What Will Nintendo Do For Zelda's 35th Anniversary?

We are all likely aware that 2020 is the year of Mario, or at least it was supposed to be. The year marked the 35th anniversary of the famous, moustached plumber making his debut in 1985. Mario, his impact on pop culture and his legacy with Nintendo can’t be understated but it brings something else to mind. The very next year, in 1986 the world was introduced to some amazing fantasy adventures with a young character named Link. The Legend of Zelda is likely the third most important franchise for Nintendo right behind Mario and Pokemon. Everyone wants to know where a Zelda new game is or if there will be a Zelda 35th anniversary collection? As a series The Legend of Zelda has accumulated over 100 million in sales and it would be a shame if Nintendo didn’t have something planned for the series that would at least rival would the company did for Mario and his 35th for

“As a series The Legend of Zelda has accumulated over 100 million in sales”

The Man, The Myth, The Legend

Nintendo is very much a company that likes to stick to a formula and likes to repeat something if it worked. As much as we like to gripe about remakes, remasters and just plain on re-releases of older Nintendo games, we always buy them. A recent example would be Link’s Awakening for the Nintendo Switch, which was a remake of a 1991 GameBoy cult favourite, has managed to sell almost 5 million copies.

Nintendo following patterns is important to figure out what they will do in the future based on their history. When trying to figure out exactly what they might do for the Legend of Zelda in 2021, it’s relevant to look exactly what they did for Mario in 2020 and draw comparable conclusions.

The more paramount features of Mario’s 35th anniversary include Game and Watch, Super Mario 3D World port, and Super Mario 3D all stars but unfortunately nothing brand new in the series like an Odyssey sequel. Following the same pattern, what does 2021 have planned for Link.

Watch & See

Outside of the sequel to Breath of the Wild, the most likely thing to happen on this list will be a Zelda Game & Watch. The reason for the Game & Watch to be as close to a sure thing is for a few reasons. Nostalgia plays a huge factor for Nintendo when it comes to selling their products, which immediately brings to mind the NES and the SNES mini retro classics and how well they sold is a perfect example.

People love remembering the great times they had when they were kids, how carefree life was and they now want to share that magical spark with their new family. Personally, some unforgettable moments of my gaming past include playing the original Zelda on the NES with the whole family, while my parents still had an interest in gaming. That feeling of exploring magical lands as a family is something that I can’t wait to share with my own children.

Out of the multitude of versions that Nintendo created of the Game & Watch, The Legend of Zelda was one that existed, which means that we will likely see one in 2021. The edition that was created for Super Mario Bros this year was around 40 dollars and featured the original game and a bright, colourful LCD screen. Despite how many times Nintendo has sold us the original Super Mario Bros, people still seem to buy it as pre order stock for the nostalgic handheld is out of stock everywhere. We will have to wait until November when it releases to see if supply is able to match demand, but it seems likely that this will be a similar case to the NES and SNES classic where supply was always constrained.

This is the only way that we would see a 8 bit or 16 bit Zelda released during the anniversary as the first three entries are already available on Nintendo Switch Online and there is no reason that the company would want to cannibalize those users. It also seems highly unlikely that Nintendo would take the time and financial resources to create a cast for the shell of the Game & Watch to only use it for the Super Mario Bros edition. There is a great chance that moving forward we will see new editions featuring the classics from the 8 bit and 16 bit era.

Hyrule All Stars

One of the more underwhelming features of Mario’s 35th Anniversary was the collection Super Mario 3D All Stars. Full transparency, I purchased the collection but sadly not because it was a great package. The numerous problems with the bundle has been talked about on just about every site but the lack of effort that was given to Super Mario 64, the missing Galaxy 2, and the overall price of the bundle were the main criticisms. It didn’t even feature any cool packaging, just the case and the cartridge. No small art book included or digital historical booklets that we have seen from games like the Mega Man collection. This was a challenging year for many people and companies, including Nintendo who seemed to be affected more than the average due to their privacy and security which doesn’t translate well to working from home.

If there was to be a collection for The Legend of Zelda, then the most logical answer would be one that would delight fans. As mentioned earlier, bundling together the original three games that spanned from the NES to the SNES wouldn’t make sense because those games already exist on Nintendo Switch Online and Nintendo wants you to play there.

A fully remastered version of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask bundled together would be a home run. Ocarina of Time is the best reviewed game of all time and the last time that it was able to be purchased was back in 2011 for the 3DS. This also woudln’t be the first time that Ocarina and Majora were bundled together as The Legend of Zelda: Collectors Edition was a promotional disk that was released with the GameCube to help generate anticipation for Wind Waker. Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask are the third and fourth best selling games in the franchise according to the NPD group right behind Breath of the Wild for the Switch and Twilight Princess for the Wii. This collection would be a guaranteed success now that Nintendo has an install base of over 60 million as of June 30, 2020 with that number expected to be around 80 million by the end of their fiscal year on March 31, 2021.

Wind Waker 4K

In over three years since the Switch has been available there has been a pattern of releasing WiiU games that didn’t get the success or recognition they deserved due to the criminally low user base of around 13 million. We have seen everything from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Donkey Kong: Tropical Freeze, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe, Pikmin 3 and the upcoming Super Mario 3D World that will be released in 2021.

The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD makes perfect sense as it was the 9th best selling game on the WiiU.

We have already seen Nintendo port just about everything else from the WiiU trying to atone for that system and seeing Wind Waker would fall right in line with what else they have done with the Switch so far. The other reason is that the art style of Wind Waker, although polarizing upon release, does have timeless look to it that doesn’t deteriorate over time due to its graphical limitations. There is also the outside chance that we could see Twilight Princess, which also received a Wii U port but failed to make the top ten in sales for the system. It would be great to see both of the games released during the 35th anniversary of Zelda but Wind Waker has a more recent track of success and it also features an art style that is easier to sell to the mass market.

Breath of the Wild 2

What we currently know right know is that Breath of the Wild 2 is in the works and has been for some time now. The good news is that this game is using the same engine and probably a lot of the same assets from the original which will help speed up development time, similar to the turnaround between Ocarina and Majora, which was only two years. Initially announced at the end of Nintendo’s E3 Direct from 2019, the sequel has gone somewhat dark in the time since. The only information that has been floating around was the speculation that the sequel to the best selling Legend of Zelda ever, was going to be a launch title for the also speculated Switch Pro.

As with any speculation, especially when it comes to Nintendo, it is best to temper expectations but launching the Switch in 2017 with Breath of The Wild is about as close as you will ever get to system selling software. People were so thirsty for a brand new adventure in Hyrule that in the beginning, Breath of the Wild was actually outselling the Switch hardware. As it has been seen time and time again, Nintendo loves to follow a pattern when it works. Just launching Breath of the Wild 2 in 2021 would be a good enough 35th anniversary for the series.

Lost in Space

Before thinking that the inhabitants of Hyrule are the only people who should be celebrating their 35th anniversary, there is another franchise that deserves a little time in the spotlight as well. 2021 will also mark the 35th birthday of Metroid, well technically Samus, when the original Metroid hit the NES in 1986. Expectations for much to happen for Metroid in 2021 are low due to Nintendo and their risk aversion.

As much as it seems like Metroid is one of their Goliath franchises, the truth is the series has struggled to find the mainstream.

What we currently know about the series is that Metroid Prime 4 is in the works, but at exactly what phase is anyones guess. It was first announced at E3 in 2017, just mere months after the release of the Nintendo Switch. It wasn’t much, but it was a logo that closed out their Nintendo Direct and did enough to let longtime series fans know that the franchise will be making it’s return on the hybrid system. Metroid Prime 4 was a slightly bittersweet moment due to the eventual reveal that it was being developed by Bandai Namco and not series veterans Retro Studios. However, sometimes it best to get a different perspective on the series from a different studio and give them the benefit of the doubt that they will be able to make an amazing game. At this point, anything was better than nothing and the last time the series saw a full entry was in 2007 with Metroid Prime 3: Corruption.

Fast forward to 2019 and nothing has been heard of from Metroid Prime 4 since we were teased with a logo in space. Then, on a random Friday in January, Nintendo release a video explaining that development of Metroid Prime 4 had gone back to Retro Studios, the team that started it all, as development with Bandai Namco was not progressing as they would have liked.

The thing is, Nintendo is likely not in much of a rush as Metroid isn’t much of a priority. Metroid, as important as it may seem to any fan of the series, has always struggled to find the mainstream. Total sales for the complete Metroid series since 1986 is approximately 18 million, which is not great, especially when there have been 14 entires as of 2020. To put that in perspective, there are currently six titles on the Nintendo Switch that have sold around 18 million or more including Super Mario Odyssey, Breath of the Wild, Smash Ultimate, Pokemon Sword and Shield, Animal Crossing: New Horizons and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

Total sales for the complete Metroid series since 1986 is approximately 18 million

Even the last entry in the series Metroid: Samus Returns on the 3DS fell flat despite it’s extremely positive critical reaction. The game managed to score 90 and above from Polygon, Game Informer, GameSpot, and Nintendo Life. It was released in 2017 as a reimagining of a GameBoy classic and it didn’t make sense why it was made for the 3DS and not for the newly released Nintendo Switch. Unfortunately, the massive praise couldn’t help Samus as the game only managed to sell around 500k. When you consider that the install base for 3DS was around 75 million and Samus Returns only was able to sell around half a million, it’s a miracle that Nintendo is still invested in Metroid and hasn’t given up on the series.

As for what we could hope for, more accurately dream to see from Metroid in 2021 would be a few things. I think a smart idea would be to take the assets from the internally developed Metroid: Samus Returns and apply it to a new Switch title. If Samus Returns was a reimagining of the GameBoy version of Metroid 2: Return of Samus, then it would only seem logical to get a reimagining of an earlier title from the 16 bit era or earlier. This would leave a few options, we could see either the first game in the series, Metroid from the NES or the SNES title Super Metroid. The other option would be to create a completely original story line from the ground up but that would seem like a higher financial investment and it wouldn’t introduce new players to the story line.

The other dream for 2021 would be to see Metroid Prime Trilogy remastered for the Switch. The trilogy has already appeared on Nintendo’s last two home consoles, making its first appearance on the Wii back in 2009 and then made its way to the WiiU digitally in 2015. It would be nice if it was remastered for the modern era but after seeing the caliber of treatment that went into Super Mario 3D All Stars, nothing can be expected.

The glass looks half full rather than half empty when considering the chances of either a 2D Metroid or Prime Trilogy being released in 2021.

As mentioned, it is the 35th anniversary of the series but more importantly, it’s highly unlikely that Metroid Prime 4 will be released in 2021, but a possibility that it will see the light of day in 2022. Something needs to be done to whet the appetite of fans, get people interested in Metroid again and both of these options are low risk for Nintendo as resources would be minimal compared to a new game.

If being part of the seven generations of Nintendo home consoles has taught me anything, it’s that everything is possible and at the same time, impossible. Nintendo always marches to the beat of it’s own drum, which means that 2021 could be the most amazing time to be a Nintendo fan with speculation of a new “Pro” Switch model, hopes of a 35th anniversary for The Legend of Zelda and dreams of a smaller Metroid celebration. There is also a strong chance that almost nothing on this wish list happens because that is who Nintendo is. Weird experiments like Virtual Boy, Labo, Ring Fit happen at the same time when expected sequels from popular franchises slide into the shadows.