Hopefully Zelda will be playable. Link will be playable. That's clear. I hope Zelda gets a role too
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The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Sequel Development Thread- News, Updates, and Speculation
- Thread starter WestEgg
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I mean it is still a japanese company so they are more laid back on some topics but still they aren't offending anybody just don't take much risk but they have been getting a lot better at handling their IPs since the Switch era. They are opening up to new opportunities and for them it has always been about keeping a strong brand. Making link a female or giving the possibility to switch isn't going in that favour. If you really want to play only games that you feel represented in then maybe chose other games cause they won't do that for all. I'm gay and haven't played one game with a gay character and i really don't care if there is romance where i'm not represented in cause i know i'm a minority and actually i'm not playing games to find that since i can just have it in real life. So i don't get why people are literally angry at Nintendo wanting to keep strong lead characters for their franchises and even more now that they are making more movies and other stuff.
Some things are better left simple and i don't understand how some people don't get that. Playable Zelda or a new character that joins link in the adventure like Midna YES. But 2 versions of link ? No. Not everything has to be literally everything.
All this cuz a single Nintendo series won't let you play as a female character. Nevermind the other series they have that have improved in terms of representation, because LoZ doesn't let you play as Zelda/have a female Link, they're avoiding social progress...
I hope it's like AC: Syndicate where you can swap between Link and Zelda. Would really stink if she's just kidnapped again.
Is Zelda actually kidnapped in any games beyond the first three? I don't recall any other instances (okay the trash move at the end of TP too).
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She isn't kidnapped at the outset of the game as often but she does get captured or similar towards the end of the game pretty commonly.
The Legend of Zelda: Kidnapped by Ganon at the start.
Zelda II: Zelda has been in a cursed sleep for centuries. Also Zelda 1 Zelda is probably fine?
Link to the Past: Zelda is detained in the dungeon of Hyrule Castle, and is resced by Link in the opening and spends the first act in hiding at the Sanctuary. Zelda is recaptured and sent to the Dark World, where she is rescued again as the last of the Seven maidens.
Link's Awakening: Not present
Ocarina of Time: Manages, thanks to Impa, to avoid capture by Ganondorf, and lived in hiding as Sheik. Is captured by Ganondorf at the end of the game when she reveals herself to Link.
Majora's Mask: Not present
Oracle of Ages/ Oracle of Seasons: Not present in the individual games, but is kidnapped by Twinrova in the linked ending.
Wind Waker: Is put into hiding when Tetra is revealed to be Zelda, and is captured by Ganondorf in the find act.
Four Swords: Is kidnapped by Vaati in the opening.
Four Swords Adventure: Is also kidnapped by Vaati in the opening.
Minish Cap: Is turned to stone by Vaati in the opening act, who assumes possession of her statue when he takes Hyrule Castle.
Twilight Princess: Is forced into surrender by Zant and her castle is occupied. Later she seemingly gives her life for Midna and Ganondorf takes possession of her body.
Phantom Hourglass: Tetra is turned to stone in the opening.
Spirit Tracks: Zelda's spirit is separated from her body, though her spirit is able join you on the adventure.
Skyward Sword: Zelda is briefly captured and then rescued by Impa towards the beginning of the game. She later willingly seals herself away in the Temple of Time, but is taken by Ghirahim at the end of the game and seemingly has her soul devoured by Demise. She gets better.
A Link Between Worlds: Is turned into a painting by Yuga and captured.
Breath of the Wild: In something of an inversion, upon finally accessing her sealing magic, Zelda actually confronts Calamity Ganon herself and keeps it confined to Hyrule Castle, and is stuck in a stale mate with it until Link arrives to defeat Calamity Ganon.
I mean by kidnapped i meant being with Ganon and we can only see her at the end of the game which is almost like that every time except some games like SS where you can see her but she got kidnapped by... Impa lmao.
But now that this is a sequel, they can't just let her be in the same position during the entire time. In MM she wasn't in the game so there wasn't this problem but here we can assume she will be much more present. So i really don't see them doing flashbacks again or her being away the entire game.
If Zelda becomes playable she'll sadly probably be restricted to brief interludes like Ciri in WItcher 3.
Which is still an improvement from most earlier games I suppose .
Which is still an improvement from most earlier games I suppose .
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Wait, I haven't been in the direct thread for a while, do we have something substantial hinting for this week?Get ready everyone. This could be the week we get confirmation of BotW 2 for holiday 2020
What' are you basing this on?Get ready everyone. This could be the week we get confirmation of BotW 2 for holiday 2020
Is this a made up timer?Get ready everyone. This could be the week we get confirmation of BotW 2 for holiday 2020
We have the maintenance before the Pokémon direct also this is the second week of March. Nintendo has to have a direct either now or first/second week of April. They have no games dated after AC release
no. If there's a direct this week that's when it would be announced
But is there any particular reason to think this will have to do with Zelda?
It's a Nintendo direct. Anything is possible. Many believe BotW 2 will be the holiday game.
So you don't listen? I never said there was proof Zelda was going to be there.
If you post a count-down timer in a BoTW sequel development thread I'd expect it to be based on more than useless speculation. Like any sort of legit basis.
AgreedGet ready everyone. This could be the week we get confirmation of BotW 2 for holiday 2020
I really think we could see it in the Direct. I don't know if i feel a direct happening this week but eh we'll find out soon enough.
They didn't have to show it last E3 cause they had several heavy hitters but still did. It's been over 8 months now and they don't really care about saving stuff for E3 anymore. Like Smash was announced in an April direct.
Edit : it was actually a March direct i think... oh well.
They didn't have to show it last E3 cause they had several heavy hitters but still did. It's been over 8 months now and they don't really care about saving stuff for E3 anymore. Like Smash was announced in an April direct.
Edit : it was actually a March direct i think... oh well.
Get ready everyone. This could be the week we get confirmation of BotW 2 for holiday 2020
What have I missed?
Nothing at all, he is just assuming that if there is a Direct this week it will be announced then
We always know the holiday title before E3 during Switch era. If BotW 2 is coming this holiday there's a high chance it will be confirmed before E3
2017- Super Mario Odyssey
2018- Smash Ultimate
2019- Pokémon Sword/Shield
2020-??
Recipes for what? So you can see the 30 different ways you can make the exact same dish?
None of these were announced as the holiday title or given a deeper/2nd trailer before E3. You've literal given the evidence for why Nintendo isn't going to talk about Zelda before E3. They've already announced the game so they have Zero reason to bring it back up. Just like how they didn't bring up Mario, Pokemon or Smash after their initial announcements nor did they announce their release dates until E3 (Pokemon got a "late 2019" when first revealed but that's it. No additional Direct until it was close to E3).
Nintendo doesn't talk their holiday title or next year's games (2021) before E3. Never have, never will. So regardless of when it releases, Nintendo won't talk about it more until E3.
The next Nintendo Direct will focus on their Summer/early Fall games, if there's another direct at all.
Really ...
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In here we talk Zelda. Not whether or not server maintenance might mean there's a thing coming up...
Nintendo Direct Speculation |OT6| OT7 Has Been Rated in Korea
Because we apparently can't help ourselves, welcome to another new Nintendo Direct Speculation Thread, the second within 2 weeks. I'm honored to become part of the proud tradition of OPs for these threads, nominated by none other than Phendrift. I've been around since the creation of Era and I...
www.resetera.com
is for Nintendo Direct speculation.
In here we talk Zelda. Not whether or not server maintenance might mean there's a thing coming up...
Wait, there isn't even a guarantee of there being a Direct, much less an indicator that there will be Zelda news? That countdown timer is even more stupid than I thought.
One day your 2020 general Direct countdown will get something right :PGet ready everyone. This could be the week we get confirmation of BotW 2 for holiday 2020
So Zelda, huh. That pointy hat sure seems impractical. I wonder what outfits they're gonna wear in the new one.
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Continuing on from Kass, next I'm going to bring up the OTHER breakout bestial bro from Breath of the Wild, Prince Sidon!
Prince Sidon is the brother of Zora Champion Mipha, and one of four characters from the Champions' races that assists Link in assaulting their respective Divine Beast. Sidon is perhaps the most memorable of these characters. It seems pretty common that most players gravitate towards Vah Ruta as their first Divine Beast, likely thanks to its relative proximity to Kakariko Village. And if you stumble more than a few feet away from Kakariko, you're likely to start tripping over all of the Zora lining up to tell you about how their Prince is seeking a Hylian.
Sidon is easily the most involved character in the build up to Link tackling a Divine Beast. As mentioned earlier, he's the first major Zora character you're likely to meet, and helps escort Link to Zora's Domain through treacherous enemy territory (that is unless you pull some shenanigans and approach Zora's Domain from elsewhere, in which case he'll be waiting for you with his father), helps to convince the bitter elderly Zora attendant to help Link, and eventually helps Link in his attack on Vah Ruta itself (which is, in my opinion, the best "assualt" segment in the game).
And he does it all with a constant upbeat attitude and chipper smile on his face!
So, what does that leave for Breath of the Wild's sequel? Well, depending on the weight the sequel will place on the other races of Hyrule, Sidon seems to be the most likely representative of the Zora to return. The Divine Beast missions really helped sell an aspect of Breath of the Wild that I really appreciated, that all the people of Hyrule have come together to oppose Calamity Ganon, and it's something I would like to see carry through into the sequel. Also, the ending of Breath of the Wild has Zelda directly mentioning that there is an issue with Vah Ruta and that she and Link should travel there next. Perhaps this is what will lead into the plot of the sequel?
Sidon is easily the most involved character in the build up to Link tackling a Divine Beast. As mentioned earlier, he's the first major Zora character you're likely to meet, and helps escort Link to Zora's Domain through treacherous enemy territory (that is unless you pull some shenanigans and approach Zora's Domain from elsewhere, in which case he'll be waiting for you with his father), helps to convince the bitter elderly Zora attendant to help Link, and eventually helps Link in his attack on Vah Ruta itself (which is, in my opinion, the best "assualt" segment in the game).
And he does it all with a constant upbeat attitude and chipper smile on his face!
Imagining how potentially cool it would be if those "hero NPCs" would be more deeply integrated into your mission(s). Like, think light squad-mechanics. Pre-plan something and coordinate with an NPC on a mission (like a search or an attack or an infiltration or an evolution of those Spirit Tracks or previous partner NPC puzzles).
Oh, gosh, I go away for a couple of weeks, and we start talking about turning Link into a female again. I was really hoping that after the debacle of E3 2016 this argument would be over.
And Link, if we're going by "lore," is a reincarnation of the Skyward Sword Link, who was quite obviously male. Just as Zelda (and her own later reincarnations) is an incarnation of Hylia, a female goddess.
Ergo, Link is Male and Zelda is Female. That's... pretty well set in stone for anybody who doesn't have their head stuck in the sand. And that was the point Aonuma was making with his whole "balance of the Triforce" comment a few years ago (which people didn't understand, of course), where he was saying that 1 male hero and 1 female goddess always team up against evil.
You're just making things up now. You really mean to tell me that an IP that has based its existence off of rescuing damsels in distress since its very beginning isn't fundamentally geared towards a male audience identifying with a male protagonist? That the cartoon and the books that came out based on the NES games weren't aiming at an audience of pre-teen boys? You mean to tell me that OoT Link growing up and getting strong enough to wield the Master Sword and defeat Ganon wasn't representative of a common masculine desire to grow up and become strong enough to defeat enemies? You're really trying to convince people that a series that once had a commercial that asked viewers, "Wilst thou get the girl, or play like one?" wasn't thinking of its audience almost exclusively in terms of adolescent males? Or a commercial that told of the story of a boy who became a man all that so he could save a girl locked up in a tower(Zelda, presumably)? The series was first introduced to U.S. audiences with commercials of a guy running through corridors screaming "Zelda!" and ranting about having to fight off all these hordes of evil creatures. Or how the blockbuster BotW trailer featured Zelda crying on Link's shoulder and literally ended with the king telling the player "You must save her... my daughter!" Are you really trying to tell me this series wasn't fundamentally intended for a male audience? Seriously? You're making this argument and actually meaning it?
This isn't even an argument of the merits (functional, philosophical, or whatever) of having Zelda be playable, or in any kind of role other than damsel in distress. This is about you just outright making stuff up and completely ignoring the series' actual, literal history as a commercial product in the physical world that is intended to be purchased by actual people. You're saying stuff that doesn't make sense because you seem to have some sort of philosophical hang-up about the idea of Link's "spirit" being malleable enough that he could be born as a she in some incarnation or another. But you're completely getting Nintendo's development approach backwards. The storyline explanation for Link's existence was written explicitly to justify keeping him the same in every game! You're thinking in terms of a English major, or a social science major, or a political activist, or something. You're being way, way too abstract and theoretical. Nintendo thinks in terms of industrial design. You're so far away from where Nintendo is, conceptually, that it's no wonder you're so confused.
Anyway, people get really worked up over this, and unfortunately it tends to become an emotional issue, which makes it hard to have a constructive conversation. But the "lore" isn't the "Gotcha!" answer that you seem to think it is. First of all, you're getting the lore wrong, and secondly and much more importantly, you're misunderstanding Nintendo's reasoning for it.
Um, branding and licensing is, like, the whole reason why this series exists. It's a commercial product and is designed to sell to a commercial audience. That's what it is. Heck, the "lore" people keep talking about was created just to give Nintendo an excuse to keep doing the same thing over and over.
And Link, if we're going by "lore," is a reincarnation of the Skyward Sword Link, who was quite obviously male. Just as Zelda (and her own later reincarnations) is an incarnation of Hylia, a female goddess.
Ergo, Link is Male and Zelda is Female. That's... pretty well set in stone for anybody who doesn't have their head stuck in the sand. And that was the point Aonuma was making with his whole "balance of the Triforce" comment a few years ago (which people didn't understand, of course), where he was saying that 1 male hero and 1 female goddess always team up against evil.
You're just making things up now. You really mean to tell me that an IP that has based its existence off of rescuing damsels in distress since its very beginning isn't fundamentally geared towards a male audience identifying with a male protagonist? That the cartoon and the books that came out based on the NES games weren't aiming at an audience of pre-teen boys? You mean to tell me that OoT Link growing up and getting strong enough to wield the Master Sword and defeat Ganon wasn't representative of a common masculine desire to grow up and become strong enough to defeat enemies? You're really trying to convince people that a series that once had a commercial that asked viewers, "Wilst thou get the girl, or play like one?" wasn't thinking of its audience almost exclusively in terms of adolescent males? Or a commercial that told of the story of a boy who became a man all that so he could save a girl locked up in a tower(Zelda, presumably)? The series was first introduced to U.S. audiences with commercials of a guy running through corridors screaming "Zelda!" and ranting about having to fight off all these hordes of evil creatures. Or how the blockbuster BotW trailer featured Zelda crying on Link's shoulder and literally ended with the king telling the player "You must save her... my daughter!" Are you really trying to tell me this series wasn't fundamentally intended for a male audience? Seriously? You're making this argument and actually meaning it?
This isn't even an argument of the merits (functional, philosophical, or whatever) of having Zelda be playable, or in any kind of role other than damsel in distress. This is about you just outright making stuff up and completely ignoring the series' actual, literal history as a commercial product in the physical world that is intended to be purchased by actual people. You're saying stuff that doesn't make sense because you seem to have some sort of philosophical hang-up about the idea of Link's "spirit" being malleable enough that he could be born as a she in some incarnation or another. But you're completely getting Nintendo's development approach backwards. The storyline explanation for Link's existence was written explicitly to justify keeping him the same in every game! You're thinking in terms of a English major, or a social science major, or a political activist, or something. You're being way, way too abstract and theoretical. Nintendo thinks in terms of industrial design. You're so far away from where Nintendo is, conceptually, that it's no wonder you're so confused.
Anyway, people get really worked up over this, and unfortunately it tends to become an emotional issue, which makes it hard to have a constructive conversation. But the "lore" isn't the "Gotcha!" answer that you seem to think it is. First of all, you're getting the lore wrong, and secondly and much more importantly, you're misunderstanding Nintendo's reasoning for it.
Well there's your report of a Nintendo direct happening on March 26. Please for the love of god show BotW 2
Ah, he was "obviously male?" Wow, I didn't know that. And I've beaten the game three times too. Thank you for the mansplaining!
Actual people meaning just men, right?
So I'm too intellectual and thinking of games as art. Got it.
The fact that you thought your response was in any way constructive is absolutely fascinating. Gonna show this one to my other intellectual friends.
This post is terrible and you should feel bad about posting it with such unearned confidence.
I really really think you should lean back and be a little less invested in this particular line of argument. Mostly because you're wrong but also really just because of that tone. Jeez.
This particular nonsense gets me the most. Link's supposed gender is now industrial design.
And this is just chef kiss levels of irony here. I know you're gonna say you're not emotional but read your post again...
You can throw all of this out the window. Miyamoto's and Nintendo's thing is always "everyone." Not "young teen boys" or whatever. If you need to pull in Western marketing like TV ads or licensed stuff like cartoons, especially a lot of the old stuff from the 90s then you're not really helping the argument there.
The simple and plain fact remains, there is nothing that stands in the way of Link being reincarnated in the body of a woman in a new entry. Except for people clinging vehemently to elitist and exclusionary arguments like this.
'sad bois online would get angry'
Is actually a huge selling point for a girl link lmao. Shut up and take my money
Is actually a huge selling point for a girl link lmao. Shut up and take my money
I've had that feeling though... That maybe the whole teaser is just a setup where:
- Link and Zelda have been doing things since BotW in search of answers to the Calamity.
- Find Ganondorf in his tomb underneath Hyrule (which Shiekah were researching, which caused Calamity Ganon)
- They trigger its magick and Link "absorbs" some of it, getting a spirit hand (replaces Shiekah Slate functions)
- Ganondorf wakes up, and Link and Zelda get seperated.
- Underground cave rises up with Hyrule Castle on its pillar as a "Ganon's Tower"
- Zelda is kidnapped with Ganondorf in his lair. Link must complete the objectives to get up to the top and free her.
I still don't see co-op working well in this game. It feels to me like it runs against the spirit of BotW and just being dropped into this world with little to no interference. AC: Syndicate style feels way too artificial for BotWs style if they had some kind of hub where we could go and switch between the two. Syndicate gets away with the idea that both Fryes are doing stuff when not being played, but the world and events in Zelda don't lend themselves to that. So just sticking one of the main characters to sit around as the world ends sounds weird.
Same for a Witcher 3 setup, given how important freedom and not linearity are having trigger points where the perspective switches seems way too obstructive and gamey. Again works better in the Witcher because of its structure and overall setup. Limiting those Zelda sections to something like dungeons and not the open world might work better, but would still feel rather artificial and gamey.
On the fly character swapping seems more inline with BotW, but I don't see having a companion AI like that around would be easy at all to implement or not feel artificial given how freeform the game is. Having Zelda or Link realistically follow us as we scale cliffs, jump off and glide from everything and participate in combat sounds like a devs nightmare to program. And doing things like teleporting them next to us and other tricks would feel very artificial and immersion breaking. Same if we didn't actually travel together and instead just "magically" swapped between them on the fly. Which would again bring up the issue of what is the other doing when not being played.
So I'm still hoping for an all or nothing approach. MGS2 style, play as Link for the opening ~hour and then shit goes down and we are Zelda only thereafter.
Dunno but why can't Zelda do research, which seems to be her thing in that BotW-world while if you switch to her, Link cooks and improves armor. You could even layer a meta management system in there. Think Galactic Readiness from ME3 that ties into the plot ("we have to solve this and that or find out about this Big Piciture Mystery/Get Ready/Gear Up") which would completely justify the other character's "absence" during your playtime with the respective other. Simple solve.
Not a bad idea, but still feels off to me. Zelda doing research sounds plausible and reasonable, hell it could make for a good role for her within the game as just an NPC we can interact with and get quests and stuff from as she oversees research into combating Ganondorf and the Zonai and just general rebuilding/ruling of her kingdom. But Link sitting on the sidelines cooking or tinkering not so much. Just comes across as a rather flimsy justification/scenario. I'm not sure anything they could come up with could justify him voluntarily not being out in the field while Zelda is.
Aonuma's derided response in 2016 before BotW's release also pops into mind.
It's still dumb overall, though kind of appropriate in this specific scenario, but I doubt his views or feelings have changed much since then. At least in a scenario like on the fly character swapping with an AI companion both would always be present and active in the events so it shouldn't be an issue. Or in a playable Zelda only situation Link would ostensibly be incapacitated or stuck fending off Ganondorf the whole time, which they might feel is a more acceptable scenario. But just voluntarily having Link sit out for a bit seems like something Nintendo wouldn't fly with.
Which is unfortunate. While I technically agree in this situation it feels off, in the future I would like to see some kind of co-op or situation where Zelda is playable without requiring some grandiose reasoning behind Link's absence.
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