Topic: What if Link is gender neutral?

This seems like an interesting idea. Link was supposed to be nothing but a player avatar after all, it's not like Link's gender particularly affects the story in any way. I think having a whole game avoiding gendered pronouns is a bit much though. You could always let the player select from he/she/they in the options menu (and not change Link's cosmetic appearance at all).

Where does Miyamoto say that Link was only ever meant to be a player avatar? I can't find the quote and I seem to recall him talking about Link's character changing at some stage compared to earlier games.

I believe it's a fairly old interview about the original NES game, when asked about where the name Link came from. (I checked it again and I can't find the source, I did find another origin for the name Link which isn't consistent with what I said before though). I admit that Link has taken more masculine characteristics in every game he's been in since the original, but hey, the WiiU title evokes the original where Link was as androgynous as Samus in armour was.

Uhh... guys- he is just wearing his water tunic. Duh. His hair is wet.

Why is everyone making a big deal about Link being a boy, but nobody cares about Samus being a girl? It seems like a bit of a double standard to me.

Hyrule Historia never lists offspring so how is it known he is male ? (Or even any kind of normal species.)

Could be the result of some kind of immaculate conception or something akin to Quickening in the Shannara series.

Or a function of the triforce to produce one Link and one Zelda when necessary. (Given it can do whatever it likes).

How about we just give Link the title. I mean, Zelda literally slept through Zelda II.

I personally don't care what gender Link will be, but it would be great if there were options for both or if their gender was left ambiguous. I think people worry too much about what gender a character is and don't realize how much it really doesn't affect the character/story, or at least for a character like Link I don't think it would. And this isn't Ubisoft, so it shouldn't be that hard for Nintendo to give the option of a female/androgynous Link.

Also, let me ask people to not use the word "it" when referring to a gender neutral person. That's highly impersonal and rude, please use "they/them/their", or in any real-life case, whatever pronouns the person prefers.

Maybe Nintendo should do the whole game in Finnish. We don't have gender-specific pronouns

I don't think it'd be a wise choice to change his gender completely at this point. Maybe give the players a choice - Fire Emblem: Awekening pulled it off smoothly - but only if the plot doesn't suffer from it.

I think that would be absolutely perfect.

People are here forgetting that Link can apear in first game as male but in others as female since he's reincarnated when he's needed. That was the story right? So he can be also a she. Nuff said

Revelant article...

That's actually a really sweet story.

I just looked it up and there actually has been a Legend of Zelda that not only lets you choose the gender of you avatar but they aren't Link or Zelda they're the BS mascots. Its called BS The Legend of Zelda and its a remake of the original LOZ on the BS-X Broadcasting System and its not the only game in its series there are two more so its entirely possible for there to be a male and female hero in the series.

I'll just say. Does it really matter? Yes, Link could feasibly be a woman, but does it matter so much? Link was right handed in both Skyward Sword and the Wii port of Twilight Princess. Did that make me feel more disconnected from Link because I'm left handed? No. This is my one question I have for female Zelda fans. Did the fact that Link is a male prevent you from enjoying or being immersed in any Zelda game you have played?

Also, if the choice to play as a male or female is given in a Zelda game and the Link of that game is referenced, how can they reference him/her? You couldn't call them the "Hero/Heroine of ______". You couldn't call them Link, since that isn't necessarily their name. The game could possibly read the data of the previous game and just insert Hero/Heroine that way, but what if someone hadn't played the previous game or a game data transfer was impossible period? What gender would Link be given? The gender stated would have to become the canon gender of Link in that game, making the entire reason that a choice was given almost invalid. Any game where the choice was given could not be referred to. For what purpose should all of this trouble be gone through if a consistently male Link isn't causing any real problems? It definitely has to be one way or the other. As for a female Link, it isn't equal to just reverse how the situation is being handled. If women are truly unable to enjoy a game because they can't play as a woman, why should they wish that men experience what the women are currently experiencing?

My Stance: If Link is going to be a guy in this game, let him be a guy. If Link is going to be a girl in one game, make there be a significant reason. The neutral option is just a hassle. Gender equality for the sake of doing it isn't productive, but using one gender or the other for an actual reason will result in a better product.

This is pretty much the same double standard I see throughout various posts in this thread. If it doesn't matter that much, why not just make Link a girl for one game, then? If it doesn't matter that much, why does there need to be a significant reason?

Link wasn't originally androgynous, look at the concept art. Can anybody else point me to the article where Miyamoto talks about Link being an avatar for the player? Surely somebody can point me in the right direction.

@Dreamz: Male Link is the standard of the series. Link is doing what are considered masculine things throughout the game. It's more simple and requires less explanation to have a male Link fighting enemies. If Link is a female in one game, I want for there to be a reason. Why is this woman fighting monsters? With Samus, she's a bounty hunter and her parents were killed by the Space Pirates. It's gender roles admittedly, but with a female character, the audience is going to want an explanation more than they are going to a male character. "Significant" wasn't the best choice word, but I simply want there to be an actual reason that Link needs to be a female other than "just because" and gender equality, especially in a case that, to my knowledge, hasn't seemed to have much of an impact on gamers.

There's no reason why Link shouldn't be a black guy either, so lets make that an option as well.