Future Timeline- Absolute, Varying, or Multiple?

[Zeruda]

!!!This is NOT a theory in the slightest, so please please please don't start debating which game goes where and throw this thread into the wrong direction. !!!

Okay, move this if it's necessary, but I was just thinking something about where Zelda's future of game placement might go. Ever since Ocarina of Time caused a split and they started to take the timeline into consideration, there have been many issues, questions, and concerns about the timeline. They began to release sequels and tie up loose ends, but in those sequels (and other games released after OoT), they brought up other issues that weren't well-explained. So, in the end, we've ended up with more plotholes than ever before. We still bicker about the Seal War, the Light Force, the Oocca creating Hylians, and so on and so forth.

At this point we all (and probably Nintendo) understand that there are major fixes that need to be done to the timeline. Nintendo has a "master timeline document" that has not been released probably because it's constantly being changed. At this point in time, the easiest thing to do would be to have a written or spoken statement that gives us precise, official placements of the games. Some might turn out to not even have a place! Either that, or remake certain games... but that'd take too much time and money.

So, let me continue what I'm getting at: the future. With the most recently released Zelda game, Spirit Tracks, they gave us multiple endings. Now, these endings didn't really change much except for how Link ends up. One of them (Warrior) could lead to a future with Princess Zelda, but who knows. But what if Nintendo does this with more games? What if they do it with Zelda Wii? And what if these choices make more of an impact on what happens to the games?

That's where I wonder about the timeline. Could more splits occur based on your decision? It's not very likely at this point, but it's the future I'm talking about. What if, in a game in the future, the endings are very different? What if Link becomes King in one decision, a new villain rises with another decision, or even a main character like Princess Zelda dies (for good, not temporarily like in TP) in another decision? Any sequel to that game would have to be based on one of those choices. But then they could make various sequels to fit the various endings, resuting in more "universes".

So why am I thinking about this? Well, there are so many discrepancies with the current timeline.... what if Nintendo does do this in the future, and what if they take some of today's games (say, OoX or LA or FSA) and decide to stick them in one of the universes that could be created with the option of multiple endings and/or story events? It'd be an easier fix to the current timeline issues than remaking the games or showing us their incomplete master timeline document.


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So, if you read through all of that, then thank you very much for taking the time to do so. It's more of a "what if" scenario, but I do have concerns about there being more timeline splits in the future if Nintendo sticks with the multiple endings option or even expands varying events in the games based on your decisions. If that happens, then I see it being very possible for them to stick some of the current games in different timelines to avoid discrepancies.
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[Xixor]

Very interesting. But if Nintendo did what you said, it would almost completely throw away any Zelda timeline.

For example, if Zelda Wii had two different endings and two new games were released, one following each ending, which would be canon? Basically, one would have to choose which ending to follow and sequel game to put on their timeline.

This would be completely different from the OoT ending. The ending in this game was part of the story, set in stone. On top of that, the player could see both endings of the story.

Now on the subject of ST endings, that would just be confusing. If I'm following you correctly, timelines (or whatever they would be called) would look a little like this:

(game where Link becomes a warrior)
ST<
(game where Link continues as an engineer)

I actually think this would be very interesting, but I really don't think it is nescessary. I like the idea of a canon timeline. This wouldn't even be a timeline, it would be a this would happen if Link did this---line. It would create multiple completely different timelines .... that would be confusing.

Interesting, yes, but I am not completely ready to just throw away the idea of a timeline.

 

[Zeruda]

Nono, I'm not saying they'd throw away a timeline (they already have a split going on), but I'm thinking it might end up leading to more splits in the future based on the various endings. In the long run, yeah, there might be the whole endless universe thing to get in the way, but then again, Nintendo always has control over how many there are.

It'd be one timeline still, I guess, just with more than the current split we have already.

 

[TheLegendOfJubb]

Oh my gosh, that would be the best thing to happen to timeline theorizng since AT LttP placements.