Hyrule Warriors is a game that certainly isn’t afraid to mix things up in the Zelda series. It had a whole new gameplay style, it featured characters that had never been playable before, and it threaded multiple games and timelines together.
At one point before the game’s release, Princess Zelda was even being considered in a whole new role.
In a 2014 interview on MMGN, Tecmo Koei producer Hisashi Koinuma explained Zelda’s role in the then-upcoming spin-off title. “In Hyrule Warriors Princess Zelda is actually Queen Zelda,” Hayashi explains. “She has an army, as a Queen would, and Link is a trainee, but as the story unfolds the relationship between the two greatly changes.”
Zelda series producer Eiji Aonuma elaborated on this, responding to a question on whether or not this decision would lead Zelda to have a more prominent role in future Zelda games. “With regard to Princess Zelda and her position in each story, we always position her where it’s best suited for that story or theme.
“We always try to achieve her best position within the story with each game or iteration,” Aonuma continues. “Just because she’s one way in one game, it doesn’t mean she’ll be the same way in the next game. We definitely change how Zelda is used and position her where it’s best for the experience. That’s as Queen and one of the playable characters in Hyrule Warriors.“
Less than a week after this interview published, however, this change in Zelda’s character was confirmed to be reverted. A trailer demonstrating Zelda’s moveset labeled her as “Princess of Hyrule.”
It’s not clear why Zelda’s “queen” title didn’t make it into the final game. It’s not a simple case of localization, either, as she is also referred to as a “princess” in the Japanese version. There could have been miscommunication in the development team, a misinterpretation by the interview’s translator, or it could have been scrapped at the last minute.
While she may maintain her “princess” title, Zelda is still is the leader of the Hyrulean Army in Hyrule Warriors and appears to be an unbelievably strong character in both status and combat. Queen or not, we got to see a new side of Zelda as she mowed down hundreds of enemies with ease. To reiterate Aonuma’s comment, “Just because she’s one way in one game, it doesn’t mean she’ll be the same way in the next game.” With speculation on a potentially playable Zelda in the upcoming Breath of the Wild sequel, there are still many possibilities left to explore for the beloved character.
