The Internet was in a bit of a tizzy yesterday when Legend of Zelda Wii U Producer Eiji Aonuma hinted that the arrow-wielding warrior in the game’s teaser trailer may not be the series’ standard protagonist, Link.

However, it seems it was a a small joke that exploded out of proportion. Aonuma has now clarified matters by confirming it was indeed Link that featured in the video segment.

Actually that comment I made jokingly. It’s not that I said that it wasn’t Link. It’s that I never said that it was Link. It’s not really the same thing, but I can understand how it could be taken that way. It seems like it has kind of taken off where people are saying ‘oh it’s a female character’ and it just kind of grew. But my intent in saying that was humour. You know, you have to show Link when you create a trailer for a Zelda announcement.

Given how much flack Ubisoft is currently taking for its sexist attitude towards a playable female character in Assassin’s Creed: Unity, and how much of a buzz there was that the new character may be Link and Zelda’s daughter, Nintendo could certainly do worse than play with the idea of a female lead for a future installment. However, Aonuma deftly side-stepped the issue with an explanation as to what Link represents.

I don’t want people to get hung up on the way Link looks, because ultimately Link represents the player in the game. I don’t want to define him so much that it becomes limiting to the players. I want players to focus on other parts of the trailer and not specifically on the character because the character Link represents, again, the player.

Well said.

[Source: Nintendo Insider]