Summary
A pair of former Nintendo of America employees have revealed that the company originally didn’t have much confidence inHyrule Warriors, with worries about it damagingThe Legend of Zeldabrand.Hyrule Warriorsis a spin-off of the series that was produced by Nintendo in collaboration with Koei Tecmo and Omega Force, moving the franchise away from the traditional dungeon crawling and puzzle solving to a more straight-forward hack-and-slash game in the vein ofDynasty Warriors.Hyrule Warriorswas also a crossover between differentZeldagames, starring a set of Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf incarnations.
At the time, the spin-off was one of the more shocking combinations of games, especially when there was less confidence in Omega Force’s reputation in 2014. While the spin-off received mixed reviews on launch,Hyrule Warriorsstill has a bit of a following due to its status as a love letter to theZeldafranchise. There were worries that the spin-off would end up hurting theZeldabrand in general, according to former Nintendo Minute hosts Kit and Krysta.
In one of the latest episodes of the duo’s podcast, they were asked about if there were any games that Nintendo released that some employees in the company thought would be bad or wouldn’t live up to expectations. While Krysta brought upDragon Questor other niche JRPGs that ended up having unrealistic sales targets, Kit brought upthe originalHyrule Warriorson Wii U. He recalls that there were worries from Nintendo of America that the game wasn’t going to be very good or that it would “drop the status ofZelda,” to the point that there was the possibility of makingHyrule Warriorsa Japan-only release.
Nintendo Almost Didn’t Bring Hyrule Warriors Out of Japan
On the other hand, Kit was a big fan ofOmega Force’sDynasty Warriorsgames, and notes that there is a surprisingly big audience for them, meaning it’d be a big missed opportunity if they didn’t try to release the game outside of Japan. Both Kit and Krysta note how funny this sentiment seems in hindsight, asHyrule Warriorsdid sell well, and it got ports on both the Nintendo 3DS and Switch, both of which added additional content like new characters and costumes.
Hyrule Warriorsalso got a sequel in the form ofHyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, a game that acted asa prequel toBreath of the Wild. Omega Force would also end up doing other musou-styled spin-offs for other franchises, such asPersona 5 Strikersand twoFire Emblem Warriorsgames. These spin-offs likely wouldn’t have been possible without Nintendo putting faith in Omega Force for Hyrule Warriors.
Hyrule Warriors
WHERE TO PLAY
Cut down enemy hordes as Legend of Zelda™ characters—in full 1080p TV mode—or in two-player on one system! Link and Zelda can battle in costumes from the Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild game, while Tetra and King Daphnes appear in scenes based on the Legend of Zelda™: The Wind Waker game. Find and care for fairies who will aid you in battle!This time, you won’t face the dark sorceress, Cia, alone. Command legendary heroes and villains in battle to achieve objectives as you unleash special attacks. Advance the story to unlock characters, each with their own moves and weapon types. Collect rupees and other items to upgrade weapons and craft badges, which bolster your warriors’ abilities. The fate of Hyrule rests in your hands!
