The Legend of Zelda series is one of those rare video game franchises that somehow manages to improve with each new iteration. Over time, the changes made from sequel to sequel have formed a sort of behavioral pattern for the franchise. So, by looking back at the series' history, players can get a sense of what to expect from the sequel to Breath of the Wild.
Majora's Mask wasn't afraid to get weird to differentiate itself from Ocarina of Time, while Twilight Princess' gritty take on the franchise was in response to Wind Waker being perceived as too childish and cartoony by its detractors. Breath of the Wild itself gave fans the freedom they craved following Skyward Sword's story-driven linearity. Naturally, players can expect the sequel to Breath of the Wild to address the critiques leveled against its predecessor.
How Playable Zelda Could Shake Up Breath of the Wild's Sequel
Getting Freaky
To this day, Ocarina of Time is considered a near-perfect fantasy action-adventure game, so creating a worthy follow-up in just a little over a year was no small feat. It was thanks to Majora's Mask's surreal setting and somber tone that it managed to offer such a unique experience to players. Similar to how Termina, a doomed land inhabited by bizarre, sometimes unsettling characters, served as a riff on Hyrule, the sequel to Breath of the Wild seems poised to leverage its sky islands to give players a whole new world to explore. Though few details concerning the story of this upcoming Zelda game have been released, visuals such as Ganondorf's reanimated corpse, paired with the cacophonous music from the first trailer, hint that this entry will also skew darker.
True Grit
Time has been kind to Wind Waker, which is now seen as one of the best entries in the franchise with its bold, cel-shaded graphics and its use of the Great Sea as an overworld, but at the time of its release, it received a fair share of backlash for these very reasons. Fans expected the more realistic Link and Ganondorf they saw in the Space World 2000 tech demo, and they clamored for Epona. In response to fans' claims that Wind Waker was too cartoonish and childish, the developers listened to fans and made the following entry in the series, Twilight Princess, grittier and more realistic.
Similar to what happened with Wind Waker, there are those who believe Breath of the Wild wasn't "Zelda enough" due to its lack of dungeons and missing Ganondorf. Since Zelda developers have shown that they do listen to player feedback, fans can expect to see an increase in the number of dungeons in the next installment, as well as the proper return of Ganondorf as a character.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild's Sequel - Trailer, News & Latest Updates
Legendary Storytelling
Breath of the Wild was lauded for making the largest departure from the series' formula to date with its open-world setting. This was undoubtedly a choice on the developers' part as a response to the criticisms Skyward Sword received for its linearity. However, the trade-off to the open world was a reduced emphasis on story, which, ironically, had been one of the aspects of Skyward Sword that fans and critics alike had originally praised the most. Once again, despite the overwhelmingly positive reception of Breath of the Wild, there are those who say that the game's story was one of its weaker aspects. Prioritizing story and character development would be a relatively easy way for the upcoming title to improve on Breath of the Wild and stand on its own.
With the series impeccable track record, there should be no doubt that the next installment in this revered franchise will be of the highest quality. If there is anything that the history of The Legend of Zelda has taught us, it is that if there is a way for the series to reinvent itself and evolve to suit what its fans want, it will do so with aplomb. When it finally releases, players can safely expect the sequel to Breath of the Wild to keep what was loved the most and for developers to find a way to address fan concerns and create a stellar game.