The Legacy of Rolling

Whether it's by drawing rapid little circles on the edge of the touch screen, or by pushing the A, or even the R, button, rolling is always in Zelda games these days. The author, Dathen, remembers the first time he played Ocarina of Time, way back when. As he was first exploring the game's controls, he came across the blue 'action icon', which we're supposed to pay extra attention to remember, to note what it says. Well he noted that it said 'attack', yet all Link ever did was roll forward. 'How is that an attack?' He wondered, but the answer never came, as his desire for the answer eventually faded. In Twilight Princess the beloved 'attack' was finally changed to the word 'roll'; quite clearly more fitting. The question that still remains though is to the necessity of Link rolling around. Has the roll ever served as more than a button filler? Has it limited the potential of the A button?