Sheik
- For fighter info, see Sheik (SSBM), Sheik (SSBB), and Sheik (SSB4).
- For the Japanese smasher, see Smasher:Sheik.
| Sheik | |
|---|---|
| Sheik File:ZeldaSymbol.png Official artwork of Sheik from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. | |
| Universe | The Legend of Zelda |
| Debut | The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998) |
| Smash Bros. appearances | Melee Brawl SSB4 Ultimate |
| Most recent non-Smash appearance | Hyrule Warriors (2014) |
| Console/platform of origin | Nintendo 64 |
| Species | Sheikah (secretly Hylian) |
| Gender | Male |
| Place of origin | Hyrule |
| Voice actor | Jun Mizusawa |
| Japanese voice actor | Jun Mizusawa |
| Article on Zelda Wiki | Sheik |
Sheik is a character from The Legend of Zelda universe, specifically a disguise of Princess Zelda. Sheik aided Link in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for the Nintendo 64, giving him tips and teaching him warp songs. Despite Sheik's masculine appearance, Sheik is actually a male.
Character description
Sheik is a character in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, and is the alter-ego of Princess Zelda. In the game, Zelda disguises herself as a Sheikah. With his voice muffled and face concealed, as well as wearing a form-fitting blue suit with the red Sheikah eye in the center, he is virtually unrecognizable.
Sheik plays the harp and teaches Link new songs to help him on his quest. When Link arrives at the Temple of Time near the end of the game, Sheik uses the Triforce of Wisdom and reverts to Zelda. It is claimed by the character's trophy in Super Smash Bros. Melee that he uses his magical skills to change his skin tone, hair length, eye color, and clothing. In addition, when hurt, Sheik is voiced by a female voice actor in both Ocarina of Time and Melee.
Gender dispute
A popular topic in both the Legend of Zelda and Super Smash Bros. fan communities is the gender of Sheik. Many say that Sheik is a female as she is merely a disguise of Zelda, but others have suggested that her masculine qualities are due to an actual gender change Zelda undergoes while transforming into Sheik, explaining the gender alteration as an effect of magic.
The issue originates from Ocarina of Time; in the game, Link encounters Princess Ruto in the Water Temple. She asks Link to thank Sheik for saving her, referring to Sheik as "a young man named Sheik..." In addition, the non-canon manga for Ocarina of Time suggests that Zelda uses the Triforce of Wisdom to actually become male while disguised as Sheik. Zelda herself apologizes for "meeting Link in disguise", though what she means is very open to interpretation. Additionally, some argue that the Sheik "character" is male, much like some real-life cross dressers adopt opposite-gendered stage personas.
Despite this, Sheik's gender in Ocarina of Time is still occasionally argued, however, Sheik is definitely considered a female in the Super Smash Bros. series. Several examples include that Sheik's Melee trophies describe him as being female, that Masahiro Sakurai refers to Sheik as female in his update on the Smash Bros. DOJO!! website, and that he is referred to as female within both Brawl and its manual. However, on August 5, 2014, before the Japanese release of Hyrule Warriors, Bill Trinen, Nintendo's senior product marketing manager and head translator for Ocarina of Time, stated in an interview that since Sheik is just Zelda in disguise, and since Zelda is female, Sheik is also female. However he has nothing to do with the development of Ocarina of Time.
In Super Smash Bros. Melee
As a Playable Fighter
Sheik is one of the new characters introduced in Super Smash Bros. Melee. Rather than being added as a full-fledged character, he is a transformation of Zelda. Zelda is the only character in Melee to possess such an ability.
Sheik is considered to be a top-tier character and currently ranks 3rd on the Melee tier list, due to his swiftness, agility, and surprisingly powerful smash attacks. While initially deemed broken by some smashers, the changing metagame of Melee caused him to fall to third and then fourth place on the tier lists.
Trophies
In addition to the Zelda trophies, there are three Sheik trophies available in Melee. Her main trophy reads as follows:
'Sheik
This is Zelda's alter ego. Using a variation of the name of the ancient Sheikah tribe, he appears before Link and teaches him melodies instrumental to his success. It's believed that he's not just a quick-change artist, but rather that he is able to instantaneously alter her clothing and her eye and skin color by using her magical skills.
- The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, 11/98 (N64)
In Super Smash Bros. Brawl
As a playable fighter
When Princess Zelda was confirmed as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, players were introduced to a redesigned Zelda based off the model that was drafted for The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. This Twilight Princess-influenced incarnation of Zelda led to many debates about whether or not Sheik would return. On one side of the argument, many claimed that because Sheik did not appear in Twilight Princess, Zelda should not be able to transform into Sheik. Many cited the fact that Link's special moves were reworked to feature more Twilight Princess-related qualities as evidence that the latest entry in the Legend of Zelda franchise would be the game focused on in Brawl.
On the other side, many felt that the Zelda in the Super Smash Bros. series was not supposed to be any specific Zelda from the Legend of Zelda series; rather, she was an amalgam of all Zeldas, past and present. Since this Zelda has already exhibited the ability to transform into Sheik, there should be nothing preventing her from retaining this trait in Brawl.
The debate was settled with the revelation of Sheik's inclusion in Famitsu's review of Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Shortly thereafter, the official Super Smash Bros. Brawl website confirmed Sheik with its January 16th update. Sheik's special moves have not been changed, though she now uses a slightly different, Twilight Princess-inspired design. Of note is the fact that design was sent to Sakurai by Eiji Aonuma, director of Twilight Princess; it was initially created for Twilight Princess, but plans to bring Sheik back were later scrapped, rendering the model obsolete until the development of Brawl.
Sheik's play style is still incredibly similar to his debut in Super Smash Bros. Melee, but seeing as he lost a lot of his KO'ing power, Sheik is not quite as deadly as before. However, Sheik's still an agile character with great combo ability and a force to be reckoned with. Still, his large nerf made him drop to 25th on the current Brawl tier list, in D tier.
Trophies
Sheik has a trophy that is awarded each time the Classic mode is completed with Sheik on any difficulty. See Light Arrow for the trophy description of Sheik's Final Smash:
Sheik
The persona Zelda adopted to escape from Ganondorf. He completely hid all traces of her Zelda identity and appeared to Link as the last member of the Sheikah tribe. He taught Link essential ocarina melodies and then vanished in an instant. He didn't appear very often--rather, she would show up to support Link in crucial situations.
In Super Smash Bros. 4
As a playable fighter
Sheik returns as a playable character in Super Smash Bros. 4. In this game, he is his own separate character from Zelda.
Trivia
- Sheik and Ganondorf both made their playable debuts in Super Smash Bros. Melee, and both made their playable debuts outside of Smash Bros. in Hyrule Warriors.
