A Zelda fan has shared an image showing much Link's design from The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom differs from his Twilight Princess counterpart. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is the latest installment in Nintendo's acclaimed and long-running Legend of Zelda franchise, but while it introduces many new concepts to the series, it is also firmly rooted in long-standing traditions.
Since the very first Legend of Zelda game released in the 1980s, mute protagonist Link has been the hero of the franchise. Game after game, players take on various incarnations of Link as he fights to save Hyrule and Princess Zelda from the wrath of Ganon and other villains. Link's design has changed dramatically over the years, which is no surprise as the series originated on an 8-bit platform.
Even with the shift to 3D graphics, Link has received drastic new looks from one entry in the series to the next. The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker introduced a cel-shaded, cartoon take on Link, whereas The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess went for a more realistic take on the character. The two most recent entries in the series, Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom, go for something in-between, as evidenced by a comparison shared by Reddit user giaanhpham.
As seen in the images, the link from The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is more cartoony in appearance than his Twilight Princess counterpart, whereas Twilight Princess Link goes for a more realistic look. Tears of the Kingdom Link is also significantly smaller, whereas Twilight Princess Link has serious muscle mass. The Reddit user pointed out that the two Links live very different lives, with Tears of the Kingdom Link utilizing all kinds of technology to get around while Twilight Princess' Link works on a ranch at the beginning of the game.
However, one could easily make the argument that Tears of the Kingdom Link gets a lot more exercise than Twilight Princess Link. While it's true that Tears of the Kingdom Link has all kinds of impressive technology at his disposal, he also spends a great deal of time climbing straight up the sides of cliffs. Tears of the Kingdom Link also has significantly more ground to cover, whereas the world inhabited by Twilight Princess Link is much smaller - not to mention he can explore it as a wolf at times.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is out now, exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.