool off in the river while he was out, but he didn’t expect to come back and see you fully drenched from head to toe while digging around in the river looking for something.

When you notice him you’re quick to stand, greeting him with a giant smile. “Oh, you’re here! Welcome back Link! Did you catch anything good?”

Link dropped his quiver and bow and walked towards you. “What happened?”

“I stepped on a big rock that wasn’t sturdy so I ended up slipping.” You shrug. “You should get in! I promise the water feels amazing!”

Before Link has the chance to respond you’re quick to splash him, a giant grin making its way onto your face when you see his pants had gotten soaked. He smirks before quickly kicking off his boots. “It’s on!”

He quickly ran into the river and chaos ensued. The two of you splashed around for a couple of minutes before you noticed the day was nearing its end. Knowing there was no way the two of you would be able to dry off properly in the dark, you both walked out of the river.

You get a fire started as Link rummages through his backpack for a towel. Once he finds it he walks over to you and crouches, placing the towel over your head and ruffling your hair. You can’t help but laugh at the action. “You don’t need to do that you know, I can do it myself.”

“I want to do it.”

His response is quick, which catches you off guard. You look down, feeling your cheeks and ears begin to heat up. If Link notices (he does) he doesn’t comment on it.

He leans down to catch your eyes, intentionally leaning in closer so you can’t escape his gaze. “You’re shaking, are you cold?”

It’s then that you notice a teasing smirk on his face. You punch his shoulder and he dramatically grabs it. “Ouch!” He pretends to cry out in pain.

“Stop teasing! Aren’t you supposed to be cooking?” You quickly try to change the subject.

“Yes yes, I’m on it. Are you ok with meat skewers?”

“Yeah, that’s fine.” You say and stretch your legs by the fire. You place the towel over your shoulders and wrap it around yourself. Link was right, you are cold.

As Link throws ingredients onto the fire you fish around in your pocket, momentarily panicking when you don’t feel it. When you find it you breathe out a sigh of relief.

“Hey, did you lose something today?” Link asks while placing the cooked food on a plate.

“Mm? No, why do you ask?”

“Earlier in the river, when I came back it looked like you were looking for something.”

“Oh! I was actually looking for something for you!”

Link raises an eyebrow. “Me?”

You nod your head enthusiastically. “Hold out your hand.” He looks at you confused for a second before doing what you asked. You pull out what is in your pocket and place it in his palm.

Link immediately feels the wet and rough texture of the item. When you pull away he sees a blue rock in his palm.

“Tada! I found a rock that’s the same shade as your eyes!”

Link’s eyes widen upon seeing the small stone. “This is what you were looking for while I was gone? The whole time?” He questioned.

You sheepishly rubbed the back of your neck, thinking he was mad at you for wasting your time looking for a rock. “Well, yeah, but if you don’t like it that’s fine I just thought—”

“No!” Link quickly cut off your rambling. He clears his throat and you swear you see a hint of blush on his cheeks. He holds the rock close to his heart and looks at you, eyes overflowing with an adoration you thought only existed in fairytales.

“I love it, thank you. I’ll cherish it forever.” His tone was serious, you knew he wasn’t lying.

You quickly look away in embarrassment and grab the bowl of food he placed down. “You’re welcome..” You mumble, eyes refusing to leave the bowl.

He only chuckles before the two of you eat in a comfortable silence.

You wake up to the sounds of splashing.

Groaning, you slowly sit up while attempting to rub the sleep out of your eyes. “Ugh.. Link?..” You call out, expecting him to respond.

When he doesn’t you look around and see his sleeping bag is empty and the fire has long been put out. “Link?” You call out again, this time a little worried when you don’t immediately spot him.

The sound of a yelp followed by a giant splash is heard and you immediately head to the river, sword in hand. You half expected to see him fighting a bokoblin or some other sort of enemy, but when you spotted him he was nearly fully submerged in the river. The only thing peeking out was his head, and judging by the look on his face he had taken a nasty fall.

You immediately run into the river, not caring if your shoes or pants got wet. “Are you ok?” You ask, holding out a hand for him to take. He nods and accepts your hand, allowing you to pull him up. You couldn’t see before, but now you can see he was completely shirtless. You clear your throat and quickly pretend to inspect him for any injuries. “What happened?”

“I stepped on a rock and.. ended up slipping..” He sighed, keeping a hand on his lower back.

You hold back a giggle, but Link spots your (very obvious) smile and pouts. “It’s not funny..” He grumbles while you walk him out of the river and back to camp. “It’s kind of funny..” You snicker.

He rolls his eyes and playfully pushes you away while you laugh. “What were you even doing in the river? If you craved fish you could’ve woken me up and I would’ve gotten some for us.” You asked while handing him a towel.

Link accepts it and wraps it around his body. “I wanted to get you this.” He says, fishing something from out of his pocket and holding his hand out for you to take it.

Hesitantly, you accept what’s in his hand and gasp when you see a rock. The color was scarily accurate to your eye color, with patterns swirling beautifully all over the rock. You wonder how long it took for him to find it. “Link, you didn’t need to!—”

“I wanted to.” He says while turning away, pretending to look for something in his bag so you wouldn’t see the very obvious blush on his cheeks.

You smile, holding the rock close to your heart. You felt warm inside, almost like holding the rock close to you was causing the feeling, but you knew better. Link always made you feel this way by doing the simplest of things, but for some reason, this gift had a bigger impact.

Walking over to him, you lean on his back and wrap your arms around his neck. “Thank you, Link.”

He turns to look over his shoulder, seeing you smiling against his back. If it meant seeing that look on your face again he’d find you a million rocks just like the one he’d given you. Anything to see you smile like that again. Chuckling he fully turns around with a flint in hand, not even attempting to hide his blush now. “Don’t mention it, now, how about you catch us some of those fish?”

Extra (because I had I cute thought last minute)

“Hey, you still have the rock I gave you?” Link asked, turning to look at you from over his shoulder.

“Of course I do! Why?”

He held out his hand and made a grabby hand motion, wordlessly asking you to hand it over. Confused, you pull out the rock from your pocket and hand it to him. He gently takes it from your hand and turns around so you don’t see what he’s about to do.

You try peaking over his shoulder. “Link, what’re you doing—”

“Don’t look, I’m almost done.”

Still confused, you take a step back and let him do whatever it is he’s doing. After a few seconds, he looks over his shoulder. “Close your eyes.”

You do as told and close your eyes, feeling him get closer to you. You feel something go over your head and your heart begins to beat faster at the thought of what it could be. “Alright, open them.” Link tells you.

Your hand immediately reaches to touch your chest and your previous thought is proven correct when you look down and see. The rock he had given you was now wrapped in thin rope, being held together at the top by a small knot and the rope continued upward around your neck. It had turned it into a necklace.

“Look, now we’re matching.” He grinned, showing you his own necklace.

Having no words, you could only stare at him in awe. He laughed at your reaction, tugging you forward so the two of you could continue your journey together.

thank you for reading till the end! reblogs are greatly appreciated :D

masterlist

[gwynndolin]

What do you mean "tricks you into thinking it's a good game"? I'm curious because I'm a totk hater (felt more like a fanmade dlc scale mod) but I thought botw was pretty good.

botw obviously has its moments. The Great Plateau was a great introduction to the game, for instance.

But. You do everything that you can do for the rest of the game on that plateau. (Nearly) all of the what the game is going to do is shown to you in the first 5ish hours of gameplay, and those 5 hours are then stretched into a 70ish hour game. Every moment between leaving the Great Plateau and the final fight with Calamity Ganon is riding that high of that first initial experience with the game’s concepts. There is a reason why a lot of people’s most favorite trial in the whole game is when the game throws you onto a deserted island with none of your gear and asks you to rough it again like you were doing 50 hours ago. It’s because the best part of the game was when you were fresh to the experience, often forced to solve the games combat encounters with unique methods; engage with its unique emergent gameplay.

Why even start to bother with that stuff later on though? You actually literally can’t usually. Late game mobs become such sponges to damage that I actively avoided fights because each non trash mob (even the trash mobs would take longer too) would take like 45 seconds to fight. Why try to do a silly funny bomb explosion when the setup takes just as long as the fight only to result in doing a quarter of their health or something. Just press B a bunch of times.

Totk actually did this to me too! Enough time had passed where I was willing to be open to that experience again. And it worked on me! For the first few hours, exploring the Great Sky Island felt like I was playing botw for the first time again. I actually started to think my harsher feelings for botw had all been exacerbated by time or that i had misremembered how it felt to play the game. I was pretty locked in to the whole experience. Then I got on the ground. The false visage of a fresh experience melted away. I was in the same hyrule field as before. I think someone messed with the terrain tool over there. 👉🏻

its like chewing gum. The flavor starts out real strong, and its a fun chew, maybe you haven't had gum in a minute, so this is like, a pretty stimulating experience. But after a while you realize you've had this piece of gum in your mouth for like, the whole day now. And theres no flavor left in it anymore. And you've worked this piece of gum so much now that its like, kinda hard now? But like, looking for a trash can is kind of out of your way so its like, whatever. I'll keep chewing this gum for now. And then like, hours later you're like, wow. I've been chewing this gum for so long now that my jaw kind of hurts. So now you're looking for a trash can. You finally spit the gum out and theres still a lingering flavor of spearmint in your mouth. Not enough to like, re experience that first chew again, but you know. You had a stick of gum. It was alright. My jaw hurts though. I’ll probably have another piece in a few weeks.

[ezlo-x]

tbh my biggest gripes with totk is the fact that they did it beginner friendly new comer friendly... like i know this is gonna sound mean but genuinely I wish it didn't try to cater to new fans who want to get into tloz cause totk's story failed cause it needed to cater to new zelda fans

idc abt the lore getting rebooted, sure im going to miss the triforce being an essential piece of the story and lore, only to become the Hylian symbol and game's logo (which tbh is strange its like pokemon using the pokeball as their logo/symbol but pokeballs becoming obsolete in new pkmn games). But because it wanted to be new comer friendly botw's story and lore aspects are long gone and only to be referred to as easter eggs to ppl who played botw know. When characters talk about things that happened in botw as if it was a long time ago like the attack of the Calamity 100 years ago but things that actually happened a very long time ago make it sound like its pretty recent.

I don't like how the new sages just don't remember the champions at all. If you get the divine beast helms through sidequests and read their dialogue they speak in this way as it is their first time seeing it like?? Which is so strange cause totk would gladly reference Sidon and Link's companionship with a statue when trying to access Vah Ruta in BotW, but Mipha gets barely a mention from him? My biggest hopes before we got the title of the game was to let go of the champions, as in we don't need them to be back as they already have done what they need to do. But also I didn't want them to be completely gone from the game and only know them through easter eggs and references.

Like yeah TotK is a sequel to BotW but its more so "ok botw was a rough draft, THIS is the story we wanted to do" and it turns out to have inconsistencies. Zelda mentions the Calamity a few times, there are tombstones to placed around Hyrule commemorating people who lost their lives by the Calamity. But the Sheikah technology is completely gone, the towers that were there for eons are gone. I feel like the towers could've been an easy fix to explain why they are gone like "oh these chasms appeared and collapsed the towers, so now we built these new towers in replacement."

Like with Majora's Mask being separate but also a follow up to Ocarina of Time works because. While yes they are using the same characters and same game mechanics. They are using a whole different world/setting that is different from OoT. Where it excuses using the same characters and same game mechanics, cause it has a complete different story but is consistent on where it left off with Ocarina of Time. I honestly thought TotK was going to take place mostly in the skies than in the surface. Since they kept hyping people up with the teaser trailers and then we had SkSw HD being released. Like yeah it will be like some glorified version of SkSw

When I was reading the interviews Nintendo uploaded a few days before TotK's release and saw Fujibayashi say ,"We put in some effort to make sure that it feels comfortable for both first-time players and those with experience of the previous game." In the back of my mind I questioned a bit this cause I mostly asked myself "isn't this a sequel?" but then I reassured myself that they'll probably would reexplain certain things about the previous game and what happened in the story for new comers. But not to this extreme

[ganondoodle]

seeing all the crazy stuff people build in totk kinda ... it feels like that is also a factor in why it turned out like this, like the insane things people did in botw and the (i keep saying devs when i actually mean the directors .. producers?) directors saw it and build totk just around letting people do it all 100 times more

to be clear, i think its impressive as hell what some people build (i just saw like .. a movie scene with a functioning mech gozilla and tanks made with totks building stuff ... what the fuck) and those things go pretty viral (understandibly so) but i also gotta question

as creative, free, and impressive as it is ... should that have been the focus in a zelda game? like .. is building mechas and tanks like that something that should be in a zelda game? can it be in there without inevitably sacrificing so much else? theres building games just for that? and if you want to make it zelda themed you can make it a spin off?

like i get it, people did crazy things in botw, they saw what people had fun with and dialed it up to a 1000 in totk, which in itself is not bad, even pretty good if you consider gamedevs and feeback and all that bc in general you should embrace what people had fun with in your game even if it wasnt the intent, given that nintendy listens to feedback (perhaps even a bit too much at times) and creative solutions was a central point to botw design philosophy but

i feel like totk kinda .. missed the balance?

if its really a reason why totk is build around enabling that in a purely player centered toy box kind of way without it actually mattering in the story .. or even themes ... was it worth it? not to sound like an oldschool boomer tm but in a franchise that iconic, lore and story focused, should you really abandon nigh all lore/story cohesion just to give the player a big box of toys in a world where i feel that doesnt ,, really belong? in a direct sequel in the same world with the same characters no less? that point is perhaps the biggest issue with it, bc again lots of games even if somwhat a sequel, had strange new tech or things in the world but in all of those cases it was some alternative universe, millenia after the other game, or on an entire different continent; while totk is supposedly just a few years after botw in the very same hyrule

(still doesnt explain the erasing of all shiekah things and replacing it with sonau- tho suddendly revealing the shiekah had actual rockets, wheels with suspension and grenade-launchers, might have been confusing too- you could have enabled the player creativity with shiekah too imo, and personally i would have found it way more fun ... lil guardian leg crawlies ..)

having thought about it feels rather logical why they did it in alot of ways, but also ... totk is build around it, while its also not build around it at all- its build around the PLAYER, not the world, not the story, not the theme, not the character, but YOU (especialyl those that dont realyl care about anythign story or lore stuff and just want to have fun with the gameplay loop, which isnt wrong, but i question whether thats the right kind if player to center in a zelda game .... also not saying all of those that build these crazy things are like that but- ... i hope you know what i mean)

(i know games are always build around the player, or should be, but .. do you get what i mean????? playing in a world that doesnt make sense anymore bc its all a box of toys yeeted into my face isnt fun to me, bc im here not only for gameplay fun but for the world .. theme .. characters, its something that has to be harmonical as a whole for me and totk just .. isnt)

i say it alot but i do really mean it, its very difficult to get my thoughts and feelings written out and to have them come across correctly

[ezdotjpg]

ok but know I need you to Tell Me Things about the Zeldas. all of them. I am literally*bouncing*.

(I love how both your TP Link and Zelda have RBF. they have truly Had It)

HEHE sorry i held onto this ask until I had all the Zelda designs posted, and then I,,,forgot to do that lol.

some Bonus Zelda thoughts! some of this i've maybe said before idk:

ALTTP Zelda

her armor is more ceremonial than practical. While I didn't give this to every Queen Zelda, I liked the idea of the princess's pauldrons progressing to more plate armor in the queen's dress. That's also why I changed her color scheme to blue to differentiate from the princess' pink (exceptions for this being HW Zelda who wears red as queen, ST Zelda who still wears pink as queen and BOTW Zelda who wore blue as princess)

anyway. she's more of a scholar than a warrior but she still has killer aim with a bow

her pet project has been recovering, restoring, and filling in the gaps of the royal library and archive. Mage helps her out with this as he has a knack for stumbling upon forgotten ancient texts in his travels

A lot of ppl assume she's rather prim or austere but she's actually got a lot of whimsy and humor in her. It's why she and Mage get along so well :D

She lets Mage get away with a lot of shenanigans and keeps the royal guard from arresting his ass all the time

if mage is ur weird uncle she's like. ur cool aunt

Tetra

she's still sailing the seas with her crew!

she and Wake have had a bit of a falling out though, partially over disagreements about searching for New Hyrule, and have gone their separate ways for now. There's not any real animosity between them, just like,,,frustration. They'd still do anything for each other.

She's got 2 pistols and a cutlass and she knows how to use them

She could bench press Wake. easily.

She's brash and commands a lot of respect but she's also a lot of fun to be around. She's brutally honest and says what's on her mind.

I think she still feels a lot of confusion and frustration about the revelations about her lineage and the role King Daphnes seemed to force on her because of it. She doesn't want much to do with what the divine. She values the freedom sailing on the sea gives her.

TP Zelda

she's. so tired. a lot of the responsibility of rebuilding the kingdom has fallen squarely on her shoulders. She's holding shit together by a thread but by god is she holding it together.

Looks pretty cold and unapproachable but she has a kind heart. She cares deeply for the people of her kingdom. She would sacrifice a lot for them and already has.

Never relaxes. Works like 24/7. get this girl a hobby

Midzel canon. Midna also had a thing with Link but it wasn't a polycule more of a this is my girlfriend Midna and this is Midna's boyfriend Link kind of a situation. Anyway she misses Midna.

Wolf and Zelda are like. coworkers. They haven't really gotten any closer in the aftermath of everything. Wolf wants nothing to do with playing the role of the hero in a political sense like Zelda keeps asking him to. I don't think Zelda necessarily blames him for escaping that responsibility, but she Is frustrated she doesn't have that luxury.

MC Zelda

a little cutie!! very bubbly and extroverted and curious about the world. She spends a lot of time outside of the castle running around with Mini. The King is so glad she's safe after everything he still just lets her do whatever she wants lol

She used to be the one dragging Mini into shenanigans all the time but he's gained a lot of confidence over his quest and is less timid now. now they are equally engaging in shenanigans

Hangs out with Malon too!! The three of them are besties

I like to think she can also still see the minish even if she can't shrink down to their size. she thinks they're so cute. Maybe mini gives her a jabbernut so she can speak to them too :-)

She helps Mini build his fucked up little trash robots. She also pretties them up with paint

scolded by castle staff frequently for getting grass stains and dirt on her nice clothes lol. She probably isn't usually running around in her full princess garb though.

Like Mini, has mostly refused to process most of what happened to her and is just trying to enjoy life.

Prince Zel

I went back and forth about whether or not I wanted to go with naming him Sheik or not. I decided against it since this is the version of him that never had to become Sheik. He keeps Zelda as a legacy name and shortens it to Zel most of the time.

Pretty lonely in the castle without many friends his age. He desperately wants to be better friends with Mask but is mostly rebuffed.

Even though he doesn't have to become Sheik in this timeline, I think he has begun training with Impa. Just under a lot less duress

Still occasionally has prophetic visions but has become somewhat hesitant about sharing them. I think he understands a little more of what went on in other timelines than he lets on, but he doesn't know or put together all of it.

Often described as odd or intense or standoffish by ppl who meet him but he can be really chatty and lively under the right circumstances

HW Zelda

Her armor is also mostly ceremonial, even though she's definitely more of a warrior queen. She and War are both dressed to project 'peace time' and 'prosperity'. She has other sets of armor that are more suited for combat.

She and War are a lot alike, calculating and cunning, which is why they understand each other. It's also why they're often at each other's throats. They're not really above backstabbing each other, though has Queen she has a lot more leverage.

She's not exactly warm or particularly kind, but she does care about the safety of the Kingdom.

Also never relaxes and works like 24/7

Constantly dealing with a tense, power-hungry and antagonistic court looking to undermine her authority. She has her own private ambitions she's working towards.

ALBW Zelda

She's a really charming and fun person! very down to earth as Queen and a lot more willing to eschew tradition.

She comes across as carefree but she's been ruling Hyrule by herself since she was young and has been subject to a lot of pressure. She had to grow up pretty fast and is wiser than she seems at first glance. She has her court and the people's respect.

She and Mirror share an interest in fashion and the arts. They're,,, they're both theatre kids.

I don't have a lot of other headcanons abt her yet sorry but. i love her

ST Zelda

Has been crowned Queen at the ripe old age of 16 because the last time they appointed a chancellor he turned out to be a demon who stole her body. so

She does not feel ready to be Queen at all but she's doing her best. She's determined not to let anybody push her around again.

She's taken an interest in learning how to fight after the events of spirit tracks. She never wants to feel as helpless as she did then, trapped as a ghost outside her body. Also she really enjoyed hitting things with a giant sword in her big phantom armor. She's become a much better swordsman than Spirit ever was lol

She specifically requested her own suit of armor to mimic the phantom armor

she's pretty protective of Spirit

BOTW Zelda

I think she was conscious for all 103 of those years fighting ganon, even if it seems somewhat blurry and surreal to her now. She remembers it in fits and bursts. She often feels disconnected from her body.

She has no interest in reviving the monarchy or ruling over Hyrule again. However she does have an interest in rebuilding Hylian towns and helping all of Hyrule recover. She still feels like it's her responsibility, not because of her role as princess, but because of what she perceives as her own failure to avert tragedy.

she doesn't just blame herself though- she blames the gods and her father too.

Right now though she's mostly taking a break to get her bearings and recover from 103 years of endless fighting. She and Slate travelled around Hyrule for a while at first, and now she's settled in Hateno trying to figure out how to be normal again. Some rebuilding efforts have already started spearheaded by Hudson and she helps out with those.

SKSW Zelda

honestly not even she is sure what parts of her are herself and what parts are hylia. it's as disconcerting for her as it is for Loft. She's both frustrated that he looks at her differently now and understands completely why he does. She still wishes he wouldn't.

she remembers more about being the goddess than she necessarily lets on

she's really invested in the settlement on the surface and is basically its unofficial leader. she puts a lot of time and effort into making sure everything is going according to plan and that they have everything they need to keep living on the surface

she's protective of Loft and worries a lot for him. She blames herself for a lot of what he struggles with now and wants to make it better.

she's not the fun police though, she likes a death-defying loftwing stunt as much as the next person

she did become a knight after the events of skyward sword! They don't really wear the uniforms down on the surface much anymore though and it's become less of a formal order while everyone focuses on building and improving the village.

She's been working on her swordsmanship

I think she really loves music and singing