It’s been 40 years today since Nintendo shook up the adventure game genre with the release of the first The Legend of Zelda game. An open-ended, immersive tale through a land called Hyrule. Puzzles, deep dungeons, a horde of baddies, plus the invention of save-files made Zelda a household name.
The Legend of Zelda History
There have been many genre-defining chapters in the Zelda game timeline across the four decades. From side-scrollers to revolutionary 3D engines, award winning open-world mechanics to divisive art styles, The Legend of Zelda has seen it all. To celebrate The Legend of Zelda turning 40, here’s a brief trip through time to explore the history of the Zelda series.
The Legend of Zelda (1986)
The Legend of Zelda series began with an incredibly ambitious concept for the mid ‘80s. A huge, sprawling open world and minimal instruction was completely unheard of. A hero with a green tunic wanders into a nearby cave. Sword acquired, now off you pop. The first Zelda game essentially invented the console adventure template from day one: dungeon crawling, item gating and a true sense of exploration. That sense of wonder has become embedded in Zelda game history since.
The Legend of Zelda also ticked another innovation box as the first console game to include a built-in lithium battery to save progress, revolutionising the dated password approach.
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (1987)
From top-down adventures to the slightly divisive sequel, Zelda II: The Adventure of Link. The experimental middle child of Zelda games drew inspiration from RPGs like Dragon Quest – levelling up and a challenging difficulty curve.
A Zelda game that suddenly re-invented itself after a successful debut. The Adventure of Link is perhaps not the most beloved of Zelda games but has found a home amongst series fans since.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (1991)
With the launch of the Super Nintendo (SNES), Nintendo decided to take a step back and revisit the more top-down, traditional Zelda game methodology. A refined blueprint of Hylian exploration, taking the best bits of the first two Zelda games and pushing the concept further.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past introduced many series elements, including a Light/Dark world shift, medallions, dungeon design and cinematic storytelling. This Zelda game has become a must-play for Hylian newcomers and a SNES essential.
The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening (1993)
The rather dreamy and ambitious Game Boy project was created by a different Zelda game team, with the freedom to explore a world outside of Hyrule. Smaller in scope than its SNES cousin, The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening was full of heart and timeless storytelling, ending up being a fully fleshed out adventure.
Link’s Awakening was also pivotal in defining NPCs with more purpose and personality, bleeding into later Zelda games – especially Ocarina of Time.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998)
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is a Zelda game that probably needs little introduction. After a successful run in 2D, Nintendo had ambitions to explore what a Zelda game could be like in a 3D space. Ocarina of Time translated the concept into polygons, becoming a big contributor to targeting objects and enemies in 3D – the now industry standard “Z-targeting”.
With sprawling dungeons, memorable cinematics, bosses and a cast of NPCs, this Nintendo 64 game stands the test of time (pun very much intended).
The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask (2000)
The bold Zelda game sequel that went darker and even more surreal than its predecessor. Given just one year to create a sequel to the massively popular Ocarina of Time, the Zelda game team answered the call in style.
The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask introduced a three-day time loop, turning the usual heroic quest into an anxious sprint toward disaster. Neat. The game also expanded character stories even further, making the most out of the limitation to weave intricate narrative. NPCs with more purpose is something explored in Zelda games since.
The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages & Oracle of Seasons (2001)
With an increased palette on the Game Boy colour and coming off the back of two successful Nintendo 64 Zelda games, Nintendo tried something different. Handing the keys to Capcom’s Flagship studio, the team initially tried to port the first Legend of Zelda game.
The project then shifted to inter-connected Zelda games – The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages & Oracle of Seasons. Linked adventures with different mechanics across both titles. An incredibly ambitious project that etched a place in Zelda game history.
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (2002)
After a curious next-generation Zelda game tease at Spaceworld 2000, Nintendo revealed a completely different Legend of Zelda concept a year later. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker was perhaps even more divisive at launch than Zelda II, with a subset of fans slightly confused by the new look.
With a bold, colourful and effortlessly charming art direction, Wind Waker won over even the most hardened of Hylian hearts. Open-sea exploration, expressive locales and Toon Link’s iconic look has made this GameCube Zelda game a classic.
The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap (2004)
A tiny hero with big ideas on the Game Boy Advance. It was a return to the portable platform with Capcom again at the helm. Taking advantage of the bigger palette on the GBA, The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap is a curiously colourful tale, drawing inspiration from The Wind Waker in design.
Since launch Minish Cap has become a staple Legend of Zelda game entry for the handheld, a must-play.
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (2006)
Perhaps a response to the mixed Wind Waker reception, Nintendo pivoted back to a darker and grittier approach to the Legend of Zelda game language. To many, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is a spiritual sequel to Ocarina of Time. Huge, traditional dungeons with a cinematic story, a more expansive Hyrule and going bigger on what made the Nintendo 64 games just so successful.
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is also famous for its iconic E3 2004 reveal, with a cheering audience and series creator Shigeru Miyamoto emerging from the shadows.
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (2007) & Spirit Tracks (2009)
With the Nintendo DS focusing heavily on touch-screen controls, both portable Legend of Zelda tales experimented with controls and second screen shenanigans. The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass and its sequel Spirit Tracks introduced stylus-driven play and continued the Wind Waker art direction and storytelling style.
Travelling across the land in boats and trains? Of course!
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (2011)
After dabbling in motion control with the Wii version of Twilight Princess, Nintendo stepped up the combat immersion by weaving Wii MotionPlus technology within the game’s core mechanics.
Instead of simple waggling, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword featured far more precise mapping, leading to tighter battles and puzzles. The Wii Zelda game also dabbled in the series story foundations, setting The Legend of Zelda game roots.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds (2013)
With the introduction of stereoscopic 3D in the Nintendo 3DS hardware, the Zelda team utilised the technology in what can loosely be described as a remix of A Link to the Past. Using the SNES games as visual base, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds uses a wall painting as a core mechanic in the puzzle design.
The 3DS Zelda entry also loosened the linear approach for a more flexible adventure – paving the doors for what comes next.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017)
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild tore down decades of core series foundations into something completely new. The game, which launched alongside the Nintendo Switch, went full circle to the 1986 debut. Free-form exploration, experimentation – a sense of unfettered wonder and wander.
The open-ended narrative and refreshed gameplay has made Breath of the Wild a huge chapter in Legend of Zelda history.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (2023)
If Breath of the Wild was new-found Zelda game freedom, Tears of the Kingdom was weaponised unbound creativity. Whilst the direct sequel followed a similar map and terrain to its predecessor, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom explored areas above and below ground, leaning heavily into building all sorts of monstrosities to fight Ganondorf’s minions.
The Legend of Zelda Spin-off Games
The Legend of Zelda has had a spectacular run of unique, genre defining and essential games across 40 years. In the second half, Nintendo loosened the reigns – allowing other studios to express their own takes on Hyrule.
The Hyrule Warriors series from Koei Tecmo takes the Dynasty Warriors setup and throws in faces from Zelda games. Since the Wii U debut in 2024, this series has had three core entries to date, exploring different chapters of Hylian history.
Other notable Zelda spin-offs include a rhythm game, Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer and a light-gun shooter on Nintendo Wii, Link’s Crossbow Training.
Want to explore more Legend of Zelda games? Head to the Zelda game reviews page.
