With almost 40 years of history, dozens of games, and a story that spans millennia across multiple consoles, figuring out the timeline for The Legend of Zelda isn't easy. While some games play fast and loose with Link's journey across the ages, several constant themes can be found in these beloved titles.

　　From 1986's The Legend of Zelda through to 2023's The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, join GameSpot as we piece together the lore and timeline of this series in this episode of Timeline, which has one of the most infamously complex chronologies in all of video games.

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　　Now Playing: The Complete LEGEND OF ZELDA Timeline Explained!

　　From time travel to time skips, prequels to sequels, and several spin-offs between major chapters in the saga, fitting all of these pieces together into a single cohesive timeline is challenging. Recent and official resources, like Hyrule Historia, have made this task easier, but at the same time, 2017's Breath of the Wild added a Ganondorf-sized spanner to the effort by blurring the lines between myths, fairy tails, and legends.

　　Does every story have a grain of truth to it that ties into the eternal legend of a hero who wields the Triforce of Courage against a relentless foe? You'll have to watch the video to find out.

　　For more on Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf before their return on May 12 for Tears of the Kingdom, you can look at the two recent trailers for the game. There's a lengthy one hosted by Zelda series producer Eiji Aonuma which breaks down several of Link's new abilities, or for something more cinematic, you can check out the final pre-launch trailer that sets the stage for Link's return.

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