How Tolkien Inspired The Legend of Zelda

The works of J.R.R. Tolkien have inspired countless works of fantasy. How much did The Lord of the Rings affect the ideas behind and the development of The Legend of Zelda, and its sequels?

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[Zeltik]

Thanks for watching! Are you a Tolkien fan?

[Adamadam-zcpe]

I can’t believe you forgot to mention how the master sword glowing around evil was directly inspired by Sting glowing around orcs!

[hockeybum]

No way…my favorite Zelda YouTuber talking about my 2 favorite fantasy series. Middle Earth lore and Zelda lore, I’m all for it!

[jacobydefense]

Another influence: Demise is to Ganondorf somewhat as Morgoth is to Sauron. Demise and Morgoth are both the root of evil in their worlds. They are both godlike and large in stature. They both gather many servants to themselves and create legions of monsters (Bokoblins and Orcs). And both were sealed away- Demise into the Master Sword, and Morgoth into The Timeless void. Both have a successor, one who walked down the same destructive path: For Demise, this was Ganondorf, who lost his mind in his quest for power in the Downfall timeline, his life in the Child Timeline, and was turned to stone through his covetousness in the Adult Timeline. For Morgoth, it is written, “after Morgoth’s defeat he [Sauron] arose like a shadow of Morgoth’s malice, walking down the same destructive path into the void”. Further, like how Ganon lost his mind in the downfall timeline, Sauron lost his physical form during the second age. Ganondorf’s becoming more and more like Demise, even up to the level of similarity in Tears of The Kingdom, echoes Sauron’s changes over the second and third ages from one of the greatest Miar in Arda to a spirit gone mad in its lust to gain all power and rule over the Earth, just as Morgoth before him.
There’s even one more connection: both Ganondorf and Sauron draw their power from the elder demon. Ganondorf’s power is somewhat related to Demise’s (or the Demon Tribe’s) curse, though the extent of this connection isn’t clear, the Wild era games prove there is some connection, and Morgoth dispersed his power into the ground, essentially, Middle Earth was to Morgoth as the Ring was to Sauron. So when Sauron was in the Third Age, he drew on Morgoth’s power remaining in the earth.

[MatrixEvolution]

I always loved how Zelda is a blend of Tolkien-esque high fantasy with a mix of Japanese culture and folklore. Hopefully the Zelda movie will remember this aspect to keep it feeling unique.

[Shoeknight]

Pratchett's comment about the mountain is such an interesting approach to analyzing influence and derivative

[JamisonHingle]

I feel like Zelda is very much so based on not only Tolkien, but also - Arthurian Literature (i.e knights and Excalibur being a thing in Zelda)
-Traditional Fairtytails (Link is obviously based on Peter Pan, Zelda 2 is based on Sleeping Beauty)

[CharlesTate-Goff]

As a Tolkien and Zelda fan this video made my day! 😊

[bigotis]

Link's story in OOT is much like Aragorn. Both were humans who at a young age were left to live with another race (the kokiri in Link's case, and the Elves in Aragorn's case)

[Plok]

5:36 I never thought about how well Legend of Zelda music fits so well with these scenes from The Lord of The Rings until now. Great video, Zeltik!

[GreenOfFields]

Twilight Princess is my own personal favorite game of all time and I find it near-criminal that it never received a sequel, especially since one was in the works and was scrapped in favor of a in-name-only tech demo for a barely used peripheral.
What makes it my favorite, however, isn’t the dark and gritty atmosphere but the way the game balances big, epic set pieces with the smaller moments. As Link takes down bosses, dismantles the enemy’s infrastructure and aids the people of Hyrule, those people start traveling. Gorons come down from the mountains to aid Kakariko in rebuilding, Zora travel to Eldin for vacation.
Much like in the post-climax chapters of Lord of the Rings, book and film, these moments help to show the impact of the hero’s quest: peace is returning to the world, and the simple day-to-day has replaced the dark whispers from before the journeys beginning and I don’t think either The Lord of the Rings or The Legend of Zelda would be the cultural juggernauts of the fantasy genre without that balance.

[TheMegaMarshtomp]

Just this year I've been delving into J.R.R. Tolkien's writings, and I've been repeatedly shocked by just how frequently I see things that I could swear are Zelda mechanics and events. It's actually mind boggling just how similar the two are.

[glowstickofdestiny]

"I tried to save the Shire, and it has been saved, but not for me. It must often be so, Sam, when things are in danger: some one has to give them up, lose them, so that others may keep them."
- p. 383 of _The Return of the King_

Of course there was too much ground to cover to dwell on one subject for long, but I think the parallels between Frodo and the Hero of Time definitely run deeper than you've already mentioned. Not only do they both lose their own innocence because of their quest, they're also both unable to enjoy the rewards of their efforts. Frodo can no longer find joy in Middle-earth due to the wounds he suffered, so he has to leave the Shire and depart to Valinor. Link's discovery of his Hylian origin means he can no longer live in Kokiri Forest, and even being sent back to his childhood means he cannot live in the Hyrule he fought so hard to save (ruined as it was). In this respect, I think Tolkien's Christianity shines through: representing the ultimate form of heroism being self-sacrifice for the good of others.
I could also go into how details like the loss and replacement of a great tree in the hero's home and his departure from his closest friend at the end of the story give both a characteristic sense of melancholy and yet solemn optimism, but I've gotta remember that this is a youtube comment and not an essay lol

[TheFox-dx]

I love the way Zelda interprets things I know gorons are supposed to be like dwarves and Zora are supposed to be like elves but they're unique in a way that never felt copy and paste it or uninspired

[rajgus]

I've been watching your channel since the beginning, back during the zelda wiiu speculation days. And coming up to ten years, I have to say you never stopped putting out the best presented, concise and detailed Zelda videos. They've all been a joy to watch and scratched that itch of looking into the series with fine tooth comb and discovering and speculating on the buildings of such a rich, magical world. Thank you man!

[sirhenrymorgan]

Fun fact: Tolkien HATED Disney's adaptation of Snow White, and vowed that Disney would never be allowed to adapt his works.

Also, I find it fascinating that Zelda never fully dropped its Christian themes. While the explicit existence of Jesus has long been abandoned, the concept of three aspects in a single power can still be found in the three Golden Goddesses making up the Triforce. And the conflict between Hylia and Demise can be viewed as akin to the struggle between Heaven and Hell, God and Satan. Allmighty goodness vs. unfathomable evil. Etc.

Of course, as you said in the video, it's still heavily mixed in with other things, like Eastern religions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Shinto, Confucianism, Taoism, etc.), classic anime like Ghibli, classic stories like Peter Pan (who directly inspired Link; remember how Pan fights his own shadow?), the developers' own childhood adventures, etc. Like how the Gerudo are a weird mix of Greek myth (Amazons) and Middle Eastern culture. All coming together in a wonderful package that appeals to all kinds of people!

[johnsonhansen]

Saw the thumbnail and immediately got hype. Love the crossing of Zelda and Tolkein.

[linksgranny]

I felt like the malice eyes in BOTW looked so much like Sauron's eye

[qvmcdwo]

One thing i think should be mentioned is the master sword in botw and totk, glowing blue near malice/gloom is a verrrry obvious sting parallel and in totk it’s pretty reminiscent of narsil/anduril with how it gets destroyed and reforged 1000s of years later

[LightriverArt]

I cannot like this video enough. I like listening to your insight and passion for Zelda generally and have watched for years but I have discussed Zelda and Lord of the Rings together with every important person in my life and it is so nice to hear others with that combined interest and appreciation.

I didn't know you were a Tolkein fan, (and perhaps you simply researched it for the video but it doesn't come across that way at all), but this just makes me enjoy your channel even more.