No force terrorizes Hyrule in the same way Ganondorf does. Other villains such as Vaati and Malladus may be powerful foes, but none match the King of Evil’s ability to electrify the spirits of gamers worldwide. There is much more to Ganondorf than meets the eye, as his fate changes and molds him drastically. His despicable legacy is one of betrayal, desire, and power: A true force to be reckoned with.

The King of Thieves’ Origins

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time’s Gerudo live in the desert, away from the lush fields of Hyrule. One man born every 100 years is chosen as the ruler of the otherwise all-female tribe. Ganondorf, whose soul is an incarnation of the Demon King Demise, is the current Gerudo King, and schemes to conquer Hyrule. He earns the trust of King Daphnes Nohansen Hyrule before doing away with the regent. In seven short years, he transforms Hyrule into a world of monsters and misery.

The Gerudo are no better off when Ganondorf rules Hyrule. One would think that the Gerudo would occupy Hyrule, a far more pleasant land than their harsh desert. The opposite turns out true- Ganon’s Hyrule is so dangerous that one would need a death wish to venture out of the desert. Hyrule Castle Town is infested with zombie-like Redeads, Kokiri Village is full of monsters, Death Mountain’s residents are being fed to a dragon, and Zora’s Domain is frozen solid. No matter where you go in Hyrule, Ganondorf’s impact is tremendous. The King of Evil’s presence looms over the entire world, even when he is far away.

One could read this as a cautionary tale of the dangers of a patriarchal society. Tradition dictates that one king must rule the Gerudo, yet they do not benefit from this law. Their rough living conditions do not improve regardless of how much power Ganondorf obtains. The message is clear: Allowing someone to rule based on their gender rather than their qualifications will result in evil and corruption.

Ganondorf’s Nostalgia for Hyrule

Wind Waker‘s Ganondorf returns with a vengeance after his defeat in Ocarina of Time, and his evil is so great that only the goddesses can stop him. They flood Hyrule, leaving its residents to live on islands made from the mountains of Hyrule. 100 years later, Ganon forms a plan to use the mystical Triforce to return Hyrule to its original state. His methods are subtle as he works in the shadows to accomplish his goal, only showing himself when necessary. He sends monsters to kidnap girls that could be the descendent of Princess Zelda, in hopes of obtaining her piece of the Triforce.

If we take his words at face value, Ganondorf comes off as sympathetic in Wind Waker. He claims that his goal in Ocarina of Time was to leave the desert for Hyrule’s hospitable land. He bemoans the state of the world, despising the sea that covers the old kingdom. He even curses the gods that stole his world from him. None of what he says is true, though. People are happy in the current world, and we see in Ocarina of Time that he did nothing to help the Gerudo. His worldview in Wind Waker is one shaped by rose-tinted glasses; he has convinced himself that his goals in both past and present were for good.

Chosen by the Gods

Ocarina of Time ends with Link returning to the past, creating a split in the timeline. Where Wind Waker follows Ganondorf’s defeat by Link’s hand, Twilight Princess shows a world where the king is warned of Ganondorf’s assassination plot before it happens and orders the Gerudo King’s execution. This execution is cut short when Ganon discovers he has the mark of the Goddess Din on his hand, granting him unimaginable power. As the audience, we know that this is because he obtained it in the future that Link came from, and Link’s time travel resulted in Ganondorf having the Triforce of Power in this new timeline. Ganondorf, however, does not have this context.

Twilight Princess’s Ganondorf contrasts with Wind Waker’s interestingly. While Wind Waker’s Ganon hates the gods for destroying the kingdom he covets, Twilight Princess believes the gods chose him.  If the mark of the Triforce of Power suggests divine intervention, that emboldens his evil motivations as righteous. His tactics of manipulation to receive power, regardless of how many people it hurts, are in full force. He tricks the Usurper King Zant of the Twili race into believing that he is a god, and uses Zant to cruelly conquer the world.

In the end, even Zant realizes what Ganondorf’s true colors are. When Ganon is about to die, he looks up towards the sky and sees a vision of Zant, who snaps his own neck. In that moment, Ganondorf dies. It all became clear during his final fight with Link- Ganon had no intention of helping Zant’s people, nor was his power as limitless as he presented. All he was was a mortal tripped out on power that he happened to obtain by chance. Twilight Princess is all about how power can corrupt people, and Ganondorf is no exception.

The Uniqueness of Ganondorf’s Arc

The Legend of Zelda’s timeline depicts the history of a world across hundreds of years and multiple timelines. In this depiction, we can see how the series’ most memorable villain develops. Ganondorf goes from a cruel ruler to one who has deluded himself in nostalgia in one timeline, but from a failed revolutionary to a drunk-on-power narcissist in another. No matter which timeline he is in, he is an astronomical force to be reckoned with. All of this makes Ganondorf a stand-out villain whose very name evokes terror.

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