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The Legend of Zelda
The Legend of Zelda: Encyclopedia
This 320-page book is an exhaustive guide to The Legend of Zelda from the original The Legend of Zelda to Twilight Princess HD.
A comprehensive collection of enemies and items, potions to poes, an expansion of the lore touched upon in Hyrule Historia, concept art, screencaps, maps, main characters and how they relate, languages, and much, much more, including an exclusive interview with Series Producer, Eiji Aonuma! This, the last of The Goddess Collection trilogy, which includes Hyrule Historia and Art & Artifacts, is a treasure trove of explanations and information about every aspect of The Legend of Zelda universe!
*An exhaustive compendium of everything from the first 30 years of The Legend of Zelda.
*An expansion of information from The Legend of Zelda timeline.
*Rare development sketches of your favorite characters.
*An extensive database of items and enemies.
A comprehensive collection of enemies and items, potions to poes, an expansion of the lore touched upon in Hyrule Historia, concept art, screencaps, maps, main characters and how they relate, languages, and much, much more, including an exclusive interview with Series Producer, Eiji Aonuma! This, the last of The Goddess Collection trilogy, which includes Hyrule Historia and Art & Artifacts, is a treasure trove of explanations and information about every aspect of The Legend of Zelda universe!
*An exhaustive compendium of everything from the first 30 years of The Legend of Zelda.
*An expansion of information from The Legend of Zelda timeline.
*Rare development sketches of your favorite characters.
*An extensive database of items and enemies.
327 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 2017
336 people are currently reading
1744 people want to read
About the author
Nintendo
437 books178 followersNintendo Co., Ltd. is a Japanese multinational consumer electronics and video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. Nintendo is one of the world's largest video game companies by market capitalization. Founded on 23 September 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it originally produced handmade hanafuda playing cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as cab services and love hotels. The word Nintendo can be roughly translated from Japanese to English as "leave luck to heaven".
Abandoning previous ventures in favor of toys in the 1960s, Nintendo then developed into a video game company in the 1970s, ultimately becoming one of the most influential in the industry and Japan's third-most-valuable company with a market value of over $85 billion. From 1992 until 2016, Nintendo was also the majority shareholder of Major League Baseball's Seattle Mariners.
As of 31 March 2014, Nintendo has cumulative sales of over 670.43 million hardware units and 4.23 billion software units. The company has created and released some of the best-known and top-selling video game franchises, such as Mario, The Legend of Zelda, and Pokémon.
Abandoning previous ventures in favor of toys in the 1960s, Nintendo then developed into a video game company in the 1970s, ultimately becoming one of the most influential in the industry and Japan's third-most-valuable company with a market value of over $85 billion. From 1992 until 2016, Nintendo was also the majority shareholder of Major League Baseball's Seattle Mariners.
As of 31 March 2014, Nintendo has cumulative sales of over 670.43 million hardware units and 4.23 billion software units. The company has created and released some of the best-known and top-selling video game franchises, such as Mario, The Legend of Zelda, and Pokémon.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews
August 19, 2018
Literally all the lore about every enemy, race, item and anything else. So good and a good end to the trilogy that began with Hyrule Historia.
October 29, 2022
Bit outdated obviously but I do indeed think it’s a damn sexy book with an amazing appeal
September 5, 2018
The Legend of Zelda is one of my all time favorite video game series and The Ocarina of Time is my favorite game ever. It was the most amazing game as a child and will always be special to me. I replay it once every couple years and it still is just as amazing. Other games in the series are amazing too and it's been fun to learn more about them. This Encyclopedia is packed full of beautiful drawings and descriptions. It came out before Breath of the Wild which makes me keen to see the updated Encyclopedia with it included(how good was Breath of the Wild!)
July 22, 2018
Another gorgeous Zelda book! If you have “Hyrule Historia” and “Art & Artifacts”, then you will want this encyclopedia as well. There’s so much to explore in this and it’s a real treat for serious Zelda fans. (Only drawback is the print is quite small in a lot of areas.) Overall, a great collectible edition to absorb!
January 29, 2021
This book, released for the 30th anniversary of the Legend of Zelda franchise, was a fun read for me for a number of reasons after I received it as a Christmas gift. The biggest one is that it has made an official Zelda timeline out of all of the old fan theories of how everything fits together. I enjoyed having all of the Zelda history in one place, showing how, among other things, the different incarnations of Kakariko Village look in different games, or how the Zora evolved across the years, and so on.
There is a place for every game (except Breath of the Wild, which hadn't come out yet,) even games that I never played (Four Sword Adventures) or even heard of (Tri Force Heroes). It's thorough. Some of this thoroughness is cool, like in the enemies database where you can see how Keese have looked in different games, or Moblins, or Stalfos, or any kind of enemy, be it a one-off or not. Or in the list of dungeons when I was reminded that the town names in Zelda 2 all the way back in the NES are mostly the same names as the sages later had in Ocarina of Time. Some of the thoroughness is maybe a bit more than is going to be of interest to most people, in that it is thorough enough that every little one-off item in every game in the series, whether or not it has any plot relevance, is listed.
In addition to the lore being all laid out in one place, I enjoyed that there's also a few pages about each game in the series that include some design documents, preliminary sketches of character art and dungeon layouts, and a few anecdotes from their production, including a fun tidbit previously unknown to me, which is that the Zelda theme was originally just going to be Ravel's "Bolero" until they realized it was under copyright, so composer Koji Kondo came up with the now-iconic Zelda theme in one night.
There is a place for every game (except Breath of the Wild, which hadn't come out yet,) even games that I never played (Four Sword Adventures) or even heard of (Tri Force Heroes). It's thorough. Some of this thoroughness is cool, like in the enemies database where you can see how Keese have looked in different games, or Moblins, or Stalfos, or any kind of enemy, be it a one-off or not. Or in the list of dungeons when I was reminded that the town names in Zelda 2 all the way back in the NES are mostly the same names as the sages later had in Ocarina of Time. Some of the thoroughness is maybe a bit more than is going to be of interest to most people, in that it is thorough enough that every little one-off item in every game in the series, whether or not it has any plot relevance, is listed.
In addition to the lore being all laid out in one place, I enjoyed that there's also a few pages about each game in the series that include some design documents, preliminary sketches of character art and dungeon layouts, and a few anecdotes from their production, including a fun tidbit previously unknown to me, which is that the Zelda theme was originally just going to be Ravel's "Bolero" until they realized it was under copyright, so composer Koji Kondo came up with the now-iconic Zelda theme in one night.
March 2, 2019
It’s dangerous to go alone. Take this!
Holy crap, did this book take awhile to get through.
It’s so dense. Every single page has so many things going on.
That being said, if you ever need to know anything about the Zelda universe prior to Breath of the Wild, this is the book you need!
I only gave it a 4/5 because it took so long to get through. Don’t let that divert you from picking this book up though.
This, Arts & Artifacts and Hyrule Historia really do make a great trifecta (triforce?) of Zelda info.
Holy crap, did this book take awhile to get through.
It’s so dense. Every single page has so many things going on.
That being said, if you ever need to know anything about the Zelda universe prior to Breath of the Wild, this is the book you need!
I only gave it a 4/5 because it took so long to get through. Don’t let that divert you from picking this book up though.
This, Arts & Artifacts and Hyrule Historia really do make a great trifecta (triforce?) of Zelda info.
September 21, 2018
The most complete and comprehensive resource up to 2017. Well made with tons of information and trivia for the fans.
September 25, 2018
This was incredibly comprehensive and eminently enjoyable.
Coming soon: Replaying every Zelda game in order. Just debating if I'm getting a capture card to record it first.
Coming soon: Replaying every Zelda game in order. Just debating if I'm getting a capture card to record it first.
April 15, 2025
I didn’t read this cover to cover, but it was still a very enjoyable book that I’ll definitely read again!
March 15, 2022
I didn't read it cover to cover, but all the entries I read are informative and to the point. I enjoy having this resource. It's a huge amount of data about the Zelda realms
December 12, 2023
For all the Legend of Zelda fanatics out there, this a book that needs to be in your collection. Covering the initial NES Link adventure up until about Breath of the Wild, it is a treasure trove of information about the video game series.
What this book is not: a behind-the-scenes, real-world look at the Zelda series. Besides a few pages at the end, this isn't the place to go for "making of" or game-creation narrative.
What this book is: an almost-at-times-exhausting catalog of nearly everything within the Zelda universe. Each game is picked apart like an encyclopedia with sections on maps, general plots, timelines, characters, and even individual objects. I don't think a more thorough tome about a video game universe could possibly exist!
As such, I'd consider The Legend of Zelda: Encyclopedia to be a great coffee-table book for fans of the series or gaming in general. One isn't really going to sit down and read this cover-to-cover, but rather leisurely page through to see all the color photos and spreads.
What this book is not: a behind-the-scenes, real-world look at the Zelda series. Besides a few pages at the end, this isn't the place to go for "making of" or game-creation narrative.
What this book is: an almost-at-times-exhausting catalog of nearly everything within the Zelda universe. Each game is picked apart like an encyclopedia with sections on maps, general plots, timelines, characters, and even individual objects. I don't think a more thorough tome about a video game universe could possibly exist!
As such, I'd consider The Legend of Zelda: Encyclopedia to be a great coffee-table book for fans of the series or gaming in general. One isn't really going to sit down and read this cover-to-cover, but rather leisurely page through to see all the color photos and spreads.
May 12, 2019
So, if you couldn’t tell by the title, this is an encyclopedia. If you are expecting anything else, don’t be fooled. A lot of this is very boring and tedious and straight facts. There are sections in here that list every item used throughout all the games (prior to Breath of the Wild), every main character, every town, every villain. There are a lot of repeated items. It became quite unintriguing to continue. But I finally did it.
The end was by the most interesting part, going through a plot summary of all the games, showing the overworld maps with key points highlighted, and sketches and notes from the developers during the game making process. I wish there was a whole book of just the developer comments; really cool seeing some behind-the-scenes stuff.
As a book - it’s not the fun to read the whole thing. I doubt I will ever open it again to look at the encyclopedia of items.
As an encyclopedia - seems pretty exhaustive of all things Zelda. However, it was immediately outdated as soon as it released, since Breath of the Wild adds tons of new things to the series and every section of the book would need extensive updates to include the new game. But it does look really cool and overall is well done.
Zelda fans most likely already purchased it - if not, try and take a look at target or something and see if the majority of this is for you.
The end was by the most interesting part, going through a plot summary of all the games, showing the overworld maps with key points highlighted, and sketches and notes from the developers during the game making process. I wish there was a whole book of just the developer comments; really cool seeing some behind-the-scenes stuff.
As a book - it’s not the fun to read the whole thing. I doubt I will ever open it again to look at the encyclopedia of items.
As an encyclopedia - seems pretty exhaustive of all things Zelda. However, it was immediately outdated as soon as it released, since Breath of the Wild adds tons of new things to the series and every section of the book would need extensive updates to include the new game. But it does look really cool and overall is well done.
Zelda fans most likely already purchased it - if not, try and take a look at target or something and see if the majority of this is for you.
July 31, 2019
After reading both The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia and The Legend of Zelda: Art & Artifacts, I was well-prepared on what to expect out of this Zelda Encyclopedia. Whereas Art & Artifacts took the art chapters from the broader Hyrule Historia tome and greatly expanded on it, Encyclopedia takes all the knowledge, data, and information found in Hyrule Historia and finds new angles and subjects to explore.
Just like the previous two Zelda books, this Blue Book of Wisdom (the same colour as the Pendant of Wisdom in the most recent Zelda titles) is divided into roughly three parts. Firstly there's the Historical Records, taking the series as a whole and explaining it. There's great stuff here, such as comparisons of the world maps across games and timelines, the evolution of the races and monsters over the course of the series, and an in-depth analysis of the various weapons and other pieces of equipment the player can acquire. Also included in this part is the Zelda Timeline with a minor retcon (swapping the order of events for Link's Awakening and the Oracle games), as well as exploratory and explanatory timelines for the main trio of Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf, races like the Gerudo and Zora, and even some places like the Temple of Time.
In the second section there's an alphabetical database of all items, enemies, and locations in the main series. This is an incredible list that showcases how items and enemies like potions, keys, Stalfos, Darknuts, Keese, and many others have changed between games and versions of the same game. Going through the 100 pages of this database is incredibly interesting, but also incredibly tedious. Reading through the Encyclopedia cover-to-cover like a normal book caused me several standstills, where I grew too tired to continue because of the sheer number of entries included. As such, I would highly recommend treating this section of the book as something to be explored when you have a specific goal in mind. Maybe you want to look up all the weird names of the enemies in Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, or perhaps you're interested in the Pendants from A Link to the Past and A Link Between Worlds, and why the Pendant of Power and the Pendant of Wisdom changed colour. Going at the Database with specific goals like these is in my opinion the better way to go about it, lest you get burned out.
The final section has the Archives, filling in more details about the individual games in the series. For every main game in the series, there exists a plot summary, a chart of the interpersonal relationships of all characters in the game, a marked map of the world, and the some documents and notes from the developers. In some ways this is a rehashing of the Chronology chapter in Hyrule Historia, with some extra information put in or some points left out. Even having played the games, even having read the other Zelda books as well as the Iwata Asks segments on The Legend of Zelda, there is still an incredible amount of interesting information in here that is otherwise difficult to find anywhere else. Some details come from old Japanese articles or guide books, making this Encyclopedia a real treasure.
Finishing with this trio of books on the Zelda franchise, The Legend of Zelda: Encyclopedia is an absolute marvel. I enjoyed reading it greatly, and I also found it a bit of a slog. The Database chapter is better explored with a casual browse or a specific search query, much like a more traditional encyclopedia, but it's still an important trove of wisdom for anyone with an interest in The Legend of Zelda series. Like Hyrule Historia and Art & Artifacts before it, Encyclopedia works better as a reference work than a book to read from one cover to the other, but it is still very much worth it.
Just like the previous two Zelda books, this Blue Book of Wisdom (the same colour as the Pendant of Wisdom in the most recent Zelda titles) is divided into roughly three parts. Firstly there's the Historical Records, taking the series as a whole and explaining it. There's great stuff here, such as comparisons of the world maps across games and timelines, the evolution of the races and monsters over the course of the series, and an in-depth analysis of the various weapons and other pieces of equipment the player can acquire. Also included in this part is the Zelda Timeline with a minor retcon (swapping the order of events for Link's Awakening and the Oracle games), as well as exploratory and explanatory timelines for the main trio of Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf, races like the Gerudo and Zora, and even some places like the Temple of Time.
In the second section there's an alphabetical database of all items, enemies, and locations in the main series. This is an incredible list that showcases how items and enemies like potions, keys, Stalfos, Darknuts, Keese, and many others have changed between games and versions of the same game. Going through the 100 pages of this database is incredibly interesting, but also incredibly tedious. Reading through the Encyclopedia cover-to-cover like a normal book caused me several standstills, where I grew too tired to continue because of the sheer number of entries included. As such, I would highly recommend treating this section of the book as something to be explored when you have a specific goal in mind. Maybe you want to look up all the weird names of the enemies in Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, or perhaps you're interested in the Pendants from A Link to the Past and A Link Between Worlds, and why the Pendant of Power and the Pendant of Wisdom changed colour. Going at the Database with specific goals like these is in my opinion the better way to go about it, lest you get burned out.
The final section has the Archives, filling in more details about the individual games in the series. For every main game in the series, there exists a plot summary, a chart of the interpersonal relationships of all characters in the game, a marked map of the world, and the some documents and notes from the developers. In some ways this is a rehashing of the Chronology chapter in Hyrule Historia, with some extra information put in or some points left out. Even having played the games, even having read the other Zelda books as well as the Iwata Asks segments on The Legend of Zelda, there is still an incredible amount of interesting information in here that is otherwise difficult to find anywhere else. Some details come from old Japanese articles or guide books, making this Encyclopedia a real treasure.
Finishing with this trio of books on the Zelda franchise, The Legend of Zelda: Encyclopedia is an absolute marvel. I enjoyed reading it greatly, and I also found it a bit of a slog. The Database chapter is better explored with a casual browse or a specific search query, much like a more traditional encyclopedia, but it's still an important trove of wisdom for anyone with an interest in The Legend of Zelda series. Like Hyrule Historia and Art & Artifacts before it, Encyclopedia works better as a reference work than a book to read from one cover to the other, but it is still very much worth it.
December 30, 2019
I feel a little bad rating this book three stars for being exactly what it says on the tin, but it did take me almost a year to get through it.
The Legend of Zelda Encyclopedia is a comprehensive listing of every item, enemy, dungeon, character, and game in the Legend of Zelda series. And I almost wrote "exhaustive" there, which is a major part of my problem. Most of the book is in the form of giant lists and is about as exciting as reading the dictionary in alphabetical order. The part at the beginning, the "Historical Record" about how different items or enemies expressed themselves in various games, was interesting and it only took me a couple hours to get through. When I got to the database, which takes up the middle third of the book, I'd pick it up, read a few pages, put it down, and do that for months and months on end. It's great as reference material, but terrible to read straight through.
And I've played every single Legend of Zelda game through in release order, so it's not like I had to absorb any new information here!
That said, the beginning and the ending were a fun read. Once I actually got past the giant lists, I got into the part that covered every game in order, including design sketches and bits of trivia from the design process. I learned that there was originally an SNES sequal to Zelda II planned, that the original Legend of Zelda was going to just have the player go straight into dungeons from the title screen (imagine Zelda with no overworld!), and that A Link to the Past was going to have three worlds rather than just two, as well as that the plot originally involved awakening some kind of magical army through the power of prayer. Like with most "what might have been" in video games, I imagine a lot of these never got past the idea phrase or maybe a bit of initial design, but it's fun to speculate on where they might have led, like the concept art of space Princess Zelda from A Link to the Past.
I also liked all the tidbits about how entire games grew out of a single idea, like how Spirit Tracks came from a picture book that Aonuma Eiji was reading to his children, or how Twilight Princess's Wolf Link was based on a dream. It's a good summary of how we need to seize inspiration whenever it strikes and that it really can strike just about anywhere.
I'm not sure I would have bought this if I had known what was in it, but the beginning and the end were fun.
The Legend of Zelda Encyclopedia is a comprehensive listing of every item, enemy, dungeon, character, and game in the Legend of Zelda series. And I almost wrote "exhaustive" there, which is a major part of my problem. Most of the book is in the form of giant lists and is about as exciting as reading the dictionary in alphabetical order. The part at the beginning, the "Historical Record" about how different items or enemies expressed themselves in various games, was interesting and it only took me a couple hours to get through. When I got to the database, which takes up the middle third of the book, I'd pick it up, read a few pages, put it down, and do that for months and months on end. It's great as reference material, but terrible to read straight through.
And I've played every single Legend of Zelda game through in release order, so it's not like I had to absorb any new information here!
That said, the beginning and the ending were a fun read. Once I actually got past the giant lists, I got into the part that covered every game in order, including design sketches and bits of trivia from the design process. I learned that there was originally an SNES sequal to Zelda II planned, that the original Legend of Zelda was going to just have the player go straight into dungeons from the title screen (imagine Zelda with no overworld!), and that A Link to the Past was going to have three worlds rather than just two, as well as that the plot originally involved awakening some kind of magical army through the power of prayer. Like with most "what might have been" in video games, I imagine a lot of these never got past the idea phrase or maybe a bit of initial design, but it's fun to speculate on where they might have led, like the concept art of space Princess Zelda from A Link to the Past.
I also liked all the tidbits about how entire games grew out of a single idea, like how Spirit Tracks came from a picture book that Aonuma Eiji was reading to his children, or how Twilight Princess's Wolf Link was based on a dream. It's a good summary of how we need to seize inspiration whenever it strikes and that it really can strike just about anywhere.
I'm not sure I would have bought this if I had known what was in it, but the beginning and the end were fun.
July 12, 2018
The Legend of Zelda Encyclopedia is a must have item for a hardcore Zelda fan! The book is filled with a lot of information covering games from the last 30 years.
The book is packed with information covering every canon Zelda game released through 2016, so the book really covers the first 30 years of the Zelda franchise. If you are a fan of the Zelda timeline, then you will find an updated 2016 version that places where A Link Between Worlds and Tri Force Heroes games appear plus you will see a re-adjustment from Hyrule Historia's Zelda timeline. The placement of Link's Awakening and the Oracle games switched places. A really in-depth coverage lays out the history of the different games. Plus you look at some of the original notes from the different games development. A wide range of pictures list out a number of the different items, enemies and etcetera covering the whole series.
Complaints about the book are the following: a few errors (picture of the wrong listed) peppered throughout the book, next to nothing covering Breath of the Wild and inconsistency with some of pictures. It is understandable that few errors given the book's size. I have managed to find four errors in glancing over the book. It is really disappointing there is very little about Breath of the Wild given the Japanese version of this book came out around Breath of the Wild's launch March 2017. They mention about other Zelda cameos for games released in late 2017. Specifically about the photo inconsistency they would have an in-game photo item from game A and similar item be the concept art drawing found in an instruction manual from game B.
Overall a very visually appealing book that covers a wide range of topics. It is just disappointing to see the lastest Zelda game released in March 2017 not discussed when this book was released June 2018 here in the US. There was nothing stopped the publisher from releasing an updated second edition over in Japan given Breath of the Wild is still on the best-seller list over there in 2018.
The book is packed with information covering every canon Zelda game released through 2016, so the book really covers the first 30 years of the Zelda franchise. If you are a fan of the Zelda timeline, then you will find an updated 2016 version that places where A Link Between Worlds and Tri Force Heroes games appear plus you will see a re-adjustment from Hyrule Historia's Zelda timeline. The placement of Link's Awakening and the Oracle games switched places. A really in-depth coverage lays out the history of the different games. Plus you look at some of the original notes from the different games development. A wide range of pictures list out a number of the different items, enemies and etcetera covering the whole series.
Complaints about the book are the following: a few errors (picture of the wrong listed) peppered throughout the book, next to nothing covering Breath of the Wild and inconsistency with some of pictures. It is understandable that few errors given the book's size. I have managed to find four errors in glancing over the book. It is really disappointing there is very little about Breath of the Wild given the Japanese version of this book came out around Breath of the Wild's launch March 2017. They mention about other Zelda cameos for games released in late 2017. Specifically about the photo inconsistency they would have an in-game photo item from game A and similar item be the concept art drawing found in an instruction manual from game B.
Overall a very visually appealing book that covers a wide range of topics. It is just disappointing to see the lastest Zelda game released in March 2017 not discussed when this book was released June 2018 here in the US. There was nothing stopped the publisher from releasing an updated second edition over in Japan given Breath of the Wild is still on the best-seller list over there in 2018.
January 10, 2021
The Legend of Zelda Encyclopedia from Darkhorse is an exhaustive assimilation of every possible tidbit of information related to the Legend of Zelda series. While I did read some and skim all of the book, it would be an enormous task to read every word of this tome. Rather, it is an excellent reference work for those interested in the series.
The presentation is immaculate. The book is filled with vast information, innumerable reference photos, behind-the-scenes art and developer commentary. It is presented in a pristine format. Everything is high quality, including to the girthy paper the book is printed on.
Unfortunately, this book does suffer from some minor issues common to any book of this type. For one, it is already outdated. The book does not contain any data related to Breath of the Wild, one of the biggest Zelda games ever created. Hopefully, more editions will be released in the future with content from future games. Additionally, the book also does duplicate a bit of information found in Darkhorse's other two excellent reference works, Hyrule Historia and Arts and Artifacts. That is not entirely a negative point, but there is slightest hint of Darkhorse milking this material.
Those downsides are truly minor. This encyclopedia is beautiful and dense. it is highly recommended for fans of this series that has spanned multiple decades and his had incalculable influence upon the video game industry as it exists today.
The presentation is immaculate. The book is filled with vast information, innumerable reference photos, behind-the-scenes art and developer commentary. It is presented in a pristine format. Everything is high quality, including to the girthy paper the book is printed on.
Unfortunately, this book does suffer from some minor issues common to any book of this type. For one, it is already outdated. The book does not contain any data related to Breath of the Wild, one of the biggest Zelda games ever created. Hopefully, more editions will be released in the future with content from future games. Additionally, the book also does duplicate a bit of information found in Darkhorse's other two excellent reference works, Hyrule Historia and Arts and Artifacts. That is not entirely a negative point, but there is slightest hint of Darkhorse milking this material.
Those downsides are truly minor. This encyclopedia is beautiful and dense. it is highly recommended for fans of this series that has spanned multiple decades and his had incalculable influence upon the video game industry as it exists today.
June 19, 2018
A great in-depth look into the Zelda franchise, filled with text, drawing concepts, pictures, and screenshots from all of the games in the franchise leading up to Breath of the Wild (this book is based on the Japanese translation which was published a few months before Breath of the Wild).
A gorgeous addition to the “trilogy”, it is packed with over 300 pages worth of material divided into three primary sections: Historical Records, Database, and Archives.
The first section historical records dives into a history of Hyrule (with a more in-depth timeline on the games than published previously), the characters we love, the lands and realms, the different races, maps, animals, towns and cultures, weapons and monsters.
The second section Database is an alphabetical archive of information (a more true encyclopedic approach) that goes into each town and village by game, items (including how those items change across games), dungeons, and enemies.
The third and final section is the Archives. This section is divided into segments for all of the games prior to Breath of the Wild and provides the plot, world maps, main characters, diagrams of how characters are related to each other, and developmental notes/designs.
This book contains a treasure trove of information and collecting all of it into a beautiful collection.
A gorgeous addition to the “trilogy”, it is packed with over 300 pages worth of material divided into three primary sections: Historical Records, Database, and Archives.
The first section historical records dives into a history of Hyrule (with a more in-depth timeline on the games than published previously), the characters we love, the lands and realms, the different races, maps, animals, towns and cultures, weapons and monsters.
The second section Database is an alphabetical archive of information (a more true encyclopedic approach) that goes into each town and village by game, items (including how those items change across games), dungeons, and enemies.
The third and final section is the Archives. This section is divided into segments for all of the games prior to Breath of the Wild and provides the plot, world maps, main characters, diagrams of how characters are related to each other, and developmental notes/designs.
This book contains a treasure trove of information and collecting all of it into a beautiful collection.
February 14, 2019
A must-have for any dedicated Legend of Zelda fan.
This is practically the ultimate encyclopedia any fan of the Zelda series could have. It covers the games in the series chronologically from the original Legend of Zelda up until Tri Force Heroes. Unfortunately, anything Breath of the Wild or beyond will obviously not be included in this edition. This is the second of three big books that came out for the 25th anniversary of the Legend of Zelda series, and it certainly doesn't disappoint.
The book is divided into three main sections. The Historical Records looks at the history of the series, from looking at Hyrule, the races that populate the worlds, the geography, and a whole lot of other things and how they connect with one another. It builds off of the official Zelda timeline that was released with the Hyrule Historia book (which I also recommend), and gives you an in depth look. The second section is a database of towns, villages, items, dungeons, enemies, and monsters from ever game represented. Finally, the Archives section looks at each game individually, offers a quick plot summary, and even gives you some developer notes and designs in the making of each game.
It's certainly a tribute to the franchise's history that is a delight to read. Definitely something to read and cherish.
This is practically the ultimate encyclopedia any fan of the Zelda series could have. It covers the games in the series chronologically from the original Legend of Zelda up until Tri Force Heroes. Unfortunately, anything Breath of the Wild or beyond will obviously not be included in this edition. This is the second of three big books that came out for the 25th anniversary of the Legend of Zelda series, and it certainly doesn't disappoint.
The book is divided into three main sections. The Historical Records looks at the history of the series, from looking at Hyrule, the races that populate the worlds, the geography, and a whole lot of other things and how they connect with one another. It builds off of the official Zelda timeline that was released with the Hyrule Historia book (which I also recommend), and gives you an in depth look. The second section is a database of towns, villages, items, dungeons, enemies, and monsters from ever game represented. Finally, the Archives section looks at each game individually, offers a quick plot summary, and even gives you some developer notes and designs in the making of each game.
It's certainly a tribute to the franchise's history that is a delight to read. Definitely something to read and cherish.
July 15, 2018
Ohh boy! This couldn't have a more appropriate title! Indeed, this book contains way more information than the previous two combined.
Every single item, every single pick able stuff, every dungeon, level, monster and NPC ever in the 30 years of Zelda, excluding Breath of the Wild, is here.
This was definitely a challenge. Here I was thinking it'd be a smooth ride filled with pictures such as Arts & Artifacts, but I was way off! There are pictures, and even different than in Hyrule Historia, but Encyclopedia brings about every single thing together.
That being said, I skipped a bunch of descriptions since they were very simple and didn't really add more to what was obvious such as the Hookshot being "hook with a chain that propels a long distance" and so. Descriptions aren't as bad as my example there, but still there were a lot of them that didn't really add a lot of relevancy to what was already known.
The nostalgia as I read was there. I caught myself humming Zelda music, and even looking for it.
It definitely made me want to pick any of these great titles and play again.
Every single item, every single pick able stuff, every dungeon, level, monster and NPC ever in the 30 years of Zelda, excluding Breath of the Wild, is here.
This was definitely a challenge. Here I was thinking it'd be a smooth ride filled with pictures such as Arts & Artifacts, but I was way off! There are pictures, and even different than in Hyrule Historia, but Encyclopedia brings about every single thing together.
That being said, I skipped a bunch of descriptions since they were very simple and didn't really add more to what was obvious such as the Hookshot being "hook with a chain that propels a long distance" and so. Descriptions aren't as bad as my example there, but still there were a lot of them that didn't really add a lot of relevancy to what was already known.
The nostalgia as I read was there. I caught myself humming Zelda music, and even looking for it.
It definitely made me want to pick any of these great titles and play again.
July 12, 2025
Obviously, this book is now outdated with the additions of Breath of the Wild, Tears of the Kingdom, and Echoes of Wisdom. However, that does not stop it from being a valuable asset in understanding the History, Geography, and people of Hyrule. The timeline towards the beginning is very well done, and is great at showing the timeline split after Ocarina of Time. The part towards the end where it shows each game (before the release of BOTW) is very useful in understanding how the characters (even random ones) are connected to the Hero.
The part about the Triforce was very informative, as I had been confused about what the Triforce was like. It makes perfect sense now. Thank you Nintendo!
My complaint is that the text is small at some parts, and some of the images are too small to see. Still a great book though.
The part about the Triforce was very informative, as I had been confused about what the Triforce was like. It makes perfect sense now. Thank you Nintendo!
My complaint is that the text is small at some parts, and some of the images are too small to see. Still a great book though.
September 28, 2019
Well it only took me 1.25 years to get through, but I finally finished this ludicrously dense tome that covers LITERALLY EVERYTHING in the series history.
It really has everything- exhaustive info about enemies, characters, game worlds, the games themselves, items, dungeons, locations, spin off games, non canon appearances, never before seen concept art, marketing materials, and even an exclusive interview with the wonderful Eiji Aonuma.
And it really is dense- every single piece of information from every game in the series up to breath of the wild is covered here.
Only problems is how hard Nintendo is trying to make triforce heroes a part of the main canon and how they say Termina disappears once link leaves.
Apart from that, it's everything a Zelda fan could want.
It really has everything- exhaustive info about enemies, characters, game worlds, the games themselves, items, dungeons, locations, spin off games, non canon appearances, never before seen concept art, marketing materials, and even an exclusive interview with the wonderful Eiji Aonuma.
And it really is dense- every single piece of information from every game in the series up to breath of the wild is covered here.
Only problems is how hard Nintendo is trying to make triforce heroes a part of the main canon and how they say Termina disappears once link leaves.
Apart from that, it's everything a Zelda fan could want.
July 31, 2018
In the interview with series produce Eiji Aonuma, he expresses the hope that this Encyclopedia will make fans feel nostalgic for the Zelda franchise. Well, mission accomplished! All I want to do now is play all the Zelda titles again.
Packed full of detailed information about each title and the Zelda franchise as a whole, this book really is a testament to how impressive and important the Zelda series is for players, and how impactful and influential the games have been on the gaming industry as a whole. I look forward to new adventures in this world!
Packed full of detailed information about each title and the Zelda franchise as a whole, this book really is a testament to how impressive and important the Zelda series is for players, and how impactful and influential the games have been on the gaming industry as a whole. I look forward to new adventures in this world!
October 25, 2018
A really spectacular encyclopedia dedicated to one of my favorite video-game sagas. And yes, this book has EVERYTHING related to 'The Legend of Zelda', up to and including the game BEFORE Breath of the Wild (although the latest instalment is mentioned once or twice). There are design sketches, information regarding every game, a comprehensive list of places, items, and characters, material related to spin-off games and Japan-only released... yup, pretty much everything, and it's all beautifully illustrated and photographed. This is a MUST BUY for any self-respected 'Zelda' fan. Quite a treat.
December 20, 2018
As a big Zelda fan, I had an absolute blast reading through this book. Checking out a collection containing 30 years of Zelda history, lore, art, design concepts and evolutions, theories, items, people, dungeons, and similar nerdy things put a huge smile on my face the entire time. The only downside is there's no info covering Breath of the Wild (which I'll admit, would have been pretty awesome), but with so much other content it's hard to come away from this experience disappointed. Any Zelda fan should at least check it out and consider adding this book to their collection.
September 6, 2022
You can really tell that everyone who worked on this book was an invested fan of the Zelda series. It’s intricately detailed and was providing me trivia I’d never seen or heard before, which is always exciting for something you’ve been a fan of since you were thirteen.
On top of that, the compilers managed to get some super cool design and concept drawings for each of the titles. It’s genuinely impressive what they managed here.
On top of that, the compilers managed to get some super cool design and concept drawings for each of the titles. It’s genuinely impressive what they managed here.
March 31, 2024
An incredible, comprehensive deep dive into the lore of the worlds of The Legend of Zelda. While the Hyrule Historia was more of a coffee table book, this goes much more in-depth in many ways, as well as slightly tweaking the established Zelda timeline.
I was willing to give it five stars, however there are numerous small mistakes in the book, especially in the middle section, that prevented me from awarding that final star.
I was willing to give it five stars, however there are numerous small mistakes in the book, especially in the middle section, that prevented me from awarding that final star.
May 10, 2023
An expansion of the lore, characters and much more that are touched upon in the Zelda Universe.
I bought this as a gift for someone else, but after looking through it, I had to go and get my own. I love Zelda and have been playing the games since I was a child, so this is an amazing book to add to my collection of world encyclopedias, going on the shelf next to Marvel' and DC's books.
I bought this as a gift for someone else, but after looking through it, I had to go and get my own. I love Zelda and have been playing the games since I was a child, so this is an amazing book to add to my collection of world encyclopedias, going on the shelf next to Marvel' and DC's books.
February 10, 2019
Its an overwhelming source of information about the zelda series and i love it for it, but on the other side it contains some incongruencies, for example in some small fragments it not only contradicts itself but the games too.
May 29, 2019
These giant Dark Horse Zelda books are pretty great (if you like Zelda). Plenty of great info, compilations or plots, promo materials, screenshots, artwork etc. for all the games. Now if only they'd break out this kinda treatment for Castlevania hoooo boy!
November 4, 2019
Amazing Book With so much information you'll be looking through it for hours. From the history of Hyrule to an explanation of every enemy, item, and place from the original all the way to Triforce Heroes. Definitely worth the money!
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