In the video game industry, canceled games, projects, and consoles are inevitable, as sometimes, things don’t always work out for a variety of reasons. However, it is always a special treat when scrapped concepts or ideas come to light after they were canceled, just to see what could have been. This most often comesin the form of concept artrevealed by pre-production staff members, and now, info has been revealed on a canceledThe Legend ofZeldaWii game.
For quite some time now, it’s been known that Nintendo often sees a variety of different game studios constantly pitching ideas to them, some of which come to fruition, though many do not. Leaked concept art of a much darker-themedZeldagame pitched byMetroid Primedeveloper Retro Studios shows off an awful lot of what could have been a different kind of game in theLegend of Zeldaseries.
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Reportedly, Retro Studios was in the process of pitching the darker “bad timeline"Zeldagame between 2005 and 2008. This installment wouldn’t have followed Link, but instead would have followed the last male Sheikah’s journey to stop the rebirth of Ganon following the Hero of Time’s hypothetical failure inThe Legend of Zelda:Ocarina of Time.
In the concept art, fans can see what looks to be the Sheikah hero, brandishing bandages and clothing markings similar toSheik fromOcarina of Time.A browse through the artwork on canceled game archiving site Unseen64 shows off what look to be characters from other races within theLegend of Zeldauniverse, such as a much more axolotl-inspired Zora, and a sinister looking Gerudo. Just at a glance, fans can see that the environment and atmosphere of the Wii game would have been much darker than other entries in the series, perhaps even moreso thanTwilight Princess, as Retro Studios' title would have followed the protagonist after a genocidal ethnic cleansing of the Sheikah people.
Any avidZeldafan may know that the series' long list of games fit into a ratherconvoluted and sometimes confusing timeline. Canonically, theLegend of Zeldatimeline splits off afterOcarina of Timedepending on the outcome, where either Link succeeded in defeating Ganon, or was defeated himself, which is where games such asA Link to the Past,Link’s Awakening, and the originalLegend of Zeldagame take place. Supposedly, this Retro Studios game would’ve fallen into that timeline, though it isn’t specified where exactly.
While fans may be disappointed to know that they missed out on a much darkerZeldagame, they likely won’t have to wait much longer to experiencethe sequel toBreath of the Wild,which is confirmed to carry a dark tone, likeThe Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask. Perhaps fans will learn more this year as part of theZeldaseries' 35th anniversary.
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