Super Mario Bros. has Bowser, Metroid has Mother Brain, Star Fox has Andross, and The Legend of Zelda has Ganondorf. There’s a level of p🍎restige that comes with being a Nintendo villain. Even if you’veꦕ only played one Zelda game, chances are yo🎐u have a good idea of who Ganondorf is. The King of Darkness, the Prince of Evil, or whatever you want to call him, Ganondorf has been terrorizing Link and Zelda for ages now, and it looks like he’s not about to let up. Each depiction shines new light on his character, whether it be fleshing out his ꦚpersonality or just showing us what he’s capable of. After dozens of games, Ganon is arguably one of the most in-depth villains in Nintendo’s roster.
It goes without saying, then, that there’s like🐼ly quite a bit you don’t know about Ganondorf. For as gameplay centric as The Legend of Zelda is, it also features r🍸ich, detailed lore that’s constantly being expanded. There are some naysayers who try to claim each game as a reinterpretation of the same lege🍌nd, but anyone attentive enough will tell you this is just bogus. Ganon has appeared in most within the series, and often as the same man. He grows, he learns, and he matures with each game giving him added mystery.
29 Ganondorf Can Naturally Use Dark Magic
When people typically think of Ganondorf’s abilities, they usually reflect on one of three things: his status as a swordsman, his trident-wielding pig form, and his Capt🔯ain Falcon inspired brawler fighting style in Super Smash Bros.༒ Few ever reflect on Ganondorf’s natural talent as a sorcerer.
What can't Ganondorf do?
As soon as Link meets him in Ocarina of Time, Ganondorf is shown firing a blast of dark magic at the Hero of Time. He continꦐues using magic for the rest of the game with Link and Ganondorf’s penultimate showdown culminating in a magic-based duel. It’s rather obvious how skilled he is at dark magic, but it nonetheless remains something fans ꦰtake for granted.
28 Ganon Is A Giant
It’s hard to miss considering 🐭his first three a🌸ppearances were in 2D titles, but Ganon is honestly kind of massive. In The Legend of Zelda, A Link to the Past, and Link’s Awakening, Ganon is depicted as bigger than Link, but th🦩e lack of depth p🦄erception leaves much to the imagination. Going into Ocarina of Time, however, it bꦕecomes clear just how large Gan𝓰on truly is.
In his beast form, Ganon absolutely towers over Link. If Link 𒐪is around 5’4 in Ocarina of Time, Ganon must be around 10’8. He’s roughly double the size of the Hero of Time and a major key of the final battle involves the player rolling through✃ Ganon’s legs to attack him fr🙈om behind. He’s not just a large pig. He’s a giant.
27 Ganondorf Is Near Invulnerable
One of the most interesting pieces of lore Twilight Princess brings to the table is the fact that Ganondorf, with the Triforce of Power in hand, is virtually indestructibleꦿ. While this can be deduced given how often Link defeats him only for Ganon to come back a few games later, TP shows this off in full effect.
When the sages go to execute Ganondorf, the Triforce of Power resonates within him, allowing him to tank the sage attack head-on. This allows him to survive. It’s only later in the game, when Link plunges the Master Sword into Ganondorf’s wound, th𝔍at Ganon actually f🐻alls in battle.
26 Ganondorf Will Outlive Us All
With a few exceptions, characters in The Legend of Zelda tend to live for as long as regular humans do. Everything indicates that regular Hylians have normal lifespans𓂃. This doesn’t apply to the Sheikah,ꦍ but it does to the Gerudo. What’s the deal with Ganondorf then? While he visibly ages in Ocarina of Time, he’s able to maintain his yout♐h for centurie🔯s upon centuries in other games.
Ganondorf will be there even when we won't.
Logic dictat🥀es that the Sacred Realm simply allows time to pass without characters aging, but remember that L🐎ink physically aged seven years while in the Sacred Realm. In The Wind Waker and Twilight Princess, Ganondorf doe꧂s not age whatsoever while trapped. He looks older in the former, but that’s mainly due to the art style.💯 Everything indicates he may as well look exactly how he did in OoT. The man simply doesn’t age.
25 Ganondorf Was Raised By Witches
It’s easy to miss since it isn’t especially explicit, but Ganondorf was raised by Koume and Kotake, otherwise known as Twinrova, otherwise known as the Spirit Temple’s bꩵoss ꦛin Ocarina of Time. Ganondorf’s surrogate mothers, the twin witches are strongly implied to be Gerudo and miꦕght explain how Ganondorf is so well versed in magic.
The Gerudo a๊re, primarily, a nomadic race. That explains Ganondorf’s physical prowess, but does little to explain his magic. Koume and Kotake are a means of showing players where Ganondorf gets his supernatural abilities from. He might not be their biological son, but his magic capabilities very clearly come from his adoptive mothers.
24 Ganondorf Is Smarter Than You Think
Speaking of taking things for granted, how about Ganondorf’s intelligence? Perhaps it’s because Ganon spent the first four games in the series as little more than a mindless pig man, but fans have a habit of overlooking the Prince of Darkness’ innate cleve✤rness. Time and time again, Ganondorf is depicted as well spoken and capable of devising devious plans.
In just Ocarina of Time, Ganondorf: curses the Great Deku Tree; cuts off the Goron food supply; infects Jabu-Jabu; awakens Volvagia to weed out the Goron race; and freezes over Zora’s Domain. To top that off, he successfully figures out Link and Zelda’s plan, and sneaks into the Sacred Realm wh❀en Link opens the Door of Time.
23 Ganon’s Power Is Augmented By Din
Deities in The Legend of Zelda tend to be accepted as wholly good beings. The Goddesses created Hyrule and gave it life; Hylia’s spirit🍃 actively helps Zelda in each game; and the Triforce is often depicted as an item best used for good. That said, Gano🎉n’s relationship with the gods might shine new light on how fans interpret them.
The Gods are unbiased.
As the holder of the Trifo🌟rce of Power, Ganon’s abilities are explicitly augmented by the Goddess Din. Given how little focus the series gives this fact, we can assume this is just how the Triforce naturally works. That, in itself, brings with it an uncomfortable implication, though. Rather than looking out for Hyrule's best interests, the Goddesses truly are non-biased, to the point of allowing Ganon to consistently gain intense power.
22 100 Years A Gerudo King
Whether you want to call it lore or law, Ocarina of Time makes it abundantly clear that the Gerudo race only births one male every 100 years, and that male always grows up to lead the Gerudo. In the case of Ganondorf, this allows𓆉 him to ease into a place of political power, making him the perfect reincarnation for Demise’s malice.
Long live the king.
Interestingly, Four Swords Adventure and Breath of the Wild both imply that there was at least one separate instance of a different Ganondorf being born into the Gerudo race. The former makes this seem as if this is a constant thread whereas the latter implies not every male is Ganondorf. It’s ꦇan interesting take on the Gerudo legend, one that leaves quite a bit of room for interpretation.
21 Ganon Is Trapped In His Pig Form
The Downfall Timeline is not particu♏larly kind to anyone. Stemming off from an unseen event where Ganon actually managed to slay Link during their final battle, the Downfall Timeline sees Ganon reincarnating constantly, to the point where Hyrule is pretty much terrorized non-stop. This timeline also brings with it the implication that Ganon is stuck as a pig.
This theory mainly comes from the fact that Ganon never actually appears as Ganondorf in this timeline. In every game, he’s shown in his pig form e෴xclusively. This could be because Ganon has a pretty strong grasp of the Triforce of Power in the Downfall games, effectively trapping him as a pig and completely detaching him from the man he was in Ocarina of Time.
20 Every Resurrection Cripples Ganon’s Psyche
On the subject of resurrection, especially 🐓in regards to the Downfall Timeline, it’s made painfully clear that Ganon’s psyche breaks with each revival. Going chronologically down the line, Ganon loses his mind with each subseque🍌nt game. A Link to the Past has him coherent and capable of showin🐟g off some Ganondorf-esque wit, but it’s all downhill from there.
Is the price we pay for resurrection worth it?
The Oracle duology depicts him as truꦓly brainless; his r🐻eturn in A Link Between Worlds is shallow to the point of moౠckery, and he doesn’t m🤪anage to say or do a single intelligible thing in the original Legend of Zelda. This is to say nothing of Breath of the Wild, a game str🧸ongly hinted to take place in the Downfall Timeline, which features a G💝anon who’s certifiably insane.