It's pretty much common knowledge at this point that Monolith soft helped out a lot with the development of the highly acclaimed The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for the Nintendo Switch. Monolith is more or less owned by Nintendo, and while developing the open world game they were brought in for their experience with making vast open worlds to explore, such as the ones in their Xenoblade Chronicles games. However, The question still remains: Why are rumors buzzing around about them working on a brand new Zelda title for the Nintendo Switch?
First off, let me start by saying it's doubtful that this new Zelda game is a mainline title. There seems to be more evidence pointing towards it being a spin-off game, or it very well could be a sequel to Breath of the Wild showing up a lot sooner than anybody expected. However, looking at Nintendo's recent treatment of the Zelda series, a spin-off seems more likely. The Zelda franchise has already seen one spin-off with Koei Tecmo in the form of a Musou game (Hyrule Warriors) and even recently was announced to have representation in an indie game (Cadence of Hyrule), so it's not too farfetched to think that Nintendo may be lending the IP to Monolith Soft to see what they will do with it. There is concept art on their official site that has been dissected by the famed Youtubers at Gamexplain, that hints at the new game that is already confirmed to be in the works by Monolith is, in fact, a Zelda title.
I know what you're thinking. Why would Nintendo need Monolith to make a Zelda Spin-off? One idea is that this game will not star Link as the protagonist. The Zelda fandom has shown there is an extreme interest in a Zelda game without Link. As such, a Zelda without Link would most likely play out differently and possibly be a lot more story driven and combat heavy like a traditional JRPG. Evidence points towards this being a spin-off with a female lead, maybe in Princess Zelda herself. It wouldn't be the first time Zelda went into combat. it's happened across multiple mainline Zelda games, most notable being in Ocarina of Time when she took on the role of Shiek. As of the time of this article, there is even concept art on the official Monolith Soft website that has a woman that could easily be their interpretation of Princess Zelda. The Xenoblade Chronicle games are known for their unique battle systems, and it would be interesting to see if Monolith would try and implement a similar battle system or create a new one altogether for the Zelda Spin-off. One thing is certain, The Zelda franchise is in good hands with Monolith Soft at the helm.
What are your thoughts? Do you believe Monolith Soft is working on a new female lead Zelda Spin-off, or do you think its something entirely different? Please leave your comments below, we'd be glad to join in the discussion. Also if you like this article or other content on our site feel free to hit that button below to show your support and buy tacos for our lovely crew.
I don't understand where the far out speculation is coming from. They worked on the last main 3D Zelda. Isn't it safest to assume they're just doing the same for the next one?
ReplyDeleteI also don't think a Breath of the Wild sequel sooner than anyone expected seems likely. I mean, they've already got a notable Zelda for release late this year and a BOTW sequel isn't going to come right after that. So it's at least a 3+ year gap.