Nintendo and Tecmo Koei’s Legend of Zelda meets Dynasty Warriors mash-up will be more than just the blind hack ‘n slash game it has come across as in trailers. Recent leaks from Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu and the official Japanese website now show that the game has a story worthy of the series and some new faces to add to The Legend of Zelda canon.
First up is a new femme fatale named Shia, who has quite a thing for Link and an obvious tactic of getting his attention too. Once a witch charged with keeping the three pieces of the Triforce in balance, she was led astray by the jealousy she felt towards Princess Zelda and her romance with our studly green-tunic’d hero. She leads the army besieging Hyrule, kidnaps the Princess, and no doubt will have to cross swords with her crush before the end of the battle.
She has two minions by her side named Valga and Wiz, the tough guy in the flaming armor and the creepy floating wizard respectively.
We all know by this point that Link is rarely the same actual person between different Legend of Zelda games and is actually a reincarnation of the Spirit of the Hero. No mere simple blacksmith or noble farmhand in this lifetime, our Link in Hyrule Warriors is already a full-fledged warrior in training to be an official soldier of Hyrule, hence why he wears a standard issue Hyrulian chain-mail underneath his traditional green garments.
I wonder if that fabulous blue scarf comes standard too.
Beyond that, the combat is of course the same “one verses hundreds” style we see in the Dynasty Warrior games. All of Link’s usual tools will be available at some point, and the Z-targeting popularized in Ocarina of Time will also make it easier to pick out certain enemies. Multiplayer will be an option, and head of the Elite Guard Impa, among other characters, will be unlockable before the game’s end.
So far, Hyrule Warriors is shaping up to be a fun looking little game that even hardcore fans of the series shouldn’t scoff at. 70 percent of development has been finished, and the release for Japan has been confirmed for this Aug. 14. Keep an eye out for it shortly afterward in America as a Wii U exclusive.
