So, on top of the Xbox Series S + Xbox Next Gen price reveal, Nintendo dropped a Triforce shaped bomb on us called “Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity“:
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity Out Of Nowhere!
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity explores the events 100 years before Breath of the Wild, opening Koei Techmo’s signature ‘Warriors‘ formula of 1000 vs 1 up once again into Hyrule lore. Players will finally be able to see the Great Calamity take place In vivid detail, which means a third-party Zelda entry Is canon.
Just think about that for a moment, Nintendo, arguably the most private and reserved of the gaming industries first-party developers, have trusted a top Intelectual Property Lore into the hard of a third-party developer.
Breath of the Wild Returns
Looking at the trailer, Breath of the Wilds voice actors, character models, textures and general assets are being employed by Koei Techmo to make this a seamless integration to the Breath of the Wild timeline.
Of course, Nintendo would have laid out extremely strict plot points to stick too, but this is a big deal. Does this mean that Nintendo is now focusing in on the Zelda franchise taking place in Breath of the Wilds incarnation of Hyrule?
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity = Reboot Product?
A shift in narrative and gameplay this drastic hasn’t been seen in the franchise since Ocarina of Time debuted. Perhaps it’s time for Legend of Zelda fans to accept that the calamity era lore is going to be the basis of future Zelda titles?
I’m asking a lot of questions in this article. At the end of the day, we have absolutely no idea here Nintendo is taking the Zelda franchise at this moment in time. Judging by the video above, Nintendo has decided to take more time out to polish up the Breath of the Wild 2.
Third-Party Decisions.
Decisions to develop even third-party titles don’t happen overnight, as such, I believe Nintendos Zelda roadmap is one based on the varied landscape of BotW’s Hyrule. Links’ latest incarnation takes place at the end of the current Legend of Zelda timeline, which essentially gives Nintendo a clean reboot for the franchise whilst respecting what has come before. The Hero of the Sky, Time, and Wind have all been referenced within Breath of the Wild.
The latest Legend of Zelda has created a perfect breeding ground for canon spin-offs and mainline entries. Breath of the Wild 2’s teaser trailer finally showcases underneath Hyrule and the discovery of a new big bad. Whilst a lot of fans have speculated it’s Ganon’s human form, this could also be the origin of evil himself, Demise.
No Demise for Ganon?
Ganon is the reincarnation of Demise in later games, although the original Demise has appeared once. Perhaps the new big bad is a fusion of both? Or has the corpse of demise been resting all this time? Nintendo has been quite forward about manipulating the timeline and canon before, so literally anything could happen.
Moving back to current events, it’s great to see Nintendo becoming less precious with their IP. Whilst It would be a terrible thing to see a third-party studio butcher the Legend of Zelda, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity will be an auspicious outing for lore fiends such as yours truly. Nintendo has promised more information on the 26th of this month!
What do you think we will see in Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity? Maybe we’ll be able to utilize Divine Beasts or see Link wield new powers that were lost in Breath fo the Wild? Let us know your thoughts below or on our Twitter and Facebook pages.
