is a character in Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda video game series. She was created by Shigeru Miyamoto for the original 1986 game The Legend of Zelda. As one of the central characters in the series, she has appeared in the majority of the games in various incarnations. Zelda is the elf-like Hylian princess of the kingdom of Hyrule, an associate of the series protagonist Link, and bearer of the Triforce of Wisdom.
Zelda's role has often been that of a damsel in distress or donor who assists Link. In many games, she is captured by the antagonist Ganon, necessitating Link to come to her rescue. In several games she is one of the Sages whose heroism is essential to defeating Ganon; in others, like Ocarina of Time and The Wind Waker, she adopts alternative personas to take a more active role in the story. In Skyward Sword, her first incarnation is revealed to be the mortal form of the goddess Hylia, establishing the bloodline of the goddess and giving her descendants a range of magical powers. In Echoes of Wisdom, she is featured as the playable protagonist.
Zelda has been described as one of the most recognisable princesses in video gaming. She has appeared in branded merchandise, comics and manga, and an animated television series. In addition to The Legend of Zelda series, she has appeared as a playable character in a number of spin-off games and other game series, including Hyrule Warriors, Cadence of Hyrule, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment, and the Super Smash Bros. series. Critics have responded positively to her development into a strong female character and have listed her as one of the greatest female video game characters of all time.
Concept and creation Characterisation According to Shigeru Miyamoto, co-creator of The Legend of Zelda series, Princess Zelda's name was inspired by Zelda Fitzgerald, an American novelist, dancer, and socialite, as well as the wife of fellow novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald. Miyamoto had decided to name the first game "The Legend of X", but did not know what the X would stand for. He said that a public relations planner had suggested the name when proposing an illustrated story for the game involving the rescue of a princess who was defined as an eternal beauty. Miyamoto explained: "I couldn't really get behind the book idea but I really liked the name Zelda. I asked him if I could use it, and he said that would be fine. And that's where the title The Legend of Zelda was born."
Zelda was established as a princess in the first game, with few details given about the Royal Family of Hyrule until later games. She is a princess in most games except in Skyward Sword, which takes place before the founding of Hyrule Kingdom. Like Link, there are multiple incarnations of Princess Zelda in the series who are all connected by The Legend of Zelda timeline, which spans thousands of years of fictional history. Each version of Princess Zelda is a descendant of the first who founded the royal line and Hyrule. The instruction booklet for Zelda II: The Adventure of Link establishes that Zelda's name reoccurs because the prince of the kingdom orders that "every female child born into the royal household shall be given the name Zelda".
In Ocarina of Time, Zelda's role was expanded by giving her an alter ego as a surviving member of the Sheikah clan named . To hide from Ganondorf and protect the Triforce of Wisdom, she disguises herself as a ninja warrior. During the game, she acts as a guide and helps Link on his quest to defeat Ganondorf until near the end of the game when she reveals herself to be Zelda. Sheik's gender was the subject of debate, with some fans believing that Zelda transforms herself into a male character in Ocarina of Time. Nintendo senior product marketing manager Bill Trinen responded that Sheik is a woman: "simply Zelda in a different outfit". In 2016, Miyamoto revealed in an interview that the development team had considered the possibility of producing a spin-off game with Sheik as the protagonist. A game starring Sheik was reported to be in development at Retro Studios but was eventually cancelled.
Another alter ego of Zelda named was introduced in The Wind Waker and its Nintendo DS sequel, Phantom Hourglass. Like Sheik, she plays a major role in the storyline as a young pirate captain who helps Link to find his sister, Aryll. In this incarnation, Zelda is unaware of her royal bloodline until the end of the game. Her true identity is revealed when the Triforce of Wisdom is restored, which results in her physical transformation to her Princess Zelda form. The Phantom Hourglass follows on from The Wind Waker with Link and Tetra exploring the sea to find new land. Tetra is captured on a Ghost Ship, and Link must defeat the Demon Monster Bellum with the Phantom Sword to save her. In a 2011 interview with GamesRadar+, series producer Eiji Aonuma commented on the possibility of Tetra reappearing within the Zelda series: "Personally, I really like the character, but the director on the DS games after that, Mr. Iwamoto, said he didn't really like her, so he didn't want to use her".
Zelda was given a more active role in Spirit Tracks by adventuring alongside Link in spirit form, which made a sharp contrast to her damsel in distress role in earlier installments. Aonuma explained that this decision reflected the desires of fans and developers alike. A survey conducted in the United States signified consumers preferred more independent female characters, including Zelda's alter egos Sheik and Tetra. Director, Daiki Iwamoto, also expressed an interest in making Zelda "a more integral part of the game" during the game's development.
The character's significance within the mythology of the series was expanded further in Skyward Sword, where the first incarnation of Zelda is established as the mortal reincarnation of the goddess Hylia, a recurring deity worshiped by the Hylians that appears in statue form. Aonuma said that his team had been looking at how to portray Zelda more as the title character rather than just a princess to be rescued and wanted to give her an active role in the story. He also said that by establishing a connection between Zelda and Link, it helps the player to be better immersed in the adventure.
Aonuma said that for Breath of the Wild, Zelda was designed to be "complex and multifaceted". He said that he wanted players to "explore and see these different sides of Zelda, different emotions that she evokes". During development, the team briefly considered giving Zelda the lead role as female protagonist. Director Hidemaro Fujibayashi said that in Tears of the Kingdom her character development is a key aspect of the narrative: "She's going through growth, experiencing things, and ultimately figuring out what kind of a person she's going to be."
With the development of Echoes of Wisdom, Zelda was given the role of protagonist for the first time in a mainline Zelda game, although it was originally intended for Link. Aonuma recognised that players wanted a playable Zelda and decided that she was the ideal character for the game's echoes concept. Despite feeling that this would do justice to the character, the development team struggled to find the right story and brainstormed ideas to explain Zelda's motivations for embarking on the adventure.
Character design
Official artwork created for the original game depicted the character dressed in a long pink gown wearing a necklace and tiara. Artwork for Zelda II: The Adventure of Link was similar and depicted her with red hair. For the development of A Link to the Past, Zelda was originally designed wearing a sci-fi themed outfit to correspond with an early multi-world game concept, but this was eventually scrapped. For Ocarina of Time her royal dress was designed with a tabard featuring the Sheikah coat of arms and the Hyrule royal family crest.
In the anime-inspired video game The Wind Waker, Tetra's hair was designed as a swirl to mimic the wind and smoke in the game. Her alter ego contrasts with Zelda's traditional appearance in the game as princess wearing long hair and royal dress.
During the development of Twilight Princess illustrator Yusuke Nakano tried to portray the princess as a pensive character, "as if she's wondering about something". He drew illustrations of Zelda with feelings of "hopelessness and anxiousness", but tried to avoid depicting her and Link "too full of gloom and doom".
In Skyward Sword Zelda was presented as a student of the Knight Academy instead of her usual role as princess. The designers wanted her to look like a "typical village girl" and aimed to "establish her as a heroine". They removed the royal ornamentation from her head and designed her wearing sky blue and a red dress. They also created Zelda in her goddess form, in which she was designed, "dressed simply, and in white".
For the release of Breath of the Wild, a variety of concept art was considered for Zelda's character design. Fujibayashi commented that Zelda's character was the most difficult to define because while the planners had approached her by thinking about what kind of person she is, the designers took a different approach and considered how Zelda's design could make players feel. The team was so concerned that they repeatedly made refinements to her design until the end of development. Alongside various dress designs, Zelda's image was updated to include outfits that showed her ready for combat, including the final blue blouse and pants that complemented Link's primary outfit. Fujibayashi said that Zelda's shorter hairstyle in Tears of the Kingdom was designed to make her feel more realistic, due to being actively mobile while restoring the kingdom after Breath of the Wild.
In Echoes of Wisdom, Zelda is the avatar for the player, so Aonuma felt it was necessary to keep her appearance balanced so that she was neither too cute nor conspicuous. The development team at Grezzo spent a long time finalising her appearance to enhance her character appeal. Her facial expressions were designed to match the feelings of the player, so Aonuma made subtle changes to her eyes and mouth so that her face evolves from a serious expression into a smile as the story progresses.
Portrayal
Princess Zelda has been voiced by several voice actors, including Bonnie Jean Wilbur in Link: The Faces of Evil and Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon, Brandy Kopp in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (World of Light only) and Stephanie Martone in Cadence of Hyrule. She is voiced by Canadian-American actress Patricia Summersett in Breath of the Wild, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, Tears of the Kingdom, and Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment. Zelda has also been voiced by several Japanese actors, including Jun Mizusawa (Ocarina of Time, Twilight Princess, Super Smash Bros. Melee), Hikari Tachibana (Four Swords Adventures, The Wind Waker, Hyrule Warriors), Akane Omae (Spirit Tracks), Ayumi Fujimura (A Link Between Worlds and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate), Saori Seto (Hyrule Warriors) Yū Shimamura (Skyward Sword, Breath of the Wild, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, Tears of the Kingdom, and Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment ). and Chiyuki Miura (Echoes of Wisdom).
In Zelda's Adventure, she was portrayed by a receptionist at the Viridis Corporation named Diane Burns. Zelda will be portrayed by Bo Bragason in the upcoming live-action film.
Characteristics Zelda is a princess and member of the royal family of Hyrule. In the early games, her role is the damsel in distress for Link to save after she is kidnapped by the series main antagonist, Ganon. She bears the characteristic traits of the Hylians, having elven features including pointy ears. Throughout the series her age has ranged from a child to a young adult who is typically aged 16 or 17 years.