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Navi (pronounced /ˈnɑː.viː/, Nah-vIE)[citation needed] is a recurring character in The Legend of Zelda series.[2] She is a Fairy who serves as Link's companion in his quest to save Hyrule.[3]

Biography[]

Ocarina of Time[]

Since Link is not a Kokiri and does not have a Fairy to call his own, Navi is summoned by the Great Deku Tree to accompany him on his quest to save Hyrule.[3][4] Throughout the game, Navi provides Link with a variety of clues to help him solve puzzles and progress in his quest.[5][6][7] Navi also helps Link learn the controls in the game, teaching him how to open doors and how to push and pull blocks.[8][9] The player can listen to Navi's advice by pressing the C-Up Button in the controller whenever her name flashes on the screen.[4]

Young Link Navi
Link and Navi

Navi's primary purpose is to function as a focusing target. By pressing the Z Button, Navi targets the most nearby object, enemy, or person. She glows yellow to indicate when she is targeting an enemy, blue when Link can talk to someone from a distance, and green when she is targeting something of interest. Any time Navi targets something, she yells out to Link "Hey!", "Listen!", or "Watch out!" Pressing the C-Up Button while targeting an enemy allows Link to hear from Navi information about said foe. Once Link learns "Saria's Song," he can communicate with Saria through Navi.[10] When Navi's help is not being used, she seemingly hides herself inside Link's hat. However, she can be summoned at any time by pressing the A Button while Link is standing still. In Ocarina of Time 3D, Navi also often tells Link to take a rest from playing.[11]

Although Navi can target most enemies and give Link clues on how to defeat them, during the battle against Ganondorf, Navi is unable to help him due to the waves of darkness produced by the King of Evil.[12] Once Link defeats Ganondorf and escapes the crumbling Ganon's Castle along with Princess Zelda, Navi apologizes for not having helped him in the battle.[13] However, Ganondorf emerges shortly after from the castle ruins and transforms into Ganon. Navi, willing to aid Link, exclaims that she will not be held back by Ganondorf again and joins him in the fight, where they eventually defeat the King of Evil.[14] After Princess Zelda sends Link back to his original time, Navi can be seen leaving Link's side for undisclosed reasons as she flies away into the lit window inside the Temple of Time.

During the prologue of Majora's Mask, Link sets on a journey to find Navi after the events of Ocarina of Time.[15][16]

Other Appearances[]

Ocarina of Time (Himekawa)[]

Navi is first seen spying on Gohma, as it begins feeding on the Great Deku Tree's insides. He tells her to go find Link, [17] so she leads the boy to the Great Deku Tree, who is close to death. Once Link and Mido enter the Great Deku Tree's trunk, they are faced with Gohma. As Link battles the menace, Navi tells him about Gohma's week spot, its eye. [18] Link then shoots the monster with his slingshot, ending the battle. When Link realizes he is too late, the Great Deku Tree tells the boy he can defeat the evil growing in Hyrule. Navi is then commanded to help Link. [19] Throughout the manga, Navi guides and accompanies Link, even comforting him when he worries about seeing Princess Zelda again. [20] As Link battles Ganondorf, the Gerudo king uses his magic to keep Navi away. [21] When he defeats the thief, Navi apologizes for not being able to help, [22] but is reassured by Link that it's ok. [23] Shockingly, Ganondorf is revealed to have survived the encounter, and transforms into the hideous beast Ganon. Link is wounded in the unexpected event, causing Navi to fret and worry. [24] When Ganon approaches, Navi attempts to defend her wounded friend, but is pushed aside by the demon. [25] Luckily, Princess Zelda retrieves the Master Sword, allowing Link to resume the fight. Navi alerts Link to Ganon's weak point, [26] allowing the hero to wound him. At the end of the Ocarina of Time manga by Akira Himekawa, just as Navi leaves Link, she tells him that she loves him, [27] and that the forest will be safe with a magnificent hero. [28]

Majora's Mask (Himekawa)[]

In the Majora's Mask manga by Akira Himekawa, Navi makes a small cameo during the prologue where Link sets on his journey to the forest in search for her.[29]

Link and the Portal of Doom[]



Hyrule Warriors[]

HWDE Fairy Icon

In the North American version of Hyrule Warriors, Navi appears at the beginning of the "Land of Myth" Scenario, pleading to Impa and Sheik that they save the captive Princess Ruto from Darunia and his troops; however, in the Japanese and European release as well in Hyrule Warriors Legends and Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition, she is referred to only as a generic Fairy. Navi's speech portrait also refers to her as a generic Fairy while she is speaking during the battle in all versions.[30]

Development[]

When the concept of Z-targeting was being developed, an upside-down triangle was used to determine which enemy Link was targeting. The designers felt this marker was too simple, so they wanted to replace it with a cute Fairy girl, believing it would fit the Zelda atmosphere. However, the Nintendo 64 was not able to support such a Fairy, so a ball of light with wings was used instead. She was originally called the "Fairy Navigation System," but was later simply named Navi. After naming her, many of her functions were designed, such as changing color to distinguish between friends and foes, acting as a guide, and providing strategy tips.

Her design also allowed developers to overcome a problem in Kokiri Forest. Due to the Nintendo 64's limitations, it was difficult to display the villagers and structures all at once, so each person was paired with a Fairy to help locate them. When Link approached them, their owners would appear and he could interact with them. Both of these expanded the story so that Link was the only child in the forest without a Fairy, then he met and parted with a Fairy companion.[31]

Reception[]

Navi is one of the more criticized The Legend of Zelda series characters, which is due to her constant yelling of "Hey!" and "Listen!" throughout the game and for giving "unsolicited advice."[32][33] Cracked.com editor, Tim Lovett, listed Navi the eighth most annoying video character, mentioning how she "pester[ed]" Link like a "naggy, clinging spouse."[34] Although Mikel Reparaz from GamesRadar credited Navi for helping players by locking onto targets and enemies,[35] he criticized her for the overused "Hey! Listen!" phrase and listed her as the number one most irritating female character. Additionally, another GamesRadar editor ranked her second place in a list of "cutesy characters" they want to "beat the crap out of," describing her as a "tactless" Tinkerbell and considering her to distract players from the gameplay.[36] GameDaily also listed her as one of the gaming characters they "wish they could kill, but can't."[37]

Trivia[]

  • In an interview with Shigeru Miyamoto, he mentioned that Navi is jealous of Princess Zelda, as she feels something for Link.[38]
  • During development of Ocarina of Time, Navi could carry things for Link.[39] She would also turn red when there was something dangerous around.[40]
  • Navi is one of the few characters with any voice acting in the series which uses actual English words.
  • Navi appears as the guide of the Japanese Ocarina of Time Official Guide Video, where she is fully voiced.[41]
  • Navi appears as a mouse cursor in the Japanese Ocarina of Time 3D website.[42]

Nomenclature[]

Navi's name comes from the word "navigation." Navi was originally supposed to be named "Fairy Navigation System," but since the name was too long, the developers changed it simply to Navi.[43]

TMC Forest Minish Artwork Names in other regions TMC Jabber Nut Sprite
LanguageName
JapanJapaneseナビィ (Nabii) (OoT)[44]
Taiwan, Hong Kong, MacaoChineseTR娜薇 (Nàwēi) (OoT)
FranceFrenchEUNavi (OoT)[45]
This table was generated using translation pages.
To request an addition, please contact a staff member with a reference.

Gallery[]

Video Gallery[]

Navi's commentary in the Ocarina of Time Official Guide Video

References

  1. "Oh, Navi the fairy...
    Listen to my words, the words of the Deku Tree...
    " — Great Deku Tree (Ocarina of Time)
  2. Encyclopedia, Dark Horse Books, pg. 239 (OoT)
  3. 3.0 3.1 "I'm Navi the fairy! The Great Deku Tree asked me to be your partner from now on! Nice to meet you!" — Navi (Ocarina of Time 3D)
  4. 4.0 4.1 "Navi the fairy... Thou must aid Link... And Link... When Navi speaks, use (^) to listen well to her words of wisdom..." — Great Deku Tree (Ocarina of Time)
  5. "Look at this wall! The vines growing on it give it a rough surface... Maybe you can climb it, Link!" — Navi (Ocarina of Time)
  6. "Wow! Look at all those Bomb Flowers! Is there any way you can set them all off at once?" — Navi (Ocarina of Time)
  7. "Should we believe what Sheik said and go to Kakariko Village?" — Navi (Ocarina of Time)
  8. "You can open a door by standing in front of it and pressing (A). Pay attention to what the Action Icon says. That's the blue icon at the top of the screen!" — Navi (Ocarina of Time)
  9. "Stand next to this block and grab hold of it with (A). While holding (A), you can push or pull it. If you stand next to the block and press (A) while pressing (+) towards the block, you can climb on top of it. Pay attention to what the Action Icon says!" — Navi (Ocarina of Time)
  10. "You want to talk to Saria, right? /Talk to Saria /No" — Navi (Ocarina of Time)
  11. "While Navi does sometimes give useful hints, more often then not she interrupts the game to repeatedly suggest that you take a break from playing." (Nintendo Power no. 268, June 2011, pg. 82)
  12. "Link! I can't help you! Because of the waves of darkness, I can't get close! I'm sorry, Link!" — Navi (Ocarina of Time)
  13. "Link... I'm sorry I couldn't help you in the battle before!" — Navi (Ocarina of Time)
  14. "There's no way he's going to hold me back again! This time, we fight together!" — Navi (Ocarina of Time)
  15. "Done with the battles he once waged across time, he embarked on a journey. A secret and personal journey... A journey in search of a beloved and invaluable friend... A friend with whom he parted ways when he finally fulfilled his heroic destiny and took his place among legends..." — Prologue (Majora's Mask)
  16. "Link set off on his horse, Epona, who lived at Lon Lon Ranch. Months passed as he wandered in search of his companion, Navi, eventually losing himself in a mysterious forest. It just so happened that this forest led to a parallel world known as Termina." (Hyrule Historia, Dark Horse Books, pg. 110)
  17. "...The boy without a fairy... Bring him to me. Go, Navi!" (Ocarina of Time manga vol. 1, VIZ Media, pg. 20)
  18. "Link! Gohma's weakness is her eyeball! Aim for her eye!" (Ocarina of Time manga vol. 1, VIZ Media, pg. 31)
  19. "Navi... Help Link. I'm counting on you, too." (Ocarina of Time manga vol. 1, VIZ Media, pg. 36)
  20. "You will! I'm sure she's somewhere safe. And she's been waiting for you the whole time! Play the ocarina Link. Maybe Princess Zelda will hear it!" (Ocarina of Time manga vol. 1, VIZ Media, pg. 132)
  21. "L-Link! I can't get any closer! He's keeping me away with waves of darkness!" (Ocarina of Time manga vol. 2, VIZ Media, pg. 78)
  22. "Link, I tried to help, but I couldn't..." (Ocarina of Time manga vol. 2, VIZ Media, pg. 88)
  23. "That's all right, Navi" (Ocarina of Time manga vol. 2, VIZ Media, pg. 88)
  24. "Link. Snap out of it!" (Ocarina of Time manga vol. 2, VIZ Media, pg. 94)
  25. "No more running! It's time for Navi to fight!... Yikes!" (Ocarina of Time manga vol. 2, VIZ Media, pg. 94)
  26. "His tail!! His tail is his weak point!!" (Ocarina of Time manga vol. 2, VIZ Media, pg. 96)
  27. "Link... I love you!" (Ocarina of Time manga, VIZ Media, pg. 107)
  28. "Link, you're a magnificent hero! The forest will be safe with you there." (Ocarina of Time manga vol. 2, VIZ Media, pg. 107)
  29. "...But I lost my Fairy friend and traveling companion, Navi. Where are you, Navi? I miss you." (Majora's Mask manga, VIZ Media, pg. 23)
  30. "Darunia, their chief... He was always so kind! But ever since meeting Zelda..." — Fairy (Hyrule Warriors)
  31. Iwata Asks: Ocarina of Time 3D Original Development Staff - Part 1, Official Nintendo website.
  32. "Before long, however, it became HEY! clear that she intended to be with LISTEN! us throughout the remainder of the game. And that might not have been so bad, except for her constant HEY! yammering. She also had a bad habit of interrupting our LISTEN! exploration by repeating the HEY! same all-text suggestions over and HEY! over, or floating above some HEY! object of interest that we either were LISTEN! already done with, or weren't ready to be interested LISTEN! in yet. But her unsolicited advice, interruptions and demands for attention would all have been tolerable if she hadn't insisted on driving us insane by repeatedly yelping the same two LISTEN! HEY! HEY! HEY! LISTEN! HEY! LISTEN! LISTEN! LISTEN! LISTEN! HEY! HEY! HEY! LISTEN! HEY! LISTEN! LISTEN! HEY! LISTEN! HEY! HEY! HEY! LISTEN! HEY! LISTEN! LISTEN! LISTEN! LISTEN! HEY! LISTEN! HEY! LISTEN! LISTEN! HEY! HEY! HEY! HEY! HEY! HEY! HEY! HEY! HEY! HEY! HEY! LISTEN! HEY! HEY! LISTEN! HEY! LISTEN! LISTEN! LISTEN! LISTEN! HEY! LISTEN! HEY! LISTEN! words. WHAT!?"The Top 7... Irritating female characters, GamesRadar.
  33. "Anyone who has ever played this game should remember constantly hearing a tiny little voice saying: "Hey!...Hey!...Listen!...Hey!...Watch out!...Hey!..." SHUT [...] UP! I'm trying to have an adventure here."The 15 Most Annoying Video Game Characters (From Otherwise Great Games), Cracked.com.
  34. "She shows how much she cares for Link by constantly pestering him like a nagging, clingy spouse."The 15 Most Annoying Video Game Characters (From Otherwise Great Games), Cracked.com.
  35. "But we grudgingly put up with her presence, because she HEY! taught us how to get around in the LISTEN! world and helpfully floated above whatever objects or LISTEN! monsters we locked our HEY! aim onto."The Top 7 Irritating female characters, GamesRadar.
  36. "You know why. Was there ever a more annoying sidekick/targeting reticule in the world? Sure, she was "cute" in that Tinkerbell sort of way - but Tink had class whereas Navi was utterly tactless. She led you off cliffs, distracted you from cool stuff. And she never, ever shut the hell up - even when we might have had a shot at finally getting to second base with Zelda."Top 7 Cutesy Characters We Want to Beat the Crap Out Of, GamesRadar.
  37. ""Hey! Listen! Hey! Listen!" Unless you acknowledge this little fairy's existence, she'll continue to annoy both you and Link until you dream of drawing his Master Sword and cutting her wings off. We can't remember the number of times we fantasized about feeding her to a hungry skulltula. Alas, she's invincible and therefore, even more irritating."Characters We Wish We Could Kill (But Can't), GameDaily.
  38. "However, this time Navie [the fairy] is jealous of Zelda. So within the story, Navie feels something for Link." —Shigeru Miyamoto (The Z-Files)
  39. "Press the B-Button, and you can speak with Navie. She can also carry things for Link." —Shigeru Miyamoto (The Z-Files)
  40. "Depending on the item, Navi will change to a different color. For example, she'll turn red if there's something dangerous, etc." —Shigeru Miyamoto (The Z-Files)
  41. Gamer Night Live, Ocarina of Time Japanese Promo, YouTube, published January 8, 2012.
  42. Ocarina of Time 3D official Japanese website
  43. "I called it the Fairy Navigation System, took it to Osawa-san, and asked, "How's this?" He immediately said, "Let's name it Navi." Because she navigates!" —Yoshiaki Koizumi (Iwata Asks: Ocarina of Time 3D Original Development Staff - Part 1)
  44. Nintendo Official Guidebook—The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Shogakukan) pg. 140
  45. Encyclopedia (Les Éditions Soleil) pg. 239 (OoT)
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