Princess Zelda

Lore & Background

In many entries, Zelda is captured by Ganon, but in titles like Ocarina of Time and The Wind Waker, she adopts disguises to play a more active role. In Ocarina of Time, she hides from Ganondorf as Sheik, a ninja warrior from the Sheikah clan, guiding Link until revealing her true identity near the game's end. This led to fan debate regarding gender, which Nintendo clarified by stating Sheik is simply Zelda in a different outfit. In The Wind Waker and Phantom Hourglass, she appears as Tetra, a pirate captain unaware of her royal bloodline until the Triforce of Wisdom restores her princess form. Skyward Sword reveals her first incarnation as the mortal reincarnation of the goddess Hylia, expanding her significance beyond royalty to divine origin.

In Their Own Story

The narrative of Zelda spans thousands of years, with multiple incarnations connected by a timeline where she is always a descendant of the founder of the royal line. In Skyward Sword, she attends the Knight Academy as a student rather than a princess, designed to look like a typical village girl before revealing her goddess form dressed in white. Spirit Tracks marked a sharp contrast to earlier damsel roles by having her adventure alongside Link in spirit form. For Breath of the Wild, the team designed her to be complex and multifaceted, updating her image with combat-ready outfits like a blue blouse and pants. In Tears of the Kingdom, her character development focuses on growth as she figures out what kind of person she will become while restoring the kingdom.

Reader's Guide

Princess Zelda has evolved from a rescue target in early games to a playable protagonist in Echoes of Wisdom, where she is the first mainline lead. Originally intended for Link, Aonuma decided she was ideal for the game's echoes concept due to player demand. Her design history includes original pink gowns and red hair in Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, a scrapped sci-fi outfit for A Link to the Past, and a tabard featuring Sheikah and Hyrule crests in Ocarina of Time. Tetra's swirl hair mimicked wind and smoke, while Twilight Princess illustrations portrayed her as pensive and anxious but not gloomy. Critics have listed her as one of the greatest female video game characters of all time for her development into a strong figure.

Did You Know?

• Shigeru Miyamoto named the character after Zelda Fitzgerald, wife of F. Scott Fitzgerald, because a public relations planner suggested it for an illustrated story.
• The instruction booklet for Zelda II: The Adventure of Link establishes that every female child born into the royal household is given the name Zelda by order of the prince.
• A spin-off game starring Sheik as the protagonist was reported to be in development at Retro Studios but was eventually cancelled.
• In Echoes of Wisdom, Zelda serves as the playable avatar for the first time in a mainline game, though the role was originally intended for Link.
• Director Hidemaro Fujibayashi stated that Zelda's shorter hairstyle in Tears of the Kingdom was designed to make her feel more realistic and actively mobile.