The Complete Timeline of The Legend of Zelda Games

It all started in 1986, when The Legend of Zelda was released for the NES in Japan back in February. Over the decades, what seemed like isolated stories of a hero rescuing a princess turned out to be an interconnected universe.

To organize this story, we have divided the official timeline based on the events of each game and the eras of the kingdom.

The beginning of everything

Before the creation of the world, only chaos existed. Three golden goddesses descended from the heavens, and each fulfilled a specific role in creating the universe: Din, the goddess of power, created the land; Nayru, the goddess of wisdom, gave order to the world; and Farore, the goddess of courage, created life.

After finishing their work, they departed for the heavens, leaving behind an artifact capable of granting any wish to its bearer: the Triforce.

This object was the ultimate desire of Demise, the Demon King. To prevent him from seizing the artifact, the goddess Hylia, protector of the Triforce, lifted pieces of land into the sky, creating the floating islands known as Skyloft. In her final confrontation against Demise, Hylia managed to imprison him, but she was mortally wounded. She then chose to renounce her divinity to reincarnate as a mortal.

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

Release Date: November 23, 2011 (Wii)

Skyward Sword is officially the first game in the Zelda timeline and takes place in the Sky Era, specifically on the islands of Skyloft, long before the kingdom of Hyrule existed.

Hylia reincarnates as Zelda in Skyloft. Upon discovering this, the villain Ghirahim tries to kidnap her to use her power to revive Demise, but he is stopped by Impa, who was sent to save the young woman. Link is the champion chosen by Hylia and receives the mission to seek out the sacred flames. With them, he manages to forge the Master Sword, the only weapon capable of defeating and sealing Demise.

Before being defeated, Demise casts a curse, vowing that an incarnation of his hatred will always pursue the blood of the Goddess and the spirit of the champion, creating an eternal cycle of reincarnations.

After Link saves Zelda, they decide to live on the surface to protect the Triforce. To do this, they build the Temple of Time, whose only entry key is the Master Sword itself. The couple's descendants became known as Hylians, starting the foundation of Hyrule.

The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap

Release Date: November 4, 2004 (Game Boy Advance)

In the tournament at the Picori Festival, the sorcerer Vaati wins the competition, breaks the Picori Blade, and unleashes evil across Hyrule. After turning Zelda into a stone statue, he kidnaps her with the goal of stealing her light force and transforming himself into an all-powerful demon.

Link manages to forge the Four Sword, defeats Vaati, and breaks the curse affecting Zelda. In the end, the sorcerer is imprisoned inside the sword itself.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords

Release Date: March 14, 2003 (Game Boy Advance)

Many years after Vaati is sealed away, Zelda, who possesses the mystical power to sense the approach of dark forces, receives the sacred duty of protecting the sanctuary of the Four Sword. One day, the princess senses that something unusual is happening at the shrine and asks Link, her most trusted knight, to accompany her to investigate.

As soon as Link draws the sword from its pedestal, Vaati breaks free and kidnaps the princess. By wielding the weapon, Link is split into four versions of himself, dressed in different colored tunics, who must work as a team.

The objective was to collect the silver keys from the fairies to access the villain's palace. After obtaining them, the four Links defeat and seal the wind sorcerer once again, and upon returning the sword to its pedestal, the hero becomes one again.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Release Date: November 21, 1998 (Nintendo 64)

Link is tormented by terrible nightmares of an evil man chasing Princess Zelda on horseback. The Great Deku Tree, sensing the arrival of evil, asks the fairy Navi to bring the boy to him. The young Link enters the tree and destroys the evil corrupting it from within, but the ancient entity is already doomed to die. Before passing away, the Deku Tree explains that Link must seek out Princess Zelda to warn her of the impending danger and entrusts the boy with one of the spiritual stones needed to open the Temple of Time.

When Link sneaks into the castle and finds Zelda, she reveals that she also foresaw his arrival in her dreams and suspects the intentions of Ganondorf, the king of the Gerudo people. She asks Link to gather the other two spiritual stones to open the temple. The youth completes the mission, but time runs out. He witnesses Impa fleeing on horseback with Zelda while Ganondorf pursues them. Link rushes to the temple, uses the stones, and upon drawing the Master Sword, is teleported to the Sacred Realm. Because he is too young for the burden of a hero, he is placed into a deep sleep, awakening seven years later as the Hero of Time. However, by opening the doors of the temple, he inadvertently allowed Ganondorf to enter and steal the Triforce of Power, dominating Hyrule and turning the kingdom into a land of monsters.

Years later, Ganondorf kidnaps Zelda, who held the Triforce of Wisdom, using her as bait to lure Link and his Triforce of Courage. In the final confrontation at the castle, Link defeats the Gerudo king. As a final act of rage, Ganondorf uses the strength of his artifact to transform into Ganon, a demonic, boar-like creature. Combining the power of the Master Sword and the Seven Sages, Link defeats the monster and imprisons him in the Evil Realm. Before the seal closes, Ganon vows to exterminate the descendants of Link and Zelda in the future.

Zelda uses the Ocarina of Time to send Link back to his original era, allowing him to live out his lost childhood. Upon returning to the past, Navi says goodbye, and the boy goes to the castle to warn the young Zelda about Ganondorf's betrayal.

From this point forward, the story divides. The events of Ocarina of Time generate three distinct timelines, each containing different games and outcomes. Two of them stem from the premise that "The Hero Is Successful", while one assumes that "The Hero Is Defeated".

This timeline follows the ending of Ocarina of Time where Link returns to his childhood. By warning the royal family about Ganondorf's plans, the Gerudo king is captured and put on trial before he can execute his coup d'état.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

Release Date: April 27, 2000 (Nintendo 64)

Following his adventures in Hyrule, Link sets out on a personal journey to find Navi. While crossing a mysterious forest, he is ambushed by Skull Kid, a creature wearing a strange mask. The villain steals the Ocarina of Time and Link's horse, Epona, turning Link into a small Deku Scrub during the pursuit.

Link arrives in the region of Termina and meets the Happy Mask Salesman. The merchant explains that the artifact worn by Skull Kid is called Majora's Mask, an accursed and dangerous object. He promises to reverse Link's curse if the boy can recover the ocarina and the mask.

Upon finding the villain, Link faces an apocalyptic scenario because the moon is falling and will destroy Termina in three days. Recovering the ocarina at the very last second, Link plays the Song of Time to return to the first day.

The Mask Salesman cures the hero and gives him his ultimate objective, which is to free the Four Giants who protect the land to stop the moon from crashing, all within the cyclic three-day limit.

After reliving the same cycle multiple times to help the inhabitants and explore the temples, Link summons the Giants and prevents the moon's impact. The evil spirit of Majora becomes enraged, abandons Skull Kid's body, and retreats inside the moon. Link travels there, destroys the entity within the mask, and returns the purified object to the salesman. With peace restored and Skull Kid's apologies accepted, Link reclaims Epona and goes on his way.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

Release Date: December 2, 2006 (Wii / Nintendo GameCube)

Centuries after the events of Ocarina of Time, the peaceful village where Link lives is attacked by shadow monsters who kidnap the local children. While trying to rescue them, Link is pulled into a black fog and transforms into a wolf. In prison, he meets Midna, an enigmatic creature who is also cursed, who agrees to help him stop the invasion of the Twilight Realm.

Link manages to regain his human form and sets out to defeat the false king Zant, who is responsible for the invasion. However, it is revealed that Ganondorf was the mastermind behind the plans, having escaped his ancient execution and taken control of Zelda's body.

Alongside Midna, the Hero of Twilight confronts the King of Evil in a decisive battle and destroys him. Free from her curse, Midna says goodbye, returns to her world, and shatters the Mirror of Twilight, which was the only portal between the two dimensions, ensuring Hyrule will never be threatened by the forces of her realm again.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures

Release Date: March 18, 2004 (Nintendo GameCube)

The people of Hyrule are once again terrified due to strange weather phenomena. On a night with a severe storm, Princess Zelda summons Link to the castle to protect her along with the other Maidens of the Shrine. Suddenly, a dark version of the hero, Shadow Link, appears and kidnaps the maidens, imprisoning them in crystals. Left with no alternatives, Link wields the Four Sword once again, splitting into four warriors, which consequently releases the ancient sorcerer Vaati.

Throughout the journey, the heroes discover that Vaati was merely a distraction orchestrated by a new reincarnation of Ganon. After rescuing the maidens and the princess, the group joins forces to defeat Vaati and seal Ganon permanently inside the Four Sword.

With peace re-established, Link returns the sword to its pedestal, unifying his four parts, while the maidens create a definitive magical barrier around the sanctuary.

The second branch of the timeline occurs after Ganon's defeat in Ocarina of Time. In this timeline, Link, the Hero of Time, does not return to his childhood and continues living as an adult in the future.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

Release Date: December 13, 2002 (Nintendo GameCube)

Hundreds of years after the Hero of Time sealed away the evil, the sacred seal weakened and Ganon escaped his prison. The citizens of Hyrule prayed for the legendary warrior to return, but he did not appear. Left with no hope against the villain's advance, the people appealed to the Goddesses, who flooded the lands of Hyrule as a last resort to contain Ganondorf. The surviving population fled to the highest mountains, which became islands, marking the beginning of the Great Flood.

Generations later, on one of these islands, Link celebrates his birthday. In that culture, it is customary for boys to wear green clothes similar to those of the legendary hero when they reach a certain age. Shortly after receiving his outfit, a giant bird appears and kidnaps his younger sister. To rescue her, Link secures the help of the pirate captain Tetra.

Upon invading the island where his sister was held captive, Link tries to save her but is cast into the sea by Ganondorf, who had been kidnapping various blonde girls. When he wakes up, he realizes he was rescued by the King of Red Lions, a talking boat.

Together, they explore the vast ocean to recover the Master Sword and the fragments of the Triforce. Upon accessing the ancient, submerged Temple of Time, it is revealed that Tetra is actually the reincarnation of Princess Zelda, whom Ganondorf was searching for so desperately.

In a definitive confrontation against the Gerudo king, Link triumphs and drives the Master Sword into the villain's head, turning him into a stone statue buried at the bottom of the ocean. With their destiny fulfilled, Link and Zelda, who decides to reclaim her pirate identity as Tetra, set sail toward the horizon in search of new lands to found a new Hyrule.

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass

Release Date: June 23, 2007 (Nintendo DS)

Not long after the events of The Wind Waker, Link and Tetra are sailing on a mission to investigate a ghost ship that has been kidnapping sailors and civilians across the region. Initially, Tetra believes the rumors are just a hoax spread by rival pirates to cause panic.

When they spot the mysterious vessel amidst a dense fog, Tetra leaps aboard to investigate, but Link falls into the sea. Passing out briefly, he dreams of his friend crying out for help. The hero wakes up on an unfamiliar beach and receives the support of the fairy Ciela, who suffers from amnesia. She directs him to the wise Oshus, who agrees to guide them in their search for the ghost ship. Along the way, the duo recruits Captain Linebeck, a greedy sailor who offers his ship while eyeing potential treasures.

Eventually, the group discovers that Tetra was captured by a demon named Bellum, the very same creature that stole Ciela's memories. Oshus reveals himself to be the Ocean King and explains that Ciela is the Spirit of Courage. Both adopted disguised forms to hide from the monster, which is the true power behind the ghost ship.

The Hero of the Winds manages to locate the vessel with the help of the three sacred spirits, but discovers that Tetra has been turned to stone by Bellum's power. After forging the Phantom Sword, the only blade capable of harming the demon, Link confronts the beast, destroys the evil, and breaks the spell, returning the pirate to normal.

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks

Release Date: December 23, 2009 (Nintendo DS)

Following the discovery of a new continent, New Hyrule is established, and Zelda's descendants rule the territory.

A hundred years later, Link travels to the castle to be officially certified as a royal engineer by the princess. In a private audience, Zelda confesses that the spiritual tracks of the kingdom, known as the Spirit Tracks, are mysteriously disappearing and asks Link to help her escape the palace to investigate the phenomenon. They set off by train toward the Tower of Spirits.

Midway through their journey, they are ambushed by the treacherous Chancellor Cole and his henchman Byrne, who destroy the tower. Byrne knocks Link unconscious while Cole performs a ritual to tear out Zelda's soul, kidnapping the physical body of the princess.

Upon regaining consciousness, Link discovers that he is the only one who can see Zelda's floating spirit. At her request, the two go to the ruins of the tower, where they meet the wise Anjean. She grants the hero the Spirit Train, a sacred locomotive capable of restoring the tracks and accessing the continent's temples.

The duo discovers that Cole's plan is to use Zelda's body as a vessel to resurrect the demon king Malladus. The only weapon capable of purifying the princess's body is the legendary Bow of Light.

In the final battle, Link hits the target with a sacred arrow, allowing Zelda's soul to regain control of her body. Together, they destroy Malladus once and for all, ensuring that the princess can rule New Hyrule in peace alongside Link.

The third timeline originates from a tragic reality where the Hero of Time fails and is killed in his final combat against Ganondorf. With the fall of the warrior, the King of Evil obtains all three parts of the Triforce and assumes absolute control over Hyrule.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past

Release Date: November 21, 1991 (Super Famicom)

Upon taking possession of the entire Triforce, Ganondorf loses his last human traits and permanently transforms into the monster Ganon. A dark period known as the Imprisoning War followed, in which the Knights of Hyrule fought bravely against the army of monsters to protect the kingdom. Under the king's orders, the Seven Sages managed to seal Ganon inside the Sacred Realm, which ended up corrupted and transformed into the Dark World.

Generations later, when these events were viewed merely as myths, the evil wizard Agahnim emerges in Hyrule with a plan to break the seal. He assassinates the king, takes control of the castle, and uses black magic to banish the maidens descended from the sages to the Dark World, leaving only Princess Zelda behind.

Shortly before being captured, Zelda sends a telepathic plea for help to Link. Despite receiving orders to stay home for his own safety, Link follows Zelda's whispers and sneaks into the castle's secret passages. In the dungeons, he finds his mortally wounded uncle, who reveals that their family descends from the ancient Knights of Hyrule. Wielding the sword and shield left by his uncle, Link rescues the princess.

After leaving Zelda under the protection of a sanctuary, Link is instructed to find the three spiritual pendants of Courage, Wisdom, and Power to prove his worth and obtain the Master Sword.

With the legendary sword in hand, the hero invades the castle to stop Agahnim, but he arrives too late because Zelda had already been banished to the other dimension. Link defeats the wizard in combat, but with his last breath, the villain uses his magic to pull the hero into the Dark World.

To reverse the situation, Link crosses the corrupted kingdom and rescues the seven maidens imprisoned in crystals. Upon confronting Agahnim again, he discovers that the wizard was merely a puppet possessed by Ganon. The spirit of the King of Evil abandons the sorcerer's body and flies to the Pyramid of Power at the center of the Dark World, where the final duel takes place.

Link defeats Ganon and claims the Triforce. With a pure heart, he wishes for all the atrocities caused by the villain to be undone, restoring peace and life to Hyrule. Finally, the hero returns the Master Sword to its pedestal in the forest so that it may rest.

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

Release Date: June 6, 1993 (Game Boy)

While sailing the sea, Link encounters a terrible storm that destroys his vessel. After shipwrecking, he awakens on the mysterious island of Koholint, where he is found by Marin, who takes him to the home of her father, Tarin. The young woman quickly forms a bond with Link and confesses that her greatest desire is to be a seagull so she can fly beyond the ocean and see the world.

After recovering his sword on the beach, Link is approached by a mysterious owl. The owl reveals that the hero will only be able to leave the area if he awakens the island's protector, the Wind Fish. The creature is in a deep sleep inside a giant egg at the top of Mount Tamaranch and will only awaken if the Eight Instruments of the Sirens are played together.

After exploring the temples and gathering all the instruments, Link climbs the mountain and plays the Ballad of the Wind Fish, causing the egg's shell to crack. Upon entering the structure, the hero faces his worst nightmares, which take the form of Ganon and other enemies from his past. Link wins the combat, and the owl reappears to explain that the entire island and its inhabitants were merely a dream of the Wind Fish.

With the awakening of the creature, Koholint completely vanishes. Link wakes up alone in the middle of the ocean, floating on the wreckage of his boat. Looking up at the sky, he sees the Wind Fish flying and spots a seagull humming the same melody as Marin, indicating that the young woman's wish came true.

The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons & Oracle of Ages

Release Date: February 27, 2001 (Game Boy Color)

In Oracle of Ages, the Triforce summons Link to Hyrule Castle and transports him to a forest in the distant land of Labrynna. Upon hearing screams, the hero finds the nursemaid Impa surrounded by monsters that flee upon his arrival. Impa asks for help to locate a singer, and just ahead, they find Nayru, a blue-haired young woman who sings to the animals. Suddenly, Impa reveals she is possessed by the sorceress Veran, who takes over Nayru's body, revealing her as the Oracle of Ages. The possession causes the immediate collapse of the flow of time in the region.

Link travels to the past through portals to prevent Veran's actions from erasing the Maku Tree, the local guardian. To gain strength and save the oracle, the hero explores the time stream in search of the Eight Essences of Time.

After managing to invade the royal fortress and free Nayru, Veran escapes by possessing the body of Queen Ambi. Link gathers the remaining essences, creates a giant Maku seed to clear a path to the Black Tower, and defeats Veran permanently, saving the queen. Nayru warns that time has been restored, but from afar, the Twinrova witches celebrate the lighting of the Flame of Sorrow.

In Oracle of Seasons, the process repeats itself as the Triforce transports Link to the continent of Holodrum. There, he allies with a troupe of performers led by the dancer Din. The sky darkens with the arrival of Onox, the General of Darkness, who kidnaps Din, revealing that she is the Oracle of Seasons. Without her presence, the continent's climate collapses, changing in a chaotic manner.

Guided by Impa, Link seeks the assistance of the Maku Tree of Holodrum. The hero travels through the underground temples of Subrosia and across the surface to collect the Eight Essences of Nature. With the accumulated power, he generates a giant Maku seed that destroys the barrier of Onox's castle. Link invades the fortress, kills the general, and rescues Din, stabilizing nature. Watching the outcome from afar, Twinrova celebrates the lighting of the Flame of Destruction through the chaos generated by Onox.

Ending

Upon completing both journeys, the true ending of the saga is unlocked. The Twinrova witches kidnap Princess Zelda, lighting the Flame of Despair. The Maku Tree teleports Link directly to the ritual altar, where the sisters attempt to use the three flames and the sacrifice of the princess to resurrect Ganon.

Link defeats the witches, but they offer their own bodies as a final tribute, bringing back an irrational and enraged Ganon. The hero destroys the beast before it can recover its full power and rescues Zelda. They abandon the castle as the structure collapses.

In the final scene, Link boards a ship, waving to his friends on the beach as he sets sail toward new adventures.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds

Release Date: December 26, 2013 (Nintendo 3DS)

Many years after the events of A Link to the Past, Link works as a blacksmith's apprentice. On a mission to deliver a sword to the captain of the guard at the Sanctuary, he witnesses the wizard Yuga transform the descendants of the Seven Sages and Princess Zelda herself into wall paintings.

Link tries to stop him but is knocked unconscious, and the villain flees to Lorule, a dark, mirrored dimension of Hyrule. Later, a traveling merchant named Ravio takes the hero in and gives him a magical bracelet that grants the ability to transform into a two-dimensional painting, allowing him to travel between the two worlds through cracks in the wall.

Upon arriving in Lorule, Link discovers that Yuga has used the power of the sages and Hyrule's Triforce to revive Ganon and fuse with him, becoming a colossal threat to both realities. Hilda, the princess of Lorule, saves the hero and asks him to free the imprisoned sages to obtain the strength needed to combat the monster.

After rescuing the Seven Sages and awakening the Triforce of Courage in his own body, Link invades Lorule Castle. There, Princess Hilda reveals herself to be the true mastermind behind the plan. She confesses that she ordered Yuga's attacks because the Triforce of her own kingdom was destroyed in the past to end civil wars, which ultimately plunged Lorule into decadence and darkness. Left with no alternatives to save her people, Hilda decided to steal Hyrule's artifact.

However, Yuga betrays the princess, turns her into a painting, and absorbs her power to try to steal the final piece of the Triforce from Link. The hero wins the final battle and frees Zelda from the spell. At that moment, Ravio reveals himself to be Link's peaceful counterpart in Lorule and convinces Hilda that stealing Hyrule's heritage would not bring true salvation. Remorseful, the princess uses Ravio's bracelet to send Link and Zelda back to their home.

Upon returning to Hyrule, the two heroes assemble the complete Triforce and, with the purity of their hearts, make a selfless wish for Lorule's Triforce to be restored. The mirrored kingdom recovers its radiance and prosperity, and Hilda expresses her eternal gratitude.

The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes

Release Date: October 22, 2015 (Nintendo 3DS)

In the kingdom of Hytopia, fashion and style were the pillars of society. One day, Princess Styla is targeted by the spell of a jealous witch, forcing her to wear a terribly ugly outfit that is impossible to remove. The king, desperate over his daughter's appearance, issues a global call for heroes capable of breaking the curse.

Answering the plea, three Links in colorful clothes join forces in a cooperative journey. They invade the witch's domains, defeat her forces in the Drablands, and destroy the spell, restoring high fashion and peace to the citizens of Hytopia.

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom

Release Date: September 26, 2024 (Nintendo Switch)

In Echoes of Wisdom, for the first time, the dynamic is inverted as Link sets out on a mission to rescue Princess Zelda from the clutches of the villain Ganon, but things do not go as expected. Although he wins the direct confrontation against the monster, Link ends up being swallowed and disappears inside a sinister dimensional rift. This phenomenon begins to spread rapidly throughout Hyrule, sucking the population into a parallel reality known as the Still World, which includes the king himself and his direct advisors, General Wright and Minister Lefte. Faced with the disappearance of her people, her father, and her protector, it is up to Princess Zelda to take on the role of heroine and begin her own rescue journey.

Upon returning to the palace in search of answers, Zelda is betrayed by impostor clones of her father and ministers, who blame her for the creation of the rifts and condemn her to death in the dungeons. The princess manages to escape execution thanks to the help of Tri, a mysterious fairy who gives her the Tri Rod, an artifact capable of creating replicas of objects and monsters. Together, they cross the kingdom to close the dimensionally corrupted chasms and save the souls trapped in the Still World. On the way, Zelda must face an evil copy of Link before finally locating and freeing the true hero after defeating a false Ganon at the heart of Hyrule Castle.

The supposed Demon King was actually just a puppet created by Null, a primordial malevolent entity that wishes to bring chaos back to the universe. Through the Sanctuaries of the Golden Goddesses Din, Nayru, and Farore, Zelda discovers that Null inhabited the void before the beginning of time and is trying to destroy the kingdom by creating the rifts to seek revenge against the divinities. At the climax of the adventure, the monster creates a clone of Zelda to steal the Prime Energy since the princess and Link were chosen by the goddesses to guard this power. Joining forces with Link and Tri, Zelda confronts and annihilates Null permanently, allowing the fairies to heal the fabric of reality before returning to the heavens, re-establishing peace and reuniting the royal family.

After the Hero of Lorule recovered the Triforce, Hyrule experienced centuries of peace and stability, marking the beginning of the Golden Age.

Sensing the end of his days approaching, the king of Hyrule tried to find a worthy successor to carry the mystical artifact, but he did not find the necessary virtues in anyone, not even in his own son. With the death of the monarch, the prince inherited only the portions of Power and Wisdom. A court wizard revealed that the prince's younger sister, Princess Zelda, knew the whereabouts of the Triforce of Courage.

When questioned, Zelda refused to reveal the location of the object. Enraged by the young woman's obstinacy, the wizard used a forbidden spell that put the princess into an eternal sleep, dying shortly after due to the magical effort. Overcome with remorse, the prince ordered that all women born into the royal lineage be named Zelda in memory of his sister's sacrifice. Since the secret of Courage was buried with her, the kingdom lost access to the full power of the relic, gradually fragmenting and giving rise to the Era of Decline.

The Legend of Zelda

Release Date: February 21, 1986 (Family Computer Disk System)

Generations later, with the kingdom weakened and reduced to small communities, Ganon's armies invade the royal lands and steal the Triforce of Power. To prevent the villain from gaining absolute control, the Princess Zelda of that era divides the Triforce of Wisdom into eight fragments and hides them in underground labyrinths before being captured.

Impa, the princess's nursemaid, flees in search of a savior and is cornered by the henchmen of the Demon King. She is saved by the young Link, who, upon hearing the account of the kingdom's crisis, accepts the challenge of gathering the scattered pieces of the artifact.

After exploring the dungeons and reassembling the Triforce of Wisdom, Link invades Death Mountain, Ganon's lair. The hero destroys the monster with his bow, recovers the Triforce of Power, and frees Princess Zelda.

Zelda II: The Adventure of Link

Release Date: January 14, 1987 (Family Computer Disk System)

Six years after Ganon's fall, Link turns sixteen and notices the appearance of a mysterious mark in the shape of a crest on the back of his hand. Upon seeing the sign, Impa takes him to the North Castle and reveals a chamber locked by an ancient magical seal. At the touch of Link's marked hand, the door opens, revealing the very first Princess Zelda, the young woman cursed at the beginning of the Era of Decline.

Impa hands Link a chest containing six crystals and ancient writings that only the chosen one could read. The text contained the coordinates to obtain the Triforce of Courage. To break the barrier of the Great Palace where the relic was guarded, Link had to place the six crystals into guardian statues scattered throughout Hyrule's temples.

Upon fulfilling the task and reaching the deep palace, Link faces his ultimate test by defeating his own living shadow, Dark Link. With the victory, he conquers the Triforce of Courage. By gathering the three parts of the sacred triangle before the altar, Link wishes for the end of the spell, awakening the princess from her millennial slumber.

From this point forward, the chronology becomes the center of a debate. The most recent titles in the franchise take place more than ten thousand years in the future, raising the question of which of the three timelines contains the events of Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom.

A popular theory indicates that a cataclysm unified the three timelines into a single, stable reality. The main argument for this is that these titles bring simultaneous geographical and historical references from all eras, such as the flood from Wind Waker, the accounts from Twilight Princess, and the decline from the original 1986 game.

Although it is a spin-off game, the first Hyrule Warriors offers a logical explanation for this fusion by narrating a war that broke the barriers of time to stop Ganon's return.

In the story of this game, Ganondorf's soul had been split into four parts after his defeat in the past. Three were scattered across different eras, and the fourth remained sealed by the Master Sword. Cia, a sorceress tasked with guarding the balance of time, is corrupted by the villain's spirit and opens the Gate of Souls, a rift connecting different realities of Hyrule, to gather the army and essence of the Demon King.

Cia's monster army invades the castle and kidnaps Queen Zelda. Link, a young recruit in the royal guard, joins forces with General Impa to contain the threat. Cia manages to steal the Triforce and opens permanent time rifts. During the pursuit through the eras, Hyrule's forces receive help from heroes of various realities, such as Darunia and Ruto from Ocarina of Time, Agitha and Midna from Twilight Princess, and the artificial intelligence Fi from Skyward Sword.

The sorceress manages to gather three parts of the villain's soul, but Ganondorf gains his own consciousness and tries to betray her to steal the Triforce. In an act of defense, Cia sends the fragments of Courage and Wisdom back to Link and Zelda, using the remaining fragment to contain the villain's advance.

Later, when Link wields the Master Sword to close the portals, he accidentally releases the final fragment of Ganondorf's soul. The Demon King is fully resurrected, recovers his power, and launches a mass attack. All the warriors from different eras gather on the battlefield. Link faces the villain, who transmutes into the beast Ganon. With the support of Zelda's Light Arrows, the hero destroys the monster and channels the power of the Triforce to seal him away. The allies return to their worlds, and Link rests the sword on its pedestal.

This massive crossing of eras would have left consequences on the structure of the universe, fusing the memories and historical records of the three timelines into a single, continuous reality.

Release Date: March 3, 2017 (Nintendo Switch / Wii U)

With more than ten thousand years having passed since the ancient chronicles, the history of the kingdom basically became a myth. Link awakens without memories inside a high-tech chamber and finds an old hermit on the surface, who guides him to explore ancient structures. The man reveals himself to be the spirit of King Rhoam Bosphoramus Hyrule and explains that, a century ago, the entity known as Calamity Ganon destroyed civilization.

Link was mortally wounded in the war and placed in the Shrine of Resurrection to recover, while Princess Zelda used her sacred magic to trap the calamity within the castle walls during the hero's hundred-year absence.

In Kakariko Village, the elder Impa instructs Link to recover his lost memories and regain control of the four Divine Beasts, colossal war machines corrupted by Ganon's energy. The hero travels through the four regions of the continent, frees the spirits of the ancient Champions who piloted the machines, and purifies the mechanical titans.

With the arsenal restored, Link invades Hyrule Castle. Supported by the cover fire of the Divine Beasts and the new leaders of the kingdom, he annihilates Calamity Ganon, freeing Zelda from her confinement and beginning the reconstruction of the kingdom.

Release Date: May 12, 2023 (Nintendo Switch)

About five years after the defeat of the calamity, Hyrule is experiencing a period of reconstruction. During a scientific expedition in the catacombs beneath the castle, Link and Zelda find murals depicting the ancient Zonai civilization and the foundation of the kingdom. In the depths, they locate a mummified corpse held pinned by a spiritual arm and a teardrop-shaped stone. As they approach, the mummy awakens and attacks them with a corrosive red energy that destroys Link's right arm and breaks the Master Sword. The cataclysm causes the castle to levitate, opening a chasm beneath Zelda's feet. The princess disappears in a beam of light as she falls, while a mysterious hand catches Link before he plummets into the void.

The hero awakens on an archipelago of floating islands in the sky and discovers that his injured limb has been replaced by the mystical arm of Rauru, the first Zonai king and founder of Hyrule. Rauru's spirit guides the hero through the sacred islands. Upon accessing the celestial Temple of Time, Link sends the deteriorated Master Sword through an altar of light and begins his journey to locate the princess.

While investigating the continent, we discover that Zelda was voluntarily sent to the distant past due to the power of her Secret Stone, a Zonai artifact that amplifies the temporal abilities of the bearer. She was welcomed by King Rauru and Queen Sonia in the early days of Hyrule's creation.

In the past, the leader of the Gerudo, Ganondorf, swears false loyalty to the crown, but Zelda foresees his intentions. The villain assassinates Queen Sonia in an ambush, steals her Secret Stone, and transforms into the Demon King, initiating the Imprisoning War. Faced with the overwhelming power of the enemy, Rauru makes a final sacrifice, using his own essence to trap the villain underground until Link arises in the future to destroy him with the purified sword.

In the past, Zelda receives the broken Master Sword through the time rift and decides to restore the blade by accumulating sacred energy over centuries. To withstand the test of time, the princess performs the forbidden ritual of draconification by swallowing her Secret Stone, renouncing her consciousness and her human form to transform into the Light Dragon, flying through the skies for millennia while regenerating the sword on her head.

In the present, Link assembles the new sages of Hyrule, who inherit the stones of their ancestors. Armed with the fully restored Master Sword, the hero descends to the depths of the planet for the definitive confrontation. Ganondorf is cornered and, in an act of desperation, swallows his own stone to transform into the Demon Dragon. The Light Dragon rescues Link in the sky, and in an epic aerial battle, the hero destroys the monster's core, eliminating the Demon King permanently.

Following the victory, the souls of Rauru and Sonia manifest their powers through Link's arm, performing a final miracle that returns Princess Zelda to her human form.

The Legend of Zelda possesses an immense chronology and continues to expand with each release. Adding the previous guide to this one makes it easier to understand how each game fits into the timeline and the reasons that led to the narrative splits into Eras.

Nintendo announced months ago the production of a live-action film directed by Wes Ball, known for Maze Runner and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, which remains underway behind the scenes of world cinema.

Furthermore, we will have the Ocarina of Time Remake for the Switch coming later in 2026!

Are you excited about this? Because I definitely am!