The Future of Zelda: Leaving Hyrule

My first adventure with Link was on the island Koholint, which is a virtual world that I keep close to my heart. And after I had explored the different iterations of Hyrule from the NES classics and Ocarina of Time, Nintendo invited us to visit the strange lands of Termina, Labrynna, Holodrum and Subrosia. When the Zelda series first had gained traction in the early 2000s, half of the games took place in Hyrule and the other half someplace else.

As exciting as this was, Nintendo has not followed this trend. In fact, most of the games that came after featured some version of Hyrule, where lately they even have revisited the Hyrule from a previous title. Now, the upcoming Ocarina of Time remake certainly won't change any of that, but going forward it will be nice to breath some fresh air... And that's what this article will be about.

Echoes of Wisdom ~ Multiplayer Sequel Ideas

In The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom you briefly play as Link, before you slip into the role of Princess Zelda for the first time in the mainline series. Unlike Link, who still relies on his trusty sword, shield, bow and bombs, Zelda primarily fights by summoning echoes of monsters, while she can also freely steer entities around by binding them to her own movements.

Now, this is a great basis for another cooperative multiplayer Zelda game, following Four Swords, Four Swords Adventures and Tri Force Heroes, but this time tailored to two players. It would be perfect for pairs who are into Zelda, where Hazelight Studios has popularized this genre of games, with A Way Out, It Takes Two and Split Fiction.

This idea is as old as Echoes of Wisdom itself, but let's finally get into more detail here. Spoiler warning for the game's ending! Don't hit "read more", unless you have beaten Echoes of Wisdom or don't care.

Ryo Nagamatsu has left Nintendo

The bad news continue... Today composer Ryo Nagamatsu has announced on Twitter that he has left Nintendo as of April 30th. This is what he has to say:

I have made a decision to leave the company of April 30, 2023. I will work a little wider and more directly to help those who need my help and to help the industry. Thank you all for your kind support! I look forward to serve you in the future!

He is the guy who has made the music for all the recent top-down Zelda games: A Link Between Worlds, Tri Force Heroes, and the Link's Awakening remake, where his Zelda career actually started with The Legend of Zelda: Battle Quest, the mini-game in Nintendo Land. He really did some great work on the series and certainly left a mark, where this will be a loss, but let's wish him all the best!

Via Nintendo Life

Another 2D Zelda on the eShop?

Before the Nintendo Direct last month, Vergeben said that the new 2D Zelda game won't have a connection to Link's Awakening (source). When it came to predicting the roster of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Vergeben was on point, but otherwise it doesn't really seem like we can trust the guy, as proven by the fact that the new 2D Zelda game is literally Link's Awakening.

Now, apparently this came from one of Vergeben's sources, who is confused about this reveal as well and now claims that he or she has heard about a different 2D Zelda game that is going to be eShop exclusive (source). But this is quite the claim, honestly, and far from a safe bet, because Zelda games normally get a retail release, unless it's Virtual Console. But the Switch so far only featured a Virtual Console via the Nintendo Switch Online service.

The only new Zelda that ever used to be eShop exclusive is none other than the Four Swords Anniversary Edition. And even that was just a FREE re-release of an old game with some new features.



So, one scenario would be that we're getting another enhanced port of an old 2D game, where it offers something new, but it's still too "shabby" for a retail release. This doesn't allow for many options, however. The NES games are already part of the Nintendo Switch Online service. A Link to the Past will most likely follow. And the GameBoy (Color) games are currently all ready for remakes. That basically leaves the Four Swords games...

Of course they might decide to re-release the Four Swords Anniversary Edition for free again, maybe make it even part of the Nintendo Switch Online service and add online multiplayer to it. That would be great. Or they could decide to finally do something with Four Swords Adventures, but that could be eligible for a retail release...

Otherwise the emphasis really is on "free". If they ever release something for Zelda that is digital-only, it's probably because it makes no sense to distribute it as a retail release for some reason, like this being a free to play game.

This could even happen with a new game. Take something like Kirby Team Clash Deluxe for example, which is a horrible example with its monetization via Gem Apples, but still an example from Nintendo. They could use the engine of the new Link's Awakening to make a new multiplayer Zelda that focuses on the Battle Mode, like the Shadow Battles in Four Swords Adventures or the Coliseum Mode in Tri Force Heroes.

Similar to the different Kirby minigames on Nintendo 3DS, they could take such a small mode and turn it a game of its own. It certainly had some potential, but ultimately lacked the focus it needed to become something lasting.

Well, this would be something new entirely and could be used to advertise Link's Awakening. "Like the minigame? Then get the real deal with this upcoming remake in the same topdown style!"

Right now we don't have any reason to believe that there really is going to be another 2D Zelda game coming this year, but it's a possibility nonetheless.

Odyssey's Ongoing Outfits

What does Super Mario Odyssey do, what the last two Zelda games didn't? That's right, the game keeps updating with new content, specifically in the form of new outfits / costumes. Almost every month the game is getting one new set of clothing, from Satellaview Mario to Zombie Mario...

Given, it's not exactly the most exciting and engaging way of updating a game. These outfits cost lots of coins and all you need to do to get them is grind money, where Luigi's Balloon World minigame seems to be the preferred method. But it's still something that keeps you going back the game from time to time. And that's better than nothing at all.

Now, the last two Zelda games had something similar: there were the different collectible outfits in Tri Force Heroes, as well as the many different armor pieces in Breath of the Wild. Both had the potential to add some regular, free DLC updates to the game, but in both cases Nintendo passed after one or two updates, while they still keep updating Super Mario Odyssey after one year. And that's a shame, because it could have done a lot with little for these two games...

Tri Force Heroes

Ah, the outfits in Tri Force Heroes. They were easily the best thing about the game and it was a lot of fun to unlock and try them all. In the end not every outfit was all that useful, but that doesn't really matter for the fun of it. And putting Toon Link in all these different costumes sure was fun.

At the time data miners found out that there were six reserved spots for DLC outfits and two of them actually got released together with the Den of Trials: Linebeck's Uniform and the Fierce Deity Armor.

This was certainly exciting, but what happened to the other four planned outfits? We probably will never know, but it would have been a good way of bringing players back. Even if it's just a small addition of one outfit at a time, it's something that dedicated players would like to check and try out. This could lead to playing some rounds online, helping other players with their Challenges and so on. Maybe you even need to get some more materials first before you can get the new outfits... So, there's an incentive to play more

It would have been a way of keeping the game alive a little longer, but sadly Nintendo didn't pursue this.

Breath of the Wild

While there have been many additional armor pieces via amiibo and the two DLC packs, there was only one set of armor distributed via a free update, the Salvager set based on Xenoblade Chronicles 2:

It wasn't the best outfit and some fans didn't really like it, but it was still a nice promotion and it was still a reason to return to the new Hyrule for a moment, looking for the special red shooting stars. At least the sidequest itself was much more entertaining than the lazy sidequests that lead to all the other DLC armor pieces...

So, it was something and apparently Nintendo didn't have any interest in adding something more. It probably was due to the fact that they didn't want to keep updating a Wii U game, but it would have been something that kept Breath of the Wild in the news and that kept players returning to the game every once in a while, even the ones that already completed everything (like me).

And of course they could and should have expanded the armor limit, while they're at it. It's still annoying that they never bothered with fixing that... And some more costumes to finally use the expansion would have been a nice apology.


Well, maybe with the next Zelda game they will consider putting Link in some new clothes every once in a while.

Lady Maud Design Concept Art

While skipping through Hyrule Encyclopedia, I noticed something interesting. They put some concept art for the character Lady Maud from Tri Force Heroes on page 307, which I hadn't seen before:

image source

Wow! Look at that sexy witch! I wish that they would have gone with that design, instead of the old fashion hag. It would have been so much better for the character.

If I had to rank all Zelda villains, Lady Maud would be rock bottom. With a giant margin between her and whoever might be second-to-last. She is an absolute joke character and you can't take her seriously at all, where she made a silly story even sillier, instead of posing as an actual threat.

Now, if they had used a femme fatale like the young witch in the above concept art, it would have been so much interesting. She could have been an actual rival to Princess Styla, where she wants to be the most beautiful girl in all the lands, similar to the Queen in Snow White, just that the above witch would have actual potential with her youth and beauty.

Plus, the Zelda series could have used a villain like that. We have Cia in Hyrule Warriors, but that's not canon, while I would have been looking forward to playing as Maud in the next installment, if she were anything like in the above concept art... Who would like to play as the actual Lady Maud, which made it into the final game? I bet no one!

Well, too bad...

Smartphone Zelda Content Concepts

A Zelda game developed for Android and iOS mobile devices, following games like Super Mario Run, Fire Emblem Heroes and Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, isn't unlikely and already had been rumored last year. In a recent post I've explained, why I would like to have such a game, but in the meantime I've been putting more thoughts into how the contents of such a game could look like and how it all would be structured.

For this I didn't look far, but instead I've been taking many pages from the multiplayer Zelda outings, mainly Four Swords and Tri Force Heroes. Those count as some of the least popular Zelda games, but let's face it, a Zelda game on smartphones probably won't become a fan favorite either. But it could become something that works well on the platform and would focus entirely on singleplayer this time, which certainly would be preferred by some fans.

Let's go through the basics again. The game would utilize the top down perspective and Toon Link as its protagonist, similar to Tri Force Heroes or the Nintendo DS Zelda games. The touch controls would be based on the latter, so you point in the direction where Link should be going, you tap things in the environment to interact with them, you tap enemies to attack them and there would be button in one corner of the screen to activate your current item. Simple.

Areas and Dungeons

With smartphone games people often want to play in short bursts, instead of going through extensive play sessions that they get from PC or console games. There are exceptions, of course, but Nintendo's smart device titles so far have backed this up. Playing short levels in Super Mario Run and quick rounds of strategy in Fire Emblem Heroes support this play style.

So, with a Zelda game on smartphones it's likely that it will adopt the level-based structure of the multiplayer installments: Four Swords, Four Swords Adventures and Tri Force Heroes. Instead of having a big connected overworld, the game world would be divided into individual areas that give access to shorter levels. Let's take a look at Four Swords and Tri Force Heroes here:



Four Swords featured the Sea of Trees, Talus Cave (ice cave dungeons), Death Mountain and Vaati's Palace. The Anniversary Edition also had the Realm of Memories and the Hero's Trial on top of that.

Tri Force Heroes had the Woodlands, the Riverside, the Volcano, the Ice Caverns, the Fortress, the Dunes, the Ruins and the Sky Realm. Additionally, there has been the Den of Trials as a free DLC level. From the selection of areas this is looking really good here.

The difference between both games is that Four Swords had randomly generated stages in each area (except for the additions in the Anniversary Edition), while Tri Force Heroes had four static levels per area.

It's remarkable how Four Swords featured procedurally generated content at its time, which is quite popular with "Roguelike" games these days. Technically, the game didn't fully generate everything at random, but put together its stages based on different templates. But there are so many that I kept discovering new floors and rooms, even though I've played through the game various times. It really adds to the replayability, which is something you want to have with a smartphone title.

In the case of Tri Force Heroes you had three additional "Challenges" per level, which gave you a reason to replay them, but once you've beaten all 32 levels in all four variants you were done with the game and there was no reason to keep playing other than the fun of it or to support other players with their remaining Challenges. But you'd really want to avoid such a stop here, where procedurally generated levels are the key.

Of course even with level generation you will learn and discover all patterns eventually, but it still would offer a lot more to discover than static levels. It would also allow for a continuous increase in difficulty, where the more often you beat a certain level, the harder it will become.

Now, I would add the typical "themes" as areas to the game: forest, volcano, water, ice, desert and so on. But each area would have an overworld stage and a dungeon stage. So, if you select the forest, you can play either some Lost Woods type of level or a Forest Temple dungeon. You can chose every area from the start, but you need to beat the overworld section first, before you can go into the dungeon. And the dungeons always end with a boss. So, there are two sides to each area, which makes sense for a Zelda game.

Beating a boss for the first time will reward you with an additional Heart Container. Beating a stage will score you something different. Four Swords used different keys for Vaati's Palace for this, but it could be something like Force Gems or Spirit Orbs. Let's say you keep collecting "orbs" from the levels, because this seems like a typical mobile game currency. You could keep getting more orbs from repeating the same stages, however, each playthrough will become more difficult and challenging. Tougher puzzles, stronger enemies, harder to find secrets and so on. You might be able to select lower difficulties again, but then you wouldn't get any new orbs.

Finally, those orbs are required to enter the final dungeon. This could be something that has levels to it, like a giant tower. You need a certain number of orbs to open the first floor, but once you've beaten it, you can strive for higher floors, where the difficulty increases and where you might get different endings and greater rewards. You can compare this to the three Epics in Four Swords, where you can replay the game two times for a greater challenge, just that this would be longer lasting and more challenging. It could even go on forever.

Additionally, the game could have a special trial area, where you would have something like the Den of Trials (a survival dungeon like the Cave of Ordeals from Twilight Princess or the Trial of the Sword from Breath of the Wild), with bosses thrown into the mix. And maybe also special super challenging stages like the Hero's Trial in the Four Swords Anniversary Edition.

Items

Unlike in a normal Zelda game you wouldn't keep the items with you, but they would be part of the stages, like in the Zelda multiplayer games. So, for the sake of simplicity you can always only carry one item with you at a time, which can be swapped on item pedestals.

There could be many different items throughout the game for lots of variety. Anything that was established in top down Zelda games and that works with touch controls could be considered. Here's a list of ideas:

• Lantern
• Shovel
• Slingshot
• Bow
• Bombs
• Boomerang
• Hammer
• Grappling Hook
• Whip
• Gust Jar
• Fire Rod
• Ice Rod
• Lightning Rod
• Tornado Rod
• Sand Rod
• Water Rod
• Cane of Somaria
• Magnetic Gloves
• Roc's Feather
• Pegasus Boots
• ...

These are all items that were featured in past Zelda games, but of course there could and should be new ones as well. There are many possibilities here, though Nintendo often likes to keep the selection of core items small, like around eight different ones. This has been the case for the multiplayer installments and Nintendo DS games, but it's still possible that Nintendo could make Ravio really jealous with such a game.

There shouldn't be any usage limitations like ammo or even a magic / stamina / energy meter. Four Swords and Four Swords Adventures didn't have any limits to the items and it worked fine. The Nintendo 3DS games introduced the energy meter for items to prevent spamming and to add a little challenge, but with touch controls you couldn't go all crazy anyway. As long as nothing gets as overpowered as the Hammer in Phantom Hourglass, things will be fine.

And not having a meter will add to the simplicity. You don't want too many things to clutter the screen. Ideally, there only would be the item and your hearts visible at all times.

Outfits

With a game like this you want a collectible that's useful and that stays with you outside of the stages. Four Swords and Four Swords Adventures didn't have something like this, but Tri Force Heroes then introduced the outfits, which were arguably the best thing about the game.

And this is quite popular with Nintendo games right now. Breath of the Wild offers over a hundred different armor pieces and Super Mario Odyssey has many fun costumes, where they currently keep adding new ones in updates, which is exciting. But Tri Force Heroes did it before and put Toon Link in many cool and crazy outfits, which all had different abilities.

There's also lots of potential for fan service by putting Link into costumes based on different tribes and characters from the Zelda universe, like this neat Darunia outfit, which lets you walk through fire and swim through lava:

There were also outfits based on Fierce Deity Link, Linebeck, the Kokiri, the classic River Zora, the Hammer Bros. from Super Mario, Tingle, Princess Zelda and more.

It was a great feature, where they could just copy the whole thing and even bring a majority of the outfits back. I doubt that anybody would mind. Some outfits were based on multiplayer features or the Energy Gauge, which probably wouldn't return, other outfits might be altered and there certainly would be many new outfits that Tri Force Heroes didn't have, for example to enhance any of the new items. It would be like with the masks in Majora's Mask, which originated in Ocarina of Time, but were expanded even further for the sequel.

Like in Tri Force Heroes you would craft the outfits from Rupees and treasures found in the stages. The main difference here would be that the treasures aren't a reward for beating a stage, they are found everywhere inside the stages by killing enemies, cutting bushes, lifting rocks, opening treasure chests and so on. This would really reward the players, who take their time to explore everything within a level, instead of simply rushing to the finish like.

Shadow Link Battles

While this entire concept has taken a lot from the multiplayer-centric Zelda games, it was so far focused on singleplayer and for good reasons. When playing a game on your mobile phone the connection isn't always the best. And with Nintendo's smart device titles it's already annoying enough that they require a good connections (think LTE) for most of the time or they won't work... The situation wouldn't become any better with an unstable multiplayer on top of that.

It will be interesting to see what Nintendo has planned for Mario Kart Tour, but so far the multiplayer modes were based on "ghosts". Super Mario Run puts you against other players' attempts at the "Toad Rally". And in Fire Emblem Heroes you can create a team for the Arena, which will be controlled by the AI, if another player chooses to challenge you.

But the Zelda series has done something similar before with the StreetPass Shadow Link Battles in A Link Between Worlds. There you could create your own Shadow Links and face the Shadow Links of other players in an arena, which was the fiercest enemy in the game. Tri Force Heroes brought this special AI back, but sadly only for the Den of Trials.

Here it could work similar to A Link Between Worlds. Your Shadow Link will have the same number as hearts as you, which gets used to rank you with other players in the beginning. Additionally you can equip your Shadow Link with an item and an outfit.

Before you enter the arena, you can chose the same: one item and one outfit. The arenas will be based on the different areas and dungeons from the game and have various hazards, but won't have any items in them. This added too much of a luck factor to Tri Force Heroes, where players may or may not spawn right next to their desired items. So, it's best to let them choose what they want upfront.

It's also thinkable that you might face multiple Shadow Links in one match, instead of just one. There could even be different modes, like one where you need to collect Force Gems in a given time.

Content Updates

Nintendo likes to update their smart device titles with new content, features and events on a regular basis. This keeps the games in the news and brings players back to them. And it adds a significant reason to keep playing the games.

Here this would be simple. Major updates would add new areas to the world, which could come with new items that are useful in there. For example there could be a swamp area that features the Water Rod. And of course there would be new outfits to upgrade the new items or to help within the new environments, like a Deku outfit that prevents you from sinking in bogs.

New outfits could also always be part of smaller updates, which are released more often. These could even be there to promote other Zelda or Nintendo games at the time.

Additionally, there could be special "Challenges" for specific areas, which are only available for a limited time and which will reward you with rare materials or many Rupees or "orbs".

Payment Options

With games on smart devices there is always the question, how they eventually become profitable for the developers. Nintendo has tried different approaches here, where Zelda could be somewhere between things.

The game could only give you access to one or two areas in the beginning. You can still enter the final dungeon, if you grind enough "orbs" (or whatever) from those areas, but you can also unlock additional areas by purchasing them. Ideally, there would also be a way to buy the full game, where you get access to all current and future areas at once.

Additionally, there could be micro-transactions to purchase "orbs", Rupees or materials. I'm not a fan of those, but I also don't mind them, as long as they are fully optional.

Conclusion

All of this doesn't really re-invent the wheel here. Make it singleplayer, take the controls of the Nintendo DS Zelda games, take the procedurally generated levels of Four Swords, take the outfits from Tri Force Heroes and the Shadow Link Battles from A Link Between Worlds and all of this would make an entertaining mix for Zelda fans, who want to game from time to time on their smartphones. Of course Nintendo would potentially come up with something new instead, but past Zelda games have already proven that the series might work just fine on smart devices with what it already offered.

Tri Force Heroes x Breath of the Wild DLC?

Maybe Nintendo has given up on Tri Force Heroes, but I haven't and I'm still giving potential DLC some thoughts. If you didn't know this already, data miners had found out about six DLC costumes and two additional DLC areas after the game's release, as documented on The Cutting Room Floor. We got one of the areas and two of the costumes with the first update, but we never saw the rest.

Originally I thought that the rest of the DLC might be some 30th Anniversary celebratory content, which might have gotten cancelled together with any other 30th Anniversary plans, when they delayed Breath of the Wild. But there's another possibility. What if they have planned to add some promotional content for Breath of the Wild?

• Outfits based on Link's gear in the game.
• A Sheikah Shrine area.
• Additional Lucky Lobby Ball Song with the game's theme.

They could dive a little bit in the technology stuff here already, where Sheikah Shrine trials would fit the level based structure of Tri Force Heroes quite well. Instead of the typical Triforce portal at the end of each floor, they could have the three Links gather around a Sheikah Eye. This would be more puzzle based, after the Den of Trials was entirely combat-based. But one of the Guardians could even become the boss of the area.

The new outfits could feature Link's blue tunic from the game and maybe also some other gear from the game, like the Chain Mail. Or there could be outfits based on new enemies, like some Bokoblin outfit. But one or two outfits from the game probably would be enough, because there are still lots of potential outfits based on classic Zelda left, e.g. the Fairy Costume. This could also be mixed, for example having a costume based on the Old Man, who's both from classic Zelda games, as well as Breath of the Wild. Or as a reward for the Sheikah trial you could get a Sheik costume.

Now, for example the blue Breath of the Wild tunic could upgrade the Bow with Fire Arrows or some new arrow type. Fire Arrows certainly would be helpful throughout the game without completely breaking it.

If such a DLC really will happen, it does make sense that they haven't released it yet, because they have to show us more of the new game first, before such a content pack could be appreciated. I still could see something like a Zelda Direct happening later this year, where they talk more about Breath of the Wild, but also show us upcoming DLCs for both Tri Force Heroes and Hyrule Warriors: Legends (the latter could also get some Breath of the Wild costume for Link).

Of course it's more likely that I'm beating a dead horse here and Tri Force Heroes is simply done. But I'm just entertaining thoughts.

Good Bye, 30th Anniversary

(image by Rasheed)

This was to be expected after the announcement that Breath of the Wild wouldn't be released before March 2017, but now that the E3 is over, we can safely assume that Nintendo doesn't have any plans for the 30th Anniversary of Zelda.

We basically got our unofficial anniversary celebration in March, where Nintendo released many new Zelda things right after the anniversary date with Twilight Princess HD, the Wolf Link amiibo, the Twilight Princess Picross and Hyrule Warriors: Legends. And especially the latter will keep me entertained throughout the entire year with all its DLC.

But with the delay of Breath of the Wild, any other anniversary plans probably got cancelled. Anniversaries are always marketing moves and with the new big game from the table it probably didn't make sense for Nintendo to celebrate. Instead they will focus on Pokémon, which is celebrating 20 years and is going to see new big releases this year with Sun and Moon.

If Nintendo really did anything for 30th Anniversary of The Legend of Zelda, I would have expected two things mainly: the announcement of a Zelda Anime movie and more DLC for Tri Force Heroes.

Kimishima already implicated that something like a Zelda Movie will be possible for the future and I suppose that we're going to see first announcements after the release of Breath of the Wild. Some fans might not be too happy about the focus on exploration, instead on cutscenes and story, and a Zelda Movie could just give them what they want, while Zelda returns to being a real game. And some anime in the artstyle of the new game really could be lovely.

About Tri Force Heroes, I already said my piece two months ago: the game is dead and the only hope would have been the release of more content. Data miners found place holders for four more costumes and one more area, but sadly we never got those. And it might be possible that Nintendo planned some special anniversary content, similar to the Four Swords: Anniversary Edition, but they cancelled it with the delay of Breath of the Wild. GREZZO is now working on a new game, so Tri Force Heroes is probably done for good. Too bad, some additional content would have been great and I was hoping that they would improve some parts of the game, especially the singleplayer... But that's probably not going to happen. At least not until they remake this game in ten years.

I'm also not expecting anything about the 30th Anniversary of Metroid. Federation Force will be released right after the anniversary, which is on August 6th, but they'll probably just release this game quietly, instead of angering the fans any further. I don't think, it was even showcased at E3, now was it...?

Expecting Zelda Direct

The countdown is on! In less than two months, from June 14 to 16, the E3 will be happening in Los Angeles. Around the time we can expect the big reveals for Zelda and Nintendo's new console. Obviously these are the Nintendo main topics that everyone is anticipating for E3 (besides some Pokémon stuff maybe). And if Nintendo really reveals their new system for this year, they want to set their entire focus on it. At the same time the new Zelda game has been in development for many years now and will be also released on Wii U, which deserves a lot of attention as well. Naturally it also might be a launch title for the new system, but both things will take attention away from each other. Remember that Nintendo already has displayed Twilight Princess for GameCube in full glory one year before they announced the launch of the Wii. But we didn't have any big Wii U demos for the new Zelda game yet...

The solution? Schedule the first official Zelda Direct upfront! They did it with Smash Bros. last year, where they already aired several things on Sunday before E3. And with a Zelda Direct on Sunday they could draw all the attention towards Nintendo first and make everyone familiar with the nice shiny new game, before they drop the NX bomb on the actual E3 presentation. And we still have the 30th Anniversary to celebrate...

The Zelda Direct could go down like the following:

• Completely new gameplay of the Wii U game at the beginning, maybe the rumored female protagonist exploring a dungeon. Something stunning.
• Reveal of the game's official title, no release date yet.
• Overview of several features of the game.
• Development talk.
• 30th Anniversary celebration announcement.
• Reveal of something crazy new for the Anniversary, like a Zelda anime.
• New Tri Force Heroes Anniversary content available for free soon.
• Short showcase / trailer of the content in the upcoming Link's Awakening Pack for Hyrule Warriors (Legends).
• Maybe also some more free content for Hyrule Warriors (Legends) as another Anniversary gift, e.g. more classic costumes.
• Summary.

On the actual Nintendo E3 Direct they can then reveal the new console using Zelda as the prototype. Since we're now already familiar with the game, they can focus on what the console has to offer. That's where they might give a release date for both console and the game. And then they can show off, what other games they have in store for the system, maybe even some big reveal like Metroid Prime 4 at the end.

I'd say, this makes perfect sense. Otherwise Zelda and the 30th Anniversary would clash too much with the NX reveal. In any case I would expect a Zelda Direct at some time this year. By now they air Directs for many different game series, so you would think that they would do the same for Zelda, when they have a big new game and an anniversary to go through.

Of course there is also the possibility that they really only do the Pokémon 20th Anniversary this year and there won't be any celebration of the 30th Anniversary of The Legend of Zelda... Never mind me then.

Drought Force Heroes

I haven't played Tri Force Heroes in a while now and if the GameFAQs board is any indication, it should be pretty hard to find people these days. This was to be expected by the nature of the game and I personally can't really complain much, because I essentially got what I wanted from this. I wanted an online Four Swords game for a long time and was having a blast playing this with different people from different Zelda communities, even sometimes with random people. I've even spent more than 200 hours with this game, which is a lot for a new Zelda.

Still... I wish that they would have tried something more lasting. For the next months I will probably keep playing Hyrule Warriors: Legends and easily top those 200 hours, because this game just has lots and lots of things to do. Adventure Mode is for the most part thrown together mass missions, but if you're enjoying the gameplay, you won't mind this too much. And maybe they could have gone further with the challenges and material collections in Tri Force Heroes to keep people playing a little longer like that.

Of course it's in the nature and structure of a Zelda game to be finite, so even with more challenges and outfits it would ultimately find its end at some point. A different approach would have been needed to keep people playing, e.g. an online highscore system. Assemble teams and try to beat the levels and challenges as fast as possible and with as little damage as possible. The key to a healthy multiplayer is competition, even in team games, and I did put many thoughts into the Coliseum mode for the same reason...

But there are also probably many people out there, who haven't done all challenges and haven't gotten all the outfits yet. They just lost interest over time. Here it would have been important to keep attention on the game with regular updates, like they did with Splatoon. It was discovered that they had four more outfits planned and even another area... Where did this content go?

Well, my theory was that one of the major updates will be linked to the 30th Anniversary as a free gift, similar to the Four Swords Anniversary Edition. However, Nintendo didn't touch the subject of the Zelda Anniversary yet, where they might do so at E3 and then release another update of Tri Force Heroes afterwards as part of the celebration. But this will be very late and they should have released at least two updates in the meantime to keep the game relevant. Even minor updates count, e.g. having one or two new outfits to try. It would also be easy to add new things to the arena or new challenges to existing stages. By just adding one challenge to each stage, dedicated players like me would go through the entire game again! I'd be happy to.

It would also keep the sales coming. It has sold over a million copies worldwide, which isn't bad - it already did better than Four Swords Adventures. But some small additions now and then would keep the game in the news, keep people playing and with that generate more sales, because more people want to join the fun. So, right now the drought feels like a missed opportunity and I hope that Nintendo didn't already abandon this gem for good.

Tri Force Heroes: Potential Outfit Characters

This is following my post about potential outfit abilities in Tri Force Heroes, where I simply thought about what abilities could still become a thing for future outfits in the game. Now, this time let's sort of do the opposite and think about, what characters from the The Legend of Zelda series could be turned into costumes for Toon Link. He already does a cosplay of Darunia, a Zora, Zelda, Tingle, the Lady and even a Hammer Bros. And in the first DLC they added Fierce Deity Link and Linebeck, both offering quite the amount of fan service. And something tells me that this is what they will keep doing in future DLC.

Here are some things that I could imagine or would like to see:

• Cucco
• Ganondorf
• Great Fairy
• Groose
• Postman
• Ravio
• Retro Link
• Skull Kid

I already mentioned the Ganondorf idea in my previous post as a potential reward for a Boss Rush. Toon Link dressed up as Ganondorf could look glorious and I'd imagine that he keeps a tiny trident instead of a sword. Link already dresses as Zelda, so it makes sense to also offer a Ganondorf costume to complete the trio. I'm not entirely sure what kind of abilities a Ganondorf costume would offer, maybe something shooting fireballs... But this should be different from sword beams, since we're already having three outfits with that.

A Postman outfit would be great as well, where the ability to hold onto things, even if you get hit, would be a nice fit. This idea comes from DJLazerBreakfast on Reddit and I really like it. The ability certainly would be helpful in the "Don't drop the pot" challenges or whenever you fight in totem formation.

I keep mentioning the Great Fairy outfit, simply because it used to be a thing in development, but it also showed that originally the game used to have the classic Link from A Link Between Worlds. Toon Link was the better choice stylistically, but they still could add a costume, which makes you look like Retro Link, simply by using the model from A Link Between Worlds. This would be similar to the Timeless Tunic and I'm not sure, what it should do besides changing the music again.

I thought about having a costume, where Link has a shield and automatically uses it, much like he did in the first three Zelda games. But that's basically what the Serpent Toga already is doing and I still think a shield would be best implemented as an item, where you would have a new outfit that upgrades your shield to Hylian Shield levels.

Not really a character, but probably a nice idea is the Cucco Costume, which lets you fly without holding a Cucco. And whenever an enemy hits you multiple time, it will summon a short Cucco Revenge Squad to hit the enemy. As a bonus, glass and ice floors won't crumble, since you are a light weight. I already had similar ideas in the past, where I thought about a "Roc Suit", but this is now probably more fleshed out.

Groose, Ravio and Skull Kid would make great costumes, where I'm completely undecided about the abilities. Groose could throw stuff further and with Ravio you'd expect something with Rupees, but we already have that...

I still do expect that we're going to get four more DLC outfits and if I had to decide, I would probably go for Ganondorf, the Postman, the Great Fairy and the Cucco.

Tri Force Heroes: Anniversary Area Ideas

Following my previous post about the Realm of Memories I still hope that they will also add something similar to Tri Force Heroes for the 30th Anniversary. It shouldn't be the exact same thing, of course, because recycling old graphics and areas wouldn't work well in Tri Force Heroes. It should follow the simpler level designs and you want those pretty visuals. Also, there already exists lots of stuff from A Link to the Past in the game, e.g. bosses like Arrghus or Moldorm, since it was based on A Link Between Worlds. So, having new levels based on A Link to the Past wouldn't add much. But I imagine that having levels in a reminiscent style of the original NES dungeons could feel fresh. Something like the Royal Tomb in The Minish Cap, where they played the classic underworld music and sounds, but it still fit into the game well.

The dungeons in Tri Force Heroes and A Link Between Worlds all got these polished looks, like the bad guys are constantly scrubbing all the walls. But this actually fits the NES dungeon visuals very well, all you need are the more vivid colors for the rooms. Add the classic underworld tune and you would feel like getting a remake of The Legend of Zelda on the 3DS. I could even imagine to have one new area solely dedicated on first game, instead of going through several games again. After all we're celebrating the birthday of the first game...

There could be two levels on the overworld and two in the underworld, which alternates betweeb overworld, underworld, overworld and underworld, so it feels like playing two classic dungeons. For the overworld part they could bring back more enemies from A Link Between Worlds, like Lynel and Armos for a Death Mountain section.

And to make things more interesting in the dungeons, they could even remake at least one of the classic bosses, where I feel like Gleeock would be the perfect candidate:

They could use his three-headed form and make it so that every head is in a different color, where only the Link in the same color can attack the head. Since this game works with depth, the heads would also change their heights, so that the Links would have to use the totem mechanic to adept. Of course this is nothing the game already hasn't done, but as a surprise comeback boss it certainly would be a nice addition.

Manhandla could work as well, but they already used her for both Four Swords games, where it would be a little bit boring to do the same thing again. Also, the Dum Dum boss ("Prismantus") already is reminiscent of Manhandla in a way. Gleeock would feel a little bit more special.

I would also love to see Aquamentus again and even he could be interesting for this game. I imagine a boss fight, where the camera is up front, similar to Blizzagia, and you see how Aquamentus comes marching forward towards you. You have to totem up to attack his head with sword beams or items, but he shoots fireballs at you to destroy the totem. He could be the middle boss of the 2nd level, while Gleeock gets to be the area's boss in level 4.

Getting new bosses might even explain the lack of a Boss Gauntlet so far. They will add this in the end, when all bosses are in the game. So, in a final update they could add a Boss Rush as a 2nd level to the Den of Trials, where you fight all bosses from the game in succession. The level would be divided in zones like the original Den of Trials, so it doesn't get too frustrating.

A fitting reward for the Boss Rush would be a King of Darkness costume, which gives Link the armor, cape and hairstyle of Ganondorf and replaces the sword with a tiny Trident. I could easily picture an outfit like this - it would look glorious and add a lot to the humor of the game. However, I don't have any good ideas for its abilities, except for shooting energy balls.

The Anniversary Area on the other hand would offer a set of new materials, which are used to craft new outfits at Madame Couture's. This could include the Great Fairy outfit for example.

Replaying the Realm of Memories

The 2nd best thing to play for the 30th Anniversary right after the original The Legend of Zelda is the Zelda game that actually has "Anniversary" right there in the title: Four Swords Anniversary Edition. This game got released for free on Nintendo DSi and 3DS during the 25th Anniversary, as well as for a short time two years ago in North America. I can only hope that it will be released again this year during the 30th Anniversary for anyone, who originally has missed the game.

For the 30th Anniversary I want to replay as many Zelda games as possible, but with both Four Swords and Tri Force Heroes I doubt that I will replay them from start to finish. There's no real need, since you can replay every level anytime anyway. In addition replaying levels always adds to a savegame: in Tri Force Heroes you can keep collecting materials, while Four Swords Anniversary Edition has a six digit Rupee counter. Mine is currently at 500,000 Rupees, which is a lot and got accumulated by playing the levels over and over again. But I'd rather increase my numbers in an existing savegame, instead of creating a redundant new one. The exception might be, if this game really gets re-released and I decide to play it on one of my other 3DS systems.

Replaying Four Swords Adventures on the other hand would be different, because the game has cutscenes and dialogues that you only get to view on your first time playing through the game. And there's nothing much to add after you've completed the levels, save for having 99 Force Fairies. (Which is why I love the challenges and outfits in Tri Force Heroes, it adds personal progress and keeps you playing for a while.) But I hope that I will be able to play Four Swords Adventures in multiplayer later this year, where I will have a new experience with the game.

Anyway, for now I just decided to go through the Realm of Memories again, the levels dedicated to the Anniversary, where you play through areas of A Link to the Past, Link's Awakening and The Hyrule Fantasy covered in graphics and music from these games. It wouldn't be the first time that I've replayed these levels just for fun, but it's the first time after playing Tri Force Heroes, which opened a new chapter in the Zelda multiplayer games and which I have played a lot recently.

At the beginning I even had trouble adopting back to the singleplayer mechanics of Four Swords. I was more inclined to beat the level the way it's supposed to be done in multiplayer, instead of abusing the "call" mechanic. I even picked up the 2nd Link to carry him around at first. Which is an interesting development, after I felt like Tri Force Heroes was lacking some important singleplayer features from this game. Now the warping actually feels like cheating to me. There still should be something like a "follow" command in Tri Force Heroes, but the other Links shouldn't warp through walls.

And I have to say that GREZZO certainly improved on the level design, when you compare both games directly. It got a lot simpler and more straightforward, but I feel like their levels in Four Swords were very tiresome. The floors are quite large and while the course is usually linear, it's very intertwined throughout the entire area, which makes you feel like you're going back and forth. It's also overusing the enemy switches, where every player steps on a switch, doors get closed and you have to fight some waves on enemies. Tri Force Heroes still has this mechanic, but it usually dedicates its own floors to this, instead of doing it all the time. Overall the levels in Tri Force Heroes are much shorter, but they always give you the feeling that playing one more level is okay. If you keep saying "just one more game", it's multiplayer done right. GREZZO's levels in Four Swords on the other hand just make me want to quit after a while.

It's even worse with the Hero's Trial, which I will save for a later date. These levels are so diabolical and exhausting that I really have to be in the mood for some big challenge, much like with Zelda II - The Adventure of Link. And the Hero's Trial levels are so long, I couldn't ever imagine playing them online with people. Which is why the Den of Trials in Tri Force Heroes got divided in so many zones with entry points...

But overall the additional levels for Four Swords were a good idea and I can only hope that Tri Force Heroes will get some special Anniversary levels as well. It would be very fitting.

Tri Force Heroes: Lucky Lobby Music Ball Song Additions

I love the Music Ball or "Lucky Lobby Ball" in Tri Force Heroes, because it's a fun little minigame that keeps you entertained, while you wait for other players. And you might wait a while these days, where current selection of songs can get a bit stale.

Currently there are 23 different songs in the Lobby Ball game (a full list exists on ZeldaWiki) and hopefully they will add more in a future update of the game. Let's make that a 42!

(Capcom Zelda games are out of question though, because it seems that Nintendo doesn't hold the rights to the music from these games. So, no Dancing Dragon Dagon for us!)

Here are my additions, my Lucky Lobby Ball B-Side:

24. Underworld (The Legend of Zelda)
25. Overworld (Zelda II - The Adventure of Link)
26. Town (Zelda II - The Adventure of Link)
27. Palace (Zelda II - The Adventure of Link)
28. Lost Woods (A Link to the Past)
29. Sword Search (Link's Awakening)
30. Mountains (Link's Awakening)
31. Hyrule Field (Ocarina of Time)
32. Astral Observatory (Majora's Mask)
33. Deku Palace (Majora's Mask)
34. Windfall Island (The Wind Waker)
35. Dragon Roost Island (The Wind Waker)
36. Lake Hylia (Four Swords Adventures)
37. Midna's Theme (Twilight Princess)
38. Title Theme (Spirit Tracks)
39. Groose's Theme (Skyward Sword)
40. Beedle's Theme
41. Hyrule Castle
42. Kakariko Village

What songs would you add to the Lucky Lobby Ball? Let me know in the comments!

Tri Force Heroes: More Insights into Hero Points

I've kept playing a lot of Tri Force Heroes, mostly to help friends and other people from the ZeldaEurope Community out with their challenges. By now I've clocked over 180 hours and got over 100 Hero Points:

There are several ways on how to get Hero Points other than not winning a roulette. Those are:

• Chosing "I don't care" in the level select.
• Chosing "I don't care" for the challenges.
• Repeating a zone in the Den of Trials.

You have to complete the level after chosing "I don't care", of course. I was also pleasantly surprised about getting Hero Points in the Den of Trials, but it makes fully sense, since there are people, who like to drop out, just because they can't start at the Baneful Zone. Nintendo probably should have advertised this, though.

And this is, how I accumulated so many Hero Points. There's even a small reward, if you get more than 100. The dialogue with the doppel in town changes a 2nd time:

After 30 Hero Points it tells you that there's no dust anymore on the doppel. After 100 Hero Points it's supposedly polished and the pride of the town. Update: After 150 Hero Points the dialogue changes a little bit again. Now people from everywhere are coming to visit.

I don't know, if this text goes back to its previous state, if you lose Hero Points again, but it probably does. This also makes me undecided, whether this actually counts for 100% or not. It's technically not permanent, since you could start losing them again, but on the other hand the same goes for having zero deaths in Link's Awakening.

But I'm currently preparing a post about all these 100% questions, what should count and what not...

Tri Force Heroes: Potential Coliseum Challenges

Today I've updated my post about Coliseum Improvements with a simple new idea: challenges.

I previously complained about not having a completely neutral arena and about the Wallmasters ruining fair duels. All of this could by solved by adding specific Drabland Challenges as optional rules to the arena. Those could be:

• Evade the Wallmaster!
• Avoid the volcanic rocks! / Don't get hit by snowballs!
• Don't fall at all! / Avoid falling and quicksand!
• Win without using a sword!
• Fight in the dark!

So, instead of a Wallmaster appearing during every duel, this would become a challenge, where players can vote, what crazy things they want or not. And by default, the Sky arena wouldn't have any volcanic rocks anymore, but you can add them now to any arena; in case of the Snowland arena(s) it would even be snowballs.

I'm also more strongly obsessed with the idea of having multiple arenas per area. I mean, look at the Den of Trials! Pretty much every floor there could qualify as an arena for the Coliseum! These kind of places are easy to make and they would a lot more variety to the whole game mode.

Together with challenges the Coliseum wouldn't grow boring so easily.

Tri Force Heroes: Hero Points Update

Tri Force Heroes was updated to version 2.1.0 yesterday as a little surprise. And Nintendo is still working hard on fixing the problem with people quitting all the time. It seems the black listing didn't do anything and now they give you rewards for not quitting, if you don't get your vote. This gives you Hero Points, which earns you free missing materials at the merchant and an upgrade for the Bear Minimum outfit.

I have completed the game already for 100% and if I play, I play to help others completing their challenges. And it's nice that this is now also rewarded. If you select "I can't decide" (which actually means "I don't care"), you will also get Hero Points. And this really brought me back into playing the game. It's a nice incentive for people to stay around and play more, help others.

The problem is, however, that you might run into a group of people, who all just select "I don't care" and clearly all have completed the game already. That's not much fun for me, I like the feeling of at least achieving some progress for someone else, being helpful, but also laying back. I don't want to be all "do this, come here, do that".

And the reward was a bad choice...

I kind of liked, how the Bear Minimum was a "Hero Mode" costume, making the game more difficult. If I score 30 Hero Points, it will be a better version of the Cursed Tights, making yet another costume obsolete and also destroying the only real challenge costume. Actually it's more a reason not to go for Hero Points...

They should have upgraded the Hero's Tunic in different ways for scoring Hero Points instead. It's called the Hero's Tunic anyway and right now it doesn't have any use at all. So, why not give this costume an upgrade instead? - The answer to that question turned out to be simple: the Dopples in the singleplayer mode are using the Hero's Tunic, so it has to stay neutral to keep things balanced there. On the other hand this would have been an even nicer reward, because it helps you with completing the singleplayer Challenges.

Tri Force Heroes: Coliseum Improvements

The Arena was one of the features of this game I looked forward to the most, since the Zelda series kind of has a long history of failed Battle Modes. There were the Shadow Battles in Four Swords Adventures, which were pretty awesome, but you could only play it with other people locally, so most Zelda fans never experienced this. Phantom Hourglass then offered an online mode, however, the game of controlling Phantoms and collecting Force Gems was very different and probably not the most fun for everyone. Spirit Tracks then offered a more fun Battle Mode, but dropped the online component. And while A Link Between Worlds had an excellent duel mode, you could only play it against an AI.

Finally with Tri Force Heroes there's the traditional Battle Mode experience online, but it has too many flaws to be enjoyed to the fullest. I find playing with Randoms rarely to be fun and playing with friends only works, because you're avoiding unfair advantages of certain costumes. But it's not too late to fix this. Nintendo has already released an update for this game and more will follow, where the Coliseum could potentially be improved. And with this post I want to give some ideas on how to do this.

Costume Balance

Ironically my new favorite collectible item of all times is stirring up most of the issues. So, fixing this is probably one of the most important things, because some outfits are outright overpowered. Mainly the Sword Master Sword, the Hammerwear and the Serpent Toga come into mind.

The Hammerwear needs some serious nerfing, even in the main game it's very unbalanced. It's very fast, very safe thanks to the stun effect and does the most damage in the game with SIX hearts. The strongest attacks, which you can do with other weapons, deal "only" four hearts of damage and those are either Spin Attacks or Big Bombs, both being quite unsafe. The upgraded Hammer should only do four Hearts maximum as well and it should become a lot slower, more similar to the Nice Hammer in A Link Between Worlds, but maybe not as slow.

The Serpent Toga is only really an issue in the Ruins, where you can render yourself invincible by picking up the Bombs and then staying in the center of your colored circle. Now, there's an easy solution for that: just make the Boomerang pick up Serpent Toga users. If that was possible, then there wouldn't be a problem. Also, maybe an option, where offensive play gets rewarded and not defensive play, would help, so that players just don't hide behind invulnerability.

The Sword Master Suit really causes trouble with its range and I'm not sure, what could be done here. The increased range is the whole point of the costume, but it's also what makes it so hard to counter, especially if there are no items in play. But this leads me to another point...


Item Selection

Now let's say you're actually going for an upgraded item, there's always the chance that you won't get it, because your opponents pick it up first. And then you're in there with a big disadvantage. Many matches are decided by pure luck right at the beginning because of this.

Now there's a couple different solutions here. One would be that downed players drop their item again. In theory it sounds good, however, your opponent might wear the Sword Master Suit and is pretty much untouchable with you not having any powers.

So, the only real solution would be making sure that you get what you want. Essentially they could just use the empty sockets to fill them with enough items for everyone. Like in the Forest there could be three Bows and three Bombs, so that everyone will be able to pick up what he prefers. This also would work for the Vulcano and Snowlands, but Riverside and Fortress would need additional sockets and on Ruins this wouldn't work at all, because this arena has all items.

Another way would be giving you automatically the item, which gets upgraded by your costume. So, for example selecting the Robowear equips you with the Gripshot on all arenas. This way all items could be utilized in all arenas at any time, making the game more interesting. It would also add more balance against Sword Masters in arenas without any items. It's an easy solution with good results, given that they have nerfed the Hammerwear beforehand. Because otherwise you would just get hammered everywhere and all the time.


Options / Rules

At the very least I want some way to turn off the Wallmaster in duels, because it can be really annoying and disrupting a good fight between two equal players. It could even be a general option or something like the Drabland Challenges, where you play the Coliseum under certain rules like "Evade the Wallmaster!" or "Fight in Darkness!". Even the volcanic rocks in the Sky arena should be a challenge like this, since these rocks can be fun, but they destroy a perfectly neutral arena.

So, before a match players can vote for a challenge / rule or the default game. And I feel like the following challenges could be interesting for the arena:

• Evade the Wallmaster!
• Avoid the volcanic rocks! / Don't get hit by snowballs!
• Don't fall at all! / Avoid falling and quicksand!
• Win without using a sword!
• Fight in the dark!

Win Criterias / Game Modes

Now, this could be a topic on its own. In Tri Force Heroes the player wins, who died the least after 90 seconds. On a tie, the remaining hearts count. In A Link Between Worlds the mode basically was "Last Link Standing" and when the two opponents still were alive after a time limit, the player, who dealt the most damage, won. This was to counter Blue Potions, which otherwise would decide the game.

Now, with tactics like the Serpent Toga I previously felt that A Link Between Worlds had the better way and it should be similar with Tri Force Heroes. However, then costumes like the Queen of Hearts would become useless and it's all about having the best damage output. Defensive play should be legitimate as well. "When two people quarrel, a third rejoices." And if someone wins by simply evading and hiding, it's the other two players' fault, really,

Still, maybe there could be an option for different modes that have different win criterias, so that the players can decide. There could even be a mode, where instead of destroying each other, the goal is to collect the most Force Gems or Rupees, similar to the Battle Mode in Spirit Tracks.


Big Plays

For the StreetPass battles in A Link Between Worlds there were 50 medals to collect / challenges to clear. And boy, was that a lot of fun. There were challenges for all the different items, some tricky kills and more. In Tri Force Heroes you could already have one medal for each outfit, even ones that you usually wouldn't use in the arena. For example there could be a medal, where everyone wears the Tri Suit (which actually activates all the effects except for the Rupees, I've tested this). This would encourage people to try and use all the different costumes in the arena, not just the most powerful ones.

And this would make people play the Coliseum more. At least until they have collected all 50+ medals. Of course there needs to be some neat reward, maybe you get a special costume for clearing them all. This would be perfect for a Coliseum Update and here are some other examples for potential medals:

• Cause 9 Hearts of damage with the Cacto-Clothes!
• Win without using B or Y!
• Win without losing a Heart!

This could keep us playing for a while. Naturally some people would just help each other out with these. I would probably abuse my 2nd Nintendo 3DS systems for the tougher challenges. But overall this could be a good idea to bring more life into the arena. And all they would have to do is importing this feature from A Link Between Worlds.


Additional Arenas

Two more areas get added to the game via updates and there should be at least two more arenas as well. One for the Den of Trials and one for whatever area they will add next. The Den of Trials arena could visually follow the Baneful Zone, which was rather unique at the end. Instead of winning specific materials, you would just randomly win a material from any area, since the Den of Trials doesn't have materials on its own.

Of course one or two arenas won't add much. Ideally there would be multiple arenas per area, instead of just one. Especially the Dunes come to mind, where you have the arena with the giant balance platform, but no quicksand. It would be interesting to have an arena with sand to fight on. Theoretically there could be an arena for every level in the game and since these are small places, they shouldn't be too hard to built. After all the Den of Trials has over 30 floors, which all could qualify as arenas.

WARNING: Den of Trials SPOILERS ahead!!!

Shadow Link Bots

Following the amazing Floor 39 it would also be nice to have the Shadow Link AI in the arena for a singleplayer practice option. It was a lot of fun to fight them in A Link Between Worlds and I see no reason, why this shouldn't be used for the Coliseum Mode. There even could be a mode, where instead of fighting each other, the three players team up against three Dark Links - exactly like in the Den of Trials... Imagine the fun chaos, it probably might even be more popular than the normal Coliseum.

And of course you should be able to do the medals by playing against the Shadow Links, so you're still able to complete the game in singleplayer.

Linebeck's Uniform and the Friendly Token Guy

It's noticeable that the Faux Hero, who gives you the Friendly Tokens at the front of the castle, only reacts differently to three outfits: the Timeless Tunic, the Tri Suit and Linebeck's Uniform. The first two are gotten from Friendly Tokens and it makes sense that he would react to them, but why also to Linebeck? Maybe this costume was supposed to cost Friendly Tokens as well, early on I speculated that there would be a costume costing the remaining seven tokens, which was before I discovered that you could sell them.

Also, with Linebeck's Uniform it's possible to read the secret message down at the water. Only the Tri Suit let you do that so far and the message was supposedly only readable by someone with many friends, while Linebeck is more of a loner. So, thematically it doesn't fit, which might be another hint that Linebeck's Uniform originally was supposed to cost many Friendly Tokens.

Other than that I also collected all 15 Friendly Tokens from the kid by now. I farmed them using all my 3DS systems, because the Zelda fan meeting later this month sadly got cancelled and I didn't want to wait until summer, before I was able to complete everything. And I still have another copy of the game, where I could collect them all over again. But with that I have 100%ed this game so to say. At least until the next big update hits.