Daily Debate: Do You Think Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf Should Be Gender Swapped in a Zelda Game?
Posted on February 10 2020 by Michaela El-Ters
A few years ago, I remember reading an interview that claimed that the reason Link was male was because the Triforce was balanced as such. Zelda Dungeon reported on the topic, which you can check out here, but I’ll also add Eiji Aonuma’s quote for ease of reference:
“You know there’s the idea of the Triforce in the Zelda games we make. The Triforce is made up of Princess Zelda, Ganon and Link. Princess Zelda is obviously female. If we made Link a female we thought that would mess with the balance of the Triforce. That’s why we decided not to do it.” — Eiji Aonuma
I never did like this answer. Since when is a person’s soul gender-specific, and why is the “balance” of the Triforce based on gender? Shouldn’t it be based on the three qualities that each respective piece of the Triforce is named for? We know that the souls of Link, Zelda, and Demise have been reincarnated to clash time and time again, so if they’re reincarnated and still have the signature qualities of each piece of the Triforce, why does it matter what their gender is?
While I also think it reinforces some strange, gender-specific stereotypes (that’s a whole other can of worms for another time), what I instead want to focus on is how gender-swapping Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf could positively impact the characters and lore. Hear me out — imagine a female Ganondorf. The female-only Gerudo race has always been burdened with the King of Evil’s return. It’s always been a fascinating bit of lore, but what if Ganondorf was reincarnated as female, making her ultimate betrayal completely unexpected because they were expecting the “King of Evil” to be reincarnated? It would show that anyone can be tempted by the desire and greed for power and world domination. Wouldn’t that create a compelling backstory and history for the Gerudo? Unlike most video game series, the Zelda series has the advantage of telling new, self-contained stories every time — so why shouldn’t they branch out and try something new every now and again?
What do you guys think? Would you be on board for a gender-swapped Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf? Let us know in the comments!
Feature art by genzoman, LemiaCrescent, and crystalvfae
This Daily Debate was inspired by Skip
Michaela El-Ters is a Senior Editor for Zelda Dungeon. She is also an Senior Writer for Boss Rush Network, and writes blogs and streams games on Objection Network. Her favorite Zelda game changes with the seasons, but the series as a whole is near and dear to her heart.
