The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was originally created using a 2D prototype that was based on the look of the original NES classic. When Nintendo revealed this at GDC this year, the natural reaction that it got was “Hey! That would make a sweet game on its own.”

It’s unknown if Nintendo will ever reply to those exact calls, but it’s somewhat required to finally acknowledge it now that a fan has gone and made the prototype all by himself. he Legend of Zelda: Breath of the NES has turned up on itchio, and it available totally for free

As you can see in the trailer, the game adds physics, harvesting, and the whole nine yards from Breath of the Wild to the original 8-bit graphics. The bloom, lighting effects, and realtime shadows also add a touch of modernity to the 8-bit sprites as well.

Going to be adding more… how cute…

In a statement to Kotaku, creator winterdrake stated that the game is still early, and he plans to add more down the line.

 This project is still in its early stages…I’ll be adding more areas with distinct elements and atmospheres, puzzle elements for dungeons, and lots of ways to creatively kill enemies.
Of course, this is assuming that there will be a “down the line.”  Nintendo will be all over this project in a matter of hours, and maybe even faster, considering winterdrake has a “Name your price” option at the top of the download page. I’m all for indie developers being supported and making fun fan games, but even hinting that they might want money for treading over licenses that they don’t own crosses a line.
winterdrake plans to continue making the game with his own characters once the inevitable happens.
When a lot of people hear about this project, they jump to worrying about a cease and desist from Nintendo. While I’m going to stay hardworking on Breath of the NES for as long as I can, if Nintendo asks me to stop using their IP, I do plan to continue development with my own original characters. I’m having way too much fun creating this world to just give up.

At least he got his name in the headlines and a foot in the doorway with the Zelda name.