The next Zelda installment is unlikely to be a follow-up to “Tears of the Kingdom.” The developers behind one of this year’s most acclaimed games state that it’s time to move on.
Nintendo’s two most recent major Zelda games, “The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild” from 2017 and “The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom” from 2023, have been enormous successes, praised by both critics and players. However, the producer Eiji Aonuma and director Hidemaro Fujibayashi, in a recent interview with Game Informer, express that it’s time to explore something new.
“As game creators, what we want to do is create something new… Every time we make a new Zelda, we want to create something new,” says Hidemaro Fujibayashi.
“Tears of the Kingdom” is itself a direct sequel to “Breath of the Wild,” taking place after the events of the previous game in the same world. While not uncommon in the Zelda series, it is rarely as evident as in these two games.
“To make a sequel to a sequel, that’s a bit crazy when you think about it! With ‘Tears of the Kingdom,’ we tried to build upon the world we created in ‘Breath of the Wild’ and really explore the possibilities of what could be added to the world,” says Eiji Aonuma, continuing, “I consider the game to be the pinnacle for that version of The Legend of Zelda. So, considering that, I don’t think we will make a direct sequel to a world like the one we created.”
