Link (Legend of Zelda)

Link is the protagonist of Nintendo's Legend of Zelda video game series. Link was created by Shigeru Miyamoto, and first appeared in the 1987 game The Legend of Zelda. Introduced as a generic sword-fighting hero, the character was typical of fantasy-adventure games. However, later Legend of Zelda titles revealed significantly more details about him. The game's success—over 6.5 million copies sold worldwide{{ref|optigamer}}—and that of its numerous sequels made Link one of Nintendo's best-known characters. Link is named for the "link" the player shares with the hero of each game{{ref|linkwithplayer}}.

Related Topics:
Protagonist - Nintendo - Legend of Zelda - Video game - Shigeru Miyamoto - 1987 - The Legend of Zelda - Fantasy

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A peculiarity of the character is that there are several different incarnations of Link throughout the series, although they share a number of distinctive characteristics. The existence of multiple Links is made obvious on many occasions in the games; for example, the introduction sequences of ' and ' refer to an ancient, legendary champion, identical in appearance to Link, and TWW directly mentions the "Hero of Time" as an historical entity. Because of this unique situation, Link may be referred to both singularly and plurally throughout this article. Miyamoto-san confirmed that there were multiple Links in late 2003, however, the exact chronology of the Legend of Zelda series is subject to debate among fans, and apart from a few fairly clear pairings (see Link's incarnations section) it is uncertain which of Link's incarnations appears in each of the games. Even "official" timelines tend to contradict previous "official" timelines. (See Legend of Zelda series for a discussion of the controversy surrounding the chronology of the games.)

Related Topics:
Incarnation - Chronology - Fan - Link's incarnations - Legend of Zelda series

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Contents

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• 1 Common attributes of all "Links"
• 1.1 Appearance
• 1.2 Abilities and weaponry
• 1.2.1 Swords and shields
• 1.2.2 Other weapons
• 1.2.3 Physical abilities
• 1.2.4 Magic
• 2 Relationships with other characters
• 2.1 Family
• 2.2 Companions and allies
• 3 Link's incarnations
• 3.1 The Legend of Zelda & The Adventure of Link
• 3.2 A Link to the Past & Link's Awakening
• 3.3 Ocarina of Time & Majora's Mask
• 3.4 Oracle Series
• 3.5 Four Swords
• 3.6 The Wind Waker
• 3.7 Four Swords Adventures
• 3.8 The Minish Cap
• 3.9 Twilight Princess
• 4 Link in other media - TV, comics, and more
• 5 Appearances in other games
• 5.2 Super Smash Bros. series
• 5.3 Soul Calibur 2
• 5.4 Minor cameos
• 6 References

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Link (Legend of Zelda): Common attributes of all "Links" ►