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What is the Legend of Zelda?

A revolutionary game by the name of Legend of Zelda was released over 30 years ago. The game centered around the quest of the legendary hero, Link, clad in his green tunic as he explored the world, collected the triforce, and rescued Princess Zelda by defeating the evil Ganon.



Since then, the series has captured the pieces of hearts of millions of people around the world. With over 20 games across more than ten different consoles, the Legend of Zelda series is home to some of the most critically acclaimed and well beloved games of all time. The series is so popular that three different Legend of Zelda projects have already reached 10,000 supporters on Lego Ideas, although they did not pass review. The name of this project is a play on the title of the third game in the series, Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.



Why Legend of Zelda?



The Legend of Zelda is owned by famous video game company Nintendo. Nintendo began 128 years ago as a company making Hanafuda cards. Although Nintendo experimented with many business ventures, in the 1960's they tried their hands as a toy company. As computers began more and more common, Nintendo made history by entering the video game and consumer electronic market and releasing the Nintendo Entertainment System (the Famicom in Japan). Since then Nintendo has constantly innovated and shaped the video game industry into what it is today. Today, Nintendo is one of the "big three" video game console developers, along with Sony and Microsoft.



Nintendo brings a heavy focus on making games that are fun for people of all ages. Their games are creative, colorful, and imaginative. In many ways, Nintendo's business philosophies align with Lego's. The Legend of Zelda series in particular focuses on presenting players with a sense of exploration and adventure. I believe these principles provide a perfect fit for the Lego Company.



Why might this Legend of Zelda project succeed where the others failed?



Veterans of Lego Ideas (or Cuusoo as it was once called,) will quickly remember the three Legend of Zelda projects that have previously been reviewed by Lego. All three were rejected during the review phase. There's many reasons a project can be rejected, but the three previous Zelda projects all have one thing in common: They were originally created with the need for a new piece for Link's hair and hat. Since then, Lego Ideas has implemented a no-new-piece rule. This project does not need any new pieces.



Also, I believe this would be a fantastic time for Nintendo to partner with Lego. In the past, Nintendo has been reluctant to partner with other companies to release items based off of their franchises. In just the past few years that has completely changed and now Nintendo is actively looking to expand their audience by partnering with other companies. In just a couple weeks time Nintendo will be releasing a brand new console with a brand new Zelda game, and a set by the most popular toy company in the world would be an excellent way for Nintendo to expand their audience.



What's in the set?

The design of the set is heavily based on the original Link sprite from the 1986 Legend of Zelda game. I meticulously analyzed Nintendo's own 30th anniversary 8-bit Link Amiibo for optimal accuracy. Getting the project to look so good took a bit of work, as Lego bricks are not perfectly cuboidal and I wanted to minimize exposed studs. Nevertheless, I worked the dimensions out and here is results.



The project is around 500-600 pieces with the stand, which has a simple design in order to minimize piece count. Many of the pieces are small and simple pieces, typically less expensive, and the piece count could be reduced as the designers refined the set. I think a final price point of $40-50 is well within reason.



Although the current project shows only a stand and brick-built classic Link figure, I think a minifigure of either classic Link or a modern incarnation could be included, using either the Lego Christmas Elf hairpiece or a recolored version of Peter Pan's hairpiece. These pieces were not in wide use when the other three Legend of Zelda projects were proposed. The Link minigure could come with a Hylian shield, the Master Sword, and a 3 x 4 plate as a stand. The brick-built figure and the stand come out to roughly 100 mm X 100 mm x 200 mm, or 4" x 4" x 8"



If you like this project, check out my other projects on Lego Ideas!