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Nintendo cancelled work on a The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker sequel in favour of returning to a more realistic look which became Twilight Princess on GameCube and Wii.
The information comes via The Legend of Zelda: Art & Artifacts, a book currently available in Japan and coming to the west in February. In the book – translated by Nintendo Everything, artist Satoru Takizawa speaks about the reasons for the design change.
“To tell you the truth, we had begun the initial steps towards creating Wind Waker 2,” explained Takizawa.
“However, demand for a more Ocarina-like game was growing by the day. We did our very best with Wind Waker, and put everything we had into it…”
Takizawa continued: “However, Wind Waker 2 would have taken place in a more land-based setting, rather than on the sea, so that we could have Link gallop across the land on a horse. But Link’s proportions in Wind Waker weren’t very well suited for riding on horseback, he was too short, and an adult version of Toon Link did not seem appropriate either.
“So, while we were stuck on those problems, we became aware of the greater demand for a more realistic, taller Link. High-budget live-action fantasy movies were also huge at the time, so with all things considered, we decided to have at it.”
Toon Link eventually returned in DS outing Phantom Hourglass, whilst the Wii U HD remaster of Wind Waker was also a treat. Nintendo is currently putting the finishing touches to Wii U and Switch title, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, expected at some point in the second half of 2017.
Source: Nintendo Everything
