Given what we now know about the Zelda mythos at large, Ocarina of Time has become the root of the series’ branching timelines. In fact, the Downfall Timeline itself is essentially one big what-if scenario. At this point, we might as well throw another branching path into the mix, right?

Right from the get-go, we are made aware of Ganondorf’s evil aims — to obtain the Triforce and gain unimaginable power. Clearly, he isn’t afraid to lie and scheme his way toward those ends, as evidenced by him swearing loyalty to the King of Hyrule. Despite his pledge to the Royal Family, he had secretly poisoned both the Great Deku Tree and Lord Jabu-Jabu, as well as filled a key portion of Death Mountain with Dodongos.

Assuming Ganondorf’s deep resentment toward Hyrule proper didn’t just sprout out of nowhere — that he had been planning this attack for years — then it wouldn’t be so surprising for the King of Thieves to take his treachery a step further and kidnap a baby Princess Zelda. One of his elite Gerudo warriors could have slipped into the castle during the dead of night — fully cloaked, so as not to give away the Gerudo — and brought the infant to their king.

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To this day, “Midna’s Desperate Hour” remains one of the most memorable sequences in the Zelda series. Despite not actually racing against the clock, many players felt a tremendous sense of urgency while attempting to save a wounded Midna’s life. Upon reaching Zelda’s chamber in Hyrule Castle, this chapter culminates in the Hyrulean Princess sacrificing her life force to the diminutive imp.

Now, as much as I adore the story of Twilight Princess, many fans and I are still kind of baffled as to how Zelda returned to the land of the living during the game’s climax. I understand that Midna returned the “cherished power” Zelda bestowed upon her, but how and when did Zelda’s physical form re-manifest itself? At the end of “Midna’s Desperate Hour”, we see Zelda’s body straight-up disappear!

Hence, we come to today’s what-if scenario. Had Twilight Princess been the first entry to properly kill off Zelda herself,  how do you think that would have affected Hyrule? I mean, for the sake of this discussion, let’s just assume that Link is able to defeat Ganondorf without the use of Zelda’s Light Arrows. After all, the horseback Hylian Hero could easily chuck the Master Sword at Ganondorf like a trident!

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With Cadence of Hyrule’s release, we may be witnessing the dawn of a new era — one in which Nintendo is way more open about lending its most sacred properties to independent developers. Only time will tell, of course, but that won’t stop this man from dreaming about the possibilities that have just been created. Specifically, I’m dying to see more indie developers showcase their interpretations of the Hylian Hero’s adventures.

Now, there are a few small-budget games that I’d like to see a Zelda crossover of, but there’s one in particular that immediately stands out in my mind: I’m talking about 2008’s Castle Crashers. Developed by The Behemoth, this 2D beat-’em-up still stands as one of my all-time favorite indie titles. Its vibrant setting and mischievous sense of humor would blend pretty nicely with the Zelda IP. Couple that with the original game’s robust roster, and we could be looking at an opportunity for more Hyrule Warriors to shine — not just Link and Zelda.

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Shortly after Breath of the Wild 2’s unveiling at E3 2019, Zelda series producer Eiji Aonuma expressed his desire to “revisit that Hyrule again and use that world again.” Now, to be fair, we don’t know the extent to which this will be the case. For all we know, the game could take place in Hyrule for the first two hours, only to whisk us away to a brand new locale for the rest of the adventure.

Based on Aonuma’s comment, though, the smart money says Breath of the Wild’s sequel will be primarily set in Hylia’s domain. Assuming that comes to pass, are you worried about such a prospect? After all, it isn’t unheard of for this series to reuse maps from previous installments. A Link Between Worlds borrowed A Link to the Past’s iteration of Hyrule, while the Nintendo Switch’s upcoming Link’s Awakening remake will, understandably, use virtually the same world map as the original Game Boy classic.

However, these games are decades apart from their respective predecessors. Breath of the Wild is still the most recent mainline entry in the series, with likely only a few years separating the two releases. Even with all of the new story content, it’s going to be tough for this game to feel like anything more than a DLC expansion if it does indeed reuse the exact same map.

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It’s no secret that Midna is, hands down, my favorite video game character. From her iconic design to her morbid sense of humor, everything about this diminutive devil just rocks. What ultimately pushes this character above the rest in my book, though, is the incredibly powerful arc she undergoes. Indeed, the Midna we meet at the beginning of Twilight Princess is much different than the Midna we see at the end of the game — both literally and figuratively.

Let’s rewind the clock a bit. Leading up to the game’s launch, I remember hearing some serious discussion about the little Twili’s true colors. Despite becoming one of the kindest, most selfless characters in the Zelda mythos, she doesn’t exactly endear herself to Link throughout the early portions of the game. I mean, I still find her early mistreatment of the Hylian Hero to be charmingly refreshing, but I certainly wouldn’t want to be in Link’s shoes.

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Cadence of Hyrule’s approach to difficulty is interesting. My first hour or so was littered with bouts of frustration and more deaths than I care to admit. Indeed, for me, it boasts one of the steepest learning curves in recent memory. By the three-hour mark, though, I had a solid grasp of just about every enemy’s movements. Coupled with my abundance of heart pieces, Cadence’s latter half was a bit of a breeze.

I still had a ton of fun, but similarly to my experience with Breath of the Wild, I didn’t find Cadence to consistently scale its enemies to challenge my strength. Of course, subsequent playthroughs can be about as easy or as challenging as you want them to be. As is the case with other entries in the Zelda series, you don’t need to go for those extra heart pieces.

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When Breath of the Wild was announced at E3 2014, Producer Eiji Aonuma made his intentions for the game abundantly clear — to create a vast, interconnected world in which individual areas had no clearly defined entrance or exit. Upon its release in 2017, the world that was showcased in that trailer may not have looked exactly the same, but overall, that first impression was definitely in line with the spirit of the finished product.

Conversely, Breath of the Wild 2’s announcement trailer is set almost entirely in dark, underground ruins. Indeed, the environment showcased here is eerily similar to a classic — dare I say traditional — Zelda dungeon. Even the awakening of what is presumably Ganondorf’s corpse is reminiscent of dungeon boss introductions found in Twilight Princess. Could Nintendo be hinting at the return of classic temples, and if so — given that this is our first glimpse of the game — could they play a much greater role than the original title’s Divine Beasts?

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Although Nintendo has yet to confirm the identity of the now-infamous corpse in Breath of the Wild 2’s announcement trailer, all signs point to this being the Gerudo King himself, Ganondorf. If so — and if the first Breath of the Wild’s approach to voice acting is any indication — then this game will likely mark the first appearance of a fully-voiced Ganondorf. I don’t know about you, but just the idea of that has me bouncing up and down in my chair!

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