The original: Link explores an unmarked overworld and eight dungeons to reassemble the shattered Triforce of Wisdom and rescue Princess Zelda from Ganon. Chronologically, its unnamed hero is a distant, unrelated descendant of the earlier Downfall-branch heroes.
Notable & Interesting
- The game that started the series and the open-world 'explore, don't get told where to go' philosophy Nintendo returned to decades later with Breath of the Wild.
- One of the first console games to include a battery-backed save feature.
Connections
- Direct prequel to
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
Part of these threads
Also on the Downfall Timeline
A Link to the Past
Set on the timeline where Link was defeated by Ganondorf in Ocarina of Time and the villain claimed the full Triforce, this SNES classic sends a new Link into the corrupted Dark World to rescue Princess Zelda and six maidens.
Link's Awakening
Shipwrecked on the dreamlike Koholint Island, Link must wake the Wind Fish by gathering eight musical instruments — only to discover the entire island may be nothing more than the Wind Fish's dream.
Oracle of Seasons
Link travels to Holodrum to stop General Onox from imprisoning the Oracle of Seasons, Din, using the Rod of Seasons to manipulate the land itself — one half of a pair of linked adventures developed alongside Oracle of Ages.
Oracle of Ages
Link's companion adventure to Oracle of Seasons sends him to Labrynna to rescue the Oracle of Ages, Nayru, from the sorceress Veran, using time-travel puzzles built around an ancient Harp.