Tingle


 * ''This article is about the character Tingle. For information on the series in which he stars, see Tingle (Series).

Tingle is a recurring character in. He wears green tights accented with red, and appears in various games to help out - usually in bizarre ways. He is a talented map maker. His catchphrase is the supposedly magical words Kooloo-Limpah. In he states that he invented these words himself, and asks Link not to steal them.

Majora's Mask
In, Tingle appears as the eccentric, estranged son of the Swamp Tourist Center Guide obsessed with Fairies. He is 35 years old and claims to be the reincarnation of a fairy. Suspended by a balloon in the air, he uses his vantage point to plot maps of Termina, which Link is able to purchase for cheap. He sells maps to help out his father. Tingle's father appears in the game as the Swamp Tourist Center Guide. If Link brings him a picture of Tingle, the man will give Link a Piece of Heart (alternately, Link may give him a picture of the Deku King). Tingle will always remember the form Link is using when he is first spoken to in a cycle. If Link talks to Tingle in a form other than the one used for their first meeting, he will still recognise Tatl and dismiss Link's change in appearance as being magic.

Tingle is the subject of four Keaton questions.

Oracle of Ages
In, Tingle can be found southeast of Lynna City, in the Forest of Time, floating on top of a stump. To reach Tingle, Link needs Ricky's assistance the first time, as his path is blocked by holes and cliffs. There is an alternate route through a cave to Tingle that does not require Ricky, but in order to extend the bridge across the gap, Link needs the Seed Shooter to hit a Crystal Switch around a corner. Tingle gives Link the Island Chart that Link uses while crossing the sea to reach Crescent Island. If Link returns later, Tingle will also give Link an upgraded Seed Satchel.

The Wind Waker
In, the people of Windfall Island had put Tingle in jail. Once Link frees him, Tingle gives him the Tingle Tuner in return, so Link could ask his help wherever he was. This is technically the first time Tingle was a playable character. Tingle always hovered above the ground and was only visible as a green mark on the floor. To actually see and talk to Tingle, Link had to go to Tingle Island, where he also met Tingle's younger brother Ankle and his friend David Jr. Later, Link also met Knuckle, Tingle's other brother, on Outset Island. There are also many side quests involving one that gets you the "Hand-Me-Down Tingle Tuner". Tingle's main job in the storyline is to translate Triforce Charts for Link so Link can find the Triforce Shards, at a price of 398 Rupees each.

By using the Tingle Tuner in the Tower of the Gods, five legendary pages can be found, which tell the history of Tingle. This legend is in fact the story of Tingle in ''Majora's Mask'.

In, Tingle's Tuner is replaced by the Tingle Bottle, and therefore much of his interaction with Link is removed.

Four Swords Adventures
In, Tingle collects Force Gems. Throughout the entire game, anytime Link comes in eye contact with a big Force Gem outside of dungeons, Tingle will also try to get it. Link has to shoot him with an Arrow or pick up the Force Gem first to get it himself. Tingle also tries to pick up the huge Force Gems, but his balloon can not carry them. His look is similar to the Tingle in The Wind Waker.

Tingle posts signs throughout the stages called the Tingle Times, which tell a story of an experience Tingle had in the area and offer insight to his childish nature. Tingle also runs the Tingle's Tower, a multiplayer minigame gallery that can be accessed by progressing through the Hyrulean Adventure mode.

The Minish Cap
In, Tingle can be found on a ledge east of Link's House after the young hero initially fails to cross Castor Wilds. When spoken to, Tingle mistakes Link for a Fairy and promptly requests that they fuse Kinstones. Tingle will also tell Link that he gave Kinstones to his brothers, and promises that if the young hero fuses Kinstones with each of them, he will receive something significantly beneficial.

When Link successfully fuses Kinstones with Tingle, the northwesternmost tree in the group of four trees in North Hyrule Field will open with a chamber containing a Switch connected to a Torch and a Chest containing a Kinstone Piece. Tingle hopes to become a Fairy by fusing Kinstones. When spoken to afterwards, Tingle and his brothers will tell Link how many Kinstone Fusions he has left to complete. When Link has done all Kinstone fuses, Tingle will give him the Tingle Trophy, which replaces his Kinstone bag. After Link fuses Kinstones with all of the Tingle Brothers, he will offer to fuse Kinstones with the young hero again, which will cause a Golden Tektite to appear on Mount Crenel.

Ambiguously Canon Appearances
Tingle has had a series of spinoff games which haven't been explicitly been declared canon or non-canon by Nintendo.

Freshly-Picked Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland
Tingle is promised a life in a paradise, Rupeeland, by a creature named Uncle Rupee. The only thing he would have to do is collect as many Rupees as possible and throw them into the tower located under the Western Pool. Tingle accepted and was changed into what he is known as: a Tingle. Under this curse, his money became his life; if he would be out of money, he would die. Uncle Rupee also provided him with an assistant, Pinkle, who would fulfill the role of Tingle's sidekick and suggested love interest. Tingle traveled to many islands and fulfilled many tasks to get the money to get to Rupeeland, until it was revealed to him by the Grand Fairy that Rupeeland is a paradise for one person only: Uncle Rupee, the demon whose power depends on rupees. If Tingle were to proceed, everyone would be turned into a Tingle, forced to work for Uncle Rupee until the end of time. Tingle managed to free Pinkle, and with her help, confronted Uncle Rupee. Using the rupees he had collected, Tingle managed to defeat him, and was freed of the Tingle curse. When the Grand Fairy asked him what he was going to do with all the money left, Tingle replied he was going to use it to lead the life that was initially promised to him.

Tingle's Balloon Fight DS
was a special promotional game released only in Japan. It was mostly just an updated version of  with a Tingle theme. Along with music from Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland, one of the new additions to the game is a special Tingle artwork gallery, where 20 pieces of art can be unlocked.

Ripened Tingle's Balloon Trip of Love
In, Tingle is seen as an ordinary man again in the beginning. He orders a book from a television sales program, which is said to make its readers popular among women. However, the man gets sucked into a picture book world when he opens the book and becomes Tingle. The only way to exit the world is to dance with the princess. On his way to find her, Tingle teams up with his new friends Kakashi, Buriki, and Lion. In this point-and-click game, he advances from page to page with his three friends, following the yellow-brick road. This was intended to be a parody of.

Super Smash Bros. Series
Tingle makes a cameo appearance in the Great Bay stage in. His balloon can be used as a small platform until popped. Upon landing, he will do his dance and eventually blow up a new balloon.

Tingle appears in and   as an  in his The Wind Waker appearance. When summoned, a random effect occurs. These include:


 * Releasing s and s.
 * Making the stage gravity lighter by releasing balloons.
 * Making the ground slippery by throwing banana peels.
 * Releasing flowers causing the camera to zoom in on the player who summoned him.
 * Giving everyone status.

Tingle also appears as Trophies and a Sticker.

Kooloo-Limpah
Kooloo-Limpah are Tingle's "magic" words he created. Kooloo-Limpah is a romanization of "kururinpa", the sound that Japanese people make when doing the "Cuckoo sign", a circling motion of the index finger at the ear or side of the head that signifies that a person is crazy.

The effects of Kooloo-Limpah in The Wind Waker are always random, including a Ting or a Link homing Tingle Bomb.

Name Origin
Tingle's first starring game was released for the Nintendo DS in Japan as Mogitate Chinkuru no Barairo Ruppī Rando. It was not released in North America due to his unpopularity there. It was released in Europe as.

The game explains many aspects of Tingle, including the meaning of "Tingle". According to the game, Tingle is not a person, but a state of being; a curse that can befall every living being. Tingle in Freshly-Picked Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland is not called Tingle. A name must be chosen as "Tingle" is not available. Tingle's real name plays an important role in the story and as such needs to be recognizable from his curse-name. This curse is the work of Uncle Rupee, a demon who becomes stronger as he obtains more Rupees. Rather than collecting them himself, Uncle Rupee chooses a person to collect them for him. By offering him access to the supposed paradise Rupeeland, Uncle Rupee managed to trick Tingle in being that person. Upon accepting the offer, Tingle was changed into a "Tingle".

A Tingle is a servant or slave of Uncle Rupee. Whoever becomes a Tingle automatically gains the green and red outfit. Such a person will become dependent of Rupees himself. For a Tingle, being without Rupees equals death. If a Tingle succeeds in getting enough Rupees for Uncle Rupee, the latter becomes incredibly powerful and capable of turning everyone into Tingles. As such, it's up to the first Tingle that is created by Uncle Rupee during his attempt to conquer the world to stop Uncle Rupee before it is too late.

Tingle's obsession with Fairies is also explained, as Tingle seems to get romantically involved with a Fairy princess named Pinkle, with Fairies being Uncle Rupee's archenemies. Uncle Rupee is the manifestation of evil Rupee power (greed/egoism), while Fairies are the manifestation of good Rupee power (charity/altruism). As such, a Tingle that chooses to fight Uncle Rupee will find himself closely aided by the Fairies.

While Tingle is almost solely a state of being, it also acknowledges that Tingle is a person. Towards the end of the game, Tingle meets his uncle. He physically resembles Tingle, a reference to Tingle's brothers from previous Zelda games. While he does not seem to be a Tingle, he does wear clothes like Tingle, only with different colors. He also has a balloon to reach places far away. This seems to suggest that Tingle might be similar to Link in that the person Tingle is destined to become is the hero needed to defeat the evil, which would tie the two concepts of Tingle together.

Reception
Tingle, along with Navi,, and  has been one of Nintendo's most widely criticized characters. editors particularly loathe Tingle for his role in The Wind Waker for leading Link through many "tedious fetch quests". When was being created, IGN hoped that Shigeru Miyamoto and Eiji Aonuma would not include the character, saying "we're not going to stand for him in another Zelda game". However, Tingle is certainly not without any fans. Most criticism of the character comes from Western gamers, but in Japan, Tingle has a huge following, which resulted in the development of several spin off games featuring Tingle as their star.

Trivia

 * Tingle's obsessed dream of becoming a Fairy in Majora's Mask could be a reference to the Fairy Spell from, a spell that temporarily turns Link into a Fairy.
 * Purlo, the guy who runs the STAR Game, is a direct reference to Tingle. Eiji Aonuma has said that Purlo is what Tingle would look like if he was a realistic character.
 * Tingle appears in a wanted poster in the Milk Bar on Mercay Island in and in Ferrus' home in.
 * A figurine of Tingle can be found in several houses and shops in Spirit Tracks. A golden version exists in the shop of Linebeck III.
 * Tingle can be briefly seen at the Trading Post in the credits of Spirit Tracks.
 * A Tingle plush can be found on the desk in Zelda's dorm room in SS undefined.