Daily Debate: Who Do You Think Should Write the Next Zelda Game?

I will be the first to admit that Breath of the Wild doesn’t have the best story of the series. While there are memorable characters and a few interesting moments, the plot overall is a bit lacking. That’s not to say the overall title is bad (the exploration is its strongest asset), but a part of the game’s faults lie within the writing. The core assets of the series (Princess Zelda, Link, Ganon) are the only parts that get any real main focus in the game.

The Master Sword of all things is not even relevant to defeating Calamity Ganon in the end. Speaking of Ganon, there is no dialogue for him AT ALL in Breath of the Wild. This turns a villain I really enjoyed in other Zelda titles (like The Wind Waker) and make him feel like a one-note villain.

Here’s what I don’t get in regards to writing for a Zelda game. How difficult is it really to make a game that already has a central foundation even before you write for it? You have your key assets from the franchise, so you should be able to easily build upon that and create your own strong story. Good examples of Zelda games that have done this include games like Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask.

Both of those games have had solid storytelling as well as memorable characters and dialogue. These have things that fans can look back at and remember fondly without forgetting anything about them. On the other hand though, a big responsibility like writing for a Zelda title can be a huge hill to climb that some can’t handle properly. Some fans think one example of this is Phantom Hourglass, which took one of the best characters of The Wind Waker (Tetra) and only have her show up in the beginning of the game.

Whoever takes writing responsibilities for the next game needs to understand two things. First, to understand your core assets and not be afraid to shake things up in the land of Hyrule and give us a compelling story. You will not know what works or doesn’t work unless you try and test the waters.

Secondly, looking back at what has already been established to make sure any character or timeline plot holes are not an issue. Fans want to make sure that they can piece things together that make sense to the overall lore of the franchise. Plus it doesn’t have to be somebody from Zelda Team or Nintendo to write it.

Since this is a Daily Debate, let us know your thoughts to the question I have given you in the comments section below!

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