Case File: Was Zelda a Christian Game?
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Exhibit AKey Evidence
The question: was one of the most famous video game series ever made built with Christian imagery that most players never noticed? The video lays out five pieces of evidence.
- The Bible became the Book of Magic. In the original 1986 Japanese Legend of Zelda, the item American players know as the Book of Magic "was reportedly called the Bible in Japan." Even in the U.S. release, the book's sprite still carries a cross on its cover.
- Link kneeling at a crucifix. "Official Japanese artwork for A Link to the Past reportedly shows Link kneeling in prayer in front of a crucifix." The illustration comes from Nintendo's official Japanese guidebook for the game and was never published in the West.
- A cross on the shield. "Link's early shield even featured a cross on it."
- Scrubbed for America. "When the games came to America, Nintendo had certain policies limiting real-world religious references, so some of this imagery and terminology was changed, but traces remain." (In the Japanese A Link to the Past, for example, the Sanctuary was called a church.)
- Prayer opens the way. "In A Link to the Past, there's even a moment where Link is instructed to pray, and when he does, the path forward opens up." Outside the Desert Palace, a stone tablet tells Link to pray, and the door opens. Compare Matthew 7:7.
- The closing verdict: "Now, I'm not saying Zelda is a Christian game. That's not what I'm saying at all. But it's amazing to see how Christian imagery has influenced one of the most iconic video game franchises in all of history. And apparently, a lot of us grew up playing it without ever even knowing it."
Worth noting: the series later built its own mythology around three "Golden Goddesses" and the Triforce. Christian imagery in a game's past doesn't make the game Christian, and Zach says so himself. Scripture calls believers to test all things and to have no other gods.
Exhibit BFrom the Word
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”
“Test all things; hold fast what is good.”
“You shall have no other gods before Me.”
“Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.”
“Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’”
Video by @zach.hinojos
Zach Hinojos is a Christian creator who covers faith, news, and culture. His original reel, "Was Zelda a Christian game?", is on Instagram. The Fallen Exposure end card at the close is our only addition.
Follow @zach.hinojos and support his work.
ClassifiedFull Briefing
Most American kids who grew up with The Legend of Zelda never knew what they were holding. In Japan, the item they called the Book of Magic was the Bible. Nintendo's own Japanese artwork for A Link to the Past showed Link kneeling in prayer before a crucifix. His early shield bore a cross, and in the game itself, a tablet tells Link to pray before the way forward opens. When the games crossed the Pacific, Nintendo of America's policy on real-world religious content renamed and scrubbed much of it, but traces remain. Zach Hinojos is careful not to oversell it: Zelda isn't a Christian game. Still, the fingerprints of the faith run through one of gaming's most iconic franchises. The lesson for believers is to test all things, hold fast what is good, and remember that only one Way opens the door to the Father.