Hyrule Warriors is looking like a very smart addition to the world of The Legend of Zelda. The series is not renowned for its spinoffs, but since Nintendo unveiled the title in December of last year, it's been garnering an impressive amount of plaudits. Indeed, it seems as though every screenshot and gameplay detail released makes the Dynasty Warriors-style title more anticipated.

Part of what makes Hyrule Warriors so exciting to fans is the number of playable characters. The title, which has been developed by Nintendo in conjunction with Tecmo Koei, boasts a large roster containing both new characters and fan favourites. We've had a trio of Ocarina of Time characters added to the bill - Sheik, Darunia and Princess Ruto - and most recently Ganondorf, the villain of the Zelda franchise, has been announced as a playable character.

What's interesting about the roster of characters so far is that a large number of them are female. In fact, aside from Link himself there have only been four other male playable characters announced - three of which are villains. As it turns out, the creators of Hyrule Warriors had plans for another female character, designing a female variation of Link.

According to Go Nintendo, the official Japanese art book for Hyrule Warriors contains concept art of a female Link. It seems as though either Tecmo Koei or Nintendo had thoughts about including a female variation on our Hylian hero. The character, referred to as 'Linkle' according to a translation at Kotaku, is shown on a page of previously-unseen rejected characters. Linkle is said to be a "girl version of hero Link" and "devised as being little sister-like." This does not mean the character is Link's actual sister, however. Linkle is more likely just a little sister-style character.

Although Linkle is apparently a rejected concept character, it's still a very interesting move on the part of Nintendo and Tecmo Koei. Indeed, if the idea of a female Link had been pushed by Nintendo themselves it raises some interesting theories about where Nintendo could take other spin-offs or even the main Legend of Zelda series. The willingness of Nintendo to work with Link's gender in this way could point to a player being able to choose the gender of their hero in future Zelda titles, for instance.

Whether Linkle appears in Hyrule Warriors or not, there is still plenty to find enticing about the forthcoming Wii U title. Some of the most recent trailers have been a dream come true for some Zelda fans. The local co-op looks like it will work extremely well, with one player taking control of the Wii U GamePad whilst the other controls the television and a Pro Controller. With the game releasing in Japan today, we won't have to wait long to find out if Hyrule Warriors lives up to the reputation of the Zelda series.

Hyrule Warriors will be released in North America on September 26, exclusively for Wii U.

Source: Go Nintendo