Wheel (of) Time(line)

[Mikey the Moblin]

While playing Skyward Sword and getting tired of all the "ancient past" references that the game throws out while allegedly being the first game in the timeline, I started wondering, "Hey, could Breath of the Wild be a prequel to Skyward Sword? While still having its place on the Downfall Timeline?" And it got me to thinking: what exactly would it take for the Zelda timeline to become cyclical? Obviously the branching timeline splits would have to break the cycle of the hate curse (the Adult timeline's already done this) and one timeline would have to loop back on itself at some point. Where would it loop, and which timeline would be most likely to do so? What events are missing for this to occur? Could a cyclical timeline fit in with any other favored timeline theories?

 

[Uwu_Oocoo2]

This is a fascinating proposal. This would prove a similar a similar time paradox to what we see in the Song of Storms, where an object is the cause of its own existence, but with no discernable point of origin. Only in this case instead of a song coming from nowhere, you have an entire civilization. Skyward Swords "ancient ruins" always bothered me, because this is supposed to be an origin game. So why start a series with all this ancient past? So with this idea, BotW would end, Hyrule would fade, the people would duke it out with Demise and get sent to Skyloft. And thus the cycle continues.
The only problem is that we are told the origins of Hyrule. Unlike the Song of Storms, we know how it came to be. For BotW to be the lands beginning and end, it would mean the Goddesses didn't create the land, it was just there. So if the Goddesses weren't there, they wouldn't have left the Triforce or the Goddess Hylia. By the time BotW happens, Hylia is completely gone and instead has only descendants, and wouldn't be able to become a mortal reincarnated between BotW and SS. Theres a lot of established lore you would need to tear down in order to show the looping timeline theory are probable, or even possible.

 

[Spiritual Mask Salesman]

There are parallels to be made between BotW and SS, but I think this is chalked up to how influential SS was for BotW, as a matter of fact I have an editorial for the frontpage in the works about this. I don't think it means the series is cyclical. I can't really go in depth atm, but in a month or two hopefully I can.

 

[Mikey the Moblin]

There are parallels to be made between BotW and SS, but I think this is chalked up to how influential SS was for BotW, as a matter of fact I have an editorial for the frontpage in the works about this. I don't think it means the series is cyclical. I can't really go in depth atm, but in a month or two hopefully I can.

Oh yes mechanically skyward sword was definitely the inspiration of breath of the wild in some ways
I'm more curious about the lore behind it and I'm not so concerned specifically with the relationship between those two games, rather that a specific timeline branch could lead into skyward sword once again in some way
Does that make sense

So with this idea, BotW would end, Hyrule would fade, the people would duke it out with Demise and get sent to Skyloft. And thus the cycle continues.
The only problem is that we are told the origins of Hyrule. Unlike the Song of Storms, we know how it came to be. For BotW to be the lands beginning and end, it would mean the Goddesses didn't create the land, it was just there. So if the Goddesses weren't there, they wouldn't have left the Triforce or the Goddess Hylia. By the time BotW happens, Hylia is completely gone and instead has only descendants, and wouldn't be able to become a mortal reincarnated between BotW and SS. Theres a lot of established lore you would need to tear down in order to show the looping timeline theory are probable, or even possible.

Well, what I was thinking is that the hylia from skyward sword is just zelda from a previous iteration of the timeline loop

 

[Spiritual Mask Salesman]

Oh yes mechanically skyward sword was definitely the inspiration of breath of the wild in some ways
I'm more curious about the lore behind it and I'm not so concerned specifically with the relationship between those two games, rather that a specific timeline branch could lead into skyward sword once again in some way
Does that make sense

Yeah and in my editorial I plan on touching on this. I think BotW and the sequel are the setup for loose ends left in SS's plot, essientially.

 

[ChimeraWarden]

It’s clearly stated that Skyward Sword was the first in the timeline. And if it was, malice would be way bigger of a threat than evil crystals and one pool of water. Why would the master sword exist in BotW before it was forged in Skyward Sword?
We’re still unsure of timeline placement, but it’s definitely closer to the end. Some even say it merges the three timelines.
Why’dya even make this thread?

 

[Chevywolf30]

I'm just thinking of the poor Koroks/Kokiri having to go from human children to chunks of wood and back. Isn't SS about the MS being made tho? I should probably just stop now before I say something completely contrary to SS/BotW.

Why’dya even make this thread?

Because he's Mikey.

 

[Mikey the Moblin]

Is there some context missing? Like I'm clearly not proposing this as a viable timeline theory, I'm proposing it as something that could be made viable in the future... why is everyone acting like I'm stupid for even bringing it up

Where would it loop, and which timeline would be most likely to do so? What events are missing for this to occur?

Did anyone even read this part

 

[Chevywolf30]

Is there some context missing? Like I'm clearly not proposing this as a viable timeline theory, I'm proposing it as something that could be made viable in the future... why is everyone acting like I'm stupid for even bringing it up

Oh, you were asking what needs to be done. You better pray BotW2 does, that's your only hope.

 

[Mikey the Moblin]

I could see either the downfall timeline or the child timeline looping back onto skyward sword
To tie up loose ends, Hylia would need to be confirmed dead, the master sword would need to break, and civilization would need to end in some way or another, with hylia lifting her people up into the sky to save them from armageddon
The creation myth of the three goddesses would then be sort of separate from the wheel timeline, I think

 

[ChimeraWarden]

Or maybe Skyward Sword started the loop, and never occurs again. Since, after all, it wouldn’t make sense for demise to cast his curse every time it loops.
the word loops autocorrected to lööps

 

[Mikey the Moblin]

Or maybe Skyward Sword started the loop, and never occurs again. Since, after all, it wouldn’t make sense for demise to cast his curse every time it loops.
the word loops autocorrected to lööps

And the loop would pick up... at ocarina of time? Or minish cap?

After thinking about it more, I'm actually pretty confident that theres nothing actively contradicting a cyclical timeline in the games so far
This could be legit, although i dont have a great solution for the timeline split yet

 

[GZ Zelda]

After thinking about it more, I'm actually pretty confident that theres nothing actively contradicting a cyclical timeline in the games so far
This could be legit, although i dont have a great solution for the timeline split yet

There is nothing actively contradicting a cyclical timeline, other than the assumption that Skyward Sword is the beginning and separate. Because of the infinite expanse of time that Demise's curse is programmed for, and the eternal-ness of the Zelda universe, it is probably not that the timeline is looping (time itself ends up at the beginning again), but moreso that the same events re-occur an infinite amount of times over the infinite amount of time that there is. This is why I think the linear timeline makes more sense than the split timeline, because then it allows for all the games to occur canonically within the same infinite-time expanse in order to create this loop.

 

[Mikey the Moblin]

well...
this aged well

 

[Moblinking5000]

well...
this aged well

So because SS has sky elements and BotW2 also happens to have sky elements, that absolutely MUST mean that BotW2 leads to SS? TP has the City of the Sky, does that mean it's a prequel to SS, as well?

For all we know, the sky elements in BotW2 will have nothing to do with Skyloft. Or, maybe it'll connect to SS by referencing characters or events or something that happened like what BotW did with OoT via the Zora Monuments. That doesn't mean that the idea that BotW2 leads to SS is true. What about the Master Sword? The Master Sword exists in BotW and BotW2, and yet SS is all about completing the forging of the MS. Is there secretly a hundred Master Swords laying around? And how does Ganon(who according to CaC and implied by BotW is Ganondorf I) go from being unborn and reincarnated as the same guy?

This would also close off any possibilities of stories taking place after BotW/BotW2, hence limiting storytelling possibilities. Not only is it not logical, but it's not a good idea from a pragmatic view.