Daily Debate: What Real-Life Place Reminds You of the Zelda Series?
Posted on February 20 2025 by Kat Vadam
Have you ever had one of those evenings where you’re lying in bed, and you just can’t get to sleep? Your mind is wide awake racing through random thoughts and past events. I had one of those last night, and for some reason, my whirling brain finally landed on this article from 2022, all about real-life places in our world that transported the staff here at Zelda Dungeon to Hyrule. And, I thought to myself, there are so many beautiful places on this planet that could remind anyone who loves the Zelda series of some place in the games.
For example, I wrote in that article about Heidelberg, Germany, a place where I stood on the walkways of the castle to peer down at the town below. Winter had fallen, and the Christmas Market was in full swing, and I thought, “I wonder if this is like what Zelda would see if she looked out from her tower?” Fifteen years later, and I still distinctly remember that sight. I had been transported to Ocarina of Time, and I have never forgotten.
So, now I pose this question to you, dear readers: have you ever been somewhere in the world that just made you stop and say, “Wow…this could be in Zelda.” Maybe you saw a beautiful clock tower and thought, “Termina!” Or, maybe there’s a little forest just off your backyard that you wished housed Koroks, just like the forest of Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. Or maybe, just maybe, you’ve been somewhere that could have been an island on the seas of The Wind Waker or on Koholint Island in Link’s Awakening. I want to hear about each and every one of these places!
What real-life place reminds you of Zelda? Let us know in the comments below!
Featured Image: Rod Lloyd and Michaela El-Ters
Kat Vadam is a mother of one, proud cat mom, and wife to someone far nerdier than she could ever hope to be. She also works by day as an analyst, writer, and editor. Here at Zelda Dungeon, she has worn many hats, but her heart has always been in the writing. Someday, she plans on giving up all her worldly possessions to move to the forest and become best friends with a korok. Were it so easy.
