List of references in The Legend of Zelda franchise

The following is a list of references and parodies to pop culture within The Legend of Zelda franchise. The list does not include references to other The Legend of Zelda-related games or media.

The Legend of Zelda series[edit]

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past[edit]

Link in a house with a Mario portrait in the original version (left) and the Game Boy Advance port (right) of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.

Some houses of Kakariko Village have a portrait of Mario. Link can pull on the portrait for Rupees come out.
Chain Chomps are enemies encountered in Turtle Rock. In the Game Boy Advance version, they are also
The theme used for both the File Select and Fairy Fountains is a rendition of the Water Land theme from Super Mario Bros. 3. The File Select theme would be retained in many subsequent The Legend of Zelda games.

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening[edit]

Main article: The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening#Cameos

Various characters and enemies appear from other video games.
- Most cameos are from the Super Mario series. Enemies such as Goombas, Boos, Cheep Cheeps and Piranha Plants make an appearance.
- The enemies Birky and Sea Urchin are from the Kirby franchise, as Kirby and Gordo respectively.
- Mr. Write is based on Dr. Wright from the Super Nintendo version of SimCity.
- Richard is from the game Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru.
One of the obtainable items is a Yoshi Doll, which is of Yoshi.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (3D)[edit]

Portraits of Yoshi, Peach, and Mario are shown from a window in the Castle Courtyard (left). From a different angle, portraits of Bowser and Luigi are shown instead (right).

In the area of the Castle Courtyard where Zelda usually stands, the right window shows five portraits of characters from the Mario franchise (from left to right): Yoshi, Princess Peach, Mario, Bowser and Luigi. The latter two portraits can only be seen from a different angle. The portraits show character artwork from other Mario games. Mario's portrait shows him wearing a Winged Cap, from Super Mario 64. The portraits of Peach, Luigi and Bowser show their Mario Kart 64 artwork, and Yoshi's portrait appears to use his sprite from Yoshi's Story.
- In The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, the right window shows a scene from World 1 of New Super Mario Bros. instead.