{"id":28720,"date":"2026-08-05T16:00:32","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T11:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=28720"},"modified":"2026-08-05T16:00:32","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T11:00:32","slug":"wind-waker-2-finally-confirmed-but-theres-a-catch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=28720","title":{"rendered":"Wind Waker 2 Finally Confirmed, But There&#8217;s A Catch"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>There are arguably no games in the history of the series that have a more interesting history than <a href=\"https:\/\/screenrant.com\/tag\/the-legend-of-zelda\/\" target=\"_blank\"><em><strong>The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker<\/strong><\/em><\/a>. 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.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/screenrant.com\/legend-of-zelda-toon-link-return-gamer-speculation\/\" target=\"_blank\">Toon Link&#8217;s<\/a> 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&#8217;t too happy about the whole thing.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"the-legend-of-zelda-the-wind-waker-remains-a-fan-favorite\">\n                        The Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker Remains A Fan-Favorite<br \/>\n               <\/h2>\n<div class=\"body-img landscape mobile-optimized\">\n<div class=\"responsive-img  image-expandable  img-article-item\" style=\"padding-bottom:56.25%\" data-img-url=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/screenshot-of-link-in-the-legend-of-zelda-wind-waker-for-gamecube.jpg\" data-modal-id=\"single-image-modal\" data-modal-container-id=\"single-image-modal-container\" data-img-caption=\"&quot;&quot;\">\n<figure><picture><source media=\"(max-width: 480px)\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/screenshot-of-link-in-the-legend-of-zelda-wind-waker-for-gamecube.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=500&amp;dpr=2\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/screenshot-of-link-in-the-legend-of-zelda-wind-waker-for-gamecube.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=500&amp;dpr=2\"\/><source media=\"(max-width: 767px)\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/screenshot-of-link-in-the-legend-of-zelda-wind-waker-for-gamecube.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=800&amp;dpr=2\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/screenshot-of-link-in-the-legend-of-zelda-wind-waker-for-gamecube.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=800&amp;dpr=2\"\/><source media=\"(max-width: 1023px)\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/screenshot-of-link-in-the-legend-of-zelda-wind-waker-for-gamecube.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=825&amp;dpr=2\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/screenshot-of-link-in-the-legend-of-zelda-wind-waker-for-gamecube.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=825&amp;dpr=2\"\/><img width=\"1650\" height=\"928\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Screenshot of Link in The Legend of Zelda Wind Waker for GameCube\" data-img-url=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/screenshot-of-link-in-the-legend-of-zelda-wind-waker-for-gamecube.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=825&amp;dpr=2\" src=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/screenshot-of-link-in-the-legend-of-zelda-wind-waker-for-gamecube.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=825&amp;dpr=2\"\/>\n        <\/picture><figcaption style=\"display: none;\">Screenshot of Link in The Legend of Zelda Wind Waker for GameCube<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Over on Reddit, one user <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/zelda\/comments\/1vbsxdm\/all_wind_waker_2_was_in_development_before_zelda\/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">shared<\/a> a post detailing how <em>Wind Waker 2<\/em> was in active development before <em>Zelda <\/em>lead Eiji Aonuma was told Toon Link &#8220;alienated&#8221; American teenagers. From there, the company pivoted in a big way, and we got <a href=\"https:\/\/screenrant.com\/legend-of-zelda-twilight-princess-hd-fan-remaster-june-2026\/\" target=\"_blank\"><em>Twlight Princess<\/em><\/a> instead (with the notable addition of <em>Phantom Hourglass<\/em> straight after).<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s quite the revelation, and there were plenty of thoughts from the community in the comments below. &#8220;I\u2019d still love to see <em>Wind Waker 2<\/em>. But then <em>WW <\/em>alongside <em>OoT <\/em>&amp; <em>TP <\/em>is my \u201cTriforce\u201d of favorite entries, so I\u2019m not among the alienated\u2026 nor am I American,&#8221; one comment <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/zelda\/comments\/1vbsxdm\/comment\/p0vww7o\/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=web3x&amp;utm_name=web3xcss&amp;utm_term=1&amp;utm_content=share_button\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">read<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I was a teenager when it came out, and I didn&#8217;t buy it because of the cartoon artwork for it. I ended up getting it a decade later and loved it but they weren&#8217;t wrong about American teens being put off by it. Teenagers are kinda dumb,&#8221; another <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/zelda\/comments\/1vbsxdm\/comment\/p0xdxi3\/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=web3x&amp;utm_name=web3xcss&amp;utm_term=1&amp;utm_content=share_button\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">added<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Damn. A legit <em>Wind Waker 2<\/em> would have been awesome. I imagine <a href=\"https:\/\/screenrant.com\/legend-zelda-phantom-hourglass-reasons-game-underrated-classic\/\" target=\"_blank\"><em>Phantom Hourglass<\/em><\/a> had some ideas that would have been present in it,&#8221; a third <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/zelda\/comments\/1vbsxdm\/comment\/p0w0dlh\/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=web3x&amp;utm_name=web3xcss&amp;utm_term=1&amp;utm_content=share_button\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">said<\/a>.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"w-promotion-offer promo-article-content-3\/4-depth w-promotion-widget\" data-popup=\"false\" data-sentinel-tracking=\"false\" data-promotion-zone=\"TmV3c2xldHRlciBBcnRpY2xlIENvbnRlbnQgV2lkZ2V0\" data-nosnippet=\"\">\n                                        <link rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/assets\/promotions.099cca01.css\"\/>\n<\/aside>\n<p>Another put forward a different theory, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/r\/zelda\/comments\/1vbsxdm\/comment\/p0whx8c\/?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=web3x&amp;utm_name=web3xcss&amp;utm_term=1&amp;utm_content=share_button\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">saying<\/a>, &#8220;They also wanted to bring back horse riding in <em>Wind Waker 2 <\/em>but couldn&#8217;t get Toon Link to look right on a horse. Pressure from western fans wasn&#8217;t the sole reason for <em>Twilight Princess<\/em>.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- No AdsNinja v10 Client! --><\/p>\n<h2 id=\"why-was-wind-waker-2-cancelled-then\">\n                        Why Was Wind Waker 2 Cancelled, Then?<br \/>\n               <\/h2>\n<div class=\"body-img landscape mobile-optimized\">\n<div class=\"responsive-img  image-expandable  img-article-item\" style=\"padding-bottom:56.25%\" data-img-url=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/zelda-wind-waker-tingle-cell.avif\" data-modal-id=\"single-image-modal\" data-modal-container-id=\"single-image-modal-container\" data-img-caption=\"&quot;&quot;\">\n                                                                                            <picture><source media=\"(max-width: 480px)\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/zelda-wind-waker-tingle-cell.avif?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=500&amp;dpr=2\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/zelda-wind-waker-tingle-cell.avif?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=500&amp;dpr=2\"\/><source media=\"(max-width: 767px)\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/zelda-wind-waker-tingle-cell.avif?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=800&amp;dpr=2\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/zelda-wind-waker-tingle-cell.avif?q=49&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=800&amp;dpr=2\"\/><source media=\"(max-width: 1023px)\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/zelda-wind-waker-tingle-cell.avif?q=70&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=825&amp;dpr=1\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/zelda-wind-waker-tingle-cell.avif?q=70&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=825&amp;dpr=1\"\/><img width=\"825\" height=\"464\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Image shows Link and Tingles in The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker\" data-img-url=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/zelda-wind-waker-tingle-cell.avif?q=70&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=825&amp;dpr=1\" src=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/zelda-wind-waker-tingle-cell.avif?q=70&amp;fit=crop&amp;w=825&amp;dpr=1\"\/>\n        <\/picture>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>In reality, the big reason that Nintendo pivoted so sharply from the style <em>Wind Waker<\/em> 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 <em><strong>Zelda<\/strong><\/em> game. It laid out what fans could expect, so when the markedly different <em>Wind Waker<\/em> showed up, there were plenty of folks who weren&#8217;t happy.<\/p>\n<div class=\"display-card type-video-game large\" data-show-streamrentbuy-links=\"true\" data-include-community-rating=\"true\" id=\"ae97-43b4-a87477cd422c\">\n<div class=\"display-card-main-content-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"display-card-main-content\">\n<div class=\"display-card-content image-column\">\n<p>                        <!--    Rating block community and brand ratings --><br \/>\n                        <!--  Image --><\/p>\n<div class=\"w-img \" data-stnl-group-once=\"YlA5bgnhwa\">\n<div class=\"body-img portrait \">\n<div class=\"responsive-img  img-article-square\" data-img-url=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/sharedimages\/2024\/12\/mixcollage-14-dec-2024-06-25-am-4367.jpg\" data-modal-id=\"single-image-modal\" data-modal-container-id=\"single-image-modal-container\" data-img-caption=\"&quot;&quot;\">\n                                                                                                                                                            <picture><source media=\"(max-width: 480px)\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/sharedimages\/2024\/12\/mixcollage-14-dec-2024-06-25-am-4367.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=contain&amp;w=300&amp;dpr=2\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/sharedimages\/2024\/12\/mixcollage-14-dec-2024-06-25-am-4367.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=contain&amp;w=300&amp;dpr=2\"\/><source media=\"(max-width: 767px)\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/sharedimages\/2024\/12\/mixcollage-14-dec-2024-06-25-am-4367.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=contain&amp;w=400&amp;dpr=2\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/sharedimages\/2024\/12\/mixcollage-14-dec-2024-06-25-am-4367.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=contain&amp;w=400&amp;dpr=2\"\/><source media=\"(max-width: 1023px)\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/sharedimages\/2024\/12\/mixcollage-14-dec-2024-06-25-am-4367.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=contain&amp;w=320&amp;dpr=2\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/sharedimages\/2024\/12\/mixcollage-14-dec-2024-06-25-am-4367.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=contain&amp;w=320&amp;dpr=2\"\/><img width=\"960\" height=\"1440\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"mixcollage-14-dec-2024-06-25-am-4367.jpg\" data-img-url=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/sharedimages\/2024\/12\/mixcollage-14-dec-2024-06-25-am-4367.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=contain&amp;w=480&amp;dpr=2\" src=\"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/sharedimages\/2024\/12\/mixcollage-14-dec-2024-06-25-am-4367.jpg?q=49&amp;fit=contain&amp;w=480&amp;dpr=2\"\/>\n        <\/picture>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>                        <!-- User Rating widget --><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"display-card-content info-column\">\n<p>                        <!--  Display card community and brand rating widget --><br \/>\n                                                                         <!--  Display card open critics widget --><\/p>\n<p>                                        <!--  Display card main info widget --><\/p>\n<div class=\"w-display-card-info main-info\">\n<dl>\n<p><dt>\n                                            <strong>Released<\/strong>\n                                        <\/dt>\n<dd>\n                                            <span><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMarch 24, 2003<br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n                                        <\/dd>\n<\/p>\n<p><dt>\n                                            <strong>ESRB<\/strong>\n                                        <\/dt>\n<dd>\n                                            <span><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\tE For Everyone<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t<\/span>\n                                        <\/dd>\n<\/p>\n<p><dt>\n                                            <strong>Developer(s)<\/strong>\n                                        <\/dt>\n<dd>\n                                            <span><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNintendo EAD<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t<\/span>\n                                        <\/dd>\n<\/p>\n<p><dt>\n                                            <strong>Publisher(s)<\/strong>\n                                        <\/dt>\n<dd>\n                                            <span><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNintendo<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t<\/span>\n                                        <\/dd>\n<\/p>\n<p><dt>\n                                            <strong>Engine<\/strong>\n                                        <\/dt>\n<dd>\n                                            <span><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\tHavok<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t<\/span>\n                                        <\/dd>\n<\/p>\n<p><dt>\n                                            <strong>Multiplayer<\/strong>\n                                        <\/dt>\n<dd>\n                                            <span><\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLocal Multiplayer, Local Co-Op<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t<\/span>\n                                        <\/dd>\n<\/p>\n<\/dl><\/div>\n<p>                                        <!--  Display card main info widget end --><\/p>\n<p>                    <!--  Display card media widget start --><\/p>\n<p>                                        <!--  Display card media widget end --><\/p>\n<p>                    <!-- Where to play button preview --><\/p>\n<p>                    <!-- Where to play preview end --><\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>            <!-- Extra content section, display hidden by default --><br \/>\n            <input type=\"checkbox\" id=\"extra-content-ae97-43b4-a87477cd422c\" name=\"extra-content-ae97-43b4-a87477cd422c\" class=\"expand-extra-info-checkbox css-menu-checkbox\"\/> <!-- Checkbox: control the expandable behavior  of the extra info --><\/p>\n<p>            <!-- Display card footer --><\/p>\n<p>            <!-- PROS and CONS section --><\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>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&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28721,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/static0.srcdn.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/link-in-the-king-of-the-red-lions-boat-in-zelda-wind-waker.jpg?w=1600&h=900&fit=crop","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28720","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newsweek-trending"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28720","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=28720"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28720\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/28721"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=28720"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=28720"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=28720"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}