Defining Link's Personality

[Forlong]

I have heard people crying that Nintendo can't give Link anymore personality because narrowing his personality would ruin the game and make less people able to connect with him. I could go on about how that makes no sense, but I that I've got a better idea. They seem to be under the impression that everyone has a different opinion on Link's personality traits. Easy enough to test. Just describe your own opinion of Link's personality, and we'll see how different they are.

Note: in mine, I put the important descriptive words in bold.

Link is a very noble and loyal young man. He has a great sense of duty to his country and his fellow man. He is willing to face any problem without question as long as he trusts the person making the request, and he trusts easily. He is also very respectful and somewhat shy.

So...agree or disagree? If you disagree, what on? We're going to crack this "Link personality" wide open.

 

[Conor]

I agree mostly, apart from Link being shy, he just seems to be mute in twilight princess he's normally smiling when people are talking to him and the like. I wouldn't say shy...just different :p

 

[DuelMark]

I was about to do a "Link is not a blank slate" topic... but now I don't have to!

I completely agree with you on what you consider Link's personality. I guess his muteness could be perceived as shyness. Questions like "How would you like to marry Malon?" or "Do you serve Ganondorf?" are more of how to make him respond than his actual personality.

People like to think that Link was just a blank slate or didn't have much of a personality in the first game, which is why they believe his personality is justified in the cartoon. However, I disagree, as Extra Credits says "Actions define a character". Even in the NES games, Link's actions show him to be a brave, determined lad who is willing to go through whatever obstacles if it means saving his country, friends and possible love interests from the forces of darkness.

 

[Shadsie]

I give the various Links different personality traits in my fan fictions. I'm pretty sure I've actually started topics like this one before, but they're so far down in the forum they aren't worth dredging up.

Let me see, trying to remember the various "personal fanon personalities for the Links" I have, according to my stories:

Link in General/cross-game traits of all Links: Courage (a given), kindness, helpfulness, humility.

Link of Ocarina of Time/Majora's Mask: A noble, lonely soul. He posesses a certain independence and lonliness born from being an oprhan raised in a community of fey children and a bit bullied there, always the outsider. He loves deeply, fights hard and is rather serious most of the time, even when young. He's got a playful side - he does love those mini-games. Never fully a child, never fully an adult, no matter what age he is. In stories I write involving him being dead and a ghost, he has trouble moving on - he can never quite let go of Hyrule.

Link of Twilight Princess: I like to write him a bit gritty, down-to-earth and practical. He seems to wind up being fairly spiritual and philosophical in my fics. Very connected to nature in all of its raw glory. Has had a strong urge to protect others, ever since he was a child. (I have my own childhood setup for him, too. I wrote a short story involving him being orphaned when his parents died in a plague and him being a narrow survivor of said plague. Not canon, but something I enjoy using as a background for him). He's a quiet sort - ever since his parents died he's had a habit of speaking only when something is important. In fan fictions I write where he is dead and appears as a ghost, he tends to be peaceful in death, able to let go and forgive easily. (It's a weird difference he's developed from his ancestor in my stories).

Link of The Wind Waker: An excitable, energetic and generally very happy kid. I haven't written much for him yet, but I'm planning on writing more material for him in which I wish to give him some hidden depths - ie. he appears as a goofy kid to most people, but when in the presence of the right person, he'll reveal some of the scars and mindfulness his Hero's Journey have left him with.

Link Classic LoZ/AoL Link: A bit gritty and pragmatic, not unlike my TP Link. I make him a bit less humble than the rest, mostly because I enjoy his portrayl in the Valiant Comics series (though I tone him down from the Cartoon Series - preferring to make him like I make my game-Links, but with a little touch of the early NoA comics incarnation).

 

[geek4887]

Well...Link doesn't actually have a personal personality. I mean his personalities differ, not just because he's different on a handful of games, but also because YOU are Link. You are who Link is! If you like slashing up pots, taking rupees, then you can say Link is a cruel, thieving, destroyer. If you help out Gorons from the pirate's hideout, then you are a kind, brave, young man. It really comes up to you.

 

[DuelMark]

Well...Link doesn't actually have a personal personality. I mean his personalities differ, not just because he's different on a handful of games, but also because YOU are Link. You are who Link is! If you like slashing up pots, taking rupees, then you can say Link is a cruel, thieving, destroyer. If you help out Gorons from the pirate's hideout, then you are a kind, brave, young man. It really comes up to you.

Not really, as I said before, quoting Extra Credits, ACTIONS define a character. Primarily actions involving the game's plot.

Like they did with Samus in the "Learning from Other M" video, using events from game plots and what's written and hinted out to give a guess what kind of a person she is, we can do the same with Link.

Here's what we know of him.
We know he's young, usually from 10-19.
He's shown to be reliable when others need, say, monsters in a cavern to be removed.
We know that he can use a sword as well as other weapons needed for his quest, learning what he can when needed
(Apparently he has access to the Autobots' transwarp technology to store them)
In most games, he's orphan, but he always doesn't have his birth parents, which could be a sign of loneliness or understanding the importance of family.
He's seen as a big brother type to kids, especially in Wind Waker where he has a sister.
He's chosen to wield a sword that is the "blade of evil's bane" that no one with an evil heart can use.
He genuinely dislikes those who not only want to rule Hyrule, but endanger lives.
Whoever he is, he's proven he's not only brave enough, but determined enough and competent enough to travel into volcanos, underwater, through time, into the desert, up a mountain during a blizzard, into unknown territory in the skies or even travel from the skies, enter different worlds and face monsters and evil rulers all for not just his friends, but all of Hyrule on numerous occassions.
And we see he has a kind side, since Majora's Mask had him searching for Navi when she left, or his concern for Midna during brief scenes in Twilight Princess, or the mentioned little sister of his in The Wind Waker. And the first game's manual states he has a "burning sense of justice" when he saves Impa and presumably never asks for anything in return.
And some games suggests the kind of relationship he has with Zelda, whether it is acquaintances in Twilight Princess, good friends/implied romance like in Ocarina of Time and SS, or clear signs of affection like in Spirit Tracks.

Sure I might be guessing a little... and I couldn't help but make a jab at the whole weapons coming from nowhere trick, and while he can do minor things like take fallen items or smash pots, that's just minor stuff the player does for fun. It's the major things, like story or sub-plots, that show there's a character with his own personality in there.

 

[athenian200]

I do think Link has a vaguely definable personality.

I would describe that personality as courageous, helpful, and practical. Whether Link is shy/introverted or not is up to interpretation. You could imagine that he's replying to others quite a bit and it's just not shown... or you could imagine that he never says anything at all.

 

[Elvenknight]

I see Link similair to how Forlong said it. I don't see him as shy, though, I see him as quiet. Similair to me, I am not shy at all, I can strike up a conversation with almost anyone, I just choose not to. Also, something I feel you forgot to mention, is that Link is pretty smart and quick to learn.

 

[Ronin]

The way I see it, Nintendo gives Link his "indifference" so that we can interpret our own personality into his. There is no right way to define him, other than the way we see him, and therefore can be no right answer. Our views differ in so many degrees that the task seems almost impossible.

But there is one trait I believe we can all agree on: Courage.

 

[Forlong]

The way I see it, Nintendo gives Link his "indifference" so that we can interpret our own personality into his. There is no right way to define him, other than the way we see him, and therefore can be no right answer. Our views differ in so many degrees that the task seems almost impossible.

But there is one trait I believe we can all agree on: Courage.

You're fighting a losing battle there. 75% of the people who've posted so far agree on Link's personality. The only general disagreement is on why he's dialog isn't present. Is he mute, shy, or just quietly polite? In general, everyone seems to have about the same idea of who Link is.

 

[SinkingBadges]

I think his personality varies from one game to the other, but I do not think he has a very defined personality in every game.

In Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask, I can kind of see him fitting the "shy" (or maybe just quiet) image, but I see many changes in Wind Waker, like the fact that he has a more personal reason to go on his quest rather than "you're the chosen hero, go stick your neck out because some mysterious entity tells you to" plot-line, which is saving his sister and the determined-reckless attitude he shows towards that goal.

I think Twilight Princess Link is more mature because of his mannerisms and attitudes. To explain further, compare these two guys in body language:

This child is excited because he made a discovery. It's a moment you can tell he'll never forget.

This young man, on the other side, knows how ridiculous he'd look if he did the same thing.​

Please, see that this is just my interpretation of these details. They are still vague enough to allow for different meanings and possible traits that I didn't point out.

 

[Taggerung115]

A man of few words.

 

[manny]

Not much personality in my opinion. Except for ww Link who has a ton of personality!

 

[Wcaton25]

I gotta say, I think the most defining trait of Link would be his courage. You also gotta note his determination. I wouldn't say he's shy at all. I'd say that he's the kind of guy that everybody likes, who goes out of his way to be nice to everyone. He's somebody you can depend on.

 

[r2d93]

I strongly agree with your description. Link is noble, brave, loyal, ambicious, faces prblems well, and is a bit shy