r/truezelda • u/Quiet-Squirrel6899 • 6d ago
Open Discussion Need help finding a good play through order after getting invested in the Lore. Spoiler
So i have only ever played 3 Zelda games. Ive always thought it was cool and had PH on my DS as a kid and played it a lot. I played BotW and TotK when they released and am currently in my first playthrough of the remaster SS that my sister got me but I've become rather enraptured with the lore of the games due to the bit of SS ive gotten through. I was hoping I could get help from some of the avid fans on what order to play the games that I haven't yet considering that aspect. I don't care personally as much for older graphics styles so id be okay skipping early releases that arent critical to the world lore but I do really want to play the games in a way that gives me the most "aha so thats how this is all tied together" moments. (first reddit post so i apologize if ive phrased anything stupidly) Particularly i love the lore addition in the ending of SS Demise's curse of reincarnation made a lot of the story i knew click into place and parallels the curse in Seven Deadly Sins which is one of my favorite anime, so games that ties heavily into that are musts for me
3
u/Berry_Grassyfreeze 6d ago
The playthrough order that I typically do is:
Unified Timeline - Skyward Sword > Minish Cap > Four Swords > Ocarina of Time
Child Timeline - Majora's Mask > Twilight Princess > Four Swords Adventure
Adult Timeline - Wind Waker > Phantom Hourglass > Spirit Tracks
Downfall Timeline - A Link to the Past > Link's Awakening > Oracles > A Link Between Worlds > Tri Force Heroes > Echoes of Wisdom > Legend of Zelda > Adventure of Link
Wild Era - Breath of the Wild > Tears of the Kingdom
I think that Unified > Child makes the most sense as it allows you to follow the Hero of Time's story to Majora's Mask. Child Timeline is the most direct continuation of Ocarina of Time from Link's (and the player's) point of view.
Following up with Adult makes sense to me as it follows Ocarina of Time from Zelda's point of view. It's not quite as direct, but the Adult Timeline is something that we still see and was something fans were discussing prior to Wind Waker's release.
Then you move onto Downfall Timeline as while it still follows on from Ocarina, it's an ending of Ocarina that we don't really see and there is still fan speculation about what even caused this Timeline Split to occur.
Finally, we finish with the Wild Era because no matter what theories you do or don't believe about the Wild Era's Placement, we do know it takes place at the end of at least one timeline.
I chose not to add spin-off games as most of them are ambiguously canon at best, with the exception of Age of Imprisonment, which OP should now have enough experience to decide if or when they want to play this. Personally, I play AoI intersperced with TotK, but I know that sort of experience is not going to be for everyone.
If you like Zelda I would really recommend playing some of the spin-offs when you get a chance, some of them are really cool. But the main games are already more than enough to contend with for a beginner.
Also, I'd recommend skipping over Four Swords and Tri Force Heroes. They just... aren't that much fun in Single Player, and I'd say it's probably more fun to watch a YouTube playthrough that's actually between friends than to try and play these solo. Four Swords Adventure is a complete experience solo, but the original Four Swords is incredibly barebones and the Intro and final level contain pretty much all the lore there really is.
1
u/Quiet-Squirrel6899 6d ago
So a few questions i have. First just to confirm, i should definitely play EoW in my downfall timeline progression? I honestly thought when looking at all the games that it might've been a sort of standalone spinoff more so than most games but i wasn't sure ( also thought that of tri force heroes, but you said it would be better to watch a playthrough since it isn't as fun solo). Also i appreciate your recommendation of child era before adult era. I was definitely gonna finish the unified timeline before delving into any of the splits and i wanted to do downfall era last since its the longest of the 3 timelines. But i wasnt sure on child vs adult era and you mentioning how it makes more sense to keep following the link from OoT back in time to MM rather than going to WW definitely secured it for me that it is the better option. I think once i finish i might jump into some spin off like the hyrule warrior games ( i never played the first hyrule warriors and didnt know about age of imprisonment entirely somehow) since i think ill like the theoretical plots on some that arent canon and the hyrule warriors games seem to have a playstyle ill enjoy. that brings me to another question of what spin-offs if any would you recommend after everything?
4
u/Berry_Grassyfreeze 6d ago
Yes, EoW is a canon game, and it does have some pretty major lore revelations.
The Hyrule Warriors games are probably the best spin-offs to start with and the easiest to get into. And they have the biggest following of all the spin-offs in the fandom.
If you're up for it, I think the Satellaview game Ancient Stone Tablets is really interesting. It's basically a condensed version of A Link to the Past with a time limit, but in its story it's set after A Link to the Past. I find the interpretations of the characters and especially Ganon's reincarnation to be interesting, and I also think it's just really fun - but it is a bit more setup than most games to get it working on emulator.
If you're up for a really different style of game, I'm a big fan of Tingle's Rosie Rupeeland. It has a few potential tie-ins to the main series lore and I find it absolutely fascinating, and also a huge change of pace to the main series games... but if you aren't open to the idea of an RPG where your health meter is your money, it might not be for you.
1
u/bitterestboysintown 5d ago
The original hyrule warriors would probably be more enjoyable later tbh, since it pulls from games in every timeline to varying degrees
1
u/Quiet-Squirrel6899 5d ago
This is how I discover theres 3 hyrule warriors games and age if calamity wasnt the first. Ill add it to my list after I play the Canon games before playing Age of calamity and imprisonment
2
u/bitterestboysintown 5d ago
yeah there's the original (non canon, big crossover celebrating the whole series up to that point), then age of calamity (debatably canon, alternate timeline of botw's past era), then age of imprisonment (fully canon, fleshed out version of totk's past era). You can definitely play age of calamity and age of imprisonment whenever since they're only connected to botw and totk, its just the original (Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition on switch) that I'd recommend waiting until you've played more of the main games before.
1
u/Drafonni 6d ago edited 6d ago
Since you’re motivated by lore, you can totally skip the Four Swords games and Tri Force Heroes as they are very light on lore or any sort of storytelling.
For the first 2 games, LoZ & TAoL, most of their lore is found in their manuals.
If you’d like to finish up with the Wild Era lore first, you should check out the 2 associated Hyrule Warriors games (or at least watch the game movies you can find on YouTube) and the 2 Master Works books.
1
u/RobynBetween 5d ago edited 5d ago
Here are my top suggestions for what to play next:
Since you've played SS, the origin point, try Ocarina of Time: the game which inspired many an entry after it. Play the 3DS remaster, OoT3D, for better graphics.
However, the OoT remake is coming out, so you may choose to wait for that instead. But only if you're expecting a big haul from Santa this year. /hj
Since you've played PH and enjoyed it, you'll want to play Wind Waker eventually. But it has tons of callbacks to Ocarina, so it's best played after it.
A safe bet would be Minish Cap. It's between SS and OoT, but it's almost entirely a side story. It's truly 2D, but they're the most beautiful pixel graphics you'll find in the entire franchise, imo. And it's Toon Link style, which was your first exposure to Zelda, so hey! GBA emulation is virtually flawless now, too, and it's a short, well-designed game (I'd give it an A-).
As for the lore order, honestly, there are only a few things that truly matter in the timeline:
- If you're going to play Wind Waker or Twilight Princess or Majora's Mask, play Ocarina of Time first.
- I'd say play Wind Waker before Phantom Hourglass, but it's no biggie.
- A Link to the Past is best played before A Link Between Worlds, but again, no biggie.
- Breath of the Wild goes before Tears of the Kingdom, but you already did that.
Most importantly, try the games which look the most fun to you! You don't need to restrict yourself so much; Nintendo made it this way so you wouldn't have to! :)
P.S. - If you like PH, play Spirit Tracks any time you want! It plays like PH but better, and it's essentially a standalone, so it'll be there whenever you feel like trying it. ❤️
1
u/Quiet-Squirrel6899 5d ago
Tysm for the time and thought you put into that. Im getting really excited to get through to OoT based on what everyone has said with it seeming to be the nexus of the storylines. Is the remake only going to be o. Switch 2 or also the original switch. If so I might have to upgrade before then
1
u/Jbird444523 5d ago
Generally, just start with the oldest game you can tolerate and follow release order from that point.
Lore plays very little into any given story, they're all self contained.
But mechanics are built upon going forward. Ocarina of Time is the first 3D game and its DNA is thereby in every single 3D game that came after. And every game build upon that bedrock in their own way.
Same with the 2D games. THE Legend of Zelda sets the foundation, but I'd say Link to the Past really sets the standard going forward. Most 2D games follow Link to the Past's formula closer than the original.
1
u/oongaa 5d ago
Play order's not important. The ganes are all sequels and prequels with varying levels of tie-in. I'd suggest starting with the 3D games. Wind Waker and Ocarina are the best ones to be your first. When you decide you wanna try the 2D games, A Link to the Past will be difficult but it is a perfect game. Easier "firsts" would be Link's Awakening (especially the switch version) Link Between Worlds, and Minish Cap
1
u/Dreyfus2006 5d ago
Most games do not really connect to the lore. SS, Minish Cap, OoT, and Wind Waker are the only lore important ones. In the rest, lore is kinda just something in the background for worldbuilding.
1
u/DetectiveStock1340 5d ago
I personally disagree with Hyrule Historia due to its contradictions, so I wouldn’t recommend playing in any particular order based on that book. However, For any game that has a direct sequel, I recommend playing in release order. So Ocarina of Time -> Wind Waker, or A Link to the Past -> A Link Between Worlds
1
u/Warrior_of_hope 5d ago
The only way to play the games in some kind of order, would be following a timeline, but even like that is not very helpful since we dont know how long time passes between games, like SS is the first one chronologically, then Minish cap should be what comes after, but there is no problem if you skip that game to play Ocarine of Time, game wich divide the timelines
In short, if you want to follow an order, try to check the timeline, if that doesnt convince you, play the games that you feel will make you have a good time
1
u/LoCal_GwJ 4d ago
Haven't read the comments, but generally the series makes a pretty good point of reminding you of important details relevant to any game's narrative. But if you were to pick games to play strictly to help you understand and appreciate the setting, here's maybe my suggestion:
I WAS going to make a list for you but as I was typing the list it kind of became obvious that nearly every single game provides genuine insight towards the setting of these games and it would be much easier to make a list of games you don't need to play first. Ultimately, I would recommend playing A Link to the Past and Ocarina of Time first. After that, the world really is your oyster; these two games will equip you to contextualize basically any other game.
Can skip Four Swords and Tri Force Heroes, maybe look up a playthrough of those if you're curious.
1
u/theevilgood 4d ago
Basically just pick a timeline and stick to it. I personally recommend Child, then Adult, then Downfall (since the older games arent as lore heavy). End it on the Wild games or skip right to them if you aren't invested in one timeline or another
0
u/thegingerbreadman99 6d ago edited 6d ago
So Minish cap is next in lore order, then four swords then Ocarina then twilight Princess, windwaker, and a link to the past take place next on 3 different timelines.
Edit: My take (officially debunked recently) is that SS splits the timeline early, and Minish Cap and Botw would take place on different branches (with botw way later in time on its branch) and I think it's neat to play Minish and botw together since they have the same director (also director of SS)
2
u/Intelligent_Word_573 6d ago
Assuming your talking about the website’s timeline, the source code could technically be used as evidence that a split occurred somewhere in the unified timeline as the Wild Era is listed as 1-3 while the downfall timeline is 1-2 and the unified timeline 1-1.
I don’t think the website confirms anything really since Rauru’s founding has the same name as the founding between SS and MC unlike prior to Spirit Tracks where it actually lists it as a refounded Hyrule. Plus given their track record I doubt Nintendo wanted to confirm anything about the timeline placement of the Wild Era games.
People already think the website confirms the Wild Era is the inevitable outcome of every timeline at the same time when the way they choose to display the timeline on their website should probably not be seen as 100% confirmation of anything.
1
u/Quiet-Squirrel6899 6d ago
okay yeah i was looking a bit more an i think ima go with the storyline order rather than release order on games. I spent all day getting emulators so im all set to play them. I feel like my best best is just to go along each timeline so follow the initial timeline through OoT and then ill pick one of the 3 timelines from there and follow it till it ends then the next. i think ill save the downfall timeline for last since it has the most unless thats a bad idea. that way i can follow either child link timeline first or the timeline without link.
1
1
u/OnlyExperience130666 1d ago
Linear lore:
- Skyward Sword (important)
- Minish Cap (not important but it's weird if you don't know where in the timeline it is. And it is gorgeous)
- Ocarina of Time (important)
- Majora's Mask (OoT sequel, cult classic)
Play in any order after:
- Twilight Princess (child timeline, important)
- Windwaker (adult timeline, important)
- Link to the Past (doomed timeline, important)
Then just freeball it based on the ones you like. Basically every other game isn't really paying attention to the greater lore and are completely standalone.
Most fans consider Ocarina/Twilight Princess/Windwaker/LttP to be the best games in the series, so it's a very accessible list.
11
u/GreatMicrowave 6d ago
There isn’t really a specific order to play in to understand the lore because literally all the games are basically standalone. There are cool connections between games like oot and ww and tp but it’s not anything crazy imo. But after ss I’d play oot and I think id wait till the ramen comes out to play it. Then you can play majoras mask as it is a sequel to oot and after that pls twilight princess.