Evolution of The Legend of ZELDA [1986-2023]

[@Zazzaro703]

People just can’t understand how insane that first Zelda was unless you were there at release. Going from Atari, intellevision and collecovision to a game that was big enough that you needed to save progress. Blew my 7 year old mind. It’s why to this day I explore every corner of the map because I burned every bush, bombed every wall and pushed every grave 10xs over.

[@KeMeEscupaUnPollo]

Exactly man... same for me! Im just finishing it again with the HD pack and man that game was definitely a gargantuan step forward at that time...

[@hoodrichhaul7545]

And the gold cartridge! Icing on that 8 bit cake.

[@actionfigureshi]

The gold cartridge and the map was so cool in 86...dungeons were cool

[@filip1408]

😂 yeah right, the “you don’t get it unless you were there” rhetoric. We get it. We love it. We respect what it represents. So shut the fuck up with this elitism

[@Davian2073]

I needed a guide for know the locations of the Moblin brothers (The Moblins that give you rupees and say "IT’S A SECRET TO EVERYBODY") 😭

[@ranbirbhatia1585]

I’m forever grateful there’s a channel like yours I love it! Good job flatlife!

[@rikublaze]

The reason Link is my favorite VG protagonist is for the fact that besides getting new items , link is just raw strength. No super form, no power ups , no goddess summons... Just a Dude has a sword, a shield, and a mission.

[@normanred9212]

He is a High Elf, the classic kind with blonde or red hair with green or blue eyes

[@SpriteWorld1991]

Sonic’s my favorite but link is a BEAST (especially as a wolf)

[@danandtab7463]

I love hearing about the inspirations for some of these games. I was 8 years old when first shown NES Zelda and it was mind blowing.

[@nilesclifford9704]

Universal, illumination, and nintendo need to make the legend of zelda movie.

[@dragonquest6881]

I don't think it's fair that mario and sonic got movies, when link hasn't got his own movies yet.

[@wildfire9280]

@@dragonquest6881 Mario even got two. We don’t talk about the first.

[@OddOlly]

I absolutely love the depth you go into and how I can just let these videos of things I love roll for hours!! Great job guys

[@harpuavids]

Flatlife should have millions of subscribers! So much effort was put in, and it deserves to be seen!

[@gulzarzeb]

It's called Flatlife not Flatlife

[@harpuavids]

@@gulzarzeb Lol, my fault. That was a typo. I’ll fix it. Thank you!

[@DanielGuzman83]

When I was 6 years old, I wanted to be Link for Halloween. My mom said she didn't want me dressing up like Peter pan.

[@chris_h1990]

I've been a fan of the Zelda games since I first played A Link to the Past on the Super Nintendo. Each game feels like I'm being reintroduced to the franchise. Breath of the Wild was a breath of fresh air in my opinion.

[@boi8214]

“Ganon dorf, king of the jerudo tribe”

[@hugovega8034]

Awesome vid. I'm actually hurt finding out about Majora's Mask "failure". No doubt Ocarina is Top 1, but Majora is easily my Top 2, being young link and being able to ride Epona was my dream as a kid. As well as turning into a Rockstar Fish with the Zora Mask and finally converting into powerful adult Link thanks to Fierce Deity's Mask. Awesome. But at the end, Majora's lack of sales was because it came to close to the release of Ocarina. Players where still trapped in the Water Temple from Ocarina and had no time to go and buy Majora's Mask.

[@ellegee4043]

The best part of that game was the layered story. It speaks to trauma and recovering from intense experiences on your own. Link's only identity at the time was to aid others, so to deal with his own distress (and then losing his friend Navi), he goes to help others in Termina (which some Zelda Theorists argue is a metaphorical world for Link, versus a physical one) until he has the space and skills to face his own new reality. Such a sad and dark story, but phenomenal and creative way to discuss themes of grief, loss and trauma!

[@SamRegan610]

Aside from the mispronunciation of Gerudo (hard G, Urbosa says it multiple times in BotW), this is a fantastic recap of my favorite video game series. Masterfully done!

[@finnomalley4526]

Was waiting for someone to say it

[@DrDolan2000]

I'm just happy he got the release date of the first game correct! I've heard plenty of others say it was released in 1987, but that is the North American release, not its FIRST release

[@masonschwalm2010]

He also got KOJI Kondo’s name wrong.

[@k.o.h3599]

@@masonschwalm2010 probably just a typo in the script, since he got Kondos name right the first time.

[@masonschwalm2010]

@@k.o.h3599 thx, I didn’t catch that the first time, you’re probably right then.

[@Yang_Mulia]

skyward sword is my favorite many people hate it, but for me able to role playing as link and swing a sword is what make this game so special

[@nworder4life]

Skyward Sword is an amazing game. Link and Zelda have the best relationship, the Master swords creation, gaining the qualities to possess the triforce and just the beginning of the cycle between Demise,Link and Zelda. Also the introduction of goddess Hylia.

[@solgaliosgaming9420]

1:00:03 I SWEAR I DIDN'T REALIZE THAT THIS WAS A 1 HR VIDEO!!! I thought this was a 22-24 or maybe even 30 min video X)

[@KnightrideThrillz]

But he’s got a point!

[@GamingintheAM0801]

An impressive thing about Link to the Past is that it stayed on Nintendo's "Top Games" list every month for literal years after it released, even after the N64 and Ocarina of Time had come out. It stayed relevant throughout the entirety of the SNES' life cycle and a few years into the next console generation. It had incredible staying power.

[@metagod_]

I remember when I had just discovered your channel when you had around 30k subscribers! Your channel still slaps to this day.

[@FilipWinther]

That was a fantastic video! Great job!!

[@uimasterroshi171]

16:33 I love the change in your voice between the 2 timelines, it made me laugh more as it probably should xD Also spitting facts

[@strwbryjamn]

so funny bc the cartoonlikeness of windwaker is what made me play and get into zelda when i was a kid

[@fwj_thewhite105]

You always make me smile when you release another video! Goed gedaan! 😉

[@benjaminmoore6865]

First video game I ever played was OOT. Since then I have played and beat every game in the series (excluding the cdi games), and it holds a special place in my heart. I will introduce my kids to these games someday.

[@michaelmeola3753]

People don't like the cartoon but you have to imagine being 8 years old and seeing your favorite video game character for the first time on TV. In context it wasn't that bad, I loved it at the time.

[@nerdofgames1608]

Cartoons back then all were kinda cheezy and had bad voice acting. I mean, if you compare them to today's voice acting, they all sucked. lol However, it was the 80s and many television commentators stated, "Situational television comedy is dead." So tons of networks and shows were brazenly attempting to reignite comedy. Almost every cartoon in the 80s was based on this attempt, so comedy became the center focus of the plots.

[@MiichaeI]

That music just brings back so many memories.

[@miladmouradagenda9691]

Great job from the most underrated channel .. love to all fo you 💖

[@Binkus_69]

When I first saw your first Zelda video I fell in love with the franchise

[@justinwilliam6534]

I didn’t know that Link was inspired by Peter Pan this is why I love reading behind the scene stuff because it helps me create new ideas and find ways underrated characters can come back.

[@renanolive8549]

Zelda is love, Zelda is life. ❤

[@ness963]

True

[@Zelink4Eva]

I can’t get over the fact that when he was talking about ocarina of time, he said gerudo like jeruda😂

[@law35penn]

How can anyone deny the greatness of this game? You are talking about almost 30 years of adventures like no others. Like or not, this game changed everything.

[@Donjosue]

Fun fact. Oracle of seasons and oracle of ages were so interwoven and intricate, there are different play through experiences depending on which game you started first, finished and then it unlocked a third ending

[@MELOFROMCUBA]

It was so hard to beat these games lol so many non sleeping nights ❤

[@martinnguyen2458]

My favorite Zelda game is Twilight Princess; it was the first Zelda game I played when I had the Wii.

[@SneaktheWolf]

35:22 it also has the best companion

[@Anan012]

The hero's shade is not most likely oot link. He was flat out confirmed to be oot link in the Hyrule historia.

[@Maxs2535]

Another banger video! great work flatlife

[@renemolina3760]

What a wonderful video. I really enjoyed it. Cheers!

[@kingvr_13]

I’m mad this man deserves AT LEAST 3.5 million subs. Like these videos are quality

[@nearoikthadorbadwagon1224]

When you said, how do you think Zelda felt waiting for 100 years for Link to wake up? That’s a good point. Also, the stakes were a lot higher, considering if Gannon fully reawakened and link had not woken up as Zelda put it “when the beast regains it’s true power, this world will face its end.” (Zelda breath of the wild)

[@MrMoasn]

Once you collect the dragons tears this statement becomes totally obsolete How do you think Zelda felt waiting at least 10-20,000 years for Link to turn her back into a Hylian?

[@nearoikthadorbadwagon1224]

@@MrMoasn oh yeah🤔 you’ve got a point

[@Julmaa87]

I love the person that invented Zelda. It's been my favourite gaming series all my life.

[@KingKhaos124]

"and you will receive golden shit!" ya that took me a minute to relize what it was! lol

[@ScottvonHague]

God I wish the legend of Zelda would return to that sword and sorcery aesthetic.

[@Neo_X90X]

Fun Fact.. Ember Labs went on to make Kena: Bridge of spirits for ps5/ Pc and has alot of charm and elements from the zelda series.

[@user-Kojo-b8u]

My man did an absolutely amazing job explaining this beautiful game franchise

[@alexnatorcfromletterboxd]

When the mario movie comes out you should do the impossible Evolution of Mario!

[@caydenrodriguez2637]

that would be amazing

[@krisfrederick5001]

When you are confident enough to title your game "The Legend of..." You're not playing games. P.S. The Robin Williams part about him naming his daughter Zelda was absolutely heartwarming. ❤❤❤

[@dasherpie]

Fun fact 4 days ago was the 37 anniversary when Zelda was first released In Japan ❤️❤️❤️

[@rainbowphoenix_dashie28]

Love your profile picture. I love Rainbow Dash.👍😃

[@mgrvr]

Interesting…

[@WavedKnight]

Hero's shade is the Hero of Time, which was in Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask. Link actually dies in Majora's Mask, looking for navi, and Hero's Shade is his body.

[@corbelan4]

A common pattern I noticed is After Link defeats Ganon and saves Hyrule, he goes on a “side quest” on sequel games. Legend of Zelda (NES): Defeats Ganon Adventure of Link: Has to wake up Zelda Link to the Past: Defeats Ganon Link’s Awakening: Saves Kolohint Ocarina of Time: Defeats Ganon Majora’s Mask: saves Termina Wind Waker: Defeats Ganon Phantom Hourglass: Goes out to sea

[@Pixxee__123]

links crossbow training: am I a joke to you. btw great video

[@wjcoleman04]

I’ve been a Zelda fan my whole life, played just about every game in the series. But I am ashamed that I never noticed 17:22!! OMG

[@smartin0777]

Past Me: Heck yeah Islands in the sky Current Me: They.... they didn't say a whole lot about the depths

[@Rvghrc]

He bashed real life so hard he it’s brutal honesty and facts

[@Andressennn909]

I CANT BELIEVE YOU DIDNT TALK ABOUT the Chris houlihan room in Zelda a link to the past, Besides that, I will forever enjoy your videos and evolutions. PERIOD. Also thanks for talking about my boy. (Toon Link) I Love wind waker to death and I hope it gets a switch port

[@ness963]

But it got a Wii U port but thats not the best the only game that ported to the switch was Skyward Sword

[@cheems3625]

@@ness963 links awakening was brought to the switch (kind of)

[@PeskyPlays]

I’m on my first Zelda game right now (yeah I’m late to the party lol) but Zelda is soo much fun so far

[@abhijiths5259]

1986 version?

[@PeskyPlays]

@@abhijiths5259 breath of the wild, but I’m making a goal to play every single title

[@NUGTHUGCEO]

I’ve never played any . Is it like elder scrolls at all?

[@brolloxe]

nintendo when developing tears of the kindoms : "did you place the 9000 koroks?" "yes, I just need to place the 100 new moroks"

[@Hollowdude15]

The legend of zelda games are so cool and great video man :]

[@FANE3002]

47:52 what is this master piece im watching

[@lihapaaryna1325]

I didnt think it was possible for an hour to go by so fast.

[@granpasgamings]

I am 55 yo now and i still play loz oot. That game will always be my favorite.

[@Peartato59]

16:27 literally never heard anyone pronounce Gerudo with a J sound 52:27 and Ghibli actually *is* pronounced with a J sound

[@alvinstone1155]

Man you did your thing on this video, the puns were 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥😂😂😂😂. Man we all cannot wait till may 12th

[@rodbatman237]

Amazing documentary. A very professional media product. Thanks!!!!

[@KidNamedCullen]

What a LEGENDARY video!

[@TheRealCardoso]

I’ve watched lots of Zelda timeline videos & this is the only one I understood 😆

[@patricktowers8306]

Very cool video - came across this since your video thumbnail was lifted from artwork I made 10+ years ago!

[@rayyanfikri6293]

Great evo vid flatlife

[@deans4512]

Zelda is so incredible along with Mario🤩👍

[@ness963]

Cool

[@HarmonicWave]

20:25 It's good that they rated it "E" for "Everything is Terrifying." LOL

[@nickprovence]

5:28 ah yes, ASS the hero of Hyrule.

[@RaynebowLyfe]

That scene is from Breath of The Wild where Zelda puts the Master Sword in the stone (where Link finds it 100 years later),and Zelda Disappears for the rest of the 100 year calamity.

[@kristentippit233]

the legend of Zelda is number 3 for my video games also, flatlife is an amazing youtuber

[@dainobu10]

You guys mentioned every title even the CD-i titles but forgot Link's crossbow training 😢

[@bobbyd5791]

Fantastic game. I recently bought a new copy of it from Amazon. They definitely need to make an HD co-op version of it for the switch.

[@grave.]

I really hope they release Twilight Princess, Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask on the Switch. I never had the right consoles to play them and I would love the chance to experience them myself someday.

[@cguillot05]

OoT and majora are both available on switch as N64 emulators if you pay an annual subscription fee.

[@grave.]

@@cguillot05 woahh i learned about OoT being on there a bit ago but i never knew majora was on there too!! thank you!

[@BeachBear64]

5:29 OK, those save files are hilarious!

[@shawnmontgomery4990]

Nice video. Can you do Kingdom Hearts next, please? Please, we need an evolution on Kingdom Hearts next!

[@juancarlosaguilarromero7085]

🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮

[@ahopcroft]

Sakka” my first girlfriend became the moon… Majoras moon “ tell me I’m pretty sakka”

[@MoKuZai]

55:23 the breaking of the formal language to say shit like the narrator experienced this wasteful effort is so funny to me. this is so informal as someone who has (with lesser memory) played 2-3 of these zelda titles but wish to know more about it's history and lore by waiting and listening : ) thanks for making this video, very helpful.

[@schminke89]

The title theme is a slowed down version of the overworld theme that already existed in the game. The way most videos put it it sounds like kondo came up with one of the best video game tunes over night and from scratch

[@abel-paulbonin3312]

Majora's Mask will always be my favorite but my wife and I love the game series so much that our son is named Link

[@game-enjoyer13]

Not being an asshole here, just being truthful. Your son’s name has a very high possibility of incurring bullying and humiliation. Idk how OLD your son is, but assuming he’s still coming of age, just……be ready. Hell, even random people with the name “Mario”, a VERY popular name even way before the video game character became popular, get made fun of and humiliated.

[@nworder4life]

@@game-enjoyer13 My cousin named his kid Bane...I said he better be roided up and ready to beat the kids up at a moments notice lol

[@Sam_T2000]

I _love_ the Jerudo Valley theme… Kiji Kondo is the best 👌

[@billhanscomb1119]

I grew up with Alttp and Oot. Both of best worlds imo.

[@jimmy_os]

Cried laughing at 32:36

[@celphan4083]

Age of Calamity isn't actually a prequel to BotW, it happens 100 years before its events, yes, but in a parallel Universe.

[@BeserkBeastSaiyan]

Sometimes I wish I can live forever just enjoy the newer things that will come out

[@awang_ir]

KZbin algorithm suggested this video after I watched the Super Mario Bros Movie? Nintendo should've been planning on Zelda movies as their legendary sequel LOL!

[@br117p7]

Or an anime series

[@emreates1429]

That metacritic notes... Insane. Well designed video by the way.

[@jesse-ray]

You gave time to so many re-releases and remakes, but you didn't give even a second to project restoration for the 3ds version of Majora's Mask, which is effectively the definitive way to play that game now

[@jarrettbellboy]

Links Crossbow Training: “Am I a joke to you?!”

[@Gamefit28]

I love the info and facts you use

[@williamsanborn9195]

Technically, the first game came out on the Famicom Disk System. It had some extra audio channels, which made the music sound quite different. The NES version was THEN ported to the original Famicom after the Disk System was discontinued. 🙂

[@kinggurk3183]

This game is really rad

[@zorasaphire]

Gerudo has a hard G

[@charlzencooctavez3165]

Video of Classic Game. Nice video ❤.

[@DanielBober22113]

Hey, I’m from the future, just to say that tears of the kingdom is great. A must-play

[@RandallStevenson]

My top 4 Zelda games: Twilight Princess, Link to the Past, Ocarina of Time, Link's Awakening DX.

[@frankwu4747]

27:59, here are more details to the fun fact. Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald died in December 21, 1940, and Zelda died in 1948. Hi son is also named Francis Scott Fitzgerald. So Shigeru Miyamoto was probably talking Fitzgerald the younger, aka “Scottie”.

[@ryanwilson9555]

While The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds may have been the 1st “original” Zelda game released on the 3DS, it wasn’t necessarily the 1st “actual” Zelda game released on the handheld. Just 2 years prior in 2011, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time received a 3DS remake/remaster titled The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D.

[@caulldron]

wow u make great vids. ty

[@Cyclone861]

my favorite evolution channel

[@unknown-p3i]

You forgot the beat game of all time, Link’s Crossbow Training.

[@Noahblitz378]

another video just to listen too i love these type's of videos

[@nz7166]

amazing video