Tag: Link

Under the Temple

~ Kathryn ~ Leave a comment

The Forest Temple in Ocarina of Time is one of the most intriguing dungeons in the Zelda series. It’s so beautiful and full of mystery! One of my favorite areas of the temple is the peaceful underground waterway connecting the two courtyards on either side of the main hall. This is not in the least because the upper walkway provides healing hearts that are extremely welcome after Link’s first battle against a Stalfos. If Link grabs all three hearts the first time through the sewer, there will only be one heart on his return through the passage.

Where did that additional heart come from? Where do any of these hearts come from? Perhaps it’s best not to think about it too hard.

I have very little experience drawing architecture, but hopefully this works to my benefit in conveying the brutalism of the building lines in early 3D games. The primitive perspective scaling isn’t an issue in open spaces with organic shapes like the Kokiri Forest, but it feels somewhat uncanny in confined interior spaces. I get the sense that the game developers understood this, as the slightly off-kilter straight lines of the sewer tunnel are a nice foil against the luxurious twisting corridors of the temple’s upper levels, which are equally confounding to the eye. Poor Link… that kid has seen some shit.

Kakariko Hills

~ Kathryn ~ Leave a comment

The mountains overlooking Kakariko Village are one of my favorite places in Breath of the Wild.

Most players will visit Kakariko Village early in the game, and it’s possible for a more experienced player to climb the surrounding hills and venture into the mountains. Link can find Koroks by solving little environmental puzzles (in this case, putting an apple in the offering plate in front of the frog statue), and the optional hunt for Koroks encourages the player to explore the hidden corners of the map. There’s no meaningful material reward for finding this Korok, but the scenery is impressive. This experience of discovery is a perfect example of what I love about video games – the joy of the journey.

It’s hard to say I have a favorite game, but I’m a big fan of Breath of the Wild. I live in a neighborhood of Philadelphia that has almost no plants or trees, and the beautiful landscapes in this game provide a much-needed immersion in green space while inspiring me to engage in urban gardening. I love open-world games in general, but Breath of the Wild is the first one I played and the one I keep returning to.

This illustration was my submission to the Videogames Zine published by Coin-Operated Press, a cool zine community based on Scotland that’s open to people from all over the world. You can follow them on Instagram (here), where they post news about events and upcoming calls for submissions.

Legend of Zelda Forest Zine Preorders Open

~ Kathryn ~ 2 Comments

I’m excited to share the news that preorders are now open for The Whispers of Hyrule, a Legend of Zelda fanzine celebrating Hyrule’s beautiful green spaces and the creatures that make their homes in the trees.

I contributed a short story about Majora’s Mask titled “The Brave Tale of the Heroic Swamp Princess.” My story follows Link and the Deku Princess as they venture through the swamp on their way home from the Woodfall Temple. I did my best to capture the exuberant spirit of the Deku Princess, who helps Link work through the trauma he experienced in Ocarina of Time, as well as the warm atmosphere created by the vibrant plant growth in the swamp.

It’s been a privilege to see the drafts shared by the writers, artists, and musicians who have joined me on this journey. From sunlit meadows to deep forest shadows, everyone has worked hard to convey the wonder and mystery of getting lost in the woods. I know I say this about every fanzine, but this book is going to be gorgeous.

Preorders for the zine are open until April 23, and three stretch goals have already been exceeded. If you’re interested, you can check out the project at the following links:

🌿 https://thewhispersofhyrule.bigcartel.com/
🌿 https://culturesofhyrulezines.tumblr.com/
🌿 https://thewhispersofhyrule.carrd.co/

Hyrule’s Finest Teas

~ Kathryn ~ Leave a comment

Link is a second-year college student who works as a barista at a small café on a cobblestone street next to his university. Every day he waters the plants, samples new teas, and listens patiently to the concerns of the people who visit. He especially enjoys the company of one of the regulars, a posh upperclassman named Zelda who comes to the café every day to write. It would be the perfect job if not for his boss, whose excellent taste does little to blunt the edge of his exacting standards.

It took me years of being in fandom to reach this point, but I finally embraced the cliché of writing a Coffeeshop AU. I had an intense Fall 2022 semester, and I wrote “Hyrule’s Finest Teas and Imports” to let off steam during the winter break. This started as a wholesome story about delicious café food, but it gradually transformed into something a bit darker. While I was thinking about why someone like Ganondorf would manage a café, I did a lot of research into the shady real estate practices common around college campuses in the United States. I ultimately decided that it would be fun for Ganondorf to commit tax fraud. As a treat.

The story is complete at four chapters and 9,200 words. It’s on AO3 here:
https://archiveofourown.org/works/43918116/chapters/110424639

I was extremely fortunate to work with the magical Mirarasol on an illustration for this story. Mirarasol creates lovely artwork of cute characters inhabiting stylish interiors, and they’ve done fan art for a number of games in addition to their original illustrations. If you’re interested, you can check out their work on Twitter (here) and on Instagram (here).  

The Museum of Hyrule

~ Kathryn ~ Leave a comment

I was recently thinking about what a modern version of Hyrule would look like, and I was imagining how fun it would be for Link to encounter the Master Sword during a class trip to a museum. When I started sketching, however, what I ended up drawing is a reincarnation of Ganon seeing his crown from Ocarina of Time. The moment I wanted to capture is the calm immediately before a terrible storm.

Also, as someone who loves art and history, I tend to dislike museums, but that’s another story entirely.

The Legend We Create

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The courageous hero loves the wise princess, but they are bound by their fate and must put their feelings aside for the sake of a world floating above the ruins of an ancient kingdom.

…or so the legend goes, but some storytellers have a slightly different interpretation.

The Legend We Create is a tale of mutual pining and second-chance romance on the Great Sea, as well as a meditation on how each new generation heals the wounds of history by telling their own narratives about the past. You can read this short story on AO3 (here).

This story was published in Fated: A Zelink Zine. You check out the work of the other contributors on the zine’s Twitter account (here).

Growing Up with The Legend of Zelda

~ Kathryn ~ Leave a comment

The Legend of Zelda series has been criticized for its formulaic writing, but one of the strengths of its archetypal characters is that they allow room for multiple interpretations. I was born in the same year as the Zelda series, and my perspective on these characters and their stories has shifted as I’ve grown older.

When I was a kid, I loved Link. I had no innate skill as a gamer, but I enjoyed the thrill of running wild in Hyrule. I may not have fully understood the game mechanics, but this meant I was always discovering new things. Despite my many deaths, I reveled in the certainty that I was a force of good fighting for justice, and it was comforting to know that all I had to do in order to succeed was to follow the marks on my map.  

In my late teens, I began to identify more with Princess Zelda. As my view of the world became wider, I realized that it wasn’t always the best course of action to charge forward with an unsheathed sword. I also came to understand that it was impossible for me to be a lone hero. There were times when I would be at the mercy of forces beyond my control, and sometimes I would need to rely on the strength of other people to achieve my goals.  

Now that I’m an adult, I can’t help but sympathize with Ganondorf. The world is infinitely complicated and filled with impossible decisions. Even though you may have the best of intentions, it’s inevitable that some people will see you as a villain when you challenge the status quo. If you want the power to change the world, you have to forge your own path, and no one will give you a map marked with signposted quests to complete. Still, as long as you’re making your own rules, you might as well be stylish and have gorgeous hair.

The Legend of Zelda series has become a type of modern mythology. The games continue to be relevant not just because of the strength of their gameplay, but also because of the resonance of their archetypes in the lives of the people who grow up with their stories. Instead of growing out of the Zelda series, I’ve found that I’ve grown to appreciate it more now that I can relate to the characters through multiple levels of lived experience.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

This essay and its accompanying illustration were originally published in Coin-Operated Press’s Nerd! Zine anthology. You can check out the zine on the press’s website (here).

Link Loves Revolution

~ Kathryn

After Nintendo premiered the new Breath of the Wild sequel trailer during E3, all sorts of artists rushed to draw illustrations of the mysterious hero in the sky, but all I can think about when I see these handsome young men is how Link canonically eats bugs. In this house we love our feral son, and I couldn’t resist drawing the Ponyo meme.