Summary
The Legend of Zeldais in between projects right now, but still riding out the success it’s enjoyed throughout the Nintendo Switch’s life.Breath of the WildandTears of the Kingdomtook a bold approach in reimagining the series’ classic adventure formula, turningThe Legend of Zelda’s once-linear quests into an open-world journey driven by player creativity. Needless to say, this paid off, and both games became some ofZelda’s best-selling titles and examples of model open world design. It may take some time for the next majorZeldainstallment to come out, but fans have plenty of dynamic journeys to occupy themselves with in the meantime.
Still, there is a place for the old style of more contained and dungeon-orientedZeldagames. Veteran players have maintained that they would like the classicZeldaformula to be revisited at some point, even asZelda’s developers assert that the open world will remainthe series’ focus for the time being. It’s likely just a matter of time until a newLegend of Zeldataps into nostalgia for its top-down or early 3D days, but Nintendo also has the opportunity to couple such callbacks with a full-on classic revival if it plays its cards right.
Retro Legend of Zelda Remasters Would Be A Welcome Sight
While several 2DLegend of Zeldagames are available as part of the Nintendo Switch Online service, fans have been expecting the system to get more classicZeldathan that for quite some time. Hot on the heels of theSkyward Sword HDrelease, rumors sprang up suggesting that the Wii U remasters ofThe Wind WakerandTwilight Princesswould also receive Switch ports. They both became common predictions for Nintendo Directs covering otherwise dry-looking seasons, and discussions about them have persisted long enough to keep up with increasingly credible rumors like those concerning the Nintendo Switch 2.
Remasters, Remakes, and Re-Releases Could Be In Zelda’s Future
At this point, there’s no telling whetherThe Wind Waker HDorTwilight Princess HDare actually coming out. If they are still happening, then2024 is the ideal time for minorZeldareleasesgiven Nintendo’s dwindling release schedule, andTears of the Kingdom’s 2023 launch being too recent for the next big game to be ready. There’s also the possibility that the Nintendo 3DS’sOcarina of TimeandMajora’s Maskremakes could also get console remasters at some point, potentially turning the Nintendo Switch ecosystem into the prime place to play almost everyZeldagame.
The Next Legend of Zelda Could Be A Throwback Game
Giving players the chance to reliveZelda’s history would already be great, but could be even better beside a complementary new game. Just because mainlineZeldatitles are expected to follow inBotWandTotK’s footsteps doesn’t mean a classic dungeon-crawler is out of the question. Whether that implies anotheropen-worldZeldagame with more legacy DNAthan its predecessors, or a smaller spin-off that plays similarly toA Link Between Worldsor the 2019Link’s Awakening, fans are due another old school offering after a whole console generation spent on innovation.
Real and Reminiscent Retro Zelda’s Would Make Great Counterparts
Both new and oldZeldagames could coexist with adjacent releases, and seeing them side-by-side would make it clear just how far the franchise has come. Regardless of the retro point of comparison beingOcarina of Time,Twilight Princess, or anything in-between, and whether the new title revisits top-down gameplay, the result should illustrate howmodern Nintendo interprets theZeldaseries’ tenets. At the end of the day, though, just one of these games launching on the Switch or Switch 2 would make a lot ofThe Legend of Zeldafans happy, and that’s reason enough to keep hoping they’ll arrive.
