I’m not sure many people come toThe Legend of Zeldagames for the story other than me. Yet, despite many likely telling you that, at least in the modern era, the story isn’t as important, it has been made abundantly clear to me that the series has a serious problem with its narratives. More crucially, bothBreath of the WildandTears of the Kingdomhave failed spectacularly on that front, despite being some of the most critically acclaimed games of all time.
Yet, even theNintendo Switch’s best gamesneed a good critiquing from time to time, as it is never good to let Nintendo rest on its laurels. It is absolutely time that it addresses the clear issues withThe Legend of Zelda, especially when there is so much potential for greatness. Many likely expect theHyrule Warriorsseries to do all the narrative heavy-lifting, but, unfortunately, not even it can saveZeldafrom its story woes. No,to fixZelda, Nintendo needs to make a major change.
Story Comes Second In BOTW & TOTK
It Just Isn’t An Important Element
It is very clear that bothBOTWandTOTKaremissing a crucial element. While they offer the best exploration in any video game ever, as well as dynamic and compelling open worlds, both of them lack a heart-wrenching narrative to tie them together.The two most recentZeldagames' lack of narrative prowess is well documented by this point, and yet Nintendo seems somewhat reticent to rectify the issue. Instead, it continues to deliver underbaked stories that are neither well-paced nor interesting.
There’s the occasional lore tidbit that may help clarify the alreadyconfusingZeldatimeline, as well as a handful of scenes hyping up the final boss fight. However,neither game,Breath of the Wildespecially, does much with their stories, often repeating the same information, the same handful of cutscenes, and cycling through the same familiar characters. It all gets a little repetitive, especially thanks to Link’s controversial inability to speak.
Narrative has always felt supplemental to bothBreath of the WildandTears of the Kingdom, which is perhaps why, as much as I love both, the former especially, I rarely find myself thinking about them. Sure,BOTWis a revolutionary RPG, andTOTK’smany innovative changes make it an excellent experience. However, I don’t have a handcrafted memory I can cling to in the same way that I remember devastating character deaths fromXenoblade Chronicles 2or mind-blowing revelations inDeath Stranding.
Hyrule Warriors Can’t Just Pick Up Zelda’s Slack
Some People May Miss It
Of course, theHyrule Warriorsgames have come in to pick up the slack and flesh out the barely developed stories in bothBreath of the Wildand nowTears of the Kingdom. ThenewHyrule Warriorsgame,Age of Imprisonment, seeks to deliver whatTOTKlacked and offers a more cinematic experiencethat delves into the admittedly fascinating lore teased in the original game. That’s definitely exciting, but it is undeniably the wrong approach.
Hyrule Warriorsis a spin-off series, and, as such, should be supplemental to the base game, and not fundamental. You shouldn’t have to playHyrule Warriorsto understand and enjoy the original game’s narrative. Rather, it should serve to expand upon it in ways that perhaps the original couldn’t, or, indeed, tell its own narrative. However, in bothAge of Calamityand nowImprisonment,it feels as if you must play them to appreciate the storiesBOTWandTOTKwere trying to tell.
That’s a problem, especially when many may not actually play eitherCalamityorImprisonment. Some will likely dislike the Musou-style gameplay, and thus skip theHyrule Warriorsgames out of boredom. Others may want compelling open-world gameplay and a complementary narrative, which neitherHyrule Warriorsgames deliver.That’s why these games shouldn’t be instrumental in one’s enjoyment of the original game’s narrativesor, indeed, the sole way toanswer their biggest mysteries.
The Next Zelda Game Needs A Well-Integrated Story
It Should Be A Focal Point
Instead of parceling out the narrative across an extremely long exploration-focused open-world game and a lengthy Musou spin-off,Nintendo should consolidate its narrative efforts into one title. The next mainZeldagame should deliver a strong, memorable story that’s cinematic and epic. There’s so much intriguing lore, characters, and worldbuilding Nintendo could pull from or expand upon, as well as so many new ideas I’m sure it has.
If it is struggling, thenwhy not bring onboard Monolith Soft or Intelligent Systems to help write a compelling JRPG-esque narrative for Zelda? It can still retain the somber, bleak, apocalyptic tone of bothBOTWand TOTK while featuring epic moments. There is so much potential here for a truly phenomenal story, and all Nintendo needs to do is make it the focal point of the next game.
I’m not even asking for Nintendo to pull back on its open-world efforts, nor for the story to be overbearing. All I want is for Nintendo to realize the importance of story to theZeldafranchise, and how a really great one can turn an excellent game into a perfect masterpiece. I love bothThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the WildandTears of the Kingdom, but I would love them a whole lot more if Nintendo had given them actually good stories, rather than splitting a bad story across multiple games.
