Happy 30th Birthday, ‘Zelda’! Watch this speedrunner smash ‘Ocarina of Time’

February 21 marks the 30th anniversary of Nintendo’s adventure classic, ‘The Legend of Zelda.’ Since the earnest boy Link first put on his green tunic and sought out to save the princess Zelda from the evil Gannon, the series has made an indelible mark on the adventure game world and includes a library of worthy titles to play.

But did you know it also has developed a prominent role in the niche gaming community of speed-running?

For those unfamiliar, speedruns are all about technically completing the game as fast as possible. One of the most popular games in the community is N64 classic ‘Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time,’ specifically because of a crucial glitch that whittles the hours-long game down to practically a blink of an eye.

18-year-old speedrunner skater82297 secured the World Record for beating the game in July of last year, clocking in at 17 minutes, 45 seconds — shorter than your average lunch break.

He did so by mastering methods that are insanely complicated to complete, including exploiting game file glitches, clipping the screen, and moving backwards with precision.

The nuances of his play — and that of others specifically trying to crush ‘Ocarina of Time’ — are well documented, if you want to explore the specifics.

Also, this is just dang fun to look at.

So, Happy Birthday, ‘Zelda’! I love you, even if you made Navi.

➤ YouTube