Spoiler Zelda's Basic Character

[SinkingBadges]

DISCLAIMER: I'm not sure if there is already a thread like this, but the search tool didn't give me any exact matches. Please, forgive the mistake if that is the case.

So, here's the thing: I'm a guy who believes that characters are essential in a story. Without them, why would the viewer be interested in what is happening? Ok, maybe I'm taking it too far there. :silent:

So, a few quotes from the recent news update have made me wonder, what direction is Nintendo going with her personality? I'm intereseted in some of the things they said:

- Link and Zelda are great childhood friends in Skyloft
- Link must hunt down Zelda to save her from the land below Skyloft, which one [sic] one has visited before
- Zelda is in no way a princess in the traditional sense
- Zelda is both sweet but has another strong side to her

This ones, in particular. I can't say that I'm satisfied with the way Nintendo has handled her character over the years (well, maybe a few exceptions here and there), but enough about me.

QUESTION: What do you make of these very vague descriptions about her character, the situations (including the videos) and her design? Do you like the direction they're taking? Do you think they'll eventually fall into stereotypes? Does it sound fresh to you? If you want, give a basic outline of what you think she might be like. After all, the descriptions are vague enough to allow interpretation.

Sound off, please. I'd like to see what people think of this.

 

[Triforce King]

Well I think I kind of like the new idea of how they are describing Zelda.

 

[Teal]

Well every Zelda will be different it's just this one is kinda sepicial in a way , and i like the new way of describing Zelda its facinating.

 

[Justeazy]

I can't say for certain as I have yet to play the game, but I think I like this Zelda more than most of them. I've never been good with the whole "traditional princess" storyline, anyway. I loved tetra (and Zelda from AoL, but that's a different story), but OoT Zelda bored me, because she was so typical; so... boring.

Do you think they'll eventually fall into stereotypes?

I'm confused about this one. Didn't Nintendo invent the stereotypes? I mean, LoZ had Link go rescue Princess Zelda, before that, the original Mario game had you rescuing a princess, and before that, Jumpman had to rescue Pauline (who was supposedly a princess) from Donkey Kong. How can they fall into the stereotypes or not if they are the ones who make them while everyone else falls into them?

 

[bradley]

I always thought Zelda was a strong character, at least since Ocarina of Time. She has evolved beyond her 'damsel in distress' character, although that certainly still plays a role.
Think about it. In Ocarina of Time, she has her alter-ego in Sheik, where she actively plays a role in freeing Hyrule from Ganondorf. In the Wind Waker, she is a strong pirate girl, and she actively helps you fight off Ganondorf near the end. In Twilight Princess, she runs the nation of Hyrule and often goes into battle with the knights of Hyrule. In the end, again, she actively plays a role in helping you defeat Ganondorf. And finally, although I've never played Spirit Tracks, I heard she plays a bigger role than ever, by actively helping you throughout your entire quest.

I'm confused about this one. Didn't Nintendo invent the stereotypes? I mean, LoZ had Link go rescue Princess Zelda, before that, the original Mario game had you rescuing a princess, and before that, Jumpman had to rescue Pauline (who was supposedly a princess) from Donkey Kong. How can they fall into the stereotypes or not if they are the ones who make them while everyone else falls into them?

Not really. The 'brave young lad saves the princess' story has been around for hundreds, even thousands of years.

 

[Ventus]

I want to know what they mean by she has a stronger side. Unlike so many others, I'm tired of alter egos to get the job done. Look at OoT. Sheik is the part of Zelda getting all of the heroine stuff done, and it's all offscreen anyway besides the songs and recent events of what happened near the temple. In TWW, Tetra was getting all the work done, as soon as she took Zelda on as another persona, she started to fall back into the whole "I'm a Princess, so I sit down and do nothing". And in TP, she DOES have a sword but she's still a damsel...in distress. If Zelda actually USES a sword in SS and effectively at that, I would be a really happy person. It would add a lot more to her character and be a bit different from what we're used to.

 

[425]

Well, I would say that unlike Links, each Zelda is going to be different. The Zelda in the first two games was a pretty boring, and, yes, stereotypical, damsel in distress. In A Link to the Past, Zelda still retains that role, but does become more of a stronger character, showing Link a way to escape Hyrule Castle. In Ocarina of Time, her character become stronger still as she goes into dangerous places (the well, Death Mountain Crater) to aid Link on his way. In Wind Waker, this style of Zelda character went further, with her becoming an action character PRIMARILY and a princess secondarily. In a lot of the handheld games and in Twilight Princess, she was more at Ocarina of Time balance of action character and distressed damsel.

Now, it seems like in Skyward Sword she might move in the other direction, and I welcome such a switch. I wouldn't want all Zeldas to be like this, but I feel like each Zelda is different and that Nintendo has a lot more room to put more character in her. If, this time, she reverts to something her character was more like in A Link to the Past, I don't have a problem with that, and I like this childhood friend scenario in a 3D console game.

 

[SinkingBadges]

I'm confused about this one. Didn't Nintendo invent the stereotypes? I mean, LoZ had Link go rescue Princess Zelda, before that, the original Mario game had you rescuing a princess, and before that, Jumpman had to rescue Pauline (who was supposedly a princess) from Donkey Kong. How can they fall into the stereotypes or not if they are the ones who make them while everyone else falls into them?

I'll just jump in to answer this: It could be true to a certain degree.

First of all, Pauline isn't the best character to say that Nintendo invents stereotypes, mainly because you could track her influences all the way back to Ann Darrow from King Kong (well, pretty much all of Donkey Kong's basic concept could be traced back to King Kong, Nintendo even got a lawsuit from Universal Studios at some point).

As for Zelda's other versions, you could compare many to the average fairy-tale princess. But many have changed that. Tetra became more of a tough type, teasing Link several times and even saving him. Spirit Tracks Zelda (probably the most plot-involved one to this day) could get different reactions from many. I thought the bossy temperamental girl had already been done many times in popular anime, for example.

Still, Nintendo has those cases where they make industry-changing characters. Like Samus from Metroid, who introduced the idea of strong female characters to videogames (not a very common thing at the time of Metroid's release, which is why a lot of people were shocked at seeing that she was a woman at the end).

 

[Red Baron]

I wouldn't say that Nintendo invents Stereotypes. Only that over the years of Video Gaming they've best exemplified them. The idea of launching an adventure for a woman has very old beginnings (the Iliad, even the Odyssey too comes to mind) and has progressed to become today's cliché. The idea of a strong female warrior (aka Samus) can be said to have it's origins in the fabled Amazons.

While Nintendo has played variations on the character of Zelda the fact remains that if she were able to hold her own without Link's help then the entire concept of the Legend of Zelda's story falters. I like the progression in WW and now seemingly SS where Link isn't just rescuing a unknown princess but is rescuing a friend. I think the general character of Zelda swings between a playful friend and companion to a person with a lot of responsibility on their shoulders that she bears with the utmost stoicism. It will be interesting if SS can use both of these effectively.

 

[JuicieJ]

I like how it says she's not a princess "in a traditional sense". This probably means that she is somewhat of a higher authority than most others. Like, maybe her father is kind of like Bo in the sense that he's the head of Skyloft, just with more power than a simple mayor.

 

[Billy Ninja]

It sounds like she's going to be more story-involved this time, and in a direct way (not a alter ego, if i had to bet money), just like Tetra, but this time in a much more pleasant stereotype. I think it's safe that it will feel fresh, at least what they've showed so far is. Plus they are promising to have her appearing often along the game and to be not taking the fragile damsel in distress way (i hope they really mean it), that gives a good prospect (having a good character to appear only 3 times in the game would be a waste).

I don't want anything explicitly deep, I want cool/important events with cool/surprising character reactions to theses, without wasting time going into inner dilemmas, that usually just sound shallow, pretentious and boring (but I trust Nintendo in that sense, they are pretty objective when it comes to narrative ).

I'm betting that this will be the best "princess" so far (helping and helped by the best story), even if she don't match all of my expectations. I'm not overly optimistic, I just think that they finally grasped it.

 

[IHNo]

I'm certainly liking the way she is shaping up. She definitely seems a lot more carefree and outgoing, with her jumping off ledges and all, and Link having to catch her on his bird and save her (of course). This Zelda is a damsel in distress, no doubt, but it seems like she would certainly be able to pack a punch. And I hope she does. Also, if at some point Link is surrounded by a ring of fire and his Master Sword is knocked away and lands RIGHT NEXT TO HER, she better freaking do her best to pull that thing out of the ground. I don't care if she can't even do it. Atleast try. That's the only thing that really ticked me off about OoT Zelda. She just stood there, furrowing her brows and frowning. Rrr.

It also looks like SS Zelda's character is actually evolved; she is her own person. TP Zelda was my least favorite because she was always so....dull. Flat. A pancake. She never showed any emotion at all. It was cool of her to stand guard with her knights and fight Ganondorf alongside Link, but she was just a shell of a person. There wasn't anyone in there. It was like Satan had sucked out her soul and climbed inside. (Too morbid? Maybe, lol.)

 

[Justeazy]

Not really. The 'brave young lad saves the princess' story has been around for hundreds, even thousands of years.

I'll just jump in to answer this: It could be true to a certain degree.

First of all, Pauline isn't the best character to say that Nintendo invents stereotypes, mainly because you could track her influences all the way back to Ann Darrow from King Kong (well, pretty much all of Donkey Kong's basic concept could be traced back to King Kong, Nintendo even got a lawsuit from Universal Studios at some point).

I wouldn't say that Nintendo invents Stereotypes.

Yeah, ya'll got me there. I probably could have worded that better, so let me do so:
Nintendo is the company who originally implements and adapts well-known stereotypes into videogames, giving them an original story as they do so.
To take it back to my original point, Nintendo has a track record of making the stereotypes fit their games, I don't think they're going to start to adapt their games to fit stereotypes.

Hope that's more acceptable.

 

[Dio]

She sounds like the best and most interesting zelda yet.