Super Smash Bros.is compelling in large part because the wide variety of playable characters has an equally wide variety of movesets. Each franchise thatSmashfeatures, fromThe Legend of ZeldatoPokemontoFinal Fantasy,contributes characters who derive all kinds of attacks and abilities from their unique design aspects and backstories. However, althoughSmashbrings lots of interesting attacks out of its guests, each franchise still have so many more potential fighters to offer. For instance,The Legend of Zeldacould spawn its own fighting game using NPCs from throughout its history, andHyrule Warriorsproves that it’s possible.
When the firstHyrule Warriorswas announced, it was something of a surprising spinoff, especially sinceZeldadoesn’t get particularly many spinoffs nowadays. Nevertheless, it was a hit, letting players take control of Link’s friends and enemies for the first time and showcasing the true potential extent of their powers. The formula worked so well thatHyrule Warriorshas seen multiple releases and now has a successor inHyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity,but Nintendo could reuse the idea in a similar format by making aZeldafighting game in which characters from across the franchise timeline assemble to duel one another.
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Imagining a Zelda Fighting Game
Hyrule Warriorsfeatures all the logical playable characters fromThe Legend of Zelda,such as Link, Zelda, Impa, and other famous protagonists like Darunia and Princess Ruto. However, it also has a handful of goofier characters who translated surprisingly well into the hack-and-slash format, likeTwilight Princess' bug-obsessed Agitha andtheMajora’s Maskincarnation of Tingle.Age of Calamitycontinued that tradition with playable characters such as Hestu,Breath of the Wild’s maraca-loving Korok. By delving deep into eachZeldacharacter, then crafting movesets based on both their abilities and personalities,Hyrule Warriorshistorically proves that there’s a warrior within everyZeldacharacter.
Thanks to that precedent, aZeldafighting game is perfectly plausible, operating along the same lines. A fighting game aboutThe Legend of Zelda’s characters could have a sword-wielding Link, a magic-heavy Zelda, a bug-conjuring Agitha, and so on. Nintendo could take inspiration from the abilities that Omega Force and Team Ninja already take up with, simply slimming them down to fit a more close-combat fighting game model as opposed totheDynasty Warriors-style of hacking and slashing. Combining those streamlined movesets with a newZeldatime travel narrative could make for an excellent fighting game based on one of Nintendo’s strongest IPs.
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The Search for a Smash Stand-In
It’s worth noting that Nintendo might be in the market for a new line of fighting games right now. While theSuper Smash Bros.brand is powerful, its future is uncertain, since Masahiro Sakurai has confirmed that there areno plans for a newSmashgameyet, and said that fans shouldn’t necessarily assume that the franchise will continue. Whether it’s a platform fighter or a traditional fighter, aZeldafighting game could takeSmash’s place for at least a little while, buying Nintendo time as it searches for either a permanentSmashreplacement or a way to follow up on the groundbreakingSmash Ultimate.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamityproves that aZeldafighting game or two might be able to fill that void for a while.Age of Calamitybuilds aHyrule Warriorsexperience vastly on the back ofBreath of the Wildalone, rather than blending tons ofZeldagames.Many otherZeldatitleshave the same potential to provide tons of unused playable characters, so a fighting game could explore NPCs and villains who haven’t gotten their chance to shine in aZeldaspinoff yet. Regardless of whether it serves asSmash’s replacement or not, there’s a lot of potential in aZeldafighting game.
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