A History of Ganondorf Leading up to Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2
For as long Link and Zelda have existed through the ages, the dark lord Ganon has always been present in some degree to make their lives more difficult. Since The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 has been announced, the ancient demon and his human incarnation Ganondorf are bound to be reborn.
With so many versions of Ganondorf throughout the years, it can be easy to lose track of all of his misdeeds across the multiple timelines of Legend of Zelda. A deep dive into the villain's history shows just how many times he has nearly brought Hyrule to its knees, from his first chronological incarnation in Ocarina of Time to his rumored return in Breath of the Wild 2.
After the defeat of Demise in Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, the fallen Demon King vowed that his hatred would haunt Link and all his incarnations until the end of time. This hatred would take shape generations later in the form of Ganondorf, a child from the Gerudo Tribe. As the only male Gerudo born in one hundred years, Gerudo law dictated that Ganondorf would become king of the desert kingdom. He was raised by the witches Koume and Kotake, who taught him their magic, and as he grew older so too did his power and influence.
As an adult, Ganondorf begins to seek the mystical Triforce, hoping to wield its power to conquer all of Hyrule. After learning it lies within the Temple of Time in Hyrule Castle Town, he ingratiates himself with the king of Hyrule and pledges false allegiance to him, a ruse that only the young princess Zelda can see through. She recruits the aid of a boy named Link to obtain the three Spiritual Stones and reach the Triforce before Ganondorf. However, once Link obtains the Stones, Ganondorf betrays the king of Hyrule, taking over the castle and kidnapping Zelda. He then follows Link into the Sacred Realm that houses the Triforce and tries to take it, but the Triforce shatters into three pieces, branding him with the Triforce of Power and sending Link into a seven-year slumber.
With Link out of the picture and Zelda nowhere to be found, Ganondorf is able to conquer all of Hyrule with only the Triforce of power, reshaping it in his own image. Here, the Legend of Zelda timeline splits in three, just like the Triforce. In one timeline, Link is sent back in time by Zelda at the end of Ocarina of Time to relive his childhood after defeating Ganon and freeing Hyrule. This leaves Zelda and everyone else in a separate timeline where the post-Ganondorf world moves on without Link. In the final timeline, Ganon defeats Link and Zelda and rules Hyrule with an iron fist for generations.
In the timeline where Link is sent back in time to his childhood, he is able to warn Zelda and the king before Ganondorf is able to put his plan into action. Ganondorf is put on trial and sentenced to be executed by the Sages of Hyrule, but the Triforce of Power, which transcends the bonds of time, prevents them from killing him. With no way to permanently dispose of Ganondorf, the sages banish him through a portal to the Twilight Realm, where he slowly begins plotting his return. He allies with the eccentric Twili usurper Zant and helps him overthrow Midna, the Twilight Princess, in exchange for the opportunity to return to his original realm.
Using Zant as a puppet, he and the Twilight army manage to conquer Hyrule and capture that generation's princess Zelda. Alongside Midna, the Link of this time is able to slay Zant and Ganondorf and restore Hyrule and the Twilight realm to their former glory, but not before Ganondorf vows to return. While Zant is vanquished for good (perhaps only until BOTW 2,) Ganondorf ends up keeping his promise in Four Swords Adventures, where he is reincarnated as Ganon and tricks Link into freeing the evil sorcerer Vaati, but is soundly defeated by the hero in the end.
In the timeline that Link was sent back from by Zelda at the end of Ocarina of Time, Ganondorf is imprisoned in the Sacred Realm by the Seven Sages. Peace continues for a time, but Ganondorf is eventually able to break free of his captivity and wreak havoc on Hyrule once more in his beastly form of Ganon. With no Link around to stop him, Ganon conquers Hyrule with ease, sowing destruction to the point where the gods are forced to literally flood the world and bury him beneath the sea in order to stop him.
Generations later, however, Ganondorf breaks free once again, and immediately sets his sights upon reuniting the Triforce, starting with Princess Zelda, who he finds is the pirate captain Tetra. When Link retrieves the Master Sword to stop Ganondorf, the warlock reveals that the sword had been the last seal restraining his power, and that removing the Sword from its pedestal has only made him stronger. Even worse, the evil-sealing power of the Master Sword is depleted, and it can no longer be used to vanquish Ganon.
Link embarks on a quest to retrieve the Triforce of Courage and restore the Master Sword's power before returning to Ganondorf's fortress to battle him and free Zelda. However, in bringing the Triforce of Courage to Ganondorg, Link has unwittingly allowed him t[tldr_position]o reassemble the Triforce. As Ganondorf is about to use the Triforce's power to wish for Hyrule's return and the power to conquer it once again, King Daphnes, the last king of Hyrule, touches the Triforce and wishes for the sea to wipe out the old Hyrule once and for all. With Ganondorf's plans ruined, Link and Zelda battle him, ultimately killing him for good by stabbing him through the head with the Master Sword.
In the timeline where Link is defeated by Ganondorf in the final battle, the King of Thieves is victorious, but not for long. While he manages to reunite the Triforce, Zelda and the Seven Sages are able to trap him in the Dark World along with the Triforce. But as history shows, Ganon can't be imprisoned forever. Allying with the wizard Agahnim, Ganon petitions the mage to help him break free of the Dark World. Agahnim curries the favor of the current king of Hyrule, eventually using his deceit to take over the kingdom entirely.
The wizard then imprisons each of the Seven Maidens, descendants of the Sages who include Princess Zelda, in an attempt to break the magic seal keeping Ganon in the Dark World. His plan is foiled by Link, however, and the hero defeats the wizard within the Dark World, and soon after vanquishes Ganon himself. Ganondorf would be resurrected again on numerous occasions over the years of this timeline to attempt to conquer Hyrule, to varying degrees of success, and each time being defeated by Link.
Breath of the Wild is unique among the Legend of Zelda games in that it marks a point of convergence of all the other Zelda timelines, being set so far into the future that it could conceivably be a part of each one. At this point in time, Ganondorf has been reincarnated so many times that people have started to prepare for his inevitable returns. The Hylians, with the help of the Sheikah, construct an army of mechanical Guardians, as well as four Divine Beasts to help imprison Ganon beneath Hyrule Castle.
Several thousand years later, a prophecy warns of the return of Ganon, who at this point is in the form of Calamity Ganon, a terrible beast of darkness, and the people of Hyrule scramble to recover the ancient Divine Beasts and Guardians. Having enough knowledge of history to know how these events play out, Zelda begins to work on her sealing magic in anticipation facing Ganon, while Link is assigned as her bodyguard. However, Zelda fails each time she tries to call upon the magic of the Goddess Hylia, leaving her unprepared when Ganon finally breaks free.
To the shock and horror of everyone, Calamity Ganon uses his powers to corrupt the Guardians and Divine Beasts and turns them against the forces of Hyrule. Link is grievously wounded in the onslaught and is taken by Zelda to the Sheikah Healing Chamber to recover, a process that lasts one hundred years. She then confronts Ganon herself and succeeds in using her sealing magic on him, albeit trapping the both of them together in Hyrule Castle until Link's return.
Link wakes up a century later, and manages to free the Divine Beasts, and ultimately defeat Calamity Ganon with the help of Zelda. Ganon is vanquished, but not for good, as Zelda warns that he will be back again. In the trailer for Breath of the Wild 2, he appears to be revived, but only time will tell how much damage he will cause when he returns.
A sequel to The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild is currently in development for the Nintendo Switch.
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