Summary
With there being constant murmurs of Nintendo giving the go-ahead for a live-actionLegend of Zeldamovie, fans have been speculating which of the games would be the best to base the story on. While there are always a few key characters who are carried over into each entry, all theZeldagames still have their own style and tone, which is why every longtime fan of the series will give a completely different answer if they’re asked which they like the most.
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The truth is, though, while all the games are amazing to play in their own right, not all of them would translate very well onto the big screen. Whether this is because of poor pacing, lack of characters, or just because the general plot isn’t exciting enough, it’s clear that someZeldatitles are better staying as games, however, this isn’t the case for all of them. Here are theZeldatitles which have the perfect stories for being adapted into afull-length movie.
A Link Between Worldsmight not have the most unique story, primarily focusing on Link’s journey to defeat theevil sorcerer Yugaand restore the Kingdom of Hyrule to its former glory, but there’s no doubt that there’s a lot of fun that could be had with the characters.A Link Between Worldsfeatures a pretty formidable cast of colorful characters who would all be a joy to see in live-action, with some standouts including Ravio, Bee Guy, and all the Sages, who each have very distinct personalities and appearances.
Of course, the biggest draw to this game was being able to switch between a top-down perspective and2D sectionswhere Link merges with a wall to get to the next area. Whilst the movie is set to be live-action, a little bit of CG work could make this charming feature a big part of the film, and it would be a wonderful callback to fans of this classic 3DS title.
Skyward Sword’splot doesadmittedly start to get a little messyas it progresses, especially with Zelda being revealed as a reincarnation of Hylia, but the basic premise is still very interesting, and it would be truly ambitious for a movie to try and replicate it. In this game, humans live in the sky after a mysterious evil spreads across the land, causing the people to forget about the “Surface” entirely.
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After Zelda is sent plummeting down to the land below, though, Link must venture down to find her but will find more than a few mysteries and peculiar individuals along his journey. Movies can sometimes end up becoming a little stale if they stay in one place for too long, so there would need to be a good balance between the Surface andthe Skyloft, but if it managed to nail this, thenSkyward Swordwould be a great premise for the film.
This isn’t even mentioning Ghirahim, who is one of the most iconic villains in the entire series, and seeing his flamboyant and exaggerated personality performed by an actor would add a lot to the viewing experience.
The plot ofLink’s Awakeningis pretty fascinating, as it’s hard to understand just how unique and unnerving it really is without playing until the very end. After washing up on the shore ofa mysterious island, Link soon discovers from the locals that if he wants to return to Hyrule, he will need to wake upthe Wind Fishby retrieving eight instruments of the Sirens. In a movie adaptation, the dungeons he explores could be made to be a lot more detailed and exciting in how they work to ensure they never become stale, but it would also benefit the story to drop a few subtle hints as to what’s going on between these areas, just like the game does.
The truth is, throughout Link’s entire journey to awaken the Wind Fish, it is revealed that the whole thing was actually a dream, and by the very end of the game, he awakes to learn that none of the people he met were even real. This could either be a great way to end the movie on a charming note if it tries to appeal to the younger audiences, or Nintendo could also lean into the darker side ofZeldaand make it a little more unnerving but either way, there’s many different ways they could take this surprising reveal.
As has been shown with the live-actionOne Pieceseries on Netflix, stories that feature a protagonist sailing out across the deep blue sea are pretty popular since there’s no telling what mysterious characters or islands could show up throughout the course of the story. This is whyWind Wakerwould be such a great pick since it leaves the directors with a lot of room to add in their own unique areas to expand the world while also following the main story beats of the game, which already has a very good plot.
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The game also features some of the most iconic characters from the series, such as the King of Red Lions, a talking boat who really feeds into the more magical elements of the series. Because of the drastically different art style ofWind Waker, it does mean that a movie adaptation would need to go above and beyond to be as colorful as possible since a rough and grounded visual style just wouldn’t work, but if it can pull that off, then audiences will be in for an extremely exciting high-seas adventure.
The reasonOcarina of Timeis still held in such high regardby fans this long after its release is due to how well it manages to capture that feeling of embarking on a grand adventure. Link doesn’t just move from A to B throughout the course of the game; he also explores multiple different locales, completes side missions to receive new items, and meets a large cast of memorable characters like the Seven Sages, who are major players in the plot.
Because of how much content could be pulled out ofOcarinato create a movie adaptation, it ensures that the pacing of the story will never slow down since there’s always some brand-new area to learn about or a character who can keep the plot moving.
There are also plenty of very intense moments within the main story itself, which would be a real spectacle to see on the big screen, such as Ganon emerging from the rubble of the castle near the end or the horse race at Lon Lon Ranch. The game also has some of the best music in the entire series, so it would bea real love letter to fansfor these to be included, especially the twelve melodies that Link can learn.
Added to all this, there’s even an opportunity for a time-skip, which could even get some other actors involved to play around with Link’s age. This would definitely be the bestZeldastory to use as the basis for the movie, if not for one other game in the series.
Majora’s Maskis often consideredthe “darkest” game in the entire seriesdue to how high the stakes are from beginning to end, but there are still a lot of jovial and lighthearted moments that are sprinkled throughout the plot to ensure it never becomes too gloomy.
In truth, though, it’s the looming threat of the moon crashing into the world that makes the game so unique, as it adds a lot of tension to the game, which hasn’t really been replicated this well in aZeldatitle since. The game is also full of quirky characters who would really shine in a live-action adaptation, with the most obvious example being the weird and unpredictable Skull Kid.
What would make this story so captivating as a movie, though, is that it wouldn’t just appeal to a single type of demographic. While the vibrant and magical cast of characters and intense sword fights would definitely be entertaining for kids, the deeper thematic elements and surreal imagery would also make it appealing to adults.
This also leaves open the opportunity for this film to be truly memorable by touching on certain topics and ideas that can be hard to focus on in kid-centered films, butMajora’s Maskalready provides a compelling story that does this incredibly well.
