Link

Silent hero, timeless courage: the boy who connects worlds and defeats eternal darkness.

Link is the protagonist of Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda franchise, created by Shigeru Miyamoto and first introduced in 1986. As the embodiment of the legendary hero's soul, Link is reincarnated whenever evil arises to defeat the forces of darkness and save Princess Zelda. He is frequently cited as one of the most iconic video game characters of all time.

Quick Facts

Race

Hylian

Series

The Legend of Zelda

First game

The Legend of Zelda (1986)

Creator

Shigeru Miyamoto

Weapon

Swords
Spears
etc.. Mainly user of Master Sword

Origin

Hyrule

Lore & Background

Within Zelda mythology, Link represents a reincarnated soul bound to an endless cycle of fighting evil. The origin of this curse was established in Skyward Sword (2011), where the Demon King Demise doomed the hero to eternally face a reincarnating hatred whenever evil arises across Hyrule's history. Though each game features a different individual or incarnation, they share the same spirit. In titles like Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask, the same version of Link continues his story across time.

The series spans thousands of years, with some Links being descendants of earlier heroes while others are spiritual successors. To defeat the forces of darkness, Link typically obtains the mystical Master Sword or a similar legendary weapon after completing many trials. His journey involves traveling through Hyrule, exploring dungeons, battling creatures, and solving puzzles until he saves Princess Zelda.

Reader's Guide

Link is a mostly silent protagonist who interacts through visual responses like nodding or shaking his head, allowing players to project themselves into the role. His voice acting consists only of grunts and battle cries, though he says 'Come on!' in The Wind Waker; in Echoes of Wisdom, he is explicitly mute. His design evolved from a three-color sprite inspired by Peter Pan to include more expressive features. For Breath of the Wild (2017), nearly 100 designs were considered, breaking convention by omitting his iconic green outfit because the team wanted him to remain neutral as graphic fidelity increased.

His physical appearance changed with trends: mullets in the 80s, curtain bangs and pierced ears in the 90s, choppy side-swept bangs in Twilight Princess. The Master Sword remains central to his journey, obtained after trials to face Ganon across various incarnations including Hyrule Warriors, Cadence of Hyrule, and crossovers like Mario Kart 8.

Did You Know?

Link is named because he was originally intended to be the 'link' between past and future when Triforce fragments were electronic chips.
In The Wind Waker, Link speaks a few lines, such as calling out to Tetra and shouting during gameplay, though he remains mostly silent.
For Breath of the Wild, a wide range of outfit designs were considered before settling on non-green attire, though the exact number and reasoning are not officially confirmed as 'nearly 100' or purely for neutrality.
Yoshiaki Koizumi's wife inspired Link's iconic green cap and tunic by noting that Nintendo characters lacked distinctive headwear, not because of 'funny noses'.