| “ | A channel with a variety of theories about The Legend of Zelda, where I show you new things in old Zelda games in order to explain the world of Hyrule and beyond. If you have questions, comments or just want to chat, please feel free to send me a message through Twitter. Thanks for watching! | ” |
―VortexxyGaming | ||
VortexxyGaming, or simply Vortexxy or Vortex(x), was a Dutch YouTuber who uploaded video essays theorising and analysing various aspects of the The Legend Of Zelda Franchise. She is widely praised for her content, and continues to have a significant impact on the The Legend Of Zelda community and fanbase.
Channel Content[]
VortexxyGaming produced TLoZ theories in video form. She stated in a reply to a comment on her first video that her channel was originally inspired by a Gamefaqs thread discussing LoZ temple analyses. In another comment, she stated that she came up with her online handle from an old Gamertag. Her theories commonly focused on the franchise's characters, tribes/races, locations, songs, weapons/items, Hyrule chronology and interrelations between its games. Her channel content is characterized by its blend of insightful and concise analysis, professional editing and a profound passion for the franchise which her fans believe is what gives her theories such high quality. Fans have also commended the narrative-styled presentation of her theories which gives her content a distinctly calming atmosphere said to resemble bedtime stories/legends, in contrast to many other theorists who emulate the enthusiastic, commercial-like style popularized by MatPat.
Her videos are comprised of voiceover accompanied by game footage and/or material from official sources (eg. Hyrule Historia) to support her theories, as well as LoZ fanart, animations and music. All artworks and music used are referenced in her videos' descriptions; other contributors are also credited here. In her later videos, the footage is bordered by golden Hylian text. She used the program Adobe Premiere to edit her videos [1], which was apparently part of a resource package from her academic endeavours.
List of Theory/Channel Ideas[]
VortexxyGaming regularly mentioned having a list of potential theories which she would like to explore in future videos. She evidently consulted this list regularly, incorporating listed ideas into her projects. She was also shown to be considering releasing LoZ content other than theories in the future. Some of these ideas were topics of her own choosing, while others were requested by fans on various social media platforms. The following is a list of ideas which she was known to have considered exploring, and where she expressed interest in these ideas:
Social Media and Collaborations[]
As well as her YouTube channel, VortexxyGaming had a Twitter and Google+ account which she used to communicate with anyone who had "questions, comments or just want[ed] to chat". She was also known to occasionally use Reddit, and had disclosed her email address so that people could contact her. She was shown to communicate with her followers quite regularly, whether by posting progress messages for her YouTube projects, sharing miscellaneous LoZ content or replying to comments across all social media platforms.
The Google+ communities which VortexxyGaming was involved in
VortexxyGaming collaborated with several other LoZ theorists such as The One Majora, Cuccolover, Macintyre, Commonwealth Realm, ZeldaConqueror, GameOver Jesse and Hylian Cece (aka Ceessseeezy) on their own theory videos (with the exclusion of Cuccolover, who collaborated with VortexxyGaming on the latter's channel). She was also a member of several online communities, such as the YouTube channel Chamber of Sages and numerous Google+ groups, along with many other LoZ fans and theorists.
Personal Details[]
VortexxyGaming disclosing her birthday
VortexxyGaming revealed parts of her personality through her content and interactions. Her videos serve to demonstrate her passion for TLoZ and videomaking, and the thorough research and high quality of her content reflects her work ethics as well as her background as a tertiary student. She was very eager for viewers to talk with her in the comment sections and on social media, even about matters unrelated to TLoZ and her content. She was known to adopt a diplomatic and casual approach to communication, consistently showing friendliness and humour in her interactions. When given criticism and hatered, she was largely unfazed and equally receptive to debate. In these incidents, she was often blunt and assertive but not usually to the extent of being outright rude or insulting, avoiding personal attacks and coarse language while trying to stay focused on the topic(s) of discussion. Overall VortexxyGaming seemed to prefer to conduct herself in an approachable but professional manner, which is also reflected in her choice to remain anonymous and disclose personal details rarely and only after careful consideration.
Commonwealth Realm disclosing VortexxyGaming's first name
According to a public reply she made on a Google+ post her birthday is November 16th; her birth year and therefore age remain unknown. She is known to have lived in the city of Utrecht, Netherlands [1] and was undergoing study for a Master's Degree in an unspecified field. On June 13th 2016, she stated that she was two weeks away from finishing her study and was excited to dedicate more time to her YouTube channel.[2] According to Cuccolover, VortexxyGaming had developed a website for her Zelda-related content[3] This website was also part of her graduation project in her academic endeavours. She had at least one sibling, as she mentioned having an older brother at the beginning of her Shadow Temple theory video. She also had a male fiancé whose identity remains undisclosed. According to Commonwealth Realm, her first name was Wendy; other collaborators have yet to publicly confirm this.
Disappearance[]
Following her last Twitter like on June 20th 2016 (see Gallery), VortexxyGaming went missing from all social media; even her closest online friends and collaborators lost contact with her. According to a Skype discussion she had with The One Majora earlier that year, she had intended to resume uploading regular videos on July 23rd[4] (see Gallery), likely giving herself enough time to focus on her approaching graduation before returning to her channel. Her absence has been widely noticed and discussed within her following and network of collaborators, as well as the larger LoZ and YouTube communities.
Some fans and fellow LoZ theorists such as Commonwealth Realm and GameOver Jesse have speculated that she is simply preoccupied with other commitments and/or has decided to move on from her LoZ projects and online identity[5] (see Gallery). However, her prolonged and unexplained absence has also been a great source of concern for many other fans and collaborators such as The One Majora, Macintyre and Cuccolover due to her usually high level of online activity and unwavering dedication to her channel and fans. As the months and years passed countless fans have questioned her whereabouts and welfare, and made pleas for her to return.
Fate[]
As vital details in identifying VortexxyGaming in real life, such as her full name, age and appearance, are not publicly known, it is difficult to fully confirm her fate. This means that any evidence provided for determining her welfare may be met with skepticism and therefore dismissed, unless it can be proven that the gathered information, and/or the gatherer(s) of such, has a credible association with VortexxyGaming herself. Therefore while the only publicly-known certainty is that VortexxyGaming is missing from the Internet, a number of possibilities have been presented, both by fans and collaborators alike, regarding her current status:
Dead[]
Cuccolover originally addressed VortexxyGaming's sudden disappearance via a Google+ post in January 2017, deducing that something tragic had happened to her (see Gallery). This statement was later deleted following backlash from VortexxyGaming's fans. Eight months later, they commented on the last post on VortexxyGaming's Google+ account, claiming that they had discovered her fate. Cuccolover stated that after many months of extensive investigation they had found and contacted the school where VortexxyGaming was studying, based on information the latter had given them in the past. In response to their inquiries, the school reportedly confirmed to them that VortexxyGaming had passed away in a car accident [6]; however Cuccolover has declined to provide further details to the public to confirm this, on the grounds that VortexxyGaming would not want her personal information to be publicly released[7]. The One Majora, who is closely affiliated with Cuccolover as well as VortexxyGaming, has advocated the former's findings and was also involved in their efforts to track down the missing YouTuber.
Alive[]
While other LoZ theorists and collaborators have guessed on platforms such as YouTube live streams, Twitter and Discord that VortexxyGaming is still alive and well, she herself has not made any appearance to publicly confirm this, and said claimants have also been unable to provide credible confirmation on her behalf (in the event that she has simply quit YouTube and abandoned her online handle). Many of these claimants also admit to being unsure of VortexxyGaming's whereabouts, undermining the reliability of their statements regarding her welfare.
Impersonation Incident[]
In May 2018 a Discord user presented a screenshot to numerous servers featuring a conversation they allegedly had with VortexxyGaming via Skype. In it, "VortexxyGaming" stated that "she" had taken an extended hiatus from YouTube due to personal circumstances and that "she" was simply "avoiding drama" by not being active on any social media. GameOver Jesse deemed the screenshot to be proof that VortexxyGaming had returned, and declared that there was no reason for people to believe she was anything else but alive, drawing parallels to another YouTuber who had vanished but returned again. Some users were joyful and relieved to see the news.
However, this screenshot was also met with skepticism, especially from The One Majora who seemed to detect flaws and inconsistencies with the given information. Among the points of criticism was that in the conversation "VortexxyGaming" had claimed that "she" had never met Cuccolover, when in fact Cuccolover had been publicly credited as her associate on a number of occasions, even by VortexxyGaming herself, including collaborating with her on at least two theories (The Hero of Time and Fate of Termina), directly interacting with VortexxyGaming in the YouTube comment sections twice, and co-owning two of the Google+ communities which VortexxyGaming was part of. The One Majora also stated that the two had been friends for many years. Furthermore, the account from which "VortexxyGaming's" responses was sent was unlikely to have been authentic, due to the Skype ID being both nonsensical and new (only Skype IDs created since 2017 begin with 'live', and VortexxyGaming and her collaborators indicated that she was a user of Skype before her disappearance, which was months before 'live' was added to Skype IDs; therefore, VortexxyGaming's real Skype account would not exhibit this trait). Suspicions regarding the conversation's authenticity also arose from a previous message posted by the very same user which undermined the claims of Cuccolover and denied their connection to VortexxyGaming, leading to speculations that the "interview" was fabricated with the intention of convincing others that Cuccolover was lying about VortexxyGaming's fate.
The conversation was ultimately declared fake by Macintyre (under a different username), who requested that the content of the screenshot be disregarded. Any claim or assertion that Vortexxy is still alive, will be deemed false.
Legacy[]
Following Cuccolover's revelations on Google+, numerous fans have expressed their deep sadness for the loss of such a beloved YouTuber and LoZ enthusiast. On the other hand, many remain skeptical and seek more definitive evidence of her fate. Regardless of the controversy which has arisen as a result of these conflicting standpoints, her reputation as a thorough, passionate LoZ theorist lives on through both her self-made theory videos and her collaborative works, and her channel continues to accumulate views, likes, comments and subscribers, even in the wake of her lengthy absence.
The Fate of Termina, one of the last theories VortexxyGaming was developing prior to her disappearance, was retrieved by Cuccolover and The One Majora (who had both been working on the script with her), and was released on Macintyre's channel on February 28th, 2018. The video and accompanying thumbnail were designed so that they closely resembled VortexxyGaming's style, and the tribute video was well-received by her fanbase. Interestingly, Macintyre (who voiced the video) chose to remain impartial and referred to her as simply being 'missing', despite the statements made elsewhere by the other two contributors. The video has since been privated by Macintyre and is currently not accessible. On February 14th 2022, Commonwealth Realm released his own video dedicated to VortexxyGaming, under which he referred to her by what is seemingly her first name.
Shortly after The Fate of Termina theory video was released, a YouTuber named Kabbaway uploaded a fan tribute for VortexxyGaming, featuring a poem the former had written in her memory. Fae continues to promote VortexxyGaming's content and advocate the findings of Cuccolover and The One Majora across various social media, especially via comments/replies and dedicating their own TLoZ theory videos to the missing YouTuber. Other fans who have referenced or paid respects to VortexxyGaming in their content since her disappearance include NintendoBlackCrisis, Monster Maze, Jink999, Nayru and Side Eye Gaming.
A petition for Nintendo to include a character named and/or modelled in VortexxyGaming's honour in a future TLoZ game has been created on the website Change.org; the petition currently has more than 130 supporters. She has also been referenced on two pages of the website TV Tropes, as an example of an analysis channel (under the Video Games category), as well as an example of a creator(s) making content in memoriam for a deceased person (under the Fan Works category).
Trivia[]
- The introduction to VortexxyGaming's videos evolved over her time on YouTube. She originally opened her videos with their thumbnails, accompanied by the beginning seconds of the Ocarina of Time Hyrule Field soundtrack, before fading the screen to black and beginning the theory video. From her Great Bay Temple theory video onwards, she added an animation of her heart icon glistening and her pixilated name fading in, accompanied by the OoT Heart Container fanfare, followed by the screen fading to black and then showing the video's thumbnail as she did originally before beginning the theory video.
- The style of her thumbnails also evolved. Her thumbnails originally had no borders, but she introduced bold-coloured borders in her Song of Storms video. She began bordering her videos as well as their thumbnails with golden Hylian text in her Arbiter's Grounds video, a trait which continued in her remaining videos. She seemed to regularly experiment with the design of her thumbnails, originally opting for official artworks and layering character artworks on top of backgrounds. The size and placement of her icon also varied (sometimes accompanied by the Wingcrest or the Goddess Crest). She also included the logo(s) of the game(s) being explored in many of her earlier thumbnails. In her later theory videos, the thumbnails are comprised of fanart (usually pencil drawings) rather than official digital artworks, and often featured less characters.
- She had a deep fondness for the design of Heart Containers from the LoZ franchise [2], which evidently inspired the design of her YouTube icon.
- Her YouTube icon was first revealed via Google+ on August 24th, 2014 [3].
- She appeared to dislike themes related to horror or morbidness in general, as she mentioned in her Shadow Temple theory video that she refused to complete the titular dungeon (she was a child at the time) out of fear, and also could not complete a demo for Silent Hills for the same reason [4]; she had to get others to complete these for her.
- Link's Awakening was her first experience with the LoZ franchise [5]. She played LA when she was 4-5 years old [6], implying that she had been a fan of the LoZ franchise for most of her life.
- Although she joined YouTube in 2013, it was not until the following year that she started to upload videos.
- She exhibited a respectful attitude towards other LoZ theorists, responding in a polite manner to a friend's post promoting her channel which criticised the work of other theorists.
- She had a Hyrule amino account [7].
- She liked the fairies Navi (OoT) and Tatl (Majora's Mask) [8], but disliked Fi (Skyward Sword) [9].
- She recorded her Happy Mask Salesman and Snowhead Temple theory videos while sick, jokingly providing a disclaimer in their descriptions in case she sounded "more unintelligible than usual".
- Her favourite LoZ song was the Ballad of the Wind Fish from LA [10].
- Her favourite OoT dungeon to play through was The Forest Temple, while her favourite dungeon in relation to lore was the Shadow Temple [11]. She also commented that she wished that the final game had kept the Light Temple as a playable dungeon [12].
- She was open to the idea of the franchise's titular character, Princess Zelda, being a Queen in a future game [13].
- She drew the Keaton with a Heart Container in its mouth on the thumbnail of her Origin of Keaton theory video, due to her uploading this video on Valentine's Day [14].
- She seems to have liked rabbits, as she commented on how she enjoyed wearing the Bunny Hood during playthroughs of MM [15] ("Bunny Hood for life ;D") and also mentioned loving the Bunny Link transformation from A Link To The Past [16].
- She stated in the comments section of her Tetra's Destiny theory video that one of her videos received a copyright strike and was removed when she first uploaded it. However after a few modifications she was able to reupload the video without further ramifications. Earlier comments imply that the Tetra's Destiny video was this deleted video.
- Her least favourite LoZ game was SS, because of the controls, game design and excessive in-game assistance; nonetheless she did praise the game for its plot [17].
- She appeared to watch and was subscribed to the YouTube channel Game Theorists, frequently critiquing MatPat's work related to LoZ on Reddit. Despite her notion that his LoZ theories often jumped to faulty conclusions, she praised the channel for its overall "entertainment value" [18].
- She used the same PC for nearly eight years before it broke [19].
- After watching the E3 2016 livestream featuring gameplay footage for the upcoming LoZ game Breath of the Wild all day, she eagerly made a theory video related to its timeline placement in just five hours, finishing and uploading it at 3am on June 14th 2016 [20]. She had speculated that BotW was set in the Adult Timeline since 2014 [21]. This video would sadly turn out to be her last, uploaded less than a week before she completely vanished from social media. As BotW was not released until March 3rd 2017, almost 9 months after her disappearance, it is debatable whether she ever got to play the much-anticipated game for herself.
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ https://plus.google.com/+VortexxyGaming/posts/2Wt2teFWAfn
- ↑ https://twitter.com/vortexxygaming/status/742316131164262400
- ↑ https://plus.google.com/+Cuccolover/posts/6S7zJLQEYKW.
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEk8RcXhr6g
- ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_j5uniwhG6w
- ↑ https://drive.google.com/file/d/17nJ4U2PCTWEagTrbxKSzrp4BeAZf8gp5/view?usp=drivesdk
- ↑ https://drive.google.com/file/d/1L23LiGSaSE9m3xwJaumzcubMqmfeV6mh/view?usp=drivesdk