Zelda Wiki:Quality Standards

'If more should be needed to be added to this list, it will be done in the future. For now, this page is to provide a basic understanding of what is expected in an article.'

Article Creation

 * See also: Getting Started: Creating a Page


 * Any article not in its proper category should be sorted into a category. If the category does not exist, the writer/editor may create a category at their discretion.


 * Before creating a page, it is wise to make sure that the page does not already exist. Many times a page exists in another name. If there is more than one plausible name for an article, find out if the article exists in this other name, and make the duplicate article a redirect. If two articles about the same topic exist that both comply with the Quality Standards, it should be suggested that they be merged with the   template.

Wanted Pages
While working on articles, the writer/editor will sometimes wish to link to an article which has not yet been created, thereby creating a red link. Such links will appear in the Wanted pages list, allowing other editors with knowledge of the subject to create the required article. Certain guidelines should be adhered to in relation to wanted pages:
 * Red links should only be created when the writer is confident that the page linked to is strictly required (see Getting Started: Creating a Page), and alternatives such as a piped link or redirect, or adding content to an existing article, have been considered.
 * Before creating a page shown in the wanted pages list, use the "What links here" option in the sidebar toolbox to view the page(s) which link to this required article. This ensures that the subject and its context are fully understood, since the title alone will often not make this clear.
 * Articles should only be created when the editor is confident that they possess enough information to describe the subject matter fully and accurately. It is not appropriate to create minimal stub pages as placeholders in order to eliminate the red link, but rather it is preferable to wait for another editor to be able to do justice to the task.
 * As with all new pages, newly created wanted pages should be correctly categorized.
 * Some wanted links may be deemed to be unnecessary. In this case, the page which links to them may be edited to remove the link. However, this should only be done with a reasonable degree of certainty, therefore it is normally advisable to open a discussion on the relevant talk page before taking any action. Also, the alternatives mentioned in the first point above should be considered.



Images

 * All images should be tagged with the proper image templates which identify the source and content of the image.
 * File extensions for images are to be in lowercase and not capitalized. (.jpg not .JPG)
 * For images with transparent backgrounds, a .png file format is preferred to .gif.
 * Fan art and modified-model images are not acceptable for use within articles (although modified-model images may be placed in galleries which is to be decided on a case-by-case basis).
 * Screenshots should be cropped so there are no black portions around the image before being uploaded. If images are uploaded like this, they must be fixed. (see Zelda Wiki:Image Requests.)
 * Images, unless appropriate, should not have solid colors as their backgrounds, and should be uploaded with transparent backgrounds. Images without background transparency need to have their backgrounds removed, but this must be done to a quality that leaves smooth edges with no strokes, and leave no traces of any background. (see Zelda Wiki:Image Requests.)
 * Images uploaded to Zelda Wiki should be of an acceptable quality, not being extremely small or pixelated files.
 * If an image does not meet quality standards it will be deleted by an administrator. (see Zelda Wiki:File Deletion Policy.)



Article Formatting

 * Articles should have proper English grammar and spelling. This should be American English, not British English. This way, there is a uniform spelling to words. Grammar and spelling is, perhaps, the largest problem on the Wiki as of late. Tagged articles for improvement are most likely tagged because of poor linguistics.
 * Articles should be lengthy. If they are short, they should be tagged as stubs. Once articles have reached a certain length (defined at the user's discretion), the stub tag should be removed. Generally, a stub is a paragraph or shorter. These articles should be expanded as quickly as possible so as to provide the most in-depth information.
 * However, articles that are too lengthy may need some reformatting, rewording, or trimming to prevent long loading times and page glitching. The old page size limit was 32kb, however, with the upgrade in browser speed and capability over the years, articles up to 96kb are considered beneath the problematic limit. This number is likely to grow over time, as internet capabilities increase.
 * Subdivisions should be placed accordingly in articles. If there is a certain order of events that demand subcategories, they should be in the proper order. Please note that there are different ways of creating subcategories, in order of importance. This should be used to the writer's advantage when creating or editing an article, so as to give the article the best organization possible.
 * Every article should cite its sources with the tags. Currently, very few articles cite any sources whatsoever, which is quickly becoming unacceptable. In past times, this was fine, but as the Wiki grows, so must its standards. Lengthy articles such as Link should especially have their sources cited. If an article does not cite any sources, please mark it with the  template until sources are inserted.
 * Articles with out-of-date information should be updated to reflect the most recent information as soon as possible.
 * The abbreviations for the games should never be used in articles. This excludes very special cases when describing timeline connections and the abbreviations page itself. If the use of these abbreviations can be avoided, then they should not be used.



Article Content

 * Please do not copy articles from Wikipedia! While it is not against any law to do so, Zelda Wiki takes pride in its all-original articles. If you don't like the idea of making an article from scratch, perhaps it isn't your day to make an article. Articles caught copying from Wikipedia or any site that does not run the Wiki will be deleted or reverted to their older forms, and the user committing such an act will be given appropriate consequences by the admin staff.
 * Do not put up links to online Manga translations, fansubs of Japanese retail videos, TV show episodes, or game ROM downloads. Such content is illegal and will not be tolerated. Note: A ROM is essentially a copy of a game ripped from a cartridge/disk. While owning a ROM is legal provided that a physical copy of the game is also owned, the uploading/downloading and distribution of such ROM's is illegal, and will not be tolerated!
 * Vandalism is subject to immediate expulsion from the Wiki for a set amount of time as defined by the sysop or bureaucrat!



Article Style

 * Zelda Wiki maintains an in-universe writing style for all game content. Specifically, characters in the games are referred to by name, using third-person forms (e.g. "Link" is to be used in place of "you"). See also: Template:YouLink
 * Unless the subject matter demands otherwise, only the present tense should be used
 * Article text should maintain a neutral point of view, and should not reflect the author's personal views or offer subjective judgments on the content described
 * Well-written articles avoid the use of styles or elements associated with literary fiction. For example, editors should avoid:
 * over-use of superfluous adjectives and/or adverbs
 * exaggeration and/or dramatization
 * any writing style associated with storytelling
 * unnecessary repetition of content already covered in other articles
 * When referring to recently released games, terms such as "new" or "latest" should be avoided, as these are temporary statements subject to change. Also, this practice rarely imparts valuable information



Language and Localization Standards
Zelda Wiki is an English-language wiki, based in the United States of America, which sets a few standards for language:


 * All content is to be written in formal American English, not British English, Australian English or any other variation of the English language.
 * Even though the games of the Zelda series are originally published in Japanese, the translations and localizations of Nintendo of America are taken to be canon at Zelda Wiki.
 * Articles are to be named and written, and games quoted, using Nintendo of America’s translations.
 * The Japanese names of characters and places can be included in the article using the same format that is seen in the Link article.
 * Although the original Japanese can greatly differ from the English translations, these differences are not to be mentioned or noted in the main body of the article, however, significant differences can be mentioned in the trivia section of the article.
 * To preserve clarity and quality of content, no language other than English is to be used at Zelda Wiki. Only through the use of the Names in Other Regions template, may foreign names of articles, objects, enemies relative to the article be incorporated.
 * Zelda Wiki has an interwiki agreement with the German-language wiki Zeldapendium, therefore any appropriate pages should link to Zeldapendium using the   template.
 * Articles should be written in an in-universe speaking style. This means that when referring to playable characters, such as "Link", articles must state the name of the character or use an appropriate alternative for the sentence, such as "he". It is not tolerable to refer to playable characters as "the player" or "you", and if these are in articles they should be changed to the correct narrative. There are exceptions to this; namely for glitches and hacks.



Theories in Articles
It is important to remember that Zelda Wiki is an encyclopedia and not a forum. Articles are for the presentation of factual information, not for expressing personal theories. There are a number of things that should be noted when adding theories to articles, so they meet Zelda Wiki’s quality standards:


 * Theories are to be reputable, show evidence to support them (see Help:Citing Sources), and have a reasonable amount of support or acceptance within the community. That is, they are not merely personal theories.
 * Theories should meet all normal quality standards for writing in articles, including citing sources, correct spelling, proper use of grammar and appropriate placement.
 * In terms of citing sources for theories, official statements from Nintendo and/or forums that show incontrovertible support for said theory are both valid.
 * There is to be no speculation or theories in regards to unreleased games.
 * All theories should be placed in a separate section within the article, and be labeled with the   template.
 * When considering adding a theory to an article, it is best to propose the theory on the corresponding talk page, to allow its veracity and relevance can be discussed and a decision reached.
 * Timeline theories are not tolerated on any page, with only two exceptions. Users can add timeline theories to their user page, and/or place it on the Timeline Theories page, providing it is added using the correct format and is thoroughly detailed.
 * If an administrator determines that a theory does not meet the specified criteria, it may be removed from the article.



Glitch Standards

 * By adding a glitch to Zelda Wiki you are agreeing that you have personally tested the glitch, or have a definitive knowledge that the glitch is possible, and can testify to its authenticity.
 * By adding a glitch to Zelda Wiki you agree that you have written the instructions personally and not copied them from another source.
 * Glitches are to be laid out in the following format, as modeled on the Ocarina of Time Glitch Page:

Name of Glitch

 * Effect: (What is the outcome of performing the glitch?)
 * Prerequisites: (Items required and minimum stage in the game when glitch is executable)
 * How To: (Detailed step by step instructions of how to execute the glitch)
 * Notes: (Notes about the glitch, if any)



Naming Standards
Here are Zelda Wiki's standards when it comes to naming. We editors of Zelda Wiki hold ourselves to a high standard. These naming standards apply to both page and section titles.

Most of the games have two titles. The main title (The Legend of Zelda) and its subtitle (i.e. Link's Awakening). When describing a character in the title, only what is need to know should be in it. So that means that only the subtitle is needed. So when dealing with a game that has only a main title, just have that. Like the original game The Legend of Zelda, or Link's Crossbow Training.

Game abbreviations are not allowed in page titles for main articles. It's okay for userboxes though, actually, it is preferred in such cases.

Characters with titles in their name will have the title in the article name as well. Such as Princess Zelda, Minister Potho, Lord Jabu-Jabu, Chancellor Cole, etc. When a character needs to be described in the title to differentiate it from something similar or generic, the wiki's standard form is the following:


 * Subject (Description)

Subject is, obviously, the subject of the page in question. Description is, again quite obviously, the description of the subject.

Both of these parts follow page title rules that we all know from school. All words are capitalized except for common words: those that are three letters long or less, typically ones that start a prepositional phrase. Unless they are at the very beginning of course (i.e. first word), then capitalize.

Examples of words not to capitalize are:
 * a
 * an
 * and
 * at
 * for
 * in
 * is
 * of
 * on
 * the
 * to



Referring to Games in Articles
When mentioning a game in an article, only use the subtitle (the part after the colon) in most cases — there are exceptions. When using any part of the game's name, always italicize it — see Text Formatting for details.

When linking to a game, the form must always be in the form of a piped link. Where the first part is the full name, and the second part is the subtitle. The form is as follows:
 * Ocarina of Time

Which generates:
 * Ocarina of Time

For an easy-to-use shortcut for doing this see the game-abbreviation templates in the formatting templates category (every template under the "*" heading).



Redirects
Having links in pages that redirect the reader to another page rather than taking them directly to the intended page is strongly discouraged. It makes Zelda Wiki look sloppy and unprofessional. So whenever you, the editor, add a link to another page, please make sure that it is not a redirect. If it is, then please change the link to point to intended location.