Breath of the Wild What Timeline do you believe BotW takes place in? What details in the game make you come to this conclusion?

[RamboBambiBambo]

Many of us have been bickering about it since the game came out, and Nintendo seems to not want to give a straight answer. So I figured I should ask what timeline you guys think the game takes place in. Is it the Adulthood Timeline, the Downfall Timeline, the Childhood Timeline, or perhaps another answer entirely?

And in the comments, feel free to explain your reasoning as to why you believe that the BotW mini-series falls in the timeline you voted for.

 

[Fraxinus]

I personally subscribe to NintendoBlackCrisis' idea that the leviathan bones are a metaphor for the game's timeline placement, and just as evidence supports all three of the NPC's theories on the leviathans, only one explanation can be viable despite that. Evidence exists to support it falling on any of the three timelines, but it can only exist on one. Doesn't really matter to me which one it's on, though. It could probably be placed on any of the three and it wouldn't affect anything because of how far removed its timeframe is from everything else.

 

[Turo602]

The game very clearly references all the timelines. Nintendo has never been one to put story over gameplay which is evident in the timeline itself which they clearly didn't put much thought into until after Ocarina of Time. They even set Breath of the Wild so far into the future with its own secret history as if they no longer want to be constricted by the whole timeline split and just create a new starting point like Ocarina of Time was for so long.

The timeline clearly doesn't matter anymore and any event can be referenced as having taken place already regardless of what timeline they fall in which allows them far more freedom to play with the lore and celebrate the franchise in its entirety while being able to tell new stories without worrying about the consequences and logistics of a timeline.

It's all legend now.

 

[GZ Zelda]

The developer's intention is that it is in the downfall timeline. Or at least Aonuma's intention is that it is in the downfall timeline.

But in-game evidence suggests it exists in either a reunified timeline or in all three, over such a long time period.

All of Hyrule being under a Great Sea, creating rock salt? The Rito and the Koroks? Obviously the Adult Timeline. The mention of the glowing embers of twilight, and the existence of the Arbiter's Grounds/the Temple of Time being near a dilapidated Hyrule Castle Town like in TP? Child. The whole calamity ganon thing? Downfall.

And, of course, the asterisk that is left for the fans allows us to choose whatever goddamn timeline we want. I personally think it is the linear timeline (obviously) but of the options, it existing so far in the future that the entire sea has drained multiple times over, conflicts with the twilight realm have occurred for millennia, hundreds of thousands of Ganons, Links, Zeldas, Impas, Beedles. It just seems poetic; that the timescale of BotW matches the spacescale of BotW.

 

[RamboBambiBambo]

I personally believe that it takes place in a reunified timeline.

Considering the fact that the Royal Family knows snippits and stories of all the other legends that came beforehand (the other games), and the details of the game's story and world over-lapping with everything that we know from the three timelines; it implies that sometime in the past (possibly at the marking point where historians began to refer to the other games being clumped together into the same era referred to as "The Distant Past") the timelines have merged.

Who knows, perhaps we will get a Zelda title that will have the unification of the timelines being it's central focus. After all, if time could split and the Sheikah are her most devout followers and protectors; wouldn't it stand to reason that they would seek to reunite time once more for fear of having it split would lead to more catastrophic events?

It could be a compelling type of narrative to make and it would help settle the argument of all the contradictory information in Breath of the Wild once and for all. Plus... it would be interesting to see three separate incarnations of Link interacting with one another.

 

[Mikey the Moblin]

Regardless of what timeline I think the game is in, it exists in the downfall timeline as a point of fact

 

[Chevywolf30]

Alright, the time is ripe and the world is ready for me to write my 4th timeline story.

 

[mαrkαsscoρ]

until a game or some statement is made to say otherwise, downfall is the only one that makes sense

 

[Moblinking5000]

Downfall is the only one that truly works.

-BotW is in a world that has seen many battles with Ganon. This fits the DT the best.

-BotW takes place in a world where the original Hyrule Kingdom still exists, and where the sages from OoT are mentioned as having awoken. This makes both the CT and AT impossible, as the OoT sages were never awakened on the CT, and Hyrule Kingdom was eradicated in the AT, leaving only the DT. Furthermore, the latest game in the DT, Zelda 2, has towns named in honour of the OoT sages.

-As seen in BotW, and confirmed in CaC, Ganon has, ''lost his sense of reason''(to quote CaC), which happens in the DT.

-It's heavily implied in BotW/BotW2, and outright confirmed in CaC(by mentioning that the Gerudo King that became Calamity Ganon was born in the same era as Nabooru, Sage of Spirit) that BotW/BotW2 Ganon is the same person as OoT Ganondorf. This wouldn't make sense on the AT or CT, as FSA Ganon is a new incarnation, and Ganon was eradicated by the Triforce on the AT. DT Ganon, however, is the same person the whole way through, and is a recurring evil.

-Ganondorf's corpse has round ears in BotW2. His human form only kept round ears in the DT; they became long in both the AT and CT. This is despite the fact that the rest of the Gerudo in the era of BotW have long ears.

-The Hero of Time is remembered in the world of BotW(in the Zora Monument that mentions Ruto), but is only mentioned once in said monument and as a ''hero of legend''(notice the lack of caps), which is used as a generic title to refer to other heroes in an offhanded manner. In other words, he's remembered unlike in the CT, but not as a messiah like figure like in the AT, but as just another hero.

 

[Tetra's Wink]

I want it to be a re-unified timeline. I know that many people think it doesn't make sense to merge all timelines, but to me it makes just as much sense as the whole sci-fi time-travel thing anyway, so why not I say. Also, BOTW blatantly has references to all 3 timelines, so this is the only thing that makes sense to me.

Well, a reboot also makes sense. But I absolutely hate the idea of a reboot.

So yeah, a unified/merged timeline for me.

 

[LordErec42]

I personally think it's a reboot timeline that loosely reconnects to the others. The Zelda franchise has never been great about continuity or consistency and each game seems to take place in its own timeline (the LoZ multiverse). The references to the other timelines feel more like fan service than quality worldbuilding, and a lot of the different place names around the world feel like fan service to the familiar name from an older game rather than a logical location for that reference (which is in wildly different places in different games).

 

[TheGreatCthulhu]

I think it's Nintendo's version of a Dragon Break.

Fite me.

 

[Moblinking5000]

I personally think it's a reboot timeline that loosely reconnects to the others. The Zelda franchise has never been great about continuity or consistency and each game seems to take place in its own timeline (the LoZ multiverse). The references to the other timelines feel more like fan service than quality worldbuilding, and a lot of the different place names around the world feel like fan service to the familiar name from an older game rather than a logical location for that reference (which is in wildly different places in different games).

So, you think that the detailed history of Ruto being a Zora princess who became a sage that fought Ganon alongside the Hero of Time is ''fan service''?

Sure, place names are one thing since alot of them don't even make sense in context; for example, Mabe Village Ruins can't be the same ruins of the same village from LA, since 1) Mabe Village didn't exist in Hyrule, and 2) Mabe Village existed in a literal dream world. The example above is alot more concrete, however.

Also, sorry, but saying that each game takes place in a different timeline is factually wrong. There's always been a timeline since the second game was released.

-Zelda 2 confirms in game that it's a direct sequel to Zelda 1, taking place sometime after Link defeated Ganon. This game introduces the Triforce of Courage and the concepts of Ganon being able to be revived from the dead and multiple Zeldas to the lore of the series.

-ALttP is confirmed to feature the ancestors of Link and Zelda on the back of the NoA box and the NoJ box says that it takes place during an era before Zelda 1/2 Link accomplished his feat, during the time that Hyrule was ''one kingdom/country'' as per Impa from the Zelda 2 manual. It's also confirmed in the JP manual that says that the backstory of ALttP marks the beginning of ''The Legend of Zelda''. There's also a line from the JP manual that heavily implies that Ganon from the NES games is the same character as the one in ALttP. This game introduces the concepts of Malice, Ganon's backstory as a human man who became the Demon King, the Master Sword, and multiple Links to the lore. Unfortunately, all references to Malice were removed from the NoA version, though.

-LA wasn't given a confirmed spot in the chronology at the time of its release, but the manual says that it takes place after Ganon was defeated, narrowing it down to being either post Zelda 1 or ALttP, and one of the Nightmares takes the form of Agahnim at the end. This game introduces the idea that games in the chronology don't have to take place in Hyrule to the lore.

-OoT was confirmed to deal with the Imprisoning War backstory of ALttP, and features an even deeper look at the backstory of Ganondorf as mentioned in ALttP. This game introduces the split timeline to the lore.

-MM is an obvious direct sequel to OoT. Not only is it confirmed in interviews and ****, but the game itself makes it pretty clear, as it features the Hero of Time as a child after ''waging battles across time'',, and he has the Ocarina of Time in his possession.

-FS was confirmed to be the ''first tale'' by Aonuma at the time of its release. This game introduced the Four Sword and Vaati to the lore.

-TWW was confirmed to be centuries after the Link defeated Ganon as an adult in OoT. TWW constantly references people and events from OoT throughout the game.

-TMC is before FS, as it features the origins of the FS and Vaati.


-TP was confirmed to take place centuries after Link returned to the past at the end of OoT. This explains why TP doesn't refer to the EVENTS of OoT per say, but it does reference the Era of the Hero of Time(the ToT, the fisherman, etc).

-PH is an obvious direct sequel to TWW; the game opens up with a retelling of the events of TWW, and Tetra is in it. Besides, it was confirmed in interviews.

-ST is an obvious sequel to TWW/PH, as Nico is still alive as an old man, and Tetra is referenced. This game introduces New Hyrule to the lore of the Adult Timeline. It was also confirmed to be 100 years after in an interview, I believe.

-SS is an obvious prequel to every game in the series, due to Hyrule Kingdom not being establsihed yet and the MS not being forged until later in the game.

-ALBW is called TotG2 in Japan, and it was confirmed to take place generations after ALttP/LA in interviews.

-TFH was confirmed to be directly after ALBW.

-BotW is long after any of the games on one of the branches, but which branch hasn't been confirmed officially; we do know, however, that there has been multiple battles with Ganon in the world of BotW, and that Ganon has lost his sanity as per CaC, and that BotW is in a version of Old Hyrule where the OoT sages where awakened and remembered.

Only the Oracles, FSA, and to an extent BotW had unconfirmed placements at the time of release.

 

[TheGreatCthulhu]

So, you think that the detailed history of Ruto being a Zora princess who became a sage that fought Ganon alongside the Hero of Time is ''fan service''?

Sure, place names are one thing since alot of them don't even make sense in context; for example, Mabe Village Ruins can't be the same ruins of the same village from LA, since 1) Mabe Village didn't exist in Hyrule, and 2) Mabe Village existed in a literal dream world. The example above is alot more concrete, however.

Also, sorry, but saying that each game takes place in a different timeline is factually wrong. There's always been a timeline since the second game was released.

-Zelda 2 confirms in game that it's a direct sequel to Zelda 1, taking place sometime after Link defeated Ganon. This game introduces the Triforce of Courage and the concepts of Ganon being able to be revived from the dead and multiple Zeldas to the lore of the series.

-ALttP is confirmed to feature the ancestors of Link and Zelda on the back of the NoA box and the NoJ box says that it takes place during an era before Zelda 1/2 Link accomplished his feat, during the time that Hyrule was ''one kingdom/country'' as per Impa from the Zelda 2 manual. It's also confirmed in the JP manual that says that the backstory of ALttP marks the beginning of ''The Legend of Zelda''. There's also a line from the JP manual that heavily implies that Ganon from the NES games is the same character as the one in ALttP. This game introduces the concepts of Malice, Ganon's backstory as a human man who became the Demon King, the Master Sword, and multiple Links to the lore. Unfortunately, all references to Malice were removed from the NoA version, though.

-LA wasn't given a confirmed spot in the chronology at the time of its release, but the manual says that it takes place after Ganon was defeated, narrowing it down to being either post Zelda 1 or ALttP, and one of the Nightmares takes the form of Agahnim at the end. This game introduces the idea that games in the chronology don't have to take place in Hyrule to the lore.

-OoT was confirmed to deal with the Imprisoning War backstory of ALttP, and features an even deeper look at the backstory of Ganondorf as mentioned in ALttP. This game introduces the split timeline to the lore.

-MM is an obvious direct sequel to OoT. Not only is it confirmed in interviews and ****, but the game itself makes it pretty clear, as it features the Hero of Time as a child after ''waging battles across time'',, and he has the Ocarina of Time in his possession.

-FS was confirmed to be the ''first tale'' by Aonuma at the time of its release. This game introduced the Four Sword and Vaati to the lore.

-TWW was confirmed to be centuries after the Link defeated Ganon as an adult in OoT. TWW constantly references people and events from OoT throughout the game.

-TMC is before FS, as it features the origins of the FS and Vaati.


-TP was confirmed to take place centuries after Link returned to the past at the end of OoT. This explains why TP doesn't refer to the EVENTS of OoT per say, but it does reference the Era of the Hero of Time(the ToT, the fisherman, etc).

-PH is an obvious direct sequel to TWW; the game opens up with a retelling of the events of TWW, and Tetra is in it. Besides, it was confirmed in interviews.

-ST is an obvious sequel to TWW/PH, as Nico is still alive as an old man, and Tetra is referenced. This game introduces New Hyrule to the lore of the Adult Timeline. It was also confirmed to be 100 years after in an interview, I believe.

-SS is an obvious prequel to every game in the series, due to Hyrule Kingdom not being establsihed yet and the MS not being forged until later in the game.

-ALBW is called TotG2 in Japan, and it was confirmed to take place generations after ALttP/LA in interviews.

-TFH was confirmed to be directly after ALBW.

-BotW is long after any of the games on one of the branches, but which branch hasn't been confirmed officially; we do know, however, that there has been multiple battles with Ganon in the world of BotW, and that Ganon has lost his sanity as per CaC, and that BotW is in a version of Old Hyrule where the OoT sages where awakened and remembered.

Agreed. Pretty much on every point.

We can all argue where BotW takes place, whether it's the DT, some other timeline, a dragon break, or what have you, we just plain don't know at this point, as we'd need some more hard evidence.

But to deny that the games take place in an obvious timeline confirmed by the content of the games (the canon), or comments from developer interviews (which is canon, since they know the lore better than the rest of us), is to deny what we can plainly demonstrate.

I've noticed this in other debates of other IP's in other mediums. A lot of people tend to project their own personal thoughts and opinions about the source material on to the source material and treat it as 100% absolute canon, in spite of the other events in the source material that contradict that assertion.

For example, the dubious Link is Dead in Majora's Mask theory by Game Theory. Mat Pat had a personal opinion that Link died in that game by falling down the tree trunk, and cherry picked the evidence that seemed to support his notion, in spite of other in-game quotes, secondary sources, developer comments in interviews, etc. demonstrating it to be false.

Anyhow, I digress.

I personally argue that BotW is Nintendo's version of a Dragon Break based on the references in-game to the other games in various spots in the three timelines, and the simplest explanation that explains it is that BotW either reunifies the timeline, or by the time of BotW, the Great Calamity caused something akin to Daggerfall's Warp in the West, where all seemingly contradictory events took place.

Again, it could be wrong with future games, developer's comments, and what have you. The main point I'm making is that many people in various fandoms get too attached to their own personal pet theories, and they can never be falsified.

The whole point of theories of this caliber is for them to be critically examined. So we ought not get caught in a tizzy when direct canon contradicts them.

At least, that's where I stand on the matter.

 

[Moblinking5000]

I personally argue that BotW is Nintendo's version of a Dragon Break based on the references in-game to the other games in various spots in the three timelines, and the simplest explanation that explains it is that BotW either reunifies the timeline, or by the time of BotW, the Great Calamity caused something akin to Daggerfall's Warp in the West, where all seemingly contradictory events took place.

Again, it could be wrong with future games, developer's comments, and what have you. The main point I'm making is that many people in various fandoms get too attached to their own personal pet theories, and they can never be falsified.

The whole point of theories of this caliber is for them to be critically examined. So we ought not get caught in a tizzy when direct canon contradicts them.

At least, that's where I stand on the matter.

What references to all timelines? If you're talking about the place names, I already explained why that's not a great thing to base your theories on.

Rock Salt? Nothing says it's from the Great Sea, just an ancient sea. Could be any sea that we've seen in the series.

Rito? They're nothing like TWW Rito, biologically or culturally. And we know that Zoras were magically transformed into Rito in TWW to prevent them from discovering Hyrule, so they shouldn't coexist with the Zora in BotW.

Koroks? There's a picture of one in Link's house in ALBW suggesting their existence on the DT, and since they're just transformed Kokiri, they aren't an ultimate trump card for an AT placement anyway.

Medoh? No one in game confirms that it's named after Medli. Yes, the name suggests that it's named after her from a meta perspective, but CaC even says that the namesake of Medoh(and Rudania, fot that matter) is unknown. Why do that if Medoh is truly named after Medli in universe?

Zelda said Twilight? She doesn't elaborate on that line for us to be able to tell if this is a reference to TP, and the JP line makes it more ambiguous, where she uses the word ''Tasogare'', which can mean twilight OR dusk, and ''Tasogare'' has been used in other games across the series.

The historical account of Ruto is the only thing in game that is an actual detailed historical account of something that happened in a previous game. Given that the Temple of Time is around(and yes, it's the same one from OoT; it's referred to as ''the birth place of Hyrule'',), and the MS and Ganon still exist, we can conclude that this is Old Hyrule. Add to what Aonuma said about BotW being in a Hyrule with multiple attacks by Ganon and the fact that Ganon has ''lost his sense of reason'' according to CaC, and the DT is the only one that fits, IMO.