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Adult/Child Timelines?

Alter

www.zeldainmypocket.com
Joined
Jan 23, 2009
Location
Point blank, On Your Six.
I'm curious as to what the members here have to say about the adult/child theory idea.

1. Why? We all know that Nintendo never though "Ooo... let's "really" have it so that the end of OoT never really happened". The developers didn't plan for such a thing at the games creation.

2. Why does everyone always say "the developers said/hinted that this is on the child or adult timeline."? No one up top has ever used the words "child/adult timeline" that I've seen. I've asked people to prove this, but they can never seem to source it. Hmm...

3. The phrase "split timeline" has only been stated twice, I believe. Neither of those times were "press conferences", but unrehearsed interviews. Do you really think that they'd just "say" the timeline that they've hidden for years in a misc. interview? Don't think so. They had to say something, and by using the term "split" anything can be justified.

4. So even though the actual confirmation of a split remains somewhat ambiguous, it does not mean that it has anything to do with adult/child timelines. It could be that a certain Link failed at some point. A certain Link was not born. MM Link returned to Hyrule.

I should also add that the ideas were not originally Nintendo's. They originated from fans, and were likely adapted.

Anyway, I don't want to seem like a newbie who's asking stupid questions. What I'm doing is encouraging people to take a second look at this sort of thing.

I've read through almost all the the articles from the head honchos at Nintendo regarding Zelda timelines, and nothing seems to shout out "CONFIRMED ADULT/CHILD TIMELINE SPLIT!".

I personally don't see a good reason to support adult/child timelines, and am unsure as to why they are being pushed as the only viable ones.
 
Joined
May 16, 2008
Location
Kentucky, USA
The child/adult split makes sense. Any linear timeline after OoT doesn't. That's why I choose to believe it anyway. Wind Waker obviously connects to the Adult timeline portion of OoT, and TP isn't as clear as WW about its connections, but underneath it can be identified, even without having to hear it from the producers.
 

Alter

www.zeldainmypocket.com
Joined
Jan 23, 2009
Location
Point blank, On Your Six.
The child/adult split makes sense. Any linear timeline after OoT doesn't. That's why I choose to believe it anyway. Wind Waker obviously connects to the Adult timeline portion of OoT, and TP isn't as clear as WW about its connections, but underneath it can be identified, even without having to hear it from the producers.

I agree that a split there makes sense, but why adult/child?

I personally like the idea of TP occurring in both lines, but in one of them, he (Link) fails in his quest, which is why the gods flooded the earth.
 
Joined
May 16, 2008
Location
Kentucky, USA
I agree that a split there makes sense, but why adult/child?

I personally like the idea of TP occurring in both lines, but in one of them, he (Link) fails in his quest, which is why the gods flooded the earth.

I mean if you wanted to believe that, it would be fine I suppose. But there's no text hints, or in-game scenes or information that points to TP taking place in the Adult Timeline.

It would also be pretty hard for TP to have happened in the Adult Timeline because of multiple reasons.

*The Sages in TP have not changed their form. The stained glass on the walls of the Master Sword's chamber in WW show the Sages as the beings they were reborn into. In the Child Timeline, the Sages were never awakened in alternate forms. Hence the reason they are all generic in TP.
*Ganondorf is sealed away in the Adult Timeline. The only way he could be sealed in the Evil Realm was by the power of the Sages, and in TP he is still in Hyrule. In my opinion, the reason they sentenced him to trial by death and not banishing to another realm was because they did not know he had the power of the Triforce, which would obviously have kept him alive as it did once they tried to execute him. Which would give a good reason as to why in OoT they sent Ganondorf to the Evil Realm, because he still had the Triforce of Power and could not be killed.
 

Zemen

[Insert Funny Statement]
Joined
Nov 11, 2008
Location
Illinois
2. Why does everyone always say "the developers said/hinted that this is on the child or adult timeline."? No one up top has ever used the words "child/adult timeline" that I've seen. I've asked people to prove this, but they can never seem to source it. Hmm....

They don't need to specifically say "there is a child timeline and an adult timeline" because many of their quotes say it for them.

–When does Twilight Princess take place?

Aonuma: In the world of Ocarina of Time, a hundred and something years later.

–And the Wind Waker?

Aonuma: The Wind Waker is parallel. In Ocarina of Time, Link flew seven years in time, he beat Ganon and went back to being a kid, remember? Twilight Princess takes place in the world of Ocarina of Time, a hundred and something years after the peace returned to kid Link’s time. In the last scene of Ocarina of Time, kids Link and Zelda have a little talk, and as a consequence of that talk, their relationship with Ganon takes a whole new direction. In the middle of this game [Twilight Princess], there’s a scene showing Ganon’s execution. Link and Zelda left him be and he then did something outrageous, so it was decided that he should be executed. That scene takes place several years after Ocarina of Time. Ganon was sent to another world and now he wants to obtain the power...


That pretty much literally says that TP takes place after Kid Link's time (aka child timeline) and it clearly says that WW is a parallel to it which means it takes place after Adult Link's time (aka adult timeline). No other type of split has ever been discussed or hinted to but this almost clearly confirms the existence of a child timeline and an adult timeline.
 

Alter

www.zeldainmypocket.com
Joined
Jan 23, 2009
Location
Point blank, On Your Six.
Actually, DL, I was more or less saying that there really is no adult/child split, but just a split which could have happened in any number of ways.

They don't need to specifically say "there is a child timeline and an adult timeline" because many of their quotes say it for them.

–When does Twilight Princess take place?

Aonuma: In the world of Ocarina of Time, a hundred and something years later.

–And the Wind Waker?

Aonuma: The Wind Waker is parallel. In Ocarina of Time, Link flew seven years in time, he beat Ganon and went back to being a kid, remember? Twilight Princess takes place in the world of Ocarina of Time, a hundred and something years after the peace returned to kid Link’s time. In the last scene of Ocarina of Time, kids Link and Zelda have a little talk, and as a consequence of that talk, their relationship with Ganon takes a whole new direction. In the middle of this game [Twilight Princess], there’s a scene showing Ganon’s execution. Link and Zelda left him be and he then did something outrageous, so it was decided that he should be executed. That scene takes place several years after Ocarina of Time. Ganon was sent to another world and now he wants to obtain the power...


That pretty much literally says that TP takes place after Kid Link's time (aka child timeline) and it clearly says that WW is a parallel to it which means it takes place after Adult Link's time (aka adult timeline). No other type of split has ever been discussed or hinted to but this almost clearly confirms the existence of a child timeline and an adult timeline.

I understand that much, but it say in the last scene. So is it stating that they did or didn't speak to each other, or that Link never became a child again?

Also, can you source that, please?
 

Zemen

[Insert Funny Statement]
Joined
Nov 11, 2008
Location
Illinois
I understand that much, but it say in the last scene. So is it stating that they did or didn't speak to each other, or that Link never became a child again?

Well what he is saying here is that Link is sent back to his childhood, tells Zelda about his adventure, Ganondorf is kept a close eye on, Ganondorf does something evil and gets caught and put up for execution. He does specifically say this happens after kid Link's time. He clearly says that it happens after peace is brought to Kid Link's time. If WW is parallel to that then that would mean WW takes place after peace is brought to Adult Link's time. kid (child) Link and adult Link. Child timeline and Adult timeline.

Also, can you source that, please?

I got this from the timeline quotes section over at ZeldaWiki. As for their source, I am unsure but when I have more time I'll snoop around for it.
 

Alter

www.zeldainmypocket.com
Joined
Jan 23, 2009
Location
Point blank, On Your Six.
So then what happens to cause the WW timeline? Also, wasn't Ganondorf sealed at the end of OoT? I assumed that the seal remained in place, even after Link was sent back.
 

Erimgard

Even Ganon loves cookies
Joined
May 16, 2009
Location
East Clock Town
The "Adult" timeline is called such because it takes place after the ending of Ocarina of Time where Link/Zelda are adults. Ganon is sealed in the corrupted Sacred Realm, and Link is sent away. Thus, in the "Adult" timeline there is no Hero and Ganon is sealed.

This leads into Wind Waker which talks about the evil one being Sealed, and then retruning. WW's backstory says the people prayed for the Hero to return, but he had journeyed through time and left. So Wind Waker takes place after OoT's "Adult" ending, when years down the road, Ganon escapes somehow. That's why the Goddesses flood Hyrule.

Twilight Princess, as stated by Eiji Aonuma, takes place after Link and Zelda have a little talk as kids. Because of that talk, Ganondorf is arrested and sentenced to death. He survives the execution (as showin a TP cutscene) and is banished to the Twilight Realm.

Miyamoto has said twice that Wind Waker is after the adult ending (once with Aonuma with him, they said it together).

Aonuma confirmed in 2006 that Twilight Princess is after the "kid" ending.
 
Joined
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Location
Kentucky, USA
Alright, but I've still yet to see a source of where adult/child timeline is mentioned by Nintendo.

It doesn't necessarily have to be mentioned. The producer's don't have to directly say the words "child" or "adult" in order to make it true. They explained how Twilight Princess occured during what we call the Child Timeline and how Wind Waker was parallel, occuring on what we call the Adult Timeline. Just because we call them something that the producers don't doesn't mean that its not the same thing.

That's just like in the game Twilight Princess, the word "Triforce" is never mentioned once. But the game revolves around the Triforce and shows it multiple times. It doesn't mean that the relic in TP is not the Triforce just because the game doesn't call it by its commonly known name. We obviously know it is the Triforce, just like we obviously know that the producers have acknowledged the same timeline idea, just not labeling it as Child/Adult.
 

Zeruda

Mother Hyrule
Joined
May 17, 2009
Location
on a crumbling throne
"About when is the Twilight Princess timeline set?

Aonuma: 'In a world some hundred years after 'Ocarina of Time.'

"And 'Wind Waker"

Aonuma: 'Wind Waker' is parallel. In 'Ocarina of Time,' Link jumps to
a world seven years ahead, defeats Ganon, and returns to the time of
his childhood, right? 'Twilight Princess' is a world a hundred some
years after that pacified childhood time.'
(SOURCE, 2)

The terms "adult and child timelines" are used to specify which side of the timeline split one is talking about. "Child Timeline" is applied to anything that happened after OoT!Link was sent back to his own time and lived his life as a child should. He went on to his adventure in Termina (MM), and so on and so forth. TP takes place centuries later on this side.

"Adult Timeline" refers to events that happened after the sealing of Ganon/dorf. Link was sent back to his own time, and Zelda was alone as an adult to rebuild Hyrule and whatnot. On this side, Hyrule was flooded because OoT!Link was no longer there, he was back in the Child Timeline. TWW takes place centuries later on this side.

Split timeline is no longer a theory, it is canon. Hope that cleared some things up.
 

Zemen

[Insert Funny Statement]
Joined
Nov 11, 2008
Location
Illinois
"About when is the Twilight Princess timeline set?

Aonuma: 'In a world some hundred years after 'Ocarina of Time.'

"And 'Wind Waker"

Aonuma: 'Wind Waker' is parallel. In 'Ocarina of Time,' Link jumps to
a world seven years ahead, defeats Ganon, and returns to the time of
his childhood, right? 'Twilight Princess' is a world a hundred some
years after that pacified childhood time.'
(SOURCE, 2)

The terms "adult and child timelines" are used to specify which side of the timeline split one is talking about. "Child Timeline" is applied to anything that happened after OoT!Link was sent back to his own time and lived his life as a child should. He went on to his adventure in Termina (MM), and so on and so forth. TP takes place centuries later on this side.

"Adult Timeline" refers to events that happened after the sealing of Ganon/dorf. Link was sent back to his own time, and Zelda was alone as an adult to rebuild Hyrule and whatnot. On this side, Hyrule was flooded because OoT!Link was no longer there, he was back in the Child Timeline. TWW takes place centuries later on this side.

Split timeline is no longer a theory, it is canon. Hope that cleared some things up.


This is literally, exactly what my post says. People need to read posts before posting. There seriously is only less than a page of posts. It's not hard to read before posting.
 

Zeruda

Mother Hyrule
Joined
May 17, 2009
Location
on a crumbling throne
This is literally, exactly what my post says. People need to read posts before posting. There seriously is only less than a page of posts. It's not hard to read before posting.
Actually, Zemen125, I did read your post, and it's not exactly what your post says. In fact, it's much longer than your post. :) I was providing the quoted dialogue along with two sources, one the original Japanese, and the other a portion of a translation. Both sources are linked by the words "SOURCE" and "2" just below the quote. Just trying to make it easier for you since you didn't provide a source and that is what the original post what asking for in a sense. :) Hopefully that helps clear things up.
 

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