Still crazy to me that Ganondorf in his Gerudo form has only appeared in a total of 3 Zelda games (OoT, WW, and TP). He's appeared in more Smash Bros. games than Zelda games! Glad he's finally making a comeback in TotK.
Ganondorf was also gonna show up in the Oracle games before they decided against it. There's official artwork of how he was gonna look like in those two games. A shame :(
It is because those 3 are all the same man. Gannondorf is exactly one reincarnation of gannon. Now, Nintendo has made it clear they dont care that much about continuity, but they may be why they havent used him again.
@@alanhersch4617 nah bro nah eiji aonuma cares it’s miyamoto who actually doesn’t give a Fly F and literally interferes to damn much to make things not make sense in development of the games knowing this it’s shocking how even some of the games like WIND WAKER MM and TP and skyward sword actually had direct continuity It’s a F miracle they did!!!!!!! as much as respect I have for miyamoto for him being the creator I also realize he has a big problem of being to damn simple and not caring about actually making something interesting and complex it’s why to this day I have waaaaaay more respect for Mr eiji aonuma so much more You can even check the interviews for this proof of wind waker twilight princess timeline talk to see what iam saying about miyamoto more child ignorance enough said.
I've always imagined that Ganondorf's motivation in the Windwaker was basically a rationalization, as he was a man driven by an irrational evil. When he speaks on this, he says "I coveted that wind... I suppose...", suggesting that even he is unsure as to why he took such an evil path to attain his ends, and sought power so ferociously. The man still sees his ambitions through the lens of a man.
If we have to be honest, we all must admit that Ganondorf is probably the most complex character in the game, and that is why I’m so happy for his come back and I really hope he will have the space he deserves in totk.
I'm sure he would have done it with magic, but it's funny to imagine Ganon up in the rafters trying to hide and running around to manipulate the puppet manually.
I love how ganon as the beast and dorf as the man makes perfect sense 90% of the time and then King of Red Lions calls WW Ganondorf “Ganon” just to mess everyone up. (source, first cutscene where KoRL describes who commands the helmaroc king when you meet KoRL on Windfall island)
The issue with Vaati and Majora being incarnations of Demise's hatred is that both were alive at the same time as Ganondorf and existed before him. Since neither died before Ganondorf's birth they couldn't have reincarnated.
My favourite Ganondorf is Ocarina of Time! :] He’s already cool, but then you find out he’s the same person in Twilight Princess and Windwaker albeit older and wiser/angrier. Yeah I know it’s cheating but that also means he’s dealt with multiple versions of Link and Zelda in one lifetime. Here’s hoping Tears of the Kingdom Ganondorf is as spectacular as his other appearances! :)
I've always loved Windwaker's interpretation of Ganondorf. I love that he seems somewhat remorseful and less tyrannical. He obviously only wants to resurface Hyrule to rule over it, but he seems like a deeper character than the usual evil that he very often is
Thank you for making this. I never got to play every title, but the ones I did- faced Ganon. I always assumed that dimension he's locked away in drove him mad and split him ... I'd never even heard of the malice nor any thought that Ganon was cursed.
Correction: Ganondorf was mentioned in A Link to the Past during the SNES era. Either during the game or in the instruction manual. It talks of how he entered the golden realm and obtained the Triforce. But you never see him in his human form. Only as Pig Face Ganon as the final boss.
The Triforce may not be within Ganon but only he could control it still because it obeys him as long as he lives, not even the Master Sword being able to hurt him without a spin attack, it needs to be the Golden Master Sword to make it a lot of easier
There is one more version of Dark Beast Ganon we see, though it's apparently non canon. In Hyrule Warriors, when he gains the 3 pieces of the Triforce (without killing Link and Zelda I might add), he transforms into a four legged beast, much larger than TP's version too. Matpat did do a theory that HW is actually canon, and that BotW comes after the timeline convergence. That's just a theory though. Still could be interesting to explore though
At the "A Zelda game without Ganon is actually kind of typical" I panicked I love the inside jokes that are being built in these videos, it makes me happy of being part of this community
My theory for the fallen timeline is that it's a timeline where Ganondorf is a lot more vicious and actually kills Link prior to him entering the Temple of Time, without a hero to embody the Triforce of Courage the split doesn't occur immediately, leaving Ganondorf the opportunity to wish upon the Triforce (this would explain why Twinrova is alive to attempt Ganon's revival in the Oracle games.)
I think the fact that ganondorf comes before ganon the beast, makes more sense to me because oot is literally where the timeline splits and also where he ended up being sealed as ganondorf, and so one ends up sealed away and the other one then goes and either ends up becoming the Ganondorf sealed under hyrule castle in totk, As far as beast ganon occurring I can see how after oot he ends up becoming the beast version because his rage and malice growin and eventually consuming him and becoming pure malice after he finally get sealed in tp, and his malice ends up manifesting every 1000 years
I like to think of the Downfall Timeline as the “original” Timeline, and that someone eventually travelled back in time to right the course of Ocarina Of Time. Reason being that after Ganon got his hands on the True Force, he made it impossible to truly kill him. That’s why he’s so easily and repeatedly resurrected in the Downfall Timeline. But by preventing him from ever getting all three pieces of the Triforce in Ocarina Of Time, the next appearance of Ganondorf in both the Adult (TWW) and Child (TP) Timelines see Ganondorf actually killed and never resurrected. Presumably, if the Downfall Timeline were to carry on beyond Zelda II, Ganon would continue to be ritually resurrected ad infinitum.
Based on your theory and the statement that Calamity Ganon is a continuous reincarnation of Ganon, the Wilds games take place in the Downfall Timeline.
@@nabodabo1235 Yeah, if they belong in any one timeline, I personally would put them there. But there’s a lot of evidence to support all three, which makes me like the theory that the timelines somehow merged through Hyrule Warriors shenanigans or something similar.
I just want to say, I really appreciate how much work and research goes into these lore and theory video's. You can really tell it comes from a place of love and respect for the games 💜 I've been watching each of these videos happily while I draw, as well as the rest of your videos, and it's so nice to constantly learn things, or view the lore from a new standpoint. You also break things down in a fun way! Sorry for the ramble haha. Just wanted to throw my appreciation here! Keep up the amazing work!
This means the world to me and it’s why I do it. Thank you for watching, and I’m so glad these videos are enjoyable for you. Best of luck with the art! 💜
i think that it is important to note how ever that ganon in a sense probably represent ganon dorf bad attribute from the inside , a representation of his greed and lust of power in which him aquiring the triforce resulted in him showing up the image of his inner personality with all that lust and greed of power being manifested in the form of a creature that some what symbolises what would happen if that become the person's nature , which is not to say that this is all what ganon dorf is all about , as evidenced by wind waker , also BanditGame , i reccommend you to watch "Legend Of Zelda Hero's Purpose Episode 5" man what a masterpiece of story telling i watched yester day that i can't think of the amount of fans who would be blown away if that fan made story was official , it takes place between majora's mask and twilight princess , and it did a fantastic job humainising ganon dorf and making that curse of him being an incernation of hatred effective on him when he asked link about his name , you can find the episode by watching it in you tube , and i hope you have a good time
I feel that for WW puppet Ganon is just a puppet. And that the colossal form emerging from the ground on the intro scrolls show what Ganon would have looked then. Perhaps turning back into Ganondorf afterwards? This still supports the theory that that form cannot be accessed again.
As far as Calamity Ganon and Dark Beast Ganon's (Era of the Wilds) appearances, I tend to be of the school of thought that time WANTS to happen. Events that were changed or avoided (due to time travel, etc.) but have happened in other timelines will often still be expressed in some other form. The more an event has happened in other iterations of time, the more likely it will be drawn to manifest into existence in the current timeline. This also kinda explains the presence of the Rito and Zora within the same timeline. Hopefully this made sense...
I think the fallen timeline is actually the "original" timeline in which Ganondorf doesn't cause trouble until after Link is already 16 (old enough to be the "Hero of Time," as that's what Rauru specifically said he was too young to be in OoT), after which he manages to pull off a victory and kill the hero, causing someone (either Zelda or one of the Sages) to send a message back in time to Zelda herself in the form of her "prophetic dreams" to afford the good guys a head start in stopping him. This prompts Zelda to convince Link to pull the sword earlier than he was supposed to, which forces him to "sleep" for seven years due to being too young, which makes it seem like a mistake as it allows Ganondorf to invade the sacred realm and rule the world unopposed for the time in which Link is inactive. I say this only *seems* like a mistake because it was actually these events and the subsequent time travel shenanigans that allow Link to defeat the Gerudo king in the first place.
I'm glad that you mentioned the permanent death in Twilight Princess. So many Lore people incorrectly state that Ganon keeps coming back on all timelines. Don't forget the permanent death in Wind Waker too.
Mean dude who spmetimes has and likes becoming a pig demon has one golden dorito but wants the other two Doritos so he is in an infinite loop of harassing the princess and mister hiyaah 🗡️
Bandit! At 3:21 Twilight Ganondorf I had never noticed the symbols on him until now omg I'm sure it's totally related to Tears of the kingdom main storyline
I always thought it was pretty clear that Ganondorf was the eternal hatred Demise was talking about. And Ganon was just a power he so happened to have thanks to the triforce
That whole explanation about the A link to the past is why I have been saying for the longest time that the fallen time makes no damn sense. They had to retcon the original origin story for Ganon for any of it to make sense.
I think it is the same as zelda that still retain hylia's abundant amount of force inside of her, ganondorf too retain demise's abundant amount of malice inside of him
@BanditGames (and everyone else) I got a quick little theory to think about… What if TotK/mummy ganon was a random reincarnation not from any game. This time when he was defeated, he was sealed underground and held in place by the green hand to simultaneously keep him from wreaking havoc on the land and prevent reincarnation. (He can’t reincarnate if he hasn’t died yet, right?) He has been held underground far away from civilization, slowly rotting until the point of death. Yet he is still kept alive, perhaps equally by the Triforce of Power and some ancient magic. (magic from the Zonai? Zonei? However it’s spelled) Of course over time (around 10,000 years), the seal was weakening and Malice slowly leaked out, causing monsters to appear all over Hyrule bit by bit. No one could stop it. Maybe the Zonai disappeared with the answers. This causes the kingdom to prepare for his eventual return. They didn’t know where or when he would return, just that he would. (Remember, 10,000 years have passed. Perhaps the kingdom forgot where he was.) Looks like Great great great great great great great great Not-So-Great great great great great King Hyrule is up there in Heaven or Hell, (who knows what he did) wishing he wrote down where old man Mr. Dragmire was. They didn’t expect him to unleash a massive amount of Malice all at once straight from the castle and corrupt all their defenses and weapons, ultimately leading to their demise and giving him 100 years to reform and repair with the excess amount of Malice unleashed upon the land. I hope even if most of this doesn’t sound probable, that it at least gets us thinking about something new. It is, after all…A Game Theory. Thanks for reading!
Your welcome for spacing out the paragraphs, so y’all’s eyeballs aren’t strained as much. This allows for “skimming through” the comment and making it easier to see an end in sight. Please don’t go any further… You won’t like what’s down there… You’ve been warned. 🫵 don’t mind this finger. It’s just pointing at people who can’t read comments longer than two sentences, and type TL;DR 😠. 😅 just kidding. I’m that way too. If you don’t notice, the finger points at me while I’m typing this…really says something, doesn’t it. Something about removing the plank from one’s eye before remarking on someone else’s speck in their eye. (i.e. A Hypocrite). For making it this far, Imma give you something to think about. Only few have the ability to make use of something from this. Let me reveal to you some Life Lessons more precious than Gold. Here they are: “Treat others the way you want to be treated.” Now let me elaborate since this can be selfishly twisted. “Love your enemies, wish good luck on those who treat you unfairly. Even those you are jealous of, never wish harm upon them.” “Look out for each other, for you never know what someone is going through. You might just save their life…or yours.” “Never stop doing good. For in time you will be rewarded if you do not give up.” If you made it this far, this was meant for you. You can probably guess what I am from all of this. I’ll spare you the usual messages, since you already know and/or have been spammed with it. I’ll just leave you a message here from He who sent me: “My child, I’ve missed you. I’ve waited patiently for you. It has been a long time since we were together.” “You probably don’t remember, but we first met when I created you. I knit you together in your mother’s womb.” “I created you respectfully and wonderfully.” “I have given you a plan and a purpose.” “Life has been hard, and it will get harder as it goes on.” “There is a great evil in the world, causing so much pain and agony and destruction.” “You may not believe that someone like Me would let this continue.” “You are right.” “One day I will vanquish all evil and will restore many lives to their fullest selves.” “For now, I will use you. You are capable of changing this world and making it better.” “There are many who claim to follow Me, yet they don’t follow my teachings or act according to my will.” “They ARE NOT my followers.” “Instead they lead my people away or make it seem harder to follow Me.” “All I ask you to do is show Love to one another, even your enemies.” “The only “Religion” I stand for as pure and faultless is taking care of the poor and the homeless and watching over the next generation.” “I love you so much. I will love you no matter what, even if you hate Me or turn away from Me.” “I sent my Son to show the world how to follow Me and to heal the sick and the broken.” “I sacrificed Him on the cross so that you would no longer worry about being “perfect.” “Now all I ask is that you put your trust in Me, in the sacrifice I made.” “It is never too late.” “Follow Me, and I will sustain you and provide for you in your darkest need.” “I will give you the peace, love, healing, strength that you’re looking for.” “Nothing in this world will satisfy.” “You will drink and become thirsty. Eat and become hungry. Become successful yet long for something more.” “Just a portion of Me will sustain you for a lifetime.” “The other thing I ask of you is to cast aside your old self and live a new life that is pleasing to Me.” “But…because I love you so much, I have given you a free will.” “You will still sin, and it will be hard and frustrating to live a better life.” “My guidelines for you are to save you from pain and trouble, not to control your life.” “In the end, if you love Me, then you will love others and care for others as if they were Me.” “Nothing you can do will ever be enough to save you on your own. Also nothing you can do will forever keep you from coming back to Me.” “So…I ask you… “Will you come back to Me?” “Will you love Me by loving others?” “Will you be a good example for the next generation, even the current and past generation?” “Will you put your trust in Me and let me guide you through this life?” “I will always make a way.” “You never have to doubt.” “When you are at your weakest, I am at my strongest. I will lead you through to better pastures.” “I will ask you once more… “In your heart, do you accept Me?” “Do you wish to know Me as I know you?” “Do You Trust Me?” “Remember, it’s your choice.” “I love you enough to give you the free will to fully choose.” “I am patient. I will wait for you.” “If you aren’t ready yet, I understand.” “It is never too late… My Child…”
I always assumed the Triforce worked like Highlander. If you kill the holder of the Triforce, you gain their piece. So depending on when Link dies in the fallen timeline during Ocarina, it's either Link never made it to get the TF of Courage, or, Link dies and Ganondorf obtains it from his corpse at some point. Both leads to Ganon getting it.
The only thing with that theory is in Zelda 1, Princess Zelda breaks the triforce of Wisdom herself and hides the pieces from Ganon before he captures her. So apparently the holder can willingly remove the Triforce they hold from themselves.
I think the best way to explain Ganon in the fallen timeline is to see the story as what it is: a legend. I believe that after Ganon defeated Link ha managed to grab the triforce of courage from Link's dead body, and then managed to take it from Zelda as well. But, before he had a chance to get his wish granted, the sages showed up and locked him away. Everything mentioned in ALttP is legend passed down for hundreds or thousands of years, probably mixing several stories of people trying to claim the triforce for their own. This would explain why the Triforce didn't split before ALttP: it already split in OoT and Ganondorf managed to collect them again.
Actually, when it comes to the whole difference between Ganondorf & Ganon, there is another possibility that came into light more recently that's worth considering, courtesy of RU-vidr Rwanlink because he actually made an excellent series on it worth checking out called Ganondorf Dragmire. Anyhow, I digress. The possibility in question is that Ganon and Demise are the same being...an ancient and powerful demon that Ganondorf made a deal with in order save his people from being forced to die in the desert. As a result, Ganondorf renamed him Ganon as basically somewhat of a tongue-in-cheek pseudonym for Ganondorf's demon.
I think that the Ganondorf in ToTK is the child timeline version. This is either 4SA Ganon who had Oot Ganondorf’s memories (which was defeated and turned back into Ganondorf then put under Hyrule castle to create ancient energy) Or somehow TP Ganondorf who was sealed after he ‘died’. We should know Ganondorf doesn’t ever die. This would explain the hand being over a chest and Ganondorf recoiling. It also explains why Ganondorf made Calamity Ganon appear like dark beast Ganon and then transform into Dark Beast Ganon, it’s the other Ganon form he knows (calamity ganon seemed like 4SA attempt at reincarnation)
Problem with the tp part is if he didn't die then he couldn't be reincarnated b4 the events of 4sa its either 4sa Ganon who got free of the 4 sword and they sealed him underground probably to prevent him from reincarnating again or 4sa one did break out was killed and a new one or ones were reincarnated and the last of them was again captured and sealed underground again in hopes to prevent his reincarnation.
Ganondorf coming from TP seems to be the most plausible as G from the adult timeline was turned to stone and in the fallen timeline was “utterly destroyed” [weird that the essence of the Triforce says this but then in OoA/OoS was somehow resurrected] two times.
Hey Bandit I noticed something (unrelated to this video) that I want to point out. Go to the Tabantha tower and look at the great fairy fountain. It sparkles in the same way that Hateno glows during the newest trailer. Also if you glide to the fountain you will see it sparkle a bunch more. I wonder if the fairy's magic may be protecting the town from malice. Thats just my opinion and thoughts, it could be nothing, but it could possibly be something. I just thought the comparison is nifty.
Doesn't BotW say that Calamity Ganon is Ganondorf trying to create himself a new physical form out of Malice? Zelda is absorbed by the Ganon-egg and stunts the growth for 100 years, and Link ends up fighting a half-formed reincarnated Ganon. TotK's first trailer shows the mailce coming from Ganondorf's body, which is being restrained by the - presumably Zonai - hand and Ganon's only way out until Link and Zelda arrive was to leak malice to form a new body.
Personal Top 5 Ganons- 5. Zelda II Ganon- Just a Shadow, but the fact that your death = Ganon's resurrection is scary. 4. YuuGanon- Yo, that twist got you, you gotta admit. But hijacking Ganon is a rare feat. 3. Twilight Princess Ganondorf- Dude is just a boss. Shows up, wrecks shop, only weakness is his own pride. 2. Wind Waker Ganondorf- Ganondorf as a human being. 1. Ocarina Ganondorf- Dude is deadly effective. You get to see the world before and after Ganondorf's full grasp... But he still kills your foster dad before you even had a chance to save him in the first level.
Link looks like the hero, Zelda, the Goddess, and Ganondorf, Demise. There is tangible evidence that Ganondorf is the only incarnation of Demise. With the beast forms further resembling Demise, the hair especially. Majora and the others may also be the results of Demise but I believe it is a stretch to call them incarnations.
I know this is a zelda video but the hello fresh add reminded me of this. Over the past 2 years me and my wife got chickens for eggs and a garden for some veggies, I also learned how to process my own deer meat. We feel fantastic eating fresh healthy food and not eating out alot. Hello fresh might be a good way for people to try out a more natural diet. You won't regret getting healthier.
Ganon/Ganondorf is one of my most favorite video game villains, and i can't wait to see what Nintendo has planned for him in Tears of The Kingdom. BTW, Mr. Bandit, i have a theory that i think you, and some other Zelda youtubers/theorists, might like. What if the green hand is actually the strange creature standing on the floating platform depicted on the walls in the title reveal trailer? They both have big hands, (well, the green hand IS a big hand) they both seem to have long fingers, they both seem to have the same kind of jewelry, and the possible creature that the green hand could've belonged to, seems to have been a very tall creature. So, what do you think? I don't think that anyone would really tie the green hand and the creature standing on the floating platform together.
i think that calamity ganon was formed by having some of the malice the demise cursed the land of hyrule latch onto ganondorf resulting in calamity ganon
About your take on wether Ganon is THE reincarnation or Demise or simply one of many, I like to think both are true. There are many incarnations like Majora, Bellum, Malladus, and Vaati, and Ganondorf started off as just one of them, but my take is upon getting the Triforce, he was elevated above the rest. Other incarnations still exist and more are made, but Ganondorf’s connection to the divine elevated him to more than just another incarnation. Like Zelda being Hylia reincarnated and Link being the ancient hero reincarnated, with each new generation post OOT being born infused with the Triforce, Ganondorf stands above the rest as the only true reincarnation of the God of Destruction. And that’s why out of all the incarnations, he’s the only one to reincarnate a second time in Four Swords Adventures, a fact that’s said to have repeated thousands of times in the span of ten thousand years in Breath of the Wild. Vaati never reincarnated, Majora never reincarnated, Bellum never reincarnated, Malladus never reincarnated, only Ganon.
Hold up. Since you're implying that the Fallen Timeline starts after Link falls during the final battle in OoT, how could Twinrova possibly revive Ganon in the Oracle games? Link had to kill Twinrova to awaken Nabooru as a sage, thus receiving the Spirit Medallion and gain access to Ganon's Tower. I know Zelda lore is somewhat complicated and that it's "up to the fans" to piece it together, but that just makes no sense.
I still think that Calamity Ganon is a very large Phantom Ganon, with Ganondorf being a focal point of TotK kinda sorta confirming it in my own headcanon
I like this idea and ima take it a step further. I think that the symbol of totk being something akin to a ouroboros symbol. Ouroboros is a symbol of resurrection and reinicarnation. And in the first ever trailer for totk we see what is very possibly a sealed ganondorf. So my guess is this, at some point in the timeline, someone figures out or gains knowledge of demise's curse, realised that even if ganon where to be killed, he would just reincarnate after some time has past and the struggle vs his evil would continue. I think the seal was intended to keep him in suspended limbo for as long as possible. But i think that the curse of the demon tribe has been getting stronger over time and it started to leak out from ganondorfs body, enough to eventually form calamity ganon.
When I was kid talking late elementary school to early middle school year's twilight Ganondorf easily had my favorite design until hyrule warriors came out when I was in my late middle school year's and from when the game was released to now he still has my favorite design it just looks so 🔥
I think that, in tears of the kingdom, They will eventually tell you the story about the Three chosen ones from ancient times and how and why ganon inherited demises curse leading to the rest of his incarnations being malice or mere puppets hence him coming back all the time
My head cannon with Calamity Ganon is that Ganondorf got sick of being defeated and resurrected that he found some way to transform into more of a force of nature, but that this transformation is the end of Ganon and if somehow he is defeated that there is no returning. This places BOTW (and TotK) as the convergence point for all the timelines and the end of the series.
Using this as an opportunity to plug my theory. Demise was the fallen hero of Lorule. Him and his armies came through a crack in the ground to Hyrule, that is his canonical origin, explained to us in Skyward Sword. In Link Between Worlds, when we fall through cracks in the ground, we enter Lorule, and back again. In Lorule, they have people that seem to be the opposite of Hyrules people. Zelda is wise. Her opposite is Princess Hilda, whose royal family destroyed their Triforce to stop the wars. Not very wise, as that only made things worse and plunged Lorule into chaos, and its denizens transformed into monsters. Links is courageous. His opposite was Rafio, who was cowardly and ran away from battle. He actively hid from danger, he preferred the safety of being a merchant. But what about the third person, Ganondorf? I theorize it’s Demise. Let me explain. Lorules triforce is depicted as inverted, the point is downward. Where else do we see that image? On Demises sword. Demises sword has a spirit in it, Ghirahim. The Master sword has Fi. Ghirahim in his final battle and Demise in his second even has his own Skyward Strike. Demise died and cursed “The Spirit of the Hero” and “The Blood of the Goddess Hylia” to reincarnate until he wins (Link and Zelda, with himself). But what about Demise? Why didn’t he resurrect? I think that’s because his body isn’t from Hyrule. So his soul reincarnated into his bodys opposite, the one naturally from Hyrule. Ganondorf. Let’s remember they all had opposites from hyrule/lorule. It would make sense that demise, king of demons, firey red hair, would reincarnate into Ganondorf, king of the gerudo. Ganondorf would have otherwise been a good and benevolent ruler, we see hints of this in Wind Waker when he talks about how he wants the green fields of Hyrule for his people, the Gerudo. But of course he went all evil, i theorize, because of the influence of the spirit of Demise reincarnated into him. I want the end of the cycle, the end of the curse, to free him of Demise, and the three of them defeat Demise.
Sometimes I don’t even think this is Gannon in the tears of the Kingdom game because he’s got bottom fangs in Ganon doesn’t have that or not that I’ve seen for that matter if I’m wrong, please correct me
It's my head canon that BOTW/TOTK take place at the end of ALL 3 timelines. as in, they merged. this is because BOTW makes references to all three individual timelines. perhaps he was able to join his different timeline forms together, thus creating a Joint Timeline, so to speak. and because HE combined his various forms, the three timelines had to as well. this could explain the massive gap between his last appearance and his appearance in BOTW (10,000 years). Basically, a massive span of time to allow the timelines to join fully. it's possible that it wasn't his conscious choice to wait this long, but rather, a higher power than even Demise (Din, Nayru, and Farore. or even someone/thing higher than even them).
I wouldn't put too much weight on say, Majora's mask having much to do with demise. Who knows how many different smaller curses and blessings are going on by themselves outside of Hyrule.
Link to the past fit very well after Four swords adventures. Ganon has trident. Maidens can be same or descendants. Master swords is in lost woods like in twilight princess. Oracles games make sense in child timeline because twinrova was never killed in that timeline
The conceptualisation of EVERY main antagonist, not just the Ganons, as an expression of Demise’s curse is a horrible one. Even if true, it robs the franchise of a lot.
Tbh I would also consider Zelda and Link to be cursed with eternal revival to fight Demise's incarnation. They literally only get to know peace once he's gone but he'll always come back.
Vaati and Majora are never called Demon King though, right? And Vaati and Ganon both exist at the same time, so it doesn't really follow the idea of one incarnation at a time. Malladus, however, IS called a Demon King, which compliates things.
Not in title, but they’re all quite similar all things considered. Also, some Links exist at the same time as one another, meaning some incarnations overlap.
If Link's Awakening is just the dream of the Wind Fish, then I can make a theory about Four Swords Adventures being a dream too and Ganondorf the sequel not existing. Vaati was so bored inside the sword he started hallucinating about being resurrected again lmao problem solved.
