The Legend of Zelda franchise has been around longer than a good chunk of its fan base. The majority of the games have received critical acclaim from fans and critics alike, and the series has managed to reinvent itself when needed while retaining elements of what made older classics so enjoyable. Despite all the notoriety, there are still some things about the series that certain fans or newcomers get wrong.
You’d think that it wouldn’t happen anymore, but some people still manage to mistake Link for Zelda. You can see why newcomers would make this mistake, as it’s common to name a game series after the main protagonist. But really, spending five minutes with just about any game in the series will clear up that confusion right away. Or at least it should. Here are some truly hilarious memes that sum up fans’ frustration perfectly.
10 Say It Again
Who’d have thought that a simple copy and paste could get its point across so clearly? Whoever made this is definitely frustrated with the whole situation, but can you really blame them?
This has been something that people have been getting wrong for years. Of course dedicated fans are going to get a little tired of it at one point. The Pulp Fiction reference does fit in well with everything though. So that’s a pretty nice touch.
9 Please Share
Hey there fellow Zelda fan, are you tired of people confusing the titular character of your favourite gaming franchise with its iconic main character? Then please, help spread awareness within the gaming community by sharing the image above.
No, but seriously, this is a pretty funny way to go about it. While some fans get frustrated with the mix-up, who ever made this meme seems to have gone with a more empathetic approach. Whether or not it’s actually effective aside, it still manages to get a laugh out of us.
8 Wait What?
Jeez how many cases of mistaken identity can someone go through before enough is enough? First he was mistaken for Zelda, and now Luigi? They aren’t even part of the same series for crying out loud!
There are so many different iterations of Link, that it must be hard for people other than fans of the series to keep up. So that’s one possible explanation to the whole mistaken identity issue. But boy, does this happen more than it should.
7 The Rage Is Real
A lot of these memes focus on Link, and while it’s pretty uncanny for a game protagonist to be this famous and still have his name be confused with another character, it can’t be that fun for Zelda either. She often plays a big role in the narrative as well, so this whole mistaken identity business is just as annoying for her character as it is for Link.
Playing off of her character in BotW, this meme really manages to put a new spin on the whole issue. And though it’s short and sweet, it gets its point across well. You can’t help but let out a laugh at the sight of that clenched fist.
6 Get Me Outta Here
This can’t be real. Not everything you read online is genuine, and after having perused this brief conversation, this is definitely a case of trolling. Or is it? E already know that there are people who genuinely think that Link is Zelda, so this whole exchange could actually have happened between two very oblivious people.
If that’s actually the case, then the Futurama reference sums it all up perfectly. What really makes this so bad is how sure these two sound with what they’re saying. If they only knew…well they probably wouldn’t care much either way.
5 What If…
Ok, so you get this a lot online. There are always members of fandoms that want to see what certain characters would look like if they had their gender swapped. In fact, it’s something that you see a lot in fan art.
The irony here isn’t lost on us or Link. It sounds like something a clueless newcomer to the series would say. The smug face here says all that needs to be said. When will people get it right?
4 Link, Link, Zelda
The main issue with this whole mistaken identity debacle lies with people who aren’t very familiar with the series. You won’t find someone who’s played any of the games through getting the characters wrong in this way. It all comes down to whether or not someone is a fan of the series.
Forget the casual fan, even someone who simply knows about The Legend of Zelda will probably be able to tell you who’s who – at least when it comes to the series’ main character. You can tell that whoever made this meme was venting a little when they out this up.
3 A Loving Mother
Being a parent is tough. It means making hard decisions – and in this case, this mother might’ve taken things a little too far in correcting her son. Then again, it’s a pretty big rookie mistake. The kid has to learn sometime.
No, but really, things got dark quick here. It’s a funny depiction of the whole situation, but you definitely feel bad for chuckling here.
2 Clearing Things Up
This seems like the most straightforward way to clear things up. Maybe Nintendo should actually have the characters wear these signs in promotional images? Nah, that probably wouldn’t be enough for people to get it right anyways.
This one gets bonus points for bringing in the needless confusion that is the Zelda timelines. Yeah, some who are less familiar with the games are inclined to think that certain iterations of Link are Link and Zelda’s kid. That’s not how any of this works.
1 All Four
This one really manages to get you from the start. It gets right to the point, and the suddenness of how it’s handled is what makes it so funny.
There’s no room for error here either. If only more people would have seen this meme circulating around, we wouldn’t have so many issues with this.