ZD Top 5 – Races of Hyrule
Posted on December 10 2015 by Mark Olson
One of my personal favorite things about Zelda is how it (mostly) foregoes standard fantasy races; there are no dwarves, elves, or orcs to be found here, folks. Instead, the good folks at Nintendo thought up a number of new and unique peoples to populate their worlds with. In today’s ZD Top, we had our staff list their five favorites. As always, feel free to leave a comment below with your own list.
Jon Lett – View Profile
5. Kikwi
4. Gerudo
3. Gorons
2. Hylians
1. Sheikah
It is a crying shame that the Sheikah do not appear as the centerpiece, or at least a major element, of any one Zelda game. they are mysterious and strong, and their origins are rather plainly made to seem dark and tragic, so why not tell us a bit more about that past? I understand the idea of keeping some mystery and room for theorizing in a series, but a part of me is always begging for these awesome ninjas to be explained. Or at the very least, to be meaningful to a game’s plot.
Alexis Anderson – View Profile
5. Minish
4. Skyloftian
3. Zora
2. Hylian
1. Twili
I love Midna, I love her so much. I want to– nay, need to– learn more about her culture and the history of the Twili. From what I’ve seen, they are a beautifully tragic people with reverence for their leaders and a command of magic. So the Twili take the cake, if only because I yearn for more content related to them. And the Picori are just very cute, I like the Town Minish best but Ezlo brings the Forest Minish to a close second!
Thomas Jacobs – View Profile
5. Subrosians
4. Tokay
3. Kikwi
2. Dark Interlopers
1. Hylians
I find the Subrosans to be a mix of oddly adorable and rather intriguing. The latin phrase that their name is derived from, “sub rosa”, means “underneath the rose”, which was used back in the day to indicate a place of secrecy. Perhaps they are related to the other group of hooded people of whom you could only see their eyes and act all mysterious, the Gero? Who knows. The Tokay on the other hand are 100% adorable, with their surprisingly elaborate economy and how they treat everyday things and concepts, almost to the point of them not being really clever. The Kikwi are even MORE adorable: their squeaky talking, their strange plant-like bodies with what looks like patches of soft fur on its belly and their general behaviour are one of the most adorable parts of the game. On the far other end of the spectrum however the Dark Interlopers are nothing but mystery. What made them turn evil? Are they related to the Gerudo or even the Sheikah in some way? Was there perhaps an earlier incarnation of Link involved in their defeat? We might never know. Finally there are the Hylians themselves. While normally there is not a lot to them, I really like it when their link to the Goddesses is played up to stress the importance of Link and Zelda’s destiny regarding the evil faced in the particular game.
Brandon Schmitz – View Profile
5. Goron
4. Zora
3. Sheikah
2. Gerudo
1. Twili
Midna and her people provide not only some of the series’ most unique character designs, but also another layer of complexity to Zelda’s mythos. There’s an air of melancholy about them, from their bloody history with Hyrule proper to the atmosphere of the Twilight Realm itself. Despite appearing in only one game, the Twili have more to them than many other Zelda races. Similarly, the Gerudo have made a heck of an impression throughout their handful of appearances beyond Ganondorf himself. Although the warrior-women tribe is seen by Hylians as reclusive, the Gerudo definitely seem to possess strong loyalty among themselves.
Jarrod Hadrian – View Profile
5. Zora
4. Hylian
3. Twili
2. Gerudo
1. Goron
The Zora have a cool design and without the Hylians there would not be many people to interact with. The Twili are very mysterious and the Gerudo are both savage and loyal to their king, but to me the Goron are the best race. My favourite Gorons are from Twilight Princess, but the Ocarina of Time comes as a close second. I like the funny interactions that Link has with the Gorons and Darunia in Ocarina of Time. The Gorons are an interesting race and it would be nice to see them in some more Zelda games, it was disappointing that there were few of them in Skyward Sword. Hopefully Zelda U features Gorons, and lots of them.
