Zelda: Breath Of The Wild - Ranking Every Character From Worst To Best
1. Princess Zelda
Nintendo knocked it out the park with Zelda this time round, minus her voice acting in the English version, anyway.
You can read about how her initial design - and all of the game - was completely different here, but sufficed to say, Nintendo took years of history surrounding Zelda's wants and needs to escape the castle walls, and did something very mature in the end.
Across many of the game's flashbacks, you'll see Zelda struggle to 'do her duty' and summon the magic necessary to defeat Ganon, as dictated by her father, King Rhoam. She discusses the annoyance and doubts of this put-upon 'purpose', and yearns to go on an adventure or find other means of combating evil, which you see both her and Link do, as she tries and fails to activate the Trial entrances.
This apparent 'failure' dominates Zelda's way of thinking over the course of these prequel elements, inevitably leading to the believe she's failed as a person, if she cannot be the specific hero Hyrule needs. Her study inside Hyrule Castle is loaded with books, papers and scientific/Sheikah research all strewn around, as though she'd gotten lost in trying to find another way to succeed.
Ultimately, Ganon is successful and kills everyone in his way, destroying Zelda's resolve and making it feel like all is lost. It's not until after the two of you pair up and put him 'back in his box' with the Divine Beast Champions' help, that she states she can "no longer hear the voice inside the [Master] Sword", which was formerly one of the reasons she was so devoted to the cause of realising this other potential.
Fantastically, noting just how far her and Link have come and what they've accomplished, in the true ending Zelda's expression changes from solemn to smiling, as she then adds, "But I can accept that".
It's not The Last of Us or Bioshock or anything, but this subtle exploration of how overly-strict parental mentalities can actually do more harm than good in the long run, is a nice reminder that sometimes, we just have to find our own paths, limits and life goals, rather than get carried away on what we 'should' be doing.
Good job, Nintendo.
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Who's your favourite character in Breath of the Wild? Let us know in the comments!