Smash History: The Legend of Zelda

Five characters from the hugely popular Legend of Zelda franchise make their way into Super Smash Bros. Brawl as playable fighters. From the get-go, you can play as Link, Zelda, and Sheik. Ganondorf and Toon Link appear as hidden combatants.

Link
First Appearance: The Legend of Zelda (NES, 1987)
Latest Appearance: Link's Crossbow Training (Wii, 2007)

Link, the silent protagonist of The Legend of Zelda series, is one of twelve characters to appear in all three Smash Bros. installments. In Brawl, he sports a look reflecting that of his mature, subdued Twilight Princess design. While not drastically changed from Melee in terms of play style, Link's Spin Attack can now be charged, and his Boomerang has been replaced with Twilight Princess's Gale Boomerang, which sends out a gust of wind that draws the enemy in towards you. Link's Final Smash, the Triforce Slash, is an original sword slicing combo with inspiration drawn directly from his cameo appearance in the GameCube version of Soul Calibur II.

Zelda
First Appearance: The Legend of Zelda (NES, 1987)
Latest Appearance: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Wii, 2006)

Zelda, the princess of which the series is eponymously named, makes her second appearance in Smash Bros. as a playable fighter, donning her look from Twilight Princess. Although Zelda has never fought directly in any of the Legend of Zelda games, her special attacks in Brawl (as well as Melee) are magic-based maneuvers that call forth the power of the three Golden Goddesses: Din, Farore, and Nayru, named after and inspired by the spells she teaches Link in Ocarina of Time. Zelda's Final Smash, the Light Arrow, is taken from Link's horseback battle against Ganondorf in Twilight Princess, in which Zelda fires off Light Arrows in hopes of toppling the mighty King of Evil.

Sheik
Only Appearance: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64, 1998)

Sheik, the relatively obscure, gender-confused transformation of Zelda, somehow makes her (his?) second appearance in a Smash Bros. game. This time, her appearance is based on preliminary art from Twilight Princess (she was slated to be in that game, but cut for reasons unknown). Obtainable through Zelda's special move Transform, Sheik offers an array of stealthy attacks and ninja-like speed, making her one of the more popular characters amongst Smash fans. Sheik's Final Smash is... a modified version of the Light Arrow. A bit lazy on the developers' part, but given the fact that Sheik didn't do very much in Ocarina of Time, there's not exactly a large pool to draw move ideas from. Most of her attacks in the game are completely random and original anyhow, so a little Light Arrow never hurt anyone. They could have done something with that damn harp she carried around in Ocarina of Time, though.

Ganondorf
First Appearance: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (N64, 1998)
Latest Appearance: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (Wii, 2006)

The Great King of Evil, the King of Gerudo, whatever you want to call him, he's Ganondorf, and he's completely bad ass. Appearing as a hidden character for a second time in the series, he, like the previous three characters, sports his Twilight Princess design. In Melee, Ganondorf was essentially a "clone" of F-Zero racer Captain Falcon (they both had the same attacks, but with different properties), and in Brawl, things aren't looking much better. While some attacks have changed (for example, his side special move looks to be some sort of magical Darth Vader-esque choke), the core of his move set remains the same. While many fans clamored for some sword-based offense from Twilight Princess, I am pleased that his Final Smash sees him transform into the beast form Ganon and rush at the opponent. Pretty awesome. Here's to hoping in the next Smash, we see a little more swordplay and a little less FALCON PAAAAUNCH!

Toon Link
First Appearance: The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (GCN, 2003)
Latest Appearance: The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (DS, 2007)

From The Wind Waker comes the oddball of the bunch, a cel-shaded incarnation of everyone's favorite green tunic-wearing hero, Link. Similar to Melee's Young Link (the child Link found in Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask), Toon Link provides a "cloned" move set taken from the standard Link, which sadly includes his Triforce Slash Final Smash. Many were hoping for some Wind Waker-exclusive attacks, like a Deku Leaf gliding recovery, or a wind wakin' Final Smash that raises the seas, but alas. At least he uses the Wind Waker (the physical wand) in a taunt.