Interesting Thoughts About Lorule

[Kopapa]

Before we start 2 disclaimers:

1. English: It's not my native language, so I may make many mistakes and grammatical errors. Please be considerate.
2. SPOILERS: I will talk in general about "A Link Between Worlds", about the ending and so on. If you haven't played it, PLEASE DO NOT CONTINUE.

Ok, let's start!

Before I present you exactly my thoughts and the possible answers I got from the game, let me talk about the things that bothered me about the Timeline and the Story behind it.
First, I agree with the official Timeline. It may have some inconsistencies, but it solves many problems and it's, in my opinion, logical. But something bothered me from the beginning. Let's take a look on the defeated Timeline:

"A Link to the Past" -> "The Oracle Games" -> "Link's Awakening" -> "The Legend of Zelda" -> "Adventures of Link".

Two things bothered me: First the state of the Kingdom in the original Zelda and the sequel. I mean even Hyrule Historia says that, after Link's Awakening, the Kingdom entered a Golden Era in which the King ruled Hyrule with the Triforce of Power into this Era. So why should the Kingdom decline and all that sudden?
I must admit, "AoL" back-story is quite convincing with the wizard and Zeldas brother BUT it leads me to the most thing I'm struggling with.
The tradition of naming every Princess thereafter Zelda.
We know that in every Game the Princess is called Zelda. You can argue, that we played so far only the stories that are connected with Zelda and Link and there is the possibility that the other Princess are not shared the same name. But why the sudden need to name every of them Zelda, when there were other Princess called with that name in the past and that multiple times?

Keep that in mind.

So playing "ALBW" we see Hyrule flourish and be bright as ever. No struggling to keep the Kingdom in his glory, no shrinking into a smaller Kingdom, nothing. But there is on place that fits into the description...
Lorule.
The state that Lorule Kingdom is in is just as the description in Hyrule Historia for Hyrule after the incident with Princess Zelda I. Small, a shadow of it's former glory, where chaos and monsters reign. And the ruler of this land: Princess Hilda.
"ALBW" indicates, that Lorule might have had a past similar like Hyrule (like a Lorule version of "OoT", "SS" and so on) but in some point, they decided to destroy its Triforce and the events of "ALBW" occur. We can assume that, if Lorules past is similar to Hyrules, the there must have been other Hildas and Ravios, Links counterpart in Lorule.
Let's check the ending of "ALBW".
So, Lorules Triforce have been restored by the selfless wish of Zelda and Link with the hyrulian Triforce (In my opinion the first time ever we saw the use of the Triforce in this way). I think it must have made quite an impression upon Hilda if not more. Maybe, to honor this altruistic act she named the next Princess Zelda? And then maybe something occured to her like, I don't know, a evil wizard and an envious brother (Someone might got they point where all this is going)?
And finally my last piece of evidence before I unfold my theory.
The placement of "ALBW" in the Timeline.
It comes right after the "Links Awakening" BUT before the "AoL" back-story events. Hyrule Historias flow of events is this:

"Links Awakening" -> "Adventures of Link" backstory (Princess Zelda I incident) -> "The Legend of Zelda" -> "Adventures of Link"

And now insert "ALBW" between "Links Awakening" and the "AoL" backstory:

"Links Awakening" ->"A Link Between Worlds" -> "Adventures of Link" back-story (Princess Zelda I incident) -> "The Legend of Zelda" -> "Adventures of Link"

We know from official statement, that "ALBW" plays after "ALttP" but it is not the same Link and the same Zelda, thereafter it must play even after "Links Awakening" because that Link was was the same person as in "ALttP" and the Oracle Games. Ready?

THE EVENTS OF "THE LEGEND OF ZELDA" AND "ADVENTURES OF LINK" ARE SET IN LORULE!

Assuming this, it solves many problems with that part of the Timeline: the naming tradition, the decline of the Kingdom, Ganons re-appearance.

After the events of "ALBW" the lorulian Royal Family start to use the Triforce again and also begin with the restoration of the land. Princess Hilda or somebody else named one Princess thereafter Zelda, to honor the great gift they recieved from her. But then, the Princess Zelda I incident occurred and alas the need for the naming Tradition. Reigning with the Triforce of Power the Kingdom may have not expanded, but it stayed stable enough to build new cities and let society grew again. Ganons re-appearance is only the bonus, as it's possible to resurrect him in Hyrule normaly, but I think that if Ganon was defeated in Lorule as well it opens the possibility of resurrection in this Kingdom as well.

So that's my thoughts about Lorule and the rest of the Timeline as it shows that Nintendo tries to fill the gaps they created with their Timeline. Critics and contributions are welcomed.

 

[Rafa1996]

Interesting....

 

[Count SymphoniC]

Very interesting indeed. In fact this person may actually be onto something.

Here's my two cents. To support your theory... In the original Legend of Zelda, the Triforce on the main title screen is Lo and behold... upside down! The Triforce of Power that you obtain after defeating Ganon is... Lo and behold, upside down! Lorule's Triforce anyone?

Here's where things get confusing. The Triforce of Courage and the Triforce of Wisdom are not upside down. Not only that, but in the NES Zelda's, the lands are known as Hyrule rather than Lorule. You've an interesting theory my friend, but do prepare for multiple theories to clash here.

 

[Unlucky Monkey]

This was indeed a nice read. There a still a few contradictions, but all in all, this is a nice theory. I really like how you attach the pretty important Zelda I backstory. A Link Between Worlds will proof it's importance on the defeated timeline. I really hope, Nintendo will continue a few events, unanswered in A Link Between Worlds.

 

[Collbard]

I want to applaud you for trying to connect Lorule with other games in the series. I've been trying to do so myself, but each attempt has thus far been unsuccessful. I think your ideas are interesting, but frankly I don't think it is correct or even necessary to posit this theory. So, first I'll address your reasons for creating the theory in the first place:

1. The Decline: You ask why the kingdom should decline all of a sudden, but we see the kingdom in a state of peril in almost every game. There are tons of reasons why the Kingdom, though for a while in a state of prosperity, might suddenly decline. In this particular case, we know that the King of Hyrule was concerned that the power of the Triforce would be abused after his death. He "had doubts about the worth and character of his son." Further, the prince was advised by "The Wizard" who clearly had evil intentions. So, that answers the question.

2. Naming Princesses Zelda: I'll admit that I like how this fit into your scenario, but I still don't think that it is necessary to bring Lorule into this to explain it. We know that an entire era has passed between the Era of Light and Dark and the Era of Decline. The Golden Era was a time of prosperity. If Zelda's brother thought it was so important to name all future princesses "Zelda" then it seems obvious that this family is unaware of the previous Zeldas. Remember, just because we know the story of Skyward Sword and the descendants of Zelda and reincarnations of the Goddes, The Hero, and the Demon Lord, doesn't meant that these people do. We know from one game to another that people tend to forget or lose the knowledge from previous eras. Several generations passed during the Golden Era, so it is likely that many of the ancient stories have been lost.

3. Ganon: I think that you threw the part about Ganon in as a bonus to help unify your theory, but Ganon's continued presence in Hyrule does not need to be explained. You listed it as one of your problems with the Timeline, but you didn't really explain how this is a problem. If your issue is that Ganon is defeated inside of Lorule, thus you believe that he could only be resurrected from Lorule, remember that Yuga summoned Ganon while they were in Lorule. We know that Ganon should either have been sealed in Hyrule's Sacred Realm, or was dead (I don't believe he was dead though, as he possessed the Triforce of Power.) So, clearly it is possible for him to be resurrected across worlds.

So, I believe I've refuted your reasons for creating this theory in the first place. The following are a few topics that I believe are incompatible with your theory and that support the fact that Hyrule in the Era of Decline is a continuation of the Hyrule that has exited throughout history:

The reincarnation of the Goddess through the bloodline of the royal family would end because the royal family of Lorule have their own bloodline.
The continued emergence of characters like Impa goes unexplained (I should say, even more unexplained than they already are in Hyrule)
The names of Sages are preserved and used as the names of towns. The people of Lorule would likely not have known these sages names, nor would they have felt the need to name towns after them.

I believe that we should stick to Occam's Razor and go with the simplest theory. I will say this, I believe that you are 100% correct about the placement of ALBW on the timeline, though I believe that in the future we may see another game placed before ALBW.