While the princess has remained the titular character of the famed Legend of Zelda series since the start, she’s rarely ever been the protagonist. That spot has been reserved for the hero, Link. That’s all about to change.
With Echoes of Wisdom putting Zelda center stage as the playable protagonist, you might be curious as to where else you can play as Princess Zelda. While this is the first time she’s been playable in a mainline Zelda title (well, barring one strange exception), she’s been playable in plenty of games. Here is every single one of them.
Super Smash Bros
When you think of a playable Princess Zelda, this is likely where your mind goes. The Princess of Hyrule has been on the roster of Super Smash Bros since Melee was released for the Game Cube. Princess Zelda mainly uses magic as her move set, shooting fireballs and teleporting around the stage.
You can even play as her alter ego from Ocarina of Time, Sheik, in the game. While originally Sheik was available only when transforming after choosing Zelda, the two are separate characters now.
Hyrule Warriors
A spinoff of the main series, Hyrule Warriors is a Dynasty Warriors-type hack and slash where you’ll play as a huge variety of Zelda characters fighting to save Hyrule from evil. One of these characters is, of course, Princess Zelda herself, who uses her rapier and powerful magic to help save her kingdom.
Hyrule Warriors also lets you play as plenty of other beloved characters from the series, such as Impa, Tingle, and even Ganondorf himself. Since the game is outside the timeline, characters from various Zelda games are all here. The musou action game has even been updated so you can play it on the Nintendo Switch.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity
Unlike the original, Age of Calamity takes place in an alternate timeline during Breath of the Wild. This means that plenty of characters from the BOTW are playable, including Princess Zelda. She’s alongside a massive cast that also includes the four Champions and the Korok Hestu.
While initially using functions from the Sheikah Slate to fight off mobs, (spoiler alert) she does eventually unlock her sealing power throughout the course of the story and is able to use her magic to fight. She’s a major player in both Hyrule Warriors games, but this one lets her really shine.
Zelda: Wand of Gamelon
This is one Nintendo would love nothing more than to bury, but it simply won’t die. Wand of Gamelon is a Philips CD-i exclusive released in 1993 that stars Princess Zelda as she rescues the land of Gamelon from the evil forces of Ganon. If you’ve never played this, good.
This game only exists in the public consciousness now as a gag, since it’s hilariously bad. The cutscenes look straight out of MS Paint, the voice acting is bad, and the gameplay is incredibly wonky. However, it was the very first time gamers could ever play as the titular Princess Zelda. Anyone playing this game now is likely doing it only to see the cutscenes that have been used as fodder for countless YouTube videos.
Zelda’s Adventure
Surprisingly, a follow up to Wand of Gamelon was released where you once again played as Princess Zelda. However, this title is far more obscure and somehow even worse. This time, Link is the one captured and Zelda must save him from Ganon.
The game oddly features live-action cutscenes and incredibly bad top-down-style gameplay. While Wand of Gamelon and its counterpart Link: Faces of Evil are remembered fondly for being funny, Zelda’s Adventure doesn’t get this treatment. Most Zelda fans would prefer it’s lost to time, no matter how much we want to play as Princess Zelda.
Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer
Cadence of Hyrule is a rhythm game from the Crypt of the NecroDancer series, this time featuring The Legend of Zelda. You can actually play as either Link or Zelda as you save Hyrule once again from the forces of evil, along with a few other characters such as Cadence herself.
In this game, Zelda is able to use all of Link’s typical weapons and gadgets, like bombs, arrows, and even his hookshot. You can even go a majority of the game without needing to play as Link at all.
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
For the first time ever, Princess Zelda is the star of a mainline game in Echoes of Wisdom. It’s not a spinoff, it’s not a DLC, it’s the real deal. With Link gone missing after mysterious voids pop up in Hyrule, it’s up to Princess Zelda to rescue him and save her kingdom.
In this game, she uses the Tri Rod as her main weapon, which can create duplicates of every item she learns, from tables to monsters. You’ll presumably spend the entire game controlling the Princess of Hyrule as Link takes a backseat and waits for her heroic rescue.
I’m hopeful that Nintendo will continue in the direction they’ve been going, making the Princess of Hyrule a more prominent figure in the series and even becoming the main protagonist. Nothing against the hero, but it is called The Legend of Zelda, not The Legend of Link.
