Fansite Spotlight: Zelda Universe

Years Online: 16

@Zeldauniverse | Facebook.com/zeldauniverse | Zeldauniverse.net

If you’re a hardcore fan of Link and his three-decades of adventures, you’ve likely browsed the endless archives of Zelda Universe. What started off as a title-specific tribute, created to highlight the anticipated Zelda games on Nintendo 64, eventually evolved into one of the most comprehensive fansites on the web.

“Zelda Universe was created in 2001,” explained Shona Johnson, Operations and Projects Manager. “It started off as a small website primarily covering the Nintendo 64 Zelda games, but quickly grew to provide detailed coverage of all the games.” With this expansion came a new and more ambitious goal—to position Zelda Universe as a home for all Zelda fans and “a one-stop-shop for information, news, media, game guides, and the largest community of Zelda fans online.”

It is safe to say that Zelda Universe has met and exceeded that goal, with their impact transcending the online realm. “I’ve had the privilege of meeting up with many fellow community members over the years, and they have significantly impacted my life in many ways,” said David Johnson, Features Editor, who shares a surname with Shona for good reason. Meeting up with community members encouraged him to take the plunge and relocate to Seattle for work, knowing that he would already have a network of friends in the area. “I even met my wife through the Zelda community! After befriending her and growing together over many years, she spurred me to move to another country to be with her,” he continued, speaking of his spouse Shona, who he now lives with in Australia. “While many of the other fans I originally met online wouldn’t impact my life quite so significantly, those meetups have provided strong relationships that feel like familial ties that have lasted throughout the years.”

Zelda Universe’s longest-running community is that of their message boards, described as the “heart of the community”, which have been online since 2002. Evolving with the times, Zelda Universe has successfully captured a sizable social following, too. “Today, we have a really diverse and widespread community,” explained Shona. “Our site alone has communities on social media, YouTube, and we launched a Discord server a few months ago which brings back memories of old IRC channels. We’re in the process of establishing a presence on Twitch and ran our first marathon charity stream earlier this year with great community engagement.”

“We have a really diverse and widespread community.”

The fansite’s hard work earned acknowledgement from Nintendo over the years. “I sent a letter to Nintendo when I was 11 years old, asking if they would be interested in a having a Legend of Zelda game idea sent to them. Unsurprisingly they did not,” laughed David. “But now, I’ve had the chance to work directly with them on promotions and contests as well as being able to have media relations with Nintendo. The very notion that Nintendo has not only recognised our work but is excited to work with us and give us opportunities is indescribable.”

“Our site has grown large enough that we’ve been sent copies of Zelda, and sometimes other Nintendo games for review, and more recently, we’ve developed a relationship with Nintendo through our community projects,” continued Shona. “They’ve been kind enough to support and work with us on initiatives such as panels at conventions and a large fan-focused celebration of the series’ 30th anniversary. It’s hard to convey in words how incredible it is to not only have our work recognized by Nintendo but to have them coming to us with ideas and opportunities.”

There is a specific moment in Zelda Universe’s history that takes the cake, though. “We had the opportunity to interview Eiji Aonuma, longtime Zelda series producer, at E3 in 2013,” recalled Shona. “This was a major moment not only for us being able to meet someone who’s essentially an idol, but for Zelda fansites in general; traditionally only the major general gaming websites and publications had access to someone of his status.”

“It was a big deal for us to be treated with the legitimacy of a more established site and a memorable moment for all of us,” affirmed Cody Davies, Operations Director.

“It was a big deal for us to be treated with the legitimacy of a more established site and a memorable moment for all of us.”

“Second, when we finally made it through Hyrule Castle, we couldn’t figure out how to defeat the Ball and Chain Trooper. At this point, my father gave up playing entirely and left it up to my brother and me to figure out the rest of the game. After a lot of trial and error, I figured out that you could defeat the Ball and Chain Trooper by picking up pots in the nearby prison cell and throwing them at him!”

“Third, when I finally had the Master Sword and confronted Agahnim, I was totally stumped. At this point, I was frequently playing with a cousin, and we tried everything we could think of to beat Agahnim. In a moment of desperation, we figured out that the Bug-Catchers Net would reflect Agahnim’s magic! It was several years (following the release of Ocarina of Time) until we realized that you were supposed to use the Master Sword.

“These experiences figuring out the solutions to puzzles and boss strategies made me fall in love with the game, and eventually the entire series. It would take hours to write how this one game ultimately changed my life; there are countless friends, skills, and experiences I likely would have never had if I had not played A Link to the Past as a child.”

What does the Zelda franchise owe to A Link to the Past? “Everything,” according to Lindquist. “A Link to the Past is the first game to really define the ‘Zelda formula.’ Some games deviate from it, but most of the popular games in the series follow the sequence first established in A Link to the Past. The game also first introduced many of the series’ most iconic enemies and items. Who could imagine the series without the Hookshot?”

“Before A Link to the Past, Zelda was actually fairly raw and abstract,” agreed David. “The Legend of Zelda and The Adventure of Link were largely different games with different styles of combat, different progression systems, and different tools acquired over the journey. A Link to the Past is the game that really solidified that abstraction.”

A Link to the Past didn’t just deeply influence fans and future iterations, it influenced the video-game industry as a whole according to Lindquist, expressing a sentiment he shares with many gamers. “To this day 2D adventure games are measured against it and rarely are any considered its equal. It’s the very high standard that everyone strives to beat.”