Technology in Hyrule

[AlaskaAce1996]

Every Zelda game seems to be set at about the technological level as the High Middle Ages, regardless of how long it's been since the last game. Since Skyward Sword is the orgin of the Master Sword, and we are led to believe it takes place in very early history, are we to believe that Hyrule skipped Ancient times and Antiquity and will never reach the Enlightenment or Modern Age? Why do you think Hyrule seems to be locked in the Middle Ages? Post your own theories about this one, because I really have no idea what to think.

 

[Djinn]

I a lot of the current games Hyrule seems to be in a post enlightenment era. Places like the Temple of Time and all the many other hidden temples hidden deep within the wild areas of Hyrule overgrown with plants and infested with monsters display a past era of technology that current Hyrule does not have any longer. There is no inhabited region that has anything as advanced as the water temple with the large movable staircase and inner tower that controls the amounts of water within the building. The people living on the surface still maintain a very medieval low tech lifestyle. Despite having built the very advanced and mechanized Temple of Time in the far past. The city in the sky is another great example of a technological wonder that has fallen into complete ruin in the modern age.

Say...
Do you know about the far side of this deep gorge? Some say there is an ancient
temple deep in the woods that guards a sacred power.
The ancestors of the Hylians created the temple... Signs of their civilization-
-ancient, but very sophisticated--are everywhere.
If someone could obtain the power of those ancient people... Well, I am sure it
would go a long way toward saving Hyrule.
—Rusl

Other dungeons may display the advancements of the past people as well through the armos statues and blade traps that act like semi intelligent machines. Then there are the small devices that Link carries such as the hookshot, spinner, or hover boots. Some of these could be explained away as magic, but that could also be the power source for an otherwise technological advancement. Discovering the clawshot within the City in the Sky seems to be more than a coincidence.

The larger question might be just why do these advancements never take hold. Why is it that Hyrule never seems to move ahead when new discoveries are made and temples are built? The first possible answer could be a lack of organized educational system in Hyrule. There are never any schools anywhere for anyone to pass on this knowledge to the next generation. Only the higher ups in Hyrule learn anything through private tutors. The sages of TP were said to be the tutors of princess Zelda. The sages of the past may have also done only this, taught their skills and wisdom to the royal family or others who could afford their teaching and no one else. In that case any real discoveries would die out with the ones who discovered it. Leaving only relics and old ruins behind for later people to discover. Another possibility is the knowledge was lost due to internal troubles within the kingdom. Hyrule has been successfully defeated by a villain, dark lord, or otherworldly menace more than a few times in it's history. Sometimes almost completely destroyed causing the people to start over again from scratch. Any higher learning or technological knowledge would be lost in the destruction of the old kingdom when the people escape to other areas and rebuild. Most of the time the villains of the games do not wish for anyone to unlock the secrets of these ancient temples so they close them and fill them with monsters that would likely kill all who enter. Cutting off the more advanced areas from the normal Hylian citizens until a hero comes along and clears them out. Even then they are still very dangerous places that only a few might survive, so they stay away from them completely.

 

[Ventus]

Most of what Djinn said I agree with, I think it's likely that only the Royal Families (of whatever faction they belong to) get the real knowledge for any advancement in technology and only they get to spread it around. It was pretty much required in The Wind Waker for boats to be made, later in Spirit Tracks, they needed some kind of locomotive to get around on those tracks though no royal family was set then (it was just Link, Tetra, and the pirate crew...right?). Jump over to a game like TP, Zelda was doing all she could for her kingdom and I think they would've gotten around to more advanced technology had Zant not messed with her (those 'cannons' seem like they would kill someone, to be honest). I can't say anything else since the technology isn't really touched upon (and the carpenters who do the building are oh so lazy).

 

[BamaLynx]

Djinn has a lot of good points, and I agree that the most likely reason is the constant "Destruction and Rebuild" cycle that seems to occur in Hyrule.

It is interesting to note the point about a lack of an educational system in Hyrule. Technically, there have been several instances in various games of an existing educational system, with the 2 main examples being Funday School from The Minish Cap and Mrs. Marie's School of Joy from The Wind Waker (Majora's Mask also mentions a Deku Elementary, but that is pretty irrelevant to the situation within Hyrule). But the issue here is that these schools are focused on the preparatory/elementary education of children. It seems to be that children of Hyrule obtain a very simple level of formal education, which is then followed by the entering into a trade of some kind (possibly through apprenticeships). There is no formal level of higher learning (universities) or promotion of technological advancement.

 

[Subzerostupid]

I think that, seen as SS is supposed to be about an older tribe that predates hyrule, it would be interesting to see some... lost technology. I'm not talking guns and lasers, but stuff like robot enemies as they could open up some cool new techniques for killing stuff. Maybe even a robo-boss.

 

[germ1137]

Um, don't forget that in the Bombchu Bowling place in Ocarina of Time there was neon lights.

 

[Djinn]

It is interesting to note the point about a lack of an educational system in Hyrule. Technically, there have been several instances in various games of an existing educational system, with the 2 main examples being Funday School from The Minish Cap and Mrs. Marie's School of Joy from The Wind Waker (Majora's Mask also mentions a Deku Elementary, but that is pretty irrelevant to the situation within Hyrule). But the issue here is that these schools are focused on the preparatory/elementary education of children. It seems to be that children of Hyrule obtain a very simple level of formal education, which is then followed by the entering into a trade of some kind (possibly through apprenticeships). There is no formal level of higher learning (universities) or promotion of technological advancement.

Ah, I had forgotten about Mrs. Marie's school in WW. I was mostly trying t think of some kind of education system in OoT and TP in Castletown or Kakariko. Even then it was still within another after the fall type of situation where almost all knowledge from the old kingdom was lost and the people had to rebuild again. They already had a separate language from the old kingdom, and ancient writing like the old charts required deciphering by a specialist. Other than the major villains of the series causing damage there has been a mention of numerous wars of the past.

"That belonged to the tribe that protected the Hylian royal family long ago. They worked in secret, so they lived in a lonely, forgotten place. But I heard that tribe dwindled in the prolonged wars..." — Gor Coron

If prolonged wars are capable of depopulating a tribe, then there is no telling how much knowledge was lost because of it. Sheik makes several mentions that he knows much more of the secrets of Hyrule than the common citizen.

"When evil rules all, an awakening voice from the Sacred Realm will call those destined to be Sages, who dwell in the five temples. One in a deep forest...One on a high mountain...One under a vast lake...One within the house of the dead...One inside a goddess of the sand...Together with the Hero of Time, the awakened ones will bind the evil and return the light of peace to the world...This is the legend of the temples passed down by my people, the Sheikah." — Sheik

Sheik knew about the Temples and the Sacred Realm,

"If you would seek the sacred triangle, listen well...The resting place of the sacred triangle, the Sacred Realm, is a mirror that reflects what is in the heart...the heart of one who enters it...If an evil heart, the Realm will become full of evil; if pure, the Realm will become a paradise. The Triforce...the sacred triangle...it is a balance that weighs the three forces: Power, Wisdom and Courage. If the heart of the one who holds the sacred triangle has all three forces in balance, that one will gain the True Force to govern all. But, if that one's heart is not in balance, the Triforce will separate into three parts: Power, Wisdom and Courage. Only one part will remain for the one who touched the Triforce...the part representing the force that one most believes in. If that one seeks the True Force, that one must acquire the two lost parts. Those two parts will be held within others chosen by destiny, who will bear the Triforce mark on the backs of their hands." — Sheik

Sheik knew intimate knowledge about the triforce and how it works, andl also knew the songs that could warp one from location to location. Impaz of TP recognized the dominion rod and understood it's purpose. She had the book of ancient sky writing in her possession and said it was passed down through her family. This leads me to believe much knowledge was lost with the dwindling of the Sheikah tribe. Then any more information on the secrets of Hyrule, it's past, and the temples remained only with the Sages and the Royal Family.

 

[KAGOME05W]

Well... As far as the games I've played hyrule has minimal contact with any other country so its culture stays static. A good real world example of such a country would be Ancient Egypt.

 

[Garo]

I always thought that it was because Zelda is a fantasy game.

Fantasy game, typical fantasy environment. Zelda wouldn't be Zelda if it were any other way. (Spirit Tracks... was different.)

 

[GoldenWolf12]

With Ganon constantly trying to capture the Triforce, Hyrule is in terror a lot. But more and more technological advances take place. Such as in Twilight Princess, although still pretty much Middle Ages era, the prensence of gun-powder and all of the Goron Mines has great tech compared to Ocarina of Time. With the flooding of Hyrule before the Wind Waker apparently technology continues to advance, just not as much as possible (for pretty obvious reasons) with smaller cannons. And then there's Spirit Tracks. I think it's kind of impossible not to notice Spirit Tracks' differences between the other Zelda games. I'm not going into that. It's kinda a round-about way of saying it, but I think there is technological advances through all Zelda games.