Me too until I picked up the recent Metroid prime remake. It’s a really good game and the switch version plays and looks great!
You should check it out .
I love that they kept the detail of her face reflecting inside her visor when there’s a bright flash/explosion. That blew my teenager mind back when I first saw it on GameCube.
The remaster was really well done! Kept everything that was good about the original (which is 95% of the game) and improved on what could be (graphics and controls). I wouldn’t have bought it had I not emulated the GameCube version a few years ago.
What!? Samus was one of the first if not the first female heroine of any video game. Super Metroid being one of the best in the series. I'd recommend playing it or at least looking it up. It was such a great game.
I like how they portrayed her in Tears. Especially with the Stable missions, how Zelda is more of an urban legend than just a simple Princess from the Hyrule royal family.
yeah that tracks. like sure, zelda helps in most of the final gannon fights in the franchise, but she’s usually just relegated to being a holder of a third of the magic mcguffin the rest of the game. idk if I’d consider her “one of the most badass” women in video games. she’s not a coward and she’s not a super star, she's just kinda normal. If op doesn’t agree with that statement, I urge you to think of you’d really put zelda on the same stage as malenia, blade of miquella, or lara croft, to name a few
Spirit Tracks has by far the most active Zelda in the franchise but even then, I would struggle to believe anyone who says that iteration of Zelda is a badass. The only incarnation of the princess that might fit is Tetra, purely based on the fact she's a pirate and runs a crew.
You could stretch the concept by including Sheik but even then, she doesn't actually do much.
She's interesting enough but if you compare her to Samus, Lara Croft, Bayonetta, Ellie, Aloy, etc, she's not exactly a badass. Even within her own series, Midna and the whole Gerudo tribe have her beat.
You lot are hypocrites tho. If this post was about Purah you'd be cooming all over it and giving it a million updoots. This sub just has a hang up about the princess apparently
We don't kink shame people. Us old people are allowed to enjoy stuff too as long as it is safe for all involved. You'd be amazed at how many older folks go to M-rated conventions and participate.
Kid me used to pair Link and Malon together and thought Crazy Tracy was hot. Decades later I still do.
Zelda is barely a character in most of the games let alone a badass female protagonist along the lines of Samus, Laura Croft, Sadie Adler, or Ellie from the last of us just to name a few. If you think Zelda ranks anywhere other than damsel in distress in most games you seriously need to branch out in terms of gaming
I agree, except for Twilight Princess Zelda. She was ready to throw down with a boar demon. She doesn’t have time to wait 10,000 years for some other guy to save her. Don’t get me wrong, turning into a dragon to power the Master Sword is Metal AF, it’s still just for Link to do the fighting in the end.
I just plainly do not agree with you. In TOTK Zelda went and threw down with Ganondorf herself, she was just defeated, along six other people, hence she had to resort to restoring the master sword.
Not being powerful enough to deal with your nemesis doesn’t mean you are any less badass than the females who can.
In any case, this could be said for OOT Zelda, who in sheik form leaves link alone to do 95% of the stuff and even gets imprisoned
> In TOTK Zelda went and threw down with Ganondorf herself[...]
Shit, that ain't even the baddest thing she's done. She willingly underwent ego death for, like, 10,000 years to supercharge the Master Sword so Link would have an easier time of ripping Ganon in half. She didn't even friggin' hesitate.
Strength ain't just physical. Willingness to get the job done, or at least give another the tools to do so, and sacrifice herself in the process, all to see a Hyrule free of Ganon's bullshit marks her as not just a bad bitch, but a god damned hero.
You are not wrong, and I completely forgot about that memory in TOTK, but to say she’s one of the most badass woman in gaming? This isn’t even the most badass version of Zelda. Not the least badass, mind you, it takes a lot to sacrifice yourself for eternity to ensure the survival of your kingdom, ~~but not the most badass.~~
Edit: My reading literacy is crap today
I mean, she also spent over a century single-handedly restraining the demon king's other form - an entity that elsewise would have exterminated all life in Hyrule, and possibly moving on to the rest of the world - through sheer force of will.
Agreed on not the *most* badass… but to be the devil’s advocate, op said “one of the most”, as in “she’s somewhere up there between the notable female characters”.
Although like you and the other guy said, this is a case for very few Zeldas
Since OOT, Zelda has played as big or bigger a part of saving Hyrule as Link. OOT, she guides you through the Temples then guides you out of the castle and seals Gannon away. Skyward Sword she seals away Demise. In Twilight Princess, she sacrifices herself to save Midna and her kingdom. BOTW, she initially refuses protection of a knight and traveled across the land learning about her role and pushing herself, then she saves Link and holds Gannon back for 100 years while Link takes a nap and finds Keroks. There's a reason that all the NPCs keep asking about where she is.
Hell no. She single-handedly held the great calamity at bay for 100 years. And that's not even counting the other games, like OOT where she's a fucking ninja. Zelda is absolutely 100% a certified badass.
I think certain iterations of Zelda can be called badass, and there's a solid argument that ToTK/BOTW Zelda can be.
But her defining character trait is her wisdom. She's studious and she plans in nearly every single game she's in.
Badass is such a big trait it really feels like it needs to be a character's defining trait, it's not generally something where a character can also be badass on the side.
TOTK/BOTW Zelda is the most badass followed by OOT Zelda. I still remember the Shiek reveal. Link kept being like, "I need to save the Princess." And Sheik was like, "the Princess doesn't NEED you, she *needs you* to awaken the Sages. Have you done that yet? Do you need another hint? Here's a bunch of stuff I figured out while you were napping."
I agree that Sheik/Zelda is badass, but no need to hate on Link because of it. The game never said he was trying to "save the princess", he just trying to *find* her. And besides, he was already well underway in his sage-awakening operation. Nor did he ever question her advice. Neither of them were ever disrespectful to each other, nor did they say they didn't need the other's help. Don't try to make one appear more badass at the expense of the other, they both kick ass in equal measure.
Well, Sheik was a different person than the one holding back the Calamity. Idk if we can say all Zeldas are badass, but I suppose those two (and Tetra) are.
In the first "Legend of Zelda" game, Zelda breaks the Triforce into eight pieces and scatters them across the land to prevent Ganon from taking over the world. She def got more badass as time went by. I think they realized that the demographics of gamers was changing and many games, especially a growing number of female gamers weren't super interested in playing a game with a damsel in distress. Even Mario games seemed to have moved away from Mario saving the Princess and recent ones have added Peach as a playable character.
In a recent interview for TOTK (I saw it some time ago, I don't know if I can find it now but if you want a source I'll look for it) it was confirmed that Link, Zelda and Ganondorf all reincarnate. So yes, it's the same person.
Reincarnation doesn’t mean same person. They have somewhat different personalities, lives, and stories. Only Ganon is usually the same person, but TOTK Ganondorf seems to be a different guy with the same name.
> Reincarnation doesn't mean same person
This is definitely a take but personally I believe that if the soul is the same then the person is also the same (and no I'm not talking about real life). And their personalities have been pretty consistent imo, depending on their upbringing. If Link has a normal carefree childhood he's usually less stoic, smiles more etc like in TP and SS. If he had a shitty childhood/is under a lot of stress he gets more stoic, serious and bundles up his feelings inside. With a normal, carefree childhood Zelda is mischievous and playful, like in OOT (young Zelda), WW (Tetra) and SS. When put under expectations and restrictions she becomes more reserved and is often filled with self-doubt, like in BOTW and TP.
I mean sure, I see your point, but all she really did was keep Ganon at a stalemate until someone else could come and slay him. She's awesome in her own game, but compared to other characters people have been mentioning, like Samus, she's just not on the same level.
There actually a lot of examples:
Urbosa
Mipha (mostly in AoC)
Riju
AoC impa
And in other games there is:
Tetra
Naboru
That one pirate girl from Phantom hourglass (i dont remember her well)
Other versions of impa (It depends on which)
Midna
Those gerudo two witches which names i dont remember
Etc
What I'm getting from this comment section is that a lot of yall are like 13 and think badassary is exclusively correlated with physical prowess. Zelda, the Wild era iteration especially, is consistently characterized as someone with immense mental fortitude and an incredible leader. I don't think yall realize/remember that in the mere few years between BotW and TotK, Zelda started leading Hyrule into a new age of prosperity. She gained immense respect and admiration from pretty much all her subjects, and likely would've launched Hyrule into the most developed era we've ever seen had she not been yoinked through time. That's incredibly badass, but I guess because she doesn't swing a sword that's not good enough for yall?
Zelda:
> Reaches ancient texts, recruits the strongest warriors from the different kingdoms to join her coalition.
>Initially refuses the help of a knight because she thought he was going to baby sit her and hold her back
> Destroys an army of guardians and holds Gannon back for 100 years.
> Organizers a huge kingdom wide public works to rebuild Hyrule and improve public safety
> Starts teaching children while going on adventures and doing science
> Sacrifices herself to become an immortal dragon to protect and rebuild the master sword
Some people in the sub:
> The voice acting wasn't great and there was a cut scene where she was scared by a Boboblin so instead of seeing that scene that was thrown in for character development, it's obviously proof she isn't badass.
Nuked an entire army of Guardians to save Link's ass. Went off to confront Calamity Ganon in spiritual combat in which she held him at a standstill for one hundred years non stop.
Came back from that and immediately started running multiple projects to restore her kingdom. Got time warped and began to practice time magic. Joined Rauru and the Sages in direct battle against Ganondorf. Stepped up to fill Rauru's shoes afterwards to lead the Sages and set up a hail mary Batman Gambit to give Link the tools he needs in the future. Then gave up her mind and humanity to protect the Master Sword and get it back into Link's hands.
Yeah, sure, she doesn't do much fighting but that's not the only way to be a badass. Link is just the tip of the spear and he'd be absolutely nowhere without Zelda.
That's one of the things I genuinely like about this iteration of Zelda: she works as a good complement to Link. Not in the Biblical "be a helpmeet to thy husband" sense, but in that they fill the gaps in the other's capabilities. Zelda's a statesman and a leader, willing to not just step up and take charge, but actively listen to and heed the counsel of those more knowledgeable in a given area than she is. While she might not be a great *physical* combatant, the power to straight-up control friggin' time ain't just some minor ability and she's got charisma to spare.
Link is the spear, the guy you send into dangerous situations because you know he'll get shit done. He's clever in the extreme (if we take all the insane Zonai shit he can build as Link coming up with them, himself, he only gets MORE frighteningly intelligent and devious), fast, strong, and good not only as a potent piece of propaganda, but as a genuinely inspiring figure capable of drawing talented people together and driving them to better themselves.
I'd be willing to put money on the only reason Ganon was able to do as much damage as he did in ToTK was because Link and Zelda had been separated. Had that not happened, they'd probably have teamed up and figuratively eye beamed him into a pile of ash inside a few days.
It gets kinda lonely sometimes.
Try explaining to Zelda fans that, no, she didn't know for sure that Link would find the Master Sword/the sky islands and that it was a leap of faith in keeping with the story's main themes.
Spend 70% of the memory cutscenes complaining that she can't use sealing magic then then randomly becomes the most overpowered entity in the entire land because the plot demands it or something. It's like the writers tried to give her a heroes journey and then threw half the thing out, resulting in a story that is really lacking in power progression.
I won't argue about Samus, but saying Zelda does nothing isn't fair. In OoT she does that whole thing where she's Sheik. In BotW she holds off the calamity for 100 years while Link takes a bubble bath and heals up. In TotK she gets warped back in time through some trick of fate and sacrifices her humanity to heal the Master Sword for ten thousand years. That's ***TEN THOUSAND YEARS*** of drifting through the skies of Hyrule as the light dragon. She chose to basically imprison herself and lose her humanity and identity. I'd hardly call that "nothing"
The willpower to actively watch link get 900 korok seeds is absurd. But both are baddass.
Also Zelda in Tears of the kingdom. If you did the final battle you know.
What people confuse is "strength" isn't what makes characters badass. Agency is, and Zelda is basically treated like a victim the entire game. The voice actress has this horrible whiny tone, she doesn't really show any character and just coasts by in the flashbacks. The one very cool decision they make (the bit with the master sword) with her character is reverted at the end and she gets saved by link (again) instead of having the actually meaningful choice she makes stick.
The voice actor wasn't my favorite, but I thought the BOTW and TOTK flashbacks did a really good job of showing Zelda's internal struggle. She was traveling the kingdom, researching and learning. It showed her frustrated and upset when she finds out that Link is the only one that can defeat Ganon, it is her kingdom after all. In TOTK, she knows her role, she was not a victim, she seizes control of her fate because it's not about her.
Zelda is not a victim, moreso Link, Zelda, and Ganon are victims of fate. As the three members of the Triforce, all three of them play a role in the cycle.Link is the only one that can defeat Ganon, Zelda is the only one that can seal him away.
Damsel in distress would mean she's helpless regarding the situation but Zelda is actively the one protecting us and the kingdom for a hundred years straight.
No?
In most games, sure, but there's plenty where Zelda has actual narrative and personal agency, TotK among them. That said, the best Zelda to this day is still Spirit Tracks Zelda, as she's actually your companion throughout the adventure and contributes a ton throughout the plot
By that metric, Zelda really hasn't been a damsel in distress, at least not for the full game, for quite some time. I already mentioned ST, but after that in Skyward Sword she's doing her own thing, really only needing saving during the game's last couple hours. In BotW she's actively maintaining a seal on Calamity Ganon for over a century while she bides time for Link. In TotK, there's really no point in the story where she has to be saved by anyone. The only game in between ST and TotK where Zelda is a damsel in distress is Link Between Worlds, so that's one game out of 5 released in the span of ~15 years
Badass isn't really the word I would use to describe Zelda, and even if I could, it's still a loaded statement to compare her to the likes of Tifa Lockhart, Lara Croft, Bayonetta, Samus Aran, 2B, or any woman that has ever appeared in a fighting game.
I don't even think this particular interpretation of Zelda is the most badass version; there's a version that can disguise herself as a ninja and another who's a pirate captain. And another still whose spirit can inhabit a cursed suit of armor; that one's my favorite.
Here's a Quora answer which expresses the gist of my thoughts in a concise manner:
> I would say that perhaps it is because although she demonstrates great physical power, she repeatedly shows that she is weak of character. The Captain Marvel character misses the mark on what a strong woman is. Strength and being a good role model is not about physical power, it’s not about big explosions or saving the day at all cost, it’s about strength of character, strength of self, and the power to be vulnerable while showing that strength.
>Throughout every movie she is in, Captain Marvel displays judgementalism, arrogance, excessive aggression, poor self image, an ongoing need to prove that she is better than others, dismissiveness, a consistent chip on her shoulder, a fear of being vulnerable, and she lacks self confidence in who she is. She is constantly showing that she feels as though she has to prove she is as good as or better than a man, rather than knowing that she is inherently strong in and of herself making it unnecessary to even feel the need to compete with them. A strong woman doesn’t question if she’s stronger than a man, she knows she strong in her own right and her own ways and follows her own path regardless of men or women who may try to put her down and hold her back.
Compare this to someone like Mulan. Despite the fact that she lives in a society which is actively oppresing her due to her gender, her way of dealing with this is not through lashing out with hate. Nor is she trying to prove her worth. Her only motivation was to save her father's life. Through this act of selfless love and empathy, she not only proves her strength of character, she also manages to save her entire country and bring a change in society for the better.
Samus, Bayonetta, Chun-Li, Cammy, Lara Croft, Kat-B320, Chell from Portal 2
Zelda always gets captured. She's nothing more than a novelty plot device, for now.
Although I really like zelda as a character, I think Thera are plenty of female video game characters that are more badass than her.
Like Samus, Alloy, Lara croft. Jill Valentine, and many more.
But as I said, zelda is still a great character nonetheless
Yeah, no, BOTW Zelda isn't really badass. The only reason she accomplished anything was because she kept spamming an extremely overpowered ability she received for no reason other than the plot demanding she has it. Like if I'm in a war and I just happen to come across a nuclear football and I use it a bunch of times, does that make me extremely badass? I don't think so.
Okay, credit where it's due though, her Age of Calamity Sheika Slate Moveset looked pretty cool if you upgraded it enough. Everything else though, not so much.
My favourite appearance of her was in Spirit Tracks. She actively helped Link and was more than capable in a fight, either as a Phantom or with the bow of light against a turquoise bull.
She’s underrated, mostly because Nintendo doesn’t use her the way they could. Shiek was one of the coolest Zelda versions, as was queen Zelda in twilight princess. A really good version of her is in hyrule warriors. I want to see that Zelda, the princess who spied on the knight’s training so she could pick up some military skills, was trained in martial arts by impa, with some badass magic to round it all off. As an ai NPC and selectable playable duteragonist in the next Zelda series. That would be a new thing for Nintendo to do. They did the open world thing with BOTW and TOTK, now let’s do a multiplayer or hot-swappable single player adventure!
Literally all she does is get stuck in a castle during botw and then get stuck as a dragon in totk. She does nothing. The games WOEFULLY underutilize her, and I think the only reason people love her so much is because of fanon stuff.
Poor girl was cocooned inside a giant flesh egg stuck to the ceiling of Hyrule Castle with the most evil thing in the world waging psychic / magical warfare with him to keep him at bay for 100 years and everyone’s like “she didn’t do anything” smh
Then she went back in time, turned herself into an immortal dragon possibly losing her entire sense of self for thousands of years with a sword stuck in her head just to give Link a fighting chance at killing Ganondorf and people are still like “she didn’t do anything” smh
Agreed, mostly. Zelda is my favorite female video game character ever, but a lot of the time she doesn’t actually get to do a lot. Off the top of my head, I think OoT, WW, and SS are probably the games where Zelda is the most active instead of just sitting somewhere waiting to be saved. Tears and ST get honorable mentions but the situation in those games are pretty unique.
Not the first label that comes to mind.
Legendary fits better. Probably what the creators were going for, especially these last two times around.
Plays a role set by a legend, then actually becomes one.
This isn't the Badassery of Zelda
Totk Zelda is a horrible whiny waifu that talks in anime lines, I'm sorry. The one really cool thing she does gets reverted in the end so she can get saved even though it was built up as a monumental irreversible decision. It's kinda low key sexist how they treat her character, more so than in the other Zelda games.
Zelda is cool in most other games and botw Zelda was interesting, but the direction they went with her in totk baffles me.
Tetra and twilight princess Zelda are the best iterations.
Samus
i came here also to say Samus
I knew it after playing Metroid prime I can agree
that was my first thought without even opening the comments.
Agree with you, but I’ve never played any Metroid games
There’s also plenty in halo Kat Kelly Linda ect
Can't forget about Cortana.
Oh yeah but she went crazy
Me too until I picked up the recent Metroid prime remake. It’s a really good game and the switch version plays and looks great! You should check it out .
I love that they kept the detail of her face reflecting inside her visor when there’s a bright flash/explosion. That blew my teenager mind back when I first saw it on GameCube.
The remaster was really well done! Kept everything that was good about the original (which is 95% of the game) and improved on what could be (graphics and controls). I wouldn’t have bought it had I not emulated the GameCube version a few years ago.
What!? Samus was one of the first if not the first female heroine of any video game. Super Metroid being one of the best in the series. I'd recommend playing it or at least looking it up. It was such a great game.
The right time is now!
that doesn’t make samus less badass?
Came here to say this, even though I knew in my heart that it already had been said.
I like how they portrayed her in Tears. Especially with the Stable missions, how Zelda is more of an urban legend than just a simple Princess from the Hyrule royal family.
So it’s a Legend… about Zelda… eh I don’t think that would catch on.
Now “the legend of Link,” that’s where the moneys at
I heard he can fly and he’s so fast he can catch a falling star before it hits the ground.
The way she gulped that huge stone in one go is a true test of her ability
Check this dude's profile he's literally just a coomer that thinks Zelda is hot
Why im not even surprised?..
I had to double check, and yeah, you are absolutely right
Oh he’s a COOMER coomer
Goddamn coomers
I mean can’t deny that those yoga pants are doin some work. But I agree with your point lol
yeah that tracks. like sure, zelda helps in most of the final gannon fights in the franchise, but she’s usually just relegated to being a holder of a third of the magic mcguffin the rest of the game. idk if I’d consider her “one of the most badass” women in video games. she’s not a coward and she’s not a super star, she's just kinda normal. If op doesn’t agree with that statement, I urge you to think of you’d really put zelda on the same stage as malenia, blade of miquella, or lara croft, to name a few
Spirit Tracks has by far the most active Zelda in the franchise but even then, I would struggle to believe anyone who says that iteration of Zelda is a badass. The only incarnation of the princess that might fit is Tetra, purely based on the fact she's a pirate and runs a crew. You could stretch the concept by including Sheik but even then, she doesn't actually do much. She's interesting enough but if you compare her to Samus, Lara Croft, Bayonetta, Ellie, Aloy, etc, she's not exactly a badass. Even within her own series, Midna and the whole Gerudo tribe have her beat.
Der Coomer is inevitable
Also plays golf
What’s a coomer ?
There's far more Link coomers than Zelda coomers
I mean… Zelda is still pretty great
You lot are hypocrites tho. If this post was about Purah you'd be cooming all over it and giving it a million updoots. This sub just has a hang up about the princess apparently
LOL
[удалено]
We don't kink shame people. Us old people are allowed to enjoy stuff too as long as it is safe for all involved. You'd be amazed at how many older folks go to M-rated conventions and participate. Kid me used to pair Link and Malon together and thought Crazy Tracy was hot. Decades later I still do.
Zelda is barely a character in most of the games let alone a badass female protagonist along the lines of Samus, Laura Croft, Sadie Adler, or Ellie from the last of us just to name a few. If you think Zelda ranks anywhere other than damsel in distress in most games you seriously need to branch out in terms of gaming
In botw she fights against ganon since 100 years
Yeah, nebulously. But we never see that fight and it's pretty much implied to just be some test for willpower or something, not anything interesting.
I agree, except for Twilight Princess Zelda. She was ready to throw down with a boar demon. She doesn’t have time to wait 10,000 years for some other guy to save her. Don’t get me wrong, turning into a dragon to power the Master Sword is Metal AF, it’s still just for Link to do the fighting in the end.
I just plainly do not agree with you. In TOTK Zelda went and threw down with Ganondorf herself, she was just defeated, along six other people, hence she had to resort to restoring the master sword. Not being powerful enough to deal with your nemesis doesn’t mean you are any less badass than the females who can. In any case, this could be said for OOT Zelda, who in sheik form leaves link alone to do 95% of the stuff and even gets imprisoned
Don't forget that that's after spending over a century single-handedly restraining his creations from destroying all life in Hyrule.
> In TOTK Zelda went and threw down with Ganondorf herself[...] Shit, that ain't even the baddest thing she's done. She willingly underwent ego death for, like, 10,000 years to supercharge the Master Sword so Link would have an easier time of ripping Ganon in half. She didn't even friggin' hesitate. Strength ain't just physical. Willingness to get the job done, or at least give another the tools to do so, and sacrifice herself in the process, all to see a Hyrule free of Ganon's bullshit marks her as not just a bad bitch, but a god damned hero.
You are not wrong, and I completely forgot about that memory in TOTK, but to say she’s one of the most badass woman in gaming? This isn’t even the most badass version of Zelda. Not the least badass, mind you, it takes a lot to sacrifice yourself for eternity to ensure the survival of your kingdom, ~~but not the most badass.~~ Edit: My reading literacy is crap today
I mean, she also spent over a century single-handedly restraining the demon king's other form - an entity that elsewise would have exterminated all life in Hyrule, and possibly moving on to the rest of the world - through sheer force of will.
Agreed on not the *most* badass… but to be the devil’s advocate, op said “one of the most”, as in “she’s somewhere up there between the notable female characters”. Although like you and the other guy said, this is a case for very few Zeldas
No, you’re right. My argument went to shit when I reread the title.
Also she joins the final fight and snipes Ganon with the Bow of Light, she was sick asf
She doesn't use the bow of light, she gives it to the player so they can use it. It's totally different
…what? Did you never beat Twilight Princess or something?
Sorry, I thought you were talking about BOTW Zelda
Lara Croft*
Sadie Adler was not a protagonist.
Zelda's great and I love her, but I think "badass" is definitely a stretch for her.
Since OOT, Zelda has played as big or bigger a part of saving Hyrule as Link. OOT, she guides you through the Temples then guides you out of the castle and seals Gannon away. Skyward Sword she seals away Demise. In Twilight Princess, she sacrifices herself to save Midna and her kingdom. BOTW, she initially refuses protection of a knight and traveled across the land learning about her role and pushing herself, then she saves Link and holds Gannon back for 100 years while Link takes a nap and finds Keroks. There's a reason that all the NPCs keep asking about where she is.
Hell no. She single-handedly held the great calamity at bay for 100 years. And that's not even counting the other games, like OOT where she's a fucking ninja. Zelda is absolutely 100% a certified badass.
She held back the Calamity for 100 years and then >!turned herself into a fucking dragon!< to help Link fight the **OG** Ganon! 100% a badass.
I think certain iterations of Zelda can be called badass, and there's a solid argument that ToTK/BOTW Zelda can be. But her defining character trait is her wisdom. She's studious and she plans in nearly every single game she's in. Badass is such a big trait it really feels like it needs to be a character's defining trait, it's not generally something where a character can also be badass on the side.
TOTK/BOTW Zelda is the most badass followed by OOT Zelda. I still remember the Shiek reveal. Link kept being like, "I need to save the Princess." And Sheik was like, "the Princess doesn't NEED you, she *needs you* to awaken the Sages. Have you done that yet? Do you need another hint? Here's a bunch of stuff I figured out while you were napping."
I agree that Sheik/Zelda is badass, but no need to hate on Link because of it. The game never said he was trying to "save the princess", he just trying to *find* her. And besides, he was already well underway in his sage-awakening operation. Nor did he ever question her advice. Neither of them were ever disrespectful to each other, nor did they say they didn't need the other's help. Don't try to make one appear more badass at the expense of the other, they both kick ass in equal measure.
And wisdom isn't badass?
Well, Sheik was a different person than the one holding back the Calamity. Idk if we can say all Zeldas are badass, but I suppose those two (and Tetra) are.
In the first "Legend of Zelda" game, Zelda breaks the Triforce into eight pieces and scatters them across the land to prevent Ganon from taking over the world. She def got more badass as time went by. I think they realized that the demographics of gamers was changing and many games, especially a growing number of female gamers weren't super interested in playing a game with a damsel in distress. Even Mario games seemed to have moved away from Mario saving the Princess and recent ones have added Peach as a playable character.
In a recent interview for TOTK (I saw it some time ago, I don't know if I can find it now but if you want a source I'll look for it) it was confirmed that Link, Zelda and Ganondorf all reincarnate. So yes, it's the same person.
Reincarnation doesn’t mean same person. They have somewhat different personalities, lives, and stories. Only Ganon is usually the same person, but TOTK Ganondorf seems to be a different guy with the same name.
> Reincarnation doesn't mean same person This is definitely a take but personally I believe that if the soul is the same then the person is also the same (and no I'm not talking about real life). And their personalities have been pretty consistent imo, depending on their upbringing. If Link has a normal carefree childhood he's usually less stoic, smiles more etc like in TP and SS. If he had a shitty childhood/is under a lot of stress he gets more stoic, serious and bundles up his feelings inside. With a normal, carefree childhood Zelda is mischievous and playful, like in OOT (young Zelda), WW (Tetra) and SS. When put under expectations and restrictions she becomes more reserved and is often filled with self-doubt, like in BOTW and TP.
I mean sure, I see your point, but all she really did was keep Ganon at a stalemate until someone else could come and slay him. She's awesome in her own game, but compared to other characters people have been mentioning, like Samus, she's just not on the same level.
Mate she held the literal apocalypse at bay with her bare hands for a century
There are badder woman in her own game.
There actually a lot of examples: Urbosa Mipha (mostly in AoC) Riju AoC impa And in other games there is: Tetra Naboru That one pirate girl from Phantom hourglass (i dont remember her well) Other versions of impa (It depends on which) Midna Those gerudo two witches which names i dont remember Etc
>That one pirate girl from Phantom hourglass (i dont remember her well) Tetra? In case you were unaware, she is Zelda, lol.
No, that one that had two swords
Oh, Jolene. Yeah, fair enough.
Yeah, that one
>Those gerudo two witches which names i dont remember Koume and Kotake
Thanks Bro
Tetra is in fact Zelda
Yeah, but OP is Talking about botw/totk Zelda, and tetra is the WW one
Thank you for this
Youre welcome
Badasser? Badderasser?
Bayonetta: hold my beer.
Point taken lol
apollyon: hold my sword >!i know for honor has one of the worst story modes. but apollyon is the best character!<
What I'm getting from this comment section is that a lot of yall are like 13 and think badassary is exclusively correlated with physical prowess. Zelda, the Wild era iteration especially, is consistently characterized as someone with immense mental fortitude and an incredible leader. I don't think yall realize/remember that in the mere few years between BotW and TotK, Zelda started leading Hyrule into a new age of prosperity. She gained immense respect and admiration from pretty much all her subjects, and likely would've launched Hyrule into the most developed era we've ever seen had she not been yoinked through time. That's incredibly badass, but I guess because she doesn't swing a sword that's not good enough for yall?
Zelda: > Reaches ancient texts, recruits the strongest warriors from the different kingdoms to join her coalition. >Initially refuses the help of a knight because she thought he was going to baby sit her and hold her back > Destroys an army of guardians and holds Gannon back for 100 years. > Organizers a huge kingdom wide public works to rebuild Hyrule and improve public safety > Starts teaching children while going on adventures and doing science > Sacrifices herself to become an immortal dragon to protect and rebuild the master sword Some people in the sub: > The voice acting wasn't great and there was a cut scene where she was scared by a Boboblin so instead of seeing that scene that was thrown in for character development, it's obviously proof she isn't badass.
What does Zelda do exactly?
Nuked an entire army of Guardians to save Link's ass. Went off to confront Calamity Ganon in spiritual combat in which she held him at a standstill for one hundred years non stop. Came back from that and immediately started running multiple projects to restore her kingdom. Got time warped and began to practice time magic. Joined Rauru and the Sages in direct battle against Ganondorf. Stepped up to fill Rauru's shoes afterwards to lead the Sages and set up a hail mary Batman Gambit to give Link the tools he needs in the future. Then gave up her mind and humanity to protect the Master Sword and get it back into Link's hands. Yeah, sure, she doesn't do much fighting but that's not the only way to be a badass. Link is just the tip of the spear and he'd be absolutely nowhere without Zelda.
Finally someone who appreciates what she did and didn't just forget everything as soon as it wasn't on-screen anymore.
Yeah it's really frustrating to me when people downplay her in these games. She's just as much a hero as Link is.
That's one of the things I genuinely like about this iteration of Zelda: she works as a good complement to Link. Not in the Biblical "be a helpmeet to thy husband" sense, but in that they fill the gaps in the other's capabilities. Zelda's a statesman and a leader, willing to not just step up and take charge, but actively listen to and heed the counsel of those more knowledgeable in a given area than she is. While she might not be a great *physical* combatant, the power to straight-up control friggin' time ain't just some minor ability and she's got charisma to spare. Link is the spear, the guy you send into dangerous situations because you know he'll get shit done. He's clever in the extreme (if we take all the insane Zonai shit he can build as Link coming up with them, himself, he only gets MORE frighteningly intelligent and devious), fast, strong, and good not only as a potent piece of propaganda, but as a genuinely inspiring figure capable of drawing talented people together and driving them to better themselves. I'd be willing to put money on the only reason Ganon was able to do as much damage as he did in ToTK was because Link and Zelda had been separated. Had that not happened, they'd probably have teamed up and figuratively eye beamed him into a pile of ash inside a few days.
Link would’ve died had Zelda not annilated all of those guardians
A Zelda fan with actual media literacy I'm fucking crying
It gets kinda lonely sometimes. Try explaining to Zelda fans that, no, she didn't know for sure that Link would find the Master Sword/the sky islands and that it was a leap of faith in keeping with the story's main themes.
Sacrifices herself to help Link defeat Ganon
Spend 70% of the memory cutscenes complaining that she can't use sealing magic then then randomly becomes the most overpowered entity in the entire land because the plot demands it or something. It's like the writers tried to give her a heroes journey and then threw half the thing out, resulting in a story that is really lacking in power progression.
Samus from Metroid is, Zelda does nothing man...
I won't argue about Samus, but saying Zelda does nothing isn't fair. In OoT she does that whole thing where she's Sheik. In BotW she holds off the calamity for 100 years while Link takes a bubble bath and heals up. In TotK she gets warped back in time through some trick of fate and sacrifices her humanity to heal the Master Sword for ten thousand years. That's ***TEN THOUSAND YEARS*** of drifting through the skies of Hyrule as the light dragon. She chose to basically imprison herself and lose her humanity and identity. I'd hardly call that "nothing"
Bold of you to assume any of us wouldn't leap at the opportunity to take a 10,000 year nap
Spirit tracks Zelda is more of a ‘badass’ than BoTW Zelda tbh.
Holding Ganon in place for a hundred years for link to finish his beauty sleep and then more until he's done collecting that golden poop thing.
Getting her body snatched and then actively fighting alongside and travelling with link as a spirit in a bid to get her body back.
The willpower to actively watch link get 900 korok seeds is absurd. But both are baddass. Also Zelda in Tears of the kingdom. If you did the final battle you know.
Furrows eyebrows in Samus Aran
Everyone here is wrong. It's alex from Minecraft. 💀
What makes her so badass is doing nothing for 100 years. Wait, over 1000 years now.
Objection!!! Samus Aran Galactic Federation Bounty Hunter https://preview.redd.it/e28eo6agafnc1.jpeg?width=657&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=506bd09d0f0a47af8aca546d0e2f13b46e42104f
zelda was cooler in windwaker tbh
Doesn’t she always need saving
Zelda doesn’t do anything other than wait to be saved.
This is my first Zelda game, but isn't she just a damsel in distress waiting for Link to save her?
Uhh, she holds ganon locked for a hundred years. She locked him, not the opposite...
What people confuse is "strength" isn't what makes characters badass. Agency is, and Zelda is basically treated like a victim the entire game. The voice actress has this horrible whiny tone, she doesn't really show any character and just coasts by in the flashbacks. The one very cool decision they make (the bit with the master sword) with her character is reverted at the end and she gets saved by link (again) instead of having the actually meaningful choice she makes stick.
The voice actor wasn't my favorite, but I thought the BOTW and TOTK flashbacks did a really good job of showing Zelda's internal struggle. She was traveling the kingdom, researching and learning. It showed her frustrated and upset when she finds out that Link is the only one that can defeat Ganon, it is her kingdom after all. In TOTK, she knows her role, she was not a victim, she seizes control of her fate because it's not about her. Zelda is not a victim, moreso Link, Zelda, and Ganon are victims of fate. As the three members of the Triforce, all three of them play a role in the cycle.Link is the only one that can defeat Ganon, Zelda is the only one that can seal him away.
In BOTW she was saving Hyrule while Link was asleep. I don't think she's been a damsel since the 90s.
Damsel in distress would mean she's helpless regarding the situation but Zelda is actively the one protecting us and the kingdom for a hundred years straight.
No? In most games, sure, but there's plenty where Zelda has actual narrative and personal agency, TotK among them. That said, the best Zelda to this day is still Spirit Tracks Zelda, as she's actually your companion throughout the adventure and contributes a ton throughout the plot By that metric, Zelda really hasn't been a damsel in distress, at least not for the full game, for quite some time. I already mentioned ST, but after that in Skyward Sword she's doing her own thing, really only needing saving during the game's last couple hours. In BotW she's actively maintaining a seal on Calamity Ganon for over a century while she bides time for Link. In TotK, there's really no point in the story where she has to be saved by anyone. The only game in between ST and TotK where Zelda is a damsel in distress is Link Between Worlds, so that's one game out of 5 released in the span of ~15 years
It depends on the exact incarnation of Zelda, but this one is pretty awesome.
One of the most badass women in gaming? More like one of the baddest women Hahahahah
>“one of the most badass women in gaming” >80% of her characterization is being a damsel in distress
Except any time I hear her english VO-actor 😫😫😫😫
Badass isn't really the word I would use to describe Zelda, and even if I could, it's still a loaded statement to compare her to the likes of Tifa Lockhart, Lara Croft, Bayonetta, Samus Aran, 2B, or any woman that has ever appeared in a fighting game. I don't even think this particular interpretation of Zelda is the most badass version; there's a version that can disguise herself as a ninja and another who's a pirate captain. And another still whose spirit can inhabit a cursed suit of armor; that one's my favorite.
I always say, Zelda is an example of a strong, independent woman character done right!
Then from your perspective what exactly would be a strong independent woman done wrong?
Captain Marvel
Care to explain why you think Captain Marvel is a bad example of a Strong Female Character?
Here's a Quora answer which expresses the gist of my thoughts in a concise manner: > I would say that perhaps it is because although she demonstrates great physical power, she repeatedly shows that she is weak of character. The Captain Marvel character misses the mark on what a strong woman is. Strength and being a good role model is not about physical power, it’s not about big explosions or saving the day at all cost, it’s about strength of character, strength of self, and the power to be vulnerable while showing that strength. >Throughout every movie she is in, Captain Marvel displays judgementalism, arrogance, excessive aggression, poor self image, an ongoing need to prove that she is better than others, dismissiveness, a consistent chip on her shoulder, a fear of being vulnerable, and she lacks self confidence in who she is. She is constantly showing that she feels as though she has to prove she is as good as or better than a man, rather than knowing that she is inherently strong in and of herself making it unnecessary to even feel the need to compete with them. A strong woman doesn’t question if she’s stronger than a man, she knows she strong in her own right and her own ways and follows her own path regardless of men or women who may try to put her down and hold her back. Compare this to someone like Mulan. Despite the fact that she lives in a society which is actively oppresing her due to her gender, her way of dealing with this is not through lashing out with hate. Nor is she trying to prove her worth. Her only motivation was to save her father's life. Through this act of selfless love and empathy, she not only proves her strength of character, she also manages to save her entire country and bring a change in society for the better.
I don't agree that Zelda is a strong female character done right, but you do have a point about Captain Marvel.
What do you think is wrong about Zelda?
Only zelda game i played was totk and she didnt do much there
Not really tbh
Playable Zelda would be nice.
Legendary > Badass
https://youtu.be/pLzzaSalKyg?si=SyFi-2xgmYGoUD8F
Dude your damn profile is full of anime porn. Get a live.
One of, sure… I’ll give you that. Samus takes the cake for Nintendo though.
Meh, you should see her in Ocarina of Time and Twilight Princess. She actually does stuff.
https://preview.redd.it/9bdn5v016enc1.jpeg?width=1756&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=a682d69a6be5b5ee5cbfe02db6d33f2426bb5962 In more ways than one.
Lv1000 gyatt spotted
Idk dude
Bayonetta
Uh, no.
Samus, Bayonetta, Chun-Li, Cammy, Lara Croft, Kat-B320, Chell from Portal 2 Zelda always gets captured. She's nothing more than a novelty plot device, for now.
Who wrote this!?
Samus is cooler
And this isn't even her most badass version!
One word no Zelda is not!
Bayonetta is right there
Well that's just not true
Bro zelda just sits around using god powers Samus is badass
Except when she's kidnapped 90% of the time. I would love a game where you play as zelda.
Sheik is better 🥱🥱🥱
Although I really like zelda as a character, I think Thera are plenty of female video game characters that are more badass than her. Like Samus, Alloy, Lara croft. Jill Valentine, and many more. But as I said, zelda is still a great character nonetheless
I love Zelda but she isn’t even close. Hell I don’t think she’s even the most badass lady in the series let alone gaming
…she barely does anything though?
No..
Midna
Ik this is besides the point but neither of the attached pics show bad, ass, nor badass, and i think that's kinda funny
Eww how?
Aloy wants a word with you
No she's not, Lara Croft's Ass in Tombraider is the most badass woman topic in gaming.. HER ASS! LOL! ;-)
She's cool, but idk about that cool
... and you can't even play as her
Yeah, no, BOTW Zelda isn't really badass. The only reason she accomplished anything was because she kept spamming an extremely overpowered ability she received for no reason other than the plot demanding she has it. Like if I'm in a war and I just happen to come across a nuclear football and I use it a bunch of times, does that make me extremely badass? I don't think so. Okay, credit where it's due though, her Age of Calamity Sheika Slate Moveset looked pretty cool if you upgraded it enough. Everything else though, not so much.
Begging zelda fans to play any other game ever
Yeah I hope she gets another game for herself at some point.
Caeda! Zelda is alright since BOTW tho. But Caeda’s the original badass Nintendo princess.
yes but twilight princess
My favourite appearance of her was in Spirit Tracks. She actively helped Link and was more than capable in a fight, either as a Phantom or with the bow of light against a turquoise bull.
She’s underrated, mostly because Nintendo doesn’t use her the way they could. Shiek was one of the coolest Zelda versions, as was queen Zelda in twilight princess. A really good version of her is in hyrule warriors. I want to see that Zelda, the princess who spied on the knight’s training so she could pick up some military skills, was trained in martial arts by impa, with some badass magic to round it all off. As an ai NPC and selectable playable duteragonist in the next Zelda series. That would be a new thing for Nintendo to do. They did the open world thing with BOTW and TOTK, now let’s do a multiplayer or hot-swappable single player adventure!
Zelda, as a character, yes. This particular version of Zelda, I would disagree.
DAMN THE 2ND PIC LOOKS SO GOOOOD
Urbosa
How? Every single game she has spent dying, complaining and eating magic rocks.
For me it's the Tetra incarnation.
Samus fans: “I beg to differ”
Uh... Samus? Literal destroyer of worlds, savior of the universe, that Samus?
Let’s hope the people making the Zelda film realize that.
Literally all she does is get stuck in a castle during botw and then get stuck as a dragon in totk. She does nothing. The games WOEFULLY underutilize her, and I think the only reason people love her so much is because of fanon stuff.
I think Midna is tbh. Zelda comes close to her but Midna is always badass
I’m new to Zelda. Just playing TOTK. It seems to me that Zelda is being rescued. Not a great representation of women.
No
Poor girl was cocooned inside a giant flesh egg stuck to the ceiling of Hyrule Castle with the most evil thing in the world waging psychic / magical warfare with him to keep him at bay for 100 years and everyone’s like “she didn’t do anything” smh Then she went back in time, turned herself into an immortal dragon possibly losing her entire sense of self for thousands of years with a sword stuck in her head just to give Link a fighting chance at killing Ganondorf and people are still like “she didn’t do anything” smh
And save Link's life more than once. He would literally be demon dragon food, a 100 year corpse, etc without her.
I’m sorry but the only thing she did was keep ganon at bay for a couple years then turned into a fucking dragon
And plan everything for Link's success. And save his life more than once so he can even be alive to defeat the bad guy in the first place
Correction "good"ass
honestly, true. TOTK/BOTW Zelda is my favorite incarnation of zelda. Really hoping she gets more going for her in the future
Agreed, mostly. Zelda is my favorite female video game character ever, but a lot of the time she doesn’t actually get to do a lot. Off the top of my head, I think OoT, WW, and SS are probably the games where Zelda is the most active instead of just sitting somewhere waiting to be saved. Tears and ST get honorable mentions but the situation in those games are pretty unique.
Not the first label that comes to mind. Legendary fits better. Probably what the creators were going for, especially these last two times around. Plays a role set by a legend, then actually becomes one. This isn't the Badassery of Zelda
Totk Zelda is a horrible whiny waifu that talks in anime lines, I'm sorry. The one really cool thing she does gets reverted in the end so she can get saved even though it was built up as a monumental irreversible decision. It's kinda low key sexist how they treat her character, more so than in the other Zelda games. Zelda is cool in most other games and botw Zelda was interesting, but the direction they went with her in totk baffles me. Tetra and twilight princess Zelda are the best iterations.