Daily Debate: Which Link Had the Hardest Journey?

As I’ve been replaying through some of my favorite games in the series this year, I have had a lot of time to reflect on the many journeys Link has taken throughout The Legend of Zelda series. Honestly, after finishing every quest, I can’t help but consider how much therapy our young hero would need to move on and heal from some of the terrors and traumatic experiences he has faced.

But the real question I’ve been pondering is, which Link had the hardest journey? Which one suffered the most?

In a sense, each of them experience some pretty life-altering shifts in their  journeys. For example, Skyward Sword Link is simply a teenager with his head literally in the clouds. He is carefree, a bit lazy, and only really worries about whether or not his crush on Zelda will blossom into anything more. Then, when Zelda is taken from him, he’s pulled onto a surface world he had been completely unaware of and tasked with becoming a chosen hero he never wanted to be. Then our Skyward hero is made to endure the Silent Realms to become worthy of the full Triforce! He has to stand against the greatest evil being the world has ever seen. I don’t think anything about his journey is easy.

Next, we have Link from The Wind Waker, who also lives a peaceful life on Windfall Island, blissfully unaware and naïve to the evil in the world. Suddenly, his sister is snatched right in front of his eyes, and not only does he leave his island for the first time to save her, but fails in his first try. He comes face to face with ancient evils and monsters that he has hardly any knowledge about. Talk about traumatic!

Further, the Link from Twilight Princess is a simple ranch hand who not only gets tasked with saving Hyrule and the Twilight Realm, but is also turned into a completely different species in the middle of all the other pressures he faces. Not only that, but he almost loses his companion at one point. Feeling immense pressure to rescue the children from his home town, he has to personally take down Ganondorf. That’s a lot to consider.

And lets not forget Breath of the Wild Link, whose personality almost completely crumbled under immense pressure to succeed. He lost his friends, was sent to sleep for a century while on the brink of death, and ultimately failed at everything he worked for through his entire life! When he awakens, he has to rebuild his own strength, his memories, and even Hyrule itself from the ground up. All while facing the reality that the world is not what it once was 100 years ago. And there Hyrule Castle is, shrouded with Calamity Ganon, who mocks him from nearly every area of the world, reminding him of his past failure. Anyone would need therapy after that.  Probably a lot. (And let’s not forget that his journey isn’t even over yet thanks to Breath of the Wild 2!)

Yes, every Link, it seems, has a difficult journey. But isn’t that the case with most of the heroes we know and love?

Ultimately, I still think it’s the Hero of Time who takes the cake for most difficult and painful journey. He begins as an innocent child in Ocarina of Time, only to get wrapped up in a quest to save Hyrule. He loses his childhood to become the hero responsible for the fate of the land. Even when he is sent back in time in the end, he faces the horror of a potential apocalypse in Termina (complete with a nightmare-fueled moon, aliens, and Ikana Canyon). Yet despite saving two separate worlds, he is not remembered for any of his heroic deeds. As we see in Twilight Princess, he really did meet with a terrible fate in the end. He is full of regret and sorrow at the fact that nobody remembers him and he was unable to pass on his knowledge and skills as the Hero of Time.

If any Link had the most difficult journey of all, I would have to say that it’s him.

But what do you think? Which Link do you believe had the hardest journey? Let me know in the comments!

Image Source: Screen Rant

Chakell Herbert

Chakell (pronounced shuh-kell) is an associate editor for Zelda Dungeon! She has loved The Legend of Zelda series since she was a little girl because of its equal mix of princesses, besting bad guys, and heartfelt stories. Chakell lives in the overall tame state of Utah, but holds onto her childhood hopes to find an adventure in her backyard one day. She has a degree in English and is a full-time editor for a magazine. You can usually find her gaming (obviously), laughing with her husband, taking a long time to tell stories because she keeps getting distracted; getting sucked into books and podcasts; or snuggling her cute Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.