Daily Debate: Should the Stories in Future Zelda Games Include Political Undertones?
Posted on April 12 2018 by Michaela El-Ters
Politics in media often bore me to tears, but when done right, having a reasonable amount of political intrigue can enhance the story and world-building significantly. The Trails of Cold Steel and Trails in the Sky games do a great job of balancing the politics of how the world functions and applying it to the story and setting, creating stories that are more realistic and interesting as a result. Even Horizon Zero Dawn featured a fair amount of political backstory and history to contrast with the current setting to create a great story. The Zelda games are pretty bare bones when it comes to their story-telling; more often than not, the focus is on the setup of Link’s journey, as well as character dynamics and the history and lore. The core story isn’t all that complex, and while the Zelda games don’t need to have rich, complex stories to be enjoyable, I wouldn’t mind seeing more time and energy devoted to developing a deeper narrative.
The politics of Hyrule could not only be fascinating to explore, revealing how the monarchy rules over the land and offering explanations for why the land is the way it is, but it can also create for some fascinating dynamics across races as well. Do all of the races get along, do they not? Why is that the case, was it resolved? How could an emphasis on the political relationships and social standings enrich these stories even more? These are questions that I think could be answered in a fun and engaging way that isn’t boring. What do you think? Would you be interested in seeing an emphasis on political undertones in the Zelda series? Let us know in the comments!
Michaela El-Ters is a Senior Editor for Zelda Dungeon. She is also an Senior Writer for Boss Rush Network, and writes blogs and streams games on Objection Network. Her favorite Zelda game changes with the seasons, but the series as a whole is near and dear to her heart.
