A Full Sequel To The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild Is Now In Development

Well done, Nintendo. Well done.

Oh no, the release date can't come soon enough! I see underground dungeons and undead creatures, this is going to be awesome!

Not surprising but still exciting

Just scared we have to wait at least 3 years, then it getting delayed and end up on the Switch 2 console. Like what happened to Breath of the Wild.

As much as I love BotW...Eh.

Once was enough for me. Sure I'll probably end up getting it anyway though.

I really hope this will be a chance to have playable Zelda. Either way looks great

Holiday 2020 here I come

Great E3 presentation, only downside* is that Animal Crossing is delayed.

*) Except that 20th of march is one day before my B-day

Would rather have mother 3 tbh

Seems really dark. Like MM compared to OoT.

What a way to end the show

Best moment of the direct. loved the dark vibe!

This was a tease for sure , but what a Tease to have as I just hope we won't have to wait as long as we have to wait for MP4

Wow, so unexpected, i thought the Zelda team was on vacation since the release of BOTW... ETA: 2024? Please...

Got me pumped. For minute, I thought it was new DLC and I was gonna have to buy the game again, lol.

I almost had a stroke out of excitement

I love the darker tone. Sign me up.

In the voice of the Smash announcer: Incredible!

Twilight princess vibes...maybe the world is infected somehow

Looks like they're using the extra power on the Switch nicely since they don't have to worry about the Wii U simultaneous release. So excited!

Calling it now: this will be the Majora's Mask of BotW. Using the same engine, many of the same assets, and even the same world but modified.

It will NOT take as long as you think.

Just me or does it look like Link is going to disappear leaving Zelda to fiend for her self, It would be a smart move to play Zelda this time around so you don't have to explain how Link get nerfed

YES YES YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! MORE ZELDA!

That almost made up for the lack of Metroid/Pikmin!

I guess we found Nintendo's 2020 "big title", huh? Depends on how this works out, of course.

Hope we get real dungeons this time around, but I still lost my marbles as the trailer played on! Pretty sure Nintendo won E3 this year!

That was the big surprise I needed.... May have saved the Direct for me.

JUST HOOK IT TO MY VEINS

I am all for this, and will be paying full price to play it on someone else's switch.

Looks like some dark, underground settings here. That would be a great way to keep the world that was already built, but expand upon it. We've seen the overworld, so they expand the "underworld".

A sequel to the greatest game ever made? I'm completely fine with that.

I also believe this could potentially come in 2020 or 2021. The game is using the same engine and the team could have been working on this for up to two year already.🙂

Love it, first direct mainline sequel to a console Zelda game since 2000's Majora's Mask. Bring it on! Loving what they're doing with this open world engine

I don't think anyone saw this coming... It won't be years away it will be closer than you think 😜

Highlight of the show, not that there where many. Goosebums!

Only thing I'm excited for. I really felt E3 2019 was lacking.

@flag I could have sworn we were told they were working on the next Zelda shortly after BOTW was done or released at least. If that was accurate and this is the game, I can't see this released any later than Spring 2021 or least no later than 2021.

I was hoping for DLC like "Fate of Atlantis" in AC:O

But something to look forward for. Nintendo is just Amazing!

Take my money, omg I got tears of joy (no joke) AND Animal Crossing!!

@Philo With such a fantastic engine, it makes sense to use it again for a sequel. I hope this is indeed like what Majora's Mask was for Ocarina of Time.

Link so awesome, just let us play as Link and give us dungeons and I am all set!

No weapon breaking system and larger dungeons please!

If it uses the same engine I could see it come next year. Or as a simultaneous release for the next console.

This might be like MM.

Surprised for a sequel to be revealed this early and for it to be a direct one too. I fully expect for it to be one of Nintendo's holiday games next year!

I've just started my first playthrough of BOTW, so at least I will have plenty of time to enjoy it before the sequel releases in a couple of years. I cannot wait to see what the rest of the game has in store.

Nintendo won E3 with this announcement as far as I'm concerned.

Nintendo was the saving grace of this E3.

Tons of good stuff, barely any talk and more game play than trailers.

I think this might be going the Majora's Mask route of reusing assets from its previous game, but still looking forward to it.

Very smart of Nintendo, BOTW sold a ton of Switch's at launch. This going going to make them a ton more money.

What a way to finish off the direct. So happy

And just like that Nintendo wins E3

It would be killer if this turned out to be Link/Zelda co-op.

Very excited for this!

@Jeronan Because they are probably using the same engine it should make it much easier to turn around a sequel quicker. Kind of like when Majora's Mask came around a year and half after ocarina of time because it used the same graphics engine. So hopefully that means we can see something end of 2020 or spring 2021.

Those absolute Mad men

I love this so much, BotW is one of my favorite games of all time, and now we finally get to see what happens afterwards.

I'm liking the dark tone too.

Yes! Awesome! So excited!

We shouldn't wait that much really, as a sequel it seems it would use practically the same engine, so the hard coding part and mechanics is already done. The just need to add much more life in that empty world!!!!!

Many good games to play this year and maybe next, sure the wait is worthy for botw 2.

Really hoping we can get playable Zelda in this one.

Being Nintendo, no chance of playing as Zelda. But perhaps she'll get to be a near-constant companion. Only downside to that is that she'll be the ONLY PERSON TALKING since link is mute.

@Jeronan will we though? Hyrule and the physics are already there. That’s 60% of dev time done. They need to change a few locations, build some proper dungeons and we’re good to go

I’m sure we already knew it was in development. Great to see a small trailer though

Without Sony making an appearence, this is any easy "win" for Nintendo. I was really stunned by Panzer Dragoon, been playing Orta in gorgeous 4K a couple of times those last weeks, and I was convinced that the series was dead and forgotten by now. If only now they remaster/ramke SAGA of all things. Anyways, BotW looked rad, loved the darker vibe the game gave of and that Zelda has a bigger role apperently. Really liked here character and VA in BotW. Maybe we'll get like a Dungeon Crawler'esque/ Dark Souls'ish take on Z:BotW? I'd love that.

I just hope it's something different enough from BotW. The one thing I don'T want is bascially a bigger BotW. BotW was big and time consuming enough. Time well spent, no doubt, but I'd love for something tigher and more focused this time around. Combat is an area that needs serious improvement ... so this would go well with narrower, so to speak, Dungeon-focused levels, plus it would address the main grievances folk had with BotW.

Also, it'd prove just how versatile an IP zelda is going from something like Wind Waker to BotW to Links Awakening to BotW "2.0" ... that is quite the design range that gets covered within a single IP.

Microsoft: “Here’s some pre rendered intros to some games”

Sony: “Dustballs”

Nintendo: “HAVE SOME GAMEPLAY”

Was anyone else hyped when they saw this? I was. I just need to play through the first BotW first. XD

It was the best part of the direct. I fell on the ground at home when I saw the Breath of the wild new game video. Awesome! With cadence of Hyrule and Awakening remake! Awesome day!

@UmbreonsPapa honestly i couldn't care less - i mean, since they lost Metroid and AnimalCrossing, they had to say something to cheer people up, so they slapped together some kind of CG video and said "In development", much like they did with Metroid 4 several years ago: honestly who f*cking cares if it's in development? Given the lengthy development times at Nintendo, i couldn't care less than zero if a title is "in development". Either it has a release window (somehow, somewhen), or it's just smoke & mirrors to distract people, like the Metroid logo, long ago, was. Oh, and BTW, no freaking Pikmin news! ZERO!

And bring old school dungeons with scary music in it for the atmosphere. was a bit too quiet in Breath of the Wild at parts when you're exploring. We want good OST as well. Don't go cheap

If they're re-using BotW's code, it may arrive sooner. A quicker, weirder, darker, Majora-esque sequel is exactly what I'd hoped for after the masterpiece that is BotW. If you can't raise the bar within the same generation, try something different, more experimental.

Hopefully they change the things that really suck about the first one. The negatives to me outweigh the positives and are the main reason I stopped playing. Too annoying.

This gave me a Majoras mask Vibe!
That boss tho, freaking awesome, well done Nintendo! ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Too bad we didn't get Russel Crowe's disco boogaloo this year either, but this will do I guess. It sound as if the song is played backwards.

Wow, didn't see that coming! As Majora's Mask is my favourite Zelda game, I'm really hoping the vibe I'm getting from this is similar, and hopefully means not a huge wait too. Would love a greater story and atmospheric focus this time around. Might even have to replay BOTW again at some point. I predict a late 2021 release however as a lack of commitment to even a 2020 release coupled with Nintendo's famous delays (hello Animal Crossing!) doesn't inspire confidence. This was the only thing that redeemed E3 for me! (Yes, Banjo was great but it's only a DLC character reveal and Animal Crossing was ruined by that stupidly long delay plus a general lack of gameplay shown off)

@Jeronan I believe we won’t have to wait as long because it seems they are using the same engine as BoTW, much like they did for Majora’s Mask following Ocarina

To get some hype before the release of Scarlett/PS5, late 2020, the Switch will have Zelda, Metroid & Bayonetta.
...and maybe Odyssey2...
...and Mario Kart 9...

As people have said above, I wouldn't expect this to take 'several years', from what we saw I think it'll be using the same engine and many assets as BotW just telling a new story like Majora's Mask.

Zelda is still too cute, and I like the dark vibe it already has.

trembles in excitement

@immensechicken just emulate it already like everyone else has

Almost in tears I'm so excited. I had known they were hiring for 3D mapping, but never let myself believe we'd see a sequel — I know it's only in development but YES YES YES YES YES

I only wish they had followed that up with “and in the meantime you can play Windwaker and Twilight Princess on Switch!”

Absolutely looking forward to a sequel to my favorite game of all time though.

Very interesting smart move from nintendo.
BOTW took way longer then expected to develop, no wonder they want to make the most out of it before moving to something completly new.

Zelda: Breath of Marjora's ass. Deeper and darker than the original.

@Jeronan it won't. Trust nintendo on this.

@Swoltacular nah, it's the same engine, it will be out next year before xmas. They probably started working on it 2 years ago.

@immensechicken Get a GBA emulator and download it. Magic, right?

They don't have to straight up remove the weapon durability system but maybe boost everything by 50% so half the early game battles don't devolve into "quit the fight halfway to mcgyver a weapon out of two squirrels and a megaphone"

Looks quite interesting regardless, gotta find out what's hiding under the ground.

This. This is everything. I knew Hylia would make a way!

Yay! Zombie Ganondorf!!

All they need to do is add more larger dungeons, and make the shrines and dungeons harder and it will be the best game ever. The template is incredible and I could not be more excited

I need to rewatch the trailer over and over again to drink it all in

Smart. They have a beautiful engine just like they did when Ocarina was first a thing. Leverage it to make a second great game.

Day one, botw is one of my fave games of all time!! Cant wait already

Can somebody please play the song backwards and see if it says anything noticeable? I wouldn't be surprised if the backwards song is a hint at gameplay... Maybe music related, maybe time-shifting... I gotta say, though, I'm not psyched on how dark it looks; it's going to be difficult to let the kids play it. (Unless it doesn't get released until they're teenagers, which is possible, knowing Nintendo!)

@graysoncharles Ganon is mummified under hyrule castle, looks like they find him.

I could see Winter 2020. 2021 seems more likely, though.

i don’t care if it takes until 2022 as long as we get quality ports between then. i’ve never played skyward sword or windwaker, and i could buy them for wii/gamecube, but i know the day i do their switch ports will be announced.

@UmbreonsPapa that's one game I refuse to sell.

Wow, what a surprise! I thought they were never going to make another Zelda game ever again!

I'M CRYYYYYYYYYIIIIIIINGgg...!!

Very exciting first glance, can't wait. I assume we'll get it in 2022, 21 if we're lucky.

Awesome but where's Metroid Prime 4 or the Metroid Prime Trilogy?

It looked so much like Twilight Princess!!

Great news. I remember they said they were working on something but seeing the results is always exciting.

@Jeronan I seriously doubt it. It's obviously using the same engine or at least an enhanced version of it, so my guess is 2021 at the latest. Fans are already calling it "Death of the Wild" haha.

This is definitely the Majora's Mask to BOTW's Ocarina of Time. Which is great imo as Majora's Mask is my fave Zelda game ever

So ganondorf is back...Hyrule is like the worst place ever to live. I am moving to Termina.

I think you play as Zelda in this game. Link takes a back seat in this trailer. Zelda is literally carrying the torch. Link falls away and leaves Zelda. Another convention broken maybe?

Witcher 3, Cadence of Hyrule, Link's Awakening, Banjo in Smash, Panzer Dragoon, Animal Crossing, Luigi's Mansion 3, Contra Collection, Astral Chain, and then this... BotW 2!!! HYPE!!!!!

That's how to an end an awesome Direct. I was slightly disappointed with no Bayonetta 3 or Metroid Prime 4 news but then Nintendo hits me with this. Along with Link's Awakening, what a time it is to be a Zelda fan (Nintendo fan in general really, that Direct was phenomenal).

I gotta say... this was the moment that had this fan girl squealing.

They probably started working on the sequel immediately after DLC 2. Most mainline Zeldas have a 4-5 year development cycle so a 2021 release seems likely.

@GrailUK
I'm hoping you get to play as both because I like Link, but give Zelda majority of the play time. Say a 75/25 split. Been saying for years I'd like to see the series go to two playable characters. If Rockstar can pull off 3 characters in a GTA game I think Nintendo is capable of doing 2 in a Zelda.

So we're gonna get an Iron Maiden Ganon this time instead of fighting Ganon Prime again? That alone makes me happy.

To me, Humanoid Ganon > Crustacean Ganon.

I wonder if that was Demise rather than Ganon/dorf.

I'm kind of bummed it's a direct sequel. But botw is maybe my least favorite 3D entry into the franchise. But... If they have a similar open world but with dungeons and equipment and swords that don't break and a Master Sword that's actually more powerful than all the other swords and an in depth story as opposed to like 12 short videos.... Then I'd get excited. But as it were I'm very hesitant.

Highlight of an already amazing Direct.

After all that work they did on that physics and chemistry engine a sequel makes sense.

Guessing it'll be a Holiday 2020 release, Holiday 2021 at the latest. They can reuse the engine and assets so it won't take anywhere near as long as BotW did.

Besides, it'll have been in development for 1.5 years already if they started right after Champion's Ballad released, ~2 years if they started right after BotW's release.

At this point, Ganondorf is just trolling Link and Zelda.

Link & Zelda: Hyrule is safe!
Ganondorf: TROLOLOL NOPE.

I thought this was an expansion at first.

My initial reaction was disappointment that it just looked like more Breath of the Wild (sounds daft, but you know what I mean), but Majora's Mask is still one of my favourites, so if it's that sort of deal I'm fully on board.

BoTW is a phenomenal game. However, one of the things I really enjoy about the console line of games has been the new art direction just about each time. While I know it will be great either way, it would have been great to see something new in that arena.

Home run after home run!!!!! Wasn't really anticipating much but blown away by this Direct!!

@Gamer83 Yeah, we will have to wait and see. Zelda definitely seemed the focal point, as did a dungeon environment (possibly the most vocal community wishes from the last game.)

Okay, I have a theory...
The trailer looks like something latches onto Link's hand... could it be that he gets possessed by this undead being, therefore you must play as Zelda to save him and Hyrule. Almost like the story in the Splatoon sequel?
Regardless, I'm liking the idea of a darker game!

Better than a kick in the t!ts, that's for sure.

@GrailUK
Really hoping for more traditional dungeons. That was my biggest complaint about BotW and why I'm a little more excited to play Link's Awakening, even if it is just a remake. I know for sure LA will have the dungeons.

@Jeronan If it is as good as BotW, I won't care

I was trying to guess what it was, and then I saw the torch, and I instantly new it was something botw related. Im that big of a nerd. I really hope the thing in the middle will end up being reincarnated Ganondorf. I just wonder how we are going to explore new worlds or areas if it's the same world as botw. Maybe a dark dimesion (Termina, Lorule, Twilight) or in the sky, since the castle was floating upward? Also, playable Zelda please.

That goes without saying. I would assume it has been in production for quite a while, but the release is to far away to be wishing ones life away for.

Can not wait!!! BOTW 2. What a way to finish the direct!

Those eyes. Majora's moon is that you? ;D

I hope they give us Vaati or a new big bad

Very excited for this. Loved BotW, despite a couple of small flaws.

I can’t see this being a long wait, this has been bubbling away for a while. LOVING the darker vibe I am getting from it. Certainly looks like they are under the castle, all very exciting. I never got to play Majora’s mask (think I might have been busy with babies at that time) bring it on Nintendo!!

Corpse gets reanimated on screen, in a non gentle way

"... Seemed to suggest a slightly darker tone..."

Slightly
adverb
1.
to a small degree; not considerably.

I hope this one goes back to being a traditional Zelda game.

Don't worry. The last time Nintendo announced a direct sequel to Zelda was Majora's Mask which did release on the same hardware generation (N64) as Ocarina of Time. Since this game looks to be using the exact same engine/assets etc from Breath of the Wild, I have full confidence it'll release on the Switch and probably sooner than most think.

Take my money Nintendo yust take it.
2022 I think?

It better be a new land.. that's all I got to say.

Hope it's a Majora like subversion of the formula.

2 Breath 2 Wild

Soooo not that I am rewatching this lots.... but the music in reverse, I wonder if they are going to do some sort of reverse time to before link was put into his sleep at the start of Breath of the wild... regardless, I am excited!!

@immensechicken

Then what are you doing here ? Dont like it then get out of here. LOL!

Man I watched this over and over. The dark tone in this, wow. What was link blasting out of his hand? Looks really cool, I hope we see more powers, like Majoras mask and ocarina of time.

I really want to know who that villain is. And I hope to see dark link making a return.

i legit cried and i never really crie i love the Zelda franchise so much

WhY Is mY cAT ViBRaTing

Just drop the voice acting.

Do people really think this is several years away? They’ve already got footage of it and the engine is done, they don’t have to craft a whole new engine this time around. I think it’ll be out March 2021 but I am a dreamer.

CAN.......NOT.......WAIT. GOTY already.

Now this is what l want a dark zelda game!
Its been awhile seeing a dark zelda game and l'm glad they will add it to botw because botw is such a baby happy zelda game. So now l'm happy about this game.

@Steel76
yeah lets have real dungeons this time and real zelda music!
one thing weapons will always be bad in botw

So excited! I’d like to see a smaller, more dense world with a deeper story, but one that is just as open as BotW. It looks to me like they are teasing co-op, but who wants that? I just want to finally play as Zelda. I’m also getting some real Twilight Princess vibes. I hope they bring back Midna, aka, the best Zelda character. (Screw the timeline.)

HYPE

I said a long time ago that BotW's map was enormous enough that Nintendo could simply repurpose and rearrange it in practically infinite ways, including new, full-scale dungeons and areas. This would seem (at least going by the brief footage we saw) to be exactly what Nintendo is doing here.

The question now is how far along in development this game is. Zeldas are typically special in the sense that Nintendo really takes their time polishing them to an absolute shine. Utilizing the existing map and visual assets will undoubtedly help speed the process along, but pulling the story, dungeon/monster design (hopefully the monsters will be FAR more varied this time around; it was one of the few complaints I had with BotW), and puzzles together will still require significant time.

Could this game release alongside Metroid Prime 4 next Christmas season? If so, it'd be perhaps Nintendo's biggest Christmas lineup ever. But as much as I'd love to see that, my gut feeling is that this game is further out, perhaps mid-2021 or later.

One more thing worth considering: if this game will be using the same assets as BotW, what's to keep Nintendo from offering "retroactive" paid DLC such as monsters, items, etc. from this game for BotW? There are lots of possibilities open here.

@graysoncharles A lot of people are still wondering if it miht be a prequel after all. But at the same time Link and Zelda, down right to their clothes, just look way too closely like their previous BotW interpretation.

The only different thing about Zelda were her shorter hair which... with how front and center she is in that trailer just made me realize that the short haircut would be a perfect way of avoiding potential hair clipping issues during the movement of battle as a playable protagonist.

This game alone basically turned this E3 from "interesting but not mindblowing" to "HOLY BALLONEY SOMEONE BUILD ME A TIMEMACHINE".

I say it often, but I hate the Zelda franchise with a passion, and I've played but disliked every Zelda game ever... Except Minish Cap which was fun... And Breath of the Wild, which I regard as the best game I have ever played.

That says a lot.

The mere notion of the existence of a sequel to this game brought tears to my eyes.

Other than that, the E3 was pretty decent, the predicted hype suspects (Pokémon, Fire Emblem, Hollow Knight Silksong) and an unexpected one in No More Heroes 3, as well as some cool titles I didn't quite expect but welcomed, like Trials of Mana, Witcher 3, Dauntless and Spyro Trilogy.

I'm also interested in Ni no Kuni and Astral Chain so that was nice as well. Luigi's Mansion 3... Looks dumb. But more than that, it looks fun. I'm giving it a go.

@Snakesglowcaps I wouldn't even be surprised by a late 2020. We don't know what's even coming next year and something so massive would be a perfect title to cover 2020's holidays in the way Smash Bros covered 2018's and that Pokemon might cover 2019's holidays as the high demand game of this year.

Even then there's just so much stuff coming up I'm actually glad this isn't coming sooner since I feel like if this came sooner there would be so many other games I'd need to skip to get this game.

@Blizzia One surprise for me was the reveal of Dragon Quest's hero as a character.
Like as a fan just knowing one was coming was fun. But holy in my wildest DQ fans' dream I would never have expected that "Dragon Quest's hero in Smash" would not mean "one of the DQ heroes" but instead "ALL THE DRAGON QUEST HEROES".

Also that sword and shield gameplay with the spellcasting downright to them plugging in the traditional spells menu XD

It's everything I hoped from an inclusion of a DQ character and more I never thought they would(that spell menu, "ALL the heroes!", the ensemble cast of heroes of the entire series as the final Smash, even them somehow finding the way of plugging one of the most obscure hero-exclusive spells of the entire franchise in the form of Kaklang when the character turn themselve into a solid hunk of immobile metal????)

@Mr_Persona I liked how BotW was actually a rather accurate reprensation of the post-apocalypse recovery of events we'd consider apocalypses.

"The end of the world happen.... and then you wake up and starts rebuilding your lives. Nature eventually take back it's place and civilization get itself back together as well as it can". It had these clear ruins but at the same time showed how civilization could returns without people living purely in ramshackles shacks and ruined structures or without being clothed exclusively in rags.

But all of this said.

Gosh this trailer. I just can't wait because it hits so much notes in so little time that boggles the mind with endless possibilities as to what might be coming.

Looks like the castle is blasting off. I hope that's the case and that it takes Link/Zelda/the player to a brand new location to explore. The best part of BotW to me was exploring the world, so if a new game were set in the same world I've already explored I wouldn't care that much. But a brand new environment sounds amazing. The castle being built on top of some kind of ship could totally fit with Sheikah tech.

I've been running and flying all he boundaries of Hyrule in BotW and wishing I could keep going. I like those weird pointy hills in the far North East of the map. Let us walk on that land bridge to another continent! I'd also love to be able to play as Zelda. Two player coop would be amazing. Whatever they do I'm sure I'll love it!

im gonna say it'll be same world with some changes due to ganon reawakening. maybe some underground exploration too. either way, best part of e3 so far

That trailer tease was awesome. The game is probably at least 2 years out, but it’s cool to see something is on the way.

Since its using BotW's assets and engine i'm guessing we'll see a 2020 release date for this sequel. Can't wait!

@Dr_Lugae The Gerudo symbol on the corpse's shawl spread across its lap makes me almost certain that this is Ganondorf.

@Philo exactly what I thought as well. Should not take as long since they already have a working engine.

@Ludovsky I completely agree. Seems people are looking at this as if it’s the new Metroid. That’ll take some real time, they just started developing it probably almost from scratch. Botw’s engine is amazing and probably a large part of the fact they’re doing a sequel is to continue on with that amazing engine and to save some development time.

@AtlanteanMan Considering Prime 4 just restarted development at the beginning of the year, there's absolutely no way it's releasing Holiday 2020. It's just straight up not happening. Holiday 2021 at the absolute earliest, most likely 2022.

This game on the other hand should have already been in development for 1.5 to 2 years as I mentioned above. It's absolutely coming before Prime 4.

It wasn't that surprising for me, as I expected Nintendo would make this move (it was obvious, right?), but it's AWESOME that they finally did it, anyway. BotW is probably my favourite game ever.
Now I hope it will come out by late next year.

And with that alone, Nintendo won E3 this year.

A game that's likely at least 2 years away doesn't save this Direct. Unless you're an RPG fanatic, it was a pedestrian Direct, and this banal teaser doesn't save it from a lack of big news.

@AtlanteanMan Even if both Metroid Prime 4 and BOTW 2 came out next year (possible for BOTW 2, unlikely for MP 4), it would not be anywhere near the biggest year for Nintendo. The launch year of the Switch had Odyssey (around 14 million), BOTW (around 12.5 million), and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (around 16.5 million). That triple punch will be hard to beat.

Contrary to the belief of many, Metroid does not sell a lot of units. The highest selling Metroid of all was the first Metroid Prime on the Gamecube with 2.8 million units. Zelda, while selling well, is also not the heavy hitter that 2D Mario or Pokemon is. The biggest Zelda title is BOTW at around 12.5 million (I think it is over 13.5 million once you consider the Wii U version). The best selling Zelda title sold about as much as the worse selling Pokemon games.

Frankly, the Pokemon games coming this year will be bigger than BOTW 2 and MP 4 combined.

@Snakesglowcaps Tbh I think less is being made "from scratch" than we think. It's clearly at the very least the base BotW map we see in that shot of the castle uprooting itself. I reconize that giant tree trunk with the wooden bridge from which I kept getting Flame Claymores from in the original game.

This said, the fact it's not being made "from scratch" doesn't mean it won't take time to develop. I suspect a lot to be made. Especially if, like I feel might be the case(or not), they introduce Dark/Twillight realm style mechanics as a way to keep BotW's original map and still have something "new" and massive.

What "not being made from scratch" might mean with this is the fact it might actually be made at all as a direct sequel even if it releases in 2020 or 2021. And thus the fact we won't need to wait necessarily for the next console to play this.

@ImprobableToast I hope we never play as Zelda. I just feel it will take away from the emersion. Overtime don't you feel like you are living in the game as or through link? I fear swapping characters will break that bond.

@davey1983 Sincerely all of this to be honest. This said I feel like Zelda made such an impact it's likely going to nonetheless get close to 10mil units sold. Even if it's only 8mil, it'll likely still be a massive success(and I believe it's within it's reach).

@ShaiHulud Yeah where is Pikmin?

@Minch I dunno. If it's a direct sequel it could be a good way to deal with mechanical balance? Like: if it's a sequel this is the full-powered Link who may have cleansed(or so we thought?) Hyrule castle in the current game.

How do you represent his power? Do you import a save? Do you just assume his high-power is the balanced default? How do you balance the first dungeons for him...?

Switching protagonist to one who know from her comments at the end of BotW mentionned feeling her sacred powers had gone silent is a perfect answer to introducing a new game in direct follow up to the previous one and within the same time period while not wondering how you'd balance the early game as much because this new character would start fresh.

It might even be way to expand on what we've seen of her in BotW which gave a lot of exposition about her. Maybe in a way that could still flesh out Link in other ways for a first.

There's a lot of unknown but not all bad.

Oh look, The reboot to The Mummy or Tomb Raider franchise we've all been waiting for! Its like Christmas and E3 had a baby and Damn is it beautiful!

Got to be Zelda's mother!!

@Ludovsky I understand, but there are heaps of ways to write a reset in. To me it looks like calamity has corrupted one of the caretakers of the shrines (I don't know what they are called). Perhaps there is the ability to suck spirit orbs out of Link?

In all I guess I'm not that zealous to not play as Zelda, but I'm not into swapping characters. If you will play as both characters, it will make it harder to develop emotional attachments. I'm stoked if Zelda is part of the puzzles and gameplay, and perhaps welcome coop elements.

Also, Zelda being weakened gives every more reason to want to play as link so that you need to protect her. Perhaps for once it will be about powering her up, and not Link. All the while, never playing as her.

Excited for the development of this game.

@Giygas_95 I'm w/ you. But gotta please this generation who wants sequels (read: more of the same) over new and original things. I'd much rather have a new Zelda game than a sequel.

I really hope that this is Nintendo pulling another Majora's Mask, and not just in reusing assets and such I don't wanna have another game with Ganondorf or Ganon as the main antagonist I'm so bored and tired of Ganondorf and Ganon.

I really hope that we will be able to play as both Link and Zelda in a meaningful way. Even if it was just that we could replay the game as Zelda who would function very differently as an avatar i.e. she could use magic whereas Link couldn't I would be happy.

Maybe this will make up for the lack of story in BOTW. Not complaining BOTW is bar none my favorite game ever. Just could've used a little more story. Maybe it'll be a prequel and we'll be the Link from 100 yrs prior

That trailer makes me hope that we can finally play as ZELDA!

I mean, probably not, but good God I want he to be playable! And if she isn't playable then an active part of the story and not just a damsel in distress yet again!

No Switch yet. This would do it.

looks like ganondorf returns in this one hell yeah about time cause after seeing the trailer showing zelda and link found a mummified male gerudo probably ganondorfs body and its starting to awaken maybe calamity decided to go back to his original body.

@Markiemania95 he coming back man hopefully we get an epic sword fight again.

@Minch what if Link gets sucked into the Dark World while Zelda remains in the light world and they each need to work together on opposite sides to reunite?

@DaruniaJones88 someone could almost swear you’re just not even a Zelda fan.

More hyped for this than any Zelda ever, probably. Was apprehensive going into BOTW and ended up feeling bittersweet about it but felt like it had potential to have an asset flip followup (ala MM) that'd fix the main issues and create something spectacular. Little doubt this'll be a monumental entry in the franchise.

The fact that Nintendo has already created very flesh-out story cut-scenes for this game tells me that it is in much further development that I anticipated.

Looks like a holiday 2020/spring 2021 release is a possibility. I'd be surprised if it got delayed to 2022 or beyond.

@Jeronan On the plus side they were nice enough to still release it on the WiiU as well I would guess they would do the same for Switch if there was a Switch 2.0.

@PuzzleMaster7
I have close to 400 hours of play time and I still have a hard time putting it down and haven't completed everything. It is just super epic and pulls you in and gets better as ypu progress and you also have the DLC packs to look forward to. Happy gaming

I'm definitely getting it as soon as it comes out

Bit dark, love it. Also, let there be dungeons.

@FrowningCoach
Yes some dungeons would be nice

anyone notice the hand covering a spot on ganondorf chest its the same spot where he was stabbed in twilight princess.

So hyped for undead ganondorf. It will be his first appearance since twilight princess I think. Makes me want to go back and play the ending to ocarina of time again.

GUYS! ZELDA TRAVELING WITH LINK! This is the first time in the series that happened I believe. I know she helped in the other games, but I think this is the first game where she actually accompanies Link on his journey!
Could this mean we could see Link and Zelda as playable chars? Switching between them would be awesome! The other could aid you in battle as AI.
It could also possibly bring co-op, but I highly doubt that.

Oh my god! I haven’t been this excited for a game in ages!!

@justin233
That is exactly what I thought... They're taking the creepy, dark route of MM.

@Ludovsky @Hahaha, well I'm glad you appreciated it Personally I don't like Dragon Quest or Smash Bros so it did nothing for me, but I can certainly appreciate how thorough they are in their implementation of new fighters! Having all the heroes and even paying homage to elements from their games is simply delightful

Some people noticed that a few things from unused BotW concept art was here... One of the concepts had an older Link without a right hand.

I'd much sooner have had something original. Breath of Wild was seriously over-rated. I thought it to be an empty, largely lifeless open world with truly terrible music and bland visuals. It isn't even 1/10th of the game Wind Waker is. At the time I had just finished The Witcher 3 and the gulf in quality between those two on every front is staggering.

Great to have it confirmed, it always felt like something that would happen so the reveal wasn't a huge surprise, but a very welcome one. I'm hoping that Mario Odyssey gets a sequel too.

@sanderev what an awesome birthday present, if you’re an Animal Crossing fan! Your birthday is the same day as my Mum and brother... neither are AC fans though lol

@MJInnocent Well I do enjoy Animal Crossing, I'm not a huge fan though. The games are great, and I'm sure I'll enjoy this one as well.

Let's hope Christmas 2020! So hyped!!

Breath of the Wild 2: Another Nail in the Coffin

The bit at the end with the castle rising up out of the ground got me thinking about Skyward Sword. I wonder if there is a connection.
Also, that weird singing at start sounds like something being played backwards... I wonder if it is.

@Jeronan BoTW took forever because they had to build the whole world and engine. They'll Majora's Mask this game and I reckon it's a 2020/early 21 release date

I'm guessing it'll be out right at the end of the Switch's life with an enhanced version available for it's successor???

@Blizzia it sincerely is <3

And it helps show the characters is something special to them. There's so much about this I absolutely did not expect and will make the character utterly unique with that spell menu and mana bar.

Oh crap, I should probably finish playing the first one.

...Which I haven't played once since purchasing it (plus all the DLC!) on my Switch.

Three Directs (2 regular and 1 Nindie) in a row ending with announcements for Zelda games. It’s a great time to be a Zelda fan!

I just need every Zelda game on my Switch 😊

Like the direction the trailer is going in. I hope they keep the ability to climb, remove or tweak the durability system and add more content to the overworld (caves, full dungeons, non fetch quests). If they're set on keeping durability, at least let the player craft or repair their equipment in some way.

I can appreciate what they were going for in botw with that setup, but for me it just became an annoyance after a while, and led to me avoiding fighting the mobs most of the time while traveling that expansive map.

To anyone who has the DLC for BotW: Get Majora's Mask ASAP; you won't have to fight practically any lower-level mob---even the Lynels won't fight you on sight at first with it on.

It practically makes even Master Mode a cakewalk. You can even paraglide onto the floating platforms that contain treasure chests (in Master Mode) and open the suckers with a bokoblin just standing there looking at you. xD

The only downside? Majora's Mask has no armor and can't be upgraded, so if you do attack, be sure to be ready to switch.

The shiekah towers are gone on the trailer.

@Snakesglowcaps Gameplay could be interesting, but not something you couldn't do if Links soul was split into two... I think empathy is important in Zelda games--changing characters reduces that. Majora's mask got around this with the masks. Which was very effective, especially because the characters you take the mask of die--sad.