Long-time fans of The Legend of Zelda happily show off their love for the series with some of the best-looking tattoos. Zelda’s artwork has always suited the types of stylized designs that look great in tattoo format, making it one of the best games to translate into this form of artwork. Even better, each game has its own unique aesthetic and motifs, giving fans a way to celebrate their favorite entry in the series proudly.
Usually, tattoos are worn by older fans of the series, so many of the games featured harken back to the Nintendo 64 or GameCube eras. Additionally, there’s a strong divide between the type of Zelda tattoo fans want. Some fans have a punk edge and lean towards darker games such as Majora’s Mask and Twilight Princess. Others enjoy the more wholesome aspects of Zelda, and so prefer the bright colors and symbols of Ocarina of Time and The Wind Waker. The tattoos shown cover the full spectrum of Zelda fans’ tastes.
9 The Triforce Without Its Golden Allure
The classic Zelda tattoo design is the Triforce: the basic icon of the series with a simple geometric shape that’s easy to replicate. It takes a brilliant design to elevate the Triforce tattoo concept, and this no-color tattoo is just one example. The Triforce is surrounded by a ritualistic circle and combined with a number of famous icons.
The symbols inside each of the Triforce pieces correspond to the three goddesses Din, Nayru, and Farore. In the center of the Triforce is the Hylian Royal Family crest, referring to the goddess Hylia’s power. And finally the icons around the edge correspond to each of the different main races from The Legend of Zelda: the Kokiri, the Goron, the Zora, the Gerudo and the Sheikah (by @versamo on Twitter).
8 Breath Of The Wild’s Champion’s Abilities Inscribed On Skin
Combining simple black icons with vivid bursts of color can also be a recipe for success. This Breath of the Wild tattoo captures the symbols for the four Champion’s Abilities that Link gains upon defeating the Divine Beasts. The smoky effect of the color splashes gives a mystical vibe and ties the entire tattoo into one, cohesive work of art rather than four distinct tattoos. The forearm position also allows for a great long canvas on which to display this particular tattoo (by @apothecaryjuices on Tumblr).
7 Twilight Princess’ Wolf Link Tangles With The Triforce
Another common motif in the Zelda tattoo community is Link’s wolf form from Twilight Princess. This isn’t so surprising, given that wolf tattoos are popular in general. The flowing mane of Link’s wolf form is also perfectly suited to showing off beautiful line work by the tattoo artist, and the darker palette of Twilight Princess itself justifies a black-and-white tattoo.
What elevates this particular tattoo, however, is the addition of the powerful Mandela-like Triforce art at the end of wolf Link’s mane. The detailed florets and the icons of the Seven Sages contrast well with the softer lines of the wolf’s fur, providing a gradient of defined-to-blurred line work. The placement of the wolf’s head at the elbow also accentuates the contour of the forearm muscle. This is a great example of why not all tattoos need color to stand out (by @EG-TheFreak on Deviant Art).
6 A Line-up Of Link’s Mask Forms From Majora’s Mask
Compared to some of the more minimalistic Zelda designs, this full back tattoo of Majora’s Mask takes the opposite approach. The tableau revels in a full-color design and attempts to depict every aspect of the game which has been etched into the fan’s mind.
Fierce Deity Link from Majora’s Masktakes center stage, flanked by Link’s other mask forms. In the background looms the Clock Town clock tower, recalling the looming presence of constrained time throughout the game. The bottom half of the picture shifts to a bright-red aura surrounding Skull Kid, providing the entire tattoo with a pop of color and a sense of layering. Finally, the tattoo is finished with some of the most iconic extra masks from the game, such as the Mask of Truth and the Keaton Mask (by @Purrdemonium on DeviantArt).
5 The Wind Waker’s Fairy Queen Is Adorably Powerful
This tattoo of the Fairy Queen from The Wind Waker has to be the most wholesome Zelda tattoo. The Fairy Queen with her child-like, yet almost alien design, is an unfortunately overlooked character in the Zelda series, but this tattoo does justice to both her power and her adorable appearance. The bright sky-blue of this Legend of Zelda Great Fairy works well against the brownish-pink tones of the skin, and also allows the primary colors of the Goddess Pearls to still be clear in the design (by @gamexcoreink on Tumblr).
4 Wind Waker’s Design Goes Naturally With This Tattooists Chosen Style
Link charging forward with sword outstretched works perfectly in this tattoo’s Wind Waker design. The drawn-on artistic style, coupled with recognizable elements from the game make this tattoo stand out and its colors look sharp. The line work is expertly crafted to look as though this Link has just jumped straight out of the pages of a brightly colored Legend of Zelda official artbook. (by Ben Loredo on Instagram)
3 Midna’s Mischievous Nature On Display From Twilight Princess
Midna from Twilight Princess appears to have tattoos herself, making her the perfect subject for a tattoo. The digital Twilight Realm markings on her body are rigid, turning at right angles. Contrasting this with her natural curves and flowing hair makes for a fantastic design. Additionally, the colors stay true to the original game, captured with impeccable detail.
The tattoo has an overall S-shaped curve to it, guided by the stone headpiece and led down the body by the “arm” of hair down to the hand at the end, which Midna almost seems to pose on top of. This technique recalls Botticelli’s Birth of Venus, but captured with a much edgier, more mischievous model instead (by @electric.feels.studio on Instagram).
2 The Moon From Majora’s Mask Dominates The Shoulder Tattoo
The vivid cobalt blues in this design are brilliant, tying the moon into the blue from Majora’s Mask’s iconic clock tower. Bright oranges then act as highlights, picking out the moon’s eyes, its flaring nostrils, and the top of the clock face. The moon’s terrifying grin and perfect spherical shape also take advantage of their position on the shoulder to make the curves of the model’s arms stand out.
What elevates this tattoo even higher are the small details. The heads of each of the four bosses in Majora’s Mask surround the clock face, echoing the tribal design of Skull Kid. These bosses seem to be emanating clouds of steam that rise up and envelop the moon. Lastly, the sketch of Tatl at the bottom implies that she is going to be added to the tattoo at a later date as a border to the entire image (by @chronicink on Twitter).
1 Every Zelda Game Combined Into One Tattoo
This final tattoo is a tableau of the darker elements from practically every 3D Zelda game. It’s impressive how the colors and shapes come together in a cohesive way despite the differing aesthetics of each game. The roundness of Majora’s Mask’s moon, for example, is echoed by the round cogs of the Gate of Time from Skyward Sword. The blue from the Gate of Time is then copied by the Deku Baba design from Ocarina of Time (by @itsjustbeebe on Instagram).
Overall, the top half of the image is dominated by darker colors reminiscent of the night sky. But at the bottom of the image are Link and Zelda, framed by the Temple of Time. Interestingly, Link wears his outfit from Hyrule Warriors while Zelda wears her outfit from Twilight Princess. The model for this tattoo clearly wanted to unabashedly and seamlessly piece together their favorite elements of every single The Legend of Zeldagame.
Sources: Nintendo of America/YouTube, @versamo, @apothecaryjuices, @EG-TheFreak, @Purrdemonium, @gamexcoreink, @Emicool2002, @electric.feels.studio, @chronicink, @itsjustbeebe
