I know quite a few Zelda fans who constantly beg for Link to remain left-handed in future games. Whether it be because they can relate to him (being lefties themselves) or they simply find it a unique trait, there are many fans who would fight for him to stay left-handed. He seems to be making the transition to becoming right-handed in future games though, such as Breath of the Wild.
Why change? He’s been left-handed since the beginning, right? Well, technically, sure. However, if we dive into the Hyrule Historia to the original Legend of Zelda section, there’s a hint of evidence that it might not have been originally intended that way.
In the Historia with vectors of the original artwork for the first Zelda game, there is a caption that states, “Link was depicted in early art examples as right-handed,” along with a few images of him favoring both his left and his right hand. While it simply looks like some of the official art was merely flipped, the caption also states, “However, in order to aid in the creation of the pixel art and for the purposes of configuration in-game screens, he was altered to be left-handed.” This indicates that these pieces could have been mirrored in the long run, but initially Link was meant to be a righty.
From that point on, Link stayed left-handed with a few exceptions. Since the Wii version of Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword both heavily relied on motion controls, Link was made right-handed as most people tend to use their right hand over their left. This remained in Breath of the Wild and has gotten fans to wonder whether Link will ever go back to his roots of being a lefty. Well, I guess he is going back to his roots — but even further back, before the original was officially released!
The Legend of Zelda series is 35 this week, and we’re celebrating with the game that started it all! Be sure to check out more articles from Classic Zelda Week 2021.
