A sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is in the works, and Zelda series producer Eiji Aonuma has revealed that one of the games inspiring the team working on it is Red Dead Redemption 2.
In an interview with IGN today, Aonuma was asked about the games that were inspiring the younger members of the development team. “I did hear that a lot of people were playing … Red Dead Redemption 2,” he replied.
Red Dead Redemption 2 is an open world, action-adventure game that was released last year by Rockstar Games, and is set during the Wild West period of the late 1800s. It follows an outlaw and his journey to survive against the authorities, bounty hunters, and rival gangs. Widely considered to be one of the best games of 2018, it won numerous awards and accolades.
Taking inspiration from other large, open-world games is not new for the Zelda development team. Prior to the release of Breath of the Wild, Aonuma said that when he decided to break the Zelda mold he looked to games such as Skyrim, Far Cry, The Witcher, and Grand Theft Auto to find ideas that he could use in Zelda.
We’ve only seen a sneak peek of the Breath of the Wild sequel so far in the trailer shown during Nintendo’s E3 direct, so it’s unclear how much Red Dead inspiration we’ll see in the final game, but it’s exciting to hear that Nintendo is still looking for new ideas and new ways to evolve the Zelda franchise.
