The Legend of Zelda series is an action-adventure series by Nintendo, which allows players to experience vast and fantastical worlds from the perspective of a young hero. But between sword fights and saving the world, players can also find a sense of coziness.
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Every starting area in every mainline Zelda game, ranked
The Zelda games always have a way of introducing you to the world and the mechanics, and the first location is key.
After all, whether you're adventuring in the Kingdom of Hyrule or beyond its borders, there's plenty to do in The Legend of Zelda. There are things to collect, dishes to cook, animals to tame and lots of beautiful sights to see. You might play as a sword-wielding hero in most games, but there's more to this adventure than just killing baddies. There is a sense of comfort that we cannot find anywhere else.
8 The Legend Of Zelda: Link's Awakening
This dreamy island is worth remembering
- Platform(s)
- Switch
- Released
- September 20, 2019
- Developer
- Grezzo
- Publisher
- Nintendo
- ESRB
- E for all due to mild fantasy, violence
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is a bright, colorful adventure that begins with Link waking up after being washed ashore on Koholint Island. The island is a bright, beautiful place with lots to explore.
In Link's adventure on Koholint Island, we get to know the island's strange and friendly inhabitants. There is a fun crane machine where you can try your luck. It makes us smile when we recognize an enemy from another game. More than anything, there is a sense of bonding and connection in Link's scenes with Marin. It may just be a dream, but Link's Awakening is a dream worth remembering.
7 The Legend Of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Take to the skies on your loft wing
- Platform(s)
- Wii
- Released
- November 20, 2011
- Developer
- Nintendo
- Publisher
- Nintendo
- ESRB
- E10+ for all E10+: Animated Blood, Comic Mischief, Fantasy Violence
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword has heavy stakes hanging on the shoulders of our heroes. Demise threatens to plunge the world into darkness. His servant Ghirahim always seems to be one step ahead. Yet, even then, there is beauty in the land before it became Hyrule and the sky above.
It's relaxing to fly across the big sky to floating islands on the back of our trusty Loftwing. The Lumpy Pumpkin has a picturesque courtyard and a peaceful bar. Skyloft is a beautiful, vibrant city full of life and greenery. Solve the people's problems to collect gratitude crystals or travel around to collect an assortment of bugs and other items. Even things that seem pointless have some use somewhere.
6 The Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time
Time cannot erase this sense of nostalgia
- Released
- November 21, 1998
- Developer
- Nintendo
- Publisher
- Nintendo
- ESRB
- E10+ for all 10+: animated blood, fantasy violence, suggestive themes
Many find solace in the first 3D Zelda game simply out of nostalgia. However, there is more to the game's sense of comfort than that. Hyrule is vibrant and full of life, from the bustling Castle City to the verdant Kokiri Forest and Lost Woods and everything in between.
More than that, there is a lot to do. Try an archery game with a slingshot or a bow. Place the Bombchus at the right angle to win in Bombchu Bowling. Bring joy to the people of Hyrule by offering them the type of mask they want. If it all gets too much, you can simply ride around Hyrule Field on Epona's back or go fishing at Lake Hylia. Saving the world can wait. Take your time.
5 The Legend Of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Even the setting sun provides comfort
- Released
- November 19, 2006
- Developer
- Nintendo EAD
- Publisher
- Nintendo
- ESRB
- T For Teen due to Animated Blood, Fantasy Violence
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is often considered one of the darker games in the series, with its emphasis on reclaiming Hyrule from the Twilight Realm. But in the twilight, this game is still full of comfort.
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Every The Legend Of Zelda game, ranked by map size
The Legend of Zelda is known for its sprawling adventures and large maps. Here, each game is ranked by map size.
You can collect a pair of golden bugs for Agitha's bug ball. Go fishing in any body of water in Hyrule. You can collect all the fish if you want, or just relax. If all else fails, roam the vast Hyrule wilderness as a wolf or on the back of your trusty steed Epona and settle in beautiful and relaxing locations like Zora's Domain and Ordon Village before moving on to your next location.
4 The Legend Of Zelda: The Minish Cap
Explore Hyrule from a new point of view
The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap
- Released
- January 10, 2005
- Publisher
- Nintendo
- ESRB
- E For All Due To Mild Fantasy Violence
If you're a fan of Studio Ghibli's The Secret World of Arrietty, you'll feel right at home in The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap. This game lets Link shrink to the size of a mouse with the titular Minish Cap, after all. Explore the great land of Hyrule from a new, tiny perspective as you find all the places where the Minish have hidden their homes.
The game also has plenty for players to do to keep them coming back. Collect Kinstone Pieces to combine to solve quests and get rewards. Collect mysterious shells hidden across Hyrule, so you can try your hand at the figure dispensing machine. Try to collect all 136 figures if you want, but it won't be easy.
3 The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild
It is beauty in ruin
- Released
- March 3, 2017
- Developer
- Nintendo EPD
- Publisher
- Nintendo
- ESRB
- E for All: Fantasy violence, use of alcohol, mild suggestive themes
The Legend of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild takes place 100 years after Calamity Ganon took over ancient Sheikah technology, leaving Hyrule massacred and in ruins. Link was nearly killed, and Zelda spent the last century holding the casualty back from doing further damage.
But if you look past the dark background of the game, you will find that the ruins of Hyrule are still full of life. The birds are still singing. Deer and wild boar roam peacefully in the forests. People build their homes in scattered cities. There is a huge world for you to explore and a lot to do in it. There are dozens of different dishes to cook, wild horses to tame, and hidden lore to discover if you're willing to travel off the beaten path.
2 The Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker
Sail across the great sea
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
- Released
- March 24, 2003
- Developer
- Nintendo EAD
- Publisher
- Nintendo
- ESRB
- E for everyone
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker puts us in the shoes of a young boy on the day of his coming of age ceremony. When his sister is kidnapped, he has no choice but to pick up a shield and sword and set out aboard a pirate ship.
The Great Sea is a bright and colorful place, full of equally colorful characters and adventures. Find the hidden Pictobox and take pictures of your adventures, or upgrade it to the Deluxe Pictobox to collect figures for the Nintendo Gallery. Collect all 134 if you can. You can do shooting puzzles to access hidden areas, sort mail to help Rito, participate in big auctions with your wallet full of rupees, or even play a game similar to Battleship called Squid-Hunt.
1 The Legend Of Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom
Zelda's first adventure is just as cozy
- Released
- September 26, 2024
- Developer
- Nintendo, Grezzo
- Publisher
- Nintendo
- ESRB
- E10+ for all 10+
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom may be Zelda's first real adventure, but it's also the coziest. In it, players take control of the titular princess herself as she tries to free her kingdom from the mysterious rifts spreading across it.
This game feels especially cozy after following a difficult game like Tears of the Kingdom. Take your time traveling through the Kingdom of Hyrule, collecting echoes of anything and everything along the way. If you fall in battle, you are revived at the start of the room, and battles are made easier with the help of echoed monsters you summon. Discovering the best way to use a new echo in this bright, colorful world is especially satisfying.
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The Legend Of Zelda: Every Game Ranked By Difficulty
The Legend of Zelda has had plenty of games throughout its long history, but which ones are the hardest?