Do you think moving on to a new Link, Zelda, etc. will be an issue for new fans who joined with BotW/TotK?

[Phendrift]

For years prior to BotW the Zelda fanbase has been used to the series, barring a few direct sequel exceptions, consistently introducing a new "reincarnation" of the hero and princess set in a different era of Hyrule with different side characters. It's a pretty unique way of handling things, and a middle ground between franchises that consistently follow the same cast of characters, or franchises that switch up *everything* between entries like Final Fantasy.

However, with BotW introducing so many new people to the series, and recieving a direct sequel and spin-off, they've spent more time with this Link and Zelda than we normally do. I think everyone's ready for a new world, but do you think new fans will be confused that they likely won't be following the same Link and Zelda next game? Especially because BotW/TotK don't really delve much into the lore of the triforce/reincarnations so the whole thing could feel out of left field.

Or do you even think Nintendo themselves have considered that maybe the BotW cast is a big selling point and shifting away from it is a risk? I don't know, I'm probably overthinking it but I could see a not insignificant amount of people confused when Zelda shows up in the next game with a totally different look, voice and personality lol.

 

[PucePikmin]

I think they'll get over it.

 

[Rexskel]

Is fine.

 

[PlanetSmasher]

I think they'll get over it.

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Yep. Not much more that needs to be said.

 

[KillstealWolf]

All the need to do is create another new link outfit for the front cover. Maybe they'll make it red this time around.

 

[duckroll]

As long as the game is engaging and appealing it won't be an issue. By the time the next Zelda is out, some teenagers who got into Zelda with BotW will have kids of their own lmao.

 

[Sangral]

They were already ready to move on after BotW.

 

[Jawmuncher]

BOTW "cast" definitely isn't the selling point.

A new Zelda is going to do just fine with "new" Zelda/Link and the rest of the characters so long as the Open World aspect is present.

 

[Gotdatmoney]

They wont care. Nintendo has been good with showing Link in his many reincarnations

 

[demosthenes]

Make a good game and it will be fine.

 

[Undeniablybiased]

Nobody will care. People like these games for the shenanigans not the story or characters. And fans that did like them for those reasons will like whatever the new versions are anyway since fans and fan artists just like anything as long as it's cool or cute.

 

[Lotus]

They won't care

 

[Marmoka]

It will not be an issue. After all there are lots of games in the franchise, if that did not stop people try BotW, a new game in a different timeline shouldn't be an inconvenience either

 

[Phamit]

I think Zelda was popular enough befor BOTW that people know that things change normally between games.

 

[Spagward]

The new creative direction has left me wondering how they will handle the next iteration. Will the next Zelda have full VA like this instead of the sound effect type language from the older games? If it does, will characters keep the same VA and Patricia Summersett will voice Zelda for the next 20 years?

 

[LinkStrikesBack]

BOTW "cast" definitely isn't the selling point.

A new Zelda is going to do just fine with "new" Zelda/Link and the rest of the characters so long as the Open World aspect is present.

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Given Nintendo made two separate same - world story games in the BOTW verse, they definitely weren't convinced that the inhabitants of the world weren't at least part of the draw.

And since the BOTW cast managed to sell more than 4 million units of a warriors spin off, putting it on similar ground to a full HD remaster of a previous mainline game of the series, I'm inclined to agree that they've managed to find appeal, somehow.

Plus it's been decades and you still have people asking for a "hero of time trilogy" despite the cast and world of OOT being even more paper thin.

 

[Anth0ny]

Switch kids gonna realize Link and Zelda are always changing.

Boy oh boy did the N64 kids have to go through it.

 

[Shelbyville Milhouse]

I think people are fully capable of understanding complex concepts such as "this is a different story with the same characters"

 

[Otakunofuji]

Gaming has worked this way for 40-years. It'll be fine. It isn't like those games and those fans exist in a vacuum where the other games in the franchise don't already exist.

 

[KillstealWolf]

Given Nintendo made two separate same - world story games in the BOTW verse, they definitely weren't convinced that the inhabitants of the world weren't at least part of the draw.

And since the BOTW cast managed to sell more than 4 million units of a warriors spin off, putting it on similar ground to a full HD remaster of a previous mainline game of the series, I'm inclined to agree that they've managed to find appeal, somehow.

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You'd have a stronger argument if the Four Champions didn't get dropped entirely from Tears of the Kingdom after their prominence in BOTW and the Warriors Spin Off.

Honestly them disappearing entirely is just weird.

 

[the_wart]

Link is Link and Zelda is Zelda. I don't think there are any distinctive characteristics of *this* iteration of the characters that really matter for the games' popularity.

 

[giapel]

I think they'll be mostly ok.
If not, Nintendo might have to create a Zelda-verse where all the different Links come together in one game. That might ease them into the concept

 

[Zebesian-X]

I've grown super attached to these iterations of the characters, and part of me would love to see BOTW Link and Zelda exploring a new continent.

Having said that, assuming they don't go "back to basics", I think fresh takes on the characters are gonna set the internet on fire. It'll be more of a strength than a weakness, especially taken in combination with all the potential graphics advancements/art style changes being facilitated by the new hardware. After all this time spent in the same hyrule they're gonna triple down on New New New, which should have no trouble drawing in the masses

 

[Rocketjay]

We will get over it.

 

[Ara63]

This is an underrated reason why Nintendo's franchises are so evergreen, IMO - if you tie the characters too closely to a story, the franchise inevitably gets stale, but by not having them be so story-driven, Nintendo get so much more usage out of Link, or Mario, and so on, while still feeling fresh.

 

[Vyse]

It's such a non issue that there's genuinely a bigger argument for concerns about moving on to non blue shirt than changing characters.

 

[Lotus]

I think Zelda was popular enough befor BOTW that people know that things change normally between games.

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Pretty much

 

[Anth0ny]

It's funny though that the "main" Zelda will be the BOTW style for, what… 13 years? 2017 to… maybe the next one comes out in 2030?

The 13 year span starting in 1998 with OOT gave us 4 different Links and Zelda's in the main 3D entries…

I doubt the Switch kids will have a problem moving on but it's gonna be a LONG time before the franchise moves on from this Link:

 

[LinkStrikesBack]

You'd have a stronger argument if the Four Champions didn't get dropped entirely from Tears of the Kingdom after their prominence in BOTW and the Warriors Spin Off.

Honestly them disappearing entirely is just weird.

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The previous 4 champions were dead for a hundred years; the living ones who were always supposed to carry on their legacy and protect their various races... did the entire sequel doing just that (and also were drafted in HW:AOC to save the previous ones, but that's an aside).

It'd have been weird for them to have rehashed them again.

 

[thediamondage]

the next game should switch the names and see what happens

hello princess link, i'm zelda the adventurer

 

[Common Knowledge]

The worlds they create are the main star on these games, not the actual characters.

 

[Jawmuncher]

Given Nintendo made two separate same - world story games in the BOTW verse, they definitely weren't convinced that the inhabitants of the world weren't at least part of the draw.

And since the BOTW cast managed to sell more than 4 million units of a warriors spin off, putting it on similar ground to a full HD remaster of a previous mainline game of the series, I'm inclined to agree that they've managed to find appeal, somehow.

Plus it's been decades and you still have people asking for a "hero of time trilogy" despite the cast and world of OOT being even more paper thin.

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Always felt like "This'll make Dev easier for us" was the main point of getting Two games in the same settings. Much like OoT and Majora's Mask.
But what you said likely plays some aspect as well.

Just i'd be very surprised to see a new Zelda "not do well" because it's not set in the BOTW universe.

 

[404LinkNotFound]

You'd have a stronger argument if the Four Champions didn't get dropped entirely from Tears of the Kingdom after their prominence in BOTW and the Warriors Spin Off.

Honestly them disappearing entirely is just weird.

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How is it wierd? they died and moved on lol. Im not sure what else needs done with them

 

[brinstar]

It's funny though that the "main" Zelda will be the BOTW style for, what… 13 years? 2017 to… maybe the next one comes out in 2030?

The 13 year span starting in 1998 with OOT gave us 4 different Links and Zelda's in the main 3D entries…

I doubt the Switch kids will have a problem moving on but it's gonna be a LONG time before the franchise moves on from this Link:

Click to shrink...

It's not like Link changes that much in the first place, they just changed his outfit mostly and you can make him wear all kinds of shit in BoTW/ToTK anyway.

 

[Jencks]

They'll hit us with another cool design hopefully

 

[SupersonicHypertonic]

Nintendo barely has consistency with the series story game to game let alone on the grand timeline so I doubt most fans of BOTW universe would get upset when a new Link, Zelda and Hyrule are introduced. It's happened in the past mutiple times and will continue to do so in future installments. Besides the series appeal has always been its gameplay anyway

 

[Common Knowledge]

You'd have a stronger argument if the Four Champions didn't get dropped entirely from Tears of the Kingdom after their prominence in BOTW and the Warriors Spin Off.

Honestly them disappearing entirely is just weird.

Click to shrink...

They're dead bruh.

 

[Ushojax]

As long as the designs are good it wouldn't be an issue.

I still think there's a chance that the next game features this Link and Zelda, just in a completely different setting.

 

[Watershed]

It's not gonna be a problem. If anything, more people will complain on Era and other hardcore gaming communities than new fans will. This is classic overthinking.

 

[Tea-Stance]

I think they'll be mostly ok.
If not, Nintendo might have to create a Zelda-verse where all the different Links come together in one game. That might ease them into the concept

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Hyrule Warriors 3 storyline?

 

[808s & Villainy]

Not remotely

 

[Wil Grieve]

No.

 

[Custódio]

Multiverse and timeline stuff is pretty mainstream these days. People will get it.

 

[Spinluck]

Nah, they won't.

Like the older 3D games people will have their favorites. Assuming the future Zelda games follow the foundation of BoTW/ToTK closely, people will like what they do next even more or prefer BoTW/ToTK.

Same way fans of the old games had to say bye to versions of Zelda and Link, and move on to the next.

 

[Undeniablybiased]

Also almost every other Zelda game is on the switch so it's not like there's this complete isolation of switch players from the rest of the franchise.

 

[ItsOKAY]

I doubt the Switch kids will have a problem moving on but it's gonna be a LONG time before the franchise moves on from this Link:

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I hope so!
An open air Zelda, on the Switch 2, with a new world - ist everything i dream of!!

 

[slothrop]

Nintendo has been throwing away game mechanics and trotting out new ones in Zelda forever. I don't think there's anything new to worry about here, people pretty much always have come along for the ride. Zelda 1 to Zelda 2 already set that tone for the series right at the beginning.

There is some risk in the sense that sometimes their experiments don't catch on as widely as hoped. Think windwaker or skyward sword. But the slightly failed experiments are key to building a culture that is unafraid to also try the successful experiments -- you don't know the result before you try.

Remember, this series has _invented_ a lot of popular conventions. I'm sure they'll invent some new ones too that we can't even think of now but will end up loving!

Edit: Ok actually your post is more focused on character design than gameplay. I think that is not even important. I don't think a single person has bought any Zelda game due to the specific character design... Though I suppose Wind Waker designs were controversial at the time

 

[Yoshimitsu126]

Probably not. Hudson? Yes

 

[KillstealWolf]

They're dead bruh.

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How is it wierd? they died and moved on lol. Im not sure what else needs done with them

Click to shrink...

The previous 4 champions were dead for a hundred years; the living ones who were always supposed to carry on their legacy and protect their various races... did the entire sequel doing just that (and also were drafted in HW:AOC to save the previous ones, but that's an aside).

It'd have been weird for them to have rehashed them again.

Click to shrink...

Let's not pretend they were all "Dead" in the first game as well and still showed up as Spirits in the future with the Divine Beasts, and let's not pretend Time Travel has not been an element to the series as well, with the concept of Time Travel even being present IN Tears of the Kingdom. Death isn't a significant stopper to prevent them from showing. They just didn't show up, which does challenge the question of were the characters that important to the fans if all these major characters from the first ones were no shows entirely in a game that's set in the same world as the first.

Same with the whole Guardians and Divine Beasts as well just straight up disappearing between the games as well. But that's a discussion for another thread.

 

[Tbm24]

They'll live.