The 50 Greatest Video Game Villains Of All Time
By Matt Becker
Greatest Video Game Villains – #1 Ganondorf
Game(s): The Legend of Zelda series
Background: In nearly every Zelda game, a new incarnation of Link is born again. The Hero of Time is a new version of a young boy, destined to embark on a heroic journey to save the world. While there are many versions of Link, there is only one enemy that prevails throughout the majority of the series: the Dark Lord, the Great King of Evil, Ganondorf.
Born the sole male member of the Gerudo, Ganondorf seeks the power of the all-powerful Triforce in an attempt to conquer the world and take the Hyrulean Throne. He often holds the Triforce of Power, granting him immunity against normal weapons and giving him the ability to transform into his beast form, the boar-like Ganon. The only method to defeat him is to use the Triforce itself or special weapons such as the infamous Master Sword, gathered throughout dungeons in the game and culminating in Link’s epic showdown against his archnemesis.
Why He’s One Of The Greatest Video Game Villains: Though some might dismiss The Legend of Zelda’s colorful universe as “childish” at times, Ganondorf is the epitome of darkness. The Zelda series tends to follow the classic video game trope of the young boy rising up against the big evil boss in a David v. Goliath fashion. However, Ganondorf is one of the few video game villains to actually succeed in real domination.
In several of the games, Link is actually fighting to rid the kingdom of Ganondorf’s darkness and power, not to prevent it from starting. He’s overcome numerous cross-dimensional imprisonments and defeats, only to resurrect time and time again. Even the gods of Hyrule fear this powerful dark lord, flooding the entire world in Wind Waker in an attempt to delay his spread of power. His unending fight for domination, the epic end-of-game battles, and his menacing scowl and taunting laughs are a staple in Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda series and why he deserves the number one spot as the greatest video game villain of all time.
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