Hyrule Warriors Not Expected To Be an Ongoing Series, According to Nintendo
Posted on November 22 2020 by David Lasby
The early success of Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity has some asking if Nintendo and Koei Tecmo will partner for future titles and make Hyrule Warriors an ongoing series. The answer, according Zelda series producer Eiji Aonuma, is that it’s unlikely — unless another perfect scenario again presents itself.
In a recent exclusive interview, Joe Skrebels (Executive Editor of News at IGN) questioned both Aonuma and Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity producer Yosuke Hayashi about the inspiration for the game. Hayahsi explained that Koei Tecmo had been holding internal talks for some time about what could come after Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition, but that the team “[wasn’t] able to land on any good ideas.” The fact that Koei Tecmo wanted to do another installment but couldn’t settle on the right idea primed them to embrace Nintendo’s proposal for Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity.
Explaining the origins of Nintendo’s proposal to Koei Tecmo, Aonuma said:
“It was Fujibayashi-san, the director of [The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild], who initially came up with the concept. Fujibayashi-san thought that telling the untold story of the Great Calamity from Breath of the Wild would only be possible with a system like Warriors where players could come together to fight against vast armies, so he put together a project proposal and sent it to me. His enthusiasm for the project pushed me to consult with Hayashi-san.”
The notion that the inspiration for Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity came from a desire to tell the untold story of that era will certainly raise a few eyebrows, particularly those upset by certain plot twists that make some question the game’s status as Zelda canon. Still, there’s no denying that the Warriors gameplay philosophy of one versus one-thousand certainly fits well with the kind of narrative being explored in the Calamity Era.
Nintendo maintains they prefer an “idea first” approach, but won’t close the door on a future Hyrule Warriors game. As Aunoma observed to Skrebels, “I do think circumstances could align like this again.”
Tell us what you think? Do these revelations from Aonuma and Hayashi affect your perceptions of Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity as canon? What other major battles or wars in Hyrule’s history would you like to see played out in a Hyrule Warriors game? Share your opinions in the comments below!
Source: IGN
I’m a life-long fan of video games and have been playing since I got my NES in the 1980s. The Legend of Zelda, Super Smash Bros., Aliens, and Halo are some of my favorite game franchises. I write for several sites, including Zelda Dungeon, Boss Rush Network, and The Mighty. Find me on Twitter to check out my other content!
