I don’t tend to write about emotional topics. My preferred style is usually on the funny side, with silly jokes mixed in with what I always hope are interesting ideas or concepts, or just goofy stories about things I’ve done to entertain myself. So my typical articles here have certainly followed that pattern, and have made more puns about Link’s backside than revelations about anything real about life, loss, or love. This article, however, will break that trend. (In a good way, hopefully!)
Today the memories I am focusing on are about the meaningful connections video games, in particular the Zelda series, can create in life. On Saturday, May 28th, 2022, I am getting married, and I could not be more excited! One of the first ways my bride-to-be and I connected involved our shared love of video games, and that mutual love of it has only grown with time.
Oddly enough, our first Zelda connection was our past experience watching our friends play the series. I am, um, not very good at actually playing Zelda games. They have always been among my favorites, though, and watching others play has always been something I have enjoyed. My fiancée, Tessa, who is a good player, also enjoyed watching others play, so right from the start, we have had a bond over this strange experience of having seen entire games played out in person without ever picking up a controller.
When she picked up a Switch and a copy of Link’s Awakening while she was away at college, in part because I had recommended it, that only served to bring us closer in a time when physically we had to be apart.
Reminiscing about these early days got me thinking back to other connections I have made along the way with the Zelda franchise. I started thinking about my friend who introduced me to the series and showed me Ocarina of Time for the first time. I remembered trying to figure out puzzles as another friend played through all of The Wind Waker when it came out, and how nice it felt to know that he was waiting to play further into the game until I could come over and experience it with him again. Even though I haven’t seen either of those two in over a decade now, thinking about those games always brings back fond memories of those times of exploration and wonder.
I also remember inviting one of my friends over for the first time in a long time, because I had finally beaten Twilight Princess all on my own. He had often encouraged me in my younger years to actually play a game rather than just watch him. While we never really returned to the friendship level we had once shared, and eventually did grow apart as life continued, we did manage to reconnect, however briefly, as he watched me take down Ganondorf once more. I hope that our paths do eventually cross again.
Heck, even now, in our engaged life together, Tessa and I are still playing video games as a way to spend even more time together. We created a Let’s Play channel to have an excuse to play them more while we were betrothed in the hope that doing so would help us find new friends who share our love for the Zelda series and other games. The first game we played? Skyward Sword HD, of course! We based our whole launch around it!
I guess the point of all this nostalgia, both new and old, is to remember all the joy that can come from the simplest of things. I would never say that our love of video games is what led to my marriage to Tessa in just a few days, but it definitely helped speed things along. And many of the other meaningful friendships I’ve had along the way centered around playing together as well.
But I guess that is really what the Zelda games are all about, at least on some level. Connections. Shared experiences. Links.
(OK, so I couldn’t resist one silly pun, but in fairness, it was right there!)
