Is Link Really Left-Handed?

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Lately, it’s been a point of contention among fans that Link is left handed, or that Link is right handed. The only way these arguments are true are when they are specified to the title character of a specific game. If you say Link is left handed, well, this becomes a lie when you examine Skyward Sword and Twilight Princess. Sure, two titles out of so many might not be enough to make a solid argument – but there is one thing fans forget: the Link in Skyward Sword is not the same Link in Ocarina of Time.

is link left handedThe Mythology regarding the chosen hero of Hyrule is very similar to the mythology used in Joss Whedon’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer. In Buffy, there is a saying that is recurring through the entire series: In every generation there is a Chosen One. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons, and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer.

If we replace gender pronouns and remove the word vampires and demons for Moblins and Stalfos, then we have perfectly described Link in EVERY Zelda game. He might gain knowledge of his ancestry through the main quest of the game, but he is not the same. This fact holds true in the majority of the Zelda series, with Ocarina of Time to Majora’s Mask being an example of a contradiction. The Oracle games are the same Link as well, but they are one linked adventure.

Link is an ancestry based character. There are limited times where he is the same exact Link. So it is logical to accept that in the progress of the series, his genetics are altered to favor his right hand or left hand more.

At the end of the day, Link is ambidextrous, meaning he can use both his right and left hand equally well. Why argue about such a meaningless point? Let us know what you think in the comments.

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About Author

Ben Cornett is graduate of Western Michigan University. He serves as managing editor of The Hidden Triforce. In his spare time, he maintains his own blog. Ben currently resides in Ann Arbor.

  • Domenick

    Why is this even a discussion or an argument? Link is left-handed. However, for Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword, they switched Link to right handed due the the fact that an overwhelming amount of gamers are right-handed. So in use with the Wii Remote, it made sense to make him a righty. Take a look at the GameCube version of TP, Link is still left-handed.

    • Noah Glaser

      Different Links can mean different hand preferences. Why is it so important that he remain left-handed?

      • jared warmack

        Why is it important that link almost always defeat evil with the master sword? It’s a characteristic of Link, if his orientation wasn’t important, we may as well say his tunic color is irrelevant too.

        • Cody Noble

          Link doesn’t always defeat evil with the master sword. He has dozens of swords he uses to defeat evil depending on which game you play. For example Minish Cap doesn’t have the master sword, nor does Majora’s Mask.

          • jared warmack

            Omg that why I said “almost always” troll. Really? Dozens? You gave two examples.

          • Noah Glaser

            In his defense, there are a bunch of games without the Master Sword. I think it may be in less games than there are games without it. But that is still besides the point

          • jared warmack

            There are sixteen current Legend of Zelda titles not including Link’s Crossbow training, the Master Sword appears in nine of those titles: A Link to the Past, A Link Between Worlds, Oracle of Ages, Oracle of Seasons, Ocarina of Time, Four Swords, Wind Waker, Twilight Princess, and Skyward Sword. Jared:1 Noah:0

          • Noah Glaser

            Technically it was not in the original version of Four Swords? Just the remake for the 3DS? Correct me if I am wrong there. If not, then it was in 8 and not in 8. So it would be even.

          • jared warmack

            I say again, A Link to The Past, a Link Between Worlds, Oracle of Ages, Oracle of Seasons, Ocarina of Time, Four Swords (be as it may the anniversary edition), Wind Waker, Skyward Sword, Twilight Princess and if we’re counting remakes then you must include Ocarina of Time 3D and Wind Waker HD. So yes I’d say the master sword is a characteristic of LoZ

          • Noah Glaser

            50% of the time. But either way that is once again not remotely the same thing. The master sword is often used as a plot device and is iconic with the series. Only real fans of the Zelda series know or care that Link is usually left-handed. It is a non-issue that so many fans get so bent out of shape over. Link in most versions is left-handed. But Link as an overall being is NOT left-handed. Just these particular incarnations of him.

          • kerrie_30

            I think in future Wii or other games they could and should have it so you can change hands for those Lefties amongst us that have problems controlling righties :D

          • Noah Glaser

            By the way, I am enjoying our discussion. It is nice to talk with passionate Zelda fans! Thanks so much for coming over and discussing

          • jared warmack

            It’s not every day one can have a truly pointless debate over something so trivial as a video game character’s hand orientation! :D

          • Noah Glaser

            lol. Could not have said it better myself

          • Incognito Jay

            True, what sucks is when governments and institutions make a big deal over real people’s hand orientations, like some bullshit that lefties are demon possessed or in China and the Middle East pointlessly retraining natural lefties to write left. Humanity sucks because people hold seemingly trivial things against others like skin color, being gay, or having harmless quirks. Too bad that the speed of light is impractically slow (not to mention even 1/10th c requires a ludicrously high resource consumption) for interstellar travel and intelligent life evolving is ludicrously impossible because we (i.e., humanity as a whole) need to be wiped out in an alien invasion.

          • The Link Between Worlds

            Allow me to stop this argument. Link ALWAYS defeats Ganondorf with the Master Sword, also knows as the Blade of Evil’s Bane. Ganondorf can only be defeated by the Master Sword due to his possession of the Triforce of Power. This is because the Triforce of Power grants the holder unlimited strength and immortal, but the loophole is that the only weapon that can defeat this immortal being is the Master Sword. The Master Sword can only be pulled from its pedestal (usually located in the Sacred Grove or in some forest or the Temple of Time) by the one who holds the Triforce of Courage (ie. Link). You are able to defeat any other form of evil without the Master Sword because they do not possess the Triforce of Power, therefore they are not immortal. I hope this puts things in perspective. :)

          • Incognito Jay

            Biggoron sword was my favorite, was cheap however that if you tried using the flute it would reset the timer -_- Ganon was immune to it though so you’d have to switch to the master sword anyway. Ice arrows were my favorite weapon in that game.

        • Noah Glaser

          Those are kind of 2 different things there. Using his sword and the hand he swings it with are not the same concept. One is a story driven idea. And the other is one that only hardcore fans care about or even notice in the minor details of the game

          • jared warmack

            I used the master sword as another example of a characteristic of link. Link is a lefty for the same reason he wears a green tunic, for the same reason he’s nearly always blonde, for the same reason Samus wears the varia suit in smash Bros. All these things are trademarks of the character, it’s what makes them come to life.

          • SushiBox

            Is something that appears ”nearly always” really a characteristic? Sounds to me more like an occassional thing.
            Besides, about the Mastersword-Issue, it may appear in the Oracle-Series, but only as an optional upgrade. I think it doesn’t really actually count if it wasn’t retrieved within the story’s course..

        • Chloe Holland

          The master sword is the blade of evil’s bane, hence its importance (not that it’s the only sword like can fight evil with); he wears green because young warriors are dressed after the hero of legend; and his orientation is left handed because there’s no viable reason to or not to switch from the original beyond the introduction of motion controls…

      • Domenick

        I never said it was important that he remain left-handed. All I said was the facts. Link is a lefty, who was switched to a righty for the comfort of gamers controlling him. Why are the mods on this site so accusatory of everyone? The reason I asked why it’s a discussion or an argument is because the reasoning is not up for debate, the reason that he was made right-handed was explained pretty obviously.

        Why is it so important to create a back story to the orientation of his handedness?

        Don’t ask your readers to tell you what they think if you’re going to tell them they’re wrong.

        • Noah Glaser

          I did not once say you were wrong. I posed a question of why is it so important that he remain left-handed.

          • Schwartz Ichenbachen

            Which, in the context of what he was saying, was rather irrelevant.

        • The Link Between Worlds

          I think Nintendo chooses to keep Link left-handed because it’s sort of symbolic. What I mean by it being symbolic is that most people are right-handed, so someone who is left-handed is unique in that aspect. I think they want Link to seem unique to fans.

          • You are Idiots!

            They only keep Link left handed because Miyamoto himself is left handed….

      • The Link Between Worlds

        I agree. Each person is different.

      • Sage Donaldson

        It’s probably more an issue for left-handed people than anything. Many lefties feel a certain pride when finding other lefties for… no particular reason, but having a main character as a southpaw 1) helps us feel a special connection to Link 2) Gives representation to an often overlooked minority. 3) It looks natural to us to see him using his left and 4) WE CAN’T PLAY SKYWARD SWORD OR TWILIGHT PRINCESS ON WII WELL. I’m not the only lefty who’s struggled with the motion controls, i’ve talked with several…

        I also notice it more, I draw Link a lot, so drawing SS Link is a bit strange because of the baldric and hand difference, and when I see cosplayers I always notice when one has switched the baldric or hold stheir sword in the wrong hand.

        Anyway, it’s kinda a stubborn pride thing for me, but I also think it’s really cool that that’s one of the traits passed on to different Links, one of the symbols of the series, is a left-handed hero. There no real ‘solid’ argument other than ‘He’s always been left-handed, which sets him apart and shouldn’t need to change,’ but there you go…

        • Jimmy Boy

          when I was in college, A Link to the Past was the current game, and since the NES was still relevant through part of the N64 era, many still had their NES’s in dorm rooms. I pointed out to a person how Link was a lefty, and he then paused the game, and was like “Woah! I never saw that before”. It’s not not possible to do that today, Link is a righty on home consoles now…

      • Jimmy Boy

        you’d have had to flip the remote, and Nintendo doesn’t like you holding it in your left hand.

    • Rex

      Link was right handed in the very first games game manual. End of discussion. If we go by true true first Link then he is right handed, but the pixel changed hands depending on the direction you faced. He is ambidextrous. Which the creators have said. So why is this an argument? Because people like you overlook the first game in the series and discount what the creators say.

      • Guest

        Chronologically the first Link is Skyward Sword Link and that one is right handed too. I’m a lefty and I want him to be left handed and he is most of the time but the first incarnation of the hero was right handed is undeniable evidence of right handedness.

      • Jimmy Boy

        Cover art and manual differed from the actual game. If you really want to be technical the original 3 were neither right nor left handded, they were both, because Nintendo just flipped the sprites depending on the direction he was facing, but when facing down or up, the default was his left hand.

  • jugglaj91

    For TP the map was mirrored which also made Link switch hands from left to right. Seeing as the GCN version of TP is the canon one Link is left handed. He is only right handed in SS and depending which way he is facing in Zelda 1.

  • Noah Glaser

    Posing a question for everybody. If Link was right-handed in the next game, and it was not motion controlled, would you care?

    • jared warmack

      In the end it wouldn’t affect my buying decision but I’d be a little disappointed in the developers for not upholding tradition.

      • Noah Glaser

        Fair enough

      • Schwartz Ichenbachen

        I agree. In the end, I would still buy the game, but I would initially be a bit ticked off. Link’s left-handedness is one of the ways that I, being a lefty, can connect to Link.

  • Napoleon Tascon

    Original Link is right-handed, get over it.

    • Schwartz Ichenbachen

      That was only in early artwork. They changed it later on, so Link is left handed in the original LoZ.

      • Napoleon Tascon

        No original is right handed, Skyward sword has the first, original, Link.

        • Schwartz Ichenbachen

          Ah, I thought you meant original Link as in Link from the original LoZ. Two things. First: In a manga, there is revealed to be a Link earlier than the one in SS. This particular one is left-handed. This, however, isn’t solid evidence, as manga isn’t considered canonical information. HOWEVER, your comment is rendered invalid by the fact that Nintendo has stated that SS isn’t necessarily always going to be the first game in the timeline. They may very well make a game taking place BEFORE SS, meaning that SS Link may very well NOT be the original.

      • Jimmy Boy

        Artwork is also different from the programmers- hell, it looks better than the game! He’s left handed when facing up and down, only flips his sword to his right hand when he’s facing right (Nintendo claimed it was to shield him from Gannon).

  • Kafke

    This has been covered many times (even by the devs). He’s canonically ambidextrous, with a preference for left. Commonly people like this are still labeled left handed.

    • Jimmy Boy

      he must have lost that preference during the Wii days!

    • yusarei

      Link has never been canonically ambidextrous. He’s simply left-handed.

  • zeldafreak07

    To me, Link being left handed is a tradition. I don’t really mind if he’s right or left or both. I find it unique that he’s left handed though. There are some advantages of being left handed, which would explain why he can save Hyrule time and time again. It’s not often you see a left handed hero is all.

    Link’s been left handed since the beginning, ever since the Wii came out, they had to put him as right handed in the console since the majority of the population is right. The Gamecube TP is canon, so there he’s a lefty. (if you don’t agree look at the official artwork) Look at Link Between Worlds, it’s the latest Zelda game and he’s left handed.

  • Ethan Glass

    you hold the sword in your dominant hand so which ever hand is holding his sword detemines whether he is left or right handed but in truth it doesnt matter much

  • Mike Sauer

    You’ve got to be kidding me with this article

    Miyamoto is left handed. He chose to make Link left handed. That is as simple as it gets. Link is a lefty. He is one of the only Left handed heroes out there, which is what helped me connect with Link so much when I was younger.

    Like others have already stated here, Link is a “righty” in the Wii version of TP and Skyward Sword because of how the Wii remote is held.

    A Link between Worlds Link is a lefty.

    Link in the new SSB is a lefty.

    10 bucks says the Wii U Zelda Link will be lefty.

    Why can’t I have my lefty hero? No one complains when people are righty. One character is a lefty and everyone has to go crazy.

    Link is a lefty, that is that.

    The fact that this article was created is disappointing because it’s literally only generating arguments in the chat here. There is no mythology here…there’s no DEEP reason to this. Link’s preferred hand is his left hand. I’d rather a news drought than see filler articles that start arguments. The worst part of it is a friend of mine had to tell me about how absurd this article was and I just HAD to come over here to believe it.

    • Noah Glaser

      You reaction is probably the biggest “have to be kidding me moment”
      Who cares that much about the hand that a made-up character uses?

      And the article also clearly says that those iterations are left-handed. But you cannot say that every single generation after generation will have the same made-up family genetics and traits. That is the point that is being made. That there is no real reason that Link has to remain left-handed. It is not part of the lore or based on any plot or game mechanic. It is simply a choice that was made at one point and has been used for the most part. A right-handed Link would not only make sense, but would not impair the series in any way.

      • zeldafreak07

        Just wondering, how does a right hand Link make sense? It says in one of Miyamoto’s bio that he is left handed and he favors left handed characters. THAT makes sense. Link is SUPPOSED to be left handed. It is a tradition.

        http://www.ign.com/articles/20

        This explains why Link is right handed, as stated before, it’s because of the population being right. It comes from Miyamoto’s mouth. Like I said, I will still play Zelda. It’s just different if they make him a righty.

        The guy who wrote the article clearly did not do his research. It’s like that stupid news station in Arizona that called Link Zelda. The only official right handed Link is Skyward Sword and that won several game of the year and best wii motion game awards. Clearly, Link being right handed didn’t effect us Zelda fans. We ARE open to a right handed Link.

        • Noah Glaser

          You clearly did not read the article if you think this.

          • zeldafreak07

            Think of what? I can’t really explain to you if you’re just going to say it like that.

        • Schwartz Ichenbachen

          The last sentence in your comment was the only one I didn’t like. Aside from when necessary (motion controls, like SS), I wouldn’t like a right handed Link, and even then, I would want an option for him to play as left handed. You see, I’m a lefty, and Link being a lefty is one of the ways that I can really connect to the game, being that we both share an uncommon trait.

          • zeldafreak07

            I see why you don’t like it. In a way, I was saying that we are accepting of a right handed Link as long as, as you said, it’s necessary. I was just stating that, even though we don’t like it, it didn’t stop us from playing the game.

            I agree, they should have an option for left handed people. (I’d try to play it left). And I can see why you have that connection with Link. It’s one of the reasons why he’s my favorite video game character. It makes me wish I was a lefty. It would also give Nintendo a chance to make him left handed in the art work. It was a little weird to see Link right handed in SS.

      • Mike Sauer

        It’s part of his character. Miyamoto made him a lefty intentionally. Yes, in reality, future generations of Link could be right handed. But they all carry the “soul of the hero” So that itself might actually dictate what hand he uses. If we’re going to be all “lore” about it.

        But there is a reason why he is left handed and that is because Miyamoto wanted a left handed character. There shouldn’t even be any more discussion about it.

      • Schwartz Ichenbachen

        I said this in one of my other comments: If all Links are reincarnations of one another, then there shouldn’t be much, if any, difference between two different incarnations of Link, aside from the obvious, such as the art style in the game.

        • Jimmy Boy

          except the fact he’s not reincarnations of another- try reading the stories of the games, instead of fan sites, Nintendo doesn’t put in there that this reincarnation arises, it’s a new hero that arises, who just happens to be named whatever you choose (original 2 were Link), and wears a green tunic because the Master Sword chose them.

      • Simple

        Sorry, I know this is old, but really, this was a childish reaction to his comment. The writer of the article asked for a discussion. It shouldn’t matter to you why the author of the comment cares, he answered the question itself. And he answered the article as well. Just because it was written by some dude on the internet doesn’t make it a gospel truth.

    • Jimmy Boy

      looks like you lost 10 bucks on Breath of the Wild!

      • Mike

        Sure did… lol

    • yusarei

      I agree. There’s also this baseless argument that Link is ambidextrous. People are just confusing mirrored sprites and aren’t using their brains to notice such a easy detail. He’s simply left-handed.

  • The Mongoose Of Yore

    all this squableing over his dexterity just imagine the bedlam if some political agenda pushing power behind Nintendo’s wheel pulled out a canonfficial homosexual incarnation.

    • Jimmy Boy

      No where does Nintendo say incarnation nor homosexual

  • Schwartz Ichenbachen

    TP Link is still left-handed. The game was just mirrored for the Wii version, as most people are right-handed. The game was originally developed for the Gamecube, and in that version, Link is left-handed. As for SS, the ONE AND ONLY reason Link is right-handed in that game is because of the motion controls. If it weren’t for that, Link would be left-handed in that game.

    If the question you’re asking is WHY Link is left-handed, then the reason would be that Miyamoto is ambidextrous, and favors his left hand. Because of this, he likes making left-handed video game characters. However, another case could be made when examining the fact that in early art for the original LoZ, Link is actually right-handed. In Hyrule Historia, it is written that he was changed to being left-handed to help aid in the creation of sprites and such. Don’t ask me why they needed to do that, I don’t know, but, being a lefty myself, I’m not complaining.

    As another user commenting on here said, the reason Link’s left-handedness is important is because it’s a characteristic of him, like his tunic and, in many cases, the Master Sword. A question I ask is: If all Links have the Spirit of the Hero (I believe that’s what it’s called. I’d need to read through Hyrule Historia again to make sure), and are simply reincarnations of each other, then WHY WOULD THERE BE ANYTHING DIFFERENT BETWEEN DIFFERENT LINKS? I’m not talking about art style, I’m talking about actual characteristics of them.

  • Edward Kuriso Dengler

    In Skyward Sword link shoots his bow Left Handed. And it says by Nintendo he is the Left Handed hero. They only changed Link to right handed in Skyward Sword and the Wii Version of Twilight Princess is because most people in this world are right handed, and you know Nintendo with their casual gaming market. Link is left handed, end of story.

  • The Link Between Worlds

    Link is right-handed in the Wii Zeldas due to the motion control features. In the Game Cube version of Twilight Princess, Link is left-handed, but for the Wii version he is right-handed. Nintendo stated that they mirrored the GCN version of Twilight Princess for the Wii version because most players would swing the Wii Remote with their right hand. They realized in mid-development that it would get confusing if the player swings their right hand and Link swings his left arm, so they made him right-handed for any games that have to do with motion control, including the Wii version of Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword. They will probably do the same if there will be motion control for swinging the sword in the upcoming Zelda for the Wii U that is to be released sometime in 2014. If it weren’t for the motion control, Link would be left-handed in every Zelda game. Link is naturally left-handed.

  • Jordan Medeiros

    Half-life 3 confirmed

  • AJT 100

    Id like to see him as left handed again that was my main draw to the series as a kid. being left-handed is uncommon growing up but a really badass character was left handed so instead of being different and shunned the difference became cool. But since the Wii link has become right-handed basic bland every game right handed boring boring right handed done hundreds of times and every single game out there no one is left handed all right handed take away the one exceptional thing that was linked he wasn’t like all the other characters that existed he wasn’t basic and boring he wasn’t just right handed because you know it’s most common and you know it’s easy let’s just do it he was left-handed he was exceptional among video games most people like what’s it matter it matters because now he’s just Bland and boring he lost his exception it wouldn’t be a problem if there were more games that featured left-handed and made it not a freak of nature thing games featuring a left-handed character honestly stand out I’d like to see link stand out again and not just fall into the masses of it’s easy and more common so let’s just be lazy and do it the more common way make link exceptional again not a cookie-cutter of every other game. FYI the Twilight Princess on the Wii is actually the entire game is mirrored from what it was designed to be on the GameCube links left handed it’s just the way wii that screwed him up I’d really like to see him in the next game either be optional you choose his hand or left handed like he’s supposed to be not just done the easy way