I’m sorry Troid, but I’m going to have to disagree with you. Link is definitely inexperienced. He may eventually go up to the level reached by previous Link’s, but they don’t really add on to each other. Or if they do, it’s never obvious. We never see any indication that Link is really gaining a boost in power, or courage or whatever from the Triforce.
Heck, the poor guy doesn’t even get to keep his items…every new game he has to get the Master Sword, the Bow, the Bombs, the Boomerang, the Hook/Claw/Longshot, and then he gets new stuff. But, for the purposes of the argument, I guess we could say that Link has the experience and items from every decent Zelda game.
I believe that the second Zelda game, chronologically would be the Four Swords for the GBA…you know, the one that came with the Link to the Past remake? If Minish Cap came first, then Four Swords GBA probably came next, since it involves Vaati, and mentions him being sealed away, which probably refers to Minish Cap. It does not, however mention Ganon in any way, so I would guess the others are set after.
(P.S. On Thanksgiving I will give thanks to perfection, for without it I would have nothing to attain.)
True, we never see any proof that Link really gets a ton of courage and experience from the Triforce. In fact, now that I think about it, he doesn’t even get the Triforce in WW until near the end of the game. Nevermind. >_>
A small story-related detail like there being many Links shouldn’t have an effect on an argument like this. Combine them all into one Link with all the items and give Mario all his items and continue on.
First chagi, I shall pretend that I understand what you mean by “plumper”. I will then ask you to explain what you mean by killing mushrooms. I hope you mean Goombas, and that you’re not referring to mushrooms Mario eats to gain health and occasionally size.
You seem to have forgotten that Mario does a lot more than platforming, although he does do a lot of that. As has been mentioned repeatedly in this topic Mario has starred in six RPG’s, in which I believe he saves the world…a couple of times. In those he battled dragons, demons, lots of Bowsers, and scores of other enemies, using a variety of different ways.
I do believe that Mario could adapt faster to a battle simply because he has been in a wider variety of challenges. Look at the original Super Mario Bros, and then look at Super Mario RPG. Mario has starred in sports games, puzzle games, party games, I believe there was that one first person shooter, Yoshi’s Safari. in addition to platformers and RPG’s. Link on the other hand is restricted to his awesome but still limited action-adventure/RPG, with some minor platforming involved in a few of them. I really think that if they had to fight, Mario would be able to react faster than Link, who does seem to rely rather heavily on his weapons.
As for the third game in the Zelda series…well, it’s tough now, after Minish and Four Swords…but I think it is Ocarina of Time, as that is the only one, with the exception of Princess and Waker that depicts Ganon as Ganondorf, a human, and before he was well known as a terrible demon king. That’s what I think, although it is entirely possible that I am wrong.
(P.S. How come people who don’t wish to go to hell, bury themselves six feet closer?)
I truly believe that Mario would be the victor if they fought, although it would be a close battle. Mario does have more experience than Link, being in countless adventures. Although Link has been on many quests, he has not been on as many adventures, even if it was the same Link in every game. Mario is also much more agile than Link, while Link can’t even jump unless he is on a cliff, and even than that is more of a leap than a jump.
Link does seem to have the advantage in items though, for Mario (for the most part) has to find the item, and he can only use one at a time, losing the previous power he has found, while Link can switch his weapon at any time. Link would also seem to have the advantage (if we used Ocarina of Time Link) against Mario’s fire balls, having the Gorron’s tunic. It can withstand high temperatures, and Link can even walk on lava for a short time. If he is able to do that, I would certainly think that Mario’s fireballs would at least be reduced in damage.
Mario does have quite a bit more experience than Link though, and has fought an equivalent of almost anything that Link has fought through any of Link’s quests. Mario also has tons of endurance, being able to run/jump around for miles continuously, and according to the Mario RPG games, he also can take quite a hit. I think it would be quite a close fight, but with Mario’s experience, agility, adaptability, and stamina, he seems to have the advantage.
Seriously, how many people do you know that have been stabbed in the chest and lived? If Mario got into it with Link, he’d either die or lose a limb. And if Mario did win, he probably wouldn’t have all his fingers/hands/toes/feet/arms/legs left.
It’s like Bruce Lee vs. Chuck Norris. Two people of nearly equal power battling, it’d be more about who has an obvious advantage and who’s more clever.
But I still think that getting stabbed by Link would suck. Do you really think Mario would have the balls to jump in while Link is carrying a freakin’ sword? If he gets stabbed, I bet he’d try to go “Ooooh,” but he’d just gargle and choke on his own blood, and when Link pulls the sword out, Mario’d die on the spot after a fine red mist spews from his jiggly gut.
Well sure, that’s assuming that Link’s sword works logically and not how it works in the games where he can slice right through an enemy and have it keep on moving because he didn’t do enough damage…even though he should have technically cut it in half.
Besides the same argument goes for Mario. Link can swing his sword all he wants, but a solid smack to the head with one of Mario’s hammers would logically snap the guy’s neck, killing him. Both weapons are capable of killing.
And it is also only logical that if Link’s going in with all of his many items and abilities, I would assume Mario would as well…giving him the many star powers he gained in his RPG’s, something I can’t imagine Link countering.
Also…what’s with that Bruce Lee and Chuck Norris comparison? Bruce Lee is clearly not of nearly equal power because he is dead. Chuck Norris is not dead, so he must logically be more powerful than his opponent who is unfortunately incapable of respiration, let alone combat.
As for the fourth game in the Zelda timeline…well if Ocarina is third, then logically Majora’s Mask would be next, considering it takes place RIGHT after Ocarina’s events…although one must wonder whether it takes place in the future Hyrule where Link successfully sealed Ganondorf…or the past one, where Ganondorf never got a chance to attack…
(P.S. In 1987 American Airlines saved 40,000$ by removing a single olive from the salads it offered in First Class. I came up with that idea first those dirty idea thieves!)
Bruce Lee was by far the greatest fighter of all time, but he died for some unknown reason. He rivaled Chuck Norris to a great extent. While Bruce Lee lives on only in spirit and inspiration, Chuck Norris is dying slowly in crappy Total Gym commercials. Bruce Lee may be dead, but he’s still here.
If Link got pounded in the head with a hammer, he’d be down for the count, that’s sure, so I do guess that Mario does have a good counter for that.
It’d all come down to who does what and when. Whichever one of 'em has the best reaction time and best instinct.
My argument about Bruce Lee was that since he’s dead, he can’t move, and therefore he can’t fight. Besides if he died before Chuck Norris did, then logically Chuck Norris must be superior at surviving. But this topic isn’t about Bruce Lee vs. Chuck Norris, nor about the weird way I define power in people…it’s about Mario. And that Link guy.
Best reaction time and best instinct…well the best way to determine that would be to see how many different situations they’ve been in. The more they have been in, the less likely they are to get surprised by anything and the faster they’ll react to changes in the battle.
Mario has been in a wider variety of adventures, and more of them, so I would say he definitely wins that aspect of the argument, and since you claim that one of the things that Mario is apparently the best at would be the deciding factor for this battle, you have successfully argued for the plumber.
The fifth Zelda game is tough to place…I think we will have to assume that the Zelda series branches off at Ocarina, with one timeline going from the future where Link sealed Ganon, with the other taking place before Ganondorf ever attacked.
I would have to place the next game in the timeline where Ganondorf was not sealed away as the original Zelda game, since he is apparently free, and using his creepy pig form…plus he’s trying to get the Triforce. Additionally he doesn’t use his trident weapon, which he apparently gets in a later game…
I would pick link’s side, as he doesn’t need to use a sword. On Majora’s Mask, he has a goron shape-changing ability, and in this form he can use punches just like Mario, and he could probably match his strength, if not overcome it. he can also roll into a ball in this form, with spikes coming from the inside out. Mario woildn’t have a chance if that landed on him.
