The Switch 2 needs a mascot – I offer Linkle as Tribute

Most Nintendo consoles have had official or unofficial mascots. Captain Falcon, a more muscular, futuristic man than Mario could ever be, initially was created to represent the Super Famicom/SNES, with his colors intended to match the console’s Japanese controller’s buttons. The Wii came into this world bearing the visage of a whole new lifeform – the Mii – things that represent a very specific vibe, and literally every and any individual person, living or dead, real or fictional, at the same time.  The Wii U, and to a lesser degree the 3DS, are still most closely associated with Luigi, thanks to the Nintendo’s now legendary “Year of Luigi” marketing campaign that set to promote the less popular iteration of the Wii and the DS with games starring a less popular iteration of Mario. Owning their underdog status endeared the systems to fans in ways a less humble campaign never could.

For the Switch, Blue Shirt Link ended up the de facto face of the system, as Breath of the Wild became the console’s number one game that had a specific face at its center. Mario Kart, Animal Crossing, and Smash Bros were all ensemble affairs. More importantly, Blue Shirt Link represents all the compromises and audience chasing that made the Switch a success. He was still a Nintendo character at it’s core, but he’d lost his stubborn adherence to tradition, and his unwillingness to follow trends. Just as Link can dress in multiple different outfits in the game, Breath of the Wild is willing to copy multiple other titles, from Skyrim to Fortnite, Minecraft to Monster Hunter. The Switch, too, was willing to give up its individual identity in order to fulfill players’ longstanding fantasies. You could dress it up as a portable or a handheld, a local multi-player party machine, or a para-social portal to connections strictly online. Is it mean to call the Switch Nintendo’s sluttiest piece of hardware? I hope not, because it is, and that’s why people love it.

With the Switch 2, It looks like Nintendo is working to make the console even more willing to bend to everyone’s potential desires, while still maintaining its connection to the Switch name. It’s a portable and handheld again, and it also has mouse controls, AND its own discord-style online features. That’s why if sexy Link represents the Switch, I nominate Linkle, the even more attractive (to me anyway) reinterpretation of Link from Hyrule Warriors, as the Switch 2’s best potential mascot.

MORE OF A GUIDELINE

For those who don’t know, Linkle was Nintendo’s answer to years of gender-swapped fan art of Zelda’s leading man. And I do mean years. Out of all of Nintendo’s big names, Link has been gender-swapped for the longest, with the first instance of “Fem Link” (AKA Linka) popping up as art in an official Japanese Legend of Zelda Tips Guide in 1987. Maybe it’s because Link has always been one of Nintendo’s prettiest characters, or because he’s supposed to represent a “link” between the game world and the player (some of which are presumably women), but ever since his inception, his gender has been more of a guideline than a rule.

But it wasn’t until Nintendo was really desperate for sales that they gave into fan demands and made a woman version of Link a real character. Debuting as an unused design in an art book for Hyrule Warriors, a Zelda series side-game jointly developed by Koei-Tecmo and Nintendo for the Wii U, Linkle immediately made headlines. Instead of every game website in the world talking about how Nintendo’s console was an abject failure, Linkle was in the news for marking both a departure from Nintendo’s old rules, and an acknowledgement of what people wanted. Unable to deny her marketability, and their need for a return to profitability, Nintendo green-lit Linkle for inclusion in Hyrule Warrior’s DLC, putting Chris Pranger, Nintendo of America writer, on the job of fleshing her out. Initially planned to be an alternate reality version of Link, or potentially his little sister, she ended becoming her own person. Though, like how DC Comic’s Power Girl sometimes claims to be more than just Supergirl with a boob-window costume, Linkle’s Link DNA couldn’t be denied.

Then, for reasons unknown, she never appeared in another game. Hyrule Warriors itself did well enough to pop up on both the 3DS and the Switch, bringing Linkle along with it both times, but she’s totally absent from all the Zelda games that followed it. That’s, presumably, because Nintendo thought those games (including Breath of the Wild, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, Tears of the Kingdom, and Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom) didn’t need her to help those games sell. The popularity of the Switch did that for them.

SAVE US, LINKLE

The Switch 2 may not be so lucky. With its higher priced hardware, even higher priced games, and lower “wow” wow factor, it may need Linkle in the same way the Wii U did. Her signature move – dual wielding crossbows – also makes her a perfect fit for the Switch 2’s double mouse controls. Adding her as DLC to one or all of the multiple Zelda games planned for release on the Switch 2 would be an easy way to make those games feel fresh, while also giving players an excuse to use the Switch 2’s Joy Con’s new features. I’m imagining Dark Linkle being a time-traveling boss in Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment, with unlocking her on the playable roster being the reward for beating her. It would be tougher to retrofit her into Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom, as the mechanics in both are very specific to Link’s unique powers and related story beats, but I don’t think people would complain if you could just gender swap all the lead characters in both games (Hello, Zeldo and Shannondorf!) with Linkle just replacing Link wholesale. Likewise, making Linkle DLC for Echoes of Wisdom, without Zelda’s echo ability, but with a load of Link’s traditional item-weapons (hookshot, flame wand, beetle, spinner, etc.) would definitely appeal.

Then, if that works out, throw her in a couple of cross over games (Mario Kart? Smash?) and announce a new game for her at the end of whenever this hypothetical “Year of Linkle” takes off (my guess is 2026?) and you have yourself at least 6 months of Switch 2-related press that doesn’t contain the words “overpriced”, “tariff”, or “doomed.”

Or make Bowsette canon. Either or.