Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Follow-Up Gets First Tease, Unexpected Direction

The next mainline Legend of Zelda game will be taking inspiration from an unlikely place, according to the series’ long-serving producer and director.

Considering Nintendo’s track record with the Legend of Zelda franchise, fans were understandably surprised when the Nintendo Switch 2 did not launch alongside a new mainline entry in the Zelda series.

Even stranger still, the first Nintendo Switch 2 Legend of Zelda game to launch on the console actually ended up being a spin-off game: Koei Tecmo’s The Legend of Zelda: Age of Imprisonment.

As it turns out, Eiji Aonuma, who directed several titles in the Legend of Zelda franchise, such as The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, actually wanted to be the “first” person to produce a Zelda game for the Nintendo Switch 2 as well.

Aonuma and Hidemaro Fujibayashi, who directed both The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, sat down for an interview with 4Gamer (translation via IGN) to discuss their thoughts on collaborating with Koei Tecmo for The Legend of Zelda: Age of Imprisonment, and how they believe it will impact the development of the next Legend of Zelda game.

Official artwork from The Legend of Zelda: Age of Imprisonment, Nintendo

“It was incredibly fun. They always had ideas we never would have come up with on our own, it was truly stimulating,” revealed Fujibayashi, when asked about how he felt working with Koei Tecmo.

“The Legend of Zelda: Age of Imprisonment is the first Zelda title released for the Nintendo Switch 2. To be honest, we wanted to bring out the ‘first’ (Zelda game on the new console),” joked Aonuma.

However, Aonuma’s comments about the “inspiration” he’s taking from The Legend of Zelda: Age of Imprisonment for his own upcoming Legend of Zelda game is the part of the interview that’s been turning heads online.

“The inspiration we received from this collaboration with Koei Tecmo may be reflected in the (next) Zelda we create. Please picture this while playing Age of Imprisonment, and look forward to our Zelda,” announced Aonuma.

Now, obviously, this statement is supposed to be vague, as Nintendo wouldn’t be happy with them spoiling any details about the next Zelda title before it's even technically been announced, but nobody can figure out if Aonuma is referring to the musou-style gameplay featured in The Legend of Zelda: Age of Imprisonment, or if he’s directly alluding to its story.

My guess is that he’s referring to the combat, but I guess we’ll have to wait and see for sure once Aonuma’s next mainline Legend of Zelda title is formally announced. As for when that will be, your guess is as good as mine.