Everyone in theZeldacommunity wants to know if Zelda herself is playable inThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2.It’s something fans have wanted for a long time. After so many years spent as a damsel in distress, it would be a wonderful change of pace to let Zelda be her own hero, using her own skills to defeat the monsters that seek to destroy Hyrule. On the other hand, many fans think Ganondorf is the surprise protagonist ofThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2.Certain tapestries make fans think that he saved Hyrule once before, and the stirring corpse inBreath of the Wild 2’s trailers may suggest he’ll come back from the grave. Ganondorf has returned from the dead before, after all.
These two fans' hopes both seem like pretty far-fetched dreams, but consideringBreath of the Wild’s drastic changesto theZeldaformula, anything seems possible. With that in mind, what if not one of these fan theories is true, but both? What if both Zelda and Ganondorf will stand at Link’s side inBreath of the Wild 2and make contributions as playable characters? Not only could Nintendo pull that off, but it should. If either one of these characters becomes playable inBreath of the Wild 2,then the other should too. There could be no better representation of the Triforce’s sacred unity.
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Striking a Balance in Breath of the Wild’s Characters
Zelda would be a fantastic playable character inBreath of the Wild 2.In all the years ofThe Legend of Zelda,it’s sort of shocking how rarely Zelda herself has been playable, even though she’s the franchise’s namesake. SinceBreath of the Wildis already the poster child for change within theZeldaseries, there’s no better place to change that pattern than in theBotWsequel. Trailers for the game have already established that Link and Zelda have been traveling together again, andHyrule Warriors: Age of Calamityhas already shown that this incarnation of Zelda knows her way around a fight. There’s no reason she couldn’t pick up a sword and a bow and slay the Calamity’s minions just like Link.
In contrast, a playable Ganondorf would be an incredible change of pace forThe Legend of Zeldatoo. So many of the franchise’s most memorable moments stem from encounters with this intelligent, calculating Gerudo version of Ganon. He’s been a worthy adversary for Link for many years. Still, one wonders if Ganondorf might ever get tired of his cycle of evil and break fromthe curse of his ancestor Demise, deciding to use the Triforce of Power for good rather than being an eternal villain.Breath of the Wild 2could be the first game to introduce this kind of character arc for Ganondorf, changing the direction ofThe Legend of Zeldafor years to come.
As excellent as either of these characters would be as additional playable characters next to the omnipresent Link, though, either one would skew the franchise’s equilibrium. These characters are an eternal trio crucial to the story. For decades,The Legend of Zeldahas balanced the overarching plot by setting up Zelda as a force of good,Ganon as a force of evil, and the single playable Link as the scale that holds both of them up. If either Zelda or Ganondorf became playable alongside Link, that delicate narrative balance would be upset, with two playable characters vastly outweighing a straggler NPC in-game presence. With that in mind, Nintendo could preserve the old structure in a new way by making all three of these characters playable inBreath of the Wild 2.
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The Legend of Zelda’s Trio United
The potential behind uniting Link, Zelda, and Ganondorf as a team inBreath of the Wild 2is obvious. Zelda would get to develop new levels of independence that she’s rarely been allowed before, while Ganondorf could grapple with his legacy as he tries to turn his back on Demise and previous incarnations of Ganon. It could be interesting to characterize Link as a quiet peacekeeper between Zelda and Ganondorf as the two of them butt heads based on their ancestral conflicts and mutual distrust. Whatever narrative threads fillBreath of the Wild 2,though, what would be most important isZelda and Ganondorf standing firmly at Link’s sidewhen the three of them confront the evil that threatens to destroy Hyrule, depicting the Triforce wielders as united for the first time.
There are mechanical benefits to introducing a playable Zelda and Ganondorf too. Each character could have a different fighting style, expressing a preference for certain weapons. For instance, Zelda might be a particularly fast and accurate archer, while Ganondorf prefers heavy weapons, dealing more damage with two-handed equipment than his companions. They could also have Sheikah Slate-style abilities unique to them, representing both Ganondorf and Zelda’s relationships with magic. SinceLink seems to have an enchanted arminBotW2,it’d make sense if all three characters had slightly different lists of magical powers. Between new storytelling opportunities, diversified combat, and new puzzle-solving techniques, there are tons of benefits to featuring three playable characters inBotW2.
A New Angle on The Legend of Zelda
Nintendo doesn’t seem afraid to try new things lately.Breath of the Wildchanged everything with its weapon system, cooking, and large-scale open-world exploration, but that’s only one sign of risk-taking in recent history.Super Mario Odysseytotally changed theSuper Marioformula with Cappy’s capture powers, customization, and so on, whileSuper Smash Bros. Ultimatepresented a colossal undertaking that’s broken tons of fighting game records. Hopefully, that attitude of risktaking and experimentation will shine through inBreath of the Wild 2,ideally including a playable Zelda and Ganondorf in its list of big ideas.
Admittedly, it seems unlikely that Nintendo goes as far as to add two new player characters toBreath of the Wild 2,even with the experimental nature of many recent Nintendo titles. Zelda and Ganon’s roles inThe Legend of Zeldaare such old traditions that Nintendo might struggle to break them at this point. On the other hand, an unconventional move like that would be a blessing forThe Legend of Zelda’s longevity. Every franchise has to regularly reinvent itself to stay fresh. IfBreath of the Wild 2doesn’t make Zelda and Ganondorf into playable protagonists, then maybe the nextZeldagame will go that far.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2releases in 2022 for Nintendo Switch.
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