There are many who refuse to purchase a new Nintendo console – in this case, the Wii U – unless it has a The Legend of Zelda game available for it. Zelda fans better start saving their money, as a “new” Zelda game was announced today alongside new details on the next console Zelda title.
During today’s Nintendo Direct, Eiji Aonuma, the producer behind The Legend of Zelda, announced that an HD edition of 2002’s GameCube classic The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker will be released on Wii U later this year. Saying that the new edition came about after extensive testing for new art styles for the next main Zelda title, Aonuma stated that the title will not only feature numerous graphical enhancements such as improved lighting and other effects, but it will also support off-TV play on the Wii U GamePad, Miiverse integration, and an “enhanced gameplay experience.”
The Wii U edition of The Wind Waker will feature graphical improvements and new features.
In addition to the reveal of The Wind Waker‘s re-release, Aonuma revealed new information on the Zelda game currently in development for Wii U. The game’s “mission” is, according to Aonuma, “to rethink the conventions of Zelda.” While the development team attempted this with 2011’s Skyward Sword, the team was unable to focus on lessening the linearity; as such, with the next tile, the goals are to challenge the notions that players must play through dungeons in a particular order, and that players must play on their own. While the following is mere speculation, it could mean that not only will the next Zelda game feature a more free and open world compared to previous installments, but it may also have a multiplayer component of some sort.
All in all, today seems to have brought interesting news to fans of The Legend of Zelda, as not only is one of the more popular entries in the series being re-released with new improvements, but the next title may be changing the classic Zelda formula up a bit. Specific release date information for The Wind Waker and the next Zelda title has not yet been made available.
Source: 1/23/13 Nintendo Direct
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