Zelda producer hints at more open-world games to come

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild’s may have set a new standard for Link’s future adventures. In an interview with Famitsu, longtime series producer Eiji Aonuma suggested that Zelda games will likely continue using expansive, open-world settings.

When asked by Famitsu whether Zelda games will continue to use the unique of Breath of the Wild, Aonuma teased that we’d see more open-world Zelda in the future.

“I think that, in the future, open air games will be the standard for Zelda,” Aonuma said.

Nintendo’s found major commercial and critical success with Breath of the Wild, a game that bucks many of the series’ most traditional elements. The non-linear style has led numerous players to spend hours upon hour scavenging the Great Plateau — a totally valid way to play this gorgeous game.

Of course, there’s still big bosses to defeat and Hyrule Castle to save. We wouldn’t expect Zelda games to abandon these going forward, but it could be years until we see another series installment anyway. Breath of the Wild is the first time we’ve had a new Zelda game since The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword in 2011.