Zelda

Mert Overcash

Original goal:

Comparison of ludology and design of items in Legend of Zelda series. Starting with six items, see if it is viable to create a database using excel and Tropy to track multiple "tags" of the items. From there, create a data display that is accurate, open source, aesthetically in line with the games, and avoids the "graph problem" of pretending something is scientific that isn't. 

Current status:

Experimented first with tagging the swords. While Tropy was fine for visualizing the objects together, the lack of hierarchical tagging and comparison tools meant that the design elements and ludology elements could not be compared effectively. Swords simply required too many tags with multiple game mechanics per object and multiple points of design comparison (blade, pommel, grip, guard) with multiple permutations (color, shape, details, motifs, size, relation to each other). Swords also created a challenge with official artwork varying wildly from in game sprite/model. With this in mind, we decided to instead pivot to only the small key for this project.

Future insights:

We would need to switch to a more robust comparison tool like INVIVO or, at minimum, use custom metadata along with tagging in Tropy with a simultaneous excel sheet to track tag application for the direct data comparisons. Future areas of interest that may present less of a challenge than equipment or general inventory items are: musical instruments, monsters, and boss killer items. These would all provide unique insights into the games, are smaller data sets than the weapons with exception of the monsters which have a smaller ludology spread, and have the potential for more varied ludology/design comparisons.

Terms:

Controlled vocab in order of consultation as of 11/24/24: Getty Vocabularies; Video Game Metadata Schema (University of Washington Information School Game Research (GAMER) Group and Seattle Interactive Media Museum) version 4.2; Library of Congress thesaurus for graphic materials; self-constructed. Tags used listed on excel spreadsheet with application parameters

OLAC's Videogame Genre Form Terms for game visual style

Item name in English

Color names derived from photoshop hex code and https://chir.ag/projects/name-that-color/#6195ED then closest getty color term (largest category: green instead of light green)

Weapons /Swords

Selection basis: 

All games have a 1st sword and a strongest sword

While some two handed swords appear that are the strongest in-game sword; two handed swords are not considered the standard outfit for Link across all games and are always optional

Base sword only

No broken swords but restored broken swords are allowed

No swords that Link cannot use in-game when playing without exploits

No swords that are only designed to be used in specific circumstances: levels/dungeons/areas, modes, quests

1st Sword- Sword that link gets first in the game

Strongest sword that can be used with a shield- Can be an optional/upgraded sword if only required sword is 1st sword; strongest by max base power

Shields

Selection basis: 

All games have a first shield and a strongest sword

Base shield only

No broken shields but restored broken swords are allowed

No shields that Link cannot use in-game when playing without exploits

No shields that are only designed to be usable in specific circumstances: levels/dungeons/areas, modes, quests

1st shield - Shield that Link gets first in the game

Strongest Shield

Other

Selection basis:

Selected to be representative of non-weapons in Zelda games

Keys were selected for being the most frequent utility item with the most consistent game mechanic

Also selected since they function basically the same as keys in the physical world (opening doors) similar to shields and swords functioning basically as they do in the physical world (when not accounting for special abilities or magic attributes)

While not usually an inventory item, are essential to game progression

Small Key

Boss Key (key that leads directly to a boss fight room)

Game selection: 

games included in Zelda Dungeon main list

excluding: multiplayer games, games listed in the Other Games section, games where Link is not the main player character

Reasoning for using Zelda Dungeon: 

Item list is well documented and easily accessible and considered one of the most reliable sources for Zelda game information in English

"The site's main purpose is to provide the most in-depth Zelda game guides possible, utilizing screenshots, maps, and artwork (https://zelda.fandom.com/wiki/Community:Zelda_Dungeon)."

"In March of 2008, Zelda Dungeon won Exploding Deku Nut's Golden Mirror Shield Award, a lifetime achievement award given to a website who has had significant contributions to the Zelda community.[2] The website currently stands as one of the most popular Zelda websites, reaching an audience of over 7500 unique visitors per day (https://zelda.fandom.com/wiki/Community:Zelda_Dungeon)."

Created in 2001 and continues until now, tracks its own history and layout changes (https://www.zeldadungeon.net/wiki/Zelda_Dungeon:History).

Item information links to Zelda Dungeon Wiki which is the wiki outgrowth of the main site: "Previously used as a tool for hired content writers to prepare pages to be published on the site, the wiki became the hub of Skyward Sword activity in April 2011 as information about the game began to trickle out. Shortly after the game's release, it was decided that most content for it, and eventually for all games, should be hosted on the wiki, allowing for community contributions (https://www.zeldadungeon.net/wiki/Zelda_Dungeon_Wiki:About)."

Cross referenced with Zelda wiki to get extra information: https://zeldawiki.wiki

Removed from consideration:

huge categories unto themselves: food; transportation; clothing/armor including defensive only accessories; architecture; characters; animals; monsters; currency; plant; navigation items like compass and item finding items, musical instruments

containers of other items like bottles, bags, heart containers and quivers

text items- letters and notebooks and books, maps

weapons that are not single-hand swords

consumables- potions and health restoring items, one use weapons

Items are divided by game function not name or appearance; optional upgrades not included, base item only

Location is in base game, not game plus or other gameplay types.

Process: (Addie Magyar)

When beginning the tracking work for The Legend of Zelda games, I decided to create an excel spreadsheet, listing every item in each of the games. As I added to the inventory list, I kept track of which games each item appeared in, by highlighting those boxes green, which created a visual representation of the repetition. Once I finished with the initial tracking of items, Mert and I went through and purged our list, focusing on certain items, as well as finding which items were the same or similar, but had been renamed or redesigned in later games. Since I had never played these games before, and Mert has played them for years, we brought a helpful balance to each other’s perspectives throughout this project. The rather surprising trend that I had noticed, was that the only item that was present in each of the games we looked at, was the small key. This was initially shocking to Mert, who had assumed that the keys would be trivial, insignificant, or would not repeat throughout many of the games. When I pointed out the trend, we each thought that this was rather endearing--something so small and seemingly insignificant would reappear each time, to perform the same task no matter the circumstance: to unlock doors, and to lock them back up. These small items, these little things, would often be overlooked if not for collaborative Digital Humanities projects like this one. The repetition of the small key is a testament to part of the deep-rooted human experience--tradition, familiarity, and sentimentality.