Cameos of The Legend of Zelda

The Legend of Zelda series has made numerous cameos and crossovers in other Nintendo games, and elements and characters from the series have even made licensed appearances in third party video games. This listing does not include unlicensed parodies and homages in other media. Please visit The Legend of Zelda in popular culture for examples of these.

Animal Crossing

 * Animal Crossing
 * Gulliver and Kapp'n make references to Hyrule, such as a 'Hyrulean prison'.
 * If the player catches a loach, his or her character says, "I wonder if it's Hylian?"
 * The Master Sword is available as an item.
 * A Nintendo Entertainment System console with the full version of The Legend of Zelda was to be available as an item, but was made unobtainable. It can still be played by hacking into the game, however.
 * Kafei's shirt and Anju's shirt are available as clothes for the main character.
 * On the back wall of the fortune teller's tent, there is a picture of the Triforce.
 * Tortimer tells a story about him defeating the great sea snakes at Pinnacle Rock, which is what Link has to do in Majora's Mask.
 * In some villagers' houses, if the player tries to look in a cupboard or drawer, they may get a message that says that they've found some Rupees but cannot use them as currency in the game.


 * Animal Crossing: Wild World
 * The Triforce and the Master Sword are available as furniture.
 * Villagers occasionally talk about a boy in green who shot things out of the air with a Slingshot.


 * Animal Crossing: City Folk
 * Majora's Mask, Link's hat and tunic, and Midna's mask all appear as items that can be worn.
 * The Triforce and Master Sword return from previous games.
 * Animal Crossing for the Nintendo GameCube had an e-Reader feature. Scanning certain cards added Zelda based pattern designs to be used as wallpaper, clothing, etc.


 * Animal Crossing: New Leaf
 * Link's hat and tunic appear as items that can be worn, as well as Link's pants and shoes.
 * The Triforce and Master Sword return from previous games. Pressing A by the Triforce when it's displayed causes it to spin and play the musical refrain prior to the title screen of, while pressing A by the Master Sword causes the item collection jingle from SS undefined to play.
 * Masks modeled after Midna, Fi and Majora's Mask can be obtained and worn.
 * The items obtained from Fortune Cookies contain a fortune relevant to each item. The fortune for the Triforce reads as follows: "He who believes he has a pure heart is probably just a beast in denial." This is referencing the Triforce's ability to transform people into a being that reflects their true nature, commonly that of a beast in.

Donkey Kong

 * Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy Kong's Quest
 * If the game is beaten with 18 Video Game Hero Coins (in the form of DK Coins) or less, third place in Cranky's Video Game Heroes will be held by Link, behind Yoshi and Mario. Link's appearance is based on the design used for official art in A Link to the Past and Link's Awakening, albeit with darker hair, possibly due to palette limitations. He appears unequipped, and looks around the room before crossing his arms. In the Game Boy Advance version, Link takes the second place instead of Yoshi (at the time of the original game, Yoshi's Island had just been released). As the game used pre-rendered sprites, this marks the first time Link had been rendered in three dimensions for a game.


 * Donkey Kong Land 2
 * As a remake of the SNES adventure, this game also includes the same Video Game Heroes lineup as the Super NES equivalent.


 * Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong's Double Trouble
 * If the main characters buy a shell from Bazaar's Shop, ask him about a castle, and refuse to pay for the story; Bazaar will tell them a story about another boy who asked about a castle and paid for it in Rupees.


 * Donkey Konga
 * A version of The Legend of Zelda theme is featured in this game.
 * The player can buy a The Legend of Zelda-themed bongo sound set.


 * Donkey Konga 2: Hit Song Parade
 * A version of The Legend of Zelda theme is featured in this game.


 * Donkey Konga 3: Tabehoudai! Haru Mogitate 50 Kyoku
 * This game contains a song based on The Legend of Zelda theme.

Kirby

 * Kirby series
 * In several games, starting with Kirby Super Star, Kirby's Sword ability makes many reference to Link, most notably with a hat based on Link's cap from A Link to the Past, the most recent design at the time of release (although with the addition of a bobble at the tip). The sword Kirby uses was also made into a design resembling the Master Sword, and Kirby gains many abilities based on those used by Link, such as the Sword Beam and Down Thrust, and in Kirby's Return to Dream Land he is even able to use Link's trademark Spin Attack, complete with him charging energy before the attack is unleashed.


 * Kirby Super Star
 * In The Great Cave Offensive, one of the treasures to collect is the Triforce. According to Nintendo, the reason for this and the references to other Nintendo games are because the developers wanted to repay the favor of having Kirby appear in Link's Awakening.


 * Kirby: Canvas Curse
 * On Level 3 of Paint Roller's minigame, Kirby sometimes has to draw a Triforce shape.


 * Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards
 * One creature named Bonehead resembles a Bubble, which may or may not be a reference.

Mario

 * Super Mario Bros. 3
 * The warp whistle plays the same tune as the one in The Legend of Zelda. It also summons a cyclone in the same way. This cameo appears in remakes of Super Mario Bros. 3 (Super Mario All-Stars, Super Mario All Stars + Super Mario World, and Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3).


 * Picross NP Vol. 5
 * All of the puzzles in Character Mode are from The Legend of Zelda series. The images used are of Navi, the Fairy Ocarina, the Keaton Mask, the Fairy Slingshot, Kaepora Gaebora, Princess Zelda, Link, Princess Ruto, Epona, Darunia, Deku Scrub, and Ganondorf.
 * Picross DS has 1 puzzle of the original Link sprite. Found as an unlockable following the completion of all 10 levels of Normal Mode.


 * Super Mario RPG
 * Link In Rose Town Inn.png If Mario sleeps at the Inn at Rose Town, Link will be sleeping in the bed next to him. If Mario talks to him it will play the classic Zelda discovery theme. As seen here.


 * Yoshi's Story
 * The player can read the word "Zelda" on the newspaper background in Stages 2-3 and 2-4.


 * Mario Golf
 * Random names of characters from other Nintendo games are put on the scoreboards. Darunia, Deku Scrub, Goron Kid, Impa, Link, Malon, Navi, Saria, Sheik, Talon, and Zelda are included.


 * Super Mario Sunshine
 * The character Il Piantissimo has a (masked) face reminiscent of the Running Man from Ocarina of Time and the Postman from Majora's Mask.


 * Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga
 * One of the items is the Great Force, a yellow triangle. The people at TMK discovered that the item was originally supposed to be the Triforce and Link was supposed to appear when the player got it.


 * Mario Party 7
 * Everytime a Cruise Secret is purchased, the text box says, "Shhh... It's a secret to everybody!"


 * Super Paper Mario
 * Throughout the game Mario is guided by a hint giving Pixl named Tippi. She has the appearance of a rainbow colored (but mostly light blue) butterfly, and is obviously a parody of Navi. Also, when Mimi insists that Mario pays for a vase he broke, she will not accept coins, since she prefers to use octagonal gems called Rubees, again a parody of Rupee. There is a Pixl inside a bathroom on the moon named "Fleep" which requests a piece of paper. Mario then must buy a map, which is then used a toilet paper by Fleep (in a similar way to ???), who rewards him by joining his team.


 * Super Mario Galaxy
 * Game director Yoshiaki Koizumi said in an interview with Nintendo Power (issue #225) that the battle strategy against the boss character Megaleg is inspired by what was going to be used for the final battle against Ganon in Ocarina of Time, but that was scrapped due to difficulty on camera control. Also, in the third mission of Good Egg Galaxy, Mario fights giant creatures that resemble Deku Scrubs firing cannonballs at him. In one galaxy, a giant Rupee appears and grants Mario a large amount of star bits.


 * Super Mario Galaxy 2
 * In one of the galaxies, a Gearmo will ask Mario for a Goomba. After the plumber gives him the Goomba, he will hold it up in the air exactly like Link does when he gets an item.


 * Super Mario 3D Land
 * World 5-2 is heavily based on the Zelda series and was created to honor the game's 25th anniversary. Played predominantly from a top-down perspective and involving Mario moving from room to room in a similar manner to a traditional Zelda dungeon. A puzzle to obtain a Star Coin involves lighting torches using Fire Mario which causes the Zelda "puzzle solved" musical cue to play, and the dungeon includes traps that mimic those that appear in Zelda games, such as Guruguru Bars, Spiked Rollers, and Spinies appear as enemies, who also appear in the Zelda series in the form of Spiked Beetles.


 * Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon
 * In Mission C-3: Roundhouse Brawl in the Old Clockworks, the Ancient Poltergeist (Elder Boffin in the PAL release) is briefly seen arranging six bricks into the shape of the Triforce. As he does this, the background music briefly plays the "item found" refrain from the Zelda games.


 * Mario & Luigi: Dream Team
 * One of the Luiginoid moves is called Hookshot, which is a reference to the item of the same name. This Luiginoid move works in a similar manner to the aforementioned item, causing multiple Luigis to stretch out in a chain to latch onto targets and pull Mario and the remaining Luiginoids to it.


 * Super Mario 3D World
 * A secret area in one level of the game takes Mario to an area composed of black blocks that form an 8-bit Link sprite from the original . Lighting them all up to reveal the sprite causes the "item found" refrain from to play, and a Green Star to appear. After this, the music will change to a remix of part of the main theme of the Zelda series until Mario leaves.

Metroid

 * Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
 * The game's concept of light/dark duality, as well as the collection of Temple Keys, was compared to the gameplay mechanic from The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. In fact, the developer of the game, Retro Studios, was assisted by one of the creators of the SNES Zelda game to properly incorporate the aforementioned concept into the new game.


 * Interestingly, some game journalists and critics also compared this game to Majora's Mask, as both games are credited for being darker and more challenging than their respective predecessors, albeit also less influential.


 * Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
 * Players can unlock a special feature known as Ship Bumper Stickers, which decorates Samus Aran's gunship with stickers based on certain Nintendo games that have data stored in the players' Wii consoles. One of these games is Twilight Princess, which makes the gunship have a sticker portraying the crest of the Triforce.


 * As an extra note, the drawn pictures on planet Bryyo (which house scanable lore data for Samus) are reminiscent of The Wind Waker's cel-shading art style.

Wario

 * WarioWare series
 * Several of 9-Volt's games are based on The Legend of Zelda.
 * During the credits, if the player pushes down the stars turn to Triforces.


 * WarioWare: Smooth Moves
 * Two of the minigames are based on various games of The Legend of Zelda series. One is based on The Wind Waker where the player's character flies with the Deku Leaf onto the wooden platform to reach the Forbidden Woods. The other is based on Ocarina of Time, where the Master Sword is pulled out of the Pedestal of Time. Plus, there is a pose called the Triforce.

Other Nintendo Games

 * Big Brain Academy
 * One of the puzzles to complete is the Triforce.


 * Daigassou! Band Brothers
 * One of the Nintendo-themed songs is a medley of Zelda songs.


 * F-1 Race
 * Link roots for the player on Course 5.


 * Game and Watch Gallery 4
 * Game & Watch Zelda is available as an unlockable bonus game.


 * Golden Sun: The Lost Age
 * Hidden within the game's source code is an un-used NPC sprite that greatly resembles Link.


 * Hamtaro: Ham-Ham Heartbreak
 * There's a part in the game where the player goes to Sunny Peak and pulls The Legendary Spoon out of its pedestal, similar to Link pulling the Master Sword out of its pedestal. It references A Link to the Past, in which Link also had to get a blue, red and green orb before he could pull the sword from its pedestal. This specific quest has also been featured in several other Zelda games.
 * Ham-Merchants across the game say "Buy something, will ya?", like the merchants from the first game.


 * Kid Icarus: Uprising
 * The Idol description for the Fairy Orbitars references Navi in the first sentence.


 * Nintendo Land
 * One of the minigames is called The Legend of Zelda: Battle Quest, and is a direct homage to the series, where the player takes on the role of Link and fights many monsters from the series in familiar landscapes.
 * Aside from the obvious Zelda references relating to Battle Quest, the Triforce makes an appearance in Yoshi's Fruit Cart in Gate 30, where the player must make the shape of the relic using the stylus to complete the stage.
 * The Triforce also appears as a possible shape in the Pachinko game found in the main Plaza.


 * Tetris
 * After winning a B-type game at or above level 9 with a height of at least 1, Link appears playing a flute.
 * Upon beating level 9 in the NES version, a secret ending with various Nintendo characters, including Link, will be unlocked.


 * Tetris DS
 * This version of Tetris features Link prominently and includes a number of Zelda-themed games.


 * Trace Memory
 * In the U.S. version, the bookshelf in the Silver Bird Room contains a book called "The Legend of Zelda Chronology".


 * PiCTOBiTS
 * Two of the stages are based on the original Legend of Zelda, utilizing sprites of Link, Zelda and Ganon. Each stage is accompanied by a remixed theme in a chiptune style; one based on the main theme, and the second being a rock-themed remix of the Death Mountain music.


 * Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky
 * In the special episode "Igglybuff the Prodigy", there is a cutscene involving a room in a dungeon filled with many Zelda dungeon puzzle-like implements that a character explains are probably all used to open the door in that room. A later cutscene involves the same character talking about a single simple, common (but reverse-solution) Zelda puzzle type found in front of him inside another dungeon.


 * Pokémon Stadium 2
 * In My Room mode, the player's character can decorate his room with consoles. On the NES, it is possible to see The Legend of Zelda; on the Super Nintendo, one can see A Link to the Past; and on the Nintendo 64, one can see Ocarina of Time.


 * Pokémon X and Y
 * In Pokémon X and Y, after being defeated by the player, Preschooler Mia on Route 4 says "Hey! Hey! Listen!" before battle, referencing Navi.


 * Wii Music
 * One of the songs playable is the Title Theme for The Legend of Zelda.


 * Wii Sports Resort
 * One of the stamps that can be obtained in the archery minigame is called "It's a Secret to Everybody."


 * Wii Party
 * The description for the "Flashlight Frights" mini-game starts with "It's dangerous to go alone."

Licenced Third-party Game Cameos

 * Soulcalibur II
 * Link is a playable character in the GameCube version.


 * Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes
 * If the player has a saved data on the memory card, Psycho Mantis will mention this to Solid Snake.


 * Dynasty Warriors VS
 * Released exclusively in Japan for the Nintendo 3DS, the game features a costume of Link in his SS undefined incarnation (along with a costume of Zero Suit Samus). He is equipped with the True Master Sword and the Hylian Shield; however, he does not use them as it is only a costume and not a full character.


 * Tekken Tag Tournament 2: Wii U Edition
 * The Wii U version of the game includes many Nintendo-themed costumes for the characters, including Link, Ganon, Princess Zelda and Sheik, based predominantly on their Super Smash Bros. Brawl appearances.


 * Scribblenauts Unlimited
 * In the Wii U version of the game, many people and objects from the Mario and Zelda series can be created.


 * Lego City Undercover
 * The buses in the game are named as 'Epona' model buses.


 * Monster Hunter 4
 * Costumes of Link in his Skyward Sword incarnation for the players with the Master Sword, Hylian Shield and the Sacred Bow.

Television and Movies

 * The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!
 * In one episode, Mario is rescuing some aliens known as Quirks from Moon Man Koopa. In the episode, the Quirks sing a song to stop Koopa. The song that the Quirks play is the beginning theme from the Zelda cartoon.


 * Captain N: The Game Master
 * Princess Zelda and Link make guest appearances throughout the second season of this television series.