While some fans may have their eyes set on a recently teased, new The Legend of Zelda adventure, another exciting development for the franchise has just come out of Osaka, Japan. As reported by attendees of yesterday's The Legend of Zelda: Concert 2018, Eiji Aonuma has indicated that The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword may be on its way to Nintendo Switch.
As the director behind Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, and The Wind Waker, as well as acting producer on a slew of other Zelda titles (including Breath of the Wild), if anyone has the inside scoop on what the future holds for Link and his fans, it is certainly Eiji Aonuma. His statement to a filled Oryx Theater was simple, and its implications are clear: "I know what you're waiting for. Skyward Sword for Switch, right?"
And many fans are indeed likely to be waiting for a chance to play Skyward Sword on Nintendo's newest console.
Released on Wii in 2011, Zelda's sixteenth entry has always had a bit of a hardware problem. Early adopters of the Wii found that they would not be able to play Skyward Sword without investing in Wii MotionPlus, a Wiimote expansion that arrived three years after the console itself. This problem persisted when Skyward Sword was re-released through the Wii U eShop in 2016, as a Wiimote outfitted with the expansion was still required.
While the price tag on Wii MotionPlus was not exorbitant by itself ($20), the cost of the base Wiimote and Nunchuck was already $60. Further, no other triple-A titles required the expansion, and pushing the final cost of the Wii's controller to $80, without doubt, contributed to many players skipping the release.
Perhaps more problematic than the cost, Skyward Sword's forced motion-controls were one of the most criticized aspects of the game. From our 2011 review:
While the added support for the Wii MotionPlus is a breath of fresh air, sword strikes aren’t always as precise as they are intended to be and, at times, players will simply be able to randomly flick their wrist around and vanquish foes rather easily.
Porting Skyward Sword to Switch will not only give fans an opportunity to play a title they may have missed, but it is also a chance to improve upon these control issues. However, how exactly that would be done on Switch remains to be seen. While the new console's Joy-Cons could function well as surrogates for the Wiimote and Nunchuck, requisite motion-controls could certainly prove problematic for those that prefer to play in handheld mode.
Hopefully, Nintendo can find an elegant solution, and we can look forward to playing a new and improved version of one of our favorite games of last generation soon.
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is available now for the Nintendo Wii and Wii U.
Source: Reddit