The Legend of Zeldaseries has gone through a lot of changes over the years, but could it get away with changingLink’s silent status? Link being silent is as iconic a part of his character as his green tunic, which itself has been stripped away inBreath of the WildandTears of the Kingdom. While these newer games seem to have proven that Link can undergo some serious design changes and still be himself, some players may draw that line at Link speaking.
Link has talked in the past, although things didn’t go well when he did. Still,it isn’t completely unprecedented for a newZeldagame to give Link some lines of dialogue. That said, with Link silent in a majority of his appearances, it may come off as strange to have him talking in a newZeldagame if not done well. It’s hard to say if the potential benefits of Link talking would outweigh the risk of messing with one of gaming’s most popular protagonists.
Why Link Should Speak In The Next Zelda Game
There Could Be Some Pros To Link Talking
One thing to point out about Link’s status as a silent protagonist is that it may be a bit of a misnomer. While Link rarely speaks words, the games do imply that he speaks. When Link engages NPCs in dialogue, there is often an implication that Link has said something or responded to what they said in some way. This is most heavily implied in shops when selecting an item. Players may be picking them from a menu, but there is an implication that Link is telling the shop owner what he wants.
As the series went on, it did more than just imply Link can talk.TheWind Wakershows Link yelling “come on” to get Medli to follow him. InTwilight Princess, Link can be seen having a conversation with Ilia, though his words aren’t shown on screen.Skyward Swordgave players dialogue options, which was continued inBreath of the WildandTears of the Kingdom. At this point, while Link doesn’t often speak aloud,he does do a fair bit of talking.
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As it’s clear Link can speak, it would seem like the decision to keep him silent is more of a stylistic choice. Though this choice has worked well in the past, it is starting to feel a little strange as theZeldagames advance in their style of storytelling.When Link is involved in longer, voice-acted cutscenes, his silence stands out a lot morethan it did when the dialogue was all done in text. Link speaking could allow him to participate more in cutscenes and show more of his relationship with Zelda and other characters.
While most versions of Link are implied to speak,Echoes of Wisdomexplains Link’s silent natureas a symptom of him having been swallowed by one of the game’s rifts.
Link speaking could also open up some new avenues for storytelling. Players could potentially have more in-depth conversations with NPCs or have more control over the narrative. This could allow the series to add some more RPG elements by making the already present dialogue options more impactful. This could complementZelda’s new open-world structure. That said, it’s not clear that this type of change would be a positive in the eyes ofZeldafans.
Why Link Should Remain A Silent Protagonist
Link Talking Risks His Appeal As A Protagonist
Official art of Link leading Princess Zelda through the sewers inThe Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.
Link being largely silent inThe Legend of Zeldaseries serves a pretty clear purpose. It allows players to fully put themselves into the role of Link. Because Link doesn’t have too many defining character traits apart from being brave and good, players can project whatever type of personality they want onto him. This allows everyone to connect equally well with Link, even if their personal impressions of him as a character are wildly different.
As the 1989The Legend of Zeldacartoon proved,giving Link more of a personality can cause issues. Within the first three minutes of the show, Link whines obnoxiously about his new life of luxury before whistling at and sexually harassing Zelda. While this was clearly a worst-case scenario for giving Link speaking lines, it perfectly highlights the danger of doing it. The more Link talks, the more likely he is to say something that will alienate some players or make him less likable. Keeping Link silent helps preserve players’ strong affinity for him.
It’s difficult to see what would really be added by having Link’s lines be voice-acted. He already has longer dialogue options in games likeBreath of the Wild, which allows players to see, or rather choose, more of his personality. Even if Nintendo wants to add more dialogue options and RPG elements to a futureZeldagame, that doesn’t mean Link has to say anything aloud. The games can stick to text dialogue options which do a better job preserving players’ connections to the character.
Link Shouldn’t Talk In The Next Zelda Game
Making Link Talk Wouldn’t Add Much To The Series
While there could be some benefits to having Link talk in a newZeldagame, they don’t really outweigh the risks. Players have a strong connection to Link as a character, and endangering that just to give Link some spoken dialogue doesn’t seem worth it. This is especially true when the games have already given Link the ability to speak and make dialogue choices without having to be voice-acted.It’s hard to say what, if anything, making Link talk would really addto the games, besides just making it a bit clearer that he can in fact talk.
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The Legend of Zeldaseries is also already dealing with a bit of a Ship of Theseus problem. The more changes games likeBreath of the WildandTears of the Kingdommake to theZeldaformula, and the more elements like dungeons or Link’s traditional look get abandoned, the less the series feels likeZelda. While giving Link voice lines wouldn’t seemingly be a big deal in isolation, it would add to the numerous changes the series has undergone and risk reaching a point where theZeldaseries loses its unique sense of identity.
Luckily, as of now, it doesn’t seem like a talking Link is in the cards. Some of theteam behindZelda: Echoes of Wisdomdiscussed making Link talk in the game but ultimately decided it “didn’t feel right” (viaVGC). Hopefully, this is an opinion that is shared by developers working on otherTheLegend of Zeldagames and Link can stay a (mostly) silent protagonist.
Source:VGC
The Legend of Zelda
The Legend of Zelda franchise follows the adventures of Link, an elf-like Hylian, and Princess Zelda as they protect the land of Hyrule from the evil warlord-turned-demon king Ganon. The series is known for its mix of action, adventure, and puzzle-solving elements, often revolving around the collection of the Triforce, a powerful relic left by the goddesses who created Hyrule. Each game features different incarnations of Link and Zelda, maintaining core elements while introducing new characters and settings.
