Link (The Legend of Zelda)

Link (リンク Rinku?) is the fictional protagonist of Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda video game series created by Shigeru Miyamoto. The Legend of Zelda is one of Nintendo's flagship game franchises, which sold over 47 million copies worldwide as of 2007. Their enduring popularity has led to many incarnations of the Legend of Zelda story and of its Link character. The character's first appearance took place in the 1986 video game The Legend of Zelda, where he was portrayed by a two-dimensional sprite; in later releases Link's appearance has been conveyed by a computer-generated image. The character Link has been featured in other video games from Nintendo, on Nintendo's merchandising, on comic books, and even on a television show about The Legend of Zelda series. Link was also honored with a star on the Walk of Game in 2005 alongside Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog.

Link is described as a young Hylian boy from the fictional land of Hyrule. His age varies depending on the game, incarnations usually vary from preteen to the late teens. He is also one of the few left-handed protagonists in video games, although in the Wii version of Twilight Princess, Link is right-handed. Link often journeys through the realm of Hyrule, defeating evil forces and Hyrule's nemesis Ganon, also known as Ganondorf. To defeat Ganon, Link usually needs the mystical Master Sword (the only exception is that in the original Legend of Zelda, the sword of evil's bane was called the Magic Sword), which is often obtained after many trials and battles using other swords and shields, as well as auxiliary weaponry such as boomerangs, bombs, and a bow and arrows. Although young, Link is portrayed as a great courageous warrior who has (or develops, depending on the game) a close relationship with Princess Zelda, whom he has repeatedly rescued. In several games in the series, Link must learn how to play a musical instrument that usually features in the game's plot and can magically unlock several spells.