Pulling a sword from the stone is a memorable motif that spans different mythologies, representing a transference of power to the chosen hero of legend, and has made its way into The Legend of Zelda series. This wasn’t the first time I pulled a sword out of a stone in a video game, so I thought I had a pretty good idea of where this was heading. I was wrong. Pulling the sword out and watching the pedestal light up with the triforce icon - it felt right, and looked amazing. However, in Ocarina of Time, obtaining the Master Sword is both a blessing and a curse. It allowed Link to wield the blade of evil’s bane, but only after sealing him away for seven long years. And it was then I learned with a shock that this was Ganondorf’s plan all along.

Ever since teaming up with Princess Zelda, I felt like I had pulled one over on the King of Thieves. I was out collecting mystical stones and unlocking the Door of Time, and it never occurred to me that my goals perfectly aligned with the antagonist until it was too late. Watching Ganondorf gloat to my face and laugh at my confusion was a big moment for me: I screwed up. He got to enter the Sacred Realm and take the Triforce, and I got to take a very long nap.

Awakening seven years later as Link in his adult form, it was hard to take in what had transpired in that time without a hero. The skies were dark and ugly, Castle Town was a smoldering redead-infested wreck, and the castle itself had become a bastion of evil. Guilt is a powerful thing to convey, and Ocarina of Time did it well, making me feel directly responsible for my part in transforming Hyrule into the twisted mess it had become. Things got really dark in Hyrule: Gorons were being fed to a dragon, Zoras were trapped in ice, and this was all because Link was too young to be the Hero of Time. There are points like these in any story that can fill you with hesitation, but it also marks a turning point. To me, I felt more determined than ever to make things right. I owed it to the people of Hyrule I met in my adventures, and I owed it to myself to put that Master Sword to use and save the world, because I was the Hero of Time now, and there was evil that needed banishing.