Deciphering The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword’s Boxart

What role do you think the Goddesses will playing in the upcoming Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword? We’ve heard about the gods all the way since the backstory of A Link to the Past. They’ve been mentioned or have had characters by name in over half a dozen Zelda games since, including Ocarina of Time, Oracle of Seasons, Oracle of Ages, The Wind Waker, The Minish Cap, and Twilight Princess. The folks over at Nintendo World Report have made some observations about the symbol that is behind Link and Phi on the box artwork of Skyward Sword and how it relates to the story of the goddess.

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword’s box art, which was revealed today, features something resembling a magic circle, behind Link and Phi. This circle contains three emblems, which may be familiar to Zelda players. These emblems appeared on the Goddess Pearls in The Wind Waker, as well as in Oracle of Ages where they represented tunes played on the Harp of Ages.

The intricate design also contains Hylian script. Translating to English results in the following, clockwise from the top left:

Wisdom, Nehru, Power, Din, (obscured), (obscured)rol

Clearly, it should be “Wisdom, Nayru, Power, Din, Courage, Farore,” but I guess something got lost in localization. In any case, the names, symbols, and powers of the three Hylian goddesses, Nayru, Din, and Farore, are all emblazoned on the box art, implying some major significance in Skyward Sword.

The three goddesses were named in The Ocarina of Time as the creators of Hyrule, who left behind the Triforce upon their departure. Eiji Aonuma has stated that in Skyward Sword, prequel to The Ocarina of Time, “the Triforce sort of takes on a different meaning and plays a different role in the story.” Nothing has been said about the goddesses, but it appears that they or their power will instead be a focal point, and perhaps this is partly what Aonuma was referring to.

I’m inclined to think that given the Skyward Sword story takes place before Ocarina of Time, this could certainly be true. Perhaps the term Gods is all relative and these were just what they were referred to by the people of Hyrule. Perhaps these Gods are just characters from a prior time period, but legend has past them down as being goddess. Maybe Din, Nayru, and Farore will appear as regular characters in Skyward Sword and are a focal point in the creation of piece and the Triforce to the land below?

Skyward Sword is set for release on November 18th in Europe and November 20th in the United States. Be sure to stay tuned here at Zelda Dungeon for all the latest on the upcoming game.

Source: Nintendo World Report via GoNintendo

Related: Skyward Sword Walkthrough

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