Time to Twitter thread something controversial: the Zelda timeline, specifically how the Ocarina of Time alternate reality split doesn't make any sense to me. Here we go!

Premise: the timeline splits the Ocarina of Time ending into three paths. 1. Adult Link defeats Ganon. 2. Children Link and Zelda blow the whistle on Ganon before he takes over. 3. Ganon defeats Adult Link. On the surface, it looks reasonable. But it's never set well with me.

The timeline doesn't split because OoT is a choose your own adventure novel or because of the interactive nature of video games. Were it the case, every game could/would have an alternate path to represent that time you forgot to bring a potion to the final fight and game overed.

The reason there's a split here is because of a very specific time travel mechanic. Adult Link defeats Ganon but then goes back in time to relive the childhood he skipped over in order to do that. Therefore, both of those outcomes occur simultaneously. Follow me?

Throwing in a third "defeat" timeline utterly invalidates that whole thing. There are two timelines because both happen. If Link is killed, that's the ONLY timeline because he can't defeat Ganon, and he can't go back and split the timeline.

Therefore, it's impossible for all three of those things to happen. Either Link wins, and we get two timelines, or Link loses, and we get one. You can't have it both ways.

So the way I see it, the powers that be built this timeline (ca. 2011) and realized there were a whole bunch of old, 2D Zelda games that didn't fit in this new grand plan they "always" had. But in a total DBGT move, they didn't want to explicitly invalidate them either.

Hence this third timeline that can only be described as "what-if," an "Elseworlds," etc. I dunno. Quite frankly, I find that a bit insulting. For example, LttP's stated backstory dovetails so easily into OoT's plot, it feels backhanded to shove it into the junk drawer timeline.

Then, don't even get me started on what a mess it is trying to shove either Oracle game into that timeline. So this is the same Link that defeated Agahnim, but he and Zelda have never met, and practically ever bit of iconography is lifted from the recent N64 games? Puh-leeze...

Anyway, that's my rant for the evening. All the angry Star Wars fans had started to drift away, so I guess I needed to replace them with angry Zelda fans telling me how wrong I am. So, yay. Have at it, I guess. But this has been bugging me for almost 9 years now.