It’s Time For The Zelda Series To Set Sail In “The Legend of Aryll”

This article was originally published on April 10th, 2021. We have decided to re-share it as part of Wind Waker Week.

The Wind Waker is one of the most beloved games in the Zelda series. The stirring music, gorgeous art style, and timeless story have been lauded by fans and critics across the world. However, despite the game’s immense popularity, The Wind Waker has never received a true successor. While Phantom Hourglass directly continued the story of Link and Tetra, the technological limits of the DS resulted in a game that was quite different from its forebearer. For one, the sailing, which allowed for more free-form exploration in The Wind Waker, was extremely linear and limited in Phantom Hourglass. In short, there has not been a full 3D console Zelda game that has revisited the art style, island based-world, and free-form sailing that made The Wind Waker such an incredible game.

With this in mind, it it time for Nintendo to finally make the full fledged successor to The Wind Waker that so many fans have dreamed of. With the numerous technological advances that have taken place since the early 2000’s, Nintendo can create a stunning sea-based overworld that expands on every aspect of  The Wind Waker. Additionally, the time period after The Wind Waker is one of the most open and unexplored periods in the Zelda timeline, which leaves a space to tell fresh stories and explore new locations. Finally, the Zelda series could feature Link’s sister Aryll as the lead character, a character who is not bound by the usual constraints of the Zelda formula.

This is my conceptualization for “The Legend of Aryll”, the successor to The Wind Waker.

 

The Elevator Pitch for The Legend of Aryll

The Legend of Aryll would be set about 5 to 7 years after the events of The Wind Waker. This would make Aryll a teenager, now the same age or older than her brother Link was when he began his journey. The enthusiastic and optimistic Aryll would be seeking to leave the safety of Outset Island for the first time since her experience in the previous game. With permission from her grandmother, Aryll would take a small boat and embark onto the Great Sea. Throughout her journey, Aryll would gather allies, develop new friendships, and battle dangerous new pirates who threaten the people of The Great Sea. Unlike other Zelda games that utilize the “fate of the world” style narratives, the scope of Aryll’s journey would be smaller, with more personal stakes related to exploring and protecting the people she finds throughout her journey.

Overall, the game would use many of the same sailing mechanics found in The Wind Waker. The player would ride the ocean waves in their boat, utilizing an updated and improved version of the sailing mechanics in The Wind Waker. Outside of the tutorial, Aryll would be able to control the flow of the wind and direct her ship with magic from Zephos, the God of Winds. The game would greatly expand the map seen in The Wind Waker, with the original islands from the 2003 game making up only about 1/2 or 1/3  of the explorable islands. Some of the islands seen in The Wind Waker would have changed in the past 5 to 7 years, while others like Dragon Roost Island and Windfall Island would be instantly recognizable.

 

Taking Advantage of Technological Advances

One of the main reasons to make a sequel to The Wind Waker is the huge advancement in technology since the game’s release in 2003. When The Wind Waker was being developed in the early 2000’s, Nintendo was confronted with limitations that shaped the size of the game world and the speed at which the The King of Red Lions could travel. In 2021, the technology has come so far that the size of an ocean-based game world can be greatly expanded in size and complexity. Additionally, the speed of sailing can also be increased to create a more efficient sailing experience (similar to what Nintendo did with the Swift Sail in the Wii U version of The Wind Waker). With the impressive advances in technology, a new sea-based Zelda game could include sailing that was smoother and more dynamic than anything seen in 2003. Even in Breath of the Wild, which had some coastlines and islands, there are hints of what Nintendo could do with a current-generation sailing game.

The technical advances on the Nintendo Switch could completely change the way an ocean-based overworld could be designed. For one, current-generation title would likely contain vastly expanded draw distances in comparison to The Wind Waker. Players could see large islands and massive landmarks from farther away. Just like in Breath of the Wild, an improved draw distance would allow players to more easily mark points of interest as they sail across the world. Additionally, a new Switch game could have more complex areas within the ocean. There could be more elaborate clusters of islands or more complex islands that feature a variety of biomes and environments. For example, imagine a massively expanded archipelago (chain of islands) where NPC’s, towns, and objectives were scattered across the different islands. Or perhaps there would be an island with a large mountain on it where the weather is temperate at the mountain’s base and freezing at its peak.

Overall, the art style seen in The Wind Waker (which was tweaked/revised for The Wind Waker HD) has aged extremely well. While more realistic art styles in games like Twilight Princess and Skyward Sword have shown their age, The Wind Waker‘s cartoon style has aged extremely well. The clean vibrant art style is a perfect fit for the relatively underpowered Nintendo Switch, which still cannot compete with the power of new consoles and high-end PC’s. Additionally, the cel-shading style has become one of the most iconic representations of Hyrule and its deep well of characters. The art style has been used in promotional material and other series like Hyrule Warriors and Super Smash Bros. which have kept it in the cultural consciousness. Bringing back or revising the art style seen in The Wind Waker would be extremely popular with many fans.

 

Why Aryll Would Make A Great Lead Character

One of the benefits of setting a game after The Wind Waker is that there are numerous blank spaces and opportunities for fresh storytelling. There are only three games set during a 100 year time period. The Wind Waker and The Phantom Hourglass take place close together, while Spirit Tracks takes place in New Hyrule at the end of the century. With Ganon defeated and the wide-open setting of The Great Sea, writers could create a new villain or group of enemies perfectly tailored to a new story or protagonist. Overall, the open-ended nature of this era is so enticing to me as a writer.

One of the reasons I would love to see Aryll (or another character) as a new lead for a spin-off game is that Aryll could avoid some of the tradition and constraints that follow Link and Zelda. In countless stories from the past thirty-five years, players have seen Link as the hero, Zelda often being captured or needing rescuing, and Ganon as the antagonist. While I love many Zelda games that follow this formula, it would be good for the series to explore new characters and fresh ways to tell stories. Aryll is not tied down with all the tradition and history that come with Link and Zelda. With long running franchises, there are points when traditions can restrict storytelling and innovation. Overall, Aryll would not need to replace the other main characters in future Zelda projects, but taking a break from series mainstays and exploring a new character presents exciting opportunities for storytelling.

A new character could allow the player to explore old themes from new perspectives. Heroism has been a key theme in The Legend of Zelda since 1986, but the concept has often been explored in a very grand and operettic way. Zelda and Link are often divinely chosen, which is something that we cannot always relate to as players. It would be intriguing to see the concept of heroism explored from a more intimate perspective, where the fate of world does not hang in the balance. Aryll’s journey through The Great Sea could explore a different style of heroism and courage, including what heroism means from a female perspective. It would be interesting to see if Aryll’s idea of heroism, responsibility, and protecting her community would look different than her brother’s and other iconic Zelda characters.

 

Conclusion

The Legend of Zelda series is one of the rare long running franchises that never seems to rest on its laurels. The series is constantly innovating and pushing in new directions. One way for the series to innovate in a post-Breath of the Wild context is to look back at one of its most iconic titles. A true successor to The Wind Waker could expand the world seen in the 2003 classic, improve many of iconic mechanics from the original game, and give the series a fresh storytelling perspective.

It’s time for Nintendo to bring Aryll back for her own grand adventure on the high seas.

Throughout the Wii U and Switch generation, Nintendo has been experimenting with different spinoffs and side adventures within the Zelda series. Hyrule Warriors has been extremely successful, so it is clear that fans are interested in more Zelda-related projects. The Legend of Aryll could launch a side-series or sub-series that could stand alongside other Zelda projects like main-line Zelda games and other spin-off projects.

What do you think of this idea? Would you like to see another sailing/ocean based Zelda game? How would feel about a game starring Aryll? Let us know in the comments below!

Featured Artwork: Aryll by Pyrofish

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Sean Gadus is an Associate Editor at Zelda Dungeon. His first Zelda game was Ocarina of Time and he loves the classic 3D Zelda games from 1998-2011. He is currently exploring Columbia and Rapture in Bioshock Infinite, waiting to read Thrawn Ascendancy: Greater Good on April 27th, and mentally preparing himself for the NBA Playoffs. He wants to help build a kinder, more compassionate world.