After 40 Years, No Zelda Game Has Influenced the Series…

It's hard to believe it, but we've officially reached The Legend of Zelda's 40th year as a franchise, with its anniversary landing on February 21, 2026, exactly four decades to the day after the very first game was released on the NES. As Nintendo continues to put out new entries even today that achieve critical success, this means Zelda retains its spot in an exclusive club of only a handful of IPs that have lasted as long as it has. Much of this is due to how faithful Nintendo has been to evolving the franchise's formula, regardless of how comfortable its most dedicated fans are with where it was before. However, despite how much it has evolved since its origins, The Legend of Zelda still rests on its most influential entry—and it's not Ocarina of Time.

When discussions come up about what the most important Zelda game is, the easy answer is Ocarina of Time. After all, it's not only responsible for influencing the gaming industry at large with its narrative, exploration, and gameplay mechanics, but it's also the current Guinness World Record holder for the greatest game ever made.

But the truth is, it's likely Ocarina of Time wouldn't have succeeded if it weren't standing on the shoulders of an entry released less than a decade before it. While it did become the blueprint for the next generation of Zelda games to follow, it relied heavily on the foundation established by the SNES classic: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.

Zelda Wouldn't Be What It Is Without A Link to the Past

Several Zelda games like Ocarina of Time and even Breath of the Wild have been acknowledged for their innovation and setting new standards for the franchise, but none of them come close to A Link to the Past when narrowing down which entry has truly had the most influence. Released on the SNES in 1991, this defining title was Nintendo's answer to the disaster that was Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link, which attempted to take the series into RPG territory and failed in its execution. What ultimately made A Link to the Past such an important entry was how it introduced a multitude of elements that, to this day, are still in use by the franchise—elements that even breakthrough titles like Ocarina of Time were founded upon.

Everything Zelda: A Link to the Past Introduced That Went on to Become Series Staples

THE MASTER SWORD — The first appearance in the series, introduced as a legendary blade tied to destiny and worthiness.
THE DUAL-WORLD SYSTEM — The first use of a parallel overworld that directly mirrors and alters gameplay and progression.
THE SACRED REALM — Introduced as a divine plane connected to the Triforce and the corruption of evil.
TRIFORCE SPLIT INTO POWER, WISDOM, AND COURAGE — A Link to the Past was the first to define the Triforce as three virtues with thematic meaning.
KAKARIKO VILLAGE — A Link to the Past was the first game in the series to feature the staple village that still appears today.
SEVERAL ICONIC ITEMS — Hookshot, Pegasus Boots, Fire Rod, Ice Rod, Magic Mirror, and Book of Mudora.
GANONDORF AS GANON'S ORIGIN — Introduced via backstory as a Gerudo thief who becomes Ganon, establishing the villain's mythology.
HEART PIECES COLLECTIBLES — The first appearance of Heart Pieces as optional fragments that permanently increase health.
DUNGEON-GATED NARRATIVE PROGRESSION — Multi-dungeon story arcs that gate progression through symbolic objectives and rescues.
VISUALLY DISTINCT THEMED DUNGEONS — A Link to the Past introduced dungeons with visually distinct themes.
OVERWORLD STATE CHANGE TIED TO NARRATIVE — The Dark World visually and mechanically reflects the result of Ganon's corruption.

A Link to the Past Was a Much-Needed Course Correction

When A Link to the Past launched in 1991, it hadn't cemented itself as the most important Zelda game ever made, simply because its influence wasn't yet felt in the titles that followed. Instead, it was seen as a much-needed course correction for a franchise that had briefly lost its footing. Coming off the divisive reception to Zelda 2, expectations were naturally cautious, and Nintendo was under pressure to prove that the series still had life in its bones. Early reviews of A Link to the Past weren't necessarily about reinvention as much as relief, though, with critics praising the game for returning to the top-down perspective of the original while drastically improving it, as well as its scale, progression, and overall design. It was widely considered a true sequel to the first Zelda game on NES, and that alone mattered a great deal at the time.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past sold approximately 4.61 million copies worldwide on its original SNES release, making it one of the top-selling Super Nintendo games and a major commercial success for the franchise.

As a result, the game sold millions, became one of the SNES' standout releases, and was frequently bundled with the system, putting it in the hands of players who may not have even gone looking for a Zelda game in the first place. Much of its reputation spread organically, with players talking about it at school, sharing secrets they found, and slowly realizing just how deep this A Link to the Past-sized rabbit hole goes. But even with all that praise, A Link to the Past wasn't immediately untouchable, nor was it considered a once-in-a-generation leap the way later entries would be. Rather, it earned back the trust of Zelda fans long enough to carry the series into the next game, Link's Awakening on the Game Boy, and then the next after that, Ocarina of Time on the Nintendo 64.

A Link to the Past Is to Zelda What Epona Is to Link

Link can walk on his own, and he has always been able to. But once his faithful steed Epona enters the picture, his journey changes. She gets him where he needs to go faster, opens up paths that would otherwise feel distant or impractical, and has proven herself to be a reliable presence that Link can count on when he can't find his footing. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past serves that same purpose for the entire Zelda series itself. The franchise could have continued without it, but it wouldn't have traveled nearly as far or as efficiently without what it offered.

What ultimately made A Link to the Past such an important entry was how it introduced a multitude of elements that, to this day, are still in use by the franchise—elements that even breakthrough titles like Ocarina of Time were founded upon.

This is the game that gave Zelda its eternal blueprint. It's where the Master Sword first entered the picture, not just as a simple weapon upgrade, but as a core element of the series' narrative. It's where Kakariko Village was introduced, and even if it has had plenty of uncomfortable moments throughout the franchise's history, the fact that it continues to show up is comforting in and of itself. A Link to the Past is also where Ganon was given a true identity as Ganondorf, transforming him from a mere final boss into a character whose corruption came to define the world of Hyrule itself. Essentially, A Link to the Past made it easier for every future Zelda game to go further.

Even Zelda's progression and space were established in the SNES icon. The concept of visually distinct themed dungeons was a first for the series in A Link to the Past, and the series has returned to that philosophy again and again, where each location had a clear identity tied to mechanics and story. Zelda: Ocarina of Time, on the other hand, didn't invent that structure so much as take it to the next level. Zelda: The Wind Waker stretched that same idea across an open sea, and Tears of the Kingdom revived the traditional dungeon format after Breath of the Wild excluded it and faced backlash because of it—once again, if indirectly, affirming A Link to the Past as the most influential Zelda game ever made.

Ocarina of Time deserves its place in history; there's no denying that. But when you look at how Zelda has been able to evolve, reinvent itself, and still feel like Zelda after 40 years, that trend is still firmly rooted in 1991. A Link to the Past didn't just save the franchise after its predecessor betrayed it. Rather, it gave the series a reliable horse to ride, and Zelda has been covering ground with it ever since.

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