Highlights
- The Legend of Zelda series has the potential to explore various genres, including turn-based RPG, RTS strategy, arcade fighter, and more.
- A turn-based RPG would allow for in-depth character customization and interactions with interesting NPCs.
- The series could also venture into other genres like roguelike, ranch manager/horse racer, dungeon maker/manager, life/dating sim, survival/stealth, and even a massively multiplayer online game.
The Legend of Zelda series has always stood for innovation. When it took its first step out of the top-down dungeon-crawling waters and stepped into fully-fledged 3D, it blew minds and defied what pretty much anybody could have expected out of a three-dimensional game space with its innovative targeting, physics-based puzzles, and immersive, fleshed-out world.
With Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom evolving the series into an open-world fare, it might be worth looking into which genres the series could step into next, whether it be a mainline title or spin-off. While Link and his companions have appeared in a multitude of non-LoZ titles, there has been the occasional foray into the hack 'n slash space (Hyrule Warriors) or even rhythm games (Cadence of Hyrule), there are plenty of directions still left to explore.
Turn-Based RPG
Solo-adventuring across Hyrule and beyond is, of course, always a blast, but there's also so much personable charm in the Zelda series that just begs for a turn-based RPG. Imagine a party-based adventure in which our (presumably Hylian) protagonist gets to team up with a Zora magic user, a Goron thief, and a Deku scrub warrior on a quest to find the relics of Hyrule's long-lost hero... or something along those lines.
A turn-based RPG would have one major advantage over an open-world action game: there would be a chance to slow down and chat with all those interesting folks littering the landscape. Plus, being able to deeply customize characters with magic spells, classes, and attributes would be such a novelty in a series that has more or less featured the same protagonist in every game.
RTS Strategy
Many other civilizations neighbor the kingdom of Hyrule, each with its own history and armies. The series' history lore is steeped in conflict, statecraft, and war. While Hyrule Warriors gave gamers a taste of what epic battles could look like in the LoZ universe, imagine commanding a banner of knights out from Hylian territory against a charge of marauding Moblins making trouble for the Gerudos on the desert border.
Imagine The Legend of Zelda meets Civilization or Age of Empires. Heck, the game could take place in the earliest days of Hyrule's history. It's up to the player to help the royal family to build up the kingdom and bring prosperity to all. Or Conversely, the player could take control of an evil faction and wage war upon the land to capture the triforce, make way for the demon king, or usher in an age of shadows.
Arcade Fighter
Here's an idea that's already been tried and tested (twice) with excellent results. Link (adult, kid, and toon) and Zelda have both appeared in Super Smash Bros. as fighters. Adult Link was also featured in the GameCube version of Soul Caliber 2, to great fanfare.
Is it perhaps time for the Zelda crew to expand into their own 2D fighting franchise? With such a huge cast of characters (from Zora to Goron) to battle and unlock, each with their own distinct fighting styles, it would be a no-brainer buy for the fans.
Roguelike / Roguelite
The genius behind Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom was that it opened the world up for the player, allowing for endless exploration and adventures. While the sequel did well to bring dungeons more to the heart of the experience (as they should be), Zelda's true potential for deep delving has only been hinted at by "randomizer mods."
Picture a procedurally-generated Zelda dungeon complete with chests (containing the level's central weapon or tool, compass, and map), traps, and treasures scattered throughout all in the top-down style. Now, picture being able to explore a procedurally-generated overworld with the same principles of item-based progression (and with Nintendo's polish). It would be like getting a classic Legend of Zelda experience each time the player starts a new game.
Ranch Manager / Horse Racer
There's a reason why this series has such an enduring appeal to people of every gender: each installment offers something for everyone. And since the release of Ocarina of Time, horses have featured in most of the mainline titles (except Wind Waker, for obvious reasons).
Besides games like Barbie Horse Adventures and (arguably) Red Dead Redemption 2, there haven't been very many horsey games to feed the fantasy many people have about befriending, taking care of, and riding majestic equines. Add in cozy ranch or farm management a la Stardew Valley, horse racing (Lon Lon Ranch style), and the usual Zelda polish, and Nintendo could be looking at a sleeper hit.
Dungeon Maker / Manager
Some of the most memorable moments in Zelda games have happened in their expertly-designed dungeons (i.e, Link having to navigate fiendish water-based puzzles while fending off irksome lava bats or escorting a jellyfish princess around in the belly of a sea monster). However, what if a player could take on the role of the dungeon's boss monster?
Gameplay could involve laying traps, assigning minions, designing the layout of each room, and balancing funds (earned from killing off an overly-adventurous band of Gerudos or a foolhardy Sheikah explorer). This one is obviously a spin-off and a little unusual, drawing from a genre that is still more-or-less "underground" (pun intended), with games like Dungeon Keeper and Evil Genius, but no doubt many creative fans would go mad for this one.
Life / Dating Sim
Animal Crossing meets the Kingdom of Hyrule? There's a market out there for gamers who want to hang up their sword and shield for a while and soak up The Legend of Zelda's atmosphere in a chill life sim. Being able to walk around the streets of the market or build up a cozy little nest in Kakariko Village, complete with a fantasy garden, sounds like the perfect vacation between epic, grand adventures.
Since Link's first 3D incarnation, there's always been a hint of romance in the air. Princess Zelda, Ruto, or Malon? Ilia or Midna? While a love story in Tears of the Kingdom might be canonically off the table, there are still plenty of love triangles or sweet summer romances to explore in the rest of the timeline.
Survival / Stealth
While yes, there have been some survival and stealth elements in the series (i.e., cooking in Breath of the Wild and the fortress section in Wind Waker), they have never been the central focus of a game. Generally, Link has always been too action-oriented to watch from the shadows for too long.
A game about a young Ocarina of Time era Princess Zelda following her flight from Hyrule castle with Ganondorf's betrayal could push these mechanics to the forefront. Having been raised in comfort and luxury, she must learn the stealthy arts of the Sheikah to survive for the seven years that Link is trapped in the temple of time. Not only would she need to hide in the shadows, but blend into crowds, Assassin's Creed style, outwitting her foes in a quest to undermine Ganondorf's evil rule.
Massively Multiplayer Online Game (MMO)
Magic, swords and shields, bows, and arrows... The Legend of Zelda is screaming out for a fully-realized massively multiplayer online experience. With such a variety of interesting races to choose from and a (traditional) emphasis on dungeon delving, Zelda fans would be able to adventure together to overcome Ganon's eternal scourge of the land.
TriForce heroes showed that there is a thirst for teaming up in Hyrule, but being able to run around a fully-3D environment like those found in Tears of the Kingdom or Breath of the Wild would be a bombchu blast.