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Ganondorf is undoubtedly the most well known villain of the Zelda franchise. Ever since his first appearance in Ocarina of Time, the male Gerudo has been a well known and favorite villainous character for Zelda fans, including me. Perhaps his favoritism is because he is the most reoccurring main enemy in the franchise, but there is one version of Ganondorf that I believe stands out as the most interesting and memorable out of all of them.
Let’s first talk about Ganondorf in general. He is the only male of his race, the Gerudo, a powerful warrior group that prominently live in the Gerudo desert. Because they live in the desert, their living conditions are very harsh. Their land brings scorching hot days and brutally cold nights; all accompanied by unforgiving winds. The Gerudo have adapted as best as they can to the weather and they created a mighty fortress where only Gerudo (and eventually any women) can enter. Ganondorf, being the only male Gerudo, was initially their leader. He was raised by Gerudo witches, Koume and Kotake, and tends to have dark magical powers of his own in the games. He gains further abilities due to being the bearer of the Triforce of Power.
There is much more to be said about Ganondorf, but that involves us reviewing the variants of him throughout the games he is present in. Let’s take a look at each Ganondorf and determine which one stands out the most (WARNING: Slight spoilers for several Zelda games).
Ocarina of Time:
This is perhaps the version of Ganondorf most fans think of when they hear his name, but does that make him the most interesting and memorable? This Ganondorf was intelligent, especially when it came to following Link into the Sacred Realm and waiting for Princess Zelda to reveal herself in order to capture her. He was able to take over Hyrule for 7 years, making it a scary wasteland of its former glorious self.
You have to commend him for how far he was able to go and accomplish his desires, but he is far from the best Ganondorf, at least in my opinion. Sure, he is cunning and evil, but he lacks personality beyond believing he is better than everyone. It is difficult for me to relate to him on any sort of personal level.
Twilight Princess:
This Ganondorf certainly looked very powerful and menacing. He stands out due to how he uses others as pawns for his greater schemes. Ganondorf usually does not show himself as someone who is dependent on others, so when he partners with Zant of the Twili, it came as a bit of a surprise to me. I also absolutely love the way Ganondorf asserts dominance in this game; from crushing a Sage with one hand even after being stabbed, to the way he stays standing after death. When he is eventually betrayed by Zant, it is very satisfying to see the consequences of his selfish actions.
While I feel this Ganondorf has at least a little bit more personality than OOT Ganondorf, he still lacks purpose. Sure, he wants to rule the kingdom, but why? I suppose it could be argued that he wants revenge for being sentenced to death, but that sentencing came from his original desire to take over the kingdom, which also lacks reasoning as to why.
Tears of the Kingdom:
As swole and epic looking as this Ganondorf is (not to mention has a phenomenal voice actor), this has got to be my least favorite Ganondorf. Not only is there no personality, there is no backstory of any kind. We barley know anything about him, and not in a cool, mysterious way either. It almost infuriated me every time I saw him on screen, because nothing was explained about him. He was just a crazy guy who wanted to have power.
Wind Waker:
And now, everybody, I present to you our greatest Ganondorf. Yes, perhaps the cutest looking Zelda game holds what I believe to be not only the most interesting and memorable Ganondorf, but perhaps even the most fearsome of them all.
Beginning with his first scene in the game, where Helmaroc King brings Link to Ganondorf: Ganondorf already looks menacing. Without a word, Helmaroc King understands his master’s orders and throws Link into the sea. We never even see his face in this scene, yet he so easily discards of our main character. Even later on, when Link tries to fight Ganondorf with the yet to be powered Master Sword, we continue to see why we should fear this opponent. The scene cuts away to outside of Ganondorf’s fortress right before Link swings at him, and then a split second later, we see Link weak on the floor below his nemesis. Wind Waker had fantastic ways of showing without telling, and it made each scene with Ganondorf all the more intense.
This Ganondorf was not only one to fear, but one to relate to. He was not just a blood thirsty villain; we see this during the final battle.
“My country lay within a vast desert. When the sun rose into the sky, a burning wind punished my lands, searing the world. And when the moon climbed into the dark of night, a frigid gale pierced our homes. No matter when it came, the wind carried the same thing... Death. But the winds that blew across the green fields of Hyrule brought something other than suffering and ruin. I coveted that wind, I suppose."
Ganondorf had legitimate reasons behind his actions. Sure, we may not all go to the insane lengths that he did to get what he felt he deserved, but we could at least relate to those struggles.
But even this Ganondorf had his limits. He had several chances to kill Link, but that was not his initial goal. He only wanted Link’s piece of the Triforce, and it is not until Ganondorf is trapped in a flooding Hyrule with him and Zelda that he finally goes mad and decides to try and kill them. Every time leading up to that moment though, Ganondorf would try to reason with Link, saying how the goddesses left Hyrule’s people to die and that this should not be the way.
This Ganondorf has always caught my attention with how soft spoken and intelligent he seemed. He was never just some mindless monster, he was a man with purpose. Not to mention, the man was always very poetic every time he spoke. When it came to his final breath before his life ended, he refers back to the wind that always brought his people death:
"The wind... it is... blowing..."
As always, these are of course just my opinions. Is there a different Ganondorf that stood out the most to you? Let us know on our discord or tag Zelda Creators in a social media post with your thoughts!
