One of the questions that Legend of Zelda fans have always asked, especially for the 2017 release, is: “How old is Link?”. Well, we have seen a Young Link, an Adult Link, a Toon Link, and even a Stalfos Link. And yes, the Stalfos that teaches sword skills in Twilight Princess is the Hero of Time. However, we have never seen a Soldier Link unless you consider Hyrule Warriors canon, which is not. Take that into account, and the question about Link’s age becomes more complex. So, how old is Link in the world of Divine Beasts, Breath of the Wild? Let us glide around Hyrule field while avoiding Guardians, and let’s find out, shall we?
How Old Is Link in Breath of the Wild?
As you can see in the game, there is a difference between the Link we see in Breath of the Wild to, say, the Link we see in Ocarina of Time (Young Link) or Majora’s Mask. At least he seems to be a teenager and no longer a child. So what is Link’s age in Breath of the Wild? Well, up to the release of BOTW, which was a very big one if you ask us, Link’s age has been a matter of speculation and theorization. Not anymore, though! We can deduct Link’s age thanks to a flashback where we are met with Zelda praying at the Spring of Wisdom. There, it is explicitly said that Zelda is turning 17. If we take Zelda’s age as a metric, then we can safely say that Link’s age is around 17 as well. However, there is more to this question, of course.
While Link is biologically 17, chronologically, he is much older than he appears. Why is that? Well, if you recall, Link was badly injured during the war with Calamity Ganon. So much so that the only way he could be saved was to position him in the Chamber of Resurrection. This chamber acts like a cryogenic chamber of sorts since it puts Link in suspended animation for a total of 100 years. So, taking his starting age of 17 chronologically, Link is 117 years old. Biologically though, if we consider that every single cell of Link’s body was prevented from aging even a day, then he is 17 years old and will be able to live a complete life without worrying about premature death.
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And there you go! Apparently, there is no minimum age to become the hero of Hyrule, again. After all, Link has been a child hero for many of Legend of Zelda games in his multiple incarnations as the Triforce of Courage bearer. And to think we as normal 17-year-old kids only cared about video games and… oh well, some things never change.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is available now on Nintendo Switch.
