Zelda Canon

[bspurka]

I hear the word "Canon" thrown around a lot here on Zelda Dungeon and I am having a hard time actually understanding the definition and how it relates to Zelda and how some Zelda games are actually "Canon" can someone please just sum up the whole canon thing for me. I am sure that there are non users who come on this site and look through the forums would like to know as well as myself. Thank you

 

[Seth]

Canon is basically "what counts". It is material that the creators and fan base accept as what actually happened in the fictional universe. In Zelda's case, the games and HH are the canonical materials. They are what actually happens in the Zelda universe. The cartoon shows, or manga/comics, do not and are secondary materials.

 

[bspurka]

So its pretty much any Zelda game we as fans accept has happened like MM coming right after Oot? So the Oracle games count as canon even though they were not made by Nintendo?

 

[Cfrock]

Canon basically means the Zelda games which count as official. Ocarina of Time is canon while Wand of Gamelon isn't, for example.

By that I mean everything that happens in Wand of Gamelon is not part of the overall story, is not evidence for theories, is not to be considered as part of the Zelda Universe. Likewise, the Zelda Manga is not canon and so story elements found there are not considered 'true'.

The canon is more or less everything from the main series games, all of the ones found in the official timeline, essentially.

 

[Seth]

So its pretty much any Zelda game we as fans accept has happened like MM coming right after Oot? So the Oracle games count as canon even though they were not made by Nintendo?

Pretty much, yes. While Capcom made the Oracle games, Nintendo includes them as part of the main series, so they count. The CDi games for instance, don't count, Nintendo nor the fans consider them a true part of the series line.

 

[Dragoncat]

Canon basically means anything that's in the story/game/whatever originally, anything that's not fan material. For example, in SS there are 8 canon knight students: Link, Zelda, Pipit, Karane, Fledge, Groose, Cawlin, Stritch. My knight characters Cerai and Leo are NOT canon, they were created by me, they aren't in the game. Another example: the Twilight Palace is a canon location in TP. But even though I created locations such as Darkness Ridge, Starshine Fields, and Murky Woods for the already existing Twilight Realm, they are still not canon. For something in a fandom to be canon, it has to be stated/made by the original creators.

 

[DarkestLink]

Basically any game made by Nintendo or Capcom is canon. HH is also canon. Everything else isn't.