When I was younger, I loved reading tales of knights and fantasy heroes, but none captured my attention quite the same way that King Arthur did. For a few years, I spent hours with my nose in such tomes as The Once and Future King and Le Morte d’Arthur. The lessons of chivalry and responsibility to each other are ones that I still carry with me today.
Some of the most interesting stories were those that involved the legendary sword Excalibur. Arthur’s discovery of the magical blade differs depending on the version you’re experiencing. In some, the blade is a boon granted by the mystical Lady of the Lake. In others, it’s been embedded in a rock, waiting for the prophesied hero to claim it and right the evils in the land. In 1992, A Link to the Past came out in the United States, and as I began my journey, I heard tales of the legendary Master Sword and found my favorite tales and my favorite game series intersecting.
As I made my way through the first three dungeons of A Link to the Past, my mind was on the Master Sword. I had been tasked with collecting three pendants by the village elder, Sahasrahla, in order to demonstrate my worthiness to claim the fabled blade. As the Armos Knights, Lanmolas, and Moldorm all fell to my quick reflexes and pixelated sword, I recalled tales of Arthur. In many versions of the myth, Arthur is destined to pull the blade because he is the true King of England. By defeating the first three dungeons, Link and I had proved our courage, power, and wisdom. In doing so, we had some hope of claiming the sacred blade.
While the enemies of Hyrule had tested my skills with a sword and bow, it would be my wits that would be required while I explored the Lost Woods. Wandering through the misty forest, I encountered a labyrinth of paths, many leading to false versions of the Master Sword. Pulling them forth was no feat of destiny as Link’s hasty dispatching of them afterward proved. After tossing aside a few of these imposter swords and finding an always useful toadstool, I entered an enormous tree trunk and transitioned to a new screen.
I crept forward, and all kinds of forest animals began to dance across the screen. For a second, it was as if Link had wandered into a Disney Princess film. Link’s habit of being mostly silent prevented him from breaking into song as I weaved my way through the animals’ lines. There it was: the Master Sword. There was no mistaking it this time. The pedestal that it rested in was large and resplendent. More importantly, it contained a prophecy: “The Hero’s triumph on Cataclysm’s Eve wins three symbols of virtue. The Master Sword he retrieves, keeping the Knight’s true line.” Like Arthur, Link was destined to pull the sword from this stone. The time had come. A cataclysm was imminent as the wizard Agahnim’s plot had nearly come to pass, but Link had proven that he was the Hero, a true heir of the line of knights Link’s uncle had alluded to earlier.
In previous Zelda games, getting an upgraded sword was always exciting, but aside from the fanfare that normally played when getting an item, there was no pomp and circumstance. From the moment I pressed the button to pull the Master Sword, it was clear that this was different. The three pendants floated into the air as suspenseful music played. I was meant to believe that Link could fail. He might be like all the other knights and tyrants from the Arthurian myths who were unworthy of the sword’s might and would use its power to lord over others. Despite Link’s silent insistence on revealing little of his true personality, I knew that Link wasn’t like those imposters. He had proved his worth. The music swelled as rays of light emanated from the pedestal before Link held the sword aloft, and as he did, the mist that persistently covered the Lost Woods parted. The sword had found its master, and he would use it to right the wrongs of Hyrule.
As climactic as that experience was, pulling the Master Sword was just the start of the adventure. There were still the horrors of the Dark World and many more dungeons to face. I watched the credits after having faced and defeated Ganon and was treated to many scenes showing all the ways that Link had set the land of Hyrule right again. The final one was dripping with an Arthurian feel. Having accomplished his task, Link could have strutted through the land with the Master Sword on his back, and if anyone were to question him, he could have sassily responded, “Well, excuse me, but are you the Hero of Hyrule?” Link and I were never going to do that though, despite all the effort we put into getting the sacred blade. The Master Sword was too important. Like Arthur, we knew it had to be returned. Just as Arthur often returns Excalibur to the Lady of the Lake, the final scene of A Link to the Past, shows Link walking away from the Master Sword as it rests again in the Lost Woods. The sword was not a trophy. It was a commission to set the world right again.
While I’ve wielded the Blade of Evil’s Bane in many Zelda titles since and the scenes of Link claiming the sword have grown more technologically impressive, this first time remains indelibly imprinted upon my mind. Perhaps it’s just nostalgia or the way it mirrors Arthurian mythology at a time when the Zelda series was still creating its own mythos. Either way, I know that I don’t need to figure out an answer. I can just let that mystery sit proudly in my heart just as the Master Sword will always sit proudly in the Lost Woods.
