Wind Waker 2 Finally Confirmed, But There’s A Catch

There are arguably no games in the history of the series that have a more interesting history than The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. Massively underappreciated at the time of its release, it has since come to be looked upon much more favorably, to the point where it is now one of the most beloved entries to date.

Toon Link’s adorable little face was always going to work its way into the hearts of fans, but that turnaround in fortunes took a long time to come. If reception had initially been stronger, it turns out the future of the franchise might have been very different, and fans really aren’t too happy about the whole thing.

The Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker Remains A Fan-Favorite

Screenshot of Link in The Legend of Zelda Wind Waker for GameCube

Over on Reddit, one user shared a post detailing how Wind Waker 2 was in active development before Zelda lead Eiji Aonuma was told Toon Link “alienated” American teenagers. From there, the company pivoted in a big way, and we got Twlight Princess instead (with the notable addition of Phantom Hourglass straight after).

It’s quite the revelation, and there were plenty of thoughts from the community in the comments below. “I’d still love to see Wind Waker 2. But then WW alongside OoT & TP is my “Triforce” of favorite entries, so I’m not among the alienated… nor am I American,” one comment read.

“I was a teenager when it came out, and I didn’t buy it because of the cartoon artwork for it. I ended up getting it a decade later and loved it but they weren’t wrong about American teens being put off by it. Teenagers are kinda dumb,” another added.

“Damn. A legit Wind Waker 2 would have been awesome. I imagine Phantom Hourglass had some ideas that would have been present in it,” a third said.

Another put forward a different theory, saying, “They also wanted to bring back horse riding in Wind Waker 2 but couldn’t get Toon Link to look right on a horse. Pressure from western fans wasn’t the sole reason for Twilight Princess.”

Why Was Wind Waker 2 Cancelled, Then?

Image shows Link and Tingles in The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker

In reality, the big reason that Nintendo pivoted so sharply from the style Wind Waker brought in was the negative response in the West from those who were expecting something more gritty and realistic. That expectation came from the fabled GameCube tech demo, which was the first release that really put forward the idea of a graphically realistic Zelda game. It laid out what fans could expect, so when the markedly different Wind Waker showed up, there were plenty of folks who weren’t happy.