Explaining the Third Split in the Official Zelda Timeline

The release of the official Zelda timeline in Hyrule Historia truly came out of nowhere and took the Zelda fanbase by surprise. A moment that we had long believed would never come caught us off guard in every regard. At first glance of the timeline many theorists did a double take and still couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

Yet the more fans looked at the timeline the more they realized how much sense it makes. That ultimately it was hardly any different to some of main timeline theories in circulation. Perhaps the point of most contention is the ambiguous third split introduced by the official release. Then again, theorists have been conceptualizing timeline’s with three arcs, or three post-Ocarina of Time continuities if you will, for several years now.

However, ever since the dual split in the timeline was revealed by Aonuma back in 2002, there has been no reason to legitimately consider a third split. While many theorists saw it as a viable possibility, the concept had little merit with Aonuma’s quote asserting that “Ocarina of Time basically has two endings”. Now that the third split has been confirmed by Hyrule Historia we are left with the task of explaining how the third split fits in with the original two arcs.

Already many fans of the series are thinking that the release of the official timeline means that there is no longer anything to be discussed; however on the contrary, the mythology of The Legend of Zelda is so complex that the chronological order alone leaves much to be desired. There is still a lot more to be revealed of the mysteries in Zelda, but for now, let’s just focus on explaining this new third continuity.

/ – WW/PH – ST

/MM – TP – FSA

Above is the Aonuma approved, official Zelda timeline set out using the standard jargon. Hyphens (-) indicate a different Link appearing in the connected titles, whereas a forward slash (/) indicates that the titles share a Link. As you can see, following the events of Ocarina of Time, there are now three splits. The adult arc leading into The Wind Waker and the child arc leading into Majora’s Mask form the two well-established arcs. The newly confirmed third split leads into the classic Nintendo Entertainment System and Game Boy titles.

Thankfully Hyrule Historia does provide some sort of explanation as to origins of the third arc, however brief, to aid us in our study. The translation reads: “After Link dies in Ocarina of Time, Ganon obtains the entire Triforce. The Seven Sages seal away Ganon and the whole Triforce as a last resort, but villains with their eyes on the Triforce make for the Sacred Realm, which eventually turns into the Dark World and is filled with evil power. The Seven Sages then try to seal away the Sacred Realm itself, but end up fighting with monsters. This is the Imprisoning War of A Link to the Past.”

The third arc is established so that Ocarina of Time flows directly into A Link to the Past, with Ocarina of Time – or its extended story at least – ultimately serving as the Imprisoning War/ Seal War as always intended by the developers. This is a smart move by Nintendo as it removes the strife and inconsistencies of trying to place A Link to the Past and the other classics amongst the established adult and child branches. By all means the developer’s rationale behind the third arc’s existence is smart. The question that arises now though is how the split itself actually occurs.

As the translated passage states it occurs “after Link dies in Ocarina of Time”. Or as Hyrule Historia points out at another stage, “Link is defeated by Ganon”. We are informed that this new arc occurs after, or when, Link is defeated by Ganon in the final battle of Ocarina of Time. This in and of itself is a very controversial decision by Nintendo.

Succeed and the Wind Waker occurs. Fail and you’ll end up in A Link to the Past.

The original twin-split in the timeline was thoroughly explained through in-universe canon. Zelda’s actions at the conclusion to Ocarina of Time served as the explanation as to the divided continuities. Here, however, we are given the explanation of “if Link dies”. Does this mean that the timeline is branching off into endless parallel lines whenever Link dies throughout the series? Does the Game Over screen of Zelda II lead into a new alternate storyline where Ganon is revived? Of course not. Not yet, anyway.

To understand the third split, and the Zelda timeline as a whole, we need to understand the very essence of the Legend of Zelda series. We need to understand, that unlike the original two-arcs, the third arc is a hypothetical. It is a “if Link fails” this is what would happen. We need not look for ways to explain this tear within Zelda canon, because it takes place in a separate universe to the dual-split.

By all means a great way to understand the timeline is to think of there being two alternate adult arcs. If Link succeeds in Ocarina of Time then the arc with The Wind Waker plays out. If Ganon succeeds, the arc with A Link to the Past comes into fruition. Both lines have their groundings in Ocarina of Time, but tell different versions of how the future unfolds.

Parallels can actually be drawn between the two alternate adult lines, and how they tell a similar story. The Wind Waker tells of Ganon escaping from the Sacred Realm, causing Hyrule to be flooded, and his quest for the Triforce. The tale of the Hero of Time becomes “but one of the legends of which the people speak”. In a similar fashion, A Link to the Past tells of Ganon escaping the Sacred Realm through splitting his soul into Agahnim, and his wish upon the Triforce. The story of the Imprisoning War is “obscured by the mists of time and became legend” to the people of Hyrule.

Both alternate adult arcs make an emphasis on how the events leading to them are lost in time, surviving only on the wind’s breath. The more you look into it the more you will discover that the two are invariably different tellings of the one story. The classic adult arc with A Link to the Past tells the tale of what happens when Ganon wishes upon the Triforce and creates the Dark World. The Wind Waker tells the tale of if Ganon never wishes on the Triforce, and how King Daphnes wishes for the future – for the founding of the New Hyrule. The two arcs are ultimately the same story, but with the variables of “what if Link dies” and “what if Ganon wishes upon the Triforce”.

The two alternate adult arcs tell a similar story, just with different variables such as who wishes upon the Triforce.

While I applaud the hypothetical split and its support of a more literal legends theory, I do believe there is a way Nintendo could have explained the third split in-universe; a way which ties it into in-game events and makes it more than a mere hypothetical. Because let’s face it, as much as the timeline makes perfect sense, some people do wrongly see it as a cop-out.

Let’s say that there was an original timeline of events where Link never arose in Ocarina of Time. We could then consider that the classic arc with A Link to the Past was the natural progression, or the original future. However due to Hylia’s concept of pre-destiny established in Skyward Sword, as well as Demise’s curse, a hero was bound to arise, and therefore we are presented with Link, the Hero of Time.

The Hero of Time then leaves this original timeline for the adult portion of Ocarina of Time, where he successfully defeats Ganon, leading into the events of The Wind Waker. From there, when Zelda sends Link back in time, he is sent to a new child arc which leads into Majora’s Mask, and as is required, provides us with three splits: the adult, the child and the original.

Now while this concept does leave more to be desired on the specifics of what causes a time rift, I feel it would have been the perfect explanation for the triple split. This way the third arc has in-universe bearing and is not a mere hypothetical. Alas however, for we are specifically informed that the third arc is not an original future, but a new arc which arises in the event of Link’s defeat.

In the end, I love what Nintendo have done with the timeline because it is true to the very nature of the series. While Nintendo’s release of the official timeline is them ultimately admitting that the story can’t fit into one single in-universe continuity, Aonuma asks that we keep an open mind and remember that the series is, after all, called ‘The Legend of Zelda’.

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