Toon Link

Toon Link is the incarnation of Link whose cartoony design first appeared in The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords. This version of Link is prominently featured in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, in which he goes on a quest to rescue his kidnapped sister, Aryll, and later becomes known as the Hero of Winds for his courageous efforts against the returning Ganondorf. In The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, the same Link is transported to a parallel world, where he seeks to rescue his companion Tetra from the curse inflicted upon her by the squid-like monster Bellum and return home with her.

While the art style typically associated with the "Toon" term was established during the development cycle of The Wind Waker, the first usage of the term itself occurred in Super Smash Bros. Brawl to denote the Hero of Winds from The Wind Waker and Phantom Hourglass. However, the "Toon" term itself can nevertheless be used to describe the same art style; for instance, Toon Link's trophies from Super Smash Bros. for Wii U list The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks as an appearance, despite technically being a separate Link.

Toon Link appears as a playable fighter in the Super Smash Bros. series starting with Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and is treated as a separate character from Link and Young Link.

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
Link was originally supposed to cameo in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga as one of the many Nintendo characters (all of whom were replaced by Professor E. Gadd in the final) who would appear at the Starbeans Cafe to test out Mario and Luigi's latest Bean Juice. His sprite seems to have been modeled after the incarnation of Link as he appears in The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap. Meeting Link would award the player the Triforce, which was replaced with the Great Force for the final version.

WarioWare: Smooth Moves
In WarioWare: Smooth Moves, there is a microgame called The Wind Waker which involves Link using his Deku Leaf to land on an island. This game uses the form "The Mohawk".

WarioWare Gold
The microgame The Wind Waker returns with Toon Link in WarioWare Gold, alongside a new microgame called Phantom Hourglass, in which the player must draw a path for Toon Link's Boomerang to hit Shock Switches.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl
In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Toon Link is a secret playable character. He can be unlocked by either finding a door in The Forest in Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary after beating the mode, playing Classic after clearing The Subspace Emissary, or by playing 400 Brawl matches, then defeating him in battle. His attributes and moveset are mostly similar to Young Link from Super Smash Bros. Melee, in that he is lighter than Link, but also faster than him. Toon Link's only unique attacks are his up smash, forward and back throws, and standard, forward, and back aerials.

Toon Link's special moves are mostly the same as Link's, though Toon Link's attacks use their The Wind Waker variants. The only different move is the Boomerang, which is the same as Link's Boomerang in Super Smash Bros. Melee. Toon Link's grab also uses the Hookshot from The Wind Waker, which like Link's Clawshot also has a ledge-homing property, though its range is not as far. They also share a Final Smash, Triforce Slash. Despite this, some of their other moves are different, and some of their shared moves have different properties, such as Toon Link's Hero's Bow having an arc to the arrows.

Toon Link's red, blue, and purple alternate costumes are based upon the copies of the Link from The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords. He also has an alternate costume based upon the Link from the original The Legend of Zelda, as well as a Dark Link costume.

Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary
After clearing Adventure Mode: The Subspace Emissary, in The Forest stage, if the player enters the first red door in the beginning of the level, they will be taken to the Pirate Ship. There, Toon Link will be looking out to the sea. However, once he sees the player, he's surprised. Thinking the player is an enemy, he attacks the player. The player then fights Toon Link, and if he is beaten, Toon Link is unlocked as a playable character.

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U
Toon Link returns as a starter playable character in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. His moveset remains unchanged from Super Smash Bros. Brawl, though with the game's new art style his design has been updated to more closely resemble his actual appearance in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. Toon Link is faster than before, but in exchange, his damage output is lower.

One of Toon Link's additional alternate costumes in this game is based upon the appearance of the Link from The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds. Additionally, the Toon Link from The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (also known as "Engineer Link") appears as a background character, complete with his Engineer's Clothes to further differentiate him. Engineer Link appears on the Spirit Train stage in the Nintendo 3DS version, where he conducts the titular train. However, he is replaced by his mentor Alfonzo if Toon Link or Link are involved in the battle.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Toon Link returns as an unlockable playable fighter in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. He is now further differentiated from Link than in previous games, due to the latter now being the "Hero of the Wild" from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. However, Toon Link now shares more similarities with the returning Young Link. Toon Link's moveset is largely unchanged, though his forward smash is now a single upward slash instead of two slashes with his Master Sword.

Toon Link benefits from universal changes, such as having much faster mobility, lower landing lag for his aerials, reduced short hop timing, an extended recovery because of the reintroduction of directional air dodges, and the ability to use any ground attack out of a dash and use his aerials on ladders. However, his overall damage output is decreased even further.

Engineer Link also reappears as a background character on the Spirit Train stage. In comparison to the previous installment, he appears virtually identical to the playable Toon Link (save for his Engineer's Clothes), instead of using a polygonal model similar to his appearance in Spirit Tracks. As with the other The Legend of Zelda characters, Toon Link's victory theme is now a different arrangement of the main theme of the series.

Classic Mode route
Throughout the route, the player is assisted by a red and blue Toon Link, in reference to The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes. If the player selects one of those colors, the default green Toon Link replaces that color as the second ally.

Super Mario Maker
Toon Link appears as two Mystery Mushroom costumes in Super Mario Maker: one based on his appearance in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, and one (named Totem Link) based on the trio of protagonists in The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes. The former costume can be unlocked by scanning the Toon Link Amiibo or randomly after completing the 100 Mario Challenge on Normal difficulty, while the latter costume is unlocked after completing the "Tri Force Heroes" Event Course.

Snake's codec

 * Snake: Mei Ling, who is this kid with the cat eyes...?
 * Mei Ling: Oh, they call him Toon Link. Doesn't he look familiar?
 * Snake: Yeah, he looks just like Link.
 * Mei Ling: But you know there've been several people who've gone by that name, right? They all have certain things in common--green clothes, a sword, a shield... But they all came from different lands and lived in different eras. And yet the spirit of the hero of the Triforce is timeless. It's an essence that transcends history.
 * Snake: I think I can relate to that.
 * Mei Ling: Huh? What do you mean?
 * Snake: There's been more than one "Snake," too, you know...

Palutena's Guidance

 * Pit: This guy's eyes are the size of my head!
 * Palutena: He must be the famous Toon Link.
 * Pit: Where'd he get that name from anyway?
 * Palutena: It's probably because he looks like he jumped out of a cartoon.
 * Pit: Ah, I see how it is. Hmph.
 * Palutena: What's the matter, Pit?
 * Pit: It's just not fair, Lady Palutena! One Link is handsome, and the other is adorable! They're cherry-picking the best bits!
 * Palutena: Awww! Is poor Pit feeling a little insecure today?
 * Viridi: Snap out of it, Pit! You have a fight to focus on. Here's the deal: Toon Link is quick but lighter than regular Link.
 * Palutena: Don't get distracted by his weapons...or his intense cuteness! Just calm down and plan the best counterattack.

amiibo

 * With big eyes and an expressive face, this version of Link is how he appeared in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker game. Link lived peacefully on Outset Island until a bird captured his little sister, and he came to her rescue. His green clothes were worn on his 12th birthday and are the lucky outfit of the hero of legend.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Super Smash Blog bio

 * He's smaller and faster than Link. His bombs explode with a unique anime-style. For his Final Smash, he emits light from his left hand and any opponents hit by it are trapped in the Triforce, subject to a punishing gauntlet of attacks.

Trivia

 * In an interview, Shigeru Miyamoto described this version of Link as "Cat-eyed Link".
 * Solid Snake also describes Toon Link as having cat eyes during his codec conversation.