Fan 3D printed out all items from the original the Legend of Zelda

May.11, 2013

3D printing is meant to let people create things that previously impossible to make themselves. Besides creating a gun, 3D printing can also be used to make nice stuff, such as items from your favorite video games.

A die-hard Legend of Zelda fan has used 3D printing to produce all items from the original Zelda in full color. He calls his project Hyrule Foundry.

He describes his emotional experience in his blog:

I selected my 3D modeling software, and reviewed the Full Color Sandstone material guidelines. My quest had begun. After hour upon hour, day after day of staring at my computer endlessly clicking and shaping I was about half done. But I couldn't stop now halfway through. A little break to play the game of my inspiration and then back to work click by click until there it was rendered and ready to 3D print.

When it arrived and I beheld the box, I immediately thought, ok, hope this was worth it. As I began to unwrap, each piece in its 3D brilliance brought back a flood of memories from my childhood of playing the golden game. Each time I had collected each of these items from their various hiding places and dungeons I had wanted to hold them and now finally I could. I held the wooden sword in my hand and I said, this is it, the sword that started it all, the very first sword that we witnessed Link yielding. I was satisfied with the results and was ready to share them with you, my fellow Zelda fans.

Up to now 32 items have been printed out by Shapeways, but potions are still a work in progress and arrows are too small to be printed in the full color sandstone material. But it will be solved in a matter of time. That's the whole set all 32 items from the original Legend of Zelda. Neat.

Hyrule Foundry will be blogging about each item individually, discussing the reasons why he designed it the way he did and if it has it origins in another game.

But you can now purchase all these print-outs in the Hyrule Foundry store on Shapeways, and they come in different sets (complete set, quarter sets, and then singles, duos, or trios of items) to accommodate your budgets. The cheapest one is $4 for two arrows, and the entire set sells for $320 (€280).