Poll: Female Link in the next Zelda game - Your thoughts?

[thejboy88]

At this point, MovieBob's latest Big Picture episode is out, the subject of which was the discussion of whether or not the Link in the upcoming latest Legend of Zelda game was female, and not male as he usually is. The video then went on to clarify that the folks at Nintendo did not intend this and that he simply looks more feminine than usual, rather than being outright female.

That said, I, like Bob, feel that this would be a good move overall, for reasons he already stated in his video. I think I'd be willing to play as a female Link, if we ever got one. But I would like to know what the general thoughts on this subject are among the Escapist community.

 

[Clowndoe]

How can you say no? You can't even use the (which I believe to be weak) reason that you can't relate to a female character, because Link is kind of a nobody already.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

The rumour being debunked was actually the biggest disappointment of E3 for me XD

Playing female Link or Zelda would be fucking boss.

 

[Erttheking]

I have to say "Why not?". Contrary to popular belief, heterosexual white men don't NEED to play as heterosexual white men to get invested in a game (The ones that do I have a hard time respecting) and frankly I'm more than willing to do something new.

And even if Link is still a guy, a more feminine male character is still something we don't see very much, and when we do it's normally played for laughs. I'm glad it's like this.

 

[go-10]

I'm gonna go with no. I rather play an Aryll that has inherited the tri force of courage, as to show that the tri force of courage moves through Link bloodline instead of a random boy that is an exact replica of the last tri force of courage holder

 

[Weaver]

I'd love it, personally. I'd really love to see a rule 63 Zelda game, just for fun.

 

[NewClassic_v1legacy]

Sure?

I've never really understood the whole male-female dichotomy thing. I personally find I can relate with a character that speaks to my personal experience better than those that don't, and whether the character is male or female generally has little to do with that. I enjoy female Bioware characters more than their male counterparts, but often can't really enjoy female characters in Fallout games. Not sure why, I just don't feel like it fits. My play style or the way I approach conflict. Probably because Fallout does more to divide the genders than Bioware games tend to, so my point of reference for the world is a different fit.

All the same, it's rarely about gender as it is about character to me. If I fit a character well, I'll probably enjoy the game. However, if I don't, I likely won't. That goes for male characters and female characters. So yeah, I'd play a female Link in the next Legend of Zelda. Couldn't possibly think of a reason why I wouldn't.

 

[WeepingAngels]

The rumour being debunked was actually the biggest disappointment of E3 for me XD

Playing female Link or Zelda would be fucking boss.

Personally, I didn't care if I am playing as Lightning, Snow or Sazh and I can't see that it would be any different here. I think all this concern about the gender of a video game character is pointless. Do tell though Daystar, why would it be "fuckin boss"?

 

[madwarper]

Do I want a female Link? Not particularly. Would I care if Link was made a female? Not really.

As long as the gameplay remains relatively the same, with improvements over previous generations, then it shouldn't matter what the sex of the protagonist is.

 

[Asita]

If by "female Link" you mean "See this character model? That's a girl" then I'd strongly object to it simply because it's so bottom of the barrel. It's not even "slap some boobs on the model and call it a day" it's "we'll just reuse the old character model, say it's female this time, and call it a day". It's almost a purely informed attribute based on the most superficial of alterations.

If by contrast you mean "See this character? That's Link in this game" then I'd be far more interested in the change because the devs would evidently have been invested enough in it to presumably make it interesting and/or meaningful.

 

[Legomaniac91_v1legacy]

I would totally be down for playing a female Link. They could get around the implied romantic angle between Link ans Zelda by making FemLink and Zelda be either best friends or even sisters. This would give the new protagonist more depth and motivation to rescue Zelda.

 

[nomotog_v1legacy]

See the thing about Link is throughout all of his incarnations he's designed with one thing in mind. Neutrality. He's intentionally featureless. This way the player can project themselves and kind of assume the role of the hero. Switching his gender is going to do the opposite. You'll know he's different enough to do and therefore you won't be able to project onto him. And before anyone says "How can women project onto a male character?" Link is intentionally designed to look pretty much gender neutral.

Why dose link have a gender? He is made to look gender neutral, so how did we all find out he was a he and not a she?

 

[votemarvel]

I'd rather they make Zelda the lead, in a series that bears her nam,e than turned Link into a female.

 

[momijirabbit]

Would I play as a female Link?
Of course I would, it would be a change that didn't really affect anything and it would hopefully please the Feminazis.

 

[Radoh]

I'm gonna go with no. I rather play an Aryll that has inherited the tri force of courage, as to show that the tri force of courage moves through Link bloodline instead of a random boy that is an exact replica of the last tri force of courage holder

It doesn't go through the bloodline though, it is a reincarnation thing, and using Wind Waker's Aryll doesn't work for that even considering that it gets explicitly stated that The Hero of Time is long gone. At the very beginning the game says he never came back, and that's why the great sea happened, then later King Hyrule tells you that you aren't the Hero of Time since his line is gone, it's the Hero of Winds that is in Wind Waker, Phantom Hourglass, and Spirit Tracks.

OT: Yeah of course I would, I've never really seen Link as a particularly masculine character in the first place, more a blank slate style.

 

[The Goat Tsar]

I would rather a new character get created, or give the spotlight to an already existing female character in the Zelda universe. Just gender swapping Link sounds incredibly lazy and pointless. But I would play that game, sure.