No, it’s not Link and Tingle after doing the Fusion dance (thank goodness). It’s a new fighter for Hyrule Warriors Legends, the upcoming 3DS game from Nintendo. Linkle looks very much like the female version of Link and battles using dual crossbows. Her special attack is a spin kick, similar to Link’s own spin attack.
Linkle was announced via Nintendo Direct. Hailing from a small village with lots of Cuccos, she’s a hunter who can fend off enemies from all directions, both at long and close range. Due to her appearance and name, fans have been quick to speculate what her inclusion in the game means for future Zelda titles if anything.
@NintendoAmerica I’m glad there’s finally a female version of link, I just hope that she’s included in future canon Zelda games!
— Syms (@Samjohn95) November 13, 2015
Based on her weapon(s) of choice, I myself doubt this is truly a female Link. Linkle is her own character who is based on Link, not an actual gender-bend. In that regard, including her in a canon Zelda title would essentially be the same as including Lana from the Wii U Hyrule Warriors game as both are original characters in Warriors. However, being her own separate character in Warriors doesn’t mean there won’t be a choice between male and female Link in future Zelda titles.
With regards to character choice, I feel the female Link concept has rekindled recently in very large part because so many people thought they were seeing a girl in the teaser trailer for Zelda Wii U. I, for my own part, thought it was very clear that was Link. And while I think Linkle’s inclusion is great, I’m skeptical about assuming she’ll be playable or selectable in the main series. In fact, I honestly doubt it. If she is, though, I’ll have one heck of a decision to make.
