“Courage can never be remembered, for it is never forgotten." - Princess Zelda, Breath of the Wild 

Since its first release in 1986, ‘The Legend of Zelda’ series has captivated millions of players worldwide. We have followed Link and Zelda through many quests, timelines and consoles. The latest open-world entries in the series: ‘Breath of the Wild’ (2017) and ‘Tears of the Kingdom’ (2023) present a new format for the series, and with it an even more fascinating deep dive into human psychology and social behaviour. We have complete freedom of choice and movement in these games, and what we do with this flexibility can provide intriguing insights into who we are and why we behave the way we do. The themes of the Legend of Zelda are deeply intertwined with our understanding of human psychology, and resonate deeply with so many of us. This Psychgeist edited book edition published by the open-access publisher Carneigie Mellon University ETC Press (https://rkowert.com/psychgeistofpopculture/) aims to offer a deeper understanding of the links between the latest entries in the Legend of Zelda series and psychological concepts and theories. 

We are seeking a variety of chapter contributions from researchers and fans old and new who want to further explore the psychology of the Legend of Zelda. This edition will adopt a particular emphasis on the newest entries of Breath of the Wild (2017) and Tears of the Kingdom (2023), but proposals could explore any game within the series. Chapter proposals might focus on applying psychological lens to events, characters or mechanisms within the games themselves, or the cultural and psychological impact of the game as applied to real world issues. 

In this public call, we particularly welcome contributions from women, non-binary people and other demographic groups that are typically underrepresented in the game studies, psychology and Zelda community. 

Each chapter of the book will explore a different psychological concept applied to different aspects of the series. In this call, we are particularly looking for chapters that explore environmental issues, feminist psychology, speedrunning & neurodivergence.

Example chapter titles might include:

·  After the apocalypse: What The Calamity and The Upheaval can teach us about climate change adaptation and collective resilience

·  She’s Zelda, He’s just Link: The feminist psychology of the Legend of Zelda

·  Gotta Go Fast: Why are Zelda speedruns so popular among creators and audiences?

·  Into the Sky: Escaping calamity by abandoning home?

·  Escape into Hyrule: How an open-world Zelda helped people manage neurodivergence and trauma throughout the pandemic

We invite submissions from any sub-fields of psychology or social science, and we also encourage creative submissions not listed in the above. We are also seeking submissions from the broader Zelda community, including creators (e.g. speed-runners, zelda-tubers and cosplayers), where community members can discuss their experience of being part of the Zelda fandom. 

If you are interested in contributing and being considered for the first round of selected contributors please send an abstract of no more than 400 words for your proposed chapter to the Editor Annayah Prosser through this google form by the end of December 15th (in the last timezone on earth). Single, or multi-author chapters will be considered. 

Full chapters should be approximately between 3000-5000 words in length, and will be required by April 2024. Submitting authors should ensure that they can meet this deadline. Shorter pieces utilising creative formats (e.g. fiction, interviews or art) are also encouraged. We plan to select 10-12 chapters for publication in this edited book. Authors will know if their proposed chapter has been selected by January 20th 2024.

This book is part of the collection The Psychgeist of Pop Culture published by ETC Press. This book series highlights iconic pop culture content from television, film, literature and video games through an examination of the psychological mechanisms that endear us to these stories for a lifetime. Please direct any questions to Annayah Prosser- ap832@bath.ac.uk