Nintendo has a Zelda Problem

How The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild whipped up a raging war among fans — and why Nintendo won’t put an end to it.

The latest installment of Nintendo’s popular video game series “The Legend of Zelda” has sparked multiple angry debates among its many fans. (Stylized using the mobile apps Prisma and Photofox.)

What was supposed to be the struggling video game console Wii U’s rise from the brink of defeat instead became its last dying breath — and the beginning of Nintendo’s remarkable turnaround, as the major launch title for the Wii U successor Nintendo Switch.

Breath of the Wild is the 19th installment of the critically acclaimed video game series The Legend of Zelda and acted as the main attraction of the Nintendo Switch when launched on March 3rd 2017.

As such, it’s an enormously important game. With more than 4.7 million units sold worldwide as of September 2017 (Switch version only; the Wii U version has sold somewhere between 1.08 million and 2.13 million units), it’s safe to say that it has been a huge success.

And it is quite a breathtaking game, for the hardcore Hyrule explorers and the newly blessed fans alike.

Although praised by critics and gamers, it is a somewhat controversial game among fans. A game that has created a large rift between them, dividing them into at least three different fractions now embarked in an all-out war against each other.

Why, you might ask?

If you have delved into all, or at least some, of the many different versions of Hyrule what probably strikes you first is the plentiful familiar landmarks from, and nods to, old installments. Which is expected. The mix of tradition and innovation is indeed one of Nintendo’s most successful trademarks.

When you start navigating the vast world — 82.57km² according to game theorist Austin’s ridiculously impressive trigonometric in-game analysis — you immediately notice that it really is a total reinvention of the beloved franchise. Not only is the world an open sandbox free to explore at your own pace, but also in whatever way you like.

The most awe-inspiring feature of Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is the vibrant world it depicts. It is buzzing of life and thriving in mysteries. Packed with secrets in every little corner, waiting to be discovered. It is truly alive, which is in no way a small feat to accomplish.

In order to breathe life into such a large open world, you need the most valuable asset there is: interactive, compelling content. And lots of it.

“Our mission in developing this new Zelda game for Wii U is quite plainly to re-think the conventions of Zelda. We want to set aside these conventions, get back to basics and create a newborn Zelda so that the players can best enjoy the real essence of the franchise.” – Eiji Aonuma, producer

Since the game is the 19th installment of the series, as stated earlier, the team didn’t lack resources when it comes to compelling content with which to fill the Breath of the Wild universe. The team also acknowledged the fact that when you set out on such a bold mission, to completely reform the gameplay conventions of a treasured game series, you need to supply the more demanding part of the crowd — i.e, the hardcore fans — with easter eggs and hints to earlier installments.

And it is this particular circumstance that has caused the all-out war among fans.

You see, when creating new installments of The Legend of Zelda, the team’s primary focus is gameplay¹. The story is playing second fiddle. That’s most likely why the official chronology, presented in the book Hyrule Historia prior to the release of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword in 2011, is such a… well, mess.

Despite that, this timeline is a significant part of the rich Zelda mythology, and it is highly treasured by the hardcore fans.

Before continuing, we need to establish some facts. If you already know everything there is to know about the official Zelda chronology, please feel free to skip to the later part of this story.

The official timeline, as presented in ”Hyrule Historia.”

The official Zelda timeline presumably came to be thanks to extensive pressure from the Zelda fan community. For years the most dedicated fans had crafted their own versions of a potential timeline, putting together pieces and fragments of information illustrating the mythology within the games of the series.

Thanks to Hyrule Historia, the fans pleas to Nintendo for a true version of the chronology were finally heard.

As far as the in-game chronology is concerned, the 2011 Wii installment Skyward Sword is the first game of the series. It takes place in what is called The Sky Era, sometime after The Era of the World’s Creation and The Era of the Goddess Hylia. It is followed by The Era of Chaos, The Era of Prosperity, The Force Era, and The Era of the Hero of Time, containing three titles to date: The Minish Cap (Game Boy Advance, 2004), Four Swords (Game Boy Advance, 2002), and Ocarina of Time (Nintendo 64, 1998).

All of these four games share the same timeline.

Then, it gets complicated.

After Ocarina of Time the timeline splits in three, depending on the outcome of the game: The Decline of Hyrule and the Last Hero, The Twilight World and the Legacy of the Hero, and The Hero of Winds and a New World.

Let’s take a closer look at each one of the three forked timelines:

Downfall Timeline

• A Link to the Past (Super Nintendo, 1991)
• Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages (Game Boy Color, 2001)
• Link’s Awakening (Game Boy, 1993)
• A Link Between Worlds (3DS, 2013)
• Tri Force Heroes (3DS, 2015)
• The Legend of Zelda (Nintendo Entertainment System, 1986)
• Adventure of Link (Nintendo Entertainment System, 1987)

In the Downfall Timeline, Link fails to defeat his antagonist Ganondorf at the end of Ocarina of Time, resulting in Ganon (the beast which Ganondorf turns into when laying hands on the Triforce) obtaining the remaining Triforce pieces from Link and Zelda, taking over Hyrule. He is subsequently sealed within the corrupted Sacred Realm (also knowns as Dark World) by the Seven Sages.

This timeline branch is also known as the Fallen Hero Timeline, the Failed Hero Timeline, and the Decline Timeline, among other things, but for this story I’ll stick with the Downfall Timeline.

Worth noting is the fact that the majority of titles taking place in this timeline was released prior to 1994. Also, A Link Between Worlds and Tri Force Heroes aren’t mentioned in Hyrule Historia due to the fact that the two games didn’t exist at the time of the book’s release, but have later been confirmed to take place between Links Awakening and the original 1986 game.

Child Era Timeline

• Majora’s Mask (Nintendo 64, 2000)
• Twilight Princess (Gamecube, Wii, 2006)
• Four Swords Adventures (GameCube, 2004)

This timeline, known by fans as the Child Timeline, follows Link after being sent back to his original time after the defeat of Ganondorf in Ocarina of Time. In his original time, child Link warns Zelda and the king of Hyrule of the tragic future that awaits the kingdom involving Ganondorf if they don’t stop him.

Link then sets off on a journey to find his lost fairy friend Navi and ends up in the parallell world of Termina (depicted in Majora’s Mask), while the Seven Sages is tasked with the execution of Ganondorf. However, the execution fails and the Sages are forced to seal Ganondorf in the Twilight Realm, thus creating the setting for Twilight Princess.

Adult Era Timeline

• The Wind Waker (GameCube, 2002)
• Phantom Hourglass (NDS, 2007)
• Spirit Tracks (NDS, 2009)

In the Adult Timeline, the Hero of Time defeats Ganondorf in Ocarina of Time’s final battle and Ganondorf is subsequently sealed within the corrupted Sacred Realm/Dark World by the Seven Sages.

Many years after Link’s victory, the seal of the Seven Sages begins to weaken and Ganondorf manages to escape his imprisonment. The people of Hyrule hopes that the Hero of Time will show up to save them, but to no avail. Instead, the gods answer their prayers by flooding Hyrule, keeping Ganon and his army trapped in time underneath the waves.

It’s worth mentioning that all of the three titles taking place in this timeline are cel shaded. Also, both Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks are direct sequels to The Wind Waker.

Okay, now that the official timeline is thoroughly explained, let’s return to Breath of the Wild.

War of the Wild

By publishing an official Zelda chronology, Nintendo effectively put a curse on every future installment of the franchise: The Curse of the Timeline. It is inevitable that one of the main questions among fans whenever a new Zelda game is released forever will be, “Where does it fall in the timeline?”

Producer Eiji Aonuma and director Hidemaro Fujibayashi have been asked this very question numerous times already in interviews about Breath of the Wild.

First, they replied with a cryptic, “We’re not sure”.

Then, Aonuma said this:

“I’m not going to tell you where the game ends up in the Zelda timeline before you’ve had the chance to play, but if you watched the third trailer, then you heard about the voice that said Hyrule is a country that went through many battles against Ganon. I’d say this is a clue as to when the game takes place.”

Aonuma later confirmed that Breath of the Wild takes place sometime after Ocarina of Time, and Fujibayashi further elaborated:

“It takes place in an age long, long after any of the titles released to date. It is the most recent age. Of course, regardless of the time period, the story does unfold in Hyrule so for those who’ve played other titles in the series there will be a lot of recognizable places to enjoy.”

This leaves us with a mere two undisputed facts:

1. It definitely takes place after Ocarina of Time.
2. It is the most recent entry in whichever timeline it belongs to.

Until Hyrule Historia is updated, it is up to the community of Zelda fans to figure out which timeline’s the best fit for Breath of the Wild.

And that’s the problem — there is so much “evidence” within the game backing up each and every claim of either of the three timelines that it’s practically impossible to decide.

That doesn’t keep the community from trying though. And thus, the war is on. For the sake of this story, I will now do my best to guide you through the four major theories, of which two are dominant, and then try to reach a conclusion of my own.

Lynels, Spectacle Rock, the geography, and the Master Sword’s placement are some of the most prominent proves of ”Breath of the Wild” taking place in the Downfall Timeline.

The Downfall Theory

This is to date one of the most dominant of the four major theories. The evidence is quite compelling, and the fact that the entire Hyrule kingdom is in a state of decay from the very outset of the game can be seen as quite an obvious visual representation of the Downfall Timeline.

When summed up, there are a few proofs more prominent than others:

1. Ganon. There are no references to Ganondorf throughout the adventure of Breath of the Wild. The story revolves solely around Ganon. While Ganon does appear in the Child Timeline, it is only in the final battles of the games, after Ganondorf obtains the Triforce and turns into his beast form. In the Downfall Timeline however, Ganondorf is nowhere to be seen. Here, Ganon is the the main villain, being resurrected no less than four times throughout the course of the timeline’s eight installments. Now is a good time to echo the words of producer Eiji Aonuma: “Hyrule is a country that went through many battles against Ganon. I’d say this is a clue as to when the game takes place.”
2. The geography of Hyrule. Given that the geography is fairly inconsistent throughout the series, the maps of A Link to the Past, Adventure of Link and so on indeed align pretty well with the map and key placements in Breath of the Wild.
3. Spectacle Rock. A rock formation found in the northwestern part of Breath of the Wild’s version of Hyrule, the Gerudo region, which is only found in games within the Downfall Timeline (there is an island in The Wind Waker, which belongs to the Adult Timeline, called Spectacle Island though).
4. Koholint Island and Toronbo Shores. Located in the southeastern Necluda Sea, there’s a very special shrine quest: Eventide Island. The northern part of the island is called Toronbo Shores, which is also the name of the beach where Link washes ashore after a shipwreck in Link’s Awakening. The name of the island in Link’s Awakening is Koholint Island. On Eventide Island in Breath of the Wild, there’s a location named Koholit Rock — an obvious reference to Link’s Awakening.
5. Lynels. The feared Lynel — the part horse, part human, and part lion beast — is a recurring enemy in the Zelda series. In the Downfall Timeline, that is. In fact, they don’t appear anywhere else in Zelda. Not in the Child Timeline, not in the Adult Timeline, and not even in the shared timeline prior to the final events of Ocarina of Time.
6. Cap, Tunic, and Trousers of the Wild. Completing all of the 120 shrines unlocks three chests in the Forgotten Temple, right in front of the goddess Hylia statue. Inside, you’ll find a new armor: the Cap, the Tunic, and the Trousers of the Wild. Although famous YouTuber MatPat wrongly states in his theory that the stripe on the cap is yellow*, the armor in its entirety is strongly reminiscent of the clothes worn by the different incarnations of Link in all of the other games within the Downfall Timeline, the brown garments being the key elements. Not the light green strap. This particular line of outfits containing brown garments is not seen in the Child Timeline, nor in the Adult Timeline.
7. The Master Sword. The placement of the Master Sword within the iconic Lost Woods suggests that Breath of the Wild takes place in the Downfall Timeline, simply because it’s found elsewhere in the games of the other timelines (the Temple of Time in Twilight Princess, and inside Hyrule Castle in The Wind Waker).

Of course, the Downfall Theory doesn’t lack disproofs. Here’s a list of the disproofs most difficult to ignore:

1. The absence of Gorons. The Goron tribe does exist in the Downfall Timeline — but only in the lands of Holodrum and Labrynna, in Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons. The Gorons are not present in the land of Hyrule in any of the games.
2. The Gerudo. Even though Ganondorf, who later turns into the Demon King Ganon when obtaining the Triforce, is of Gerudo descent, the tribe seems to be vanquished in this timeline’s different versions of Hyrule.
3. The Great Deku Tree. “The Guardian of the Forest” has been an important part of all games since Ocarina of Time, but is nowhere to be found in the Downfall Timeline.
4. Koroks, Rito, Bokoblins, and Lizalfos. The Koroks and Rito² tribes exist solely in the Adult Timeline, while the Lizalfos only appear in the Child Timeline after the timeline split (they are present in Ocarina of Time and Skyward Sword though). The Bokoblins are looming in both the Adult Timeline and the Child Timeline, but not in the Downfall Timeline.
5. The Lesser Hyrule. Hyrule Historia states that the “proud kingdom of Hyrule had once covered a vast area of land, but the passage of the ages saw its decline, and it eventually shrank into a single, small kingdom,” even naming it the Lesser Kingdom of Hyrule³. The Hyrule seen in Breath of the Wild is many things. But small, it is not.

Summary: Although lacking conclusive evidence, the advocates of this theory make a very strong case. Breath of the Wild is packed with references to the old installments. Placing the game in this timeline would indeed mark a noble end to the Era of Decline.

Support in the fan community: 4 of 10.

The list of evidence for the Child Theory is comprehensive.

The Child Theory

In the War of the Wild, this theory is the Downfall Theory’s prime adversary. And it puts up a very evenly matched fight. The evidence for this timeline is comprehensive, and some of the most significant key elements of Breath of the Wild make it fit pretty well in the “Post Shadow Era”.

The most prominent proofs being:

1. The glowing embers of twilight. There are a total of 23 locked memories to recover throughout Breath of the Wild (including five from the third DLC pack). One of these memories, titled “Subdued Ceremony”, shows the ceremony of the Champions. During this event, Zelda speaks of the challenges ahead, and she says: “Whether skyward bound, adrift in time, or steeped in the glowing embers of twilight… The sacred blade is forever bound to the soul of the Hero.” It is generally believed that this speech refers to three major plot events in the chronology. If that’s the case, then surely skyward bound and adrift in time refers to the events of Skyward Sword and Ocarina of Time. The glowing embers of twilight could then point to one game only: Twilight princess, in the Child Timeline.
2. Dark Beast Ganon. While the Desert King Ganondorf doesn’t exist in Breath of the Wild, his beast form Ganon makes an appearance in Twilight Princess. In the final battle of the game, Ganondorf transforms into Dark Beast Ganon. He is never called by that exact name in the chronology (he is most often referred to as the Demon King Ganon) except for Twilight Princess — and now Breath of the Wild. Also, in Four Swords Adventures taking place after the events of Twilight Princess, it is Ganon that is resurrected — not Ganondorf.
3. The Gor Coron monument. Gor Coron is a Goron Elder and former Goron Patriarch in Twilight Princess. Large monuments of Goron Patriarchs can be seen in Breath of the Wild’s Goron City. One of them is depicting Gor Coron.
4. The Mirror of Twilight. Just outside of Lurelin Village far down in the East Necluda region, on the Palmorae Beach beneath Mount Dunsel’s Cape Cales, Link stumbles upon Garini. Garini has unearthed a broken monument in the Palmorae Ruins and asks Link to help him find the scattered monument pieces. Upon completing the shrine quest, named A Fragmented Monument, the pieced-together monument bear a striking resemblance to the Mirror of Twilight found in Twilight Princess. Although visually not reminiscent of the Mirror of Twilight, there is also a mirror called the Dark Mirror in Four Swords Adventures taking place after Twilight Princess. It is said to have been used to “seal away a Dark Tribe that invaded Hyrule.”
5. Hyrule Castle. The architecture of the Hyrule Castle has a lot of things in common with its counterpart in Twilight Princess.
6. The Master Sword. The legendary Master Sword was introduced in A Link to the Past, but its iconic design was first established in Ocarina of Time. The Breath of the Wild version looks a lot more like the swords found in Skyward Sword and Twilight Princess than any of the swords Link wields in the other installments.
7. Calamity Ganon(dorf). As the Youtubers HMK, Commonwealth Realm, and Zeltik points out in their joined attempt to debunk the Downfall Theory, the demon face of Calamity Ganon and Ganondorf from Twilight Princess share a lot of common traits, most notably the gem in his forehead.
8. The Great Bridge of Hylia. This bridge is an exact replica of the bridge with the same name in Twilight Princess. The Great Bridge of Hylia doesn’t appear anywhere else other than in Breath of the Wild and Twilight Princess.
9. The translation mixup. The Japanese word tasogaruru たそがれる thought to be used by Zelda in the Subdued Ceremony cutscene can literally be translated to both twilight and decline, the latter being an obvious reference to the Downfall Timeline. This has resulted in the misassumption that some translators chose to reference A Link to the Past instead of Twilight Princess. However, the German translation often cited as an abbreviation clearly makes a nod to the twilight adventure: “Ob du durch die Lüfte fliegst, durch die Zeiten wandelst oder in die Schatten eintauchst…,” meaning “Whether you fly through the skies, walk through the ages, or dive into the shadows…” And in the French translation, also cited as an abbreviation, Zelda says: “À travers les contrées célestes, par-delà les limbes du temps et les ténèbres du crépuscule…,” meaning “Through the heavenly lands, beyond the limbo of time and the darkness of the twilight…” Also, the Japanese word tasogaruru is never actually said — that must have been a mishearing turned into a factoid. The word uttered by Zelda is actually tasogare 黄昏, meaning “twilight” or “dusk”. Case closed.

… and the disproofs most difficult to ignore are these:

1. Ganondorf is never mentioned. As stated earlier in this story. However, this disproof is easily dismissed. Hyrule Historia states that “no trace remains of the human known as Ganondorf” in the section describing the events of Four Swords Adventures, where Ganon is ultimately sealed by the power of the Four Sword⁴.
2. Princess Ruto. Monuments can be found all throughout Zora’s Domain. These monuments describe certain major events of Hyrule in which the Zoras have played a big part, and some of them states that “… an evil man with designs on ruling the world appeared, bringing disaster upon Zora’s Domain. It is said that Ruto awoke as a sage facing this foe alongside the princess of Hyrule and the hero of legend. Her achievements are remembered not only by the Zora, they are forever etched in the history of Hyrule.” Since the events leading to Ruto becoming a Sage never actually took place in the Child Timeline (because the Hero of Time returned to his own time and warned the Royal Family of Hyrule before Ganondorf laid hands to the Triforce), why would the Zora princess of old awake as a Sage?
3. The lack of “exclusive” enemies. While there are a few enemy creatures that exclusively show up in the Downfall Timeline’s and the Adult Timeline’s installments, the Child Timeline can claim to have just one: the Lizalfos. The problem is that they are also present in Skyward Sword and Ocarina of Time, before the timeline split, meaning that it’s perfectly possible — however not plausible, some might argue — for them to appear later on in any of the three split timelines.
4. Koroks and Rito. The Koroks and the Rito, both having a pretty prominent part of the main story arch, don’t exist outside of the Adult Timeline.

Summary: The list of evidence is comprehensive. Even though the physical evidence isn’t quite as distinct as the visual proofs of the Downfall Theory, some of the most significant key elements stand in favor of the Child Theory.

Support in the fan community: 4 out of 10.

Koroks, Rito, rock salt, and Ruto being a Sage is the strongest evidence of the Adult Theory.

The Adult Theory

The Adult Theory had quite the following early on, mostly due to the presence of Rito and Koroks. Now that we’re approaching the one-year mark of the release of Breath of the Wild and the game has been analyzed down to the tiniest fractions of an atom, it has been completely sidelined by the two popular Downfall and Child theories. Even though brushed off by the most well-reputed game theorists, it still has a lot of resilient advocates.

The most prominent arguments being:

1. Koroks and Rito. As you already know by now, they don’t exist outside of the Adult Timeline. Except for on an old mural found in the HD remake of Twilight Princess. But that’s kind of dispensable.
2. Rock salt. This salty ingredient is found everywhere throughout Breath of the Wild’s Hyrule. When inspecting this item in the inventory, the explanation states that it is “crystallized salt from the ancient sea.” Although it could possibly refer to the great sea that turned into the Lanayru Desert in Skyward Sword, it’s more plausible that it refers to the Great Sea of The Wind Waker. Which would explain why Link stumbles upon the rock salt all over the world in Breath of the Wild, since the entire Hyrule Kingdom was flooded prior to the events of The Wind Waker.
3. Princess Ruto. For the same reasons already stated in the walkthrough of the Child Theory.
4. Vah Medoh. The Rito tribe’s Divine Beast Vah Medoh’s name is based on the character Medli, The Sage of Earth in The Wind Waker. Vah Medoh is actually the only of the four Divine Beasts not to have a name in reference of a sage from Ocarina of Time (Vah Rudania being an anagram for Darunia, the Spirit of Fire, while Vah Naboris is a reference to Nabooru, the Sage of Spirit, and Vah Ruta a reference to princess Ruto, the Spirit of Water).
5. Corresponding locations? The Reddit user hwolas95 posted an intriguing theory eight months ago: if The Wind Waker’s world map is rotated “approximately 100 degrees counter clockwise, it’s an almost flawless fit” when compared with Breath of the Wild’s map. Korok Forest matches up with Forest Haven, Rito Village with Dragon Roost Island, Spectacle Rock with Spectacle Island, Lake Hylia with Greatfish Island, Gerudo Desert with the Forsaken Fortress, the Tower of the Gods and the rebuilt Hyrule Castle with Hyrule Castle, Hateno Village with Outset Island.

… and the disproofs most difficult to ignore are these:

1. The Triforce. In The Wind Waker, it’s gone. During the last encounter with Ganondorf, king Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule touches the completed Triforce, wishing it to “wash away this ancient land of Hyrule.” And thus, the Triforce disappears. After the final clash, Link plunges the Master Sword into the forehead of Ganondorf, turning him to stone and sealing him. Hyrule, Ganondorf, and king Daphnes Nohansen are then buried under the ocean. In Breath of the Wild, the Triforce isn’t gone, and there are plenty of landmarks found far and wide that refers to Ocarina of Time’s Hyrule. I.e, the “ancient land of Hyrule” that’s supposed to be buried under the waves of the Great Sea. Yes, the sea could have evaporated in the 10,000+ years that have passed since the last game in any of the timeline and the events of Breath of the Wild… But that’s just a little far-fetched now, isn’t it?
2. The absence of Ganon. In The Wind Waker, Link fights Ganondorf but never Ganon. Yes, he has to deal with Puppet Ganon, but that’s not the Ganon. Also, in the final fight of the game, it is Ganondorf that is defeated and sealed. Not Ganon. And as we’ve already concluded, Ganondorf doesn’t appear and is not mentioned in Breath of the Wild.
3. All else but Koroks and Rito. There are plenty of locations and creatures in Breath of the Wild that are only present in the other two timelines.
4. The evolved Rito. The Ritos of Breath of the Wild are very different from the Ritos seen in The Wind Waker.
5. Cel shading. All of the three titles in the Adult Timeline — The Wind Waker, The Phantom Hourglass, and Spirit Tracks — are cel shaded. Not the most fireproof disproof perhaps (pun intended), but it wouldn’t make much sense to let a game that differs so extensively from the rest of the games in this timeline take place in said timeline. Which is the case with Breath of the Wild. It has very little in common with the three games in the Adult Timeline.

Summary: The list of evidence is no doubt intriguing. But the major flaw of this theory is that it’s easily debunked. Much more easily than the Downfall Theory and the Child Theory. A house of cards built on sand in the midst of strong winds, if you may.

Support in the fan community: 1 out of 10.

Blah blah, blah blah, blah blah — it’s a convergence!

The Convergence Theory

Three down, one to go. This last theory is to some extent widespread, but also somewhat resented. The reason for the resentment is that it’s generally considered a cop-out. If Nintendo were to present this theory as confirmed canon, the community would most likely accuse them of being lazy or cowardly. Or both. The theory has a few good points though.

The most prominent ones being:

1. The inconsistencies. Some physical proofs debunk the Downfall Theory, while others debunk the Child Theory, and even more debunk the Adult Theory. The fact that Breath of the Wild makes a lot of references to many of the old games taking place in all of the three timelines might just be Nintendo’s way of saying, “Hey guys, the cycle of doom and horror has finally ended — the timelines have been merged!”
2. The most recent age. Breath of the Wild takes place at the end of whichever timeline it belongs to. That’s an established and confirmed fact. During the final battle with Dark Beast Ganon, Zelda also states that Ganon has “given up on reincarnation and assumed his pure, enraged form.” Which means that when he eventually falls, it will be for the last time, putting an end to the curse cast by the Demon King Demise in Skyward Sword. This speaks in favor of both the Downfall Theory and the Child Theory, but perhaps more so of the Convergence Theory.
3. 10,000 years. A lot could have happened in the 10,000+ years between the last game(s) of the timeline(s) and the events in Breath of the Wild. Even a convergence of split timelines? Well yes of course. Why not?

… and the disproofs most difficult to ignore:

None. At this point, it’s rather difficult to debunk this theory. And that’s a unique trait among the four theories covered in this story. While the Downfall Theory, the Child Theory, and the Adult Theory can be both proved and disproved — depending on how you value the evidence presented — the Convergence Theory is the only one with a clear lack of disproofs.

Game theorists have tried to debunk it, backed up by paltry arguments to say the least. One such faulty argument is referencing the hypothetical set of possible universes described in multiverse hypotheses.

A major flaw in arguing against the Convergence Theory based on multiverse hypotheses is the lack of a unified multiverse hypothesis. A consolidated theory doesn’t exist. Instead, there are multiple hypotheses spanning across many different fields of study: cosmology, physics, astronomy, religion, and philosophy, to name a few. The general structure of the multiverse and the nature of each universe within it — including the relationships among these parallell universes — differ from one hypothesis to the other.

Another, perhaps even greater flaw is the simple fact that The Legend of Zelda is a video game series. Not a science. Therefore, it should not be treated as science. Because if you do treat it as such, the entire Zelda universe immediately starts to crumble. How would you scientifically explain the fishlike Zoras defiance of the most fundamental Darwinistic rules in evolving to the bird tribe Rito in an environment completely covered with water — in just 100 years?

Summary: The evidence provided is rather discomforting for the advocates of the other theories. The lack of disproof even more so. However, because of the plausible exasperation from the fan community if confirmed to be true, Nintendo will probably try to make Breath of the Wild fit in either of the three current timelines.

Support in the fan community: 1 out of 10.

Conclusion

Nintendo has yet to reveal a decisive fact that will put a definite end to the War of the Wild. To date, the closest we’ve come to such fact is producer Eiji Aonuma’s hint described in the beginning of this story:

Hyrule is a country that went through many battles against Ganon.

At first glance, this clue seems to be in favor of the Downfall Theory, but it’s not enough to make a final call. Not by a long shot.

Personally, I think that the evidence provided points in the direction of a merged timeline, crowning the Convergence Theory victorious. But what’s the fun in choosing the safest bet?

When taking a closer look at all of the arguments, and after reading through Hyrule Historia for the 19th time, I feel confident enough to make a proper choice. And that choice is…

The Child Theory.

It’s not a landslide victory, but a pretty solid one. At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised if Nintendo confirmed the Downfall Timeline to be canon, but I’d be much less surprised if they went with the Child Timeline.

How’s that for a diplomatic conclusion, eh?

Not that I actually believe that Nintendo will treat us with a definite answer anytime soon. I mean, it did take them approximately 15 titles before the first confirmed timeline was released. They don’t have any incentives to rush it this time either.

Quite the contrary.

The raging debate keeps Breath of the Wild’s popularity on a high level. The fans’ prospects of being fed vital timeline information seems to have had a big positive impact on the DLC packs. And publishing a revised version of Hyrule Historia a mere 7 years and about 4 games after the initial release doesn’t make any sense.

No, I think we’ll just have to accept the fact that Nintendo is more likely to profit from the debate simply by keeping it alive. At least for the time being. When — if ever — they feel obliged to deal with the war among fans, they will try to do it on there own terms. Just like they did with Hyrule Historia.

Well. Sort of, at least. I don’t think Shigeru Miyamoto, the creator of the Zelda franchise, ever wanted to release an official timeline, because it was never in his interest to do so. Now that the Zelda team — lead by Eiji Aonuma — decided to do that anyway, they have a duty towards their most loyal fans not to make a big mess out of it.

Therefore, they have more to lose than gain when it comes to the touchy topic of Breath of the Wild’s placement in the timeline. Which might explain Eiji Aonumas’ and Hidemaro Fujibayashis’ fuzzy answers when asked about it.

Until we get that definite answer, I hope that this story has shed enough light on the debate and its arguments that whoever reads it will be able to make an educated guess.

¹ Eiji Aonuma, Hyrule Historia page 238: “One thing to bear in mind, however, is that the question the developers of the Legend of Zelda series asked themselves before starting on a game was ‘What kind of game play should we focus on?’ rather than ‘What kind of story should we write?’”

² The Rito was first introduced in The Wind Waker. Described as an evolved form of the Zoras who have gained the ability to fly, they differ greatly from the Rito seen in Breath of the Wild.

³ The Lesser Hyrule is described in Hyrule Historia pages 105–109.

⁴ Hyrule Historia page 121: “No trace remains of the human known as Ganondorf. He was heard to lament, ‘The power I have attained from the people of Hyrule is not yet enough.’ From Ganon’s words, we can surmise that he did not have the power he needed to cover Hyrule in darkness.”

*When inspecting the cap using color tools of different photo editing software, I found that the dominant color has the color hex code #768E3A. This color is generally called Wasabi. I did find some yellow spots as well, most notably #999e37 (Highball) and #989B2A (Citron), but both were less pronounced compared to Wasabi. Besides different variations of #768E3A, all of them named Wasabi, I also found traces of #8D8B58 (Bandicoot). All in all, there’s no doubt that the color of the Cap of the Wild is green. Wasabi green, if you may.

Henrik Ståhl has been playing Zelda since picking up “A Link to the Past” for the first time as a six year old in 1991. His favorite Zelda game will forever be “Ocarina of Time”. To date, he has spent roughly 200 hours in the Hyrule depicted in “Breath of the Wild”. He has completed all 120 shrines and all side quests, but still has a few armors to fully upgrade.