Link

Link (リンク, Rinku) is the main protagonist of The Legend of Zelda series. He was created for the original The Legend of Zelda game in 1986 by Shigeru Miyamoto and has been the central character of all canonical The Legend of Zelda games. He was introduced as a young sword-wielding boy, but since The Adventure of Link, his identity, appearance, and role have changed from game to game. As already confirmed by Miyamoto, there are many different incarnations of Link; however, they share some distinct attributes, such as being left-handed and always wearing a green tunic. Link is called the Hero of Time in Ocarina of Time, but many fans used to number them according to their own timeline theories (i.e. Skyward Sword Link is called Link I by fans who believe Skyward Sword is first in the timeline thus far).

In the majority of Zelda games, Link's adventures mostly take place in the kingdom of Hyrule, traveling through the land and defeating a wide variety of enemies while trying to save both Princess Zelda and her kingdom from the clutches of Ganon, Link's primary antagonist.

Background
In almost all the games (with the exception of The Adventure of Link and Twilight Princess only), Link starts his journey as a child or young adolescent Hylian and has not yet been depicted as being older than his late teens at any point of the series. Moreover, he is usually portrayed as having been orphaned at an early age: the only game that mentions Link's mother is Ocarina of Time, who died after she escaped to the Kokiri Forest with Link as a baby from a fierce war in Hyrule, leaving him in the care of the Great Deku Tree. In games such as A Link to the Past and The Wind Waker, Link lives with his uncle and grandmother, respectively, but leaves his home in order to fulfill his destiny as the savior of Hyrule or another land.

In all games thus far, Link has been descended from the Hylians (though the ambiguously canon Valiant Comics state that the incarnation of Link in the first two games was born in a land west of Hyrule, called Calatia), and due to that, appears as a young man with pointed ears. Link's incarnation of A Link to the Past mentions how he is the last descendant of the Knights of Hyrule, and as such is destined to rescue Princess Zelda. In many games, he has the Triforce mark on the back of his left hand, either to signify possession of the Triforce of Courage or, in some cases, to signify his exemplary courage.

Characteristics
Link does not speak or have any written dialog as such, which has led some people believe him to be mute. However, given that he is portrayed as being able to communicate with others and clearly shouts and grunts while in battle, it is more likely that the intention is for his role in dialog to be filled by the words and thoughts of the player, to some extent. His speech is usually replaced with simple and concise answers that the player can pick. In Twilight Princess, Jaggle once states that Link's voice carries, as usual. Moreover, in The Wind Waker, Link can be heard using short phrases such as "Come on!" at certain points throughout the game.

Although not much insight is provided to Link's personality due to him not speaking, he is often depicted as a humble yet brave and courageous character who steps up to the task of saving the kingdom of Hyrule. As such, he is often associated with the Triforce of Courage and the goddess Farore: in Twilight Princess, the Triforce of Courage activated when Link stepped into the Twilight, and it protected him from becoming a lost soul, instead turned him into a wolf. He rarely shows signs of cowardice and is always willing to use his strength and valor to save and help those around him, as seen in The Wind Waker where he asks Tetra and her pirate crew to allow him to go with them on their ship in order to save his sister Aryll.

Invariably, every Link wears a green tunic and a long, floppy green cap, at least for part of each adventure, although the shades of green vary. He also wears different clothes during parts of some Zelda games, most often color variations on his basic outfit (except for the Magic Armor and Zora Armor in Twilight Princess). His hair color tends to stay light brown from game to game. It could be argued, that in A Link to the Past, Link's hair appeared pink; some people believe it's just his cap. Furthermore, Link dons special gauntlets or bracelets that help him boost up his strength, such as the Power Bracelet or the Golden Gauntlet. In several games, various characters often comment on Link's physical attractiveness, calling him "cute" or complimenting his eyes.

Link is also depicted as left-handed in all games, except for the Wii version of Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword which depict him as right-handed, the same hand most people use to hold the Wii Remote. There is no option for left-handers, but in the GameCube version of Twilight Princess, Link will be a traditional lefty. Arguably, Link is still left-handed in Twilight Princess and it is only that the camera is somehow reversed; this is supported by the fact that the entire Wii version of Twilight Princess is the complete reverse of the GameCube version. Currently, Link's "canonical" appearance in Twilight Princess is still as a lefty. However, official concept art for Skyward Sword depicts Link as right handed, most likely to coincide with the game.

A peculiarity which Link shares with many video game characters is the uncanny ability to effortlessly carry around many cumbersome items. The concept is known as Hammerspace and allows Link to carry an enormous array of large and heavy items, without the use of a bag of any kind. For example, where does he store the Biggoron's Sword when not in use? And how can wearing the Iron Boots make him any heavier, if he was already carrying them with him? This is addressed in the 1980's cartoon series, The Legend of Zelda, in which a couple of scenes, Link is seen taking items out of a bag. The items "grow" to normal size that way he can use them, and "shrink" when he puts them back into the bag.

Abilities
Throughout the series, Link usually starts out his adventure as an average boy with little to none swordsmanship skills. When trouble arises, however, Link quickly learns the ways of the sword and is able to best his enemies easily: in The Wind Waker, Link goes to Orca to teach him how to wield a sword in order to help Tetra from the Forest of Fairies. It is further noted by Orca himself that Link's ability to use a sword is firmly present in his veins. As the game progresses, Link becomes known for his swordsmanship as well as his ability to quickly adapt to a wide variety of items and skillfully wield them, such as the Boomerang, the bow, and the Clawshot, among others.

In some games, Link can learn other handy sword techniques: in The Minish Cap, the Blade Brothers teach the young hero various sword skills by using Tiger Scrolls, and in Twilight Princess, the Hero's Shade shares his knowledge of the sword by teaching Link seven Hidden Skills to help him become more powerful and save Hyrule.

Additionally, Link is portrayed as having an excellent physical condition, performing backflips easily as well as being able to best others in sumo-wrestling, as seen in Twilight Princess. However, despite this, Link is usually defenseless without a sword or an item. This is depicted in The Wind Waker, where Link loses his sword after being launched into the Forsaken Fortress and must use his stealth abilities to get it back: if he is spotted by an enemy, he quickly surrenders due to his inability to fight back. Although in some games Link is easily able to pick up large stones or push blocks many times his size, other games require him to use special bracelets or gauntlets to further increase his strength, such as the Power Bracelet or the Titan's Mitt.

As seen in The Adventure of Link, A Link to the Past, and Ocarina of Time, Link is capable of using magic spells such as Din's Fire provided that he possesses a Magic Meter, which is usually granted to him by a Great Fairy.

Link is also talented in playing a wide variety of instruments. This is first shown in the original The Legend of Zelda, in which the young hero plays the Recorder to open up secret entrances or transport him to various parts in the overworld. Since then, Link has competently played other instruments such as the ocarina, a pan flute, a guitar, and the drums, all of which play a major role in each of the respective games in which they appear. Not only is Link a proficient instrument player: he is also adept in using a conductor's baton to conduct other players.

The Legend of Zelda
In The Legend of Zelda, Link is a young swordsman who is asked after rescuing Impa to save Hyrule and Zelda from the clutches of the evil Ganon. In this game, he collects the pieces of the Triforce of Wisdom and defeats Ganon in order to secure the Triforce of Power. After almost 23 years since its release, Link's original adventure still holds up and its formula is the basis to all other Zelda games and story lines.

The Adventure of Link
The Adventure of Link is quite a different game than the original title in that it featured side-scrolling game play rather than the overhead view used in The Legend of Zelda. Link returns to rescue a different Princess Zelda from a potent sleeping spell. This time, he journeys to retrieve the Triforce of Courage from the Great Palace. At the same time, he battles with Ganon's minions who are in the process of trying to revive the evil king. Link appears to speak in this game, for when he finds the Mirror in Saria Town, he says, "I found a mirror under the table."

(This hero is considered to be the same one from the original The Legend of Zelda)

A Link to the Past
In A Link to the Past, Ganon and his army of evil were banished into the Sacred Realm, the realm of the Triforce, by the Hylians at the price of countless lives. The portal to this world was magically blocked by seven sages, and the lands behind that seal, which Hylians hoped would never be broken again, became known as the Dark World as they were corrupted by Ganon's malice. One day, when the Imprisoning War was all but forgotten, the land was plagued by sudden disaster, until the wizard Agahnim appeared at the court of the King of Hyrule and quelled the upheaval. Named chief adviser to the throne, he soon seized power from the king and kidnapped six Maidens, descendants of the sages who had sealed the entrance of the Dark World. The maidens were taken to the castle tower and never seen again. Agahnim then began a dark ritual to break the seal on the Dark World and unleash Ganon's fury upon Hyrule. Princess Zelda, herself descended from the seventh sage, managed to send out a telepathic call for help before being taken away. Link's uncle headed for the royal castle first but was quickly dispatched. He left Link his sword and with his last breath imparted the Spin Attack. The young hero rescues Zelda from the castle dungeons then begins a journey to collect three magical Pendants of Virtue, and claim the Master Sword as his own before finally facing Agahnim, and later, his alter ego Ganon.

Link's Awakening
In Link's Awakening, Link had defeated the evil Ganon and had regained peace in Hyrule. However, he does not enjoy the peace for long and soon becomes restless. He sails away on a boat for training or enlightenment. But when he sails back home, Link is caught in a deadly thunderstorm which results in the destruction of his ship. His unconscious body is later found by Marin on a faraway island's shores. When he awakes, he discovers that he had miraculously been washed ashore on Koholint Island and makes preparations to leave the island by first finding his missing sword. A mysterious owl then approaches Link and explains to him about a sleeping being on the island, The Wind Fish, and that Link can only leave the island once The Wind Fish has been awoken from its eternal slumber. To awaken The Wind Fish, Link was forced to embark on a long journey and go through many dungeons to retrieve the Eight Instruments of the Sirens.

Link is eventually instructed by the owl to go to the Southern Face Shrine where he discoveries a startling truth about the island. Koholint Island is but a dream of The Wind Fish, whose dreams had been invaded by Nightmares and who is unable to awaken. If The Wind Fish awakes, the whole island shall disappear. Link had apparently been pulled into The Wind Fish's dream world and was now a part of it, and only he can awaken the dreamer. He eventually acquires all eight of the instruments and defeats all of the Nightmares, thus freeing The Wind Fish from their terror. Link is then named the hero of The Wind Fish's dream world by the owl before it disappears, and Link finally awakens The Wind Fish. As the island fades away, Link is forced out by a stream of water and awakens to find himself on a wooden board, back in the ocean. When he looks up, he sees The Wind Fish flying in the sky and smiles. It is unknown what happens to Link afterward, as he no longer has a ship.

(This hero is considered to be the same one from A Link to the Past)

Ocarina of Time
In Ocarina of Time, a young Link has been raised as one of the Kokiri, the children of the forest. Unlike the other Kokiri, Link does not have a fairy companion and is thus shunned by their self-proclaimed leader, Mido. Link's life changes one day when the Great Deku Tree, the forest's guardian, sends Navi the fairy to Link with instructions to bring him immediately. A curse has been cast on the Deku Tree, and he asks Link to break it; while Link is successful in defeating the monsters inside the Tree, the Tree was doomed before Link started dying, the Deku Tree tells Link of the Triforce and directs Link to Hyrule Castle where he encounters Princess Zelda.

Zelda sends Link on a mission to collect three Spiritual Stones and save Hyrule. Once Link obtains the Stones, he travels to the Temple of Time and opens the Door of Time with the Stones and the Ocarina of Time. He then draws the Master Sword from the Pedestal of Time. This action imprisons Link in the Temple of Light in the Sacred Realm for seven years so his body can mature, while Ganondorf takes control of Hyrule and seizes the Triforce of Power. Seven years after drawing the sword from the pedestal, Link is awakened as the Hero of Time by Rauru, Sage of Light. Link finds that much time has passed, and he has grown up. He sets off on a quest to cleanse the land of Ganondorf's evil by awakening the Sages, who can seal Ganondorf in what used to be the Sacred Realm. Returning to the Kokiri Forest, he finds that none of his friends have grown up, and most now no longer recognize him.

After Link defeats the evil in the Forest Temple, the Deku Tree's successor, the Deku Sprout, reveals the hidden story of Link's past to him. The Kokiri never grow up. The reason Link has grown, while his Kokiri friends have not, is that he is actually a Hylian, orphaned in the wars that raged before Hyrule was united. When Link was a baby, his mother fled with him to Kokiri Forest, and, mortally wounded, left him under the Deku Tree's protection. He was brought up as one of the Kokiri and knew no differently.

Through the rest of the game, Link travels back and forth between the two time periods using the Master Sword and the Ocarina of Time in order to awaken the Seven Sages and return peace of Hyrule. At the end of the game, after Ganondorf has been defeated and sent to the Dark Realm, he is returned to his youth by Princess Zelda, and Navi soon departs from him.

Hero of Time
In Ocarina of Time, Link ages seven years after pulling the Master Sword from its pedestal in the Temple of Time. He is then given the title of . The term "Adult Link" is used to differentiate between his child and adult forms in the game. Following the completion of the Forest Temple, Link is able to pass freely between his child and adult stages to make use of different items and locations.

Unlike his child incarnation, adult Link is taller, has donned gloves and white leggings, and generally looks more sincere. Adult Link is unable to make use of certain child-only items, such as the slingshot, the boomerang, and the Kokiri Sword. Similarly, Young Link is unable to use items such as the hookshot, the Fairy Bow, and the Mirror Shield.

There are only two parallel Links who can be sufficiently compared to the Ocarina of Time adult presentation — the heroes in Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword. Most other games in the series do not cite or otherwise indicate an older character.

It's speculated that the Hero's Spirit, a mentor figure in Twilight Princess, might be the ghostly remains of the Hero of Time.

Majora's Mask
Majora's Mask occurs after Ganondorf's defeat and Link has been sent back to his childhood. He leaves Hyrule to search for a lost friend (suggested to be his old fairy companion, Navi). While riding deep in the Lost Woods, he is ambushed by a Skull Kid who is possessed by an evil artifact, Majora's Mask, and his horse, Epona, is stolen along with the magical Ocarina of Time. Chasing the Skull Kid, Link falls into a crevasse and arrives in a world called Termina. He must save this land from the evil of Majora's Mask, which has drawn the moon into a decaying orbit, causing it to crash into Termina's capital city in just three days. Link uses the Ocarina of Time (reclaimed early on) and the Song of Time, which sends him back in time and saves the game when he plays it, to relive these three days again and again in order to prevent the disaster. Along the way, Link finds many magical masks of his own, a handful of which allow him to transform. Those masks can turn him into a rock-like Goron; a petite, plant-like Deku Scrub; a graceful aquatic Zora; or the Fierce Deity. In this game, Link never grows up in the traditional sense, but the dark power of the Fierce Deity's Mask allows Link to assume a powerful adult form, Fierce Deity Link. Aonuma mentioned that "we wanted Link to get inside of a wonderland, to experience the adventures and think hard about what he should do."

With such an apocalyptic aura, this game is considered Link's darkest journey yet.

(This hero is the same one from Ocarina of Time)

Oracle of Seasons
In Oracle of Seasons, Link is a young teenager who is summoned by the Triforce to save the land of Holodrum. Upon his arrival, he is cared for by a young girl named Din who takes him to meet the troupe of performers that she's a part of; however, soon after, General Onox appears and captures Din, revealing that she is actually the Oracle of Seasons who was just disguising herself as a dancer. The seasons soon begin to go out of control now that Din has been kidnapped, and it is up to Link to return Holodrum back to normal. With the help of the Rod of Seasons, Link acquires the eight Essences of Nature scattered all over the land in order to restore the Maku Tree's power and enter Onox's Castle. After the young hero defeats the evil menace and rescues the Oracle of Seasons, peace returns to Holodrum and the order of nature is back to its normal state.

Oracle of Ages
In Oracle of Ages, Link is also a young teenager who is summoned by the Triforce to save the land of Labrynna. Upon landing, he hears a cry for help, and he soon finds that Impa, Zelda's caretaker, is being surrounded by monsters. Link easily scares them off, and Impa asks that he help her search for a woman named Nayru. After finding Nayru, it is revealed that Veran, the Sorceress of Shadows, possessed Impa in order to manipulate Link into leading her to Nayru, who turns out to be the Oracle of Ages. Veran quickly takes over Nayru's body, which she uses to alter events in the past to ruin the future. It is Link who, with the help of the Harp of Ages, travels through time in order to rescue the Oracle and restore the ages back to normal.

After Link frees Nayru from Veran's possession, the Oracle of Ages teaches the young hero a song crucial to his quest in collecting the eight Essences of Time scattered over the land of Labrynna. Unfortunately, soon after, the Sorceress of Shadows possesses Ambi, the queen of Labrynna in the past, and takes refuge in the Black Tower. Link, with all the Essences in hand, heads over to the sinister tower to defeat Veran once and for all. Now that the evil sorceress has been defeated, Labrynna and its queen return back to normal, and a statue of Link is built in honor of his bravery.

(This hero is the same hero from Oracle of Seasons)

Four Swords
In Four Swords, when Link takes the Four Sword, he is divided into four different Links (Green, Blue, Red and Purple), each with their own style and personality. Working together, the Links must find 3 keys that lead to Princess Zelda, who was captured by Vaati the wind mage.

The Wind Waker
Link, as seen in The Wind Waker, is completely different when compared to the Links of the previous games with his most different look yet in the series. The cartoon like appearance caused by the cell shading gave Link very comedic expressions. In this game, what begins as a quest to sail across the sea to save his sister later turns into another fantastic quest to save the world from Ganondorf and his evil intentions.

Hero of Winds
After the valleys of ancient Hyrule are flooded in a deluge, Ganondorf's power is mysteriously tamed for ages before his dark energy begins to be felt over the Great Sea, which is where Link and Aryll live with their Grandmother. Link is given the green tunic and hat on his birthday to commemorate the Hero of Time, but an attack by the Helmaroc King in which his sister is kidnapped starts him on a whirlwind adventure. Link quickly sets sail and acquires the King of Red Lions in his quest to recover Aryll after she is kidnapped by the Helmaroc King and taken to the Forsaken Fortress. Instead of simply rescuing his sister, Link is drawn into a sequence of events that eventually puts the fate of all the islands of the Great Sea in his hands. Once again, Ganon has appeared with limited power. Link is pulled into the conflict between the island inhabitants and Ganondorf's increasing presence as he, with the help of the Wind Waker, races to recapture the ancient power of the Triforce and the Master Sword before Ganondorf's true power is realized.

Eventually the King of Red Lions sees fit to grant Link the title Hero of Winds in honor of his ongoing struggle with the forces of evil.

This Link is a separate playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. In Brawl, he is known as Toon Link. He also appears as a trophy wearing his pajamas. Furthermore, this Link is mentioned in Spirit Tracks by the aged Niko, who notes that the current Link of that game is the spitting image of one of his dearest friends, the Hero of Winds himself.

Four Swords Adventures
Four Swords Adventures Link had to save Zelda and six other Maidens who were captured by Shadow Link. When he followed Shadow Link down to the Four Sword Sanctuary, he pulled the Four Sword splitting him into four like in the original Four Swords, but when he pulled the sword Vaati was released from the seal once again. After the Links saved Zelda and the maidens, got the four Royal Jewels from different heroes of Hyrule, and defeated Vaati, Zelda and the Links fought against the dark lord Ganon and sealed both monsters away and restored peace to Hyrule.

The Minish Cap
In The Minish Cap, Link lives with his grandpa and is good friends with Princess Zelda. He goes with her to the Picori Festival where Vaati attacks and turns her into stone. Link meets an odd talking cap in the forest that resembles a bird, Ezlo, who can help him shrink to the size of the Minish. Link must infuse the four elements into the White Sword to fully repair the Four Sword which he uses to break the curse on Princess Zelda and seal Vaati away.

Twilight Princess
In Twilight Princess, Link is a teenager (around 16 or 17) who has been raised as a wrangler outside of Hyrule territory in Ordon Village. His friend, Rusl, requests that Link go in his place to deliver a sword he has made for the Hyrule Royal Family. Before Link can go on this journey, his village is attacked by King Bulblin. Link is knocked unconscious and all the children are kidnapped. When Link awakens, he wanders into a darkness and gets pulled into the Twilight Realm. Once in the Twilight Realm, rather than becoming a spirit like everyone else, he transforms into a wolf. He is captured until a creature of the Twilight, Midna, comes to his aid. She helps him escape and get back to the world of light, however Midna is only using Link to change the Twilight Realm (her home) back to normal; she couldn't care less what happens to Link and the light world. Link must journey to save the children of Ordon Village and eventually save the entire land of Hyrule from the mysterious Twilight. Link, in searching for the Ordon children, saves the Spirits of Light, and becomes the Hero Chosen by the Goddesses. He then sets off with Midna to find the Fused Shadows and stop the main antagonist, Zant. This Link sometimes given the fan nickname "Hero of Light," because his deeds involve restoring light to the land as well as the "Hero of Twilight" as he is spoken of in Twili prophecy as noted by Midna. Despite this nickname, this Link is given no official title comparable to "Hero of Time" or "Hero of Winds" in the game itself.

Phantom Hourglass
Phantom Hourglass takes place months after the end of The Wind Waker with the Hero of Winds. Link is sailing with Tetra and her crew in search of the Ghost Ship. When they find it, Tetra jumps aboard but is kidnapped, so Link goes after her but instead falls into the sea. Link is awakened on Mercay Island by a fairy, and they set out on a journey to find Tetra. Link and Ciela traverse the Great Sea, rescuing the Spirits of the Ocean King and Tetra, and forging the Phantom Sword which can slay Bellum, the devil behind all this misfortune. At the end of the game, Oshus returns Link, Tetra, and Linebeck to their world, thanking them for their help.

Something to note is that Link seems to have brown eyes in this game, instead of the usual blue. As this Link is the same as the Link in The Wind Waker, one might conclude that The Wind Waker Link has brown eyes too.

(This hero is the same hero from The Wind Waker)

Spirit Tracks
In Spirit Tracks, Link lives with Niko in Aboda Village. He is an apprentice of a master engineer, named Alfonzo, who has helped him in order to become a Royal Engineer. When Zelda presents Link with a certificate for this achievement, she also gives him a letter, telling him to meet with her, to discuss her suspicions over the mysterious Chancellor Cole as well as the disappearing Spirit Tracks. When Link sneaks Zelda out of the castle, they meet up with Alfonzo, who escorts them to the Tower of Spirits by train. However, as the Spirit Tracks begin to fade, they crash, and are then ambushed by the chancellor, who attacks the trio. Link and his master are knocked unconscious while Zelda is killed, and her body is seized by Cole's apprentice, Byrne. Link awakes back in Hyrule Castle to discover that Zelda is now a ghost and that Link is the only person who can see her. After visiting Anjean in the Tower of Spirits, he agrees to help her in defeating Chancellor Cole and recover her body in the process.

After Link and Zelda travel up to the Tower of Spirits to recover a Rail Map, a Phantom Knight attacks him, but Zelda charges at the Phantom just in time to take control of its body. After this, Link and Zelda begin their journey to restore the Tower of Spirits and the Spirit Tracks, traveling across the overworld using the Spirit Train that is granted to Link by Anjean. Whenever Link returns to the Spirit Tower to obtain another Rail Map, Princess Zelda possesses a Phantom's armor in order to aid the young hero. As the pair continues to travel, Link and Zelda establish a close friendship as the two get to know each other better.

Once Princess Zelda recovers her body from Malladus with the aid of Link, the two together face up against the Demon King, who has now taken over Chancellor Cole's body. Together, Link and Zelda deal the final blow on Malladus using the Lokomo Sword, and shortly after, Anjean and the rest of the Lokomos depart towards the heaven. As they leave, Anjean entrusts Princess Zelda to watch over the land, asking Link to help her as well. Link and Zelda are then seen holding hands as they witness the departure of the Lokomos.

Unlike other instances where Link departs from the land after having saved it, the young hero stays in Hyrule to fulfill Anjean's request, where he continues to be either an engineer or a warrior, depending on which Link chose. This is witnessed when Princess Zelda gets up from her seat in her office and waves out the window after having heard either a train's whistle or the clanking of swords.

Skyward Sword
In the upcoming Skyward Sword game, Link has lived his entire life in an island above the clouds known as Skyloft and is unaware of any other world besides the island. However, one day, he discovers a land below, which is actually Hyrule, but realizes that it is being overrun by evil forces and, in part due to the fact that he is searching for a lost and valuable friend, he is forced to go there. As such, the young hero must spend his journey traveling back and forth between these two regions, Skyloft and the kingdom of Hyrule, with the help of the Skyward Sword that he eventually finds in his homeland of Skyloft. The Skyward Sword is the driving force behind Link's traveling between the two lands.

Link is right-handed in this game (although he's also pictured shooting arrows left-handed) and it has been announced that in Skyward Sword, he is supposed to be the "oldest" Link yet.

Link first appeared in concept art released during E3 2009. In this picture, he is shown looking very similar to Ocarina of Time's Adult incarnation, but in an art style much like that of Twilight Princess. Link is shown to, like the Wii version of Twilight Princess, be right-handed, apparently in the interest of gameplay. He lacks a sword of any kind but is being accompanied by a girl that is actually the Skyward Sword.

Link's Crossbow Training
In Link's Crossbow Training, Link travels around the land of Hyrule shooting targets, enemies, and more in order to perfect his crossbow skills. The game most likely takes place at different times during Twilight Princess. In the game, Link has very little interaction with other characters.

Animated series
In the Zelda animated series, Link's appearance is similar to the official artwork of the original game: a green hat with a lighter green (sometimes yellow) stripe around the brow, and a green tunic with a brown belt, accompanied underneath it with a brown, long-sleeved shirt and brown pants. Interestingly, even though Link's hair and eyes are black in the first two aired episodes of the series, the third episode, "The White Knight", showed Link's hair and eyes as brown, which would remain until the last episode. Jonathan Potts serves as the voice actor for Link.

Living in North Castle with Princess Zelda and King Harkinian, Link is in charge of protecting the Triforce of Wisdom from falling into Ganon's hands. However, he dislikes his new lifestyle, claiming that it is boring and would rather be off fighting monsters and roaming the world. The only positive thing, he says, is that he gets to be in company of Princess Zelda, who usually dislikes Link's overall personality. Despite this, it is revealed in "The Missing Link" that she loves the young hero anyway but would rather keep it a secret to prevent it from going into Link's head. Link is persistent at any rate in trying to get Zelda to kiss him, and asks for a reward any time the young hero saves her. Any time that seems like Zelda is about to kiss him,  they are always interrupted by Spryte, Ganon's minions or even Link's own clumsiness ruining the moment, leaving the young hero frustrated. Link's motives for rescuing Zelda are not always a kiss, however, as he seems to genuinely care for her and would do anything to save her, which seems to be his weakness. Even so, he will take any chance to impress Princess Zelda or even to make her jealous.

For the most part, Link is depicted as a capable swordsman and a quick thinker, although he is often shown to be a rather arrogant warrior as well, something that displeases Zelda the most. Because of this, he sometimes underestimates the situation he is and ends up in more trouble than he predicts: in "The Moblins Are Revolting", Link mocks Ganon for not being able to fight back since he is inside an indestructible bubble and decides to throw him around for a bit, which results in the bubble bursting and ruining Zelda's chances to retrieve the Triforce of Power. He is also characterized for his somewhat childish nature, trying to avoid any responsibilities that do not have to do with fighting Ganon: in "Cold Spells", he decides to fake being sick so that he will not have to do chores around the castle.

The cartoon series establishes that Link's entire inventory is actually shrunk inside his magic pouch around his belt: when Link is fighting a dragon, he pulls a miniaturized shield from the pouch, which then grows to normal size. Link always carries his sword, the Crissword, to fire Sword Beams at Ganon and his minions and thus send them back into the Evil Jar. The young hero only wields his Magical Shield in four episodes, which he just uses for a brief time during battles. He also often fights alongside Zelda, who proves to be invaluable and even saves the young hero several times throughout the show.

Nintendo Adventure Books
In the Nintendo Adventure Books series, Link is portrayed as an outgoing, brave, playful, and even sometimes arrogant young warrior. Despite his young age, he is still recognized as being the best swordsman in all of Hyrule and even has the Triforce of Couarge buried deep in his heart. Link is also best friends with Zelda, and he seems to enjoy annoying her whenever the chance arises, although the princess also does not miss the opportunity to poke fun at the young hero. Whenever in need of advice, Link seeks Impa, the castle's nursemaid, who often reminds him to not act rashly and to think things through, somewhat serving as his mentor and even giving him items which might help the young hero along his adventure.

The Crystal Trap
In the first book of the series, The Crystal Trap, Link and Princess Zelda are running inside the Midoro Palace trying to escape from Ganon's grap. However, the evil wizard finds them and eventually encases Link in a Crystal. Ganon explains that since he cannot obtain the Triforce of Courage and Wisdom from Link and Zelda respectively, he used a Magic Scroll which cast a spell to encase both pieces of the Triforce, including the Triforce of Courage encased in Link's heart. Zelda is now forced to seek the three items dictated in the Fairy's Scroll that will help free Link from the Crystal, but she has just 24 hours before the young hero gets trapped inside the crystal forever.

Eventually, Princess Zelda finds the Magic Honey, the Handprint, and the Magnifying Glass and uses them to shatter the Crystal. With Link now free, the young duo head off to find the Spear, which is the only weapon that can defeat Ganon. Link, with the help of Zelda's friend Greenbeard, obtains the Spear and uses it to defeat Ganon once and for all.

The Shadow Prince
In The Shadow Prince, Link and Zelda meet a strange knight known as Sir Charles from the kingdom of Moria. Although the princess and the King of Hyrule are all quick to trust Charles, Link gets suspicious of his actions from the moment he meets the knight from Moria. After the King of Hyrule decides to show the Triforce of Wisdom to Charles and dubs him a Knight of the Triforce, Link, outraged at the king's decision, goes to Impa for advice and suggests that the young hero go to the Water Town of Saria and retrieve the Mirror of Truth, which will show Charles's true identity.

After Link finds the Mirror of Truth in the Wiseapple Farm of Saria Town, he returns to North Castle only to find that the King has chosen Charles, and not Link, to deliver the Triforce of Wisdom to the Fifth Castle of Ancient Hyrule to keep it away from Ganon's grasp. The young hero furiously reminds the king of all the brave deeds he has done and claims that Charles can't be trusted because he is evil. With the Mirror of Truth in his power, Link holds it up to Charles only to reveal that Charles is actually Ganon in disguise. The false knight quickly takes the Triforce of Wisdom and rushes off to the woods, where Link follows him and promptly defeats Charles by striking Charles's Necklace, which was the true source of Ganon's power. Link safely returns to the castle with the Triforce of Wisdom, and the king decides to celebrate in honor of Link having saved the kingdom once again.

Philips CD-i Games
In Link: The Faces of Evil, Link is seen to be similar to his canonical version, although with the ability to coherently speak and with a very childish attitude. He also appears to live in Hyrule Castle. He remarks that it is boring in Hyrule due the age of peace, but Gwonam arrives, telling him that he is the only one who can defeat Ganon, who has seized Koridai. Link then asks Zelda for a kiss, but is rejected. The young hero proceeds to go off to defeat the masters of the Faces of Evil and rescue Koridai. At the end, he fulfills his destiny by defeating Ganon, trapping him in the Book of Koridai. Link once again asks Zelda for a kiss, but ends up being rejected.

In Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon, Link retains his childish personality from Faces of Evil, but has a much smaller role. He is ordered to go to Gamelon if King Harkinian does not return, and does so when the king winds up missing, but is apparently imprisoned by Ganon. Later, Zelda smashes a mirror owned by Lady Alma, and Link reappears, implying he was trapped within it. He seems to have no knowledge of what had happened to him.

Link is much different than his The Faces of Evil and The Wand of Gamelon characterization in Zelda's Adventure. He is more similar to the canon version in appearance, but his manner is only hinted at. He was apparently adventuring in Tolemac, but was captured by Ganon. At the end of the game, when Ganon is defeated, Link and Zelda return to Hyrule.

Super Smash Bros.
Link was one of the eight playable characters available at the beginning of Super Smash Bros. in his adult form from Ocarina of Time. He sports his traditional green Kokiri tunic. (The player can also choose from two alternate tunic colors inspired by Link's Ocarina of Time tunics: the red Goron Tunic and blue Zora Tunic, as well as a purplish-white tunic inspired by the effect of the Blue Ring from the original The Legend of Zelda). He also has some of his usual arsenal from the Legend of Zelda Series at his disposal, including bombs, his boomerang, and a hookshot.

Link returns as one of the 14 playable characters available from the start in Super Smash Bros. Melee, the 2001 sequel to Super Smash Bros. In Super Smash Bros. Melee, he has his bow in addition to the equipment he brought with him to the original Super Smash Bros. Also playable in the game as a secret unlockable character, is Young Link, the youthful Link from most of the games in the series. Modeled after the Ocarina of Time/Majora's Mask version of the hero, Young Link is more agile but weaker than the older Link.

On May 10, 2006, at an after-hours press conference during the E³, Link became one of the first confirmed fighters in the Wii installment of the franchise, Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Unlike the previous games of the series, Link appears as depicted in the GameCube Twilight Princess, rather than Ocarina of Time. The Master Sword he has in Brawl is much shorter than the one in Twilight Princess. Link's Final Smash move is known as the Triforce Slash. It slashes an enemy mercilessly with the power of the Triforce. In this game, "Young Link" does not return to the brawl but rather Toon Link takes on his role. This Link first appeared in The Wind Waker and has appeared in this form in several games since. Although he is different in many ways, the two Links are surprisingly similar and also have the same Final Smash.

Soulcalibur II
Link is a playable "guest character" in the GameCube version of Soulcalibur II. His appearance is taken from his adult incarnation from Ocarina of Time. Though he is voiced by Hiyama, he does not have a deep voice (as Adult Link does in Ocarina of Time), he now has a timbre relative to that of a tenor (similar to that of Zora Link, without modification). His voice is the same exact tone as Nightmare in the Japanese voicing of the game, as well as the seiyū voice of Siegfried Schtauffen in the entire Soul Edge & Soulcalibur series. Expectedly, Link's voice remains unchanged regardless of what language voice setting it is set to.

Not much is revealed about this incarnation of Link, but it is known that after saving Hyrule from an evil wizard who was being controlled by a fragment of Soul Edge, he went on a quest to destroy the evil sword. Quickly pulling the Master Sword out of its pedestal, he set out to travel to this world to destroy Soul Edge, on a secret mission. Shigeru Miyamoto did not see a problem with Link appearing in what some had thought to be a "violent fighting game" since he had already been established as a fighter in the Super Smash Bros. games.

In Soulcalibur II, Link is the only character with a ranged attack (aside from Necrid, the guest character for the Xbox version Spawn) and the only guest character to have his own theme and more than three costumes--the same colors that were his Super Smash Bros. costumes. His weapons are a number of weapons from the Zelda games, including the Bug Catching Net.

In addition, Link's fighting style retains many of his signature moves from past games in the Zelda and Super Smash Bros. series.

Cameo Appearances
Link has appeared in cameos in Mario games for a long time as well as one of the F-Zero games. He also was mentioned in Donkey Kong Country 2 and Donkey Kong Country 3. Link from the cartoon series' most used line also appeared in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga.

Link the young Goron
The son of Darunia, Link of the Gorons was born sometime during Link's, the Hero of Time, seven year long sleep, and named after the hero who saved the Gorons by chasing off the Dodongos, who had taken possession of Dodongo's Cavern, the place that the Gorons used as their chief source of nourishment.

Link the stuttering Goron
The poor Goron who ends every other word with "goro" loses his reserved room at the Stock Pot Inn when Anju mistakenly gives away his room key to Link the boy. He is forced to spend the night outside.

"It's a hard world to live in-goro..."

- Link (Goron) (Majora's Mask)

If Link the boy fails to claim the key in time, then Link the Goron will get it. If Link the boy talks to him while he is en route to the Knife Chamber, he will complain of poor state of repair that the inn is in.

Link the Pig
A big pig named after its captor on Outset Island.

Dark Link
The shadow form of Link mirrors Link's every movement and attack in battle. He appears in multiple games. It is unknown how he was created, however, the Dark Mirror and even Ganondorf have been potentially linked to his creation.

Wolf Link
The Twilight Form of Link seen in Twilight Princess. Midna can help Link change forms later in the game.

Bunny Link
The Bunny Form of Link seen in A Link to the Past.

Toon Link
Toon Link is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. He is a secret character and must be unlocked by playing a certain amount of versus games or in the forest stage after completing The Subspace Emissary. His design is based off Link's more recent appearance from The Wind Waker, Four Swords, Four Swords Adventures, Minish Cap, Phantom Hourglass, and Spirit Tracks with an added "airbrush shading" as opposed to his normal cel-shading. His stage is the Pirate Ship, or more specific, Tetra's Ship. He is very similar to his older counterpart, even having the same Final Smash as him. It is generally believed that he replaced Young Link from Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Unlike Young Link in Melee, Toon Link has three alternate colors that resemble the Four Swords clones (Red, Blue, and Purple). He also has an alternate color that resemble the first The Legend of Zelda model and The Adventure of Link model. Much like regular Link, his last costume is a dark version of Toon Link, which looks like Shadow Link. His shield color changes as well, it is an inverted version of the original Toon Link's shield.

Gallery
See this article's gallery page, featuring character art and screen-captures of .